Rietveld texture analysis of Dabie Shan eclogite from TOF neutron diffraction spectra

Abstract

Orientation distributions of garnet and omphacite in eclogite from the ultra-high pressure Dabie Shan belt in east-central China were determined from neutron diffraction data by the Rietveld method. Diffraction spectra were recorded in 16 sample orientations with seven detectors, with a kappa-geometry texture goniometer at the time-of-flight (TOF) neutron facility at the Intense Pulsed Neutron Source (IPNS). The textures of the two minerals were extracted simultaneously from 16 × 7 = 112 diffraction spectra, covering a large portion of the pole figure. The texture analysis was performed both with the Williams–Imhof–Matthies–Vinel (WIMV) method and the harmonic method, implemented in the program packageMAUD. The incomplete pole-figure coverage introduced artificial oscillations in the case of the harmonic method. The discrete WIMV method produced better results, which illustrate a more or less random orientation distribution for cubic garnet. Apparently elongated grains turned out to be layers of randomly oriented crystals. Monoclinic omphacite displays a sharp texture, with [001] parallel to the lineation direction. The texture data obtained by neutron diffraction were verified with EBSP (electron backscatter pattern) measurements.