Lawsonite
Encyclopedia
Lawsonite is a hydrous calcium aluminium sorosilicate mineral with formula CaAl2Si2O7(OH)2·H2O. Lawsonite crystallizes in the orthorhombic system in prismatic, often tabular crystals. Crystal twinning
is common. It forms transparent to translucent colorless, white, and bluish to pinkish grey glassy to greasy crystals. Refractive indices
are nα=1.665, nβ=1.672 - 1.676, and nγ=1.684 - 1.686. It is typically almost colorless in thin section, but some lawsonite is pleochroic
from colorless to pale yellow to pale blue, depending on orientation. The mineral has a Mohs hardness of 8 and a specific gravity
of 3.09. It has perfect cleavage in two directions and a brittle fracture.
Lawsonite is a metamorphic
mineral typical of the blueschist facies. It also occurs as a secondary mineral in altered gabbro
and diorite
. Associate minerals include epidote
, titanite
, glaucophane, garnet
and quartz
. It is an uncommon constituent of eclogite
.
It was first described in 1895 for occurrences in the Tiburon peninsula, Marin County, California
. It was named for geologist
Andrew Lawson
(1861-1952) of the University of California
.
group of minerals. It is close to the ideal composition of CaAl2Si2O7(OH)2 . H2O giving it a close chemical composition with anorthite
CaAl2Si2O8 (its anhydrous equivalent), yet lawsonite has greater density and a different Al coordination (Comodi et al., 1996). The substantial amount of water bound in lawsonite’s crystal structure is released during its breakdown to denser minerals during prograde metamorphism
. This means lawsonite is capable of conveying appreciable water to shallow depths in subducting
oceanic lithosphere
(Clark et al., 2006). Experimentation on lawsonite to vary its responses at different temperatures and different pressures is among its most studied aspects, for it is these qualities that affect its abilities to carry water down to mantle
depths, similar to other OH-containing phases like antigorite, talc
, phengite
, staurolite
, and epidote
(Comodi et al., 1996).
of Marin County, California
; the Piedmont
metamorphic rock
s of Italy
; and schist
s in New Zealand
, New Caledonia
, China
, Japan
and from various points in the circum-Pacific orogenic belt
.
(pre-metamorphosed rock). This new mineral that is produced in the metamorphosed rock is the index mineral, which indicates the minimum pressure and temperature the protolith must have achieved in order for that mineral to form.
Lawsonite is known to form in high pressure, low temperature conditions, most commonly found in subduction zones where cold oceanic crust subducts down oceanic trenches into the mantle (Comodi et al., 1996). The initially-low temperature of the slab, and fluids taken down with it manage to depress isotherms and keep the slab much colder than the surrounding mantle, allowing for these unusual high pressure, low temperature conditions. Glaucophane
, kyanite
and zoisite
are other common minerals in the blueschist
facies
and are commonly found to coexist (Pawley et al., 1996). This assemblage is diagnostic of this facies.
Crystal twinning
Crystal twinning occurs when two separate crystals share some of the same crystal lattice points in a symmetrical manner. The result is an intergrowth of two separate crystals in a variety of specific configurations. A twin boundary or composition surface separates the two crystals....
is common. It forms transparent to translucent colorless, white, and bluish to pinkish grey glassy to greasy crystals. Refractive indices
Refractive index
In optics the refractive index or index of refraction of a substance or medium is a measure of the speed of light in that medium. It is expressed as a ratio of the speed of light in vacuum relative to that in the considered medium....
are nα=1.665, nβ=1.672 - 1.676, and nγ=1.684 - 1.686. It is typically almost colorless in thin section, but some lawsonite is pleochroic
Pleochroism
Pleochroism is an optical phenomenon in which a substance appears to be different colors when observed at different angles with polarized light.- Background :Anisotropic crystals will have optical properties that vary with the direction of light...
from colorless to pale yellow to pale blue, depending on orientation. The mineral has a Mohs hardness of 8 and a specific gravity
Specific gravity
Specific gravity is the ratio of the density of a substance to the density of a reference substance. Apparent specific gravity is the ratio of the weight of a volume of the substance to the weight of an equal volume of the reference substance. The reference substance is nearly always water for...
of 3.09. It has perfect cleavage in two directions and a brittle fracture.
Lawsonite is a metamorphic
Metamorphism
Metamorphism is the solid-state recrystallization of pre-existing rocks due to changes in physical and chemical conditions, primarily heat, pressure, and the introduction of chemically active fluids. Mineralogical, chemical and crystallographic changes can occur during this process...
mineral typical of the blueschist facies. It also occurs as a secondary mineral in altered gabbro
Gabbro
Gabbro refers to a large group of dark, coarse-grained, intrusive mafic igneous rocks chemically equivalent to basalt. The rocks are plutonic, formed when molten magma is trapped beneath the Earth's surface and cools into a crystalline mass....
and diorite
Diorite
Diorite is a grey to dark grey intermediate intrusive igneous rock composed principally of plagioclase feldspar , biotite, hornblende, and/or pyroxene. It may contain small amounts of quartz, microcline and olivine. Zircon, apatite, sphene, magnetite, ilmenite and sulfides occur as accessory...
. Associate minerals include epidote
Epidote
Epidote is a calcium aluminium iron sorosilicate mineral, Ca2Al2O, crystallizing in the monoclinic system. Well-developed crystals are of frequent occurrence: they are commonly prismatic in habit, the direction of elongation being perpendicular to the single plane of symmetry. The faces are often...
, titanite
Titanite
Titanite, or sphene , is a calcium titanium nesosilicate mineral, CaTiSiO5. Trace impurities of iron and aluminium are typically present...
, glaucophane, garnet
Garnet
The garnet group includes a group of minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. The name "garnet" may come from either the Middle English word gernet meaning 'dark red', or the Latin granatus , possibly a reference to the Punica granatum , a plant with red seeds...
and quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
. It is an uncommon constituent of eclogite
Eclogite
Eclogite is a mafic metamorphic rock. Eclogite is of special interest for at least two reasons. First, it forms at pressures greater than those typical of the crust of the Earth...
.
It was first described in 1895 for occurrences in the Tiburon peninsula, Marin County, California
Marin County, California
Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...
. It was named for geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
Andrew Lawson
Andrew Lawson
Andrew Cowper Lawson July 25,1861- June 16,1952 was a professor of geology at the University of California, Berkeley. He was the editor and co-author of the 1908 report on the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake which became known as the "Lawson Report"...
(1861-1952) of the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
.
Composition
Lawsonite is a metamorphic silicate mineral related chemically and structurally to the epidoteEpidote
Epidote is a calcium aluminium iron sorosilicate mineral, Ca2Al2O, crystallizing in the monoclinic system. Well-developed crystals are of frequent occurrence: they are commonly prismatic in habit, the direction of elongation being perpendicular to the single plane of symmetry. The faces are often...
group of minerals. It is close to the ideal composition of CaAl2Si2O7(OH)2 . H2O giving it a close chemical composition with anorthite
Anorthite
Anorthite is the calcium endmember of plagioclase feldspar. Plagioclase is an abundant mineral in the Earth's crust. The formula of pure anorthite is CaAl2Si2O8.-Mineralogy :...
CaAl2Si2O8 (its anhydrous equivalent), yet lawsonite has greater density and a different Al coordination (Comodi et al., 1996). The substantial amount of water bound in lawsonite’s crystal structure is released during its breakdown to denser minerals during prograde metamorphism
Metamorphism
Metamorphism is the solid-state recrystallization of pre-existing rocks due to changes in physical and chemical conditions, primarily heat, pressure, and the introduction of chemically active fluids. Mineralogical, chemical and crystallographic changes can occur during this process...
. This means lawsonite is capable of conveying appreciable water to shallow depths in subducting
Subduction
In geology, subduction is the process that takes place at convergent boundaries by which one tectonic plate moves under another tectonic plate, sinking into the Earth's mantle, as the plates converge. These 3D regions of mantle downwellings are known as "Subduction Zones"...
oceanic lithosphere
Lithosphere
The lithosphere is the rigid outermost shell of a rocky planet. On Earth, it comprises the crust and the portion of the upper mantle that behaves elastically on time scales of thousands of years or greater.- Earth's lithosphere :...
(Clark et al., 2006). Experimentation on lawsonite to vary its responses at different temperatures and different pressures is among its most studied aspects, for it is these qualities that affect its abilities to carry water down to mantle
Mantle (geology)
The mantle is a part of a terrestrial planet or other rocky body large enough to have differentiation by density. The interior of the Earth, similar to the other terrestrial planets, is chemically divided into layers. The mantle is a highly viscous layer between the crust and the outer core....
depths, similar to other OH-containing phases like antigorite, talc
Talc
Talc is a mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula H2Mg34 or Mg3Si4O102. In loose form, it is the widely-used substance known as talcum powder. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, its crystals being so rare as to be almost unknown...
, phengite
Phengite
Phengite is a series name for dioctahedral micas of composition K224O10, similar to muscovite but with addition of magnesium. It is a non-IMA recognized mineral name representing the series between muscovite and celadonite....
, staurolite
Staurolite
Staurolite is a red brown to black, mostly opaque, nesosilicate mineral with a white streak.-Properties:It crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, has a Mohs hardness of 7 to 7.5 and a rather complex chemical formula: 2Al94O204...
, and epidote
Epidote
Epidote is a calcium aluminium iron sorosilicate mineral, Ca2Al2O, crystallizing in the monoclinic system. Well-developed crystals are of frequent occurrence: they are commonly prismatic in habit, the direction of elongation being perpendicular to the single plane of symmetry. The faces are often...
(Comodi et al., 1996).
Geologic occurrence
Lawsonite is a very widespread mineral and has attracted considerable interest over the last few years because of its importance as a marker of moderate pressure (6-12 kb) and low Temperature (300 - 400 °C) conditions in nature (Clark et al., 2006). This mainly occurs along continental margins (subduction zones) such as those found in: the Franciscan Formation in California at Reed Station, Tiburon PeninsulaTiburon Peninsula
The Tiburon Peninsula , or simply "the Tiburon", is a region of Haiti encompassing all of Haiti's southern coast. It starts roughly at the southernmost of the Haiti-Dominican Republic border and extends westward near Cuba, forming a large headland. Four of Haiti's ten departments are located...
of Marin County, California
Marin County, California
Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...
; the Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rock
Metamorphic rock is the transformation of an existing rock type, the protolith, in a process called metamorphism, which means "change in form". The protolith is subjected to heat and pressure causing profound physical and/or chemical change...
s of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
; and schist
Schist
The schists constitute a group of medium-grade metamorphic rocks, chiefly notable for the preponderance of lamellar minerals such as micas, chlorite, talc, hornblende, graphite, and others. Quartz often occurs in drawn-out grains to such an extent that a particular form called quartz schist is...
s in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and from various points in the circum-Pacific orogenic belt
Ring of Fire
-Music:* Ring of Fire, a Johnny Cash song, written by his wife, June** Ring of Fire: The Best of Johnny Cash, an album by Johnny Cash** Ring of Fire , a musical theater production on the life of Johnny Cash...
.
Crystal structure
Though lawsonite and anorthite have similar compositions, their structures are quite different. While anorthite has a tetrahedral coordination with Al (Al substitutes for Si in feldspars), lawsonite has an octahedral coordination with Al, making it an orthorhombic sorosilicate with a space group of Cmcm which consists of Si2O7 Groups and O, OH, F, and H2O with cations in [4] and/or > [4] coordination. This is much similar to the epidote group which lawsonite is often found in conjunction with, which are also sorosilicates because their structure consists of two connected SiO4 tetrahedra plus connecting cation. The water contained in its structure is made possible by cavities formed by rings of two Al octahedral and two Si2O7 groups, each containing an isolated water molecule and calcium atom. The hydroxyl units are bound to the edge-sharing Al octahedral (Baur, 1978).Physical properties
Lawsonite has crystal habits of orthorhombic prismatic, which are crystals shaped like slender prisms, or tubular figures, which are form dimensions that are thin in one direction, both with two perfect cleavages. This crystal is transparent to translucent and varies in color from white to pale blue to colorless with a white streak and a vitreous or greasy luster. It has a relatively low specific gravity of 3.1g/cm3, and a pretty high hardness of 7.5 on Mohs scale of hardness, slightly higher than quartz. Under the microscope, lawsonite can be seen as blue, yellow, or colorless under plane polarized light while the stage is rotated. Lawsonite has three refractive indices of nα = 1.665 nβ = 1.672 - 1.676 nγ = 1.684 - 1.686, which produces a birefringence of δ = 0.019 - 0.021 and an optically positive biaxial interference figure.Significance of lawsonite
Lawsonite is a significant metamorphic mineral as it can be used as an index mineral for high pressure conditions. Index minerals are used in geology to determine the degree of metamorphism a rock has experienced. New metamorphic minerals form through solid-state cation exchanges following changing pressure and temperature conditions imposed upon the protolithProtolith
Protolith refers to the precursor lithology of a metamorphic rock.For example, the protolith of a slate is a shale or mudstone. Metamorphic rocks can be derived from any other rock and thus have a wide variety of protoliths. Identifying a protolith is a major aim of metamorphic geology.Sedimentary...
(pre-metamorphosed rock). This new mineral that is produced in the metamorphosed rock is the index mineral, which indicates the minimum pressure and temperature the protolith must have achieved in order for that mineral to form.
Lawsonite is known to form in high pressure, low temperature conditions, most commonly found in subduction zones where cold oceanic crust subducts down oceanic trenches into the mantle (Comodi et al., 1996). The initially-low temperature of the slab, and fluids taken down with it manage to depress isotherms and keep the slab much colder than the surrounding mantle, allowing for these unusual high pressure, low temperature conditions. Glaucophane
Glaucophane
Glaucophane is a mineral belonging to the amphibole group, chemical formula []Na2]Mg3Al2][2|Si8O22].-Name:It is named from its typical blue color . Glaucophane crystallizes in the monoclinic system....
, kyanite
Kyanite
Kyanite, whose name derives from the Greek word kuanos sometimes referred to as "kyanos", meaning deep blue, is a typically blue silicate mineral, commonly found in aluminium-rich metamorphic pegmatites and/or sedimentary rock. Kyanite in metamorphic rocks generally indicates pressures higher than...
and zoisite
Zoisite
Zoisite is a calcium aluminium hydroxy sorosilicate belonging to the epidote group of minerals. Its chemical formula is Ca2Al3O...
are other common minerals in the blueschist
Blueschist
Blueschist is a rock that forms by the metamorphism of basalt and rocks with similar composition at high pressures and low temperatures, approximately corresponding to a depth of 15 to 30 kilometers and 200 to ~500 degrees Celsius....
facies
Metamorphic facies
The metamorphic facies are groups of mineral compositions in metamorphic rocks, that are typical for a certain field in pressure-temperature space...
and are commonly found to coexist (Pawley et al., 1996). This assemblage is diagnostic of this facies.