) R150063 - RRUFF Database: Raman, X-ray, Infrared, and Chemistry

Important Update News

The RRUFF Project (rruff.info) is being updated to improve its interface and content. The beta version of the update is accessible to the public at RRUFF.net. New data is only being added to the beta site. Please note that it is in development, and some components are not functional.

We are grateful to NASA for the funding of this effort.

Merrillite R150063

Name: Merrillite
RRUFF ID: R150063
Ideal Chemistry: Ca₉NaMg(PO₄)₇
Locality: Suizhou L6 chondrite, Dayanpo, 12.5 km southeast of the city of Suizhou, Hubei Province, China (35°18’N, 113°35’E)
Source: Xiande Xie and Xiangping Gu
Owner: RRUFF
Description: Colorless aggregates of irregular grains, associated with forsterite, enstatite, maskelynite, FeNi metal, troilite, chlorapatite, chromite and ilmenite.
Status: The identification of this mineral is confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and chemical analysis.

Mineral Group: [ Cerite (11) ]

CHEMISTRY

RRUFF ID:	R150063.2
Sample Description:	Microprobe Fragment
Measured Chemistry:	Ca_9.00Na_0.98(Mg_0.95Fe_0.06)_1.01(P_1.00O₄)₇
Microprobe Data File:	[ Download Excel File ]

RAMAN SPECTRUM

RRUFF ID:

Sample Description:

Unoriented Raman on the primary sample

DOWNLOADS:

To download sample data,
please select a specific
orientation angle.

BROAD SCAN WITH SPECTRAL ARTIFACTS

RRUFF ID:

R150063

Wavelength:

Sample Description:

Unoriented Raman on the primary sample

Instrument settings:

Thermo Almega XR 532nm @ 100% of 150mW

DOWNLOADS:

	Raman Data (RAW)
	RRUFF File

POWDER DIFFRACTION

RRUFF ID:

R150063.9

Sample Description:

Single crystal, powder profile is calculated

Cell Refinement Output:

a: 10.3444(3)Å b: 10.3444(3)Å c: 37.0182(11)Å
alpha: 90° beta: 90° gamma: 120° Volume: 3430.5(2)Å³ Crystal System: hexagonal

File Type Information

Calculated diffraction file.

File Type Information

Output file from the Bruker D8 Advance instrument. Includes device headers and XY data.

DOWNLOADS:

	DIF File
	X-ray Data (XY - RAW)
	RRUFF File

REFERENCES for Merrillite
American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database Record: [view record]
Merrill G P (1917) On the calcium phosphate in meteoric stones, American Journal of Science, 43, 322-324 [view file]
Wherry E T (1917) Merrillite, meteoritic calcium phosphate, American Mineralogist, 2, 119-119 [view file]
Dowty E (1977) Phosphate in Angra Dos Reis: Structure and composition of the Ca₃(PO₄)₂ minerals, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 35, 347-351 [view file]
Xie X, Minitti M E, Chen M, Mao H-K, Wang D, Shu J, Fei Y (2003) Tuite, ϒ-Ca₃(PO₄)₂: a new mineral from the Suizhou L6 chondrite, European Journal of Mineralogy, 15, 1001-1005 [view file]
Hughes J M, Jolliff B L, Gunter M E (2006) The atomic arrangement of merrillite from the Fra Mauro Formation, Apollo 14 lunar mission: The first structure of merrillite from the Moon, American Mineralogist, 91, 1547-1552 [view file]
Jolliff B L, Hughes J M, Freeman J J, Zeigler R A (2006) Crystal chemistry of lunar merrillite and comparison to other meteoritic and planetary suites of whitlockite and merrillite, American Mineralogist, 91, 1583-1595 [view file]
Hughes J M, Jolliff B L, Rakovan J (2008) The crystal chemistry of whitlockite and merrillite and the dehydrogenation of whitlockite to merrillite, American Mineralogist, 93, 1300-1305 [view file]
Adcock C T, Hausrath E M, Forster P M, Tschauner O, Sefein K J (2014) Synthesis and characterization of the Mars-relevant phosphate minerals Fe- and Mg-whitlockite and merrillite and a possible mechanism that maintains charge balance during whitlockite to merrillite transformation, American Mineralogist, 99, 1221-1232
McCubbin F M, Shearer C K, Burger P V, Hauri E H, Wang J, Elardo S M, Papike J J (2014) Volatile abundances of coexisting merrillite and apatite in the martian meteorite Shergotty: Implications for merrillite in hydrous magmas, American Mineralogist, 99, 1347-1354
Shearer C K, Burger P V, Papike J J, McCubbin F M, Bell A S (2015) Crystal chemistry of merrillite from Martian meteorites: mineralogical recorders of magmatic processes and planetary differentiation, Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 50, 649-673
Xie X, Yang H, Gu X, Downs R T (2015) Chemical composition and crystal structure of merrillite from the Suizhou meteorite, American Mineralogist, 100, 2753-2756
Britvin S N, Krivovichev S V, Armbruster T (2016) Ferromerrillite, Ca₉NaFe²⁺(PO₄)₇, a new mineral from the Martian meteorites, and some insights into merrillite-tuite transformation in shergottites, European Journal of Mineralogy, 28, 125-136 [view file]
McCubbin F M, Phillips B L, Adcock C T, Tait K T, Steele A, Vaughn J S, Fries M D, Atudorei V, Vander Kaaden K E, Hausrath E M (2018) Discreditation of bobdownsite and the establishment of criteria for the identification of minerals with essential monofluorophosphate (PO₃F^2-), American Mineralogist, 103, 1319–1328 [view file]
Kaminsky F V, Zedgenizov D A (2022) First find of merrillite, Ca₃(PO₄)₂, in a terrestrial environment as an inclusion in lower-mantle diamond, American Mineralogist, 107, 1652
Atencio D, Azzi A A, Qu K, Miyawaki R, Bosi F, Momma K (2023) Changes to the cerite group nomenclature, European Journal of Mineralogy, 35, 1027-1030 [view file]

REFERENCES for Merrillite

American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database Record: [view record]

Merrill G P (1917) On the calcium phosphate in meteoric stones, American Journal of Science, 43, 322-324 [view file]

Wherry E T (1917) Merrillite, meteoritic calcium phosphate, American Mineralogist, 2, 119-119 [view file]

Dowty E (1977) Phosphate in Angra Dos Reis: Structure and composition of the Ca₃(PO₄)₂ minerals, Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 35, 347-351 [view file]

Xie X, Minitti M E, Chen M, Mao H-K, Wang D, Shu J, Fei Y (2003) Tuite, ϒ-Ca₃(PO₄)₂: a new mineral from the Suizhou L6 chondrite, European Journal of Mineralogy, 15, 1001-1005 [view file]

Hughes J M, Jolliff B L, Gunter M E (2006) The atomic arrangement of merrillite from the Fra Mauro Formation, Apollo 14 lunar mission: The first structure of merrillite from the Moon, American Mineralogist, 91, 1547-1552 [view file]

Jolliff B L, Hughes J M, Freeman J J, Zeigler R A (2006) Crystal chemistry of lunar merrillite and comparison to other meteoritic and planetary suites of whitlockite and merrillite, American Mineralogist, 91, 1583-1595 [view file]

Hughes J M, Jolliff B L, Rakovan J (2008) The crystal chemistry of whitlockite and merrillite and the dehydrogenation of whitlockite to merrillite, American Mineralogist, 93, 1300-1305 [view file]

Adcock C T, Hausrath E M, Forster P M, Tschauner O, Sefein K J (2014) Synthesis and characterization of the Mars-relevant phosphate minerals Fe- and Mg-whitlockite and merrillite and a possible mechanism that maintains charge balance during whitlockite to merrillite transformation, American Mineralogist, 99, 1221-1232

McCubbin F M, Shearer C K, Burger P V, Hauri E H, Wang J, Elardo S M, Papike J J (2014) Volatile abundances of coexisting merrillite and apatite in the martian meteorite Shergotty: Implications for merrillite in hydrous magmas, American Mineralogist, 99, 1347-1354

Shearer C K, Burger P V, Papike J J, McCubbin F M, Bell A S (2015) Crystal chemistry of merrillite from Martian meteorites: mineralogical recorders of magmatic processes and planetary differentiation, Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 50, 649-673

Xie X, Yang H, Gu X, Downs R T (2015) Chemical composition and crystal structure of merrillite from the Suizhou meteorite, American Mineralogist, 100, 2753-2756

Britvin S N, Krivovichev S V, Armbruster T (2016) Ferromerrillite, Ca₉NaFe²⁺(PO₄)₇, a new mineral from the Martian meteorites, and some insights into merrillite-tuite transformation in shergottites, European Journal of Mineralogy, 28, 125-136 [view file]

McCubbin F M, Phillips B L, Adcock C T, Tait K T, Steele A, Vaughn J S, Fries M D, Atudorei V, Vander Kaaden K E, Hausrath E M (2018) Discreditation of bobdownsite and the establishment of criteria for the identification of minerals with essential monofluorophosphate (PO₃F^2-), American Mineralogist, 103, 1319–1328 [view file]

Kaminsky F V, Zedgenizov D A (2022) First find of merrillite, Ca₃(PO₄)₂, in a terrestrial environment as an inclusion in lower-mantle diamond, American Mineralogist, 107, 1652

Atencio D, Azzi A A, Qu K, Miyawaki R, Bosi F, Momma K (2023) Changes to the cerite group nomenclature, European Journal of Mineralogy, 35, 1027-1030 [view file]