Oxidation state and electronic configuration determination of copper in tetrahedrite group minerals by L-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy
✍ Scribed by R. A. D. Pattrick; G. Laan; D. J. Vaughan; C. M. B. Henderson
- Publisher
- Springer-Verlag
- Year
- 1993
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 802 KB
- Volume
- 20
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0342-1791
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✦ Synopsis
L-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy employing a synchrotron radiation source has been used to study the electronic structure and valency of Cu in the chemically and structurally complex tetrahedrite group of minerals. Mechanical mixtures of Cu2+O and Cu+FeS2 were used to estimate the relative cross sections of Cu 2+ and Cu+; the absorption of Cu 2+ at 931 eV is 25 times greater than that of Cu + at 945 eV. Using this calibration, Cu 2 +/Cu ratios were found to vary from 0.00 to 0.054 in the tetrahedrite samples studied; the highest proportion of Cu 2 + occurs in synthetic tetrahedrites with a composition close to Cu12Sb~S~3. This study reveals the utility of the technique for determining the valence state of copper in complex minerals, allowing the crystal chemistry to be more fully charaeterised.