[meteorite-list] New CV3 NWA 3216 and soldalite

[bernd.pauli at paulinet.de]

Hello Dave and List,

> I am pleased to announce my first CV3 meteorite

Sincere congratulations on your CV3 chondrite
from the vast deserts of Northwest Africa!

Best (carbonaceous)
wishes,

Bernd

> It is unusual in that it has sodalite in it-sodalite, containing
> volatile elements such as Na and Cl usually are lost if heated
> above about 150 deg C - so this makes it pretty interesting and
> aqueous!

Sodalite [(Na4(Si3Al3)O12Cl)] is one of those meteoritic minerals with
a cubic habit that helped me win Dirk Ross's contest a few months ago :-)

So far sodalite-rich inclusions had only been found in Allende and in
Study Butte (H3) Al-rich inclusions. But in Study Butte they consist of
a fine-grained intergrowth of Al-rich silicates which is only "close" to
sodalite in composition!

According to R. Hutchison, sodalite can also be found in the layered
rims around CAIs.

References:

R.H. Brazzle et al. (1996) Iodine-Xenon studies of sodalite-rich
inclusions from Allende (abs. Meteoritics 31, 1996, A020).

M. Kimura et al. (1995) Anhydrous alteration of Allende chondrules in the
solar nebula II: Alkali-Ca exchange reactions and formation of nepheline,
sodalite and Ca-rich phases in chondrules.
(Proc. NIPR Symp. Antarct. Meteor. 8, 123-138)

HUTCHISON R. (2004) Meteorites: A Petrologic, Chemical, and Isotopic
Synthesis (Cambridge Planetary Science Series, p. 81).