Chemical Fundamentals of Geology and Environmental Geoscience (Wiley Desktop Editions)

288 Pages·2015·8.958 MB·English

by  Robin Gill

Chemical
Fundamentals
of Geology

and Environmental
Geoscience

Robin Gill
Chemical
Fundamentals
of Geology
and Environmental
Geoscience
T h i r d E d i t i o n
This edition first published 2015 © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
Second edition, Chemical Fundamentals of Geology, published 1996 by Chapman & Hall
First edition, Chemical Fundamentals of Geology, published 1989 by Unwin Hyman
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gill, Robin, 1944–
Chemical fundamentals of geology and environmental geoscience/Robin Gill. – Third edition.
pages cm
Previous edition: Chemical fundamentals of geology (London ; Glascow : Weinheim : Chapman and
Hall, 1996).
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-470-65665-5 (cloth)
1. Chemistry. 2. Geology. 3. Geochemistry. 4. Environmental geochemistry. I. Title.
QD39.2.G55 2015
540.24′553–dc23
2014029366
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may
not be available in electronic books.
Cover images: Front cover image of Malachite and Azurite Deposits in a Boulder, ©iStock.com/chapin31;
Images on the back cover from top to bottom: Pyroxene chain: photo by K. d’Souza;
Black smoker: by permission of GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel;
Andromeda galaxy: public-domain image courtesy of Adam Evans; X-ray map of zoned
olivine: from Qian and Herma (2010) by permission of Journal of Petrology;
Sulphur crystals: by permission of Vincenzo Ragone; Reaction rim between olivine
and plagioclase: by permission of H.M. Helmy
Set in 10/13pt Palatino by SPi Publisher Services, Pondicherry, India
1 2015
Contents
PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION ix
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION x
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION xi
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS xiii
ABOUT THE COMPANION WEBSITE xiv
1 ENERGY IN GEOCHEMICAL PROCESSES 1
Introduction 1
Energy in mechanical systems 4
Energy in chemical and mineral systems: free energy 5
Stable, unstable and metastable minerals 10
Further reading 13
2 EQUILIBRIUM IN GEOLOGICAL SYSTEMS 14
The significance of mineral stability 14
Systems, phases and components 16
Equilibrium 18
Phase diagrams in P–T space 20
Phase diagrams in T–X space 26
Ternary phase diagrams 36
Review 41
Further reading 41
Sources of thermodynamic data for minerals 42
Exercises 42
vi CONTENTS
3 KINETICS OF EARTH PROCESSES 43
Defining the rate of a reaction 44
Temperature-dependence of reaction rate 47
Diffusion 52
Melt viscosity 55
Persistence of metastable minerals: closure temperature 57
Review 58
Further reading 58
Exercises 59
4 AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS AND THE HYDROSPHERE 60
Ways of expressing the concentrations of major constituents 61
Equilibrium constant 63
Non-ideal solutions: activity coefficient 69
Natural waters 70
Oxidation and reduction: Eh-pH diagrams 75
Further reading 81
Exercises 81
5 ELECTRONS IN ATOMS 82
Why does a geologist need to understand atoms? 82
The atom 83
Stationary waves 85
Electron waves in atoms 88
The shapes of electron orbitals 90
Electron energy levels 93
Review 98
Further reading 98
Exercises 98
6 WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM THE PERIODIC TABLE 99
Ionization energy 99
The Periodic Table 102
Electronegativity 103
Valency 104
Atomic spectra 105
Review 109
Further reading 110
Exercises 110
7 CHEMICAL BONDING AND THE PROPERTIES OF MINERALS 111
The ionic model of bonding 111
The covalent model of bonding 118
Bonding in minerals 126
Other types of atomic and molecular interaction 129
Review 132
Further reading 132
Exercises 132
CONTENTS vii
8 SILICATE CRYSTALS AND MELTS 133
Silicate polymers 133
Cation sites in silicates 140
Optical properties of crystals 146
Defects in crystals 148
Further reading 151
Exercises 151
9 SOME GEOLOGICALLY IMPORTANT ELEMENTS 153
Major and trace elements 153
Alkali metals 154
Hydrogen 156
Alkaline earth metals 156
Aluminium 157
Carbon 159
Silicon 166
Nitrogen and phosphorus 166
Oxygen 167
Sulfur 168
Fluorine 170
Noble gases 171
Transition metals 171
Rare earth elements 175
Actinides 176
Further reading 177
Exercise 177
10 WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM ISOTOPES? 178
Isotope systems 179
Radiogenic isotope systems 181
Stable isotope systems 195
Cosmogenic radioisotope systems 203
Review 204
Further reading 204
Exercises 204
11 THE ELEMENTS IN THE UNIVERSE 206
The significance of element abundance 206
Measuring cosmic and Solar System abundances 206
The composite abundance curve 210
Cosmic element production 211
Elements in the Solar System 215
Chemical evolution of the Earth 219
Review 224
Further reading 225
Exercises 225
viii CONTENTS
ANSWERS TO EXERCISES 226
APPENDIX A: MATHEMATICS REVISION 234
APPENDIX B: SIMPLE SOLUTION CHEMISTRy 240
APPENDIX C: ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CHEMICAL ABBREVIATIONS AND ELEMENT NAMES,
WITH ATOMIC NUMBER AND RELATIVE ATOMIC MASS 243
APPENDIX D: SyMBOLS, UNITS, CONSTANTS AND ABBREVIATIONS USED
IN THIS BOOK 245
GLOSSARy 248
REFERENCES 258
INDEX 261