6.1.

INTRO
The relative concentrations of the nonvolatile elements in the Sun can be seen to be similar to those of the elements
in the estimated bulk composition of the Earth
Oxygen is the most abundant element Earth, in terms of volume, more than 90% of the planet. Because of its
preponderance, most rock and mineral analyses are more conveniently expressed in terms of oxides rather than of
elements. Silicon is the next most abundant element.
It is not surprising, then, that with the exception of the metallic core, most of Earth is composed of silicates.
These silicates, which involve primarily the next four most abundant elements, Mg, Fe, Al, and Ca, include clino- and
orthopyroxenes, olivine, and garnet. Na and K also form silicates (feldspar and feldspathoid), but these are
concentrated primarily in the crust of Earth, as is quartz.
Some of the primordial hydrogen is retained in Earth as water, which can combine with the abundant elements to
form hydrous silicates, such as amphiboles and micas

Differentiation of Earth into core, mantle, and crust caused major redistribution of the accreted elements. The core
formed soon after accretion, and the formation of the continental crust was essentially complete by 2.1 Ga before
present (see Section 13.3). Differentiation involving sinking of Fe and Ni to form Earths core concentrated the
remaining elements in the mantle above. Low-density partial melts formed in the mantle during the Archean rose
toward the surface to form Earths crust. This differentiation produced a crust enriched in silicates of Al (Sial) and a
mantle enriched in silicates of Mg and Fe (Sima).

METEORITES
Much of our understanding of the composition of Earth is based on the study of meteorites.
Meteoroids are meteors that enter Earths atmosphere. Most break up and disintegrate due to intense
frictional heating. However, a few of the larger ones make it to Earths surface; we call these meteorites.
Most meteorites are derived from asteroids. The asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter is the primary
source.
Classified on the basis of: Iron content and Degree of differentiation
1. Iron Meteorites / irons
composed predominantly of FeNi alloy. Slow cooling produces the Widmansttten exsolution pattern,
characterized by intergrown crystals of Ni-poor and more Ni-rich alloy (Fig. 6.1(A)). Some irons are almost
certainly fragments of the cores of asteroids that were large enough to undergo differentiation.
Differentiation processes also produced Earths core and mantle. Seismic studies reveal that the density of
Earths core is similar to that of FeNi alloy at high pressures and temperatures. However, the outer core is
somewhat less dense than predicted for FeNi, so many have suggested that a lighter element, such as O, S,
Si, C, or H, is also present. Indeed, some iron meteorites do contain lighter elements, such as the sulfur
contained in the mineral troilite (FeS) pictured in Figure 6.1(A).
2. Stony Iron Meteorites
rich in pyroxene or olivine as well as FeNi alloy (Fig. 6.1(B)). Many such meteorites probably represent
the coremantle boundaries of asteroidsized bodies. As such, they may provide valuable information about
the coremantle boundary of Earth. The stony irons and irons were originally at very high temperatures
and reflect differentiation (e.g. core segregation, mantle formation) in the interiors of their parent bodies
3. Stony Meteorites / Stone
a. Chondrites contain mineral clusters called chondrules (Figs. 6.1(C), 6.2), composed mostly of high-
temperature minerals like pyroxene and olivine. They are often spherical, ranging in diameter from
100 m to several mm. Many chondrules are very fine grained or even glassy. This, together with
their spherical shapes, suggests that they formed by the rapid cooling of liquid droplets. Such
chondrules may have condensed directly from the solar nebula, or represent rapidly quenched
droplets of melt generated by impacts during planet formation. Irregularly shaped, more coarsely
crystalline chondrules are also found, and these presumably cooled more slowly than the fine-grained
or glassy varieties.
i. Carbonaceous Chondrites, They are rich in water and carbon, and contain complex organic
compounds including amino acids. They are very primitive, in the sense that they have
not been heated and metamorphosed to more than 200 C. If they had been heated to
higher temperatures, much of their volatile content would have been driven off.
 ii. Ordinary Chondrites, by far the most commonly found meteorites, are in many ways
similar to carbonaceous chondrites, but they have been heated to higher temperatures
(<400 C) and are often brecciated.
iii. Enstantite Chondrites, are the least primitive; they are mostly impact breccias that were
heated to temperatures of 600 C to, in some cases, nearly 900 C.
b. Achondrites lack chondrules.
Picture:
(A) Cut slab of iron meteorite that has been etched to highlight the Widmansttten pattern. The
crystals are bent and somewhat irregularly shaped, attesting to impact-related deformation of
the parent asteroid (e.g. inset). Note rounded inclusions of troilite (FeS). Meteorite found in the
Sacramento Mountains, New Mexico, in about 1890. Field of view is about 20.5 cm. Specimen
P274.
(B) Cut slab of stony iron meteorite containing olivine crystals (dark) set in FeNi alloy; Brenham,
Kansas; found in 1882. Slab is about 17 cm wide. Specimen P599.
(C) LL3 stone meteorite (ordinary chondrite) that fell in Parnallee, India, in 1857. Note the abundant
chondrules (inset). LL stands for low iron and low total metal content. The number after the LL
represents the degree of alteration of the chondrules, with 3 being the smallest and 7 the
largest. Sample is about 8.5 cm wide. Specimen P191

Composition of Magma and Rocks

Element divided in to:
Major Element, >1% of a rock
7 Major Oxides(most crustal n mantle rocks): SiO2, Al2O3, Fe(Fe2O3), CaO, MgO, Na2O, and K2O
Crystalize to form Rock forming mineral (Clino-, Orthopyroxene, Olivine, garnet (high pressure),
amphibole, mica, quartz, plagioclase, alkali feldspar, felspathoid and spinnel (commonly
magnetite), most rock composed no more than 4 minerals
Have Essential role in determining phase relations, melting point, densities & viscosities. Also
critical properties in determining whether
Minor Element, 1.0% 0.1% of a rock
Minor elements commonly form accessory minerals in a rock, such as apatite (P) and zircon (Zr),
but their abundance is too low to affect the phase relations significantly
Trace Element, <0.1% of a rock
Trace elements have such low concentrations that they simply substitute for major elements in
the common minerals but do not affect the phase relations.
minor and trace elements may impart characteristic chemical signatures to rocks that may be of
considerable practical importance in distinguishing or correlating rock types

Most of the minerals belong to solid solution series, and thus they can adjust their compositions to
fit a wide range of bulk rock compositions. As a result, most rocks are composed of no more than
four of the rock-forming minerals, and some contain fewer.
Classifications of igneous rocks have been based on the seven major oxides and the eleven essential
rock-forming minerals.
Chemical and mineralogical classifications advantages and disadvantages.
Chemical Classification: Provide greater differentiation between rock types, works for fine
grained mineral or glassy rock, required analytical data, little used in the field
Mineral Classification: Identifiable in the field, provide valuable information about the
environment in which a rock form.
Ex. Coesite and quartz, for example, are chemically identical, but coesite forms only under extremely high
pressures.

6.2. MODE and NORM

MODE : or mineralogical composition of a rock (express in term of vol%) accurate modes obtained by point
counting thin section of rock under the petrographic micsoscope. Image analysis program (INI ImageJ)can be used
to determined mode where individual mineals have a significantly different color. This is particularly useful for
determining the relative abundance of dark (mafic) and light (felsic) minerals. This ratio is commonly referred to as
the color indeks.
NORM : calculated mineralogical composition based on the conversion of a whole-rock chemical analysis into
various common minerals.(weight%).This calculation can be done following a prescribed set of rules, such as those
of the CIPW norm (see below), or by making use of the MELTS computer program (Ghiorso and Sack, 1995;
Asimow and Ghiorso, 1998; Ghiorso et al., 2002).

Because it takes the weight percentages of the oxides and recasts them as the weight percent of anhydrous end-
member formulas of the common rock-forming and accessory minerals, it is also known as a weight norm.

6.3 CIPW NORM CALCULATION (weight norm)

Abbreviated from Four petrologists Cross (United States Geological Survey), Iddings (University of Chicago),
Pirsson (Yale), and Washington (Private Laboratory) (Johannsen, 1931).

To begin the CIPW norm calculation, the weight percentages of the oxides in the rock analysis are converted to
mole proportions by dividing each oxide weight percent by its molecular weight.

Using the formulas in Table 6.2, the mole proportions are distributed among the normative minerals according to
the rules given. There are 26 step /rules for CIPW norm calculatition

Once the silica deficiency has been eliminated (one of the steps between 20 and 26), the norm calculation is
completed by multiplying the mole proportion of the first oxide in the formula of each normative mineral formed
by the weightconversion factor given in Table 6.2.

Table 6.3 is a balance sheet in which the first column gives the chemical analysis of the rock in weight percent; this is followed
by the molecular weights of the oxides; the third column gives the mole proportions.

Only rare rock types have low enough silica contents to cause the norm calculation to proceed beyond step 22.
For most rocks, the calculation is therefore quite short (Problem 6.2).

CIPW normative minerals are those formed at low pressure and are anhydrous; they therefore most closely
resemble volcanic mineral assemblages.

6.4 MELTS PROGRAM AND NORMATIVE MINERALS

The MELTS program of Ghiorso and Sack (1995) provides another means of calculating the mineral composition of
a rock based on the rocks chemical composition.

MELTS program uses thermodynamic data for silicate liquids and minerals to calculate actual phase compositions
that would stably coexist at any given temperature and pressure. It thus allows you to trace the crystallization of a
magma from the liquidus, where the magma is totally liquid, to the solidus, where it is completely solid.

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION TERMS

No definite division separates plutonic from hypabyssal rocks, but in general the distinction is based on grain size.
Plutonic rocks, minerals are readily identifiable in the hand specimen because grain sizes are either medium or
coarse (>1 mm).
Hypabyssal and volcanic rocks are finegrained or even glassy, and mineral identification in hand specimens is
difficult. For this reason hypabyssal and volcanic rocks are commonly classified together.
The grain size of igneous rocks is described as coarse if the average grain diameter is greater than 5 mm, medium if
it is between 5 and 1 mm, and fine if it is less than 1 mm.
In general, these categories correspond respectively to rocks in which minerals can be identified by the unaided
eye, with the aid of a hand lens, and with a microscope.
Grain Size, Rocks that are so fine-grained that individual crystals are difficult to discern even with a hand lens are
referred to as aphanitic. Many igneous rocks contain crystals of different size. Such rocks are described as
porphyritic; the large crystals are termed phenocrysts and the finer ones groundmass
Acidity, Rocks rich in quartz, feldspars, or feldspathoids are said to be felsic, whereas those rich in ferromagnesian
minerals are mafic or even ultramafic if they are totally devoid of felsic minerals.
Observation of the color, Light-colored rocks are referred to as leucocratic, whereas dark ones are elanocratic. A
quantitative statement of the color of a rock can be made by using the color indeks

6.6 IUGS CLASSIFICATION OF PLUTONIC IGNEOUS ROCKS

The IUGS classification is based on the modal amounts of the common minerals, which are divided into five groups:
Rocks containing less than 90% mafic minerals (M < 90) are classified on the basis of their proportions of Q, A, P,
and F;
rocks with M > 90 are classified on the basis of the proportions of the major mafic minerals.
The division at M = 90 is arbitrary, but few rocks have compositions near this division.
Ultramafic rocks typically haveM90, whereas other rocks fall well below this limit.
Because no rocks contain both Q and F, non ultramafic rocks can be classified in terms of three components, either
QAP or FAP.

Table 6.3. Thus, a rock containing equal amounts of alkali feldspar and plagioclase and 10% quartz would be named
a quartz monzonite; a rock containing 15% nepheline and having feldspar that is only 5% plagioclase would be
named a nepheline syenite.

Irvine Baragar
Most rocks belong to the first two groups, which are each subdivided into two subgroups. Assigning a rock to any
one of these groups is based on simple chemical parameters or normative compositions