『Abstract
Illite minerals in soils and weathered rocks are usually interpreted
as secondary clays derived from the transformation of primary
rock-forming minerals with similar properties (e.g. muscovite),
or as direct products of hydrothermal alteration after feldspar
(i.e. sericite). With the help of detailed investigations involving
X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray element
mapping, this study testifies to the neoformation of illite inside
plagioclase feldspar crystals after their partial dissolution
in the weathering zone of Luvisols in semi-arid Northeast Brazil.
Our results thus reveal that meteoric weathering can produce illite
not only from mica, i.e., by a transformation process, but also
within non-alkali feldspar by a neoformation process, at least
under the semi-arid conditions that have long prevailed in the
study area. Given that illite in weathering mantles has recurrently
been attributed, often by default, to hydrothermal processes,
results shown here provide new focus to an alternative pathway
of illite formation primarily controlled by climate.
Keywords: Weathering; Illite; Potassium dynamics; Semi-arid climate;
Northeast Brazil』
1. Introduction
2. Materials and methods
2.1. The study area and its environment
2.2. Laboratory methods
3. Results
3.1. Profile chemistry and mineralogy
3.2. Micromorphological and mineralogical characterization of
plagioclase weathering
3.2.1. Gneiss at 400 cm depth
3.2.2. Saprolite at 135 cm depth
3.3. Chemical composition of illites formed by plagioclase weathering
4. Discussion: Potassium dynamics in saprolite and implications
for weathering pathways in semi-arid climates
4.1. Origin of potassium in secondary illite
4.2. Potassium dynamics during weathering
4.3. Illite neoformation, weathering and climate
5. Conclusion
Acknowledgements
References