TotBlocks: exploring the relationships between modular rock-forming minerals with 3D-printed interlocking brick modules
<p>Many rock-forming chain and sheet silicate minerals, i.e., pyroxenes, amphiboles, micas, and clay minerals, are built from shared chemical building blocks known as <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2022-11-01
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| Series: | European Journal of Mineralogy |
| Online Access: | https://ejm.copernicus.org/articles/34/523/2022/ejm-34-523-2022.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>Many rock-forming chain and sheet silicate minerals,
i.e., pyroxenes, amphiboles, micas, and clay minerals, are built from shared
chemical building blocks known as <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span> modules. Each module consists of two
opposing chains of vertex-sharing silica tetrahedra (<span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>), which vertically
sandwich a ribbon of edge-sharing metal–oxygen octahedra (<span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span>) in a <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>
configuration. These minerals are both abundant and diverse in the
lithosphere because <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span> modules are chemically versatile (incorporating
common crustal elements, e.g., O, Si, Al, Fe, and Mg) and structurally
versatile (varying as a function of module width and linkage type) over a
wide range of chemical and physical conditions. Therefore, these minerals
lie at the center of understanding geological processes. However, their
diversity leads to the minerals developing complex, 3D
crystal structures, which are challenging to communicate. Ball-and-stick
models and computer visualization software are the current methods for
communicating the crystal structures of minerals, but both methods have
limitations in communicating the relationships between these complex crystal
structures. Here, we investigate the applications of 3D printing in
communicating modular mineralogy and crystal structures. The open-source
TotBlocks project consists of 3D-printed, <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span> interlocking bricks, based on
ideal polyhedral representations of <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span> and <span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span> modules, which are linked by
hexagonal pegs and slots. Using TotBlocks, we explore the relationships
between modular minerals within the biopyribole (biotite–pyroxene–amphibole)
and palysepiole (palygorskite–sepiolite) series. The bricks can also be
deconstructed into <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span> and <span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span> layer modules to build other mineral structures
such as the brucite, kaolinite–serpentine, and chlorite groups. Then, we use
the <span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>O</i></span>-<span class="inline-formula"><i>T</i></span> modules within these minerals to visually investigate trends in their
properties, e.g., habit, cleavage angles, and symmetry/polytypism. In
conclusion, the TotBlocks project provides an accessible, interactive, and
versatile way to communicate the crystal structures of common rock-forming
minerals.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 0935-1221 1617-4011 |