US-France Cooperative Research: Chemical Kinetics of Ore andRock-Forming Minerals in Hydrothermal Systems

该奖项将支持普林斯顿大学的David Crerar博士和法国Paul Sabatier大学Geochimie实验室的Jacques Schott博士之间的合作研究。本研究的目的是研究方解石、萤石、石英和长石等矿物在25℃至400℃以上的水中的溶解速度和反应机理。在这个联合项目中，普林斯顿大学的水热实验室将被用来测量矿物反应速度，以及它们随着溶液组成和晶体应变程度的变化。然后，将在图卢兹和法国附属实验室使用表面光谱分析技术对反应晶体进行分析，以提供有关矿物表面反应过程和矿物反应动力学机制的详细信息。这项工作对理解上层结晶过程中典型的非平衡条件下矿藏的形成具有应用价值，并应提供对投射放射性废物储存库中流体和矿物行为的洞察。普林斯顿和图卢兹小组的研究是相辅相成的，普林斯顿专注于水热溶解速率和过程，图卢兹专注于低T表面反应机理。该项目将结合他们在矿物反应动力学方面的专业知识，使美国集团能够使用他们在其他方面无法获得的高科技表面光谱和分析设施。

This award will support collaborative research between Dr. David Crerar, Princeton University, and Dr. Jacques Schott, Laboratoire de Geochimie, University of Paul Sabatier, France. The objective of this research is to study the dissolution rates and reaction mechanisms of minerals such as calcite, fluorite, quartz and feldspar in water from 25 degrees to over 400 degrees Centigrade. In this joint project, the hydrothermal laboratories at Princeton University will be used to measure mineral reaction rates, and their variation with solution composition and degree of crystal strain. The reacted crystals will then be analyzed by surface spectroscopic techniques in Toulouse and affiliated French laboratories to provide detailed information on reaction processes at mineral surfaces and the kinetic mechanisms of mineral reactivity. This work has application to understanding formation of mineral deposits under non-equilibrium conditions typical of upper crystal processes and should provide insight into the behavior of fluids and mineral in projected radwaste repositories. The research by the Princeton and Toulouse groups has been complementary, with Princeton concentrating on hydrothermal dissolution rates and processes, and Toulouse on lower-T surface reaction mechanisms. This project will combine their expertise in mineral reaction kinetics and allow the U.S. group to use high technology surface spectroscopic and analysis facilities not otherwise available to them.