Determining the water content of nominally anhydrous minerals at the nanometre scale

Sarath Patabendigedara; Derek Nowak; Mitchell J B Nancarrow; Simon Martin Clark

doi:10.1063/5.0025570

Determining the water content of nominally anhydrous minerals at the nanometre scale

Rev Sci Instrum. 2021 Feb 1;92(2):023103. doi: 10.1063/5.0025570.

Authors

Sarath Patabendigedara¹, Derek Nowak², Mitchell J B Nancarrow³, Simon Martin Clark¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia.
² Molecular Vista, Inc. San Jose, California 95119, USA.
³ Electron Microscopy Centre, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2500, Australia.

PMID: 33648053
DOI: 10.1063/5.0025570

Abstract

The amount and distribution of water in nominally anhydrous minerals (NAMs) are usually determined by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. This method is limited by the spot size of the beam to the study of samples with dimensions greater than a few micrometers. Here, we demonstrate the potential of using photoinduced force microscopy for the measurement of water in NAMs with samples sizes down to the nanometer scale with a study of water concentration across grain boundaries in forsterite. This development will enable the study of water speciation and diffusion in small-grained rock matrixes and allow a determination of the influence of nanoscale heterogeneity on the incorporation of water to NAMs.