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A new mechanism for the magnetic enhancement of hematite during heating: the role of clay minerals

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Abstract

The magnetic properties of loess, lake, and ocean sediments are often used as indicators for paleoclimatic/paleoenvironmental changes. Thermomagnetic analysis is a conventional approach for identifying magnetic phases and thermal alteration of samples. Magnetic concentration parameters are often enhanced after thermal treatment. In this study, the role of clay minerals in magnetic enhancement at elevated temperatures is systematically investigated. The results indicate that the clay minerals (saponite, Ca-montmorillonite, kaolinite, and chlorite) are dominated by paramagnetic behaviour and that the magnetic properties remain relatively stable after heating to 700°C in argon. In contrast, mixtures of hematite and chlorite have a high degree of magnetic enhancement after heating in argon, which indicates that clay minerals play important role in magnetic enhancement. These results improve our understanding of the processes involved in complicated mineral transformations, which is important for retrieving paleoclimatic/paleoenvironemntal signals from magnetic proxies.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric Evolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China

    Chunxia Zhang, Greig A. Paterson & Qingsong Liu

  2. Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China

    Chunxia Zhang

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  1. Chunxia Zhang
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  2. Greig A. Paterson
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  3. Qingsong Liu
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Correspondence to Chunxia Zhang.

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Zhang, C., Paterson, G.A. & Liu, Q. A new mechanism for the magnetic enhancement of hematite during heating: the role of clay minerals. Stud Geophys Geod 56, 845–860 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11200-011-9018-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11200-011-9018-4

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