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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2020

Mineralogy and Geochemistry of Sedimentary Rocks and Eolian Sediments in Gale Crater, Mars: A Review After Six Earth Years of Exploration with Curiosity

The Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover arrived at Mars in August 2012 with a primary goal of characterizing the habitability of ancient and modern environments. Curiosity was sent to Gale crater to study a sequence of ∼3.5 Ga old sedimentary rocks that, based on orbital visible and near- to short-wave infrared reflectance spectra, contain secondary minerals that suggest deposition and/or alteration in liquid water. The sedimentary sequence in the lower slopes of Mount Sharp in Gale crater preserves a dramatic shift on early Mars from a relatively warm and wet climate to a cold and dry climate, based on a transition from smectite-bearing strata to sulfate-bearing strata. The rover is equipped with instruments to examine the sedimentology and identify compositional changes in the stratigraphy. The Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument is one of two internal laboratories on Curiosity and includes a transmission X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer. CheMin measures loose sediment samples scooped from the surface and drilled rock powders, and the XRD provides quantitative mineralogy to a detection limit of ∼1 wt.% for crystalline phases. Curiosity has traversed>20 km since landing and has primarily been exploring an ancient lake environment fed by streams and groundwater. Of the 19 drilled rock samples analyzed by CheMin as of sol 2300 (January 2019), 15 are from fluvio-lacustrine deposits that comprise the Bradbury and Murray formations. Most of these samples were drilled from units that did not have a clear mineralogical signature from orbit. Results from CheMin demonstrate an astounding diversity in the mineralogy of these rocks that signifies geochemical variations in source rocks, transportation mechanisms, and depositional and diagenetic fluids. Most detrital igneous minerals are basaltic, but the discovery in a few samples of abundant silicate minerals that usually crystallize from evolved magmas on Earth remains enigmatic. Trioctahedral smectite and magnetite at the base of the section may have formed from low-salinity pore waters with a circumneutral pH in lake sediments. A transition to dioctahedral smectite, hematite, and Ca-sulfate going up section suggests a change to more saline and oxidative aqueous conditions in the lake waters themselves and/or in diagenetic fluids. Perhaps one of the biggest mysteries revealed by CheMin is the high abundance of X-ray amorphous materials (15–73 wt.%) in all samples drilled or scooped to date. CheMin has analyzed three modern eolian sands, which have helped constrain sediment transport and mineral segregation across the active Bagnold Dune Field. Ancient eolian sandstones drilled from the Stimson formation differ from modern eolian sands in that they contain abundant magnetite but no olivine, suggesting that diagenetic processes led to the alteration of olivine to release Fe(II) and precipitate magnetite. Fracture-associated halos in the Stimson and the Murray formations are evidence for complex aqueous processes long after the streams and lakes vanished from Gale crater. The sedimentology and composition of the rocks analyzed by Curiosity demonstrate that habitable environments persisted intermittently on the surface or in the subsurface of Gale crater for perhaps more than a billion years.

E.B. Rampe↗
NASA NTRS1996

Chemical and Thermal Analysis

Work has included significant research in several areas aimed at further clarification of the aging and chemical failure mechanism of thermoplastics (PVDF or Tefzel) for pipes. Among the areas investigated were the crystallinity changes associated with both the Coflon and Tefzel after various simulated environmental exposures using X-Ray diffraction analysis. We have found that significant changes in polymer crystallinity levels occur as a function of the exposures. These crystallinity changes may have important consequences on the fracture, fatigue, tensile, and chemical resistance of the materials. We have also noted changes in the molecular weight distribution of the Coflon material using a dual detector Gel Permeation Analysis. Again these changes may result in variation in the mechanical and chemical properties in the material. We conducted numerous analytical studies with methods including X-Ray Diffraction, Gel Permeation Chromatography, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, Thermogravimetric Analysis, and Differential Scanning Calorimetry. We investigated a number of aged samples of both Tefzel and Coflon that were forwarded from MERL. Pressurized tests were performed in a modified Fluid G, which we will call G2. In this case the ethylene diamine concentration was increased to 3 percent in methanol. Coflon pipe sections and powdered Coflon were exposed in pressure cells at 1700 psi at three separate test temperatures, 70 C, 110 C, and 130 C. The primary purpose of the pressure tests in Fluid G2 was to further elucidate the aging mechanism of PVDF degradation.

Bulluck, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1997

Chemical and Thermal Analysis

Work during the past three years has included significant research in several areas aimed at further clarification of the aging and chemical failure mechanism of thermoplastics (PVDF or Tefzel) for pipes. Among the areas investigated were the crystallinity changes associated with both the Coflon and Tefzel after various simulated environmental exposures using X-Ray diffraction analysis. We have found that significant changes in polymer crystallinity levels occur as a function of the exposures. These crystallinity changes may have important consequences on the fracture, fatigue, tensile, and chemical resistance of the materials. We have also noted changes in the molecular weight distribution and the increased crosslinking of the Coflon material using Gel Permeation Chromatographic Analysis. Again these changes may result in variations in the mechanical and chemical properties in the material. We conducted numerous analytical studies with methods including X-ray Diffraction, Gel Permeation Chromatography, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, and Differential Scanning Calorimetry. We investigated a plethora of aged samples of both Tefzel and Coflon that were forwarded from MERL. Pressurized tests were performed on powdered PVDF in a modified Fluid A, which we will call A-2. In this case the ethylene diamine concentration was increased to 3 percent in methanol. Coflon pipe sections and powdered Coflon were exposed in pressure cells at 1700 psi at three separate test temperatures.

Bulluck, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1989

Recent advances in engineering science; Proceedings of the A. Cemal Eringen Symposium, University of California, Berkeley, June 20-22, 1988

Various papers on recent advances in engineering science are presented. Some individual topics addressed include: advances in adaptive methods in computational fluid mechanics, mixtures of two medicomorphic materials, computer tests of rubber elasticity, shear bands in isotropic micropolar elastic materials, nonlinear surface wave and resonator effects in magnetostrictive crystals, simulation of electrically enhanced fibrous filtration, plasticity theory of granular materials, dynamics of viscoelastic media with internal oscillators, postcritical behavior of a cantilever bar, boundary value problems in nonlocal elasticity, stability of flexible structures with random parameters, electromagnetic tornadoes in earth's ionosphere and magnetosphere, helicity fluctuations and the energy cascade in turbulence, mechanics of interfacial zones in bonded materials, propagation of a normal shock in a varying area duct, analytical mechanics of fracture and fatigue.

Koh, Severino L.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Advances and trends in structures and dynamics; Proceedings of the Symposium, Washington, DC, October 22-25, 1984

Among the topics discussed are developments in structural engineering hardware and software, computation for fracture mechanics, trends in numerical analysis and parallel algorithms, mechanics of materials, advances in finite element methods, composite materials and structures, determinations of random motion and dynamic response, optimization theory, automotive tire modeling methods and contact problems, the damping and control of aircraft structures, and advanced structural applications. Specific topics covered include structural design expert systems, the evaluation of finite element system architectures, systolic arrays for finite element analyses, nonlinear finite element computations, hierarchical boundary elements, adaptive substructuring techniques in elastoplastic finite element analyses, automatic tracking of crack propagation, a theory of rate-dependent plasticity, the torsional stability of nonlinear eccentric structures, a computation method for fluid-structure interaction, the seismic analysis of three-dimensional soil-structure interaction, a stress analysis for a composite sandwich panel, toughness criterion identification for unidirectional composite laminates, the modeling of submerged cable dynamics, and damping synthesis for flexible spacecraft structures.

Noor, A. K.↗
NASA NTRS2003

MN Carbonates in the Martian Meteorite Nakhla: Possible Evidence of Brine Evaporation

The importance of secondary phases in martian meteorites lies in their potential to provide clues about the martian environments responsible for their formation. During this study, we analyzed a number of carbonate-bearing fracture surfaces from the Nakhla meteorite. Here we describe the physical and chemical properties of several manganese-calcium-rich siderites. Additionally, we describe a potential model for the formation and alteration of these carbonates, and we suggest constraints on the conditions responsible for their precipitation. Nakhla is an olivine-bearing clinopyroxenite with minor amounts of feldspar, FeS, and Fe oxides. Secondary mineral assemblages include vein filling clay with embedded iron oxides, a calcium sulfate, amorphous silica, chlorapatite, halite and carbonates. Bridges and Grady suggested that the carbonates in Nakhla formed from brine evaporation. Isotope studies of the Mn rich siderite are also consistent with formation from hydrothermal fluids with an upper T constraint of ~170 C.

Bailey, J. V.↗
NASA NTRS2004

Determination of the Three-Dimensional Morphology of ALH84001 and Biogenic MV-1 Magnetite: Comparison of Results from Electron Tomography and Classical Transmission Electron Microscopy

Dated at approximately 3.9 billion years of age, carbonate disks, found within fractures of the host rock of Martian meteorite ALH84001, have been interpreted as secondary minerals that formed at low temperature in an aqueous medium. Heterogeneously distributed within these disks are magnetite nanocrystals that are of Martian origin. Approximately one quarter of these magnetites have morphological and chemical similarities to magnetite particles produced by magnetotactic bacteria strain MV-1, which are ubiquitous in aquatic habitats on Earth. Moreover, these types of magnetite particles are not known or expected to be produced by abiotic means either through geological processes or synthetically in the laboratory. The remaining three quarters of the ALH84001 magnetites are likely products of multiple processes including, but not limited to, precipitation from a hydrothermal fluid, thermal decomposition of the carbonate matrix in which they are embedded, and extracellular formation by dissimilatory Fe-reducing bacteria. We have proposed that the origins of magnetites in ALH84001 can be best explained as the products of multiple processes, one of which is biological. Recently the three-dimensional (3-D) external morphology of the purported biogenic fraction of the ALH84001 magnetites has been the subject of considerable debate. We report here the 3-D geometry of biogenic magnetite crystals extracted from MV-1 and of those extracted from ALH84001 carbonate disks using a combination of high resolution classical and tomographic transmission electron microscopy (TEM). We focus on answering the following questions: (1) which technique provides adequate information to deduce the 3-D external crystal morphology?; and, (2) what is the precise 3-D geometry of the ALH84001 and MV-1 magnetites?

Thomas-Keprta, Kathie L.↗
NASA NTRS1991

The Role of Calcium in Osteoporosis

Calcium requirements may vary throughout the lifespan. During the growth years and up to age 25 to 30, it is important to maximize dietary intake of calcium to maintain positive calcium balance and achieve peak bone mass, thereby possibly decreasing the risk of fracture when bone is subsequently lost. Calcium intake need not be greater than 800 mg/day during the relatively short period of time between the end of bone building and the onset of bone loss (30 to 40 years). Starting at age 40 to 50, both men and women lose bone slowly, but women lose bone more rapidly around the menopause and for about 10 years after. Intestinal calcium absorption and the ability to adapt to low calcium diets are impaired in many postmenopausal women and elderly persons owing to a suspected functional or absolute decrease in the ability of the kidney to produce 1,25(OH)2D2. The bones then become more and more a source of calcium to maintain critical extracellular fluid calcium levels. Excessive dietary intake of protein and fiber may induce significant negative calcium balance and thus increase dietary calcium requirements. Generally, the strongest risk factors for osteoporosis are uncontrollable (e.g., sex, age, and race) or less controllable (e.g., disease and medications). However, several factors such as diet, physical activity, cigarette smoking, and alcohol use are lifestyle related and can be modified to help reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

Arnaud, C. D.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Indigenous Organic Matter Associated with Unusual Low Temperature Aqueous Secondary Phases in the Mars Meteorite Nakhla

In freshly fractured chips of the Mars meteorite Nakhla, we found carbonaceous phases intimately associated with secondary aqueous alteration phases, both mineral and amorphous, interpreted to have formed through the low-temperature, mineral-water dissolution of the host Martian basalt.We have characterized the nature of carbonaceous matter and spatially associated secondary phases within Nakhla using a multidisciplinary suite of optical and electron beam instrumentation(Thomas-Keprta et al., 2022). Secondary Phases: The preserved secondary mineral phases are best described as ‘juvenile’ hydrated amorphous silica formed when water interacts with mafic rocks. Although amorphous silica on Earth rarely persists through geologic time due to alteration into other phases, e.g.,microcrystalline opal-CT and eventually quartz, the lack of maturation of primarily amorphous silica with embedded nano phase ferrihydrite in Nakhla infers these phases formed in a limited water environment by low temperature, circumneutral pH fluids stabilized by the presence of coexisting amorphous silica.Additionally, we report the presence of the ferrous hydroxycarbonate mineral chukanovite (Fe2(OH)2CO3)within some of the secondary mineral aggregates studied. Organic Matter:Indigenous Nakhla carbonaceous matter is present both in condensed phases and in a dispersed state spatially associated with secondary alteration phases. In the former, discrete refractory micron to submicron assemblages were identified that appear macromolecular in nature and, in several cases, associated with F and, in one case, significant N. While organically bound Fhas yet to be detected remotely on Mars, the identification of organic N within one of the carbonaceous phases is considered a prerequisite for Martian astrobiological potential. Summary: Neither the intimate association of carbonaceous matter with secondary phases nor the identification of chukanovite have been previously reported in any of the Martian meteorites.A variety of habitability-related metastable solid-phase, oxidation-reduction, and organic-molecular sample attributes in Nakhla formed hundreds of millions of years ago near Mars’ surface; these alteration products persisted on Mars until very recentlyand resemble the amorphous materials observed at Gale crater by Mars Science Laboratory CuriosityRover (Rampe et al., 2020).Similar phases may be expected to occur elsewhere on Mars (e.g., Jezerocrater). References: Rampe E. B. et al.(2020) Mineralogy and geochemistry of sedimentary rocks and eolian sediments in Gale crater, Mars: A review after six Earth years of exploration with Curiosity.Geochemistry80, 125605; Thomas-Keprta K.L. et al. (2022) Indigenous carbon-rich matter associated with unusual aqueous alteration features in Nakhla: Complex formation and preservation history. Geochim. et Cosmochim. Acta320, 41-78 (online).

Mars meteorite↗
NASA NTRS1992

Large impacts in the Baltic shield with special attention to the Uppland structure

Within the Baltic Shield several very large structures have been identified and are suspected to be of meteorite impact origin. Some of these deeply eroded circular features are presented with special attention to the Uppland structure, where several indications point toward an impact origin in the mid-Proterozoic. The structures exceed 100 km in diameter and the topographic expression is inferior or absent. An arcuate arrangement of lithologies occurs around the margin of the structures and the central regions show conform magnetic and positive gravity anomalies. The Uppland structure is approximately 320 km in diameter as expressed by morphological, geological, and geophysical concentric patterns. The central part is topographically remarkably flat and is characterized by an unusual irregular fracture pattern. A subcircular central tonalite with density of 2.81 Mg(sup -3) gives a positive gravity anomaly of 35 mgal and the gravimetric profile is very similar to that of Manicouagan and Vredefort. The tonalite constitutes a huge antiform, 80 km in diameter, probably representing a 12-km structural uplift of infracrustal rocks. The flancs of the tonalite are characterized by recrystallized pseudotachylitic breccia dykes and breccia zones. Around the central parts amphibolite-grade metamorphic rocks appear as large fragments within a fine-grained granite interpreted as a thermally annealed melt rock. Several occurrences of breccia dykes and breccia-bearing melts have been identified about 100 km from the gravimetric center of the structure. Impact-related ore deposits are located around the margin of the structure and are interpreted as preexisting downfaulted iron formations, and deposits formed from remobilization of these preimpact occurrences. The so-called ball ores are interpreted to have formed by fluid injection similar to the formation of breccia dykes. The extensive hydrothermal alteration along the outer margin of the structure have created extreme soda and K-enriched rocks ('leptites') from preexisting gneiss granites and supracrustal sedimentary gneisses.

Henkel, H.↗
NASA NTRS1999

Olivine in Martian Meteorite Allan Hills 84001: Evidence for a High-Temperature Origin and Implications for Signs of Life

Olivine from Martian meteorite Allan Hills (ALH) 84001 occurs as clusters within orthopyroxene adjacent to fractures containing disrupted carbonate globules and feldspathic shock glass. The inclusions are irregular in shape and range in size from approx. 40 microns to submicrometer. Some of the inclusions are elongate and boudinage-like. The olivine grains are in sharp contact with the enclosing orthopyroxene and often contain small inclusions of chromite The olivine exhibits a very limited range of composition from Fo(sub 65) to Fo(sub 66) (n = 25). The delta(sup 18)O values of the olivine and orthopyroxene analyzed by ion microprobe range from +4.3 to +5.3% and are indistinguishable from each other within analytical uncertainty. The mineral chemistries, O-isotopic data, and textural relationships indicate that the olivine inclusions were produced at a temperature greater than 800 C. It is unlikely that the olivines formed during the same event that gave rise to the carbonates in ALH 84001, which have more elevated and variable delta(sup 18)O values, and were probably formed from fluids that were not in isotopic equilibrium with the orthopyroxene or olivine The reactions most likely instrumental in the formation of olivine could be either the dehydration of hydrous silicates that formed during carbonate precipitation or the reduction of orthopyroxene and spinel If the olivine was formed by either reaction during a postcarbonate beating event, the implications are profound with regards to the interpretations of McKay et al. Due to the low diffusion rates in carbonates, this rapid, high-temperature event would have resulted in the preservation of the fine-scale carbonate zoning' while partially devolatilizing select carbonate compositions on a submicrometer scale. This may have resulted in the formation of the minute magnetite grains that McKay et al attributed to biogenic activity.

Shearer, C. K.↗
NASA NTRS2003

Mineralogy and Petrology of Amoeboid Olivine Inclusions in CO3 Chondrites: Relationship to Parent-Body Aqueous Alteration

Petrographic and mineralogic studies of amoeboid olivine inclusions (AOIs) in CO3 carbonaceous chondrites reveal that they are sensitive indicators of parent-body aqueous and thermal alteration. As the petrologic subtype increases from 3.0 to 3.8, forsteritic olivine (Fa(sub 0-1)) is systematically converted into ferroan olivine (Fa(sub 60-75)). We infer that the Fe, Si and O entered the assemblage along grain boundaries, forming ferroan olivine that filled fractures and voids. As temperatures increased, Fe(+2) from the new olivine exchanged with Mg(+2) from the original AOI to form diffusive haloes around low-FeO cores. Cations of Mn(+2), Ca(+2) and Cr(+3) were also mobilized. The systematic changes in AOI textures and olivine compositional distributions can be used to refine the classification of CO3 chondrites into subtypes. In subtype 3.0, olivine occurs as small forsterite grains (Fa(sub 0-1)), free of ferroan olivine. In petrologic subtype 3.2, narrow veins of FeO-rich olivine have formed at forsterite grain boundaries. With increasing alteration, these veins thicken to form zones of ferroan olivine at the outside AOI margin and within the AOI interior. By subtype 3.7, there is a fairly broad olivine compositional distribution in the range Fa(sub 63-70), and by subtype 3.8, no forsterite remains and the high-Fa peak has narrowed, Fa(sub 64-67). Even at this stage, there is incomplete equilibration in the chondrite as a whole (e.g., data for coarse olivine grains in Isna (CO3.8) chondrules and lithic clasts show a peak at Fa(sub39)). We infer that the mineral changes in A01 identified in the low petrologic types required aqueous or hydrothermal fluids whereas those in subtypes greater than or equal to 3.3 largely reflect diffusive exchange within and between mineral grains without the aid of fluids.

Chizmadia, Lysa J.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Double Cantilever Beam and End Notched Flexure Fracture Toughness Testing of Two Composite Materials

Two different unidirectional composite materials were provided by NASA Langley Research Center and tested by the Composite Materials Research Group within the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Wyoming. Double cantilever beam and end notched flexure tests were performed to measure the mode I (crack opening) and mode II (sliding or shear) interlaminar fracture toughness of the two materials. The two composites consisted of IM7 carbon fiber combined with either RP46 resin toughened with special formulation of LaRC IA resin, known as JJS1356; or PES chain extended thermoplastic resin known as JJS1361. Double Cantilever Beam Specimen Configuration and Test Methods As received from NASA, the test specimens were nominally 0.5 inch wide, 6 inches long, and 0.2 inch thick. A 1 inch long Kapton insert at the midplane of one end of the specimen (placed during laminate fabrication) facilitated crack initiation and extension. It was noted that the specimens provided were smaller than the nominal 1.5 inch wide, 9.0 inch long configuration specified. Similarly, the Kapton inserts were of greater length than those in the present specimens. Hence, the data below should not be compared directly to those generated with the referenced methods. No preconditioning was performed on the specimens prior to testing. In general, the methodology was used for the present work. Crack opening loads were introduced to the specimens via piano hinges attached to the main specimen faces at a single end of each specimen. Hinges were bolted to the specimens using the technique presented. The cracks were extended a small distance from the end of the Kapton insert prior to testing. Just before precracking, the sides of the specimens were coated with water-soluble typewriter correction fluid to aid in crack visualization. Scribe marks were then made in the coating at half-inch intervals.

Kessler, Jeff A.↗