Magnetite T.I. : The Case of the Blue Lava or Origin of Surficial Color in the Blue Dragon Lava Flow, Craters of the Moon, Idaho
Taylor N. 2017. Magnetite T.I. : The Case of the Blue Lava or Origin of Surficial Color in the Blue Dragon Lava Flow, Craters of the Moon, Idaho. Colgate University
Results from this this study are consistent with the Chemtob and Rossman (2014) mechanism based on blue Kilauea basalt flows. The mechanism involves post-eruption dissolution of the fresh basalt surfaces and precipitation of both a siliceous coating and a separate Fe-Ti oxide-rich coating, the latter being the cause for the blue coloration of the basalts. The elevated Ti3+ concentrations of COM basalt surfaces suggest a trend of Ti3+ surface enrichment that correlates with the presence of blue on the samples. Additionally, partial dissolution observed in near-surface titanomagnetites suggests a dissolution process that could potentially mobilize the Ti3+ and Fe3+ subsurface ions, transporting them to the surface via the same mechanism as the Chemtob and Rossman (2014) model. Consequently, the mechanism proposed by Faye and Miller (1973) that currently serves as an explanation for the blue coloration should be dismissed in favor of the Chemtob and Rossman (2014) mechanism that more adequately accounts for the surficial color variation observed in the Craters of the Moon basalts.
- Type
- Academic
- Authors
- Taylor, Nathan
- Date of Issue
- 2017
- Publisher
- Colgate University
- Units
- CRMO
- Keywords
- basalt, Blue Dragon, dissolution, Fe, Iron, Kilauea volcano, oxidized, siliceous, surficial color, thesis, Ti, Titanium, titanomagnetites