This analysis reveals mineralogical diversity in meteorites using x-ray fluorescence and micro-raman spectroscopy, highlighting their geological complexity.
The study presents a multimodal analytical approach combining X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and micro-Raman spectroscopy to characterize the mineralogical and geochemical complexity of several meteorites, including ureilites, CO3 carbonaceous chondrite and Rumuruti meteorite. XRF provided bulk elemental compositions, revealing low Ni and low Co metal enrichments in ureilites and Mg-Si-dominated matrices in the carbonaceous chondrite and Rumuruti sample. Micro-Raman spectroscopy enabled spatially resolved identification of carbon phases and silicate mineralogies, uncovering presence of shock-induced nanodiamonds coexisting with graphite in the ureilite samples, and disordered carbonaceous matter in the CO3 chondrite. Olivine and pyroxene compositions exhibited distinct redox histories, with ureilites showing low-Ca pyroxene and coarse-grained olivine, contrasting with the Rumuruti sample’s ferroan olivine (Fa 38 ). The synergy of XRF and micro-Raman spectroscopy resolved ambiguities in shock-induced carbon phase discrimination, particularly in distinguishing nanodiamonds from amorphous carbon. Our results demonstrate the necessity of complementary techniques for deciphering meteoritic heterogeneity, with micro-Raman spectroscopy proving indispensable for probing shock metamorphism and spatially complex mineral assemblages. This work advances methodologies for extraterrestrial sample analysis, emphasizing the role of high-resolution, non-destructive tools in planetary material studies.
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Dankov et al. (2025) studied this question.
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