Abstract
SINCE first reading of Libyan Desert glass1, I have been intrigued concerning its origin. In the course of investigation of impurities in the glassy state, the role of trace germanium in fused silica was studied2,3. All fused silica produced artificially from natural quartz contains trace germanium impurity. Two different fused silicas investigated contained 0.9 p.p.m. of germanium3. It occurred to me that the trace germanium content of Libyan Desert glass might offer a clue to its origin, as no trace germanium would be expected to volatilize selectively (as germanium(II) oxide) during sudden melting and quenching of a high silica-content glass.
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COHEN, A. Origin of Libyan Desert Silica-Glass. Nature 183, 1548–1549 (1959). https://doi.org/10.1038/1831548b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1831548b0
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