Abstract
A comparative study of blue and green beryl crystals (from the region of Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, Brazil) using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and optical absorption (OA) spectroscopy is reported. The EPR spectra show that Fe3+ in blue beryl occupies a substitutional Al3+ site and in green beryl is localized in the structural channels between two O6 planes. On the other hand the infrared spectra show that the alkali content in the blue beryl is mostly at substitutional and/or interstitial sites and in green beryl is mostly in the structural channels. The OA spectra show two types of Fe2+. Thermal treatments above 200° C in green beryl cause the reduction of Fe3+ into Fe2+ accompanied by a change of color to blue. The blue beryl color does not change on heating. The kinetics of the thermal conversion of Fe3+ into Fe2+ is composed of two first order processes; the first one has an activation energy ΔE 1=0.30 eV and the second one has an activation energy ΔE 2=0.46 eV.
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Blak, A.R., Isotani, S. & Watanabe, S. Optical absorption and electron spin resonance in blue and green natural beryl. Phys Chem Minerals 8, 161–166 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00308238
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00308238