The single-crystal, polarized-light, FTIR spectrum of stoppaniite, the Fe analogue of beryl

Abstract

We report here a single-crystal polarized-light study of stoppaniite, ideally (Fe,Al,Mg)₄(Be₆Si₁₂O₃₆)(H₂O)₂(Na,□), from Capranica (Viterbo). Polarized-light FTIR spectra were collected on an oriented (hk0) section, doubly polished to 15 μm. The spectrum shows two main bands at 3,660 and 3,595 cm⁻¹; the former is strongly polarized for E ⊥c, while the latter is polarized for E //c. A sharp and very intense band at 1,620 cm⁻¹, plus minor features at 4,000 and 3,228 cm⁻¹ are also polarized for E //c. On the basis of literature data and considering the pleochroic behavior of the absorptions, the 3,660 cm⁻¹ band is assigned to the ν₃ stretching mode and the 1,620 cm⁻¹ (associated with an overtone 2*ν₂ at 3,230 cm⁻¹) band to the ν₂ bending mode of “type II” water molecules within the structural channels of the studied beryl. The sharp band at 3,595 cm⁻¹ is not associated with a corresponding ν₂ bending mode; thus it is assigned to the stretching vibration of O–H groups in the sample. The minor 4,000 cm⁻¹ feature can be assigned to the combination of the O–H bond parallel to c with a low-frequency metal-oxygen mode such as the Na–O stretching mode. The present results suggest that the interpretation of the FTIR spectrum of Na-rich beryl needs to be carefully reconsidered.