Sequential Lonsdaleite to Diamond Formation in Ureilite Meteorites via In Situ Chemical Fluid/Vapor Deposition

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 119; no. 38; pp. 1 - 8
• Main Authors: Tomkins, Andrew G., Wilson, Nicholas C., MacRae, Colin, Salek, Alan, Field, Matthew R., Brand, Helen E. A., Langendam, Andrew D., Stephen, Natasha R., Torpy, Aaron, Pintér, Zsanett, Jennings, Lauren A., McCulloch, Dougal G.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Academy of Sciences 20.09.2022
• Subjects: Chemical vapor deposition; Cross cutting; Decompression; Diamond machining; Dwarf planets; Electron microscopy; Graphite; Industrial applications; Meteorites; Meteors & meteorites; Physical Sciences; Planetary mantles; Ureilites; Vapors; meteorite; diamond; lonsdaleite; ureilite; chemical vapor deposition

Ureilite meteorites are arguably our only large suite of samples from the mantle of a dwarf planet and typically contain greater abundances of diamond than any known rock. Some also contain lonsdaleite, which may be harder than diamond. Here, we use electron microscopy to map the relative distributi...