Calcium Monoaluminate

MineralInorganic substance that is (1) naturally occurring (but does not have a biologic or man-made origin) and formed by physical (not biological) forces with a (2) defined chemical composition of limited variation, has a (3) distinctive set of of physical properties including being a solid, and has a (4) homogeneous Click on Term to Read More, CaAl₂O₄. The only known natural occurrence of this mineral is in a grossite-rich inclusionFragment of foreign (xeno-) material enclosed within the primary matrix of a rock or meteorite. Click on Term to Read More in the CH chondriteRare carbonaceous chondrite class that is chemically very close to the CRs and CBs as evidenced by the CH/CBb meteorite Isheyevo. The "H" stands for "high metal" since the CH chondrites contain up to 15 vol. % Fe-Ni metal. The first CH chondrite was found in the Antarctic Allan Hills Click on Term to Read More NWA 470 (Ivanova et al., 2002).

From the abstract:
Natural calcium monoaluminate, CaAl₂O₄, has been found in a grossite-rich calcium-aluminum-rich inclusion (CAISub-millimeter to centimeter-sized amorphous objects found typically in carbonaceous chondrites and ranging in color from white to greyish white and even light pink. CAIs have occasionally been found in ordinary chondrites, such as the L3.00 chondrite, NWA 8276 (Sara Russell, 2016). CAIs are also known as refractory inclusions since they Click on Term to Read More) from the CH chondriteChondrites are the most common meteorites accounting for ~84% of falls. Chondrites are comprised mostly of Fe- and Mg-bearing silicate minerals (found in both chondrules and fine grained matrix), reduced Fe/Ni metal (found in various states like large blebs, small grains and/or even chondrule rims), and various refractory inclusions (such Click on Term to Read More Northwest Africa 470. The calcium monoaluminate occurs as colorless ~10 mm subhedral grains intergrown with grossiteCalcium aluminate, CaAl4O7, first found in metamorphosed Israeli limestone and recently in CAIs in CV3 and CR-CH-CB carbonaceous chondrites. Click on Term to Read More, perovskiteTerm applied to ABO3 high-pressure minerals with a perovskite structure (general formula ABX3) where "A" is a metal that forms large cations such as Mg, Fe or Ca, "B" is another metal that forms smaller cations such as Si (called silicate perovskite), Ti and to a lesser degree Al, and Click on Term to Read More, and meliliteGroup of minerals found in the CAIs of meteorites such as CV chondrites. Melilite consists almost exclusively of the binary solid solution gehlenite (Ca2Al2SiO7) – åkermanite (Ca2MgSi2O7). The melilite in CAIs is closer to gehlenite in composition. The first-formed (highest-temperature) melilite crystallizing from a melt is relatively aluminum-rich and becomes progressively Click on Term to Read More. Nebular condensation is the most likely origin for the precursor materials of this CAI, but calculations suggest that dust/gas ratios substantially enhanced over solar are required to stabilize CaAl₂O₄.