[meteorite-list] New type of fake moldavite coming soon?

From: Randy Korotev <korotev_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 01 Aug 2011 15:41:31 -0500
Message-ID: <201108012038.p71KcbA16236_at_levee.wustl.edu>

Unless these guys have gone to a lot of work making a special glass,
I would think the fakes could be easily be distinguished from the
real things by composition. Moldavites have less than <1% sodium as
Na2O whereas green bottle glass has 13-14%. Similarly, green bottle
glass (soda-lime glass) has 9-11% calcium as CaO whereas moldavites
have 2-3% CaO. Moldavites have 2-3% iron as Fe2O3 and green bottle
glass (7 samples I've analyzed) has 0.1-0.7%. One of those hand held
XRF guns should be able to see the differences for Ca and Fe (they
won't do Na except in vacuum).

Randy Korotev
Received on Mon 01 Aug 2011 04:41:31 PM PDT