A Raman Spectroscopic Study of a Fulgurite
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-2010
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2010.0022
Abstract
A Raman microspectroscopic study of several fulgurites has been undertaken. A fulgurite is an amorphous mineraloid, a superheated glassy solid that is formed when a lightning bolt hits a sandy or rocky ground and thermal energy is transferred. The Raman spectra revealed several forms of crystalline and fused silica and also the presence of polyaromatic hydrocarbons found in an interfacial zone of a glass bubble. This, together with the presence of anatase, a low-temperature polymorph of TiO2, suggested that some regions of the fulgurite specimen were not subjected to temperatures of 1800°C, which are attained when lightning hits the surface of sand or a rock.
Rights Information
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, v. 368, issue 1922, p. 3087-3097
Scholar Commons Citation
Carter, Elizabeth A.; Hargreaves, Michael D.; Kee, Terence P.; Pasek, Matthew A.; and Edwards, Howell G.M., "A Raman Spectroscopic Study of a Fulgurite" (2010). School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications. 623.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/geo_facpub/623
