Clays, clay minerals and layered materials

Moscow, Russia, 21 - 25 September 2009

Previous meetings on clays and clay minerals were held in Voronezh (2004) and Puschino (2006). The present meeting is devoted to the study of clay minerals and layered materials and their industrial applications. Layered materials always attract a lot of attention due to the variety of chemical composition, structure and properties. Today a special interest is given to the application of layered materials in nanotechnology. The conference has an interdisciplinary character. It is aimed to join specialists working with layered materials in the different fields of fundamental and applied science.Â

This interdisciplinary meeting presents programming in these topical areas:

• Synthesis, structure and characteristics of clay minerals and layered materials
• Advanced techniques of analysis of clay minerals and layered materials
• Physical and chemical properties of clay minerals and layered materials
• New layered materials and nanostructures and it's applications in the industry
• Clay minerals in soils and sediments: weathering and alteration
• Clay minerals in the oil and gas industry
• Clay minerals in the archeology and art
• MS 19 - Structure and properties of functional materials at extreme conditions

MSA/GS, ANL Short Course on Amphiboles

The Short Course on ‘‘Amphiboles’’, sponsored by the Mineralogical Society of America (MSA) and by the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei (ANL), was held in Rome in October 2007. The aim of the Short Course was to update the scientific community on the extensive developments that have occurred over the last twenty years on many issues concerning the crystal-chemistry and systematics of the amphiboles, as well as their role in petrogenetic and environmental processes.Â

Amphiboles are a complex but fascinating group of minerals, which are currently the focus of several investigations in the realms of geology, petrology, mineralogy, environmental mineralogy, epidemiology and even biology. During the last two decades, most of our previous concepts on the crystal chemistry of amphiboles have had to be reformulated, owing to advances in analytical techniques (especially X-ray diffraction, SIMS analysis and infrared spectroscopy), the development of new comprehensive models and the extensive study of synthetic compositions. This new situation prompted the organization of the Short Course and the preparation of a new volume of the MSA/GSA Reviews in Mineralogy series. Volume 67 (Amphiboles: crystal chemistry, occurrence and health issues) has been edited by Frank C. Hawthorne, Roberta Oberti, Giancarlo Della Ventura and Annibale Mottana, bringing together 13 comprehensive review chapters on the major issues addressed during the workshop. These chapters are focused on concepts and results more than on techniques, including advances in crystal-chemical models, classification and nomenclature. They also present challenges and results regarding synthesis, long-range and short-range ordering, geological occurrences and health issues related to the distribution of natural amphiboles in the environment.
Roberta Oberti
Giancarlo Della Ventura

The Organising Committee of IMA2014 would like to invite you to attend the 21st General Meeting of the International Mineralogical Association to be held at the Sandton Convention centre in the Gauteng province of South Africa. As a country with a large mining and mineralogical industry, as well as strong mineralogical, geological and geochemical research initiatives, South Africa is highly appropriate to host this meeting. Most of the mines and mineral occurrences are close to good infrastructure and easily accessible. Other easily accessible southern African countries also boast some outstanding geology and mineral fields. The content of the technical sessions will reflect all the traditionally most important topics of our science as well as other, locally and internationally relevant topics. The call for session proposals yielded an overwhelming response, with more than 70 sessions and workshops that will constitute the scientific programme. During the meeting we aim to supplement the international contributions with a showcase of South African examples of excellent research in the field of mineralogy, whilst simultaneously providing South African scientists with exposure to cutting edge research from the rest of the world. It would also be a wonderful, and affordable, opportunity to expose young scientists and students from southern Africa to both the local as well as the international mineralogical environment. A variety of field trips, varying in duration from 1 day to several days are on offer.

Main activities

The school is focused on recent advances in our understanding of the origin and evolution of the solar system, as revealed by the surfaces and interiors of planets, satellites, asteroids and comets, and analysis of meteorites. The official language of the school will be English.

Topics and teachers

• Planetary interiors (Wim van Westrenen, VU University Amsterdam, Netherlands)
• Lunar geology (Mahesh Anand, Open University, UK)
• Meteorite parent bodies (Josep Trigo-Rodríguez, Institute of Space Sciences, Barcelona, Spain)
• Early solar system solids (Ian Saunders, Trinity College, Dublin)
• Noble gas chemistry of planetary materials (Julia Cartwright, Max Plank Institute, Germany)
• Isotopic analysis of primitive materials (Jutta Zipfel, Natural History Museum, Frankfurt, Germany)
• Terrestrial impacts (Alex Deutsch, Institut für Planetologie, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Germany)
• Shock metamorphism (Mark Burchell, Department of Physics, University of Kent, U.K.)
• Organics in primitive meteorites & NanoSIMS techniques (Laurent Remusat, Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris)
• Micrometeorites (Luigi Folco, Università di Pisa, Italy)

Gordon Research Conference

Biominerals are everywhere in our world, including in our own bones, teeth and inner ear otoconia. Well over 60 biominerals have been identified in Nature, where they cut across most phyla. Biologically regulated mineralization (biomineralization) began more than 500 million years ago in the pre-Cambrian period, and indeed is in large measure partly responsible for the evolutionary success of the Cambrian explosion. Well prior to that, mineralogy on Earth has been affected by biological processes such that mineral "evolution" has likewise been described.

Surprisingly (or perhaps not surprisingly to some), the chemical composition and atomic structure of macroscopic and microscopic hard rocks found in the crust of the earth and in the geologic displays of museums and collectors is essentially the same used for organismal hardening strategies. The difference, of course, lies in the fact that biology has spatially diminished this rock-forming process in many cases down to the nanoscale, to form 'nanorocks' of sorts. The incredible downsizing precision of this nanoscaling process allows for tremendous organic-inorganic composite diversity across the structures and tissues of various organisms. Where biomineralization occurs within extracellular matrices - as in vertebrate bone, cartilage, dentin, cementum and enamel - the end result is billions, if not trillions or more, of nanocrystallites embedded within an organic scaffolding that together affords a degree of flexibility and toughness not present in the Earth's brittle gems. Gene mutations that ultimately affect mineral-regulating proteins typically lead to defective mineralization â€" and consequently decreased function â€" in the structures/tissues in which they reside.

Reconciliation of the evolving interplay between organic moieties and minerals lies at the heart of modern biomineralization inquiry, with studies typically requiring an integration of multi-pronged biophysical, biological and geological/mineralogical investigative approaches. Accordingly, this Gordon Research Conference on Biomineralization will explore the basic principles by which organisms synthesize, control and make use of minerals, as well as the potential applications of these, particularly related to the creation of novel, biologically regulated mineralized materials. Spectacular advances have been made in the last years and are impacting various scientific communities, from biology to geology, from life sciences to materials science, and from evolutionary sciences to engineering.

The central goal of this biomineralization GRC is to create a stimulating environment for scientists from all these disciplines to discuss the latest ideas and recent advances on how minerals interact with biomolecules, and what are the consequences of this interfacial interaction. The conference topics will cover all kinds of biominerals, including amongst others carbonates, phosphates, silica and iron oxides, whether they occur in vertebrates, invertebrates, plants and bacteria. It will also address human health issues related to abnormal mineralization or diseases connected to mineral growth and homeostasis in the skeleton and in teeth.

The great success of this GRC (its 50th anniversary) â€" and its first GRS (in 2012) â€" is largely attributable to its lively afternoon poster sessions, which complement exciting invited lectures usually followed by animated, provocative scientific exchange. The informal nature of the conference, along with abundant discussion time, breaks down barriers between students and junior and senior investigators, leading to an ongoing free and exciting exchange of scientific ideas. All are encouraged to present posters containing in part at least some new unpublished work, from which some will be selected for short oral presentations. Topics to be covered as part of the invited oral program include but are not limited to: Biomineral nucleation and growth, Intracellular biomineralization, Regulation of biomineralization in marine invertebrates, Protein/peptide structural biology regulating biomineralization processes, Computational simulations of biomineralization, Transgenic mouse models for understanding normal and pathologic biomineralization, Mineralized material properties and bioinspired materials, and Co-evolution of the geo- and biospheres.

• Chair: Marc D. McKeeÂ
• Vice Chair: Nico A.J.M. Sommerdijk

On the occasion of the International Year of Crystallography (IYCr2014), the Italian Micromineralogical Association (AMI), with the sponsorship of the Italian Society of Mineralogy and Petrology (SIMP), the Italian Crystallographic Association (AIC), the National Group of Mineralogy (GNM) and the City of Tavagnasco, in cooperation with the Department of Earth Sciences and the CrisDi - Interdepartmental Centre for the Development of X-ray Diffraction Crystallography of the University of Turin, organizes two study days and a day of presentations and mineral exchanges in Tavagnasco (between the mountains at the border of Piedmont and Valle d'Aosta] for days 6 to 8 June 2014.

6-7 June: guided tour to the mine galleries

Seminar A: Italian regional mineralogy: rarity, novelty, peculiarity Seminar B: Mineralogical Crystallography in Piedmont

8 June: Exchange of minerals

ISC2014 will be of interest to postgraduate, postdoctoral and research scientists from industry and academy that deal everyday with crystallization but need further knowledge on the behaviour of crystallization from solutions. ISC2014 will provide five days of lectures and practical demonstrations related to the crystallization of drugs, food, agrochemicals, minerals and materials of new synthesis, from fundamental aspects to large scale techniques. As in previous years the program will cover subjects such as the crystallization of polymorphs, chiral compounds, hydrates, solvates and co-crystals as well as legal aspects related to the practice of crystallization. This year we will also focus on the mineral pattern formation and biomineralization. We expect an attendance of 90 students and 30 lecturers and exhibitors. The students have been invited to submit an abstract and to present their results in 3 dedicated poster sessions. The practical sessions consist of a Demonstration Fair, where a number of stands will simultaneously offer the students the opportunity of attending short (30 minutes) practical sessions carried by the teachers at scheduled times. This year we have extended the number of demonstrations and the time scheduled, namely May 28th afternoon and May 29th the whole day.

As the Clay Minerals Society (CMS) turns its book to a new page to embrace the inquiries, achievements, and services in the next 50 years, the organizing committee of the 51st annual meeting of CMS cordially invites colleagues from diverse disciplines and industries around the world to attend this meeting at Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, May 17-21, 2014. The theme of this year's meeting is Everything Is Big, From Nanoparticles To Planets. Yes, clay science is big, not only in Texas but also in every other state and country. It is big to our industry, big to our environment, big to our energy, big to our research, and big to our student training.
The primary purpose of CMS is to stimulate research in all aspects of clay science and technology and to widely disseminate the research findings. Through its conferences and publications, the society offers individuals a means of following the multi-directional growth of the clay sciences and of meeting fellow scientists with widely different backgrounds and interests.
This year's annual meeting will have sixteen technical sessions, a one-day workshop on "Surface modification of clays and nanocomposites", a one-day field trip to clay and lignite mines to learn the mineralogy and geochemical processes in the mines, associated environmental problems, and mine reclamation operations. A half-day local soil tour will follow the meeting. The CMS awards to be presented by the Society include the Marilyn and Sturges W. Bailey Award, the George W. Brindley Lecture, the Marion L. and Chrystie M. Jackson Mid-Career Clay Scientist Award, and the Pioneer in Clay Science Award. The winners of the 7th (2014) Reynolds Cup competition will be announced at the meeting. Awards will also be presented for student research and travel grants, student papers and posters.