Keatite is a silicate mineral with the chemical formula SiO2 (silicon dioxide) that was discovered in nature in 2013. It is a tetragonal polymorph of silica first known as a synthetic phase.Ralph, Jolyon, and Ida Ralph. "Keatite: Keatite Mineral Information and Data." MinDat. 2013. Aug. 2013 It was reported as minute inclusions within clinopyroxene (diopside) crystals in an ultra high pressure garnet pyroxenite body. The host rock is part of the Kokchetav Massif in Kazakhstan.Abstract Hill, Tina R., Hiromi Konishi, and Huifang Xu, Natural occurrence of keatite precipitates in UHP clinopyroxene from the Kokchetav Massif: A TEM investigation, American Mineralogist, Volume 98, pages 187–196, 2013
Keatite was synthesized in 1954 and named for Paul P. Keat who discovered it while studying the role of soda in the crystallization of amorphous silica.Science 120 (27 Aug1954) pp 328-330 with the title "A new crystalline silica. Keatite was well known before 1970 as evidenced in few studies from that era.
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