Direct calculation of thermodynamic properties of the barite/celestite solid solution from molecular principles

Thermodynamic properties of the barite–celestite solid solution were calculated using molecular principles. Cation–cation (Ba–Ba, Sr–Sr, and Ba–Sr) interaction energies were derived from a number of random and ordered cation distributions which were energy-optimized using force potentials as incorporated in the program package GULP. With these interaction energies, diagrams for the enthalpy and free energy of mixing could be computed for the entire range of the solid solution between the barite and celestite end members and for a number of annealing temperatures. These thermodynamic data show that the solid solution is nonideal. The system has a tendency for Ba2+ and Sr2+ cations to order onto alternating layers ||(100). However, this ordering scheme is thermodynamically only relevant for annealing temperatures below approximately 500 K and systems that are kinetically inhibited during crystal growth. For sufficiently long annealing times at room temperature, the solid solution tends to exsolve with barite–celestite interfaces ||(100). The cell parameters a and c were calculated to have almost linear behavior for the whole solid solution, suggesting close to ideal behavior according to Vegard's law. In contrast, b tends to deviate positively from linearity, in agreement with experimental values.