Ammonium micas: possible sources of atmospheric ammonia and nitrogen.

Ammonium muscovite, NH(4)Al(2)AlSi(3)O(10)(OH)(2), and ammonium phlogopite, NH(4)Mg(3)AlSi(3)O(10)(OH)(2), have been synthesized hydrothermally at gas pressures of 2 kilobars and temperatures between 550 degrees and 730 degrees C. Both micas are stable only in environments of high ammonia fugacity. Ammonia or nitrogen, or both, are released by thermal decomposition, cation exchange, or oxidation. The ammonia : nitrogen ratio in the gas depends primarily on the hydrogen fugacity and the temperature of the environment. Calculations show that, even in a predifferentiated Earth, nitrogen may have predominated. The total amount of nitrogen present on the surface of Earth could be accounted for by the decomposition of a layer of ammonium muscovite 170 meters thick.