Report of the Association Internationale pour l'Etude des Argiles (AIPEA) Nomenclature Committee for 2001: order, disorder and crystallinity in phyllosilicates and the use of the 'Crystallinity Index'

The purpose of this report is to describe the appropriate use of indices relating to crystallinity, such as the ‘crystallinity index’, the ‘Hinckley index’, the ‘Kübler index’, and the ‘Árkai index’. A ‘crystalline’ solid is defined as a solid consisting of atoms, ions or molecules packed together in a periodic arrangement. A ‘crystallinity index’ is purported to be a measure of crystallinity, although there is uncertainty about what this means (see below). This report discusses briefly the nature of order, disorder and crystallinity in phyllo-silicates and discusses why the use of a ‘crystallinity index’ should be avoided. If possible, it is suggested that indices be referred to using the name of the author who originally described the parameter, e.g.‘Hinckley index’ or ‘Kübler index’, or in honor of a researcher who investigated the importance of the parameter extensively, e.g. ‘Árkai index’.In contrast to a crystalline solid, an ‘amorphous’ solid is one in which the constituent components are arranged randomly. However, many variations occur between the two extremes of crystalline vs. amorphous. For example, one type of amorphous material might consist simply of atoms showing no order and no periodicity. Alternatively, another amorphous material may consist of atoms arranged, for example, as groups of tetrahedra (i.e. limited order) with each group displaced or rotated (e.g. without periodicity) relative to another. Thus, this latter material is nearly entirely amorphous, but differs from the first. Likewise, disturbance of order and periodicity may occur in crystalline materials. The terms ‘order’ and ‘disorder’ refer to the collective nature or degree of such disturbances. Although seemingly simple notions, ‘crystalline’ and ‘amorphous’ are complex concepts.Crystalline substances may show a periodic internal structure based on direction. For example, two-dimensional periodicity is common in phyllosilicates where two adjacent sheets or layers must mesh. For example, in serpentine, …