Discovery and characterization of a struvite layer in the Chalco paleolake, Mexico

centimeter-sized crystals of struvite (mgnh4po46h2o) were found during the drilling of a core from chalco paleolake, mexico for paleoecological and paleoclimatical research. struvite is a biogenic mineral, unstable in most geological environments. the unusual size and preservation of these struvite crystals allowed us to perform a chemical and mineralogical characterization. this is the first record of struvite from a geological locality in mexico, and one of the most remarkable in the world.