BOWENS REACTION SERIES Within the field of geology, Bowen's reaction series is the work of the petrologist, Norman

L. Bowen who was able to explain why certain types of minerals tend to be found together while others are almost never associated with one another. He experimented in the early 1900s with powdered rock material that was heated until it melted and then allowed to cool to a target temperature whereupon he observed the types of minerals that formed in the rocks produced. He repeated this process with progressively cooler temperatures and the results he obtained led him to formulate his reaction series which is still accepted today as the idealized progression of minerals produced by cooling magma. Based upon Bowen's work, one can infer from the minerals present in a rock the relative conditions under which the material had formed. [edit]Description The series is broken into two branches, the continuous and the discontinuous. The branch on the right is the continuous. The minerals at the top of the illustration (given aside) are first to crystallize and so the temperature gradient can be read to be from high to low with the high temperature minerals being on the top and the low temperature ones on the bottom. Since the surface of the Earth is a low temperature environment compared to the zones of rock formation, the chart also easily shows the stability of minerals with the ones at bottom being most stable and the ones at top being quickest to weather, known as theGoldich dissolution series. This is because minerals are most stable in the conditions closest to those under which they had formed. Put simply, the high temperature minerals, the first ones to crystallize in a mass of magma, are most unstable at the Earth's surface and quickest to weather because the surface is most different from the conditions under which they were created. On the other hand, the low temperature minerals are much more stable because the conditions at the surface are much more similar to the conditions under which they formed.

ALBITE

Albite is a felsic plagioclase feldspar mineral. It is the sodium endmember of the plagioclase solid solution series. As such it represents a plagioclase with less than 10% anorthite content. The pure albite endmember has the formula NaAlSi3O8. It is a tectosilicate. Its color is usually pure white, hence its name from Latin albus.

Albite

Albite crystallizes with triclinic pinacoidal forms. Its specific gravity is about 2.62 and it has a Mohs hardness of 6 - 6.5. Albite almost always exhibits crystal twinning often as minute parallel striations on the crystal face. Albite often occurs as fine parallel segregations alternating with pink microcline inperthite as a result of exolution on cooling. It occurs in granitic and pegmatite masses, in some hydrothermal vein deposits and forms part of the typical greenschist metamorphic facies for rocks of originally basaltic composition. It was first reported in 1815 for an occurrence in Finnbo, Falun, Dalarna, Sweden.
[2]

Albite

Albite from Crete, scale = 1 in.

General

Category

plagioclase, feldspar,tectosilicate

Formula
(repeating unit)

NaAlSi3O8 or Na1.00.9Ca0.00.1Al1.01.1Si3.02.9O8

Crystal symmetry

Triclinic HM Symbol 1

Unit cell

a = 8.16 , b = 12.87 , c = 7.11 ; = 93.45, = 116.4, = 90.28; Z=4

Identification

Color

White to gray, blueish, greenish, reddish; may bechatoyant

Crystal habit

Crystals commonly tabular, divergent aggregates, granular, cleavable massive

Crystal system

Triclinic Pinacoidal

Twinning

Coomon giving polysynthetic striae on {001} or {010}also contact, simple and multiple

Cleavage

Perfect on {001}, very good on {010}, imperfect on {110}

Fracture

Uneven to conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

6 6.5

Luster

Vitreous, typically pearly on cleavages

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.60 - 2.65

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index n = 1.528 1.533 n = 1.532 1.537 n = 1.538 1.542

Birefringence

= 0.010

2V angle

8590 (low); 5254 (high)

Dispersion

r < v weak

Other

Low- and high-temperature structural

characteristics

modifications are recognized

ALMANDINE (GARNET)

Almandine (pron.: /lmndn/), also known incorrectly as almandite, is a species of mineral belonging to the garnet group. The name is a corruption of alabandicus, which is the name applied by Pliny the Elder to a stone found or worked at Alabanda, a town in Caria in Asia Minor. Almandine is an iron alumina garnet, of deep red color, inclining to purple. It is frequently cut with a convex face, or en cabochon, and is then known as carbuncle. Viewed through the spectroscope in a strong light, it generally shows three characteristic absorption bands. Almandine is one end-member of a mineral solid solution series, with the other end member being the garnet pyrope. The almandine crystal formula is: Fe3Al2(SiO4)3. Magnesium substitutes for the iron with increasingly pyrope-rich composition. Almandine, Fe 3Al2Si3O12, is the ferrous iron end member of the class of garnet minerals representing an important group of rock-formingsilicates, which are the main constituents of the Earth's crust, upper mantle and transition zone. Almandine crystallizes in the cubic space group Ia3d, with unit-cell parameter [2] a 11.512 at 100 K. Almandine is antiferromagnet with the Nel temperature of 7.5 K. It contains two equivalent magnetic [3] sublattices. [edit]Occurrence
2+

Almandine

Almandine occurs rather abundantly in the gem-gravels of Sri Lanka, whence it has sometimes been called Ceylon-ruby. When the color inclines to a violet tint, the stone is often called Syriam garnet, a name said to be taken from Syriam, an ancient town of Pegu (now part ofMyanmar). Large deposits of fine almandine-garnets were found, some years ago, in theNorthern Territory of Australia, and were at first taken for rubies and thus they were known in trade for some time afterwards as Australian rubies. Almandine is widely distributed. Fine rhombic dodecahedra occur in the schistose rocks of theZillertal, in Tyrol, and are sometimes cut and polished. An almandine in which the ferrous oxide is replaced partly by magnesia is found at Luisenfeld in German East Africa. In the United States there are many localities which yield almandine. Fine crystals of almandine embedded in mica-schist occur near Wrangell in Alaska. The coarse varieties of almandine are often crushed for use as an abrasive agent.

Almandine

General

Category

Nesosilicate

Formula
(repeating unit)

Fe2+3Al2Si3O12

Strunz classification

09.AD.25

Identification

Color

reddish orange to red, slightly purplish red to reddish purple and usually dark in tone

Cleavage

none

Fracture

conchoidal [1]

Mohs scalehardness

7 - 7.5

Luster

greasy to vitreous

Specific gravity

4.05 (+.25, -.12) [1]

Polish luster

vitreous to subadamantine [1]

Optical properties

Single refractive, and often anomalous double refractive [1]

Refractive index

1.790 (+/- .030) [1]

Birefringence

none

Pleochroism

none

Dispersion

.024 [1]

Ultravioletfluorescence inert

Absorption spectra

usually at 504, 520, and 573nm, may also have faint lines at 423, 460, 610 and 680-690nm [1]

AMAZONITE (MICROCLINE) Amazonite (sometimes called "Amazon stone") is a green variety of microcline feldspar.
[1]

The name is taken from that of the Amazon River, from which certain green stones were formerly obtained, but it is doubtful whether green feldspar occurs in the Amazon area. Amazonite is a mineral of limited occurrence. Formerly it was obtained almost exclusively from the area of Miass in the Ilmen mountains, 50 miles southwest of Chelyabinsk, Russia, where it occurs in granitic rocks. More recently, high-quality crystals have been obtained from Pike's Peak, Colorado, where it is found associated with smoky quartz, orthoclase, and albite in a coarse granite or pegmatite. Crystals of amazonite can also be found in Crystal Park, El Paso County, Colorado. Other localities in the United [2] States which yield amazonite include the Morefield Mine in Amelia, Virginia. It is also found in pegmatite inMadagascar and in Brazil. Because of its bright green color when polished, amazonite is sometimes cut and used as a gemstone, although it is easily fractured. For many years, the source of amazonite's color was a mystery. Naturally, many people assumed the color was due to copper because copper compounds often have blue and green colors. More recent [3] studies suggest that the blue-green color results from small quantities of lead and water in the feldspar.

Microcline (KAlSi3O8) is an important igneous rock-forming tectosilicate mineral. It is a potassiumrich alkali feldspar. Microcline typically contains minor amounts of sodium. It is common in granite and pegmatites. Microcline forms during slow cooling oforthoclase; it is more stable at lower temperatures than orthoclase. Sanidine is a polymorph of alkali feldspar stable at yet higher temperature. Microcline may be clear, white, pale-yellow, brick-red, or green; it is generally characterized by crosshatch twinning that forms as a result of the transformation of monoclinic orthoclase into triclinic microcline. Microcline may be chemically the same as monoclinic orthoclase, but because it belongs to the triclinic crystal system, the prism angle is slightly less than right angles; hence the name "microcline" from the Greek "small slope." It is a fully ordered triclinicmodification of potassium feldspar and is dimorphous with orthoclase. Microcline is identical to orthoclase in many physical properties; it can be distinguished by x-ray or optical examination; viewed under a polarizing microscope, microcline exhibits a minute multipletwinning which forms a grating-like structure that is unmistakable.

Feldspar (Amazonite)

Perthite is either microcline or orthoclase with thin lamellae of exsolved albite. Amazon stone, or amazonite, is a beautiful green variety of microcline. It is not found anywhere in the Amazon basin, however. Spanish explorers who named it apparently confused it with another green mineral from that region. The largest documented single crystals of microcline were found in Devils Hole Beryl Mine,Colorado, US [1] and measured ~50x36x14 m. This could be one of the largest crystals of any material found so far.

APATITE

Apatite is a group of phosphate minerals, usually referring to hydroxylapatite, fluorapatite and chlorapatite, named for high concentrations of OH ,F , Cl or ions, respectively, in the crystal. The formula of the admixture of the four most common endmembers is written as Ca10(PO4)6(OH,F,Cl)2, and the crystal unit cell formulae of the individual minerals are written as Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2, Ca10(PO4)6(F)2 and Ca10(PO4)6(Cl)2. Apatite is one of a few minerals produced and used by biological micro-environmental systems. Apatite is the defining mineral for 5 on the Mohs scale. Hydroxyapatite, also known as hydroxylapatite, is the major component of tooth enamel and bone mineral. A relatively rare form of apatite in which most of the OH groups are absent and containing many carbonate and acid phosphate substitutions is a large component of bone material. Fluorapatite (or fluoroapatite) is more resistant to acid attack than is hydroxyapatite; in the mid-20th century, it was discovered that communities whose water supply naturally contained fluorine had lower [3] rates of dental caries. Fluoridated water allows exchange in the teeth of fluoride ions forhydroxyl groups in apatite. Similarly, toothpaste typically contains a source of fluoride anions (e.g. sodium

fluoride, sodium monofluorophosphate). Too much fluoride results in dental fluorosis and/or skeletal fluorosis. Fission tracks in apatite are commonly used to determine the thermal history of orogenic (mountain) belts and of sediments in sedimentary basins.(U-Th)/He dating of apatite is also well established for use in determining thermal histories and other, less typical applications such as paleo-wildfire dating. Phosphorite is a phosphate-rich sedimentary rock, that contains between 18% and 40% P2O5. The apatite in phosphorite is present ascryptocrystalline masses referred to as collophane.

Apatite

General

Category

Phosphate mineral group

Formula
(repeating unit)

Ca5(PO4)3(F,Cl,OH)

Strunz classification

08.BN.05

Identification

Color

Transparent to translucent, usually green, less often colorless, yellow, blue to violet, pink, brown.[1]

Crystal habit

Tabular, prismatic crystals, massive, compact or granular

Crystal system

Hexagonal dipyramidal (6/m)[2]

Cleavage

[0001] indistinct, [1010] indistinct[2]

Fracture

Conchoidal to uneven[1]

Mohs scalehardness

5[1] (defining mineral)

Luster

Vitreous[1] to subresinous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent[2]

Specific gravity

3.163.22[2]

Polish luster

Vitreous[1]

Optical properties

Double refractive, uniaxial negative[1]

Refractive index

1.6341.638 (+0.012, 0.006)[1]

Birefringence

0.0020.008[1]

Pleochroism

Blue stones strong, blue and yellow to colorless. Other colors are weak to very weak.[1]

Dispersion

0.013[1]

Ultravioletfluorescence Yellow stones purplish pink which is stronger in long wave;blue stones blue to light blue in both long and short wave; green stones greenish yellow

which is stronger in long wave; violet stones greenish yellow in long wave, light purple in short wave.[1]

ARAGONITE

Aragonite is a carbonate mineral, one of the two common, naturally occurring, crystal forms of calcium carbonate, CaCO3 (the other form being themineral calcite). It is formed by biological and physical processes, including precipitation from marine and freshwater environments. Aragonite's crystal lattice differs from that of calcite, resulting in a different crystal shape, an orthorhombic system with acicular crystals. Repeatedtwinning results in pseudo-hexagonal forms. Aragonite may be columnar or fibrous, occasionally in branching stalactitic forms called flos-ferri("flowers of iron") from their association with the ores at the Carinthian iron mines.

Occurrence
The type location for aragonite is Molina de Aragn (Guadalajara, Spain), 25 km from Aragon for which it [1] was named in 1797. An aragonite cave, the Ochtinsk Aragonite Cave, is situated in Slovakia. In the USA, aragonite in the form of stalactites and "cave flowers" (anthodite) is known fromCarlsbad Caverns and other caves. Massive deposits of oolitic aragonite sand are found on the seabed in the Bahamas. Aragonite forms naturally in almost all mollusk shells, and as the calcareous endoskeleton of warm- and cold-water corals (Scleractinia). Severalserpulids have aragonitic tubes. Because the mineral deposition in mollusk shells is strongly biologically controlled, some crystal forms are distinctively different from those of inorganic aragonite. In some mollusks, the entire shell is aragonite; in others, aragonite forms only discrete parts of a bimineralic shell (aragonite plus calcite). Aragonite also forms in the ocean and in caves as inorganic precipitates called marine cements andspeleothems, respectively. The nacreous layer of the aragonite fossil shells of some extinct ammonites forms an iridescent material called ammolite. Ammolite is primarily aragonite with impurities that make it iridescent and valuable as a gemstone. Aragonite is metastable and is thus commonly replaced by calcite in fossils. Aragonite older than [4] the Carboniferous is essentially unknown. [edit]Physical

properties

Aragonite is thermodynamically unstable at standard temperature and pressure, and tends to alter 7 8 to calcite on scales of 10 to 10 years. The mineral vaterite, also known as -CaCO3, is another phase of calcium carbonate that is metastable at ambient conditions typical of Earth's surface, and decomposes even more readily than aragonite. [edit]Uses In aquaria, aragonite is considered essential for the replication of reef conditions in aquariums. needed] It not only is the material that the sea life is evolved to use and live around, but also keeps the tank's pH close to its natural level.
[citation

Aragonite

Aragonite from Salsignes Mine, Aude department, France Size: 30x30x20 cm

General

Category

Carbonate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

CaCO3

Strunz classification

05.AB.15

Crystal symmetry

Orthorhombic (2/m 2/m 2/m) - dipyramidal

Unit cell

a = 4.95 , b = 7.96 , c = 5.74 ; Z = 4

Identification

Color

White, red, yellow, orange, green , blue and brown

Crystal habit

Pseudohexagonal, prismatic crystals, acicular, columnar, globular, reniform, pisolitic, coralloidal, stalactitic, internally banded

Crystal system

Orthorhombic

Twinning

Polysynthetic parallel to {100} cyclically on {110}

Cleavage

Distinct on {010}, imperfect {110} and {011}

Fracture

Subconchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

3.5-4

Luster

Vitreous, resinous on fracture surfaces

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Translucent to transparent

Specific gravity

2.95

Optical properties

Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.529 - 1.530 n = 1.680 - 1.682 n = 1.685 - 1.686

Birefringence

= 0.156

2V angle

18

Solubility

Dilute acid

Other

Fluorescence: pale rose, yellow, white or

characteristics

bluish; phosphorescence: greenish or white (LW UV); yellowish (SW UV)

AUGITE

Augite is a common rock forming single chain inosilicate mineral with formula (Ca,Na)(Mg,Fe,Al,Ti)(Si,Al)2O6. The crystals are monoclinic and prismatic. Augite has two prominent cleavages, meeting at angles near 90 degrees. [edit]Characteristics

Euhedral crystal of augite fromTeide (4.4 x 3.0 x 2.3 cm)

Augite is a solid solution in the pyroxene group. Diopside and hedenbergite are important endmembers in augite, but augite can also contain significant aluminium, titanium, and sodium and other elements. The calcium content of augite is limited by a miscibility gap between it and pigeonite and orthopyroxene: when occurring with either of these other pyroxenes, the calcium content of augite is a function of temperature and pressure, but mostly of temperature, and so can be useful in reconstructing temperature histories of rocks. With declining temperature, augite may exsolve lamellae of pigeonite and/or orthopyroxene. There is also a miscibility gap between augite andomphacite, but this gap occurs at lower temperature and is not well understood. [edit]Locations It's an essential mineral in mafic igneous rocks; for example, gabbro and basalt and common in ultramafic rocks. It also occurs in relatively high-temperature metamorphic rocks such as mafic granulite and metamorphosed iron formations. It commonly occurs in association [1] with orthoclase, sanidine, labradorite, olivine, leucite, amphibolesand other pyroxenes. Occasional specimens have a shiny appearance that give rise to the mineral's name, which is from the Greekaugites, meaning "brightness", although ordinary specimens have a dull (dark green, brown or [2] black) luster. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1792. Transparent augites containing dendritic patterns are used as gems and ornamental stones known [4] as shajar in parts of India. It is found near the Ken River. Local jewelers export raw shajar stone and [5] items to different parts of India. Banda is one city noted for trade of shazar stone.

Augite

Augite - Muhavura volcano

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

(Ca,Na)(Mg,Fe,Al,Ti)(Si,Al)2O6

Strunz classification

9.DA.15

Crystal symmetry

Monoclinic prismatic H-M symbol: (2/m) Space group: C 2/c

Unit cell

a = 9.699 , b = 8.844 , c = 5.272 ; = 106.97; Z=4

Identification

Color

Black, brown, greenish, violet-brown; in thin section, colorless to gray with zoning common

Crystal habit

Commonly as stubby prismatic crystals, also acicular, skeletal, dendritic

Crystal system

Monoclinic

Twinning

Simple or multiple on {100} and {001}

Cleavage

{110} good with 87 between {110} and {110}; parting on {100} and {010}

Fracture

uneven to conchoidal

Tenacity

brittle

Mohs scalehardness

5.5 to 6

Luster

Vitreous, resinous to dull

Streak

Greenish-white

Diaphaneity

Transparent to opaque

Specific gravity 3.19 - 3.56

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.680 - 1.735, n = 1.684 - 1.741, n = 1.706 - 1.774

Birefringence

= 0.026 - 0.039

Pleochroism

X = pale green, pale brown, green, greenish yellow; Y = pale brown, pale yellow-green, violet; Z = pale green, grayish green, violet

AZURITE Azurite is a soft, deep blue copper mineral produced by weathering of copper ore deposits. It is also [2] known as Chessylite after the type locality atChessy-les-Mines near Lyon, France. The mineral, a carbonate, has been known since ancient times, and was mentioned in Pliny the Elder'sNatural History under the Greek name kuanos (: "deep blue," root of English cyan) and the Latin [4] name caeruleum. The blue of azurite is exceptionally deep and clear, and for that reason the mineral has tended to be associated since antiquity with the deep blue color of low-humidity desert and winter skies. The modern English name of the mineral reflects this association, since both azurite and azure are derived via Arabic from the Persian lazhward (), an area known for its deposits of another deep blue stone, lapis lazuli ("stone of azure"). [edit]Mineralogy

Fresh, unweathered stalactitic azurite crystals showing the deep blue of unaltered azurite

Malachite pseudomorf after azurite. With azurite, and unknown white crystals. From Tsumeb, Namibia.

Ground azurite powder for use as a pigment.

Azurite deposits on the interior surface of a geode

Azurite is one of the two basic copper(II) carbonate minerals, the other being bright green malachite. Simple copper carbonate (CuCO3) is not known to exist in nature. Azurite has the formula Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2, with the copper(II) cations linked to two different anions, carbonate and hydroxide. Small crystals of azurite can be produced by rapidly stirring a few drops of copper sulfate solution into asaturated solution of sodium carbonate and allowing the solution to stand overnight. Azurite crystals are monoclinic, and when large enough to be seen they appear as dark blue prismatic [2][3][5] crystals. Azurite specimens are typically massive to nodular, and are often stalactitic in form. Specimens tend to lighten in color over time due to weathering of the specimen surface into malachite. Azurite is soft, with a Mohs hardness of only 3.5 to 4. The specific gravity of azurite is 3.77 to 3.89. Azurite is destroyed by heat, losing carbon dioxide and water to form black, powdery copper(II) oxide. Characteristic of a carbonate, specimens effervesce upon treatment with hydrochloric acid.

[edit]Color The optical properties (color, intensity) of minerals such as azurite and malachite are explained in the context of conventional electronic spectroscopy of coordination complexes. Relatively detailed descriptions are provided by ligand field theory. [edit]Weathering Azurite is unstable in open air with respect to malachite, and often is pseudomorphically replaced bymalachite. This weathering process involves the replacement of some the carbon dioxide (CO 2) units with water (H2O), changing the carbonate:hydroxide ratio of azurite from 1:1 to the 1:2 ratio of malachite: 2 Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 + H2O 3 Cu2(CO3)(OH)2 + CO2 From the above equation, the conversion of azurite into malachite is attributable to the low partial pressure of carbon dioxide in air. Azurite is also incompatible with aquatic media, such as saltwater aquariums. [edit]Uses [edit]Pigments Azurite was used as a blue pigment for centuries. Depending on the degree of fineness to which it was ground, and its basic content of copper carbonate, it gave a wide range of blues. It has been known asmountain blue or Armenian stone, in addition it was formerly known as Azurro Della Magna (from Italian). When mixed with oil it turns slightly green. When mixed with egg yolk it turns greengrey. It is also known by the names Blue Bice and Blue Verditer, though Verditer usually refers to a pigment made by chemical process. Older examples of azurite pigment may show a more greenish tint due to weathering into malachite. Much azurite was mislabeled lapis lazuli, a term applied to many blue pigments. As chemical analysis of paintings from the Middle Ages improves, azurite is being recognized as a major source of the blues used by medieval painters. True lapis lazuli was chiefly supplied from Afghanistan during the Middle Ages while azurite was a common mineral in Europe at the time. Sizable deposits were found near Lyons, France. It was mined since the 12th [6] century in Saxony, in the silver mines located there. Heating can be used to distinguish azurite from purified natural ultramarine blue, a similar but much more expensive pigment, as described by Cennino D'Andrea Cennini. Ultramarine withstands heat, but azurite turns to black copper oxide. However, gentle heating of azurite produces a deep blue pigment used in Japanese painting techniques. [edit]Jewelry Azurite is used occasionally as beads and as jewelry, and also as an ornamental stone. However, its softness and tendency to lose its deep blue color as it weathers limit such uses. Heating destroys azurite easily, so all mounting of azurite specimens must be done at room temperature. [edit]Collecting
[show]Left frame [hide]Right frame

[show]Parallel view ( ) [show]Cross-eye view ( )

Small specimen of Azurite from China.

The intense color of azurite makes it a popular collector's stone. However, bright light, heat, and open air all tend to reduce the intensity of its color over time. To help preserve the deep blue color of a pristine azurite specimen, collectors should use a cool, dark, sealed storage environment similar to that of its original natural setting. [edit]Prospecting While not a major ore of copper itself, the presence of azurite is a good surface indicator of the presence of weathered copper sulfide ores. It is usually found in association with the chemically very similar malachite, producing a striking color combination of deep blue and bright green that is strongly indicative of the presence of copper ores.

Azurite

Azurite from China with large crystals and light surface weathering.

General

Category

Carbonate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2

Strunz classification

05.BA.05

Crystal symmetry

Monoclinic 2/m

Unit cell

a = 5.01 , b = 5.85 , c = 10.35 ; = 92.43; Z=2

Identification

Formula mass

344.67 g/mol

Color

Azure-blue, Berlin blue, very dark to pale blue; pale blue in transmitted light

Crystal habit

Massive, prismatic, stalactitic, tabular

Crystal system

Monoclinic Prismatic

Twinning

Rare, twin planes {101}, {102} or {001}

Cleavage

Perfect on {011}, fair on {100}, poor on {110}

Fracture

Conchoidal

Tenacity

brittle

Mohs scalehardness

3.5 to 4

Luster

Vitreous

Streak

Light Blue

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

3.773 (measured), 3.78 (calculated)

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.730 n = 1.758 n = 1.838

Birefringence

= 0.108

Pleochroism

Visible shades of blue

2V angle

Measured: 68, calculated: 64

Dispersion

relatively weak

BAUXITE

Bauxite is an aluminium ore and is the main source of aluminium. This form of rock consists mostly of the minerals gibbsite Al(OH)3, boehmite -AlO(OH), and diaspore -AlO(OH), in a mixture with the two iron oxides goethite and hematite, the clay mineral kaolinite, and small amounts of anataseTiO2. Bauxite was named after the village Les Baux in southern France, where it was first recognised as containing aluminium and named by the French geologist Pierre Berthier in 1821. [edit]Bauxite

formation

Lateritic bauxites (silicate bauxites) are distinguished from karst bauxite ores (carbonate bauxites). The early discovered carbonate bauxites occur predominantly in Europe and Jamaica above carbonate rocks (limestone and dolomite), where they were formed by lateritic weathering and residual accumulation of intercalated clays or by clay dissolution residues of the limestone. The lateritic bauxites are found mostly in the countries of the tropics. They were formed by lateritization of various silicate rocks such as granite, gneiss,basalt, syenite, and shale. In comparison with the iron-rich laterites, the formation of bauxites demands even more on intense weathering conditions in a location with very good drainage. This enables the dissolution of the kaolinite and the precipitation of the gibbsite. Zones with highest aluminium content are frequently located below a ferruginous surface layer. The aluminium hydroxide in the lateritic bauxite deposits is almost exclusively gibbsite. In the case of Jamaica, recent analysis of the soils showed elevated levels of cadmium suggesting that the bauxite originates from recent Miocene ashdeposits from episodes of significant volcanism in Central America.

[edit]Production

trends

In 2010, Australia was the top producer of bauxite with almost one-third of the world's production, followed by China, Brazil, India, and Guinea. Although aluminium demand is rapidly increasing, known reserves of its bauxite ore are sufficient to meet the worldwide demands for aluminium for many [citation needed] centuries. Increased aluminium recycling, which has the advantage of lowering the cost in electric power in producing aluminium, will considerably extend the world's bauxite reserves.

BARITE

Baryte, or barite, (BaSO4) is a mineral consisting of barium sulfate. The baryte group consists of baryte, celestine, anglesite and anhydrite. Baryte itself is generally white or colorless, and is the main [1] source of barium. Baryte and celestine form a solid solution (Ba,Sr)SO4. [edit]Names

[2]

and history

The unit cell of barite

The radiating form, sometimes referred to as Bologna Stone, attained some notoriety among alchemistsfor the phosphorescent specimens found in the 17th century near Bologna by Vincenzo [6] Casciarolo. The American Petroleum Institute specification API 13/ISO 13500 which governs baryte for drilling purposes does not refer to any specific mineral, but rather a material that meets that specification. In practice this is usually the mineral baryte. The term "primary baryte" refers to the first marketable product, which includes crude baryte (run of mine) and the products of simple beneficiation methods, such as washing, jigging, heavy media separation, tabling, flotation. Most crude baryte requires some upgrading to minimum purity or density. Baryte that is used as an aggregate in a "heavy" cement is crushed and screened to a uniform size. Most baryte is ground to a small, uniform size before it is used as a filler or extender, an addition to industrial products, or a weighting agent in petroleum well drilling mud. [edit]Name The name baryte is derived from the Greek word (heavy). The American [2][7] spelling is barite. The International Mineralogical Associationadopted "barite" as the official spelling [citation needed] when it formed in 1959 , but recommended adopting the older "baryte" spelling in [8] 1978, notably ignored by the Mineralogical Society of America. Other names have been used for baryte, including barytine, [2] [3] Spar, tiff, and blanc fixe. [edit]Mineral
[8]

barytite,

[8]

schwerspath,

[8]

barytes,

[2]

Heavy

associations and locations

Baryte with Galena and Hematite from Poland

Large barite crystals from Nevada, USA

Abandoned baryte mine shaft near Aberfeldy, Perthshire, Scotland.

Baryte occurs in a large number of depositional environments, and is deposited through a large number [1] of processes including biogenic, hydrothermal, and evaporation, among others. Baryte commonly occurs in lead-zinc veins in limestones, in hot spring deposits, and with hematite ore. It is often [9] associated with the minerals anglesite and celestine. It has also been identified in meteorites.

Baryte has been found at locations in Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, India, Greece, Iran, Ireland (where it [10] was mined on Benbulben ), Liberia, Morocco, Peru, Romania (Baia Sprie), Turkey, South [11] Africa(Barberton Mountain Land), Thailand, UK (Cornwall, Cumbria, Derbyshire, Durham, Muirshiel [2] Mine,Perthshire, Argyllshire & Surrey ) and USA (Cheshire, Connecticut, De Kalb, New York & Fort Wallace, New Mexico. It is mined in Arkansas, Connecticut, Virginia, North [2] Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee,Kentucky, Nevada & Missouri. ) The major baryte producers (in thousand tonnes, data for 2010) are as follows: China (3,600), India [12] (1,000), United States (670), Morocco (460), Iran (250), Turkey (150) and Kazakhstan (100). [edit]Uses Some 77% worldwide is used as a weighting agent for drilling fluids in oil and gas exploration to suppress high formation pressures and prevent blowouts. As a well is drilled, the bit passes through various formations, each with different characteristics. The deeper the hole, the more barite is needed as a percentage of the total mud mix. An additional benefit of barite is that it is non-magnetic and thus does not interfere with magnetic measurements taken in the borehole, either during logging-while-drilling or in separate drill hole logging. Barite used for drilling petroleum wells can be black, blue, brown or gray depending on the ore body. The barite is finely ground so that at least 97% of the material, by weight, can pass through a 200-mesh (75-m) screen, and no more than 30%, by weight, can be less than 6 m diameter. The ground barite also must be dense enough so that its specific gravity is 4.2 or greater, soft enough to not damage the bearings of a tricone drill bit, chemically inert, and containing no more than [7] 250 milligrams per kilogram of soluble alkaline salts. Other uses are in added-value applications which include filler in paint and plastics, sound reduction in engine compartments, coat of automobile finishes for smoothness and corrosion resistance, friction products for automobiles and trucks, radiation-shielding cement, glass ceramics and medical applications (for example, a barium meal before a contrast CAT scan). Baryte is supplied in a variety of forms and the price depends on the amount of processing; filler applications commanding higher prices following intense physical processing by grinding and micronising, and there are further premiums for whiteness [7] and brightness and color. Historically baryte was used for the production of barium hydroxide for sugar refining, and as a [2] white pigment for textiles, paper, and paint. Although baryte contains a "heavy" metal (barium), it is not considered to be a toxic chemical by most governments because of its extreme insolubility. [edit]Paleothermometry

Baryte with Cerussite from Morocco

In the deep ocean, away from continental sources of sediment, pelagic baryte crystallizes out and forms a 18 significant amount of the sediments. Since baryte has oxygen, systematics in the O of these sediments have been used to help constrain paleotemperatures for oceanic crust. Similarly the variations in sulfur [13] isotopes are also being exploited.

BERYL

In geology, beryl is a mineral composed of beryllium aluminium cyclosilicate with the chemical formula Be3Al2(SiO3)6. The hexagonal crystals of beryl may be very small or range to several meters in size. Terminated crystals are relatively rare. Pure beryl is colorless, but it is frequently tinted by impurities; possible colors are green, blue, yellow, red, and white. [edit]Etymology The name beryl is derived (via Latin: beryllus, Old French: beryl, and Middle English: beril) [1] from Greek beryllos which referred to a "precious blue-green color-of-sea-water stone" and originated from Prakrit veruliya ( ) and Pali veuriya ( ); veiru ( ); from Sanskrit vaidurya-, which is ultimately of Dravidian origin, maybe from the name of Belur or "Velur" in [4] [2] southern India. The term was later adopted for the mineral beryl more exclusively. The Late Latin word berillus was abbreviated as brill- which produced the Italian word brillare meaning "shine", theFrench word brille meaning "shine", the Spanish word brillo, also meaning "shine", and [5] the English word brilliance. [edit]Deposits

Beryl of various colors is found most commonly in granitic pegmatites, but also occurs in mica schists in the Ural Mountains, and limestone inColombia. Beryl is often associated with tin and tungsten ore bodies. Beryl is found in Europe in Norway, Austria, Germany, Sweden (especially morganite), Ireland and Russia, as well as Brazil, Colombia, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Africa, the United States, and Zambia. U.S. beryl locations are in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Dakota and Utah. New England's pegmatites have produced some of the largest beryls found, including one massive crystal from the Bumpus Quarry in Albany, Mainewith dimensions 5.5 m by 1.2 m (18 ft by 4 ft) with a mass of around 18 metric tons; it is New Hampshire's state mineral. As of 1999, the world's largest known naturally occurring crystal of any mineral is a crystal of beryl from Malakialina, Madagascar, 18 meters [6] long and 3.5 meters in diameter, and weighing 380,000 kilogrammes. [edit]Varieties [edit]Aquamarine

and maxixe

Aquamarine

Aquamarine (from Latin: aqua marina, "water of the sea") is a blue or turquoise variety of beryl. It occurs at most localities which yield ordinary beryl. The gem-gravel placer deposits of Sri Lanka contain aquamarine. Clear yellow beryl, such as that occurring in Brazil, is sometimes called aquamarine [citation needed] chrysolite. The deep blue version of aquamarine is calledmaxixe. Maxixe is commonly found in the country of Madagascar. Its color fades to white when exposed to sunlight or is subjected to heat treatment, though the color returns with irradiation. The pale blue color of aquamarine is attributed to Fe . The Fe ions produce golden-yellow color, and 2+ 3+ when both Fe and Fe are present, the color is a darker blue as in maxixe. Decoloration of maxixe by 3+ 2+ [7][8][9][10] light or heat thus may be due to the charge transfer Fe and Fe . Dark-blue maxixe color can be produced in green, pink or yellow beryl by irradiating it with high-energy particles (gamma [11] rays, neutrons or even X-rays). In the United States, aquamarines can be found at the summit of Mt. Antero in the Sawatch Range in central Colorado. InWyoming, aquamarine has been discovered in the Big Horn Mountains, near Powder River Pass. In Brazil, there are mines in the states of Minas Gerais, Esprito Santo, and Bahia, and
2+ 3+

minorly in Rio Grande do Norte. The mines of Colombia, Zambia, Madagascar, Malawi,Tanzania and Kenya also produce aquamarine. The largest aquamarine of gemstone quality ever mined was found in Marambaia, Minas Gerais, Brazil, in 1910. It weighed over 110 kg, and its dimensions were 48.5 cm (19 in) long and 42 cm (17 in) in [12] diameter. The largest cut aquamarine gem is the Dom Pedro aquamarine, now housed in [13] the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. [edit]Emerald Main article: Emerald

Rough emerald on matrix

Emerald refers to green beryl, colored by trace amounts of chromium and sometimes vanadium. The word "emerald" comes (via Middle English: Emeraude, imported from Old French: smeraude and Medieval Latin: Esmaraldus) from Latin smaragdus from Greek smaragdos ("green gem"), its original source being a Semitic word izmargad ( )or the Sanskrit word, marakata ( ), meaning "green". Most emeralds are highly included, so their brittleness (resistance to breakage) is classified as generally poor. Emeralds in antiquity were mined by the Egyptians and in Austria, as well as Swat in [16] northern Pakistan. A rare type of emerald known as a trapiche emerald is occasionally found in the mines of Colombia. A trapiche emerald exhibits a "star" pattern; it has raylike spokes of dark carbon impurities that give the emerald a six-pointed radial pattern. It is named for the trapiche, a grinding wheel used to process sugarcane in the region. Colombian emeralds are generally the most prized due to their transparency and fire. Some of the most rare emeralds come from three main emerald mining areas in Colombia: Muzo, Coscuez, and Chivor. Fine emeralds are also found in other countries, such as Zambia, Brazil, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and Russia. In the US, emeralds can be found in Hiddenite, North Carolina. In 1998, emeralds were discovered in the Yukon. Emerald is a rare and valuable gemstone and, as such, it has provided the incentive for developing [17] synthetic emeralds. Both hydrothermal and flux-growth synthetics have been produced. The first [18] commercially successful emerald synthesis process was that of Carroll Chatham. The other large producer of flux emeralds was Pierre Gilson Sr., which has been on the market since 1964. Gilson's emeralds are usually grown on natural colorless beryl seeds which become coated on both sides. Growth occurs at the rate of 1 mm per month, a typical seven-month growth run producing emerald crystals of [19] 3+ [8][9][10] 7 mm of thickness. The green color of emeralds is attributed to presence of Cr ions.
[15]

[7][14]

Golden beryl

Heliodor

[edit]Golden

beryl and heliodor

Golden beryl can range in colors from pale yellow to a brilliant gold. Unlike emerald, golden beryl has very few flaws. The term "golden beryl" is sometimes synonymous with heliodor (from Greek hlios "sun" + dron "gift") but golden beryl refers to pure yellow or golden yellow shades, while 3+ [7][8] heliodor refers to the greenish-yellow shades. The golden yellow color is attributed to Fe ions. Both golden beryl and heliodor are used as gems. Probably the largest cut golden beryl is the flawless [20] 2054 carat stone on display in the Hall of Gems, Washington, D.C. [edit]Goshenite

Goshenite

Colorless beryl is called goshenite. The name originates from Goshen, Massachusetts where it was originally discovered. Since all these color varieties are caused by impurities and pure beryl is colorless, it might be tempting to assume that goshenite is the purest variety of beryl. However, there are several elements that can act as inhibitors to color in beryl and so this assumption may not always be true. The name goshenite has been said to be on its way to extinction and yet it is still commonly used in the gemstone markets. Goshenite is found to some extent in almost all beryl localities. In the past, goshenite was used for manufacturing eyeglasses and lenses owing to its transparency. Nowadays, it is most [21][22] commonly used for gemstone purposes and also considered as a source of beryllium.

The gem value of goshenite is relatively low. However, goshenite can be colored yellow, green, pink, blue and in intermediate colors by irradiating it with high-energy particles. The resulting color depends on the [8] content of Ca, Sc, Ti, V, Fe, and Co impurities. [edit]Morganite

Morganite

Morganite, also known as "pink beryl", "rose beryl", "pink emerald", and "cesian (or caesian) beryl", is a rare light pink to rose-colored gem-quality variety of beryl. Orange/yellow varieties of morganite can also be found, and color banding is common. It can be routinely heat treated to remove patches of yellow and is occasionally treated by irradiation to improve its color. The pink color of morganite is attributed to 2+ [7] Mn ions. Pink beryl of fine color and good sizes was first discovered on an island on the coast of Madagascar in [23] 1910. It was also known, with other gemstone minerals, such astourmaline and kunzite, at Pala, California. In December 1910, the New York Academy of Sciences named the pink variety of beryl [23] "morganite" after financier J. P. Morgan. On October 7, 1989, one of the largest gem morganite specimens ever uncovered, eventually called "The [24] Rose of Maine," was found at the Bennett Quarry in Buckfield,Maine, USA. The crystal, originally somewhat orange in hue, was 23 cm (9 in) long and about 30 cm (12 in) across, and weighed (along with [25] its matrix) just over 50 lbs (23 kg). [edit]Red

beryl

Red beryl

Red beryl (also known as "red emerald" or "scarlet emerald") is a red variety of beryl. It was first described in 1904 for an occurrence, its type locality, at Maynard's Claim (Pismire Knolls), Thomas [26][27] Range, Juab County, Utah. The old synonym "bixbite" is deprecated from the CIBJO, because of the

risk of confusion with the mineralbixbyite (also named after the mineralogist Maynard Bixby). The dark red 3+ [7] color is attributed to Mn ions. Red beryl is very rare and has only been reported from a handful of locations including: Wah Wah Mountains, Beaver County, Utah; Paramount Canyon and Round Mountain,Sierra County, New [1] Mexico; and Juab County, Utah. The greatest concentration of gem-grade red beryl comes from the Violet Claim in the Wah Wah Mountains of mid-western Utah, discovered in 1958 by Lamar Hodges, [28] of Fillmore, Utah, while he was prospecting for uranium. Prices for top quality natural red beryl can be as high as $10,000 per carat for faceted stones. Red beryl has been known to be confused with pezzottaite, also known as raspberry beryl or "raspberyl", a gemstone that has been found in Madagascar and now Afghanistan although cut gems of the two varieties can be distinguished from [29] their difference in refractive index. While gem beryls are ordinarily found in pegmatites and certain metamorphic stones, red beryl occurs in topaz-bearing rhyolites. It formed by crystallizing under low pressure and high temperature from a pneumatolitic phase along fractures or within near-surface miarolitic cavities of the rhyolite. Associated [30] minerals include bixbyite, quartz,orthoclase, topaz, spessartine, pseudobrookite and hematite.

Beryl

Three varieties of beryl: morganite, aquamarine and heliodor

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Be3Al2(SiO3)6

Strunz classification

9.CJ.05

Crystal symmetry

Hexagonal dihexagonal dipyramidal H-M symbol (6/m 2/m 2/m) Space group: P 6/mmc

Unit cell

a = 9.21 , c = 9.19 ; Z = 2

Identification

Formula mass

537.50

Color

Green, blue, yellow, colorless, pink and others

Crystal habit

Prismatic to tabular cystals; radial, columnar; granular to compact massive

Crystal system

Hexagonal

Twinning

Rare

Cleavage

Imperfect on {0001}

Fracture

Conchoidal to irregular

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

7.58

Luster

Vitreous to resinous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

Average 2.76

Optical properties

Uniaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.5641.595 n = 1.5681.602

Birefringence

= 0.00400.0070

Pleochroism

Weak to distinct

Ultravioletfluorescence None (some fracture filling materials used to improve emerald's clarity do fluoresce, but the stone itself does not)

BIOTITE (MICA)

Biotite is a common phyllosilicate mineral within the mica group, with the approximate chemical formula K(Mg,Fe)3AlSi3O10(F,OH)2. More generally, it refers to the dark mica series, primarily a solidsolution series between the iron-endmember annite, and the magnesium-endmember phlogopite; more aluminous endmembers include siderophyllite. Biotite was named by J.F.L. Hausmann in 1847 in honour of the French physicist Jean-Baptiste Biot, who, in 1816, researched the optical properties of mica, [4] discovering many unique properties. Biotite is a sheet silicate. Iron, magnesium, aluminium, silicon, oxygen, and hydrogen form sheets that are weakly bound together by potassium ions. It is sometimes called "iron mica" because it is more iron-rich

than phlogopite. It is also sometimes called "black mica" as opposed to "white mica" (muscovite) both form in some rocks, in some instances side-by-side. [edit]Properties Like other mica minerals, biotite has a highly perfect basal cleavage, and consists of flexible sheets, or lamellae, which easily flake off. It has amonoclinic crystal system, with tabular to prismatic crystals with an obvious pinacoid termination. It has four prism faces and two pinacoid faces to form a pseudohexagonal crystal. Although not easily seen because of the cleavage and sheets, fracture is uneven. It appears greenish to brown or black, and even yellow when weathered. It can be transparent to opaque, has a vitreous to pearly luster, and a grey-white streak. When biotite is found in large chunks, they are called books because it resembles a book with pages of many sheets. Under cross-polarized light biotite can generally be identified by the gnarled bird's eye extinction. [edit]Occurrence Biotite is found in a wide variety of igneous and metamorphic rocks. For instance, biotite occurs in the lava of Mount Vesuvius and in the Monzoni intrusive complex of the western Dolomites. It is an essential phenocryst in some varieties of lamprophyre. Biotite is occasionally found in large cleavable crystals, especially in pegmatite veins, as in New England, Virginia and North Carolina. Other notable occurrences include Bancroft andSudbury, Ontario. It is an essential constituent of many metamorphic schists, and it forms in suitable compositions over a wide range of pressure andtemperature. The largest documented single crystals of biotite were approximately 7 m (75 sq ft) sheets found [5] in Iveland, Norway. [edit]Uses
2

biotite: Topotype deposit

Biotite is used extensively to constrain ages of rocks, by either potassium-argon dating or argon-argon dating. Because argon escapes readily from the biotite crystal structure at high temperatures, these methods may provide only minimum ages for many rocks. Biotite is also useful in assessing temperature histories of metamorphic rocks, because the partitioning of iron and magnesium between biotite and garnetis sensitive to temperature.

Biotite

thin tabular Biotite aggregate (Image width: 2.5 mm)

General

Category

Dark Mica series

Formula
(repeating unit)

K(Mg,Fe)3(AlSi3O10)(F,OH)2

Identification

Formula mass

433.53 g

Color

Dark brown, greenish brown, blackish brown, yellow, white

Crystal habit

massive to platy

Crystal system

Monoclinic (2/m) Space Group: C 2/m

Twinning

common on the [310], less common on the {001}

Cleavage

Perfect on the {001}

Fracture

Micaceous

Tenacity

Brittle to flexible, elastic

Mohs scalehardness

2.53.0

Luster

Vitreous to pearly

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

transparent to translucent to opaque

Specific gravity

2.73.1

Density

2.83.4

Optical properties

Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.5651.625 n = 1.6051.675 n = 1.6051.675

Birefringence

= 0.030.07

Pleochroism

strong

Dispersion

r < v (Fe rich); r > v weak (Mg rich)

Ultravioletfluorescence None

BORNITE

Bornite, also known as peacock ore, is a sulfide mineral with chemical composition Cu5FeS4 that crystallizes in the orthorhombic system (pseudo-cubic). [edit]Appearance

Tarnish of Bornite

Bornite has a brown to copper-red color on fresh surfaces that tarnishes to various iridescent shades of blue to purple in places. Its striking iridescence gives it the nickname peacock copper or peacock ore. [edit]Mineralogy Bornite is an important copper ore mineral and occurs widely in porphyry copper deposits along with the more common chalcopyrite. Chalcopyrite and bornite are both typically replaced by chalcocite andcovellite in the supergene enrichment zone of copper deposits. Bornite is also found as disseminations inmafic igneous rocks, in contact metamorphic skarn deposits, in pegmatites and [2] in sedimentarycupriferous shales. It is important as an ore for its copper content of about 63 percent by [1] mass. [edit]Occurrence

Bornite with silver from Zacatecas,Mexico (size: 7.5 x 4.3 x 3.4 cm)

It occurs globally in copper ores with notable crystal localities in Butte, Montana and at Bristol,Connecticut in the U. S. It is also collected from the Carn Brea mine, Illogan, and elsewhere in Cornwall,England. Large crystals are found from the Frossnitz Alps, eastern Tirol, Austria; the Mangula mine,Lomagundi district, Zimbabwe; from the Nouva mine, Talate, Morocco, the West Coast of Tasmania [2] and in Dzhezkazgan, Kazakhstan. [edit]History

and etymology

It was first described in 1725 for an occurrence in the Krun Hory Mountains ( Erzgebirge), Karlovy Vary Region, Bohemia in what is now the Czech Republic. It was named in 1845 for Austrian mineralogistIgnaz [3] von Born (17421791).

CALCITE

Calcite is a carbonate mineral and the most stable polymorph of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). The other [5] polymorphs are the minerals aragonite andvaterite. Aragonite will change to calcite at 380-470C, and vaterite is even less stable. [edit]Properties Calcite crystals are trigonal-rhombohedral, though actual calcite rhombohedra are rare as natural crystals. However, they show a remarkable variety of habits including acute to obtuse rhombohedra, tabular forms, prisms, or various scalenohedra. Calcite exhibits several twinning types adding to the variety of observed forms. It may occur as fibrous, granular, lamellar, or compact. Cleavage is usually in three directions parallel to the rhombohedron form. Its fracture is conchoidal, but difficult to obtain. It has a defining Mohs hardness of 3, a specific gravity of 2.71, and its luster is vitreous in crystallized varieties. Color is white or none, though shades of gray, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, brown, or even black can occur when the mineral is charged with impurities. Calcite is transparent to opaque and may occasionally show phosphorescence or fluorescence. A transparent variety called Iceland spar is used for optical purposes. Acute scalenohedral crystals are sometimes referred to as "dogtooth spar" while the rhombohedral form is sometimes referred to as "nailhead spar". Single calcite crystals display an optical property called birefringence (double refraction). This strong birefringence causes objects viewed through a clear piece of calcite to appear doubled. The birefringent effect (using calcite) was first described by the Danish scientist Rasmus Bartholin in 1669. At a wavelength of ~590 nm calcite has ordinary and extraordinary refractive indices of 1.658 and 1.486, [6] respectively. Between 190 and 1700 nm, the ordinary refractive index varies roughly between 1.6 and [7] 1.4, while the extraordinary refractive index varies between 1.9 and 1.5. Calcite, like most carbonates, will dissolve with most forms of acid. Calcite can be either dissolved by groundwater or precipitated by groundwater, depending on several factors including the water temperature, pH, and dissolved ion concentrations. Although calcite is fairly insoluble in cold water, acidity can cause dissolution of calcite and release of carbon dioxide gas. Ambient carbon dioxide, due to its acidity, has a slight solubilizing effect on calcite. Calcite exhibits an unusual characteristic called retrograde solubility in which it becomes less soluble in water as the temperature increases. When

conditions are right for precipitation, calcite forms mineral coatings that cement the existing rock grains together or it can fill fractures. When conditions are right for dissolution, the removal of calcite can dramatically increase the porosity and permeability of the rock, and if it continues for a long period of time may result in the formation of caves. On a landscape scale, continued dissolution of calcium carbonaterich rocks can lead to the expansion and eventual collapse of cave systems, resulting in various forms of karst topography. [edit]Use

and applications

High-grade optical calcite was used in World War II for gun sights, specifically in bomb sights and anti[8] [9] aircraft weaponry. Also, experiments have been conducted to use calcite for a cloak of invisibility. [edit]Natural

occurrence

The largest documented single crystals of calcite originated from Iceland, measured 772 m and 663 [10][11] m and weighed about 250 tons.

Doubly terminated calcite crystal

Calcite is a common constituent of sedimentary rocks, limestone in particular, much of which is formed from the shells of dead marine organisms. Approximately 10% of sedimentary rock is limestone. Calcite is the primary mineral in metamorphic marble. It also occurs as a vein mineral in deposits from hot springs, and it occurs in caverns asstalactites and stalagmites. Lublinite is a fibrous, efflorescent form of calcite.
[12]

Calcite may also be found in volcanic or mantle-derived rocks such as carbonatites, kimberlites, or rarely in peridotites. Calcite is often the primary constituent of the shells of marine organisms, e.g., plankton (such ascoccoliths and planktic foraminifera), the hard parts of red algae, some sponges, brachiopods,echinoderms, some serpulids, most bryozoa, and parts of the shells of some bivalves (such as oystersand rudists). Calcite is found in spectacular form in the Snowy River Cave of New Mexico as mentioned above, where microorganisms are credited with natural formations. Trilobites, which are now extinct, had unique compound eyes. They used clear calcite crystals to form the lenses of their eyes. [edit]Calcite

formation processes

Calcite forms from a poorly ordered precursor (amorphous calcium carbonate, ACC). The crystallization process occurs in two stages; firstly, the ACC nanoparticles rapidly dehydrate and crystallize to form individual particles of vaterite; secondly, the vaterite transforms to calcite via a dissolution and reprecipitation mechanism with the reaction rate controlled by the surface area of [14] calcite. The second stage of the reaction is approximately 10 times slower than the rst. However, the crystallization of calcite has been observed to be dependent on the starting pH and presence of Mg in [15] solution. A neutral starting pH during mixing promotes the direct transformation of ACC into calcite. Conversely, when ACC forms in a solution that starts with a basic initial pH, the transformation to calcite [16] occurs via metastable vaterite, which forms via a spherulitic growth mechanism. In a second stage this vaterite transforms to calcite via a surface-controlled dissolution and recrystallization mechanism. Mg has a noteworthy effect on both the stability of ACC and its transformation to crystalline CaCO3, resulting in the formation of calcite directly from ACC, as this ion unstabilizes the structure of vaterite. [edit]Calcite

[13]

in Earth history

Calcite seas existed in Earth history when the primary inorganic precipitate of calcium carbonate in marine waters was low-magnesium calcite (lmc), as opposed to the aragonite and high-magnesium calcite (hmc) precipitated today. Calcite seas alternated with aragonite seas over the Phanerozoic, being most prominent in the Ordovician and Jurassic. Lineages evolved to use whichever morph of calcium carbonate was favourable in the ocean at the time they became mineralised, and retained this mineralogy [17] for the remainder of their evolutionary history. Petrographic evidence for these calcite sea conditions consists of calcitic ooids, lmc cements, hardgrounds, and rapid early seafloor aragonite [18] dissolution. The evolution of marine organisms with calcium carbonate shells may have been affected [19] by the calcite and aragonite sea cycle.

Calcite

A one-inch calcite rhomb that shows the double image refraction property

General

Category

Carbonate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

CaCO3

Strunz classification

05.AB.05

Crystal symmetry

Trigonal 32/m

Unit cell

a = 4.9896(2) , c = 17.0610(11) ; Z=6

Identification

Color

Colorless or white, also gray, yellow, green,

Crystal habit

Crystalline, granular, stalactitic, concretionary, massive, rhombohedral.

Crystal system

Trigonal hexagonal scalenohedral (32/m), Space Group (R3 2/c)

Twinning

Common by four twin laws

Cleavage

Perfect on [1011] three directions with angle of 74 55'[1]

Fracture

Conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

3 (defining mineral)

Luster

Vitreous to pearly on cleavage surfaces

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.71

Optical properties

Uniaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.640 1.660 n = 1.486

Birefringence

= 0.154 0.174

Solubility

Soluble in dilute acids

Other characteristics

May fluoresce red, blue, yellow, and other colors under either SW and LW UV; phosphorescent

CELESTITE

Celestine or celestite (SrSO4) is a mineral consisting of strontium sulfate. The mineral is named for its occasional delicate blue color. Celestine is the principal source of the element strontium, commonly used in fireworks and in various metal alloys. [edit]Occurrence

[4]

Celestine from the Machow Mine, Poland.

Celestine occurs as crystals, and also in compact massive and fibrous forms. It is mostly found insedimentary rocks, often associated with the minerals gypsum, anhydrite, and halite.

The mineral is found worldwide, usually in small quantities. Pale blue crystal specimens are found inMadagascar. The skeletons of the protozoan Acantharea are made of celestine, unlike those of other radiolarians which are made of silica. In carbonate marine sediments, burial dissolution is a recognised mechanism of celestine precipitation. [edit]Geodes
[5]

Celestine geode section

Inside the Crystal Cave geode in Ohio

Celestine crystals are found in some geodes. The world's largest known geode, a celestine geode 35 feet (10.7 m) in diameter at its widest point, is located near the village of Put-in-Bay, Ohio, on South Bass Island in Lake Erie. The geode has been converted into a viewing cave, Crystal Cave, with the crystals which once composed the floor of the geode removed. The geode has celestine crystals as wide as 18 inches (46 cm) across, estimated to weigh up to 300 pounds (135 kg) each.

Celestine

Clear grey-blue celestine crystal crust from Madagascar

General

Category

Sulfate minerals

Formula
(repeating unit)

SrSO4 sometimes contains minor calcium and/or barium

Strunz classification

07.AD.35

Crystal symmetry

Orthorhombic 2/m 2/m 2/m dipyramidal

Unit cell

a = 8.359 , b = 5.352 , c = 6.866 ; Z =4

Identification

Color

Colorless, white, pale blue, pink, pale green, pale brown, black

Crystal habit

Tabular to pyramidal crystals, also fibrous, lamellar, earthy, massive granular

Crystal system

Orthorhombic

Cleavage

Perfect on {001}, good on {210}, poor on {010}

Fracture

Uneven

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

3 - 3.5

Luster

Vitreous, pearly on cleavages

Streak

white

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

3.95 - 3.97

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.619 - 1.622 n = 1.622 - 1.624 n = 1.630 - 1.632

Birefringence

= 0.011

Pleochroism

Weak

2V angle

Measured: 50 to 51

Dispersion

Moderate r < v

Ultravioletfluorescence Short UV=yellow, white blue, long UV=yellow, white blue

CHALCOPYRITE

Chalcopyrite (pron.: /klkparat/ KAL-ko-PY-ryt) is a copper iron sulfide mineral that crystallizes in the tetragonal system. It has the chemical composition CuFeS2. It has a brassy to golden yellow color and a hardness of 3.5 to 4 on the Mohs scale. Its streak is diagnostic as green tinged black. On exposure to air, chalcopyrite oxidises to a variety of oxides, hydroxides and sulfates. Associated copper minerals include the sulfides bornite(Cu5FeS4), chalcocite (Cu2S), covellite (CuS), digenite (Cu9S5); carbonates such as malachite and azurite, and rarely oxides such as cuprite(Cu2O). Chalcopyrite is rarely found in association with native copper. [edit]Chemistry

The unit cell of chalcopyrite. Copper is shown in pink, iron in blue and sulfur in yellow.

Natural chalcopyrite has no solid solution series with any other sulfide minerals. There is limited substitution of Zn with Cu despite chalcopyrite having the same crystal structure as sphalerite. However, it is often contaminated by a variety of other trace elements such as Co, Ni, Mn, Zn and Sn substituting for Cu and Fe. Se, Fe and As substitute for sulfur, and trace amounts of Ag, Au, Pt, Pd, Pb, V, Cr, In, and Sb are reported. It is likely many of these elements are present in finely intergrown minerals within the chalcopyrite crystal, for instance lamellae of arsenopyriterepresenting As, molybdenite representing Mo, etc. [edit]Paragenesis Chalcopyrite is present with many ore bearing environments via a variety of ore forming processes. Chalcopyrite is present in volcanogenic massive sulfide ore deposits and sedimentary exhalative deposits, formed by deposition of copper duringhydrothermal circulation. Chalcopyrite is concentrated in this environment via fluid transport. Porphyry copper ore deposits are formed by concentration of copper within a granite stock during the ascent and crystallisation of a magma. Chalcopyrite in this environment is produced by concentration within a magmatic system. Chalcopyrite is an accessory mineral in Kambalda type komatiitic nickel ore deposits, formed from an immiscible sulfide liquid in sulfur-saturated ultramafic lavas. In this environment chalcopyrite is formed by a sulfide liquid stripping copper from an immiscible silicate liquid. [edit]Occurrence

Fine brassy chalcopyrite crystals below large striated pyrite cubes (size:8.8 x 6.3 x 4.5 cm)

Chalcopyrite is the most important copper ore. Chalcopyrite ore occurs in a variety of ore types, from huge masses as at Timmins, Ontario, to irregular veins and disseminations associated with granitic to dioritic intrusives as in the porphyry copper deposits of Broken Hill, the American cordillera and the Andes. The largest deposit of nearly pure chalcopyrite ever discovered in Canada was at the southern end of the Temagami greenstone belt where Copperfields Mine extracted the high-grade [6] copper. Chalcopyrite is present in the supergiant Olympic Dam Cu-Au-U deposit in South Australia.

Chalcopyrite may also be found in coal seams associated with pyrite nodules, and as disseminations in carbonate sedimentary rocks. [edit]Structure Crystallographically the structure of chalcopyrite is closely related to that of zinc blende ZnS (sphalerite). + 3+ 2+ The unit cell is twice as large, reflecting an alternation of Cu and Fe ions replacing Zn ions in adjacent 2cells. In contrast to the pyrite structure chalcopyrite has single S sulfide anions rather than disulfide pairs. Another difference is that the iron cation is not diamagnetic low spin Fe(II) as in pyrite.

Chalcopyrite

Twinned chalcopyrite crystal from the Camp Bird Mine, Ouray County, Colorado. Crystal is about 1 cm x 1 cm.

General

Category

Sulfide mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

CuFeS2

Strunz classification

02.CB.10a

Crystal symmetry

Tetragonal 42m scalenohedral

Unit cell

a = 5.289 , c = 10.423 ; Z = 4

Identification

Formula mass

183.54

Color

Brass yellow, may have iridescent purplish tarnish.

Crystal habit

Predominantly the disphenoid and resembles a tetrahedron, commonly massive, and sometimes botryoidal.

Crystal system

Tetragonal Scalenohedral 42m

Twinning

Penetration twins

Cleavage

Indistinct on {011}

Fracture

Irregular to uneven

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

3.5

Luster

Metallic

Streak

Greenish black

Diaphaneity

Opaque

Specific gravity

4.1 4.3

Solubility

Soluble in HNO3

Other characteristics

magnetic on heating

COPPER

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from Latin: cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal andelectrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; a freshly exposed surface has a reddish-orange color. It is used as a conductor of heat and electricity, a building material, and a constituent of various metal alloys. The metal and its alloys have been used for thousands of years. In the Roman era, copper was principally mined on Cyprus, hence the origin of the name of the metal as yprium (metal of Cyprus), later shortened to uprum. Its compounds are commonly encountered as copper(II) salts, which often impart blue or green colors to minerals such as azurite and turquoise and have been widely used historically as pigments. Architectural structures built with copper corrode to give green verdigris (or patina). Decorative art prominently features copper, both by itself and as part of pigments. Copper is essential to all living organisms as a trace dietary mineral because it is a key constituent of the respiratory enzyme complex cytochrome c oxidase. In molluscs and crustacea copper is a constituent of the blood pigment hemocyanin, which is replaced by the iron-complexed hemoglobinin fish and other [citation vertebrates. The main areas where copper is found in vertebrate animals are liver, muscle and bone. needed] In sufficient concentration, copper compounds are poisonous to higher organisms and are used as bacteriostatic substances, fungicides, and wood preservatives.

Characteristics

Physical

A copper disc (99.95% pure) made by continuous casting and etching.

Copper just above its melting point keeps its pink luster color when enough light outshines the orange incandescence color.

Copper, silver and gold are in group 11 of the periodic table, and they share certain attributes: they have one s-orbital electron on top of a filled d-electron shell and are characterized by high ductility and electrical conductivity. The filled d-shells in these elements do not contribute much to the interatomic interactions, which are dominated by the s-electrons through metallic bonds. Contrary to metals with incomplete d-shells, metallic bonds in copper are lacking acovalent character and are relatively weak. [2] This explains the low hardness and high ductility of single crystals of copper. At the macroscopic scale, introduction of extended defects to the crystal lattice, such as grain boundaries, hinders flow of the material under applied stress thereby increasing its hardness. For this reason, copper is usually supplied [3] in a fine-grained polycrystalline form, which has greater strength than monocrystalline forms. The low hardness of copper partly explains its high electrical conductivity (59.610 S/m) and thus also [4] high thermal conductivity, which are the second highest among pure metals at room temperature. This is because the resistivity to electron transport in metals at room temperature mostly originates from [2] scattering of electrons on thermal vibrations of the lattice, which are relatively weak for a soft metal. The 6 2 maximum permissible current density of copper in open air is approximately 3.110 A/m of cross[5] sectional area, above which it begins to heat excessively. As with other metals, if copper is placed [6] against another metal, galvanic corrosion will occur. Together with caesium and gold (both yellow), and osmium (bluish), copper is one of only four elemental [7] metals with a natural color other than gray or silver. Pure copper is orange-red and acquires a reddish tarnish when exposed to air. The characteristic color of copper results from the electronic transitions between the filled 3d and half-empty 4s atomic shells the energy difference between these
6

shells is such that it corresponds to orange light. The same mechanism accounts for the yellow color of [2] gold and caesium.

Chemical

Unoxidized copper wire (left) and oxidized copper wire (right).

The East Tower of the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh. The contrast between the refurbished copper installed in 2010 and the green color of the original 1894 copper is clearly seen.

Copper forms a rich variety of compounds with oxidation states +1 and +2, which are often [8] called cuprous and cupric, respectively. It does not react with water, but it slowly reacts with atmospheric oxygen forming a layer of brown-black copper oxide. In contrast to the oxidation of iron by wet air, this oxide layer stops the further, bulk corrosion. A green layer of verdigris (copper carbonate) can often be seen on old copper constructions, such as the Statue of Liberty, the largest copper statue in the [9] world built using repouss and chasing. Copper tarnishes when exposed tohydrogen sulfides and [10] other sulfides, which react with it to form various copper sulfides on the surface. Oxygen-containing ammonia solutions give water-soluble complexes with copper, as do oxygen and hydrochloric acid to form copper chlorides and acidified hydrogen peroxide to form copper(II) salts. Copper(II) chloride and [11] coppercomproportionate to form copper(I) chloride.

Isotopes
Main article: Isotopes of copper

There are 29 isotopes of copper. Cu and Cu are stable, with Cu comprising approximately 69% of [12] naturally occurring copper; they both have a spin of 3/2. The other isotopes are radioactive, with the 67 [12] most stable being Cu with a half-life of 61.83 hours. Seven metastable isotopes have been 68m characterized, with Cu the longest-lived with a half-life of 3.8 minutes. Isotopes with a mass + 64 number above 64 decay by , whereas those with a mass number below 64 decay by . Cu, which has [13] a half-life of 12.7 hours, decays both ways.
62

63

65

63

Cu and Cu have significant applications. Cu is a radiocontrast agent for X-ray imaging, and 62 62 complexed with a chelate can be used for treatingcancer. Cu is used in Cu-PTSM that is a radioactive [14] tracer for positron emission tomography.

64

64

Occurrence
Copper is synthesized in massive stars and is present in the Earth's crust at a concentration of about [16] 50 parts per million (ppm), where it occurs as native copper or in minerals such as the copper sulfides chalcopyrite and chalcocite, copper carbonates azurite and malachite and thecopper(I) [4] oxide mineral cuprite. The largest mass of elemental copper discovered weighed 420 tonnes and was [16] found in 1857 on the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan, US. Native copper is a polycrystal, with the [17] largest described single crystal measuring 4.43.23.2 cm.
[15]

CORUNDUM

Corundum is a crystalline form of aluminium oxide (Al2O3) with traces of iron, titanium and chromium. It is a rock-forming mineral. It is one of the naturally clear transparent materials, but can have different colors when impurities are present. Transparent specimens are used as gems, calledruby if red and padparadscha if pink-orange. All other colors are called sapphire, e.g., "green sapphire" for a green specimen. The name "corundum" is derived from the Tamil word kuruntam ( to Sanskrit kuruvinda.
[3]

[1]

) meaning "ruby", and related

Because of corundum's hardness (pure corundum is defined to have 9.0 Mohs), it can scratch almost every other mineral. It is commonly used as anabrasive, on everything from sandpaper to large machines used in machining metals, plastics, and wood. Some emery is a mix of corundum and other substances, and the mix is less abrasive, with an average hardness near 8.0. In addition to its hardness, corundum is unusual for its density of 4.02 g/cm , which is very high for a [5] transparent mineral composed of the lowatomic mass elements aluminium and oxygen. [edit]Geology
3

and occurrence

Corundum from Brazil, size about 2 by 3 centimetres (0.8 in 1 in).

Corundum occurs as a mineral in mica schist, gneiss, and some marbles in metamorphic terranes. It also occurs in low silica igneous syenite and nepheline syenite intrusives. Other occurrences are as masses adjacent to ultramafic intrusives, associated with lamprophyre dikes and as large crystals [4] in pegmatites. It commonly occurs as a detrital mineral in stream and beach sands because of its [4] hardness and resistance to weathering. The largest documented single crystal of corundum measured [6] about 65 40 40 centimetres (26 16 16 in). Corundum for abrasives is mined in Zimbabwe, Russia, Sri Lanka and India. Historically it was mined from deposits associated with dunites in North Carolina, USA and from a nepheline syenite in Craigmont, [4] Ontario. Emery grade corundum is found on the Greek island of Naxos and near Peekskill, New York, [4] USA. Abrasive corundum is synthetically manufactured from bauxite. Corundum should not be confused with the similarly named carborundum, silicon carbide. [edit]Synthetic

corundum

In 1837, Marc Antoine Gaudin made the first synthetic rubies by fusing alumina at a high temperature with [7] a small amount of chromium as a pigment. In 1847, Ebelmen made white sapphires by fusing alumina in boric acid. In 1877 Frenic and Freil made crystal corundum from which small stones could be cut. Frimy and Auguste Verneuil manufactured artificial ruby by fusing BaF2 and Al2O3 with a little chromium at temperatures above 2,000 C (3,632 F). In 1903, Verneuil announced he could [8] produce synthetic rubies on a commercial scale using this flame fusion process.

Crystal structure of corundum

The Verneuil process allows the production of flawless single-crystal sapphires, rubies and other corundum gems of much larger size than normally found in nature. It is also possible to grow gem-quality synthetic corundum by flux-growth and hydrothermal synthesis. Because of the simplicity of the methods involved in corundum synthesis, large quantities of these crystals have become available on the market causing a significant reduction of price in recent years. Apart from ornamental uses, synthetic corundum is also used to produce mechanical parts (tubes, rods, bearings, and other machined parts), scratchresistant optics, scratch-resistant watch crystals, instrument windows for satellites and spacecraft (because of its transparency from the UV to IR), and laser components.

Corundum

General

Category

Oxide mineral Hematite group

Formula
(repeating unit)

Aluminium oxide, Al2O3

Strunz classification

04.CB.05

Dana classification

4.3.1.1

Crystal symmetry

Trigonal (32/m)

Unit cell

a = 4.75 , c = 12.982 ; Z=6

Identification

Color

Colorless, gray, brown; pink to pigeon-blood-red, orange, yellow, green, blue to cornflower blue, violet; may be color zoned, asteriated mainly grey and brown

Crystal habit

Steep bipyramidal, tabular, prismatic, rhombohedral crystals, massive or granular

Crystal system

Trigonal (Hexagonal Scalenohedral) Symbol (32/m) Space group: R3c

Twinning

Polysynthetic twinning common

Cleavage

None parting in 3 directions

Fracture

Conchoidal to uneven

Mohs scalehardness

9 (defining mineral)

Luster

Adamantine to vitreous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent, translucent toopaque

Specific gravity 3.954.10

Optical properties

Uniaxial ()

Refractive index

n = 1.7671.772 n = 1.7591.763

Pleochroism

None

Melting point

2044 C

Fusibility

Infusible

Solubility

Insoluble

Alters to

May alter to mica on surfaces causing a decrease in hardness

Other characteristics

May fluoresce or phosphoresce under UV

References

[1][2][3][4]

Major varieties

Sapphire

Any color except red

Ruby

Red

Emery

Black granular corundum intimately mixed with magnetite,hematite, or hercynite

DIAMOND

Diamond

The slightly misshapen octahedral shape of this rough diamond crystal in matrix is typical of the mineral. Its lustrous faces also indicate that this crystal is from a primary deposit.

General

Category

Native Minerals

Formula
(repeating unit)

Strunz classification

01.CB.10a

Identification

Formula mass

12.01 gmol1

Color

Typically yellow, brown or gray to colorless. Less often blue, green, black, translucent white, pink, violet, orange, purple and red.

Crystal habit

Octahedral

Crystal system

Isometric-Hexoctahedral (Cubic)

Cleavage

111 (perfect in four directions)

Fracture

Conchoidal (shell-like)

Mohs scalehardness

10

Luster

Adamantine

Streak

Colorless

Diaphaneity

Transparent to subtransparent to translucent

Specific gravity

3.520.01

Density

3.53.53 g/cm3

Polish luster

Adamantine

Optical properties

Isotropic

Refractive index

2.418 (at 500 nm)

Birefringence

None

Pleochroism

None

Dispersion

0.044

Melting point

Pressure dependent

DOLOMITE

Dolomite (pron.: /dlmat/) is a carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate CaMg(CO3)2. The term is also used to describe thesedimentary carbonate rock dolostone. Dolostone (dolomite rock) is composed predominantly of the mineral dolomite with a stoichiometric ratio of 50% or greater content of magnesium replacing calcium, often as a result of diagenesis. Limestone that is partially replaced by dolomite is referred to as dolomitic limestone, or in old U.S. geologic literature as magnesian limestone. [edit]History Dolomite was first described by the Austrian naturalist Belsazar Hacquet as the "stinking stone" [5][6] (German: Stinkstein, Latin: lapis suillus in 1778). In 1791, it was described as a rock by the French naturalist and geologist, Dodat Gratet de Dolomieu (17501801) from exposures in what are now known as the Dolomite Alps of northern Italy. The mineral was given its name in March 1792 [7] [8] by Nicolas de Saussure. Hacquet and Dolomieu met in Laibach (Ljubljana) in 1784, which may have [6] contributed to Dolomieu's work. [edit]Properties

The mineral dolomite crystallizes in the trigonal-rhombohedral system. It forms white, gray to pink, commonly curved (saddle shape) crystals, although it is usually massive. Unlike calcite, dolomite is a double carbonate, having a different structural arrangement, and it does not rapidly dissolve or effervesce (fizz) in dilute hydrochloric acid unless it is scratched or in powdered form. Crystal twinning is common. A solid solution series exists between dolomite and iron rich ankerite. Small amounts of iron in the structure give the crystals a yellow to brown tint. Manganese substitutes in the structure also up to about three percent MnO. A high manganese content gives the crystals a rosy pink color noted in the image above. A series with the manganese rich kutnohorite may exist. Lead and zinc also substitute in the structure for magnesium. It is also related to huntiteMg3Ca(CO3)4. [edit]Formation Vast deposits are present in the geological record, but the mineral is relatively rare in modern environments. Laboratory synthesis of stoichiometric dolomite has been carried out only at temperatures of greater than 100 C (conditions typical of burial in sedimentary basins), even though much dolomite in the rock record appears to have formed in low-temperature conditions. The high temperature is likely to speed up the movement of calcium and magnesium ions so that they can find their places in the ordered structure within a reasonable amount of time. This suggests that the lack of dolomite that is being formed today is likely due to kinetic factors, i.e. due to the lack of kinetic energy or temperature.

Dolomite druse from Lawrence County, Arkansas, USA (size: 24188 cm)

Modern dolomite does occur as a precipitating mineral in specialized environments on the surface of the earth today. In the 1950s and 60s, dolomite was found to be forming in highly saline lakes in the Coorong region of South Australia. Dolomite crystals also occur in deep-sea sediments, where organic matter content is high. This dolomite is termed "organogenic" dolomite. Recent research has found modern dolomite formation under anaerobic conditions in supersaturatedsaline lagoons along the Rio de Janeiro coast of Brazil, namely, Lagoa Vermelha and Brejo do Espinho. One interesting reported case was the formation of dolomite in the kidneys of [9] a Dalmatian dog. This was believed to be due to chemical processes triggered by bacteria. Dolomite has been speculated to develop under these conditions with the help of sulfate-reducing [10][11] bacteria (e.g. Desulfovibrio brasiliensis).

Dolomite.

The actual role of bacteria in the low-temperature formation of dolomite remains to be demonstrated. The specific mechanism of dolomitization, involving sulfate-reducing bacteria, has not yet been [12] demonstrated. Dolomite appears to form in many different types of environment and can have varying structural, textural and chemical characteristics. Some researchers have stated "there are dolomites and dolomites", meaning that there may not be one single mechanism by which dolomite can form. Much modern dolomite differs significantly from the bulk of the dolomite found in the rock record, leading researchers to speculate that environments where dolomite formed in the geologic past differ significantly from those where it forms today.

Dolomite bedrock underneath aBristlecone Pine, White Mountains, California.

Reproducible laboratory syntheses of dolomite (and magnesite) leads first to the initial precipitation of a metastable "precursor" (such as magnesium calcite), to be changed gradually into more and more of the stable phase (such as dolomite or magnesite) during periodical intervals of dissolution and reprecipitation. The general principle governing the course of this irreversible geochemical reaction has been coinedOstwald's step rule. For a very long time scientists had difficulties synthesizing dolomite. However, in a 1999 study, through a process of dissolution alternating with intervals of precipitation, measurable levels of dolomite were [13] synthesized at low temperatures and pressures.

[edit]Coral

atolls

Dolomitization of calcite also occurs at certain depths of coral atolls where water is undersaturated in calcium carbonate but saturated in dolomite. Convection created by tides and sea currents enhance this change. Hydrothermal currents created by volcanoes under the atoll may also play an important role. [edit]Uses

Dolomite with chalcopyrite from the Tri-state district, Cherokee County, Kansas(size: 11.47.24.6 cm)

Dolomite is used as an ornamental stone, a concrete aggregate, a source of magnesium oxide and in the Pidgeon process for the production ofmagnesium. It is an important petroleum reservoir rock, and serves as the host rock for large strata-bound Mississippi Valley-Type (MVT) ore deposits ofbase metals such as lead, zinc, and copper. Where calcite limestone is uncommon or too costly, dolomite is sometimes used in its place as a flux for the smelting of iron and steel. Large quantities of processed dolomite are used in the production of float glass. In horticulture, dolomite and dolomitic limestone are added to soils and soilless potting mixes to lower their acidity and as a magnesium source. Home and container gardening are common examples of this use. Dolomite is also used as the substrate in marine (saltwater) aquariums to help buffer changes in pH of the water. Particle physics researchers prefer to build particle detectors under layers of dolomite to enable the detectors to detect the highest possible number of exotic particles. Because dolomite contains relatively minor quantities of radioactive materials, it can insulate against interference from cosmic rayswithout [14] adding to background radiation levels.

Dolomite

Dolomite and magnesite Spain

General

Category

Carbonate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

(CaMg)(CO3)2

Strunz classification

05.AB.10

Crystal symmetry

Trigonal rhombohedral, 3

Unit cell

a = 4.8012(1) , c = 16.002 ; Z = 3

Identification

Color

White, gray to pink

Crystal habit

Tabular crystals, often with curved faces, also columnar, stalactitic, granular, massive.

Crystal system

Trigonal

Twinning

Common as simple contact twins

Cleavage

Perfect on {1011}, rhombohedral cleavage

Fracture

Conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

3.5 to 4

Luster

Vitreous to pearly

Streak

White

Specific gravity

2.842.86

Optical properties

Uniaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.6791.681 n = 1.500

Birefringence

= 0.1790.181

Solubility

Poorly soluble in dilute HClunless powdered.

Other characteristics

May fluoresce white to pink under UV; triboluminescent.

EPIDOTE

Epidote is a calcium aluminium iron sorosilicate mineral. [edit]Description Well-developed crystals of epidote, Ca2Al2(Fe ;Al)(SiO4)(Si2O7)O(OH), crystallizing in the monoclinic system, are of frequent occurrence: they are commonly prismatic in habit, the direction of elongation being perpendicular to the single plane of symmetry. The faces are often deeply striated and crystals are often twinned. Many of the characters of the mineral vary with the amount of iron present for instance, the color, the optical constants, and the specific gravity. The color is green, grey, brown or nearly black, but usually a characteristic shade of yellowish-green or pistachio-green. It displays strong pleochroism, the pleochroic colors being usually green, yellow and brown. Clinozoisite is white or pale rose-red variety containing very little iron, thus having the same chemical composition as the orthorhombic mineral zoisite. The name is derived from the Greek word "epidosis" () which means "addition."
3+

Epidote from Alaska

Epidote is an abundant rock-forming mineral, but one of secondary origin. It occurs in marble and schistose rocks of metamorphic origin. It is also a product of hydrothermal alteration of various minerals (feldspars, micas, pyroxenes, amphiboles, garnets, and others) composing igneous rocks. A rock composed of quartz and epidote is known as epidosite. Well-developed crystals are found at many localities: Knappenwand, near theGrovenediger in the Untersulzbachthal in Salzburg, as magnificent, dark green crystals of long prismatic habit in cavities in epidote schist, withasbestos, adularia, calcite, and apatite; the Ala valley and Traversella in Piedmont; Arendal in Norway; Le Bourg-d'Oisans in Dauphin; Haddam inConnecticut; Prince of Wales Island in Alaska, here as large, dark green, tabular crystals with copper ores in metamorphosed limestone. The perfectly transparent, dark green crystals from the Knappenwand and from Brazil have occasionally been cut as gemstones.

[edit]Related

species

Belonging to the same isomorphous group with epidote are the species piemontite and allanite, which may be described as manganese and ceriumepidotes respectively. Piemontite occurs as small, reddish-black, monoclinic crystals in the manganese mines at San Marcel, near Ivrea in Piedmont, and in crystalline schists at several places in Japan. The purple color of the Egyptian porfido rosso antico is due to the presence of this mineral.

Sample of dollaseite (dark brown matrix at arrow points) from Sweden

Allanite and dollaseite-(Ce) have the same general epidote formula and contain metals of the cerium group. In external appearance allanite differs widely from epidote, being black or dark brown in color, pitchy in lustre, and opaque in the mass; further, there is little or no cleavage, and well-developed crystals are rare. The crystallographic and optical characters are similar to those of epidote; the pleochroism is strong with reddish-, yellowish-, and greenish-brown colors. Although not a common mineral, allanite is of fairly wide distribution as a primary accessory constituent of many crystalline rocks, gneiss, granite, syenite, rhyolite, andesite, and others. It was first found in the granite of east Greenland and described byThomas Allan in 1808, after whom the species was named. Allanite is a mineral readily altered by hydration, becoming optically isotropic andamorphous: for this reason several varieties have been distinguished, and many different names applied. Orthite was the name given by Jns Berzelius in 1818 to a hydrated form found as slender prismatic crystals, sometimes a foot in length, at Finbo, near Falun in Sweden. Dollaseite is less common, famous from the Ostanmossa mine in the Norberg district of Sweden.

Epidote

Epidote crystals Deposit topotype

General

Category

Sorosilicates

Formula
(repeating unit)

{Ca2}{Al2Fe3+}[O|OH|SiO4|Si2O7]

Identification

Color

Pistachio-green, yellow-green, greenish black

Crystal habit

Prismatic with striations, fibrous, massive

Crystal system

Monoclinic Prismatic

Twinning

On [100]

Cleavage

{001} perfect and {100} imperfect

Fracture

Flat regular to uneven

Mohs scalehardness

67

Luster

Vitreous to resinous

Streak

Greyish white

Diaphaneity

Transparent to nearly opaque

Specific gravity

3.33.6

Optical properties

Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.7151.751 n = 1.7251.784 n = 1.7341.797

Birefringence

= 0.0190.046

Pleochroism

Strong

ORTHOCLASE (FELDSPAR)

Orthoclase (endmember formula KAlSi3O8) is an important tectosilicate mineral which forms igneous rock. The name is from the Greek for "straight fracture," because its two cleavage planes are at right angles to each other. Alternate names are alkali feldspar and potassium feldspar. The gem known as moonstone (see below) is largely composed of orthoclase. [edit]Formation

and subtypes

Orthoclase is a common constituent of most granites and other felsic igneous rocks and often forms huge crystals and masses in pegmatite. Typically, the pure potassium endmember of orthoclase forms a solid solution with albite, the sodium endmember (NaAlSi3O8), of plagioclase. While slowly cooling within the earth, sodium-rich albite lamellae form by exsolution, enriching the remaining orthoclase with potassium. The resulting intergrowth of the two feldspars is called perthite.

Adularia with pyrite incrustations.

The higher-temperature polymorph of orthoclase is sanidine. Sanidine is common in rapidly cooled volcanic rocks such as obsidian and felsic pyroclastic rocks, and is notably found in trachytes of theDrachenfels, Germany. The lower-temperature polymorph of orthoclase is microcline. Adularia is found in low temperature hydrothermal deposits, in the Adula Alps of Switzerland. The largest documented 3 single crystal of orthoclase was found in Ural mountains, Russia. It measured ~10100.4 m and [4] weighed ~100 tons. [edit]Uses Together with the other potassium feldspars orthoclase is a common raw material for the manufacture of some glasses, some ceramics, such as porcelain, and as a constituent of scouring powder. Some intergrowths of orthoclase and albite have an attractive pale luster and are called moonstone when used in jewellery. Most moonstones are translucent and white, although grey and peach-coloured varieties also occur. In gemology, their luster is called adularescence and is typically described as creamy or silvery white with a "billowy" quality. It is the state gem of Florida. The gemstone commonly called rainbow moonstone is more properly a colourless form of labradorite and can be distinguished from "true" moonstone by its greater transparency and play of colour, although their value and durability do not greatly differ. Orthoclase is one of the ten defining minerals of the Mohs scale of mineral hardness.

Orthoclase

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula

KAlSi3O8

(repeating unit)

Identification

Colour

Colourless, Greenish, Greyish yellow, White, Pink

Crystal habit

Can be anhedral or euhedral. Grains are commonly elongate with a tabular appearance.

Crystal system

Monoclinic (2/m) space group C2/m

Twinning

Typically displays carlsbad twinning. Baveno and manebach twins have also been reported in orthoclase.

Cleavage

Has perfect cleavage on {001} and good cleavage on {010}. Cleavages intersect at 90. It can be difficult to see cleavage in thin section due to orthoclase's low relief.

Mohs scalehardness

6 (defining mineral)

Luster

Vitreous, pearly on cleavage surfaces

Streak

white

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.552.63

Optical

Biaxial (-), 2V = 6575

properties

Refractive index

n = 1.5181.520 n = 1.5221.524 n = 1.5221.525

Birefringence

0.00500.0060

Dispersion

relatively strong

Extinction

parallel to cleavage

Diagnostic features

Distinguishable from microclineby a lack in gridiron twinning. Distinguishable from sanidine by a larger 2Vx.

Other characteristics

Low negative relief

GALENA

Galena is the natural mineral form of lead(II) sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral. Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedralforms. It is often associated with the minerals sphalerite, calcite and fluorite. [edit]Lead

ore deposit

Galena with druzy calcite

Galena deposits often contain significant amounts of silver as included silver sulfide mineral phases or as limited solid solution within the galena structure. These argentiferous galenas have long been the most important ore of silver in mining. In addition zinc, cadmium, antimony, arsenic and bismuth also occur in variable amounts in lead ores. Selenium substitutes for sulfur in the structure constituting a solid solution series. The lead telluride mineral altaite has the same crystal structure as galena. Within the weatheringor oxidation zone galena alters to anglesite (lead sulfate) or cerussite (lead carbonate). Galena exposed to acid mine drainage can be oxidized to anglesite by naturally [4] occurring bacteria and archaea, in a process similar to bioleaching. Galena deposits are found worldwide in various environments. Noted deposits include those [1] at Freiberg, Saxony; Cornwall, The Mendips, Somerset, Derbyshire, and Cumberland, England; the Madan, Smolyan Province, Rhodope Mountains, Bulgaria; the Sullivan Mine of British Columbia; Broken Hill,Australia and the ancient mines of Sardinia. Galena also occurs at Mount Hermon in Northern Israel. In the United States, it occurs most notably in the Mississippi Valley type [1] deposits of the Lead Belt in southeastern Missouri, and in the Driftless Area of Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin. The economic importance of galena to the early history of theDriftless Area was so great that one of the towns in the region was named Galena, Illinois.
[3]

Cubic galena with calcite from Jasper County, Missouri, USA (size: 5.13.22.8 cm)

Galena also was a major mineral of the zinc-lead mines of the tri-state district around Joplin in [1] southwestern Missouri and the adjoining areas of Kansas and Oklahoma. Galena is also an important ore mineral in the silver mining regions of Colorado, Idaho, Utah and Montana. Of the latter, the Coeur [1] d'Alene district of northern Idaho was most prominent. Galena is the official state mineral of the U.S. states of Missouri and Wisconsin; the former mining town of Galena, Kansas takes its name from deposits of this mineral.

The largest documented crystal of galena is composite cubo-octahedra from Great Laxey Mine, Isle of [5] Man, U.K. measuring 25 cm 25 cm 25 cm. [edit]Galena

uses

One of the oldest uses of galena was as kohl, which, in Ancient Egypt, was applied around the eyes to [6] reduce the glare of the desert sun and to repel flies, which were a potential source of disease. Galena is the primary ore of lead which is mainly used in making lead-acid batteries; however, significant amounts are also used to make lead sheets and shot. Galena is often mined for its silver content (e.g. the Galena Mine in northern Idaho). Galena is a semiconductor with a small bandgap of about 0.4 eV which found use in early wirelesscommunication systems. For example, it was used as the crystal in crystal radio sets, in which it was used as a point-contact diode to detect the radio signals. The galena crystal was used with a safety pin or similar sharp wire, which was known as a "cat's whisker". Making such wireless sets was a popular home hobby in Britain and other European countries during the 1930s. Derbyshire was one of the main areas where galena was mined. Scientists that were linked to this application are Karl Ferdinand Braun and Sir Jagdish Bose. In modern wireless communication systems, galena detectors have been replaced by more reliable semiconductor devices, though silicon point-contact microwave detectors still exist in the market.

Galena (lead glance)

Galena close-up

General

Category

Sulfide mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

PbS

Strunz classification

02.CD.10

Dana classification

2.8.1.1

Crystal symmetry

Isometric HM symbol 4/m 3 2/m

Unit cell

a = 5.936 ; Z = 4

Identification

Color

Lead gray and silvery

Crystal habit

Cubes and octahedra, tabular and sometimes skeletal crystals

Crystal system

Cubic Hexoctahedral cF8, space group Fm3m, No. 225

Twinning

Contact, penetration and lamellar

Cleavage

Cubic perfect on [001], parting on [111]

Fracture

Subconchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

2.52.75

Luster

Metallic

Streak

Lead gray

Diaphaneity

Opaque

Specific gravity

7.27.6

Optical properties

Isotropic and opaque

Fusibility

GOETHITE/LIMONITE

Limonite is an iron ore consisting of a mixture of hydrated iron(III) oxide-hydroxides in varying composition. The generic formula is frequently written as FeO(OH)nH 2O, although this is not entirely accurate as the ratio of oxide to hydroxide can vary quite widely. Limonite is one of the two principle iron [4][5] ores, the other being hematite, and has been mined for the production of iron since at least 2500 BCE. [edit]Names Limonite is named from the Greek word for meadow (), in allusion to its occurrence as bog iron ore in meadows and marshes. In its brown form it is sometimes called brown hematite or brown iron ore. In its bright yellow form it sometimes called lemon rock or yellow iron ore. [edit]Characteristics Limonite is relatively dense with a specific gravity varying from 2.7 to 4.3. It varies in colour from a bright lemony yellow to a drab greyish brown. The streak of limonite on an unglazed porcelain plate is always brownish, a character which distinguishes it from hematite with a red streak, or from magnetite with a [6] black streak. The hardness is variable, but generally in the 4 - 5.5 range. Although originally defined as a single mineral, limonite is now recognized as a mixture of related hydrated iron oxide minerals, among them goethite,akaganeite, lepidocrocite, and jarosite. Individual minerals in limonite may form crystals, but limonite does not, although specimens may show a
[6]

fibrous or microcrystalline structure, and limonite often occurs in concretionary forms or in compact and earthy masses; sometimes mammillary,botryoidal, reniform or stalactitic. Because of its amorphous nature, and occurrence in hydrated areas limonite often presents as a clay or mudstone. However there [6] are limonite pseudomorphs after other minerals such as pyrite. This means that chemical weathering transforms the crystals of pyrite into limonite by hydrating the molecules, but the external shape of the pyrite crystal remains. Limonite pseudomorphs have also been formed from other iron oxides, hematite and magnetite; from the carbonate siderite and from iron rich silicates such as almandine garnets. [edit]Formation Limonite usually forms from the hydration of hematite and magnetite, from the oxidation and hydration of iron rich sulfide minerals, and chemical weathering of other iron rich minerals such as olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, and biotite. It is often the major iron component in lateritic soils. It is often deposited in run-off streams from mining operations. [edit]Uses

[7]

of limonite

One of the first uses was as a pigment. The yellow form produced yellow ochre for which Cyprus was [8] famous, while the darker forms produced more earthy tones. Roasting the limonite changed it partially [9] to hematite, producing red ochres, burnt umbers and siennas. Bog iron ore and limonite mudstones are mined as a source of iron, although commercial mining of them has ceased in the United States. Iron caps or gossans of siliceous iron oxide typically form as the result of intensive oxidation of sulfide ore [10] deposits. These gossans were used by prospectors as guides to buried ore. In addition the oxidation of those sulfide deposits which contained gold, often resulted in the concentration of gold in the iron oxide and quartz of the gossans. Goldbearing limonite gossans were productively mined in the Shasta County, [10] California mining district. Similar deposits were mined near Rio Tinto in Spain and Mount Morgan in Australia. In the Dahlonega gold belt in Lumpkin County, Georgia gold was mined from limonite-rich lateritic or saprolite soil. The gold of the primary veins was concentrated into the limonites of the deeply weathered rocks. In another example the deeply weathered iron formations of Brazil served to concentrate gold with the limonite of the resulting soils. [edit]History Main article: History of ferrous metallurgy While the first iron ore was likely Meteoric iron, and hematite was far easier to smelt, in Africa, where the first evidence of iron metallurgy occurs, limonite is the most prevalent iron ore. Before smelting, as the ore was heated and the water driven off, more and more of the limonite was converted to hematite. The ore [11] was then pounded as it was heated above 1250C, at which temperature the metallic iron begins sticking together and non-metallic impurities are thrown off as sparks. Complex systems developed, [12] notably in Tanzania, to process limonite. Nonetheless, hematite and magnetite remained the ores of choice when smelting was by bloomeries, and it was only with the development of blast furnaces in 1st [13] [14] century BCE in China and about 1150 CE in Europe, that the brown iron ore of limonite could be used to best advantage. Main article: Ochre#History

As regards to the use of limonite for pigments, it was one of the earliest man-used materials and can be [15] seen in Neolithic cave paintings andpictographs.

Limonite

General

Category

Amorphous, mineraloid

Formula
(repeating unit)

FeO(OH)nH2O

Strunz classification

Unclassified

Identification

Color

Various shades of brown and yellow

Crystal habit

Fine grained aggregate, powdery coating

Cleavage

Absent

Fracture

Uneven

Mohs scalehardness

4 - 5

Luster

Earthy

Streak

Yellowish brown

Diaphaneity

Opaque

Specific gravity

2.9 - 4.3

Density

2.7 - 4.3 g/cm3

References

[1][2][3]

Bog ore

Limonite deposited from mine runoff

Galena and Limonite

Limonite pseudomorphs after Garnet

GOLD

Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. It is a chemical element with the symbol Au (aurum in Latin, meaning glow of sunrise) andatomic number 79. It has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is atransition metal and a group 11 element. It is one of the least reactive chemical elements solid under standard conditions. The metal therefore occurs often in free elemental (native) form, as nuggets or grains in rocks, in veins and in alluvial deposits. Less commonly, it occurs in minerals as gold compounds, usually with tellurium. Gold resists attacks by individual acids, but it can be dissolved by the aqua regia (nitro-hydrochloric acid), so named because it dissolves gold. Gold also dissolves in alkaline solutions of cyanide, which have been used in mining. It dissolves in mercury, forming amalgam alloys; is insoluble in nitric acid, which dissolves silver and base metals, a property that has long been used to confirm the presence of gold in items, giving rise to the term theacid test. This metal has been a valuable and highly sought-after precious metal for coinage, jewelry, and other arts since long before the beginning of recorded history. Gold standards have sometimes been a monetary policies, but were widely supplanted by fiat currency starting in the 1930s. The last gold certificate and gold coin currencies were issued in the U.S. in 1932. In Europe, most countries left the gold standard with the start of World War I in 1914 and, with huge war debts, failed to return to gold as a medium of exchange.

A total of 171,300 tonnes of gold have been mined in human history, according to GFMS as of [2] 3 2011. This is roughly equivalent to 5.5 billion troy ounces or, in terms of volume, about 8876 m , or a cube 20.7 m on a side. The world consumption of new gold produced is about 50% in jewelry, 40% in [3] investments, and 10% in industry. Besides its widespread monetary and symbolic functions, gold has many practical uses in dentistry, electronics, and other fields. Its highmalleability, ductility, resistance to corrosion and most other chemical reactions, and conductivity of electricity led to many uses of gold, includingelectric wiring, colored-glass production and gold leafing. Most of the Earth's gold lies at its core, the metal's high density having made it sink there in the planet's youth. Virtually all of the gold that mankind has discovered is considered to have been deposited later [4][5][6][7][8] by meteorites which contained the element, with the asteroid that formedVredefort crater being [9][10][11][12] implicated in the formation of the largest gold mining region on earth Witwatersrand basin.

GRAPHITE

The mineral graphite pron.: /rfat/ is an allotrope of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob [4] Werner in 1789 from the Ancient Greek (graph), "to draw/write", for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead (not to be confused with the metallic element lead). Unlikediamond (another carbon allotrope), graphite is an electrical conductor, a semimetal. It is, consequently, useful in such applications as arc lampelectrodes. Graphite is the most stable form of carbon under standard conditions. Therefore, it is used in thermochemistry as the standard state for defining the heat of formation of carbon compounds. Graphite may be considered the highest grade of coal, just above anthracite and alternatively called meta-anthracite, although it is not normally used as fuel because it is difficult to ignite. There are three principal types of natural graphite, each occurring in different types of ore deposit: 1. Crystalline flake graphite (or flake graphite for short) occurs as isolated, flat, plate-like particles with hexagonal edges if unbroken and when broken the edges can be irregular or angular; 2. Amorphous graphite occurs as fine particles and is the result of thermal metamorphism of coal, the last stage of coalification, and is sometimes called meta-anthracite. Very fine flake graphite is sometimes called amorphous in the trade; 3. Lump graphite (also called vein graphite) occurs in fissure veins or fractures and appears as massive platy intergrowths of fibrous or acicular crystalline aggregates, and is probably hydrothermal in origin.

Highly ordered pyrolytic graphite or highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) refers to graphite with an angular spread between the graphite sheets of less than 1. This highest-quality synthetic form is used in scientific research, in particular, as a standard for scanner calibration of scanning probe [5][6] microscope. The name "graphite fiber" is also sometimes used to refer to carbon fiber or carbon fiberreinforced polymer. [edit]Occurrence

Graphite output in 2005

Graphite occurs in metamorphic rocks as a result of the reduction of sedimentary carbon compounds [3] during metamorphism. It also occurs in igneous rocks and in meteorites. Minerals associated with graphite include quartz, calcite, micas and tourmaline. In meteorites it occurs with troilite and silicate [3] minerals. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), world production of natural graphite in 2008 was 1,110 thousand tonnes (kt), of which the following major exporters are: China (800 kt), India (130 kt), Brazil (76 kt), North Korea (30 kt) and Canada (28 kt). China is the largest producer of graphite, [7] totaling 73% of all global production. Graphite is not mined in the United States, but U.S. production of synthetic graphite in 2007 was 198 kt valued at $1.18 billion. U.S. graphite consumption was 42 kt and [8] 200 kt for natural and synthetic graphite, respectively.

Graphite

Graphite specimen

General

Category

Native element mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Strunz classification

01.CB.05a

Crystal symmetry

Hexagonal dihexagonal dipyramidal H-M symbol: (6/m 2/m 2/m) Space group: P 63/mmc

Unit cell

a = 2.461 , c = 6.708 ; Z = 4

Identification

Color

Iron-black to steel-gray; deep blue in transmitted light

Crystal habit

Tabular, six-sided foliatedmasses, granular to compacted masses

Crystal system

Hexagonal

Twinning

Present

Cleavage

Basal perfect on {0001}

Fracture

Flaky, otherwise rough when not on cleavage

Tenacity

Flexible non-elastic, sectile

Mohs scalehardness

12

Luster

Metallic, earthy

Streak

Black

Diaphaneity

Opaque, transparent only in extremely thin akes

Density

2.092.23 g/cm3

Optical properties

Uniaxial ()

Pleochroism

Strong

Solubility

Molten Ni

GYPSUM Gypsum is a very soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical [3] formula CaSO42H2O. It can be used as afertilizer, is the main constituent in many forms of plaster and is widely mined. As a mineral, it is alabaster, which has been used for sculpture by many cultures including Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Nottingham alabasters of medieval England. It is the definition of a hardness of 2 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness. It forms as an evaporite mineral and as a hydration product of anhydrite. [edit]Etymology

and history
[4]

The word gypsum is derived from the Greek word (gypsos), "chalk" or "plaster". Because gypsum from the quarries of the Montmartredistrict of Paris have long furnished burnt gypsum (calcined gypsum) used for various purposes, this dehydrated gypsum became known as plaster of Paris. Upon addition of water, after a few tens of minutes plaster of Paris becomes regular gypsum (dihydrate) again, causing the material to harden or "set" in ways that are useful for casting and construction. Gypsum was known in Old English as sprstn, "spear stone", referring to its crystalline projections. (Thus, the word spar in mineralogy is by way of comparison to gypsum, referring to any non-ore mineral or crystal that forms in spearlike projections.) Gypsum may act as a source of sulfur for plant growth, and in the early 19th century, it was regarded as an almost miraculous fertilizer. American farmers were so anxious to acquire it that a lively smuggling trade with Nova Scotia evolved, resulting in the so[5] called "Plaster War" of 1812. [edit]Physical

properties
[6]

Gypsum is moderately water-soluble (~2.02.5 g/l at 25C) and, in contrast to most other salts, it exhibits a retrograde solubility, becoming less soluble at higher temperatures. When the crystal lattice is heated, it loses liquid water molecules to evaporation and thus gains solidity. As foranhydrite, its solubility [6] in saline solutions and in brines is also strongly dependent on NaCl concentration. Gypsum crystals are found to contain anion water and hydrogen bonding. [edit]Crystal
[7]

varieties

Main article: Selenite (mineral) Gypsum occurs in nature as flattened and often twinned crystals, and transparent, cleavable masses called selenite. Selenite contains no significantselenium; rather, both substances were named for the ancient Greek word for the Moon. Selenite may also occur in a silky, fibrous form, in which case it is commonly called "satin spar". Finally, it may also be granular or quite compact. In hand-sized samples, it can be anywhere from transparent to opaque. A very fine-grained white or lightly tinted variety of gypsum, called alabaster, is prized for ornamental work of various sorts. In arid areas, gypsum can occur in a flower-like form, typically opaque, with embedded sand grains called desert rose. It also forms some of the largest crystals found in nature, [8] up to 12 metres (39 ft) long, in the form of selenite. [edit]Occurrence

Veins of gypsum in the silts/marls of the Tea Green and Grey Marls, Blue Anchor, Somerset, UK.

Veins of gypsum in the Chugwater Group, Wyoming.

Gypsum is a common mineral, with thick and extensive evaporite beds in association with sedimentary [9] rocks. Deposits are known to occur in strata from as far back as the Archaean eon. Gypsum is deposited from lake and sea water, as well as in hot springs, from volcanic vapors, and sulfate solutions inveins. Hydrothermal anhydrite in veins is commonly hydrated to gypsum by groundwater in near-surface exposures. It is often associated with the minerals halite and sulfur. Pure gypsum is white, but other substances found as impurities may give a wide range of colours to local deposits. Because gypsum dissolves over time in water, gypsum is rarely found in the form of sand. However, the unique conditions of the White Sands National Monument in the US state of New Mexico have created a 2 710 km (270 sq mi) expanse of white gypsum sand, enough to supply the construction industry [10] withdrywall for 1,000 years. Commercial exploitation of the area, strongly opposed by area residents, was permanently prevented in 1933 when president Herbert Hoover declared the gypsum dunes a protectednational monument. Gypsum is also formed as a by-product of sulfide oxidation, amongst others by pyrite oxidation, when thesulfuric acid generated reacts with calcium carbonate. Its presence indicates oxidizing conditions. Under reducing conditions, the sulfates it contains can be reduced back to sulfide by sulfate reducing bacteria. Electric power stations burning coal with flue gas desulfurization produce large quantities of gypsum as a byproduct from the scrubbers.

Orbital pictures from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) have indicated the existence of gypsum [11] dunes in the northern polar region of Mars, which were later confirmed at ground level by the Mars [12] Exploration Rover (MER) Opportunity.

Gypsum

Fibrous gypsum selenite showing its translucentproperty.

General

Category

Sulfate minerals

Formula
(repeating unit)

CaSO42H2O

Strunz classification 07.CD.40

Crystal symmetry

Monoclinic 2/m

Unit cell

a = 5.679(5) , b = 15.202(14) , c = 6.522(6) ; = 118.43; Z=4

Identification

Color

Colorless to white; may be yellow, tan, blue, pink, brown, reddish brown or gray

due to impurities

Crystal habit

Massive, flat. Elongated and generally prismatic crystals

Crystal system

Monoclinic 2/m Prismatic

Twinning

Very common on {110}

Cleavage

Perfect on {010}, distinct on {100}

Fracture

Conchoidal on {100}, splintery parallel to [001]

Tenacity

Flexible, inelastic.

Mohs scalehardness

1.52 (defining mineral for 2)

Luster

Vitreous to silky, pearly, or waxy

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.312.33

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.5191.521 n = 1.5221.523 n = 1.5291.530

Birefringence

= 0.010

Pleochroism

None

2V angle

58

Fusibility

Solubility

Hot, dilute HCl

References

[1][2][3]

Major varieties

Satin spar

Pearly, fibrous masses

Selenite

Transparent and bladed crystals

Alabaster

Fine-grained, slightly colored

Gypsum Alabaster

Gypsum Satin-Spar

Gypsum Selenite

HALITE

Halite /hlat/, commonly known as rock salt, is the mineral form of sodium chloride (NaCl). Halite forms isometric crystals. The mineral is typically colorless or white, but may also be light blue, dark blue, purple, pink, red, orange, yellow or gray depending on the amount and type of impurities. It commonly occurs with other evaporite deposit minerals such as several of the sulfates, halides, and borates. [edit]Occurrence

Halite cubes from the Stassfurt Potash deposit, Saxony-Anhalt,Germany (size: 6.7 x 1.9 x 1.7 cm)

Hopper crystal cast of halite in a Jurassicrock, Carmel Formation, Utah

Halite occurs in vast beds of sedimentary evaporite minerals that result from the drying up of enclosed lakes,playas, and seas. Salt beds may be hundreds of meters thick and underlie broad areas. In the United States andCanada extensive underground beds extend from the Appalachian basin of western New York through parts ofOntario and under much of the Michigan Basin. Other deposits are in Ohio, Kansas, New Mexico, Nova Scotia andSaskatchewan. The Khewra salt mine is a massive deposit of halite near Islamabad, Pakistan. In the United Kingdom there are three mines; the largest of these is at Winsford in Cheshire producing half a million tonnes on average in six months. Salt domes are vertical diapirs or pipe-like masses of salt that have been essentially "squeezed up" from underlying salt beds by mobilization due to the weight of overlying rock. Salt domes contain anhydrite, gypsum, and native sulfur, in addition to halite and sylvite. They are common along the Gulf coasts of Texas and Louisianaand are often associated with petroleum deposits. Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Romania and Iran also have salt domes. Salt glaciers exist in arid Iran where the salt has broken through the surface at high elevation and flows downhill. In all of these cases, halite is said to be behaving in the manner of a rheid. Unusual, purple, fibrous vein filling halite is found in France and a few other localities. Halite crystals termedhopper crystals appear to be "skeletons" of the typical cubes, with the edges present and stairstep depressions on, or rather in, each crystal face. In a rapidly crystallizing environment, the edges of the cubes simply grow faster than the centers. Halite crystals form very quickly in some rapidly evaporating lakes resulting in modern artifacts with a coating or encrustation of halite crystals. Halite flowers are rare stalactites of curling fibers of halite that are found in certain arid caves of Australia's Nullarbor Plain. Halite stalactites and encrustations are also reported in the Quincy native copper mine of Hancock, Michigan. [edit]Uses Halite is often used both residentially and municipally for managing ice. Because brine (a solution of water and salt) has a lower freezing point than pure water, putting salt or saltwater on ice that is near 0C will cause it to melt. (This effect is called freezing-point depression.) It is common for homeowners in cold

climates to spread salt on their walkways and driveways after a snow storm to melt the ice. It is not necessary to use so much salt that the ice is completely melted; rather, a small amount of salt will weaken the ice so that it can be easily removed by other means. Also, many cities will spread a mixture of sand and salt on roads during and after a snowstorm to improve traction. Salt is also used extensively in cooking as a flavor enhancer and to cure a wide variety of foods such [4] asbacon and fish. Larger pieces can be ground in a salt mill or dusted over food from a shaker as finishing salt.

Halite

Halite from the Wieliczka salt mine, Maopolskie, Poland

General

Category

Halide mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

NaCl

Strunz classification

03.AA.20

Crystal symmetry

Isometric hexoctahedral 4/m 32/m

Unit cell

a = 5.6404(1) ; Z = 4

Identification

Formula mass

58.433 g/mol

Color

Colorless or white; also blue, purple, red, pink, yellow, orange, or gray

Crystal habit

Predominantly cubes and in massive sedimentary beds, but also granular, fibrous and compact

Crystal system

Cubic

Cleavage

Perfect {001}, three directions cubic

Fracture

Conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

2 - 2.5

Luster

Vitreous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent

Specific gravity

2.17

Optical properties

Isotropic

Refractive index

n = 1.544

Solubility

Water soluble

Other characteristics

Salty flavor, Fluorescent

HEMATITE

Hematite, also spelled as haematite, is the mineral form of iron(III) oxide (Fe2O3), one of several iron oxides. Hematite crystallizes in therhombohedral system, and it has the same crystal structure as ilmenite and corundum. Hematite and ilmenite form a complete solid solution at temperatures above 950 C. Hematite is a mineral, colored black to steel or silver-gray, brown to reddish brown, or red. It is mined as the main ore of iron. Varieties includekidney ore, martite (pseudomorphs after magnetite), iron rose and specularite (specular hematite). While the forms of hematite vary, they all have a rust-red streak. Hematite is harder than pure iron, but much more brittle. Maghemite is a hematite- and magnetite-related oxide mineral. Huge deposits of hematite are found in banded iron formations. Gray hematite is typically found in places where there has been standing water or mineral hot springs, such as those in Yellowstone National Park in the United States. The mineral can precipitate out of water and collect in layers at the bottom of a lake, spring, or other standing water. Hematite can also occur without water, however, usually as the result of volcanic activity. Clay-sized hematite crystals can also occur as a secondary mineral formed by weathering processes in soil, and along with other iron oxides or oxyhydroxides such as goethite, is responsible for the red color of many tropical, ancient, or otherwise highly weathered soils.

Hematite

Hematite (blood ore) from Michigan

General

Category

Oxide minerals

Formula
(repeating unit)

iron(III) oxide, Fe2O3, -Fe2O3

Strunz classification

04.CB.05

Crystal symmetry

Trigonal hexagonal scalenohedral H-M symbol: (32/m) Space group: R3c

Unit cell

a = 5.038(2) , c = 13.772(12) ; Z = 6

Identification

Color

Metallic gray, dull to bright red

Crystal habit

Tabular to thick crystals; micaceous or platy, commonly in rosettes; radiating fibrous, reniform, botryoidal or stalactitic masses, columnar; earthy, granular, oolitic

Crystal system

Trigonal

Twinning

Penetration and lamellar

Cleavage

None, may show partings on {0001} and {1011}

Fracture

Uneven to sub-conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

5.56.5

Luster

Metallic to splendent

Streak

Bright red to dark red

Diaphaneity

Opaque

Specific gravity

5.26

Optical properties

Uniaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 3.1503.220, n = 2.8702.940

Birefringence

= 0.280

Pleochroism

O = brownish red; E = yellowish red

HORNBLENDE

Hornblende is a complex inosilicate series of minerals (ferrohornblende magnesiohornblende). It is not a recognized mineral in its own right, but the name is used as a general or field term, to refer to a dark amphibole. Hornblende is an isomorphous mixture of three molecules; a calcium-iron-magnesium silicate, an aluminium-iron-magnesium silicate, and an iron-magnesium silicate. The general formula can be given as (Ca,Na)23(Mg,Fe,Al)5(Al,Si)8O22(OH,F)2. [edit]Compositional

[3]

variances

Some metals vary in their occurrence and magnitude: Manganese and titanium are often present. Sodium and potassium are often present and fluorine often substitutes for the hydroxyl in the crystalline structure.

[edit]Physical

properties

Hornblende has a hardness of 56, a specific gravity of 2.93.4 and is typically an opaque green, greenish-brown, brown or black color.

Its cleavage angles are at 56 and 124 degrees. It is most often confused with the minerals augite and biotite mica, both of which are black and can be found in granite and in charnockite. [edit]Occurrence Hornblende is a common constituent of many igneous and metamorphic rocks such as granite, syenite, diorite, gabbro, basalt, andesite, gneiss, andschist. It is the principal mineral of amphibolites. Very dark brown to black hornblendes that contain titanium are ordinarily called basaltic hornblende, from the fact that they are usually a constituent of basalt and related rocks. Hornblende alters easily to chlorite and epidote. A rare variety of hornblende contains less than 5% of iron oxide, is gray to white in color, and named edenite, from its locality in Edenville, Orange County, New York. Other minerals in the hornblende series include: pargasite hastingsite tschermakite

Hornblende

Amphibole Hornblende

General

Category

Igneous, metamorphic

Formula
(repeating unit)

Ca2(Mg, Fe, Al)5 (Al, Si)8O22(OH)2

Identification

Color

Black/dark green

Crystal habit

Hexagonal/granular

Crystal system

Monoclinic

Cleavage

Imperfect at 56 and 124 degrees

Fracture

Uneven

Mohs scalehardness

56

Luster

Vitreous to dull

Streak

Pale gray, gray-white[1][2]

Specific gravity

2.9

Pleochroism

Strong

KAOLINITE

Kaolinite is a clay mineral, part of the group of industrial minerals, with the chemical composition Al2Si2O5(OH)4. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet linked [4] through oxygen atoms to one octahedral sheet of alumina octahedra. Rocks that are rich in kaolinite are [5] known as kaolin or china clay. The name is derived from Kao-ling (Chinese: /; pinyin: Gaoling), a village near Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, China. The name entered English in 1727 from the French version [7] of the word: "kaolin", following Francois Xavier d'Entrecolles's reports from Jingdezhen. In Africa, kaolin [8] [9] is sometimes known as kalaba (in Gabon and Cameroon ), calaba, and calabachop (in Equatorial Guinea). Kaolinite has a low shrink-swell capacity and a low cation exchange capacity (1-15 meq/100g). It is a soft, earthy, usually white mineral (dioctahedral phyllosilicate clay), produced by the chemical weathering of aluminium silicate minerals like feldspar. In many parts of the world, it is colored pink-orange-red by iron oxide, giving it a distinct rust hue. Lighter concentrations yield white, yellow or light orange colors. Alternating layers are sometimes found, as at Providence Canyon State Park in Georgia, United States. Commercial grades of kaolin are supplied and transported as dry powder, semi-dry noodle or as liquid slurry. [edit]Chemistry
[6]

[edit]Notation The chemical formula for kaolinite as used in mineralogy is Al2Si2O5(OH)4, however, in ceramics applications the formula is typically written in terms of oxides, thus the formula for kaolinite is [10] Al2O32SiO22H2O. Cement chemist notation is even more terse: AS2H2, with the oxides represented as [citation needed] A = Al2O3, S = SiO2, H = H2O. [edit]Structural
[3]

transformations

Kaolinite structure

Kaolinite group clays undergo a series of phase transformations upon thermal treatment in air at atmospheric pressure. Endothermic dehydroxylation (or alternatively, dehydration) begins at 550 600 C to produce disordered metakaolin, Al2Si2O7, but continuous hydroxyl loss (-OH) is observed up to 900 C [11] and has been attributed to gradual oxolation of the metakaolin. Because of historic disagreement concerning the nature of the metakaolin phase, extensive research has led to general consensus that metakaolin is not a simple mixture of amorphous silica (SiO2) and alumina (Al2O3), but rather a complex amorphous structure that retains some longer-range order (but not strictly crystalline) due to stacking of [11] its hexagonal layers. 2 Al2Si2O5(OH)4 2 Al2Si2O7 + 4 H2O. Further heating to 925950 C converts metakaolin to an aluminium-silicon spinel, Si3Al4O12, which is sometimes also referred to as a gamma-alumina type structure: 2 Al2Si2O7 Si3Al4O12 + SiO2. Upon calcination to ~1050 C, the spinel phase (Si3Al4O12) nucleates and transforms to mullite, 3 Al2O3 2 SiO2, and highly crystalline cristobalite, SiO2: 3 Si3Al4O12 2 Si2Al6O13 + 5 SiO2. [edit]Occurrence

A kaolin mine in Ruse Province, Bulgaria

Kaolinite is one of the most common minerals; it is mined, as kaolin, in Brazil, Bulgaria, France, United Kingdom, Iran, Germany, India, Australia,Korea, [1] the People's Republic of China, the Czech Republic and the United States. Kaolinite clay occurs in abundance in soils that have formed from the chemical weathering of rocks in hot, moist climatesfor example in tropical rainforest areas. Comparing soils along a gradient towards progressively cooler or drier climates, the proportion of kaolinite decreases, while the proportion of other clay minerals such as illite (in cooler climates) or smectite (in drier climates) increases. Such climatically-related differences in clay mineral content are often used to infer changes in climates in the geological past, where ancient soils have been buried and preserved. In the Institut National pour l'Etude Agronomique au Congo Belge (INEAC) classification system, soils in which the clay fraction is predominantly kaolinite are called kaolisol (from [12] kaolin and soil). In the US the main kaolin deposits are found in central Georgia, on a stretch of a geological fall line between Augusta and Macon. The deposits were formed between the late Cretaceous and early Paleogene, about 100 million to 45 million years ago, in sediments [13] derived from weathered igneous andmetamorphic rocks. Kaolin production in the US [14] during 2011 was 5.5 million tonnes.

Kaolinite

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Al2Si2O5(OH)4

Strunz classification

09.ED.05

Crystal symmetry Triclinic pedial H-M symbol: (1) Space group: P1

Unit cell

a = 5.13 , b = 8.89 , c = 7.25 ; = 90, = 104.5, = 89.8; Z = 2

Identification

Color

White, sometimes red, blue or brown tints from impurities

Crystal habit

Rarely as crystals, thin plates or stacked, More commonly as microscopic pseudohexagonal plates and clusters of plates, aggregated into compact, claylike masses

Crystal system

Triclinic

Cleavage

Perfect on {001}

Tenacity

Flexible but inelastic

Mohs scalehardness

22.5

Luster

Pearly to dull earthy

Streak

White

Specific gravity

2.162.68

Optical properties Biaxial ()

Refractive index

n = 1.5531.565, n = 1.5591.569, n = 1.5691.570

2V angle

Measured: 24 to 50, Calculated: 44

LEPIDOLITE

Lepidolite (KLi2Al(Al,Si)3O10(F,OH)2 is a lilac-gray or rose-colored member of the mica group that is a [3] secondary source of lithium. It is aphyllosilicate mineral and a member of the polylithionite-trilithionite [4] series. It is associated with other lithium-bearing minerals like spodumene in pegmatite bodies. It is one of the [5] major sources of the rare alkali metalsrubidium and caesium. In 1861 Robert Bunsen and Gustav Kirchhoff extracted 150 kg of lepidolite and yielded a few grams of rubidium salts for analysis, and [6] therefore discovered the new element rubidium. It occurs in granite pegmatites, in some high-temperature quartz veins, greisens and granites. Associated minerals [1] include quartz, feldspar,spodumene, amblygonite, tourmaline, columbite, cassiterite, topaz and beryl. Notable occurrences include Brazil; Ural Mountains, Russia; California, United States; Tanco Mine, Bernic Lake, Manitoba, Canada; andMadagascar.

Lepidolite

Lepidolite, Virgem da Lapa, Minas Gerais, Brazil (size 2.4 x 2.1 x 0.7 cm)

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

KLi2Al(Al,Si)3O10(F,OH)2

Strunz classification

09.EC.20

Crystal symmetry

Monoclinic H-M symbol: 2/m Space group: C 2/m,Cm

Unit cell

a = 5.209(2) b = 9.011(5) c = 10.149(5) ; = 100:77(4); Z = 2

Identification

Color

Pink, purple, rose-red, violet-gray, yellowish, white, colorless

Crystal habit

Tabular to prismatic pseudohexagonal crystals, scaly aggregates and massive

Crystal system

Monoclinic

Twinning

Rare, composition plane {001}

Cleavage

{001} perfect

Fracture

Uneven

Mohs scalehardness

2.53

Luster

Vitreous to pearly

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.82.9

Optical properties Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n=1.5251.548, n=1.5511.58, n=1.554 1.586

Birefringence

0.02900.0380

Pleochroism

X = almost colorless; Y = Z = pink, pale violet

2V angle

0 - 58 measured

MAGNETITE

Magnetite is a mineral, one of the two common naturally occurring iron oxides (chemical formula Fe3O4) and a member of the spinel group. Magnetite is the most magnetic of all the naturally occurring minerals [6] on Earth. Naturally magnetized pieces of magnetite, called lodestone, will attract small pieces of iron, and this was how ancient people first noticed the property of magnetism. Small grains of magnetite occur in almost all igneous and metamorphic rocks. It is black or brownishblack with a metallic luster, has a Mohs hardness of 56 and a black streak. The chemical IUPAC name is iron(II,III) oxide and the common chemical name is ferrous-ferric oxide. [edit]Properties Lodestones were used as an early form of magnetic compass. Magnetite typically carries the dominant magnetic signature in rocks, and so it has been a critical tool in paleomagnetism, a science important in understanding plate tectonics and as historic data for magnetohydrodynamics and other scientific fields. The relationships between magnetite and other iron-rich oxide minerals such as ilmenite, hematite, and ulvospinel have been much studied; the reactions between these minerals and oxygen influence how and when magnetite preserves a record of the Earth's magnetic field. Magnetite has been very important in understanding the conditions under which rocks form. Magnetite reacts with oxygen to produce hematite, and the mineral pair forms a buffer that can control oxygen fugacity. Commonly, igneous rocks contain grains of two solid solutions, one of magnetite andulvospinel and the other of ilmenite and hematite. Compositions of the mineral pairs are used to calculate how oxidizing was the magma (i.e., theoxygen fugacity of the magma): a range of oxidizing

conditions are found in magmas and the oxidation state helps to determine how the magmas might evolve by fractional crystallization. Magnetite also occurs in many sedimentary rocks, including banded iron formations. In many igneous rocks, magnetite-rich and ilmenite-rich grains occur that precipitated together in magma. Magnetite also is produced from peridotites and dunites by serpentinization. The Curie temperature of magnetite is 858 K (585 C; 1,085 F).

Magnetite

Magnetite and pyrite from Piedmont, Italy

General

Category

Oxide minerals Spinel group

Formula
(repeating unit)

iron(II,III) oxide, Fe2+Fe3+2O4

Strunz classification

04.BB.05

Crystal symmetry

Isometric 4/m 3 2/m

Unit cell

a = 8.397 ; Z=8

Identification

Color

Black, gray with brownish tint in reflected sun

Crystal habit

Octahedral, fine granular to massive

Crystal system

Isometric Hexoctahedral

Twinning

On {Ill} as both twin and composition plane, the spinel law, as contact twins

Cleavage

Indistinct, parting on {Ill}, very good

Fracture

Uneven

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

5.56.5

Luster

Metallic

Streak

Black[1]

Diaphaneity

Opaque

Specific gravity

5.175.18

Solubility

Dissolves slowly in hydrochloric acid

MALACHITE

Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu2CO3(OH)2. This opaque, green banded mineral crystallizes in themonoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fractures and spaces, deep underground, where the water table and hydrothermal fluids provide the means for chemical precipitation. Individual crystals are rare but do occur as slender to acicularprisms. Pseudomorphs after more tabular or blocky azurite crystals also [3] occur. Typical malachite is laminated and whether or not microbes intervene in its formation is unknown. [edit]Etymology

and history

The stone's name derives (via Latin: molochtis, Middle French: melochite, and Middle English melochites) from Greek molochitis lithos, "mallow-green stone", [4] from molch, variant of malch, "mallow". The mineral was given this name due to its [5] resemblance to the leaves of the Mallow plant. Malachite was used as a mineral pigment in green paints from antiquity until about 1800. The pigment is moderately lightfast, very sensitive to acidsand varying in color. The natural form was being replaced by its synthetic form, verditer amongst other synthetic greens. It is also used for decorative purposes, such as in the Malachite Room in the Hermitage, which features a huge malachite vase. "The Tazza", a large malachite vase, one of the largest pieces of malachite in North America and a gift from Tsar Nicholas II, stands as the focal point in the center of the room of Linda Hall Library. Archeological evidence indicates that the mineral has been mined and smelted at Timna [6] valley in Israel for over 3,000 years. Since then, malachite has been used as both an ornamental stone and as a gemstone.

[edit]Occurrence Malachite often results from weathering of copper ores and is often found together with azurite (Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2), goethite, and calcite. Except for its vibrant green color, the properties of malachite are similar to those of azurite and aggregates of the two minerals occur frequently. Malachite is more common than azurite and is typically associated with copper deposits around limestones, the source of the carbonate. Large quantities of malachite have been mined in the Urals, Russia. It is found worldwide including in the Democratic Republic of Congo; Gabon;Zambia; Tsumeb, Namibia; Mexico; Broken Hill, New South [7] Wales; Lyon, France; Timna valley, Israel, and in the Southwestern United Statesnotably in Arizona.

Malachite

Malachite from the Congo

General

Category

Carbonate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Cu2CO3(OH)2

Strunz classification

05.BA.10

Identification

Formula mass

221.1 g/mol

Color

Bright green, dark green, blackish green,

commonly banded in masses; green to yellowish green in transmitted light

Crystal habit

Massive, botryoidal, stalactitic, crystals are acicular to tabular prismatic

Crystal system

Monoclinicprismatic H-M Symbol (2/m) Space group P21/a

Twinning

Common as contact or penetration twins on {100} and {201}. Polysynthetic twinning also present.

Cleavage

Perfect on {201} fair on {010}

Fracture

Subconchoidal to uneven

Mohs scalehardness

3.54.0

Luster

Adamantine to vitreous; silky if fibrous; dull to earthy if massive

Streak

light green

Diaphaneity

Translucent to opaque

Specific gravity

3.64

Optical properties

Biaxial ()

Refractive index

n = 1.655 n = 1.875 n = 1.909

Birefringence

= 0.254

MUSCOVITE

Muscovite (also known as common mica, isinglass, or potash mica ) is a phyllosilicate mineral of aluminium and potassium with formulaKAl2(AlSi3O10)(F,OH)2, or (KF)2(Al2O3)3(SiO2)6(H2O). It has a highly-perfect basal cleavage yielding remarkably-thin lamin (sheets) [5] which are often highly elastic. Sheets of muscovite 53 m have been found in Nellore, India. Muscovite has a Mohs hardness of 22.25 parallel to the [001] face, 4 perpendicular to the [001] and a specific gravity of 2.763. It can be colorless or tinted through grays, browns, greens, yellows, or (rarely) violet or red, and can be transparent or translucent. It is anisotropic and has highbirefringence. Its crystal system is monoclinic. The green, chromium-rich variety is called fuchsite; mariposite is also a chromium-rich type of muscovite.

[4]

Muscovite with beryl (var. morganite) from Paprok, Afghanistan (dimensions: 5.94.83.4 cm)

Muscovite is the most common mica, found in granites, pegmatites, gneisses, and schists, and as a contact metamorphic rock or as a secondary mineral resulting from the alteration of topaz, feldspar,kyanite, etc. In pegmatites, it is often found in immense sheets that are commercially valuable. Muscovite is in demand for the manufacture of fireproofing and insulating materials and to some extent as alubricant. The name of muscovite comes from Muscovy-glass, a name formerly used for the mineral because of its use in Russia for windows.

Muscovite

Muscovite with albite from Doce valley, Minas Gerais, Brazil (dimensions: 65.33.9 cm)

General

Category

Silicate mineral Phyllosilicate

Formula
(repeating unit)

KAl2(AlSi3O10)(F,OH)2

Strunz classification

09.EC.15

Dana classification

71.02.02a.01

Crystal symmetry

2/m prismatic

Unit cell

a = 5.199 , b = 9.027 , c = 20.106 , = 95.78; Z = 4

Identification

Color

White, grey, silvery

Crystal habit

massive to platy

Crystal system

Monoclinic (2/m), space group C 2/m

Twinning

common on the [310] less common on the {001}

Cleavage

Perfect on the {001}

Fracture

Micaceous

Tenacity

Elastic

Mohs scalehardness

22.5 parallel to {001} 4 right angle to {001}

Luster

Vitreous, silky, pearly

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.763

Optical properties

Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.5521.576

n = 1.5821.615 n = 1.5871.618

Birefringence

= 0.035 0.042

Pleochroism

weak when colored

Dispersion

r > v weak

Ultravioletfluorescence

None

OLIVINE

The mineral olivine (when of gem quality, it is also called peridot and chrysolite), is a magnesium iron silicate with the formula (Mg,Fe)2SiO4. It is a common mineral in the Earth's subsurface but weathers quickly on the surface. The ratio of magnesium and iron varies between the two endmembers of the solid solution series: forsterite (Mg-endmember) and fayalite (Fe-endmember). Compositions of olivine are commonly expressed as molar percentages of forsterite (Fo) and fayalite (Fa) (e.g., Fo 70Fa30). Forsterite has an unusually high melting temperature at atmospheric pressure, almost 1900 C, but the melting temperature of fayalite is much lower (about 1200 C). The melting temperature varies smoothly between the two endmembers, as do other properties. Olivine incorporates only minor amounts of elements other than oxygen, silicon, magnesium and iron. Manganese and nickel commonly are the additional elements present in highest concentrations. Olivine gives its name to the group of minerals with a related structure (the olivine group) which includes tephroite (Mn2SiO4), monticellite(CaMgSiO4) and kirschsteinite (CaFeSiO4). [edit]Identification

and paragenesis

Green sand is actually olivine crystals, that have been eroded from lava rocks

Peridotite xenoliths in basaltolivines are light green crystals. Location: San Carlos Indian Reservation, Gila Co., Arizona, USA.

Lunar olivine basalt collected by Apollo 15.

Olivine is named for its typically olive-green color (thought to be a result of traces of nickel), though it may alter to a reddish color from the oxidation of iron.

Translucent olivine is sometimes used as a gemstone called peridot (pridot, the French word for olivine). It is also called chrysolite (or chrysolithe, from the Greek words for gold and stone). Some of the finest gem-quality olivine has been obtained from a body of mantle rocks on Zabargad island in the Red Sea. Olivine/peridot occurs in both mafic and ultramafic igneous rocks and as a primary mineral in certain metamorphic rocks. Mg-rich olivine crystallizes from magma that is rich in magnesium and low in silica. That magma crystallizes to mafic rocks such as gabbro and basalt. Ultramafic rocks such as peridotite and dunite can be residues left after extraction of magmas, and typically they are more enriched in olivine after extraction of partial melts. Olivine and high pressure structural variants constitute over 50% of the Earth's upper mantle, and olivine is one of the Earth's most common minerals by volume. The metamorphism of impure dolomite or other sedimentary rocks with high magnesium and low silica content also produces Mg-rich olivine, or forsterite. Fe-rich olivine is relatively much less common, but it occurs in igneous rocks in small amounts in rare granites and rhyolites, and extremely Fe-rich olivine can exist stably with quartz and tridymite. In contrast, Mg-rich olivine does not occur stably with silica minerals, as it would react with them to form orthopyroxene ((Mg,Fe)2Si2O6). Mg-rich olivine is stable to pressures equivalent to a depth of about 410 km within Earth. Because it is thought to be the most abundant mineral in Earths mantle at shallower depths, the properties of olivine have a dominant influence upon the rheology of that part of Earth and hence upon the solid flow that drives plate tectonics. Experiments have documented that olivine at high pressures (e.g. 12 GPa, the pressure at depths of about 360 kilometers) can contain at least as much as about 8900 parts per million (weight) of water, and that such water contents drastically reduce the resistance of olivine to solid flow; moreover, because olivine is so abundant, more water may be dissolved in olivine of the mantle than [4] contained in Earth's oceans.

First X-ray view of Martian soil - feldspar, pyroxenes, olivine revealed (Curiosity rover at "Rocknest", October 17, 2012).[5]

[edit]Extraterrestrial

occurrences
[6] [7]

Mg-rich olivine has also been discovered in meteorites, the Moon, Mars, in the dust of comet Wild 2, [8] [9] within the core of comet Tempel 1, falling into infant stars, as well as on asteroid 25143 [10] Itokawa. Such meteorites include chondrites, collections of debris from the early solar system; andpallasites, mixes of iron-nickel and olivine. The spectral signature of olivine has been seen in the dust disks around young stars. The tails of comets (which formed from the dust disk around the young Sun) often have the spectral signature of olivine, and

the presence of olivine has recently been verified in samples of a comet from the Stardust [11] spacecraft. Comet-like (magnesium-rich) olivine has also been detected in the planetesimal belt around [12] the star Beta Pictoris. [edit]Crystal

structure

Figure 1: The atomic scale structure of olivine looking along the a axis. Oxygen is shown in red, silicon in pink, and magnesium/iron in blue. A projection of the unit cell is shown by the black rectangle

Minerals in the olivine group crystallize in the orthorhombic system (space group Pbnm) with isolated silicate tetrahedra, meaning that olivine is anesosilicate. In an alternative view, the atomic structure can be described as a hexagonal, close-packed array of oxygen ions with half of the octahedral sites occupied with magnesium or iron ions and one-eighth of the tetrahedral sites occupied by silicon ions. There are three distinct oxygen sites (marked O1, O2 and O3 in figure 1), two distinct metal sites (M1 and M2) and only one distinct silicon site. O1, O2, M2 and Si all lie on mirror planes, while M1 exists on an inversion center. O3 lies in a general position.

Olivine

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

(Mg, Fe)2SiO4

Identification

Color

Yellow to yellow-green

Crystal habit

Massive to granular

Crystal system

Orthorhombic

Cleavage

Poor

Fracture

Conchoidal brittle

Mohs scalehardness

6.57

Luster

Vitreous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

3.273.37

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.6301.650 n = 1.6501.670 n = 1.6701.690

Birefringence

= 0.040

OPAL

Opal is an amorphous form of silica , a mineraloid form, not a mineral. 3% to 21% of the total weight is water, but the content is usually between 6% to 10%. It is deposited at a relatively low temperature and may occur in the fissures of almost any kind of rock, being most commonly found withlimonite, sandstone, rhyolite, marl and basalt. Opal is the national gemstone of Australia, which [4] produces 97% of the world's supply. This includes the production of the state of South Australia, which [5] amounts to around 80% of the world's supply. Opal's internal structure makes it diffract light; depending on the conditions in which it formed it can take on many colors. Opal ranges from clear through white, gray, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, magenta, rose, pink, slate, olive, brown, and black. Of these hues, the reds against black are the most rare, whereas white and greens are the most common. It varies in optical density from opaque to semitransparent. For gemstone use, its natural color is often enhanced by placing thin layers of opal on a darker underlying stone, like basalt. [edit]Precious

opal

Opals can express every color in the visible spectrum.

Potch opal from Andamooka South Australia

Precious opal consists of spheres of silica of fairly regular size, packed into close-packed planes that are stacked together with characteristic dimensions of several hundred nm.

Australian Opal Doublet, an opal slice with a natural ironstone backing.

Precious opal shows a variable interplay of internal colors and even though it is a mineraloid, it has an internal structure. At micro scales precious opal is composed of silica spheres some 150 to 300 nm in diameter in a hexagonal or cubic close-packed lattice. These ordered silica spheres produce the internal colors by causing the interference and diffraction of light passing through the microstructure of the [6] opal. It is the regularity of the sizes and the packing of these spheres that determines the quality of precious opal. Where the distance between the regularly packed planes of spheres is approximately half the wavelength of a component of visible light, the light of that wavelength may be subject to diffraction from the grating created by the stacked planes. The spacing between the planes and the orientation of planes with respect to the incident light determines the colors observed. The process can be described byBragg's Law of diffraction. Visible light of diffracted wavelengths cannot pass through large thicknesses of the opal. This is the basis of the optical band gap in a photonic crystal, of which opal is the best known natural example. In addition, microfractures may be filled with secondary silica and form thin lamellae inside the opal during solidification. The term opalescence is commonly and erroneously used to describe this unique and beautiful phenomenon, which is correctly termed play of color. Contrarily, opalescence is correctly applied to the milky, turbid appearance of common or potch opal. Potch does not show a play of color. The veins of opal displaying the play of color are often quite thin, and this has given rise to unusual methods of preparing the stone as a gem. An opal doublet is a thin layer of opal, backed by a swart mineral such as ironstone, basalt, or obsidian. The darker backing emphasizes the play of color, and results in a more attractive display than a lighter potch. Combined with modern techniques of polishing, doublet opal produces similar effect of black or boulder opals at a mere fraction of the price. Doublet opal also has the added benefit of having genuine opal as the top visible and touchable layer, unlike triplet opals. The triplet-cut opal backs the colored material with a dark backing, and then has a domed cap of clearquartz or plastic on top, which takes a high polish and acts as a protective layer for the opal. The top layer also acts as a magnifier, to emphasize the play of color of the opal beneath, which is often of lower quality. Triplet opals therefore have a more artificial appearance, and are not classed as precious opal.

[edit]Common

opal

A piece of milky raw opal from Andamooka South Australia

An opal "triplet" from Andamooka South Australia showing blue and green fire

A rock showing striations of opal throughout

A close-up view of striations within opal

Besides the gemstone varieties that show a play of color, there are other kinds of common opal such as the milk opal, milky bluish to greenish (which can sometimes be of gemstone quality); resin opal, which is honey-yellow with a resinous luster; wood opal, which is caused by the replacement of the organic [7] material in wood with opal; menilite, which is brown or grey; hyalite, a colorless glass-clear opal sometimes called Muller's Glass; geyserite, also called siliceous sinter, deposited around hot springs orgeysers; and diatomite or diatomaceous earth, the accumulations of diatom shells or tests. [edit]Other

varieties of opal

Fire opal from Mexico

Fire opals are transparent to translucent opals with warm body colors of yellow, orange, orange-yellow or red. They do not usually show any play of color, although occasionally a stone will exhibit bright green flashes. The most famous source of fire opals is the state of Quertaro in Mexico; these opals are commonly called Mexican fire opals. Fire opals that do not show play of color are sometimes referred to as jelly opals. Mexican opals are sometimes cut in their ryholitic host material if it is hard enough to allow cutting and polishing. This type of Mexican opal is referred to as a Cantera Opal. There is also a type of opal from Mexico referred to as Mexican Water Opal, which is a colorless opal which exhibits either a [8] bluish or golden internal sheen. Girasol opal is a term sometimes mistakenly and improperly used to refer to fire opals as well as a type of transparent to semi-transparent type milky quartz from Madagascar which displays an asterism, or star

effect, when cut properly. However, there is a true girasol opal that is a type of halite opal, that exhibits a bluish glow or sheen that follows the light source around. It is not a play of color as seen in precious opal but rather an effect from microscopic inclusions. It is also sometimes referred to as water opal as well when it is from Mexico. The two most notable locations of this type of opal are Oregon and [citation needed] Mexico. Peruvian opal (also called blue opal) is a semi-opaque to opaque blue-green stone found in Peru which is often cut to include the matrix in the more opaque stones. It does not display pleochroism. Blue opal also [citation needed] comes from Oregon in the Owhyee region as well as from Nevada around Virgin Valley. [edit]Sources

[8]

of opal

Polished opal from Yowah (Yowah Nut[9]), Queensland, Australia

Australia produces around 97% of the world's opal. 90% is called 'light opal' or white and crystal opal. White makes up 60% of the opal productions but cannot be found in all of the opal fields. Crystal opal or [citation pure hydrated silica makes up 30% of the opal produced, 8% is black and only 2% is boulder opal.
needed]

The town of Coober Pedy in South Australia is a major source of opal. The world's largest and most valuable gem opal "Olympic Australis" was found in August 1956 at the "Eight Mile" opal field in Coober 3 Pedy. It weighs 17,000 carats (3450 grams) and is 11 inches (280 mm) long, with a height of 4 4 inches 1 [citation needed] (120 mm) and a width of 4 2 inches (110 mm).

Boulder Opal, Carisbrooke Station near Winton, Queensland

The Mintabie Opal Field located approximately 250 km north west of Coober Pedy has also produced large quantities of Crystal opal and also the rarer black opal. Over the years it has been sold overseas incorrectly as Coober Pedy Opal. The black opal is said to be some of the best examples found in Australia. Andamooka in South Australia is also a major producer of matrix opal, crystal opal, and black opal. Another Australian town, Lightning Ridge in New South Wales, is the main source of black opal, opal containing a predominantly dark background (dark-gray to blue-black displaying the play of color). Boulder opal consists of concretions and fracture fillings in a dark siliceous ironstone matrix. It is found [10] sporadically in western Queensland, from Kynuna in the north, to Yowah and Koroit in the south. Its [11] largest quantities are found around Jundah and Quilpie (known as the "home of the Boulder Opal" ) in South West Queensland. Australia also has opalised fossil remains, including dinosaur bones in New [citation needed] South Wales, and marine creatures in South Australia. The rarest type of Australian opal is "pipe" opal, closely related to boulder opal, which forms in sandstone with some iron-ore content, usually [citation needed] as fossilized tree roots.

Multi-colored rough opal specimen from Virgin Valley, Nevada, US

The Virgin Valley opal fields of Humboldt County in northern Nevada produce a wide variety of precious black, crystal, white, fire, and lemon opal. The black fire opal is the official gemstone of Nevada. Most of the precious opal is partial wood replacement. The precious opal is hosted and found within a subsurface horizon or zone of hard bentonite in-place which is considered a "lode" deposit. Opals which have weathered out of the in-place deposits are alluvial and considered "placer" deposits. Miocene age opalised teeth, bones, fish, and a snake head have been found. Some of the opal has high water content and may desiccate and crack when dried. The largest producing mines of Virgin Valley have been the [13] [14] [15] [16] famous Rainbow Ridge, Royal Peacock, Bonanza, Opal Queen, and WRT Stonetree/Black [17] Beauty Mines. The largest unpolished Black Opal in the Smithsonian Institution, known as the [18] "Roebling Opal," came out of the tunneled portion of the Rainbow Ridge Mine in 1917, and weighs 2,585 carats. The largest polished black opal in the Smithsonian Institution comes from the Royal [citation needed] Peacock opal mine in the Virgin Valley, weighing 160 carats, known as the "Black Peacock." Another source of white base opal or creamy opal in the United States is Spencer, Idaho. high percentage of the opal found there occurs in thin layers.
[citation needed]

[12]

Other significant deposits of precious opal around the world can be found in the Czech Republic, [19] Slovakia, Hungary, Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil (inPedro II, Piau ), Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Ethiopia. In late 2008, NASA announced that it had discovered opal deposits on Mars.
[20]

Opal

An opal bracelet. The stone size is 18 by 15 mm (0.7 by 0.6 in)

General

Category

Mineraloid

Formula
(repeating unit)

Hydrated silica. SiO2nH2O

Identification

Color

Colorless, white, yellow, red, orange, green, brown, black, blue

Crystal habit

Irregular veins, in masses, in nodules

Crystal system

Amorphous[1]

Cleavage

None[1]

Fracture

Conchoidal to uneven[1]

Mohs scalehardness

5.56[1]

Luster

Subvitreous to waxy[1]

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

opaque, translucent, transparent

Specific gravity

2.15 (+.08, -.90)[1]

Density

2.09

Polish luster

Vitreous to resinous[1]

Optical properties

Single refractive, often anomalous double refractive due to strain[1]

Refractive index

1.450 (+.020, -.080) Mexican opal may read as low as 1.37, but typically reads 1.421.43[1]

Birefringence

none[1]

Pleochroism

None[1]

Ultravioletfluorescence black or white body color: inert to white to moderate light blue, green, or yellow in long and short wave. May also phosphoresce; common opal: inert to strong green or yellowish green in long and short wave, may phosphoresce; fire opal: inert to moderate greenish brown in long and short wave, may phosphoresce.[1]

Absorption spectra

green stones: 660nm, 470nm cutoff[1]

Diagnostic features

darkening upon heating

Solubility

hot saltwater, bases, methanol,humic acid, hydrofluoric acid

PYRITE

The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its superficial resemblance to gold. The color has also led to the nicknames brass, brazzle and Brazil, [5][6] primarily used to refer to pyrite found in coal. Pyrite is the most common of the sulfide minerals. The name pyrite is derived from the Greek [7] [8] (purits), "of fire" or "in fire", in turn from (pur), "fire". In ancient Roman times, this name was applied to several types of stone that would create sparks when struck against steel; Pliny the Elder described one of them as being brassy, almost certainly a reference to what we now call [9] [10] pyrite. By Georgius Agricola's time, the term had become a generic term for all of the sulfide minerals. Pyrite is usually found associated with other sulfides or oxides in quartz veins, sedimentary rock, and metamorphic rock, as well as in coal beds, and as a replacement mineral in fossils. Despite being nicknamed fool's gold, pyrite is sometimes found in association with small quantities of gold. Gold and arsenic occur as a coupled substitution in the pyrite structure. In the Carlintype gold deposits, [11] arsenian pyrite contains up to 0.37 wt% gold. [edit]Uses

Pyrite from Ampliacin a Victoria Mine, Navajn, La Rioja, Spain

Pyrite enjoyed brief popularity in the 16th and 17th centuries as a source of ignition in early firearms, most notably the wheellock, where the cock held a lump of pyrite against a circular file to strike the sparks needed to fire the gun. Pyrite has been used since classical times to manufacture copperas, that is, iron(II) sulfate. Iron pyrite was heaped up and allowed to weather as described above (an early form of heap leaching). The acidic runoff from the heap was then boiled with iron to produce iron sulfate. In the 15th century, such leaching began to replace the burning of sulfur as a source of sulfuric acid. By the 19th century, it had become the [12] dominant method. Pyrite remains in commercial use for the production of sulfur dioxide, for use in such applications as thepaper industry, and in the manufacture of sulfuric acid. Thermal decomposition of pyrite into FeS [13] (iron(II) sulfide) and elemental sulfur starts at 550 C; at around 700 C pS2 is about 1 atm. Pyrite is a semiconductor material with band gap of 0.95 eV.
[14]

During the early years of the 20th century, pyrite was used as a mineral detector in radio receivers, and is still used by 'crystal radio' hobbyists. Until the vacuum tube matured, the crystal detector was the most sensitive and dependable detector available- with considerable variation between mineral types and even individual samples within a particular type of mineral. Pyrite detectors occupied a midway point betweengalena detectors and the more mechanically complicated perikon mineral pairs. Pyrite detectors [15][16] can be as sensitive as a modern 1N34A diodedetector. Pyrite has been proposed as an abundant, inexpensive material in low cost photovoltaic solar [17] panels. Synthetic iron sulfide is used with copper sulfide to create the experimental photovoltaic [18] material. Pyrite is used to make marcasite jewelry (incorrectly termed marcasite). Marcasite jewelry, made from [19] small faceted pieces of pyrite, often set in silver, was popular in the Victorian era.

Pyrite

Pyrite cubic crystals on marl from Navajn, Rioja, Spain (size: 95 x 78 mm, 512 g; main crystal: 31 mm on edge)

General

Category

Sulfide mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

FeS2

Strunz classification

02.EB.05a

Dana classification

2.12.1.1

Crystal symmetry

Isometric diploidal Space group: Pa3 H-M symbol: 2/m3

Unit cell

a = 5.417 , Z=4

Identification

Color

Pale brass-yellow, tarnishes darker and iridescent

Crystal habit

Cubic, faces may be striated, but also frequently octahedral and pyritohedron. Often inter-grown, massive, radiated, granular, globular and stalactitic.

Crystal system

Isometric

Twinning

Penetration and contact twinning

Cleavage

Indistinct on {001}; partings on {011} and {111}

Fracture

Very uneven, sometimes conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

66.5

Luster

Metallic, glistening

Streak

Greenish-black to brownish-black

Diaphaneity

Opaque

Specific gravity

4.955.10

Fusibility

2.53 to a magnetic globule

Solubility

Insoluble in water

Other characteristics

paramagnetic

QUARTZ Quartz is the second most abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4siliconoxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz, several of which are semi-precious gemstones. Especially in Europe and the Middle East, varieties of quartz have been since antiquity the most commonly used minerals in the making of jewelry and hardstone carvings. The word "quartz" is derived from the German word "quarz" and its Middle High German ancestor "twarc", [6] which probably originated in Slavic (cf. Czech tvrdy ("hard"), Polish twardy ("hard")). [edit]Crystal

habit and structure

Crystal structure of -quartz

-quartz

Quartz belongs to the trigonal crystal system. The ideal crystal shape is a six-sided prism terminating with six-sided pyramidsat each end. In nature quartz crystals are often twinned, distorted, or so intergrown with adjacent crystals of quartz or other minerals as to only show part of this shape, or to lack obvious crystal faces altogether and appear massive. Well-formed crystals typically form in a 'bed' that has unconstrained growth into a void, but because the crystals must be attached at the other end to a matrix, only one termination pyramid is present. A quartz geode is such a situation where the void is approximately spherical in shape, lined with a bed of crystals pointing inward. -quartz crystallizes in the trigonal crystal system, space group P3121 and P3221 respectively. -quartz [7] belongs to the hexagonal system, space group P6221 and P6421, respectively. These spacegroups are truly chiral (they each belong to the 11 enantiomorphous pairs). Both -quartz and -quartz are examples of chiral crystal structures composed of achiral building blocks (SiO 4 tetrahedra in the present case). The

transformation between - and -quartz only involves a comparatively minor rotation of the tetrahedra with respect to one another, without change in the way they are linked. [edit]Varieties

(according to color)

Pure quartz, traditionally called rock crystal (sometimes called clear quartz), is colorless and transparent (clear) ortranslucent, and has often been used for hardstone carvings, such as the Lothair Crystal. Common colored varieties include citrine, rose quartz, amethyst, smoky quartz, milky quartz, and others. Quartz goes by an array of different names. The most important distinction between types of quartz is that of macrocrystalline (individual crystals visible to the unaided eye) and themicrocrystalline or cryptocrystalline varieties (aggregates of crystals visible only under high magnification). The cryptocrystalline varieties are either translucent or mostly opaque, while the transparent varieties tend to be macrocrystalline. Chalcedony is a cryptocrystalline form of silica [8] consisting of fine intergrowths of both quartz, and its monoclinic polymorph moganite. Other opaque gemstone varieties of quartz, or mixed rocks including quartz, often including contrasting bands or patterns of color, are agate, sard, onyx, carnelian, heliotrope, and jasper. [edit]Citrine

Citrine

"Citrine" redirects here. For other uses, see Citrine (disambiguation). Citrine is a variety of quartz whose color ranges from a pale yellow to brown. Natural citrines are rare; most commercial citrines are heat-treated amethysts or smoky quartzes. It is nearly impossible to tell cut citrine from yellow topaz visibly, but they differ in hardness. Citrine has ferric impurities, and is rarely found naturally. Brazil is the leading producer of citrine, with much of its production coming from the state of Rio Grande do Sul. The name is derived from Latin citrina which means "yellow" and is also the origin of the word "citron." Sometimes citrine and amethyst can be found together in the same crystal, which is [9] then referred to as ametrine. Citrine is one of three traditional birthstones for the month of November.

[edit]Rose

quartz

An elephant carved in rose quartz, 4 inches (10 cm) long

Rose quartz is a type of quartz which exhibits a pale pink to rose red hue. The color is usually considered as due to trace amounts of titanium, iron, or manganese, in the massive material. Some rose quartz contains microscopic rutile needles which produces an asterism in transmitted light. Recent X-ray diffraction studies suggest that the color is due to thin microscopic fibers of possiblydumortierite within the [10] massive quartz. In crystal form (rarely found) it is called pink quartz and its color is thought to be caused by trace amounts of phosphate or aluminium. The color in crystals is apparently photosensitive and subject to fading. The first crystals were found in a pegmatite found near Rumford, Maine, USA, but most crystals [11] on the market come from Minas Gerais, Brazil. Rose quartz is not popular as a gem it is generally too clouded by impurities to be suitable for that purpose. Rose quartz is more often carved into figures such as people or hearts. Hearts are commonly found because rose quartz is pink and an affordable mineral. [edit]Amethyst

Amethyst. Magaliesburg, South Africa

Main article: Amethyst Amethyst is a popular form of quartz that ranges from a bright to dark or dull purple color.

[edit]Smoky

quartz

Smoky quartz

Smoky quartz is a gray, translucent version of quartz. It ranges in clarity from almost complete transparency to a brownish-gray crystal that is almost opaque. Some can also be black. [edit]Milky

quartz

Milky quartz sample

Ancient Roman cameo onyx engraved gem of Augustus

Milk quartz or milky quartz may be the most common variety of crystalline quartz and can be found almost anywhere. The white color may be caused by minute fluid inclusions of gas, liquid, or both, trapped during the crystal formation. The cloudiness caused by the inclusions effectively bars its use in [12] most optical and quality gemstone applications. [edit]Varieties

(according to microstructure)

Although many of the varietal names historically arose from the color of the mineral, current scientific naming schemes refer primarily to the microstructure of the mineral. Color is a secondary identifier for the cryptocrystalline minerals, although it is a primary identifier for the macrocrystalline varieties. This does not always hold true.

Major varieties of quartz

Chalcedony

Cryptocrystalline quartz and moganite mixture. The term is generally only used for white or lightly colored material. Otherwise more specific names are used.

Agate

Multi-colored, banded chalcedony, semi-translucent to translucent

Onyx

Agate where the bands are straight, parallel and consistent in size.

Jasper

Opaque cryptocrystalline quartz, typically red to brown

Aventurine

Translucent chalcedony with small inclusions (usually mica) that shimmer.

Tiger's Eye

Fibrous gold to red-brown colored quartz, exhibiting chatoyancy.

Rock crystal

Clear, colorless

Amethyst

Purple, transparent

Citrine

Yellow to reddish orange to brown, greenish yellow

Prasiolite

Mint green, transparent

Rose quartz

Pink, translucent, may display diasterism

Rutilated quartz Contains acicular (needles) inclusions of rutile

Milk quartz

White, translucent to opaque, may display diasterism

Smoky quartz

Brown to gray, opaque

Carnelian

Reddish orange chalcedony, translucent

Dumortierite quartz

Contains large amounts of dumortierite crystals

Quartz

Quartz crystal cluster from Tibet

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Silica (silicon dioxide, SiO2)

Strunz classification

04.DA.05

Dana classification

75.01.03.01

Crystal symmetry

Trigonal 32

Unit cell

a = 4.9133 , c = 5.4053 ; Z=3

Identification

Color

Colorless through various colors to black

Crystal habit

6-sided prism ending in 6-sided pyramid (typical), drusy, fine-grained to microcrystalline, massive

Crystal system

-quartz: trigonal trapezohedral class 3 2; -quartz: hexagonal622[1]

Twinning

Common Dauphine law, Brazil law and Japan law

Cleavage

{0110} Indistinct

Fracture

Conchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

7 lower in impure varieties (defining mineral)

Luster

Vitreous waxy to dull when massive

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to nearly opaque

Specific gravity

2.65; variable 2.592.63 in impure varieties

Optical properties

Uniaxial (+)

Refractive index n = 1.5431.545 n = 1.5521.554

Birefringence

+0.009 (B-G interval)

Pleochroism

None

Melting point

1670 C ( tridymite) 1713 C (cristobalite)[1]

Solubility

Insoluble at STP; 1 ppmmass at 400 C and 500 lb/in2 to 2600 ppmmass at 500 C and 1500 lb/in2[1]

Other characteristics

Piezoelectric, may betriboluminescent, chiral (hence optically active if not racemic)

Agate

Onyx

Amethyst

Chalcedony

Citrine

Crystal Quartz

Jasper

Milky

Rose

RHODONITE

Rhodonite is a manganese inosilicate, (Mn, Fe, Mg, Ca)SiO3 and member of the pyroxenoid group of minerals, crystallizing in the triclinic system. It commonly occurs as cleavable to compact masses with a rose-red color (the name comes from the Greek rhodos, rosy), often tending to brown because of surface oxidation. Rhodonite crystals often have a thick tabular habit, but are rare. It has a perfect, prismatic cleavage, almost at right angles. The hardness is 5.56.5, and the specific gravity 3.43.7; luster is vitreous, being less frequently pearly on cleavage surfaces. The manganese is often partly replaced by iron,magnesium, calcium, and sometimes zinc which may sometimes be present in considerable amounts; a greyish-brown variety containing as much as 20% of calcium oxide is called bustamite; fowlerite is a zinciferous variety containing 7% of zinc oxide.

Pink rhodonite contrasting with black manganese oxides is sometimes used asgemstone material as seen in this specimen from Humboldt County, Nevada.

The inosilicate (chain silicate) structure of rhodonite has a repeat unit of five silica tetrahedra. The rarepolymorph pyroxmangite, formed at different conditions of pressure and temperature, has the same chemical composition but a repeat unit of seven tetrahedra. Rhodonite has also been worked as an ornamental stone. In the iron and manganese mines at Pajsberg near Filipstad and Lngban in Vrmland, Sweden, small brilliant and translucent crystals (pajsbergite) and cleavage masses occur. Fowlerite occurs as large, rough crystals, somewhat resembling pink feldspar, with franklinite and zinc ores in granular limestone at Franklin Furnace in New Jersey. Rhodonite is the official gem of Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
[4]

Rhodonite

Rhodonite crystals in rock

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

(Mn2+,Fe2+,Mg,Ca)SiO3

Strunz classification

09.DK.05

Dana classification

65.04.01.01

Crystal symmetry

Triclinic 1 pinacoidal

Unit cell

a = 9.758 , b = 10.499 , c = 12.205 ; = 108.58, = 102.92, = 82.52; Z = 20

Identification

Color

Rose-pink to brownish red, gray, or yellow

Crystal habit

Tabular crystals, massive, granular

Crystal system

Triclinic - Pinacoidal H-M Symbol (1) Space Group: P1

Twinning

Lamellar, composition plane {010}

Cleavage

Perfect on {110} and {110}, (110) ^ (110) = 92.5; good on {001}

Fracture

Conchoidal to uneven

Mohs scalehardness

5.5 - 6.5

Luster

Vitreous to pearly

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

3.57 - 3.76

Optical properties Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.711 - 1.738 n = 1.714 - 1.741 n = 1.724 - 1.751

Birefringence

= 0.013

Pleochroism

Weak

2V angle

Measured: 58 to 73, Calculated: 58

Alters to

Exterior commonly black from manganese oxides

SILVER

Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag (Greek: rguros, Latin: argentum, both from the Indo-European root*arg- for "grey" or "shining") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal. The metal occurs naturally in its pure, free form (native silver), as an alloy with gold and other metals, and in minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining. Silver has long been valued as a precious metal, and is used as an investment, to make ornaments, jewelry, high-value tableware, utensils (hence the term silverware), and currency coins. Today, silver metal is also used in electrical contacts and conductors, in mirrors and in catalysis of chemical reactions. Its compounds are used in photographic film, and dilute silver nitrate solutions and other silver compounds are used asdisinfectants and microbiocides (oligodynamic effect). While many medical antimicrobial uses of silver have been supplanted by antibiotics, further research into clinical potential continues.

SODALITE

Sodalite is a rich royal blue mineral widely enjoyed as an ornamental gemstone. Although massive sodalite samples are opaque, crystals are usually transparent to translucent. Sodalite is a member of the sodalite group with hauyne, nosean, lazurite and tugtupite. Discovered in 1811 in the Ilimaussaq intrusive complex in Greenland, sodalite did not become important as an ornamental stone until 1891 when vast deposits of fine material were discovered in Ontario, Canada. [edit]Properties

A sample of sodalite-carbonatepegmatite from Bolivia, with a polished rock surface.

A light, relatively hard yet fragile mineral, sodalite is named after its sodium content; in mineralogy it may be classed as a feldspathoid. Well known for its blue color, sodalite may also be grey, yellow, green, or pink and is often mottled with white veins or patches. The more uniformly blue material is used injewellery, where it is fashioned into cabochons and beads. Lesser material is more often seen as facing or inlay in various applications. Although somewhat similar to lazurite and lapis lazuli, sodalite rarely contains pyrite (a common inclusion in lapis) and its blue color is more like traditional royal blue rather than ultramarine. It is further distinguished from similar minerals by its white (rather than blue) streak. Sodalite's six directions of poor cleavage may be seen as incipient cracks running through the stone. [edit]Hackmanite

Hackmanite dodecahedron from the Koksha Valley, Afghanistan

Hackmanite is an important variety of sodalite exhibiting tenebrescence. When hackmanite from Mont Saint-Hilaire (Quebec) or Ilmaussaq (Greenland) is freshly quarried, it is generally pale to deep violet but the colour fades quickly to greyish or greenish white. Conversely, hackmanite from Afghanistan and the Myanmar Republic (Burma) starts off creamy white but develops a violet to pink-red colour in sunlight. If left in a dark environment for some time, the violet will fade again. Tenebrescence is accelerated by the use of longwave or, particularly, shortwave ultraviolet light. Much sodalite will also fluoresce a patchy orange under UV light. [edit]Occurrence Sodalite was first described in 1811 for the occurrence in its type locality in the Ilimaussaq complex, [1] Narsaq, West Greenland. Occurring typically in massive form, sodalite is found as vein fillings in plutonic igneous rocks such asnepheline syenites. It is associated with other minerals typical of undersaturated environments, namelyleucite, cancrinite and natrolite. Other associated minerals include nepheline, [3] titanian andradite, aegirine, microcline, sanidine, albite, calcite, fluorite,ankerite and baryte. Significant deposits of fine material are restricted to but a few locales: Bancroft, Ontario, and Mont-SaintHilaire, Quebec, in Canada; and Litchfield, Maine, and Magnet Cove, Arkansas, in the USA. The Ice River [5] complex, near Golden, British Columbia, contains sodalite. Smaller deposits are found in South

America (Brazil and Bolivia), Portugal, Romania, Burma and Russia. Hackmanite is found principally in Mont-Saint-Hilare andGreenland. Euhedral, transparent crystals are found in northern Namibia and in the lavas of Vesuvius, Italy.

Sodalite

A sample of sodalite

General

Category

Mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

NaAlSiOCl

Strunz classification

9.FB.10

Crystal symmetry

Isometric hextetrahedral H-M symbol: 43m Space group: P43n

Unit cell

a = 8.876(6) ; Z = 1

Identification

Color

Rich royal blue, green, yellow, violet, white veining common

Crystal habit

Massive; rarely as dodecahedra

Crystal system

Cubic

Twinning

Common on {111} forming pseudohexagonal prisms

Cleavage

Poor on {110}

Fracture

Conchoidal to uneven

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

5.5-6

Luster

Dull vitreous to greasy

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.27-2.33

Optical properties

Isotropic

Refractive index

n = 1.483 - 1.487

Ultravioletfluorescence Bright redorangecathodoluminescence and fluorescence under LW and SW UV, with yellowishphosphorescence; may bephotochromic in magentas

Fusibility

Easily to a colourless glass; sodium

yellow flame

Solubility

Soluble in hydrochloric andnitric acids

Other characteristics

Odor of H2S emitted on fracture

References

[1][2][3][4]

Major varieties

Hackmanite

Tenebrescent; violet-red or green fading to white

SPHALERITE

Sphalerite ((Zn,Fe)S) is a mineral that is the chief ore of zinc. It consists largely of zinc sulfide in crystalline form but almost always contains variable iron. When iron content is high it is an opaque black variety, marmatite. It is usually found in association with galena, pyrite, and othersulfides along with calcite, dolomite, and fluorite. Miners have also been known to refer to sphalerite as zinc blende and black-jack. [edit]Chemistry

The crystal structure of sphalerite

The mineral crystallizes in the cubic crystal system. In the crystal structure, zinc and sulfur atoms are tetrahedrally coordinated. The structure is closely related to the structure of diamond.

The hexagonal analog is known as the wurtzitestructure. The lattice constant for zinc sulfide in the [4] zincblende crystal structure is 0.541 nm, calculated from geometry and ionic radii of 0.074 nm (zinc) and 0.184 nm (sulfide). It forms ABCABC layers. [edit]Varieties

Sharp, tetrahedral sphalerite crystals with minor associated chalcopyrite from the Idarado Mine, Telluride, Ouray District, Colorado, USA (size: 2.32.31.2 cm)

Its color is usually yellow, brown, or gray to gray-black, and it may be shiny or dull. Its luster is adamantine, resinous to submetallic for high iron varieties. It has a yellow or light brown streak, a Mohs hardness of 3.54, and a specific gravity of 3.94.1. Some specimens have a red iridescence within the gray-black crystals; these are called "ruby sphalerite." The pale yellow and red varieties have very little iron and are translucent. The darker more opaque varieties contain more iron. Some specimens are also fluorescent in ultraviolet light. The refractive index of sphalerite (as measured via sodium light, 589.3 nm) is 2.37. Sphalerite crystallizes in the isometric crystal system and possesses perfect dodecahedral cleavage. Gemmy, pale specimens from Franklin, New Jersey (see Franklin Furnace) are highly fluorescent orange and/or blue under longwave ultraviolet light and are known as cleiophane, an almost pure ZnS variety. [edit]Occurrence Sphalerite is the major ore of zinc and is found in thousands of locations worldwide. Sources of high quality crystals include:
[3] [2]

Freiberg, Saxony, and Neudorf, Harz Mountains of Germany the Lengenbach Quarry, Binntal, Valais, Switzerland, has produced colorless crystals Horni Slavkov (Schlaggenwald) and Pribram, Czech Republic From Rodna, Romania Transparent green to opaque black Madan, Smolyan Province, Rhodope Mountains, Bulgaria; Transparent crystals in the Aliva mine, Picos de Europa Mountains, Cantabria [Santander] Province, Spain

In England, from Alston Moor, Cumbria At Dalnegorsk, Primorskiy Kray, Russia In Canada Watson Lake, Yukon Territory Gord Cowie at Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting processes Sphalerite in Flin Flon, Manitoba

In the USA the Tri-State district including deposits near Baxter Springs, Cherokee County, Kansas; Joplin, Jasper County, Missouri and Picher, Ottawa County, Oklahoma From the Elmwood mine, near Carthage, Smith County, Tennessee the Eagle mine, Gilman district, Eagle County, Colorado

In Mexico, from Santa Eulalia and Naica, Chihuahua, and Cananea, Sonora Huaron, Casapalca, and Huancavelica, Peru

Sphalerite

Sphalerite on dolomite from the Tri-State District, Jasper County, Missouri, USA

General

Category

Sulfide mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

(Zn,Fe)S

Strunz classification

02.CB.05a

Dana

02.08.02.01

classification

Identification

Color

Brown, yellow, red, green, black.

Crystal habit

Euhedral crystals occurs as well-formed crystals showing good external form. Granular generally occurs as anhedral to subhedral crystals in matrix.

Crystal system

Isometric hextetrahedral (4 3m)

Twinning

Simple contact twins or complex lamellar forms, twin axis [111]

Cleavage

[110] perfect

Fracture

Uneven to conchoidal

Mohs scalehardness

3.5-4

Luster

Adamantine, resinous, greasy

Streak

brownish white, pale yellow

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent, opaque when iron-rich

Specific gravity

3.94.2

Optical properties

Isotropic

Refractive index

n = 2.369

Other characteristics

non-radioactive, non-magnetic, fluorescent and triboluminescent.

STAUROLITE

Staurolite is a red brown to black, mostly opaque, nesosilicate mineral with a white streak. It crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, has aMohs hardness of 7 to 7.5 and a rather complex chemical formula: 2+ Fe 2Al9O6(SiO4)4(O,OH)2. Magnesium, zinc and manganese substitute in the iron site and trivalent iron [1] can substitute for aluminium. [edit]Properties

Staurolite fromMadagascar

A special property of staurolite is that it often occurs twinned in a characteristic cross-shape, called penetration twinning. In handsamples, macroscopically visible staurolite crystals are of prismatic shape. They are often larger than the surrounding minerals and are then called porphyroblasts. In thin sections staurolite is commonly twinned and shows lower first order birefringence similar to quartz, with the twinning displaying optical continuity. It can be identified in metamorphic rocks by its swiss cheese appearance (withpoikilitic quartz) and often mantled porphyroblastic character. [edit]Name The name is derived from the Greek, stauros for cross and lithos for stone in reference to the common twinning. [edit]Occurrence Staurolite is a regional metamorphic mineral of intermediate to high grade. It occurs with almandine garnet, micas, kyanite; as well as albite, biotite, and sillimanite in gneiss and schist of regional [5] metamorphic rocks. It is the official state mineral of the U.S. state of Georgia and is also to be found in the Lepontine Alps in Switzerland. Staurolite is also found in Fairy Stone State Park in Patrick County, Virginia. The park is named for a local [6] name for staurolite from a legend in the area. Samples are also found in Taos, New Mexico, near Blanchard Dam in Minnesota and Selbu, Norway. [edit]Use Staurolite is one of the index minerals that are used to estimate the temperature, depth, and pressure at which a rock undergoes metamorphism.

Staurolite

Staurolite from Pestsovye Keivy, Keivy Mountains, Kola Peninsula,

Murmanskaja Oblast', Northern Region, Russia, 2.5 x 2.2 x 1 cm

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Fe2+2Al9O6(SiO4)4(O,OH)2[1]

Strunz classification

9.AF.30

Crystal symmetry

Monoclinic prismatic H-M symbol: (2/m) Space group: C 2/m

Unit cell

a = 7.86 , b = 16.6 , c = 5.65 ; = 90.45; Z=2

Identification

Color

Dark reddish brown to blackish brown, yellowish brown, rarely blue; pale golden yellow in thin section

Crystal habit

Commonly in prismatic crystals

Crystal system

Monoclinic

Twinning

Commonly as 60 twins, less common as 90 cruciform twins

Cleavage

Distinct on {010}

Fracture

Subconchoidal

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

7 - 7.5

Luster

Subvitreous to resinous

Streak

White to grayish

Diaphaneity

Transparent to opaque

Specific gravity

3.74 - 3.83 meas. 3.686 calc.

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.736 - 1.747 n = 1.740 - 1.754 n = 1.745 - 1.762

Birefringence

= 0.009 - 0.015

Pleochroism

X = colorless; Y = pale yellow; Z = golden yellow

2V angle

Measured: 88, Calculated: 84 to 88

Dispersion

r > v; weak

SULFUR

TALC

Talc (derived from Persian: tlk; Arabic: talk) is a mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula H2Mg3(SiO3)4or Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. In loose form, it is the widely used substance known as talcum powder. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, and in an exceptionally rare crystal form. It has a perfect basal cleavage, and the folia are non-elastic, although slightly flexible. It is the softest known mineral and listed as 1 on the Mohs hardness scale. It can be easily scratched by a fingernail. It is also sectile (can be cut with a knife). It has a specific gravity of 2.5 2.8, a clear or dusty luster, and is translucent to opaque. Talc is not soluble in water, but it is slightly soluble in dilute mineral acids. Its colour ranges from white to grey or green and it has a distinctly greasy feel. Its streak is white. Soapstone is a metamorphic rock composed predominantly of talc. [edit]Formation

A block of talc

Talc is a metamorphic mineral resulting from the metamorphism of magnesian minerals such as serpentine, pyroxene, amphibole, olivine, in the presence of carbon dioxide and water. This is known as talc carbonation or steatization and produces a suite of rocks known as talc carbonates. Talc is primarily formed via hydration and carbonation via the following reaction; serpentine + carbon dioxide talc + magnesite + water 2 Mg3Si2O5(OH)4 + 3CO2 Mg3Si4O10(OH)2 + 3 MgCO3 + 3 H2O Talc can also be formed via a reaction between dolomite and silica, which is typical of skarnification of dolomites via silica-flooding in contact metamorphic aureoles; dolomite + silica + water talc + calcite + carbon dioxide 3 CaMg(CO3)2 + 4 SiO2 + H2O Mg3Si4O10(OH)2 + 3 CaCO3 + 3 CO2 Talc can also be formed from magnesian chlorite and quartz in blueschist and eclogite metamorphism via the following metamorphic reaction: chlorite + quartz kyanite + talc + water In this reaction, the ratio of talc and kyanite is dependent on aluminium content with more aluminous rocks favoring production of kyanite. This is typically associated with high-pressure, low-temperature minerals such as phengite, garnet, glaucophane within the lower blueschist facies. Such rocks are typically white, friable, and fibrous, and are known as whiteschist. Talc is a tri-octahedral layered mineral; its structure is similar to that of pyrophyllite, [2] but with magnesium in the octahedral sites of the composite layers. [edit]Occurrence

Talc output in 2005

Talc is a common metamorphic mineral in metamorphic belts which contain ultramafic rocks, such as soapstone (a high-talc rock), and within whiteschist and blueschist metamorphic terranes. Prime examples of whiteschists include the Franciscan Metamorphic Belt of the western United States, the western European Alps especially in Italy, certain areas of the Musgrave Block, and some collisional orogens such as the Himalayaswhich stretches along Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan. Talc carbonate ultramafics are typical of many areas of the Archaean cratons, notably the komatiite belts of the Yilgarn Craton in Western Australia. Talccarbonate ultramafics are also known from the Lachlan Fold Belt, eastern Australia, from Brazil, the Guiana Shield, and from the ophiolite belts of Turkey, Oman and the Middle East. Notable economic talc occurrences include the Mount Seabrook talc mine, Western Australia, formed upon a polydeformed, layered ultramafic intrusion. The Francebased Luzenac Group is the world's largest supplier of mined talc; its largest talc mine at Trimouns near Luzenac in southern France produces 400,000 tonnes of talc [5] per year, representing 8% of world production.

Talc

Crystals of talc

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Mg3Si4O10(OH)2

Strunz classification

9.EC.05

Crystal symmetry

Either monoclinic 2m or triclinic1[1]

Unit cell

a = 5.291 , b = 9.173 , c = 5.290 ; = 98.68, = 119.90, = 90.09; Z = 2 or a = 5.287 , b = 9.158 , c = 18.95 , = 99.3; Z = 4[1]

Identification

Color

Light to dark green, brown, white

Crystal habit

Foliated to fibrous masses, rare as platey to pyramidal crystals

Crystal system

monoclinic or triclinic[2]

Cleavage

Perfect on {001} basal cleavage

Fracture

Flat surfaces (not cleavage), fracture in an uneven pattern

Tenacity

Sectile

Mohs scalehardness

1 (defining mineral)

Luster

Waxlike or pearly

Streak

White to pearl green

Diaphaneity

Translucent

Specific gravity

2.58 to 2.83

Optical properties

Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.538 1.550 n = 1.589 1.594 n = 1.589 1.600

Birefringence

= 0.051

Pleochroism

Weak in dark varieties

Ultravioletfluorescence Short UV=orange yellow, long UV=yellow

TOPAZ

Topaz is a silicate mineral of aluminium and fluorine with the chemical formula Al2SiO4(F,OH)2. Topaz crystallizes in the orthorhombic system, and its crystals are mostly prismatic terminated by pyramidal and other faces. [edit]Color

and varieties

Facet Cut Topaz Gemstones in various colors

Pure topaz is colorless and transparent but is usually tinted by impurities; typical topaz is wine, yellow, pale gray, reddish-orange, or blue brown. It can also be made white, pale green, blue, gold, pink (rare), reddish-yellow or opaque to transparent/translucent. Orange topaz, also known as precious topaz, is the traditional November birthstone, the symbol of [5] friendship, and the state gemstone of the US state of Utah. Imperial topaz is yellow, pink (rare, if natural) or pink-orange. Brazilian Imperial Topaz can often have a bright yellow to deep golden brown hue, sometimes even violet. Many brown or pale topazes are treated to make them bright yellow, gold, pink or violet colored. Some imperial topaz stones can fade on [6][7] exposure to sunlight for an extended period of time. Blue topaz is the state gemstone of the US state of Texas. Naturally occurring blue topaz is quite rare. Typically, colorless, gray or pale yellow and blue material is heat treated and irradiated to produce a more [7] desired darker blue. Mystic topaz is colorless topaz which has been artificially coated giving it the desired rainbow effect. [edit]Localities
[9] [8]

and occurrence

Topaz Mountain, Utah

Topaz is commonly associated with silicic igneous rocks of the granite and rhyolite type. It typically crystallizes in granitic pegmatites or in vapor cavities in rhyolite lava flows like those at Topaz Mountain in western Utah. It can be found with fluorite and cassiterite in various areas including the Ural and Ilmen mountains of Russia, in Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Czech Republic, Germany, Norway, Pakistan, Italy,Sweden, Japan, Brazil, Mexico; Flinders Island, Australia; Nigeria and the United States. Some clear topaz crystals from Brazilian pegmatites can reach boulder size and weigh hundreds of pounds. Crystals of this size may be seen in museum collections. The Topaz of Aurangzeb, observed [10] byJean Baptiste Tavernier measured 157.75 carats. The American Golden Topaz, a more recent gem, measured a massive 22,892.5 carats. Colorless and light-blue varieties of topaz are found in Precambrian granite in Mason County, [11] [12] Texas within the Llano Uplift. There is no commercial mining of topaz in that area. [edit]Etymology

and historical and mythical usage

[edit]Etymology

Colorless topaz, Minas Gerais, Brazil

The name "topaz" is derived (via Old French: Topace and Latin: Topazus) from [13] the Greek (pzis) or (pzin), the ancient name of St. John's Island in the Red Sea which was difficult to find and from which a yellow stone (now believed to be chrysolite: yellowish olivine) was mined in ancient times; topaz itself (rather than topazios) was not really known about before the classical era. Plinysays that Topazos is a legendary island in the Red Sea and the mineral "topaz" was first mined there. The word topaz is related to the Sanskrit word "tapas" meaning "heat" or "fire",
[13]

and also to the

Hebrew word for "orange" (the fruit): tapooz (), both of which predate the Greek word. [edit]History Nicols, the author of one of the first systematic treatises on minerals and gemstones, dedicated two [14] chapters to the topic in 1652. In the Middle Ages, the name topaz was used to refer to any yellow gemstone, but in modern times it denotes only the silicate described above. [edit]Biblical

background, etymology, and analysis

Many modern English translations of the Bible, including the King James Version mention topaz in Exodus 28:17 in reference to a stone in the Hoshen: "And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle (garnet): this shall be the first row." However, because these translations as topaz all derive from the Septuagint translation topazi[os], which as mentioned above referred to a yellow stone that was not topaz, but probably chrysolite(chrysoberyl or peridot), it should be borne in mind that topaz is likely not meant [15] here. The masoretic text (the Hebrew on which most modern Protestant Bible translations of the Old Testament are based) has pitdah as the gem the stone is made from; some scholars think it is related to

an Assyrian word meaning "flashed". = yellow,

[citation needed]

More likely, pitdah is derived fromSanskrit words (

pit

dah = burn), meaning "yellow burn" or, metaphorically, "fiery".

Topaz

A group of topaz crystals on matrix

General

Category

Silicate mineral

Formula
(repeating unit)

Al2SiO4(F,OH)2

Strunz classification

9.AF.35

Crystal symmetry

Orthorhombic dipyramidal H-M symbol: (2/m 2/m 2/m) Space group: Pbnm

Unit cell

a = 4.65 , b = 8.8 , c = 8.4 ; Z = 4

Identification

Color

Colorless (if no impurities), blue, brown, orange, gray, yellow, green, pink and reddish pink

Crystal habit

Prismatic crystals with faces striated parallel to long dimension; also columnar, compact, massive

Crystal system

Orthorhombic

Cleavage

[001] Perfect

Fracture

Subconchoidal to uneven

Mohs scalehardness

8 (defining mineral)

Luster

Vitreous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent

Specific gravity

3.493.57

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.6061.629 n = 1.6091.631 n = 1.6161.638

Birefringence

= 0.010

Pleochroism

Weak in thick sections X = yellow; Y = yellow, violet, reddish; Z = violet, bluish, yellow, pink

Other characteristics

Fluorescent, short UV=golden yellow, long UV=cream

TOURMALINE GROUP

Tourmaline is a crystal boron silicate mineral compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is classified as a semi-precious stone and the gemstone comes in a wide variety of colors. The name comes from the Sinhalese word "Thuramali" ( ) or "Thoramalli" ( ), which applied to different gemstones found in Sri Lanka. [edit]History Brightly colored Sri Lankan gem tourmalines were brought to Europe in great quantities by the Dutch East India Company to satisfy a demand for curiosities and gems. At the time it was not realised that schorl and tourmaline were the same mineral. [edit]Tourmaline Schorl species: Bluish or brownish black to Blackschorl Dark yellow to brownish black dravite

species and varieties

Dravite species: from the Drave district of Carinthia

Elbaite species: named after the island of Elba, Italy

Red or pinkish-redrubellite variety (from ruby) Light blue to bluish greenBrazilian indicolite variety (from indigo) Greenverdelite or Brazilian emerald variety Colorlessachroite variety (from the Greek "" meaning "colorless")

[edit]Schorl The most common species of tourmaline is schorl. It may account for 95% or more of all tourmaline in nature. The early history of the mineral schorl shows that the name "schorl" was in use prior to 1400 because a village known today as Zschorlau (in Saxony, Germany) was then named "Schorl" (or minor variants of this name). This village had a nearby tin mine where, in addition to cassiterite, black tourmaline was found. The first description of schorl with the name "schrl" and its occurrence (various tin mines in the Saxony Ore Mountains) was written by Johannes Mathesius (15041565) in 1562 under the [3] title "Sarepta oder Bergpostill". Up to about 1600, additional names used in the German language were "Schurel", "Schrle", and "Schurl". Beginning in the 18th century, the name Schrl was mainly used in the German-speaking area. In English, the names shorland shirl were used in the 18th century. In the 19th century the names common schorl, schrl, schorl and iron tourmaline were the English words used for [3] this mineral. The word tourmaline has two etymologies, both from the Sinhalese word turamali, meaning "stone attracting ash" (a reference to its pyroelectric properties) or according to other sources "mixed gemstones". [edit]Dravite

Black Dravite on a grey matrix

The name dravite was used for the first time by Gustav Tschermak (18361927), Professor of Mineralogy and Petrography at the University of Vienna, in his book Lehrbuch der Mineralogie (published in 1884) for magnesium-rich (and sodium-rich) tourmaline from the village Unterdrauburg,Drava river area, Carinthia, Austro-Hungarian Empire. Today this tourmaline locality (type locality for dravite) at the village Dravograd (near Dobrova pri Dravogradu), is a part of the Republic of [4] Slovenia. Tschermak gave this tourmaline the name dravite, for the Drava river area, which is the district along the Drava River (in German: Drau, in Latin: Drave) in Austria and Slovenia. The chemical composition which was given by Tschermak in 1884 for this dravite approximately corresponds to the formula NaMg3(Al,Mg)6B3Si6O27(OH), which is in good agreement (except for the OH content) with the [4] endmember formula of dravite as known today.

[edit]Elbaite A lithium-tourmaline (elbaite) was one of three pegmatitic minerals from Ut, Sweden, in which the new [5] alkali element lithium (Li) was determined in 1818 by Johan August Arfwedson for the first time. Elba Island, Italy, was one of the first localities where colored and colorless Li-tourmalines were extensively chemically analysed. In 1850 Karl Friedrich August Rammelsberg described fluorine (F) in tourmaline for the first time. In 1870 he proved that all varieties of tourmaline contain chemically bound water. In 1889 Scharitzer proposed the substitution of (OH) by F in red Li-tourmaline fromSuice, Czech Republic. In 1914 Vladimir Vernadsky proposed the name Elbait for lithium-, sodium-, and aluminum-rich tourmaline [5] from Elba Island, Italy, with the simplified formula (Li,Na)HAl 6B2Si4O21. Most likely the type material for elbaite was found at Fonte del Prete, San Piero in Campo,Campo nell'Elba, Elba Island, Province of [5] Livorno, Tuscany, Italy. In 1933 Winchell published an updated formula for elbaite, H8Na2Li3Al3B6Al12Si12O62, which is commonly used to date written as [5] Na(Li1.5Al1.5)Al6(BO3)3[Si6O18](OH)3(OH). The first crystal structure determination of a Li-rich tourmaline was published in 1972 by Donnay and Barton, performed on a pink elbaite from San Diego County, California, United States. [edit]Chemical

composition of the tourmaline group

The tourmaline mineral group is chemically one of the most complicated groups of silicate minerals. Its composition varies widely because of isomorphous replacement (solid solution), and its general formula can be written as XY3Z6(T6O18)(BO3)3V3W, where:
[6]

X = Ca, Na, K, vacancy Y = Li, Mg, Fe , Mn , Zn, Al, Cr , V , Fe , Ti , vacancy Z = Mg, Al, Fe , Cr , V T = Si, Al, B B = B, vacancy V = OH, O W = OH, F, O
3+ 3+ 3+ 2+ 2+ 3+ 3+ 3+ 4+

Large pink elbaite crystal on quartz, Cryo-Genie Mine, San Diego Co., California, US.

The 14 recognized minerals in the group (endmember formulas)

Buergerite

NaFe

3+

3Al6Si6O18(BO3)3O3F

Chromdravite

NaMg3Cr6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Dravite

NaMg3Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Elbaite

Na(Li1.5,Al1.5)Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Feruvite

CaFe

2+

3(MgAl5)Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Foitite

(Fe

2+

2Al)Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Fluor-liddicoatite

Ca(Li2Al)Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)3F

Magnesiofoitite

(Mg2Al)Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Olenite

NaAl3Al6Si6O18(BO3)3O3OH

Povondraite

NaFe

3+

3+ 3(Fe 4Mg2)Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)3O

Rossmanite

(LiAl2)Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Schorl

NaFe

2+

3Al6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4

Fluor-uvite

CaMg3(MgAl5)Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)3F

Vanadiumdravite

NaMg3V6Si6O18(BO3)3(OH)4
[7][8]

A revised nomenclature for the tourmaline group was published in 2011.

Tri-color elbaite crystals on quartz, Himalaya Mine, San Diego Co., California, US

[edit]Physical

properties

[edit]Crystal

structure

Tourmaline belongs to the trigonal crystal system and occurs as long, slender to thick prismatic and columnar crystals that are usually triangular in cross-section. The style of termination at the ends of crystals is asymmetrical, called hemimorphism. Small slender prismatic crystals are common in a finegrained granite called aplite, often forming radial daisy-like patterns. Tourmaline is distinguished by its three-sided prisms; no other common mineral has three sides. Prisms faces often have heavy vertical striations that produce a rounded triangular effect. Tourmaline is rarely perfectly euhedral. An exception was the fine dravite tourmalines of Yinnietharra, in western Australia. The deposit was discovered in the 1970s, but is now exhausted. All hemimorphic crystals are piezoelectric, and are often pyroelectric as well. [edit]Color

Tourmaline gemstones - Mozambique

Tourmaline has a variety of colors. Usually, iron-rich tourmalines are black to bluish-black to deep brown, while magnesium-rich varieties are brown to yellow, and lithium-rich tourmalines are almost any color: blue, green, red, yellow, pink, etc. Rarely, it is colorless. Bi-colored and multicolored crystals are common, reflecting variations of fluid chemistry during crystallization. Crystals may be green at one end and pink at the other, or green on the outside and pink inside; this type is called watermelon tourmaline. Some forms of tourmaline are dichroic, in that they change color when viewed from different directions. The pink color of tourmalines from many fields is the result of prolonged natural irradiation. During their 2+ growth, these tourmaline crystals incorporatedMn and were initially very pale. Due to natural gamma 40 3+ ray exposure from radioactive decay of K in their granitic environment, gradual formation of Mn ions [9] occurs, which is responsible for the deepening of the pink to red color. [edit]Treatments Some tourmaline gems, especially pink to red colored stones, are altered by irradiation to improve their color. Irradiation is almost impossible to detect in tourmalines, and does not, currently, impact the value. Heat treatment is also used to enhance tourmaline. Heavily-included tourmalines, such as rubellite and Brazilian paraiba, are sometimes clarity-enhanced. A clarity-enhanced tourmaline (especially paraiba) is [10] worth much less than a non-treated gem. [edit]Geology

Tourmaline is found in granite and granite pegmatites and in metamorphic rocks such as schist and marble. Schorl and lithium-rich tourmalines are usually found in granite and granite pegmatite. Magnesium-rich tourmalines, dravites, are generally restricted to schists and marble. Tourmaline is a durable mineral and can be found in minor amounts as grains in sandstone and conglomerate, and is part of the ZTR index for highly-weathered sediments.

Tourmaline

Schorl Tourmaline

General

Category

Cyclosilicate

Formula
(repeating unit)

(Ca,K,Na,[])(Al,Fe,Li,Mg,Mn)3(Al,Cr, Fe,V)6 (BO3)3(Si,Al,B)6O18(OH,F)4

[1][2]

Identification

Color

Most commonly black, but can range from brown, violet, green, pink, or in a dual-colored pink and green.

Crystal habit

Parallel and elongated. Acicular prisms, sometimes radiating. Massive. Scattered grains (in granite).

Crystal system

Trigonal

Cleavage

Indistinct

Fracture

Uneven, small conchoidal, brittle

Mohs scalehardness

77.5

Luster

Vitreous, sometimes resinous

Streak

White

Specific gravity

3.06 (+.20 -.06)[1]

Density

2.823.32

Polish luster

Vitreous[1]

Optical properties

Double refractive, uniaxial negative[1]

Refractive index

n=1.6351.675, n=1.6101.650

Birefringence

-0.018 to -0.040; typically about .020 but in dark stones it may reach .040[1]

Pleochroism

typically moderate to strong[1] Red Tourmaline: Definite; dark red,light red Green Tourmaline: Strong; dark green, yellow-green Brown Tourmaline: Definite; dark brown, light brown Blue Tourmaline: Strong; dark blue, light blue

Dispersion

.017[1]

Ultravioletfluorescence pink stonesinert to very weak red to violet in long and short wave[1]

Absorption spectra

a strong narrow band at 498 nm, and almost complete absorption of red down to 640nm in blue and green stones; red and pink stones show lines at 458 and 451nm as well as a broad band in the green spectrum[1]

TREMOLITE

Tremolite is a member of the amphibole group of silicate minerals with composition: Ca2Mg5Si8O22(OH)2. Tremolite forms by metamorphism of sediments rich in dolomite and quartz. Tremolite forms a series with actinolite and ferro-actinolite. Pure magnesium tremolite is creamy white, but the color grades to dark green with increasing iron content. It has a hardness on Mohs scale of 5 to 6. Nephrite, one of the two minerals of thegemstone jade, is a green variety of tremolite. The fibrous form of tremolite is one of the six recognised types of asbestos. This material is toxic and inhaling the fibers can lead to asbestosis, lung cancer and both pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma. Fibrous tremolite is sometimes found as a contaminant in vermiculite, chrysotile (itself a type of asbestos) and talc. [edit]Occurrence

Tremolite from the Aure Valley, French Pyrenees (size: 8.2 x 6.7 cm)

Tremolite is an indicator of metamorphic grade since at high temperatures it converts to diopside. Tremolite occurs as a result of contact metamorphism of calcium and magnesium rich siliceoussedimentary rocks and in greenschist facies metamorphic rocks derived from ultramafic or magnesiumcarbonate bearing rocks. Associated minerals include calcite, dolomite, grossular, wollastonite, talc,diopside, forsterite, cummingtonite, riebeckite and wi [2] nchite. Tremolite was first described in 1789 for an occurrence in Campolungo, Piumogna [1] Valley, Leventina,Ticino (Tessin), Switzerland. [edit]Fibrous

tremolite

One of the six recognised types of asbestos. Approximately 36,500 tonnes of tremolite asbestos are [4] mined annually in India. It is otherwise only found as a contaminant.

Tremolite

Tremolite from the type locality in Switzerland

General

Category

Amphiboles

Formula
(repeating unit)

Ca2Mg5Si8O22(OH)2

Strunz classification

9.DE.10

Crystal symmetry

Monoclinic 2/m prismatic

Unit cell

a = 9.84 , b = 18.02 , c = 5.27 ; = 104.95; Z = 2

Identification

Color

White, gray, lavender to pink, light green, light yellow

Crystal habit

Elongated prismatic, or flattened crystals; also as fibrous, granular or columnar aggregates

Crystal system

Monoclinic

Twinning

Simple or multiple, common parallel to {100}; rarely parallel to {001}

Cleavage

Perfect on {110} at 56 and 124; partings on {010} and {100}

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

56

Luster

Vitreous

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to translucent

Specific gravity

2.99 3.03

Optical properties

Biaxial (-)

Refractive index

n = 1.599 - 1.612 n = 1.613 - 1.626 n = 1.625 - 1.637

Birefringence

= 0.026

2V angle

Measured: 86 to 88

Ultravioletfluorescence Short UV=yellow, Long UV=range pink

ULEXITE

Ulexite (NaCaB5O6(OH)65(H2O)) (hydrated sodium calcium borate hydroxide), sometimes known as TV rock, is a mineral occurring in silky white rounded crystalline masses or in parallel fibers. The natural fibers of ulexite conduct light along their long axes, by internal reflection. Ulexite was named for the [2] German chemist Georg Ludwig Ulex (18111883) who first discovered it. Ulexite is a structurally complex mineral, with a basic structure containing chains of sodium, water and hydroxide octahedra. The chains are linked together by calcium, water, hydroxide and oxygen polyhedra and massive boron units. The boron units have a formula of B5O6(OH)6 and a charge of 3. They are composed of three borate tetrahedra and two borate triangular groups. Ulexite is found in evaporite deposits and the precipitated ulexite commonly forms a "cotton ball" tuft of acicular crystals. Ulexite is frequently found associated with colemanite, borax, meyerhofferite, hydroboracite, probertite, glauberite, trona, mirabilite, calcite, gyps [1] um and halite. It is found principally in California and Nevada, USA; Tarapac Region in Chile, and Kazakhstan. Ulexite is also found in a vein-like bedding habit composed of closely packed fibrous crystals.

A fragment of ulexite displaying characteristic optical property

Ulexite is also known as TV rock due to its unusual optical characteristics. The fibers of ulexite act asoptical fibers, transmitting light along their lengths by internal reflection. When a piece of ulexite is cut with flat polished faces perpendicular to the orientation of the fibers, a good-quality specimen will display an image of whatever surface is adjacent to its other side (as shown in the photograph). The fiber-optic effect is the result of the polarization of light into slow and fast rays within each fiber, the internal reflection of the slow ray and the refraction of the fast ray into the slow ray of an adjacent fiber. An interesting consequence is the generation of three cones, two of which are polarized, when a laser beam obliquely illuminates the fibers. These cones can be seen when viewing a light source through the [4] mineral. Ulexite decomposes in hot water.

Ulexite

Ulexite from California(size: 6.9 x 5 x 3.1 cm)

General

Category

Nesoborates

Formula
(repeating unit)

NaCaB5O6(OH)65(H2O)

Strunz classification

06.EA.25

Dana classification

26.05.11.01

Crystal symmetry

Triclinic 1 pinacoidal

Unit cell

a = 8.816(3) , b = 12.87, c = 6.678(1) ; = 90.25, = 109.12, = 105.1; Z =2

Identification

Color

Colorless to white

Crystal habit

Acicular to fibrous

Crystal system

Triclinic

Twinning

Polysynthetic on {010} and {100}

Cleavage

Perfect on {010} good on {110} poor on {110}

Fracture

Uneven

Tenacity

Brittle

Mohs scalehardness

2.5

Luster

Vitreous; silky or satiny in fibrous aggregates

Streak

White

Diaphaneity

Transparent to opaque

Specific gravity

1.95 1.96

Optical properties

Biaxial (+)

Refractive index

n = 1.491 1.496 n = 1.504 1.506 br/>n = 1.519 1.520

Birefringence

= 0.028

2V angle

Measured: 73 to 78

Ultravioletfluorescence May fluoresce yellow, greenish yellow, cream, white under SW and LW UV

Solubility

Slightly soluble in water

Other characteristics

Parallel fibrous masses can act as fiber optical light pipes

GNEISS Gneiss (pron.: /nas/) is a common and widely distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations that were originally either igneous or sedimentary rocks. [edit]Etymology The etymology of the word "gneiss" is disputed. Some sources say it comes from the Middle High German verb gneist (to spark; so called because the rock glitters). It has occurred in English since at least [1] 1757. Other sources claim the root to be an old Saxon mining term that seems to have meant decayed, rotten or possibly worthless material. [edit]Composition Gneissic rocks are usually medium- to coarse-foliated and largely recrystallized but do not carry large quantities of micas, chlorite or other platyminerals. Gneisses that are metamorphosed igneous rocks or their equivalent are termed granite gneisses, diorite gneisses, etc. Depending on their composition, they may also be called garnet gneiss, biotite gneiss, albite gneiss, etc. Gneiss displays compositional banding where the minerals are arranged into bands of more mafic minerals and more felsic minerals. This is developed under high temperature and pressure conditions.

MARBLE Marble is a non-foliated metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however, stonemasons use the [1] term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone. Marble is commonly used for sculpture and as a building material. [edit]Etymology The word "marble" derives from the Greek "" (mrmaron), from "" (mrmaros), [3][4] "crystalline rock", "shining stone", perhaps from the verb "" (marmar), "to flash, sparkle, [5] gleam". This stem is also the basis for the English word marmoreal, meaning "marble-like." Whilst the English term resembles the French marbre, most other European languages (e.g. Spanish mrmol, Italian marmo, Portuguese mrmore,German, Norwegian, Danish and Swedish ma rmor, Armenian marmar, Dutch marmer, Polish marmur, Turkish mermer, Czech mramor and Russian ) follow the original Greek. [edit]Physical
[2]

origins

Marble is a rock resulting from metamorphism of sedimentary carbonate rocks, most commonly limestone or dolomite rock. Metamorphism causes variable recrystallization of the original carbonate mineral grains. The resulting marble rock is typically composed of an interlocking mosaic of carbonate crystals. Primary sedimentary textures and structures of the original carbonate rock (protolith) have typically been modified or destroyed. Pure white marble is the result of metamorphism of a very pure (silicate-poor) limestone or dolomite protolith. The characteristic swirls and veins of many colored marble varieties are usually due to various mineral impurities such as clay, silt, sand, iron oxides, or chert which were originally present as grains or layers in the limestone. Green coloration is often due to serpentine resulting from originally high magnesium limestone or dolostone with silica impurities. These various impurities have been mobilized and recrystallized by the intense pressure and heat of the metamorphism.

PHYLLITE Phyllite is a type of foliated metamorphic rock primarily composed of quartz, sericite mica, and chlorite; the rock represents a gradation in the degree of metamorphism between slate and mica schist. Minute crystals of graphite, sericite, or chlorite impart a silky, sometimes golden sheen to the surfaces of cleavage (or schistosity). Phyllite is formed from the continued metamorphism of slate. The protolith (or parent rock) for phyllite is shale or pelite. Its constituent platy minerals are larger than those in slate but are not visible with the naked eye. Phyllites are said to have a "phyllitic texture" and are usually classified as having a low grade in the regional metamorphic facies. Phyllite has a good fissility (a tendency to split into sheets) and will form under low grade metamorphic conditions. Phyllites are usually black to gray or light greenish gray in color. The foliation is commonly crinkled or wavy in appearance. Phyllite is commonly found in the Dalradian metasediments of northwest Arran.

QUARTZITE Quartzite (from German Quarzit ) is a hard, non-foliated metamorphic rock which was [2] originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink and red due to varying amounts of iron oxide (Fe2O3). Other colors, such as yellow and orange, are due to other mineral impurities. When sandstone is metamorphosized to quartzite, the individual quartz grains recrystallize along with the former cementing material to form an interlocking mosaic of quartz crystals. Most or all of the original texture and sedimentary structures of the sandstone are erased by the metamorphism. Minor amounts of former cementing materials, iron oxide, silica, carbonate and clay, often migrate during recrystallization and metamorphosis. This causes streaks and lenses to form within the quartzite. Orthoquartzite is a very pure quartz sandstone composed of usually well rounded quartz grains cemented by silica. Orthoquartzite is often 99% SiO2with only very minor amounts of iron oxide and trace resistant minerals such as zircon, rutile and magnetite. Although few fossils are normally present, the original texture and sedimentary structures are preserved. The term is also traditionally used for quartz-cemented quartz arenites, and both usages are found in the literature. The typical distinction between the two (since each is a gradation into the other) is a metamorphic quartzite is so highly cemented, diagenetically altered, and metamorphosized so that it will fracture and break across grain boundaries, not around them. Quartzite is very resistant to chemical weathering and often forms ridges and resistant hilltops. The nearly pure silica content of the rock provides little for soil, therefore, the quartzite ridges are often bare or covered only with a very thin layer of soil and (if any) little vegetation. [edit]Uses
[3] [1]

Abandoned quartzite mine in Kakwa Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada

Biface in quartzite Stellenbosch, South Africa

Because of its hardness and angular shape, crushed quartzite is often used as railway ballast. Quartzite is a decorative stone and may be used to cover walls, as roofing tiles, as flooring, and stair steps. [2] Crushed quartzite is sometimes used in road construction. High purity quartzite is used to [5] produce ferrosilicon, industrial silica sand, silicon and silicon carbide. During the Stone Age quartzite [6] was used as an inferior alternative to flint. [edit]Occurrences In the United States, formations of quartzite can be found in some parts of Pennsylvania, eastern South [7] [8] Dakota, Central Texas, southwestMinnesota, Devil's Lake State Park in the Baraboo [9] [10] Hills in Wisconsin, the Wasatch Range in Utah, near Salt Lake City, Utah and as resistant ridges in [11] the Appalachians and other mountain regions. Quartzite is also found in the Morenci Copper Mine [12] in Arizona. The town of Quartzsite in western Arizona derives its name from the quartzites in the nearby mountains in both Arizona and Southeastern California. A glassy vitreous quartzitehas been [13] described from the Belt Supergroup in the Coeur dAlene district of northern Idaho. In the United Kingdom, a craggy ridge of quartzite called the Stiperstones (early Ordovician Arenig Epoch, 500 Ma) runs parallel with the Pontesford-Linley fault, 6 km north-west of the Long Mynd in south Shropshire. Also to be found in England are the Cambrian "Wrekin quartizite" (in Shropshire), and [14] the Cambrian "Hartshill quartzite" (Nuneaton area). In Wales, Holyhead mountain and most of Holy island off Anglesey sport excellentPrecambrian quartzite crags and cliffs. In the Scottish Highlands, several mountains (e.g. Foinaven, Arkle) composed of Cambrian quartzite can be found in the far northwest Moine Thrust Belt running in a narrow band from Loch Eriboll in a south-westerly direction [15] to Skye. In Canada, the La Cloche Mountains in Ontario are composed primarily of white quartzite. The highest mountain in Mozambique, Monte Binga (2436 m), as well as the rest of the surrounding Chimanimani Plateau are composed of very hard, pale grey, precambrian quartzite.

[4]

The schists constitute a group of medium-grade metamorphic rocks, chiefly notable for the preponderance of lamellar minerals such as micas, chlorite,talc, hornblende, graphite, and others. Quartz often occurs in drawn-out grains to such an extent that a particular form called quartz schist is produced. By definition, schist contains more than 50% platy and elongated minerals, often finely interleaved with quartz and feldspar. Schist is oftengarnetiferous. The individual mineral grains in schist, drawn out into flaky scales by heat and pressure, can be seen by the naked eye. Schist is characteristicallyfoliated, meaning the individual mineral grains split off easily into flakes or slabs. The word schist is derived from the Greek word schxeinmeaning "to split", which is a reference to the ease with which schists can be split along the plane in which the platy minerals lie. Most schists have been derived from clays and muds which have passed through a series of metamorphic processes involving the production of shales,slates and phyllites as intermediate steps. Certain schists have been derived from fine-grained igneous rocks such as basalts and tuffs. Most schists are mica schists, but graphite and chlorite schists are also common. Schists are named for their prominent or perhaps unusual mineral constituents, such as garnet schist, tourmaline schist, glaucophane schist, etc. Schists are frequently used as dimension stone. Dimension stone is stone that has been selected and fabricated to specific shapes or sizes.
Contents
[hide]

1 Historical mining terminology 2 Formation 3 Engineering considerations 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

[edit]Historical

mining terminology
[1]

Before the mid 18th century, the terms slate, shale and schist were not sharply differentiated. In the [2] context of underground coal mining, shale was frequently referred to as slate well into the 20th century. [edit]Formation During metamorphism, rocks which were originally sedimentary or igneous are converted into schists and gneisses. If the composition of the rocks was originally similar, they may be very difficult to distinguish from one another if the metamorphism has been great. A quartz-porphyry, for example, and a fine grained feldspathic sandstone, may both be converted into a grey or pink mica-schist. Usually, however, it is possible to distinguish between sedimentary and igneous schists and gneisses. If the whole district, for example, occupied by these rocks have traces of bedding,clastic structure, or unconformability then it may be a sign that the original rock was sedimentary. In other

cases intrusive junctions, chilled edges, contact alteration or porphyritic structure may prove that in its original condition a metamorphic gneiss was an igneous rock. The last appeal is often to the chemistry, for there are certain rock types which occur only as sediments, while others are found only among igneous masses, and however advanced the metamorphism may be, it rarely modifies the chemical composition of the mass very greatly. Such rocks, for example, as limestones, dolomites, quartzites and aluminous shales have very definite chemical characters which distinguish them even when completely recrystallized. The schists are classified principally according to the minerals they consist of and on their chemical composition. For example, many metamorphic limestones, marbles, and calc-schists, with crystalline dolomites, contain silicate minerals such as mica, tremolite, diopside, scapolite, quartz and feldspar. They are derived from calcareous sediments of different degrees of purity. Another group is rich in quartz (quartzites, quartz schists and quartzose gneisses), with variable amounts of white and black mica, garnet, feldspar, zoisite and hornblende. These were once sandstones and arenaceous rocks. The graphitic schists may readily be believed to represent sediments once containing coal or plant remains; there are also schistose ironstones (hematite-schists), but metamorphic beds of salt or gypsum are exceedingly uncommon. Among schists of igneous origin there are the silky calc-schists, the foliated serpentines (once ultramafic masses rich in olivine), and the white mica-schists, porphyroids and banded halleflintas, which have been derived from rhyolites, quartz-porphyries and felsic tuffs. The majority of mica-schists, however, are alteredclaystones and shales, and pass into the normal sedimentary rocks through various types of phyllite and mica-slates. They are among the most common metamorphic rocks; some of them aregraphitic and others calcareous. The diversity in appearance and composition is very great, but they form a well-defined group not difficult to recognize, from the abundance of black and white micas and their thin, foliated, schistose character. A subgroup is the andalusite, staurolite, kyanite and sillimanite-schists which usually make their appearance in the [3] vicinity of gneissose granites, and have presumably been affected by contact metamorphism.

Schist Garnet

Schist Mica

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shaletype sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanicash through low-grade regional metamorphism. Foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering. When expertly "cut" by striking with a specialized tool in the quarry, many slates will form smooth flat sheets of stone which have long been used for roofing and floor tiles and other purposes. Slate is frequently grey in color, especially when seen, en masse, covering roofs. However, slate occurs in a variety of colors even from a single locality; for example, slate from North Wales can be found in many shades of grey, from pale to dark, and may also be purple, green or cyan. Slate is not to be confused with shale, from which it may be formed, or schist. [1] Ninety percent of Europe's natural slate used for roofing originates from Spain. The word "slate" is also used for some objects made from slate. It may mean a single roofing slate, or a writing slate, traditionally a small piece of slate, often framed in wood, used with chalk as a notepad or noticeboard etc., and especially for recording charges in pubs and inns. The phrase "clean slate" or "blank slate" comes from this use. [edit]Historical

mining terminology
[2]

Before the mid-19th century, the terms slate, shale and schist were not sharply distinguished. In the context of underground coal mining, the term slate was commonly used to refer to shale well into the 20th [3] century. For example, roof slate refers to shale above a coal seam, and draw slate refers to roof slate [4] (shale) that falls from the mine roof as the coal is removed. [edit]Mineral

composition

Slate is mainly composed of quartz and muscovite or illite, often along with biotite, chlorite, hematite, and pyrite and, less frequently, apatite, graphite, kaolinite, magnetite, tourmaline, or zirconas well as feldspar. Occasionally, as in the purple slates of North Wales, ferrous reduction spheres form around iron nuclei, leaving a light green spotted texture. These spheres are sometimes deformed by a subsequent applied stress field to ovoids, which appear as ellipses when viewed on a cleavage plane of the specimen.

ANDESITE Andesite (pron.: /ndsat/) is an extrusive igneous, volcanic rock, of intermediate composition, with aphanitic to porphyritic texture. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between basalt and dacite, and ranges from 57 to 63% silicon dioxide (SiO2) as illustrated in TAS diagrams. Themineral assemblage is typically dominated by plagioclase plus pyroxene and/or hornblende. Magnetite, zircon, apatite, ilmenite, biotite, [1] and garnetare common accessory minerals. Alkali feldspar may be present in minor amounts. The quartz-feldspar abundances in andesite and other volcanic rocks are illustrated in QAPF diagrams. Classification of andesites may be refined according to the most abundant phenocryst. Example: hornblende-phyric andesite, if hornblende is the principal accessory mineral. Andesite can be considered as the extrusive equivalent of plutonic diorite. Characteristic of subduction zones, andesite represents the dominant rock type in island arcs, such as the Aleutian [2] Arc in Alaska. The average composition of the continental crust is andesitic. Along with basalts they are [3] a major component of the Martian crust. The name andesite is derived from the Andes mountain range. [edit]Generation

of melts in island arcs

Magmatism in island arc regions (i.e., active oceanic margins) comes from the interplay of the subducting plate and the mantle wedge, the wedge-shaped region between the subducting and overriding plates. During subduction, the subducted oceanic crust is submitted to increasing pressure and temperature, leading to metamorphism. Hydrous minerals such as amphibole, zeolites, chlorite etc. (which are present in the oceanic lithosphere) dehydrate as they change to more stable, anhydrous forms, releasing water and soluble elements into the overlying wedge of mantle. Fluxing water into the wedge lowers [4] the solidus of the mantle material and causes partial melting. Due to the lower density of the partially molten material, it rises through the wedge until it reach the lower boundary of the overriding plate. Melts generated in the mantle wedge are of basaltic composition, but they have a distinctive enrichment of soluble elements (e.g. potassium (K), barium(Ba), and lead (Pb)) which are contributed from sediment that lies at the top of the subducting plate. Although there is evidence to suggest that the subducting oceanic crust may also melt during this process, the relative contribution of the three components (crust, [5] sediment, and wedge) to the generated basalts is still a matter of debate. [edit]Genesis

of andesite

Andesite is typically formed at convergent plate margins but may occur in other tectonic settings. Intermediate volcanic rocks are created via several processes: 1. Fractional crystallization of a mafic parent magma. 2. Partial melting of crustal material. 3. Magma mixing between felsic rhyolitic and mafic basaltic magmas in a magma reservoir

[edit]Fractional

crystallization

To achieve andesitic composition via fractional crystallization, a basaltic magma must crystallize specific minerals that are then removed from the melt. This removal can take place in a variety of ways, but most

commonly this occurs by crystal settling. The first minerals to crystallize and be removed from a basaltic parent are olivines and amphiboles. These mafic minerals settle out of the magma, forming mafic cumulates. There geophysical evidence from several arcs that large layers of mafic cumulates lie at the base of the crust. Once these mafic minerals have been removed, the melt no longer has a basaltic composition. The silica content of the residual melt is enriched relative to the starting composition. The iron and magnesium contents are depleted. As this process continues, the melt becomes more and more evolved eventually becoming andesitic. Without continued addition of mafic material, however, the melt will eventually reach a rhyolitic composition. [edit]Partial

melting of the crust

Partially molten basalt in the mantle wedge moves upwards until it reaches the base of the overriding crust. Once there, the basaltic melt can eitherunderplate the crust, creating a layer of molten material at its base, or it can move into the overriding plate in the form of dykes. If it underplates the crust, the basalt can (in theory) cause partial melting of the lower crust due to the transfer of heat and volatiles. Models of heat transfer, however, show that arc basalts emplaced at temperatures 1100 - 1240 C cannot provide [6] enough heat to melt lower crustal amphibolite. Basalt can, however, meltpelitic upper crustal [7] material. Andesitic magmas generated in island arcs, therefore, are probably the result of fractional crystallization rather than partial melting of the crust. [edit]Magma

mixing

In continental arcs, such as the Andes, magma often pools in the shallow crust creating magma chambers. Magmas in these reservoirs become evolved in composition (dacitic to rhyolitic) through both the process of fractional crystallization and partial melting of the surrounding country rock. Over time as crystallization continues and the system loses heat, these reservoirs cool. In order to remain active, magma chambers must have continued recharge of hot basaltic melt into the system. When this basaltic material mixes with the evolved rhyolitic magma, the composition is returned to andesite, its intermediate phase. [edit]Andesite

in space

In 2009, researchers revealed that andesite was found in two meteorites (numbered GRA 06128 and GRA 06129) that were discovered in the Graves Nunatak Icefield during the US Antarctic Search for Meteorites 2006/2007 field season. This possibly points to a new mechanism to generate andesite [8] crust.

BASALT Basalt (pron.: /bslt/, /bslt/, /bslt/, or /beslt/) is a common extrusive igneous (volcanic) rock formed from the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of a planet or moon. By definition, basalt must be an aphanitic igneous rock with less than 20%quartz and less than 10% feldspathoid by volume, and where at least 65% of the feldspar is in the form of plagioclase. (In comparison, granite has more than 20% quartz by volume.) Basalt is usually grey to black in colour, but rapidly weathers to brown or rust-red due to oxidation of its mafic (iron-rich) minerals into rust. It almost always has a fine-grained mineral texture due to the molten rock cooling too quickly for large mineral crystals to grow, although it can sometimes be porphyritic, containing the larger crystals formed prior to the extrusion that brought the lava to the surface, embedded in a finer-grained matrix. Basalt with a vesicular or frothy texture is called scoria, and forms when dissolved gases are forced out of solution and form vesicles as the lava decompresses as it reaches the surface. On Earth, most basalt magmas have formed by decompression melting of the mantle. Basalt commonly erupts on Io, the third largest moon of Jupiter, and has also formed on Earth's Moon, Mars, Venus, and even on the asteroid Vesta. Source rocks for the partial melts probably include bothperidotite and pyroxenite (e.g., Sobolev et al., 2007). The crustal portions of oceanic tectonic plates are composed predominantly of basalt, produced from upwelling mantle below ocean ridges. The term basalt is at times applied to shallow intrusive rocks with a composition typical of basalt, but rocks of this composition with a phaneritic(coarse) groundmass are generally referred to as diabase (also called dolerite) or gabbro.
[1][2][3]

Columnar basalt at Szent Gyrgy Hill, Hungary

Vesicular basalt at Sunset Crater, Arizona. US quarter for scale.

Etymology
The word "basalt" is ultimately derived from Late Latin basaltes, misspelling of L. basanites "very hard stone," which was imported from Ancient Greek (basanites), from (basanos, [4] "touchstone") and originated in Egyptian bauhun "slate". The modern petrological term basalt describing a particular composition of lava-derived rock originates from its use by Georgius Agricola in 1556 in his famous work of mining and mineralogy De re metallica, libri XII. Agricola applied "basalt" to the volcanic black rock of the Schloberg (local castle hill) at Stolpen, believing it to be the same as Pliny the Elder's "very hard stone".

Uses
Basalt is used in construction (e.g. as building blocks or in the groundwork), making cobblestones (from columnar basalt) and in making statues. Heating and extruding basalt yields stone wool, an excellent thermal insulator.

Types

Large masses must cool slowly to form a polygonal joint pattern.

Tholeiitic basalt is relatively rich in silica and poor in sodium. Included in this category are most basalts of the ocean floor, most large oceanic islands, and continental flood basalts such as the Columbia River Plateau. MORB (Mid Ocean Ridge Basalt), is characteristically low in incompatible elements. MORB is commonly erupted only at ocean ridges. MORB itself has been subdivided into varieties such [5][6] as NMORB and EMORB (slightly more enriched in incompatible elements). High alumina basalt may be silica-undersaturated or -oversaturated (see normative mineralogy). It has greater than 17% alumina (Al2O3) and is intermediate in composition between tholeiite and alkali basalt; the relatively alumina-rich composition is based on rocks without phenocrysts ofplagioclase. Alkali basalt is relatively poor in silica and rich in sodium. It is silica-undersaturated and may contain feldspathoids, alkali feldspar and phlogopite. Boninite is a high-magnesium form of basalt that is erupted generally in back-arc basins, distinguished by its low titanium content and trace element composition.

DIORITE Diorite (pron.: /darat/) is a grey to dark grey intermediate intrusive igneous rock composed principally of plagioclase feldspar (typically andesine),biotite, hornblende, and/or pyroxene. It may contain small amounts of quartz, microcline and olivine. Zircon, apatite, sphene, magnetite, ilmenite andsulfides occur [1] as accessory minerals. It can also be black or bluish-grey, and frequently has a greenish cast. Varieties deficient in hornblende and other dark minerals are called leucodiorite. When olivine and more ironrich augite are present, the rock grades into ferrodiorite, which is transitional togabbro. The presence of significant quartz makes the rock type quartz-diorite (>5% quartz) or tonalite (>20% quartz), and if orthoclase (potassiumfeldspar) is present at greater than ten percent the rock type grades into monzodiorite or granodiorite. Diorite has a medium grain size texture, occasionally with porphyry. Diorites may be associated with either granite or gabbro intrusions, into which they may subtly merge. Diorite results from partial melting of a mafic rock above a subduction zone. It is commonly produced in volcanic arcs, and in cordilleran mountain building such as in the Andes Mountains as largebatholiths. The extrusive volcanic equivalent rock type is andesite. [edit]Occurrence

Diorite

Diorite is a relatively rare rock; source localities include Leicestershire; UK (one name for microdiorite markfielditeexists due to the rock being found in the village of Markfield); Sondrio, Italy; Thuringia andSaxony in Germany; Finland; Romania; Northeastern Turkey; central Sweden; Scotland; the Darrans range of New Zealand; the Andes Mountains; the Isle of Guernsey; Basin and Range province; Minnesota in theUSA, and Idahet in Egypt. An orbicular variety found in Corsica is called corsite. [edit]Historic

use

Diorite is an extremely hard rock, making it difficult to carve and work with. It is so hard that ancient civilizations (such as Ancient Egypt) used diorite balls to work granite. Its hardness, however, also allows it to be worked finely and take a high polish, and to provide a durable finished work.

One comparatively frequent use of diorite was for inscription, as it is easier to carve in relief than in threedimensional statuary. Perhaps the most famous diorite work extant is the Code of Hammurabi, inscribed upon a 2.23 m (7 ft 4 in) pillar of black diorite. The original can be seen today in Paris'Muse du [2] Louvre. The use of diorite in art was most important among very early Middle Eastern civilizations such as Ancient Egypt, Babylonia, Assyria and Sumer. It was so valued in early times that the first great Mesopotamian empirethe Empire of Sargon of Akkadlisted the taking of diorite as a purpose of military expeditions. Although one can find diorite art from later periods, it became more popular as a structural stone and was frequently used as pavement due to its durability. Diorite was used by both the Inca andMayan civilizations, but mostly for fortress walls, weaponry, etc. It was especially popular with medieval Islamic builders. In later times, diorite was commonly used as cobblestone; today many diorite cobblestone streets can be found in England, Guernsey and Scotland, and scattered throughout the world in such places as Ecuador and China. Although diorite is rough-textured in nature, its ability to take a polish can be seen in the diorite steps of St. Paul's Cathedral, London, where centuries of foot traffic have polished the steps to a sheen.

GABBRO Gabbro (pron.: /bro/) refers to a large group of dark, coarse-grained, intrusive mafic igneous rocks chemically equivalent to basalt. The rocks areplutonic, formed when molten magma is trapped beneath the Earth's surface and cools into a crystalline mass. The vast majority of the Earth's surface is underlain by gabbro within the oceanic crust, produced by basalt magmatism at mid-ocean ridges. [edit]Petrology

A gabbro landscape on the main ridge of the Cuillin, Isle of Skye, Scotland.

Gabbro as a xenolith in a granite, easternSierra Nevada, Rock Creek Canyon, California.

Gabbro is dense, greenish or dark-colored and contains pyroxene, plagioclase, amphibole, and olivine (olivine gabbro when olivine is present in a large amount). The pyroxene is mostly clinopyroxene; small amounts of orthopyroxene may be present. If the amount of orthopyroxene is substantially greater than the amount of clinopyroxene, the rock is then a norite. Quartz gabbros are also known to occur and are probably derived from magma that was oversaturated with silica. Essexites represent gabbros whose parent magma was under-saturated with silica, resulting in the formation of the feldspathoidmineral nepheline. (Silica saturation of a rock can be evaluated by normative mineralogy). Gabbros contain minor amounts, typically a few percent, of irontitanium oxides such as magnetite, ilmenite, and ulvospinel. Gabbro is generally coarse grained, with crystals in the size range of 1 mm or greater. Finer grained equivalents of gabbro are called diabase, although the vernacular term microgabbro is often used when

extra descriptiveness is desired. Gabbro may be extremely coarse grained to pegmatitic, and some pyroxene-plagioclase cumulates are essentially coarse grained gabbro, although these may exhibit acicular crystal habits. Gabbro is usually equigranular in texture, although it may be porphyritic at times, especially when plagioclase oikocrysts have grown earlier than the groundmass minerals. [edit]Distribution Gabbro can be formed as a massive, uniform intrusion via in-situ crystallisation of pyroxene and plagioclase, or as part of a layered intrusion as acumulate formed by settling of pyroxene and plagioclase. Cumulate gabbros are more properly termed pyroxene-plagioclase orthocumulate. Gabbro is an essential part of the oceanic crust, and can be found in many ophiolite complexes as parts of zones III and IV (sheeted dyke zone to massive gabbro zone). Long belts of gabbroic intrusions are typically formed at proto-rift zones and around ancient rift zone margins, intruding into the rift flanks. Mantle plume hypotheses may rely on identifying mafic and ultramafic intrusions and coeval basalt volcanism. [edit]Uses Gabbro often contains valuable amounts of chromium, nickel, cobalt, gold, silver, platinum, and copper sulfides. Ocellar varieties of gabbro can be used as ornamental facing stones, paving stones and it is also known by the trade name of 'black granite', which is a popular type of graveyard headstone used in funerary rites. It is also used in kitchens and their countertops, also under the misnomer of 'black granite'. [edit]Etymology Gabbro was named by the German geologist Christian Leopold von Buch after a town in the Italian Tuscany region. Essexite is named after the type locality in Essex County, Massachusetts, US.

GRANITE Granite (pron.: /rnt/) is a common type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock which is granular and phaneritic in texture. This rock consists mainly of quartz, mica, and feldspar. Occasionally some individual crystals (phenocrysts) are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic texture is sometimes known as a porphyry. Granites can be pink to gray in color, depending on their chemistry and mineralogy. By definition, granite is an igneous rock with at least 20% quartz by volume. Granite differs from granodiorite in that at least 35% of the feldspar in granite is alkali feldspar as opposed to plagioclase; it is the alkali feldspar that gives many granites a distinctive pink color. Outcrops of granite tend to form tors and rounded massifs. Granites sometimes occur in circular depressions surrounded by a range of hills, formed by the metamorphic aureole or hornfels. Granite is usually found in thecontinental plates of the Earth's crust. Granite is nearly always massive (lacking internal structures), hard and tough, and therefore it has gained [1] widespread use as a construction stone. The average density of granite is between 2.65 and 2.75 3 g/cm , its compressive strength usually lies above 200 MPa, and its viscosity near STP is 3-6 19 [2] [3] 10 Pas. Melting temperature is 1215 - 1260 C. The word "granite" comes from the Latin granum, a grain, in reference to the coarse-grained structure of such a crystalline rock. Granitoid is a general, descriptive field term for light-colored, coarse-grained igneous [4] rocks. Petrographic examination is required for identification of specific types of granitoids. [edit]Mineralogy

Orbicular granite, an unusual type of granite, near the town of Caldera, northern Chile

The Stawamus Chief is a granite monolith in British Columbia

Close-up of granite exposed in Chennai, India.

Various granites (cut and polished surfaces)

Close-up of granite from Yosemite National Park, valley of the Merced River

Roche Rock, Cornwall

The Cheesewring, a granite tor on the southern edge of Bodmin Moor, Cornwall

Granite is classified according to the QAPF diagram for coarse grained plutonic rocks and is named according to the percentage of quartz, alkalifeldspar (orthoclase, sanidine, or microcline) and plagioclase feldspar on the A-Q-P half of the diagram. True granite according to modern petrologicconvention contains both plagioclase and alkali feldspars. When a granitoid is devoid or nearly devoid of plagioclase, the rock is referred to asalkali granite. When a granitoid contains less than 10% orthoclase, it is called tonalite; pyroxene and amphibole are common in tonalite. A granite containing both muscovite and biotite micas is called a binary or two-mica granite. Two-mica granites are typically high in potassium and low in plagioclase, and are usually S-type granites or A-type granites. The volcanic equivalent of plutonic granite is rhyolite. Granite has poor primary permeability but strong secondary permeability. [edit]Chemical

composition
[5]

A worldwide average of the chemical composition of granite, by weight percent: SiO2 72.04% (silica) Al2O3 14.42% (alumina) K2O 4.12% Na2O 3.69% CaO 1.82% FeO 1.68% Fe2O3 1.22% MgO 0.71% TiO2 0.30% P2O5 0.12% MnO 0.05%

Based on 2485 analyses

[edit]Occurrence Granite is currently known only on Earth, where it forms a major part of continental crust. Granite often occurs as relatively small, less than 100 km stock masses (stocks) and in batholiths that are often associated with orogenic mountain ranges. Small dikes of granitic composition called aplites are often associated with the margins of granitic intrusions. In some locations, very coarsegrained pegmatite masses occur with granite. Granite has been intruded into the crust of the Earth during all geologic periods, although much of it is of Precambrian age. Granitic rock is widely distributed throughout the continental crust and is the most abundant basement rock that underlies the relatively thin sedimentary veneer of the continents. [edit]Origin Granite is an igneous rock and is formed from magma.

OBSIDIAN Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock. It is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimum crystal growth. Obsidian is commonly found within the margins ofrhyolitic lava flows known as obsidian flows, where the chemical composition (high silica content) induces a high viscosity and polymerization degree of the lava. The inhibition of atomic diffusion through this highly viscous and polymerized lava explains the lack of crystal growth. Obsidian is hard and brittle; it therefore fractures with very sharp edges, which had been used in the past in cutting and piercing tools, and has been used experimentally as [4] surgical scalpel blades.

Origin and properties

Obsidian talus at Obsidian Dome, California

... among the various forms of glass we may reckon Obsidian glass, a substance very similar to the stone [5] found by Obsius in Ethiopia. The translation into English of Natural History written by the elder Pliny of Greece shows a few sentences on the subject of a volcanic glass called Obsian, so named from its resemblance to a stone found in [6][7][8] Ethiopia by Obsius (obsinus lapis). Obsidian is the rock formed as a result of cooled lava, which is the parent material. Having a low [12] water content when newly formed typically less than 1% water by weight, becomes progressively hydrated when exposed to groundwater, forming perlite. Tektites were once thought by many to be obsidian produced by lunar volcanic eruptions, though few scientists now adhere to this hypothesis. Obsidian is mineral-like, but not a true mineral because as a glass it is not crystalline; in addition, its composition is too complex to comprise a single mineral. It is sometimes classified as a mineraloid. Though obsidian is usually dark in color similar to mafic rocks such as basalt, obsidian's composition is extremely felsic. Obsidian consists mainly of SiO2 (silicon dioxide), usually 70% or more. Crystalline rocks with obsidian's composition include granite and rhyolite. Because obsidian is metastable at the Earth's surface (over time the glass becomes fine-grained mineral crystals), no obsidian has been found that is older than Cretaceous age. This breakdown of obsidian is accelerated by the presence of water.
[9][10][11]

Pure obsidian is usually dark in appearance, though the color varies depending on the presence of impurities. Iron and magnesium typically give the obsidian a dark brown to black color. Very few samples are nearly colorless. In some stones, the inclusion of small, white, radially clustered crystals ofcristobalite in the black glass produce a blotchy or snowflake pattern (snowflake obsidian). It may contain patterns of gas bubbles remaining from the lava flow, aligned along layers created as the molten rock was flowing before being cooled. These bubbles can produce interesting effects such as a golden sheen (sheen obsidian) or aniridescent, rainbow-like sheen (rainbow obsidian).

Occurrence

Glass Mountain, a large obsidian flow atMedicine Lake Volcano

Obsidian can be found in locations which have experienced rhyolitic eruptions. It can be found in Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Canada, Chile,Greece, El Salvador, Guatemala, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Scotland and the United States. Obsidian flows which may be hiked on are found within the calderas of Newberry Volcano and Medicine Lake Volcano in the Cascade Range of western North America, and at Inyo Craters east of the Sierra Nevada in California. Yellowstone National Park has a mountainside containing obsidian located between Mammoth Hot Springs and the Norris Geyser Basin, and deposits can be found in many other western U.S. states including Arizona, Colorado, New [13] [14] Mexico, Texas,Utah, Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Obsidian can also be found in the eastern U.S. states of Virginia, as well as Pennsylvania. Only four major deposit areas in the central Mediterranean: Lipari, Pantelleria, Palmarola and Monte [15] Arci. Ancient sources in the Aegean were Melos and Giali.
[16]

Acigl town and the Gll Da volcano were the most important sources in central Anatolia, one of the [17][18][19] more important source areas in prehistoric Near East.

PEGMATITE A pegmatite is a very crystalline, intrusive igneous rock composed of interlocking crystals usually larger [1] than 2.5 cm in size; such rocks are referred to as pegmatitic. Most pegmatites are composed of quartz, feldspar and mica; in essence a granite. Rarer intermediate composition and mafic pegmatites containing amphibole, Ca-plagioclase feldspar, pyroxene and other minerals are known, found in recrystallised zones and apophyses associated with large layered intrusions. Crystal size is the most striking feature of pegmatites, with crystals usually over 5 cm in size. Individual crystals over 10 metres across have been found, and the world's largest crystal was found within a [citation needed] pegmatite. Similarly, crystal texture and form within pegmatitic rock may be taken to extreme size and perfection. Feldspar within a pegmatite may display exaggerated and perfect twinning, exsolution lamellae, and when affected by hydrous crystallization, macroscale graphic texture is known, with feldspar and quartz intergrown. Perthite feldspar within a pegmatite often shows gigantic perthitic texture visible to the naked eye. [edit]General

description

There is no single feature that is diagnostic to all pegmatites. Therefore, a list of criteria is used to distinguish them from other rocks. A very diagnostic feature are crystals that are larger than in normal igneous rocks. Pegmatites are usually small compared to typical intrusions. Their size is in the order of magnitude of 1 m to a few 100 m. Compared to typical igneous rocks they are rather inhomogeneous and usually show zones with different mineral assemblages. Crystal size and mineral [2] assemblages are usually oriented parallel to the wall rock or even concentric for pegmatite lenses. [edit]Petrology Crystal growth rates in pegmatite must be incredibly fast to allow gigantic crystals to grow within the confines and pressures of the Earth's crust. For this reason, the consensus on pegmatitic growth mechanisms involves a combination of the following processes; Low rates of nucleation of crystals coupled with high diffusivity to force growth of a few large crystals instead of many smaller crystals High vapor and water pressure, to assist in the enhancement of conditions of diffusivity High concentrations of fluxing elements such as boron and lithium which lower the temperature of solidification within the magma or vapor Low thermal gradients coupled with a high wall rock temperature, explaining the preponderance for pegmatite to occur only within greenschist metamorphic terranes

Despite this consensus on likely chemical, thermal and compositional conditions required to promote pegmatite growth there are three main theories behind pegmatite formation;

Theory

Theory

name

pegmatite fluids are created by devolatilisation (dewatering) of metamorphic rocks, Metamorphic particularly felsic gneiss, to liberate the right constituents and water, at the right temperature

Magmatic

pegmatites tend to occur in the aureoles of granites in most cases, and are usually granitic in character, often closely matching the compositions of nearby granites. Pegmatites thus represent exsolved granitic material which crystallises in the country rocks

Metasomatic

pegmatite, in a few cases, could be explained by the action of hot alteration fluids upon a rock mass, with bulk chemical and textural change.

Metasomatism is currently not well favored as a mechanism for pegmatite formation and it is likely that metamorphism and magmatism are both contributors toward the conditions necessary for pegmatite genesis. [edit]Mineralogy

Pegmatitic granite, Rock Creek Canyon, eastern Sierra Nevada, California. Note pink potassium feldspars and cumulatefilled chamber.

The mineralogy of a pegmatite is in all cases dominated by some form of feldspar, often with mica and usually with quartz, being altogether "granitic" in character. Beyond that, pegmatite may include most minerals associated with granite and granite-associated hydrothermal systems, granite-associated mineralisation styles, for example greisens, and somewhat with skarn associated mineralisation. It is however impossible to quantify the mineralogy of pegmatite in simple terms because of their varied mineralogy and difficulty in estimating the modal abundance of mineral species which are of only a trace amount. This is because of the difficulty in counting and sampling mineral grains in a rock which may have crystals from centimeters to meters across.

Garnet, commonly almandine or spessartine, is a common mineral within pegmatites intruding mafic and carbonate-bearing sequences. Pegmatites associated with granitic domes within the Archaean Yilgarn Craton intruding ultramafic and mafic rocks contain red, orange and brown almandine garnet. Tantalum and niobium minerals (columbite, tantalite, niobite) are found in association with spodumene, lepidolite, tourmaline, cassiterite in the massive Greenbushes Pegmatite in the Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia, considered a typical metamorphic pegmatite unassociated with granite. [edit]Geochemistry Pegmatite is difficult to sample representatively due to the large size of the constituent mineral crystals. Often, bulk samples of some 5060 kg of rock must be crushed to obtain a meaningful and repeatable result. Hence, pegmatite is often characterised by sampling the individual minerals which comprise the pegmatite, and comparisons are made according to mineral chemistry. Geochemically, pegmatites typically have major element compositions approximating "granite", however, when found in association with granitic plutons it is likely that a pegmatite dike will have a different trace element composition with greater enrichment in large-ion lithophile (incompatible) elements, boron, beryllium, aluminium, potassium and lithium, uranium, thorium, cesium, et cetera. Occasionally, enrichment in the unusual trace elements will result in crystallisation of equally unusual and rare minerals such as beryl, tourmaline, columbite, tantalite, zinnwaldite and so forth. In most cases, there is no particular genetic significance to the presence of rare mineralogy within a pegmatite, however it is possible to see some causative and genetic links between, say, tourmaline-bearing granite dikes and tourmaline-bearing pegmatites within the area of influence of a composite granite intrusion (Mount Isa Inlier, Queensland, Australia). [edit]Economic

importance

Pegmatites are important because they often contain rare earth minerals and gemstones, such as aquamarine, tourmaline, topaz, fluorite, apatite and corundum, often along with tin and tungstenminerals, among others. Pegmatites are the primary source of lithium either as spodumene, lithiophyllite or usually from lepidolite. The primary source for caesium is pollucite, a mineral from a zoned pegmatite. The majority of the world's beryllium is sourced from non-gem quality beryl within pegmatite. Tantalum, niobium, rare-earth elements are sourced from a few pegmatites worldwide, notably the Greenbushes Pegmatite. Bismuth, molybdenum and tin have been won from pegmatite, but this is not yet an important source of these metals. [edit]Nomenclature Pegmatites can be classified according to the elements or mineral of interest, for instance "lithian pegmatite" to describe a Li-bearing or Li-mineral bearing pegmatite, or "boron pegmatite" for those containing tourmaline. There is often no meaningful way to distinguish pegmatites according to chemistry due to the difficulty of obtaining a representative sample, but often groups of pegmatites can be distinguished on contact textures, orientation, accessory minerals and timing. These may be named formally or informally as a class of intrusive rock or within a larger igneous association.

While difficult to be certain of derivation of pegmatite in the strictest sense, often pegmatites are referred to as "metamorphic", "granitic" or "metasomatic", based on the interpretations of the investigating geologist. [edit]Occurrence Worldwide, notable pegmatite occurrences are within the major cratons, and within greenschist-facies metamorphic belts. However, pegmatite localities are only well recorded when economic mineralisation is found. Within the metamorphic belts, pegmatite tends to concentrate around granitic bodies within zones of low mean strain and within zones of extension, for example within the strain shadow of a large rigid granite body. Similarly, pegmatite is often found within the contact zone of granite, transitional with some greisens, as a late-stage magmatic-hydrothermal effect of syn-metamorphic granitic magmatism. Some skarns associated with granites also tend to host pegmatites. Aplite and porphyry dikes and veins may intrude pegmatites and wall rocks adjacent to intrusions, creating a confused sequence of felsic intrusive apophyses (thin branches or offshoots of igneous bodies) within the aureole of some granites.

PUMICE Pumice pron.: /pms/ is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. It is typically light colored. Scoria is another vesicular volcanic rock that differs from pumice in having larger vesicles and thicker vesicle walls and being dark colored [1][2] and denser. Pumice is created when super-heated, highly pressurized rock is violently ejected from a volcano. The unusual foamy configuration of pumice happens because of simultaneous rapid cooling and rapid depressurization. The depressurization creates bubbles by lowering the solubility of gases (includingwater and CO2) that are dissolved in the lava, causing the gases to rapidly exsolve (like the bubbles of CO2 that appear when a carbonated drink is opened). The simultaneous cooling and depressurization freezes the bubbles in the matrix.

Properties

Illustrates the porous nature in detail.

Rocks from the Bishop tuff, uncompressed with pumice on left; compressed with fiamme on right.

A 15 centimeter (6 inch) piece of pumice supported by a rolled-up U.S. 20-dollar bill demonstrates its very low density.

A piece of processed pumice resting on a plastic bag.

Pumice is composed of highly microvesicular glass pyroclastic with very thin, translucent bubble walls of extrusive igneous rock. It is commonly, but not exclusively of silicic or felsic to intermediate in composition (e.g., rhyolitic, dacitic, andesite, pantellerite, phonolite, trachyte), but basaltic and other compositions are known. Pumice is commonly pale in color, ranging from white, cream, blue or grey, to green-brown or black. It forms when volcanic gases exsolving from viscous magma nucleate bubbles which cannot readily decouple from the viscous magma prior to chilling to glass. Pumice is a common product of explosive eruptions (plinian and ignimbrite-forming) and commonly forms zones in upper parts of silicic lavas. Pumice has an average porosity of 90%, and initially floats on water. Scoria differs from pumice in being denser. With larger vesicles and thicker vesicle walls, it sinks rapidly. The difference is the result of the lower viscosity of the magma that forms scoria. When larger amounts of gas are present, the result is a finer-grained variety of pumice known as pumicite. Pumice is considered a glass because it has no crystal structure. Pumice varies in density according to the thickness of the solid material between the bubbles; many samples float in water. After the explosion of Krakatoa, rafts of [3] pumice drifted through the Pacific Ocean for up to 20 years, with tree trunks floating among them. In [4] fact, pumice rafts disperse and support several marine species. In 1979, 1984 and 2006, underwater volcanic eruptions near Tonga created large pumice rafts, some as large as 30 km that floated hundreds [5] of kilometres to Fiji.

There are two main forms of vesicles. Most pumice contains tubular microvesicles that can impart a silky or fibrous fabric. The elongation of the microvesicles occurs due to ductile elongation in the volcanic conduit or, in the case of pumiceous lavas, during flow. The other form of vesicles are subspherical to spherical and result from high vapor pressure during eruption.

Uses
Pumice is widely used to make lightweight concrete or insulative low-density breeze blocks. When used as an additive for cement, a fine-grained version of pumice called pozzolan is mixed with lime to form a light-weight, smooth, plaster-like concrete. This form of concrete was used as far back as Romantimes. Roman engineers used it to build the huge dome of the Pantheon and as construction material for many aqueducts. It is also used as an abrasive, especially in polishes, pencil erasers, cosmetic exfoliants, and the production of stone-washed jeans. "Pumice stones" are often used in beauty salons during the pedicure process to remove dry and excess skin from the bottom of the foot as well as calluses. It was also used in [6] ancient Greek and Roman times to remove excess hair. Finely ground pumice is added to some toothpastes and heavy-duty hand cleaners (such as Lava soap) as a mild abrasive. Pumice is also used as a growing substrate for growing horticultural crops. Some brands of chinchilla dust bathare made of powdered pumice.

RHYOLITE Rhyolite is an igneous, volcanic (extrusive) rock, of felsic (silica-rich) composition (typically > 69% SiO2 see the TAS classification). It may have any texture from glassy to aphanitic to porphyritic. The mineral assemblage is usually quartz, alkali feldspar and plagioclase (in a ratio > 1:2 see the QAPF diagram). Biotite and hornblende are common accessory minerals. [edit]Geology Rhyolite can be considered as the extrusive equivalent to the plutonic granite rock, and consequently, outcrops of rhyolite may bear a resemblance to granite. Due to their high content of silica and low iron and magnesium contents, rhyolite melts are highly polymerized and form highly viscous lavas. They can also occur as breccias or in volcanic plugs and dikes. Rhyolites that cool too quickly to grow crystals form a natural glass or vitrophyre, also called obsidian. Slower cooling forms microscopic crystals in the lava and results in textures such as flow foliations, spherulitic,nodular, and lithophysal structures. Some rhyolite is highly vesicular pumice. Many eruptions of rhyolite are highly explosive and the deposits may consist of fallout tephra/tuff or of ignimbrites. [edit]History

Top: obsidian (vitrophyre), below:pumice, lower right: is rhyolite (light colour)

In North American pre-historic times, rhyolite was quarried extensively in eastern Pennsylvania in the United States. Among the leading quarries was the Carbaugh Run Rhyolite Quarry Site in Adams [1] County, where as many as fifty small quarry pits are known. Eruptions of this advanced form of Igneous rock are rare, only 3 eruptions of Rhyolite have been recorded since the 20th century, the eruptions were at the St. Andrew Strait Volcano in Papua New Guinea, Novarupta Volcano in Alaska, United States and Chaiten in Southern Chile.

SCORIA Scoria is a highly vesicular, dark colored volcanic rock that may or may not contain crystals (phenocrysts). It is typically dark in color (generally dark brown, black or purplish red), and basaltic or andesitic in composition. Scoria is relatively low in mass as a result of its numerous macroscopic ellipsoidal vesicles, but in contrast to pumice, all scoria has a specific gravity greater than 1, and sinks in water. The holes or vesicles form when gases that were dissolved in the magma come out of solution as it erupts, creating bubbles in the molten rock, some of which are frozen in place as the rock cools and solidifies. Scoria may form as part of a lava flow, typically near its surface, or as fragmental ejecta (lapilli, blocks and bombs), for instance inStrombolian eruptions that form steep-sided scoria cones. Most scoria is composed of glassy fragments, and may contain phenocrysts. The [1][2] wordscoria comes from the Greek , skria, rust. An old name for scoria is cinder. [edit]Comparisons Scoria differs from pumice, another vesicular volcanic rock, in having larger vesicles and thicker vesicle walls, and hence is denser. The difference is probably the result of lower magma viscosity, allowing rapid volatile diffusion, bubble growth, coalescence, and bursting. [edit]Formation As rising magma encounters lower pressures, dissolved gases are able to exsolve and form vesicles. Some of the vesicles are trapped when the magma chills and solidifies. Vesicles are usually small, spheroidal and do not impinge upon one another; instead they open into one another with little distortion. Volcanic cones of scoria can be left behind after eruptions, usually forming mountains with a crater at the summit. An example is Mount Wellington, Auckland in New Zealand, which like the Three Kings in the south of the same city has been extensively quarried. Quincan, a unique form of Scoria, is quarried at Mount Quincan in Far North Queensland, Australia. . [edit]Uses

Tuff moai with red scoriapukao on its head

Scoria has several useful characteristics that influence how it is used. It is somewhat porous, has high surface area and strength for its weight, and often has striking colours. Scoria is often used in [3] [4] landscaping and drainage works. It is also commonly used in gas barbecue grills. Scoria can be used for high-temperature insulation. Scoria is used on oil well sites to limit mud issues with heavy truck traffic. The quarry of Puna Pau on Rapa Nui/Easter Island was the source of a red coloured scoria which the Rapanui people used to carve the pukao (or topknots) for their distinctive moai statues, and to carve some moai from. It is also used as a traction aid on ice and snow covered roads.

ANTHRACITE COAL Anthracite (Greek a (anthraktes), "coal-like," from (nthrax), coal) is a hard, compact variety of mineral coal that has a highluster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest calorific content of all types of coals, which also include bituminous coal and lignite. Anthracite is the most metamorphosed type of coal (but still represents low-grade metamorphism), in [2][3] which the carbon content is between 92.1% and 98%. The term is applied to those varieties of coal which do not give off tarry or other hydrocarbon vapours when heated below their point ofignition. Anthracite ignites with difficulty and burns with a short, blue, and smokeless flame. Anthracite is categorized into standard grade, which is used mainly in power generation, and high grade (HG) and ultra high grade (UHG), the principal uses of which are in the metallurgy sector. Anthracite [4] accounts for about 1% of global coal reserves, and is mined in only a few countries around the world. China accounts for the lions share of production; other producers are Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, [5] Vietnam, the UK, Australia and the US. Total production in 2010 was 670 million tons. [edit]Terminology Other terms which refer to anthracite are black coal, hard coal, stone coal (not to be confused with the German Steinkohle or Dutch steenkool which are broader terms meaning all varieties of coal of a stonelike hardness and appearance, like bituminous coal and often anthracite as well, as opposed to lignite, which is softer), blind coal (in Scotland), Kilkenny coal (in Ireland), crow coal (or craw coal from its shiny black appearance), and black diamond. "Blue Coal" is the term for a once-popular and trademarked brand of anthracite, mined by the Glen Alden Coal Company in Pennsylvania, and sprayed with a blue dye at the mine before shipping to its northeastern U.S. markets to distinguish it from its competitors. The imperfect anthracite of north Devonand north Cornwall (around Bude) in England, which is used as a pigment, is known as culm. Culm is also the term used in geological classification to distinguish the strata in which it is found, and similar strata in the Rhenish hill countries are known as the Culm Measures. In America, culm is used as an equivalent for waste or slack in anthracite mining. [edit]Properties This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2013)
[1]

Anthracite is similar in appearance to the mineraloid jet and is sometimes used as a jet imitation. Anthracite differs from ordinary bituminous coal by its greater hardness, its higher relative density of 1.3 1.4, and lustre, which is often semi-metallic with a mildly brown reflection. It contains a high percentage of fixed carbon and a low percentage of volatile matter. It is also free from included soft or fibrous notches and does not soil the fingers when rubbed. Anthracitization is the transformation of bituminous into anthracite. The moisture content of fresh-mined anthracite generally is less than 15 percent. The heat content of anthracite ranges from 22 to 28 million Btu per short ton (26 to 33 MJ/kg) on a moist, mineral-matter-free basis. The heat content of anthracite coal consumed in the United States averages 25 million Btu/ton (29

MJ/kg), on the as-received basis (i.e., containing both inherent moisture and mineral matter). Since the 1980s, anthracite refuse or mine waste has been used for steam electric power generation. Anthracite may be considered to be a transition stage between ordinary bituminous and graphite, produced by the more or less complete elimination of the volatile constituents of the former, and it is found most abundantly in areas that have been subjected to considerable earth-movements, such as the flanks of great mountain ranges. Anthracite is a product of metamorphism and is associated with metamorphic rocks, just as bituminous is associated with sedimentary rocks. For example, the compressed layers of anthracite that are deep mined in the folded (metamorphic)Appalachian Mountains of the Coal Region of northeastern Pennsylvania are extensions of the layers of bituminous coal that are strip mined on the (sedimentary) Allegheny Plateau of Kentuckyand West Virginia, and Western Pennsylvania. In the same way the anthracite region of South Wales is confined to the contorted portion west of Swansea and Llanelli, the central and eastern portions producing steam coal, coking coal and domestic house coals. Structurally, it shows some alteration by the development of secondary divisional planes and fissures so that the original stratification lines are not always easily seen. The thermal conductivity is also higher; a lump of anthracite feels perceptibly colder when held in the warm hand than a similar lump of bituminous at the same temperature. The chemical composition of some typical anthracites is given in the article coal. [edit]Economic

value

Because of its higher quality, anthracite generally costs two to three times as much as regular coal. In [6] June 2008, the wholesale cost of anthracite was US$150/short ton. In southwest Wales, anthracite has been burned as a domestic fuel since at least medieval times. mined near Saundersfoot.
[7]

It was

In the United States, anthracite coal history began in 1790 in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, with the discovery of coal made by the hunter Necho Allen in what is now known as the Coal Region. Legend has it that Allen fell asleep at the base of Broad Mountain and woke to the sight of a large fire because his campfire had ignited an outcropping of anthracite coal. By 1795, an anthracite-fired iron furnace had been built on the Schuylkill River.

Anthracite coal breaker and power house buildings, New Mexico, circa 1935

Anthracite was first experimentally burned as a residential heating fuel in the US on 11 February 1808, by Judge Jesse Fell in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on an open grate in a fireplace. Anthracite differs from wood in that it needs a draft from the bottom, and Judge Fell proved with his grate design that it was a [citation needed] viable heating fuel. In spring 1808, John and Abijah Smith shipped the first commercially mined load of anthracite down the Susquehanna River from Plymouth, Pennsylvania, marking the birth of commercial anthracite mining in the United States. From that first mine, production rose to an all-time high of over 100 million tons in [citation needed] 1917. From the late 19th century until the 1950s, anthracite was the most popular fuel for heating homes and other buildings in the northern United States, until it was supplanted first by oil burning systems and more recently by natural gas systems as well. Many large public buildings, such as schools, were heated with anthracite-burning furnaces through the 1980s. Current U.S. anthracite production averages around 5 million tons per year. Of that, about 1.8 million tons [8] were mined in the state of Pennsylvania. The principal use of anthracite today is for a domestic fuel in either hand-fired stoves or automatic stoker furnaces. It delivers high energy per its weight and burns cleanly with little soot, making it ideal for this purpose. Its high value makes it prohibitively expensive for power plant use. Other uses include the fine particles used as filter media, and as an ingredient in charcoal briquettes. Anthracite is processed into different sizes by what is commonly referred to as a breaker (see coal). The large coal is raised from the mine and passed through breakers with toothed rolls to reduce the lumps to smaller pieces. The smaller pieces are separated into different sizes by a system of graduated sieves, placed in descending order. Sizing is necessary for different types of stoves and furnaces.

Group of breaker boys, from a 1910 photograph by Lewis Hine

During the American Civil War, Confederate blockade runners used anthracite as a smokeless fuel for [9] their boilers to avoid giving away their position to the blockaders. In the early 20th century United States, the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad started using only the more expensive anthracite coal in its passenger locomotives, dubbed themselves "The Road of Anthracite," and advertised widely that travelers on their line could make railway journeys without getting their clothing stained with soot. The advertisements featured a white-clad woman named Phoebe Snow and poems containing lines like "My gown stays white / From morn till night / Upon the road of

Anthracite". Similarly, the Great Western Railway in the UK was able to use its access to anthracite (it dominated the anthracite region) to earn a reputation for efficiency and cleanliness unmatched by other UK companies. Formerly, anthracite was largely used, both in America and South Wales, as blast-furnace fuel for iron smelting, but for this purpose it has been largely superseded by coke in the former country and entirely in the latter. Internal combustion motors driven by the so-called "mixed", "poor", "semi-water" or "Dowson gas" produced by the gasification of anthracite with air (and a small proportion of steam) were at one time the most economical method of obtaining power - consuming 1 pound of fuel per horsepower-hour, or less. Large quantities of anthracite for power purposes were formerly exported from South Wales to France, Switzerland and parts of Germany. Commercial mining has now ceased. Anthracite is an authorised fuel in terms of the United Kingdom's Clean Air Act 1993, meaning that it can be used within a designated Smoke Control Area such as the central London boroughs.
[10]

ARKOSE Arkose (pron.: /rkoz/) is a detrital sedimentary rock, specifically a type of sandstone containing at least [1][2] 25% feldspar. Arkosic sand is sand that is similarly rich in feldspar, and thus the potential precursor of arkose. Quartz is commonly the dominant mineral component, and some mica is often present. Apart from the mineral content, rock fragments may also be a significant component. Arkose usually contains small amounts of calcite cement, which causes it to 'fizz' slightly in dilute hydrochloric acid; sometimes the cement also contains iron oxide. Arkose is typically grey to reddish in colour. The sand grains making up an arkose may range from fine to very coarse, but tends toward the coarser end of the scale. Fossils are rare in arkose, due to the depositional processes that form it, although bedding is frequently visible.

Arkose sandstone found in Slovakia

Arkose is generally formed from the weathering of feldspar-rich igneous or metamorphic, most commonly granitic rocks, which are primarily composed of quartz and feldspar (called 'grus' as a sand). These sediments must be deposited rapidly and/or in a cold or arid environment such that the feldspar does not undergo significant chemical weathering and decomposition; therefore arkose is designated a texturally immature sedimentary rock. Arkose is often associated with conglomerate deposits sourced from granitic terrain and is often found above unconformities over such granitic terrain. The central Australian monolith Uluru (Ayers Rock) is composed of late Neoproterozoic/Cambrian arkose, [3] deposited in the Amadeus Basin.

BITUMINOUS COAL Bituminous coal or black coal is a relatively soft coal containing a tarlike substance called bitumen. It is of higher quality than lignite coalbut of poorer quality than anthracite. Formation is usually the result of high pressure being exerted on lignite. Its composition can be black and sometimes dark brown; often there are well-defined bands of bright and dull material within the seams. These distinctive sequences, which are classified according to either "dull, bright-banded" or "bright, dull-banded", is how Bituminous coals are stratigraphically identified. Bituminous coal is an organic sedimentary rock formed by diagenetic and sub metamorphic compression of peat bog material. Its primary constituents are macerals vitrinite, and exinite. The carbon content of bituminous coal is around 60-80%; the rest is composed of water, air, hydrogen, and sulphur, which have not been driven off from the macerals. Bank density is approximately 1346 kg/m (84 lb/ft). Bulk density typically runs to 833 kg/m (52 lb/ft). The heat content of bituminous coal ranges from 24 to 35 MJ/kg (21 million to 30 million BTU per short ton) on a moist, mineral-matter-free basis. Within the coal mining industry, this type of coal is known for releasing the largest amounts of firedamp, a dangerous mixture of gases that can cause underground explosions. Extraction of Bituminous coal demands the highest safety procedures involving attentive gas monitoring, good ventilation and vigilant site management.

BRECCIA Breccia (pron.: /brti/ or /bri/; Italian: breach) is a rock composed of broken fragments of minerals or [1] rock cemented together by a fine-grainedmatrix, that can be either similar to or different from the composition of the fragments. The word is a loan from Italian, and in that language indicates either loose gravel or stone made by cemented gravel. A breccia may have a variety of different origins, as indicated by the named types including sedimentary breccia, tectonic breccia, igneous breccia, impact breccia and hydrothermalbreccia. [edit]Types [edit]Sedimentary Sedimentary breccias are a type of clastic sedimentary rock which are composed of angular to subangular, randomly oriented clasts of other sedimentary rocks. They are formed by either submarine debris flows, avalanches, mud flow or mass flow in an aqueous medium. Technically, turbiditesare a form of debris flow deposit and are a fine-grained peripheral deposit to a sedimentary breccia flow. The other derivation of sedimentary breccia is as angular, poorly sorted, immature fragments of rocks in a finer grained groundmass which are produced by mass wasting. These are, in essence, lithified colluvium. Thick sequences of sedimentary (colluvial) breccias are generally formed next to fault scarps in grabens. In the field, it may at times be difficult to distinguish between a debris flow sedimentary breccia and a colluvial breccia, especially if one is working entirely from drilling information. Sedimentary breccias are an integral host rock for many SEDEX ore deposits. Sedimentary breccias can be described as rudaceous. A conglomerate, by contrast, is a sedimentary rock composed of rounded fragments or clasts of preexisting rocks. Both breccias and conglomerates are composed of fragments averaging greater than 2 millimetres (0.079 in) in size. The angular shape of the fragments indicates that the material has not been transported far from its source. Breccias indicate accumulation in a juvenile stream channel or accumulations because of gravity erosion. Talusslopes might become buried and the talus cemented in a similar manner. [edit]Collapse A collapse breccia forms where there has been a collapse of rock, typically in a karst landscape. Collapse breccias form blankets in highly weatheredregolith due to the removal of rock components by dissolution. [edit]Tectonic Tectonic breccias form where two tectonic plates create a crumbling of the interface, by their relative movements.

[edit]Fault Fault breccias result from the grinding action of two fault blocks, as they slide past each other. Subsequent cementation of these broken fragments may occur by means of mineral matter introduced by groundwater. [edit]Igneous Igneous clastic (detrital) rocks can be divided into two classes: Broken, fragmental rocks associated with volcanic eruptions, both of lava and pyroclastic type; Broken, fragmental rocks produced by intrusive processes, usually associated with plutons or porphyry stocks.

[edit]Volcanic Volcanic pyroclastic rocks are formed by explosive eruption of lava and any rocks which are entrained within the eruptive column. This may include rocks plucked off the wall of the magmaconduit, or physically picked up by the ensuing pyroclastic surge. Lavas, especially rhyolite and dacite flows, tend to form clastic volcanic rocks by a process known as autobrecciation. This occurs when the thick, nearly solid lava breaks up into blocks and these blocks are then reincorporated into the lava flow again and mixed in with the remaining liquid magma. The resulting breccia is uniform in rock type and chemical composition. Lavas may also pick up rock fragments, especially if flowing over unconsolidated rubble on the flanks of a volcano, and these form volcanic breccias, also called pillow breccias. The volcanic breccia environment is transitional into the plutonic breccia environment in the volcanic conduits of explosive volcanoes, where lava tends to solidify and may be repeatedly shattered by ensuing eruptions. This is typical of volcanic caldera settings. [edit]Intrusive Clastic rocks are also commonly found in shallow subvolcanic intrusions such as porphyry [2] stocks, granites and kimberlite pipes, where they are transitional with volcanic breccias. Intrusive rocks can become brecciated in appearance by multiple stages of intrusion, especially if fresh magma is intruded into partly consolidated or solidified magma. This may be seen in many granite intrusions where later aplite veins form a late-stage stockwork through earlier phases of the granite mass. When particularly intense, the rock may appear as a chaotic breccia. Clastic rocks in mafic and ultramafic intrusions have been found and form via several processes: consumption and melt-mingling with wall rocks, where the felsic wall rocks are softened and gradually invaded by the hotter ultramafic intrusion (termed taxitic texture by Russian geologists) Accumulation of rocks which fall through the magma chamber from the roof, forming chaotic remnants Autobrecciation of partly consolidated cumulate by fresh magma injections or by violent disturbances within the magma chamber (e.g. postulated earthquakes) Accumulation of xenoliths within a feeder conduit or vent conduit.

[edit]Impact

Alamo bolide impact breccia (LateDevonian, Frasnian) near Hancock Summit,Pahranagat Range, Nevada.

Impact breccias are thought to be diagnostic of an impact event such as an asteroid or comet striking the Earth, and are usually found at impact craters. Impact breccia, a type of impactite, forms during the process of impact cratering when large meteorites or comets impact with the Earth or other rocky planets or asteroids. Breccia of this type may be present on or beneath the floor of the crater, in the rim, or in the ejecta expelled beyond the crater. Impact breccia may be identified by its occurrence in or around a known impact crater, and/or an association with other products of impact cratering such as shatter cones, impact glass, shocked minerals, and chemical and isotopic evidence of contamination with extraterrestrial material (e.g. iridium and osmium anomalies). [edit]Hydrothermal

Hydrothermal breccia, Cloghleagh Iron Mine, near Blessington in Ireland, composed mainly of quartz and manganese oxides, the result of seismic activity about 12 million years ago.

Main article: Ore genesis#Hydrothermal processes Hydrothermal breccias usually form at shallow crustal levels (<1 km) between 150 to 350 C, when seismic or volcanic activity (an earthquake) causes a void to open along a fault deep underground. The void draws in hotwater and as pressure in the cavity drops, the water violently boils akin to an underground geyser. In addition, the sudden opening of a cavity causes rock at sides of the fault to destabilise and implode inwards, the broken rock gets caught up in a churning mixture of rock, steam and boiling water. Rock fragments hit each other and sides of the fault, and attrition quickly
o

rounds angular breccia fragments. Volatile gases are lost to the steam phase as boiling continues, in particular CO2. As a result, the chemistry of the fluids change and ore minerals rapidly precipitate. Breccia-hosted ore deposits are ubiquitous.
[3]

Silicified and mineralized breccia. Light gray is mostly dolomite with a little translucent quartz. Dark gray is jasperoidand ore minerals. Veinlet along lower edge of specimen contains sphalerite in carbonates. Pend Oreille mine, Pend Oreille County, Washington.

The morphology of breccias associated with ore deposits varies from tabular sheeted veins and clastic dikesassociated with overpressured sedimentary strata, to large-scale intrusive diatreme breccias (breccia pipes), or even some synsedimentary diatremes formed solely by the overpressure of pore fluid within sedimentary basins. Hydrothermal breccias are usually formed by hydrofracturing of rocks by highly pressuredhydrothermal fluids. They are typical of the epithermal ore environment and are intimately associated with intrusive-related ore deposits such as skarns,greisens and porphyry-related mineralisation. Epithermal deposits are mined for copper, silver and gold. In the mesothermal regime, at much greater depths, fluids under lithostatic pressure can be released during seismic activity associated with mountain building. The pressurised fluids ascend towards shallower crustal levels that are under lower hydrostatic pressure. On their journey, high-pressure fluids crack rock by hydrofracturing, forming an angular jigsaw breccia. Rounding of rock fragments less common in the mesothermal regime, as the formational event is brief. If boiling occurs, methane and hydrogen sulfide may be lost to the steam phase and ore may precipitate. Mesothermal deposits are often mined for gold.

CHERT Chert (pron.: /trt/) is a fine-grained silicarich microcrystalline, cryptocrystalline or microfibrous sedimentary rock that may contain small fossils. It varies greatly in color (from white to black), but most often manifests as gray, brown, grayish brown and light green to rusty red; its color is an expression of trace elements present in the rock, and both red and green are most often related to traces of iron (in its oxidized and reduced forms respectively). [edit]Occurrence

A chert nodule from the Onondagalimestone layer, Buffalo, New York. (3.8 cm wide)

Chert occurs as oval to irregular nodules in greensand, limestone, chalk, and dolostone formations as a replacement mineral, where it is formed as a result of some type of diagenesis. Where it occurs in chalk or marl, it is usually called flint. It also occurs in thin beds, when it is a primary deposit (such as with many jaspers and radiolarites). Thick beds of chert occur in deep geosynclinal deposits. These thickly bedded cherts include thenovaculite of the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas, Oklahoma, and similar occurrences in Texas in the United States. The banded iron formations ofPrecambrian age are composed of alternating layers of chert and iron oxides. Chert also occurs in diatomaceous deposits and is known as diatomaceous chert. Diatomaceous chert consists of beds and lenses of diatomite which were converted during diagenesis into dense, hard chert. Beds of marine diatomaceous chert comprising strata several hundred meters thick have been reported from sedimentary sequences such as the Miocene Monterey Formation of California and occur in rocks [1] as old as the Cretaceous. [edit]Terminology:

"chert", "chalcedony" and "flint"

Chert (dark bands) in the DevonianCorriganville-New Creek limestone, Everett, Pennsylvania

There is much confusion concerning the exact meanings and differences among the terms "chert", "chalcedony" and "flint" (as well as their numerous varieties). In petrology the term "chert" is used to refer generally to all rocks composed primarily of microcrystalline, cryptocrystalline and microfibrous quartz. The term does not include quartzite. Chalcedony is a microfibrous (microcrystaline with a fibrous structure) variety of quartz. Strictly speaking, the term "flint" is reserved for varieties of chert which occur in chalk and marly limestone [2][3] formations. Among non-geologists (in particular among archaeologists), the distinction between "flint" and "chert" is often one of quality - chert being lower quality than flint. This usage of the terminology is prevalent in America and is likely caused by early immigrants who imported the terms from England where most true flint (that found in chalk formations) was indeed of better quality than "common chert" (from limestone formations). Among petrologists, chalcedony is sometimes considered separately from chert due to its fibrous structure. Since many cherts contain both microcrystaline and microfibrous quartz, it is sometimes difficult to classify a rock as completely chalcedony, thus its general inclusion as a variety of chert.

CONGLOMERATE A conglomerate (pron.: /klmrt/) is a rock consisting of individual clasts within a finergrained matrix that have become cemented together. Conglomerates are sedimentary rocks consisting of [1] rounded fragments and are thus differentiated from breccias, which consist of angular clasts. Both conglomerates and breccias are characterized by clasts larger than sand (>2 mm). [edit]Classification In addition to the factors described in this section, conglomerates are classified in terms of both their rounding and sorting. [edit]Texture Paraconglomerates consist of a matrix-supported rock that contains at least 15% sand-sized or [2] smaller grains (<2 mm), the rest being larger grains of varying sizes. Orthoconglomerates consist of a clast-supported rock with less than 15% matrix of sand and finer [3] particles. Metamorphic alteration transforms conglomerate into metaconglomerate.

A conglomerate at the base of theCambrian in the Black Hills, South Dakota.

Section of polymict conglomerate from offshore rock core, Alaska, approximate depth 10,000 ft.

[edit]Clast

composition
[4]

Conglomerates are classified for the lithologies of the clasts Monomict - clasts with only a single lithology Oligomict - clasts of only a few different lithologies Polymict - clasts of many different lithologies

Intraformational - clasts derived from the same formation in which they are found Extraformational - clasts derived from older rocks than the formation in which they are found

[edit]Clast

size

Conglomerates are also classified by the dominant clast size. Granule conglomerate 24 mm Pebble conglomerate 464 mm Cobble conglomerate 64256 mm Boulder conglomerate >256 mm

[edit]Sedimentary

environments

Conglomerates are deposited in a variety of sedimentary environments. [edit]Deepwater

marine

In turbidites, the basal part of a bed is typically coarse-grained and sometimes conglomeratic. In this setting, conglomerates are normally very well sorted, well-rounded and often with a strong A-axis [5] type imbrication of the clasts. [edit]Shallow

marine

Conglomerates are normally present at the base of sequences laid down during marine trangressions above an unconformity, and are known as basal conglomerates. They represent the [6] position of the shoreline at a particular time and will be diachronous. [edit]Fluvial Conglomerates deposited in fluvial environments are typically well-rounded and well-sorted. Clasts of this size are carried as bedload and only at times of high flow-rate. The maximum clast size decreases as the clasts are transported further due to attrition, so conglomerates are more characteristic of immature river systems. In the sediments deposited by mature rivers, conglomerates are generally confined to the basal [7] part of a channel fill where they are known as pebble lags. Conglomerates deposited in a fluvial environment often have an AB-plane type imbrication. [edit]Alluvial Alluvial deposits are formed in areas of high relief and are typically coarse-grained. At mountain fronts individual alluvial fans merge to form braidplains and these two environments are associated with the thickest deposits of conglomerates. The bulk of conglomerates deposited in this setting are clast-

supported with a strong AB-plane imbrication. Some matrix-supported conglomerates are present, a [5] result of debris-flow deposition on some alluvial fans. [edit]Glacial Glaciers carry a lot of coarse-grained material and many glacial deposits are conglomeratic. Tillites, the sediments deposited directly by a glacier, are typically poorly-sorted, matrix-supported conglomerates. The matrix is generally fine-grained, consisting of finely milled rock fragments. Waterlain deposits [7] associated with glaciers are often conglomeratic, forming structures such aseskers. [edit]Examples A spectacular example of conglomerate can be seen at Montserrat, near Barcelona. Here erosion has created vertical channels giving the characteristic jagged shapes for which the mountain is named (Montserrat literally means "jagged mountain"). The rock is strong enough to be used as a building material - see Montserrat abbey front at full resolution for detail of the rock structure. Another spectacular example of conglomerate, the Crestone Conglomerate may be viewed in and near the town of Crestone, at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Range in Colorado's San Luis Valley. The Crestone Conglomerate is a metamorphic rock stratum and consists of tiny to quite large rocks that appear to have been tumbled in an ancient river. Some of the rocks have hues of red and green. Impressive conglomerate cliffs are to be seen on the east coast of Scotland from Arbroath northwards along the coastlines of the former counties of Angus and Kincardineshire. Famously picturesque Dunottar Castle sits on a rugged promontory of conglomerate jutting into the North Sea just south of the town of Stonehaven. Conglomerate may also be seen in the domed hills of Kata Tjuta, in Australia's Northern Territory. In the nineteenth century a thick layer of Pottsville conglomerate was recognized to underlie anthracite [8] coal measures in Pennsylvania. [edit]Fanglomerate

Fanglomerate

When a series of conglomerates accumulates into an alluvial fan, in rapidly eroding (e.g. desert) environments, the resulting rock unit is often called afanglomerate. These form the basis of a number of

large oil fields, e.g. the Tiffany and Brae fields in the North Sea. These fanglomerates were actually deposited into a deep marine environment but against a rapidly moving fault line, which supplied an intermittent stream of debris into the conglomerate pile. The sediment fans are several kilometers deep at the fault line and the sedimentation moved focus repeatedly, as different sectors of the fault moved.

COQUINA Coquina (pron.: /kokin/; Spanish: "cockle") is a sedimentary rock that is composed either wholly or almost entirely of the transported, abraded, and mechanically sorted fragments of the shells of either molluscs, trilobites, brachiopods, or other invertebrates. For a sediment to be considered to be a coquina, the average size of the particles composing it should be 2 mm or greater in size. Coquina can vary in hardness from poorly to moderately-cemented. The term "coquina" is derived from the Spanish [1][2] word for cockleshells or shellfish. Incompletely consolidated and poorly cemented coquinas are [3] considered grainstones in the Dunham classification system for carbonate sedimentary rocks. Wellcemented coquinas are classified as biosparites according to the Folk classification of sedimentary [4] rocks. Coquinas accumulate in high-energy marine and lacustrine environments where currents and waves result in the vigorous winnowing, abrasion, fracturing, and sorting of the shells, which compose them. As a result, they typically exhibit well-developed bedding or cross-bedding, close packing, and good orientation of the shell fragments composing them. The high-energy marine or lacustrine associated with [4][5] coquinas include beaches, shallow submarine raised banks, swift tidal channels, and barrier bars. [edit]Composition

and distribution

Coquina is mainly composed of mineral calcite, often including some phosphate, in the form of seashells or coral. Coquina from the Devonian period through to the more recent pleistocene are a common find all over the world, with the depositional requirements to form a coquina being a common thing in many marine facies. [edit]History

and use

Coquina from Florida.

Close-up of coquina from Florida. The scale bar is 10 mm.

Occasionally quarried or mined and used as a building stone in Florida for over 400 years, coquina forms the walls of the Castillo de San Marcos, Saint Augustine. The stone makes a very good material for forts, particularly those built during the period of heavy cannon use. Because of coquina's softness, cannon balls would sink into, rather than shatter or puncture, the walls of the Castillo de San Marcos. When first quarried, coquina is extremely soft. This softness makes it very easy to remove from the quarry and cut into shape. However, the stone is also at first much too soft to be used for building. In order to be used as a building material, the stone is left out to dry for approximately one to three years, which causes the stone to harden into a usable, but still comparatively soft, form. Coquina has also been used as a source of paving material. It is usually poorly cemented and easily breaks into component shell or coral fragments, which can be substituted for gravel or crushed harder rocks. Large pieces of coquina of unusual shape are sometimes used as landscape decoration. Because coquina often includes a component of phosphate, it is sometimes mined for use as fertilizer.

DIATOMITE Diatomaceous earth (pron.: /da.tmes r/) also known as D.E., diatomite, or kieselgur/kieselguhr, is a naturally occurring, soft,siliceous sedimentary rock that is easily crumbled into a fine white to off-white powder. It has a particle size ranging from less than 3 micrometre to more than 1 millimeter, but typically 10 to 200 micrometres. This powder has an abrasive feel, similar to pumice powder, and is very light as a result of its high porosity. The typical chemical composition of oven-dried diatomaceous earth is 80 to 90% silica, with 2 to 4% alumina (attributed mostly to clay [1] minerals) and 0.5 to 2% iron oxide. Diatomaceous earth consists of fossilized remains of diatoms, a type of hard-shelled algae. It is used as a filtration aid, mild abrasive in products including toothpaste, mechanical insecticide, absorbent for liquids, matting agent for coatings, reinforcing filler in plastics and rubber, anti-block in plastic films, porous support for chemical catalysts, cat litter, activator in blood clotting studies, a stabilizing component of dynamite, and athermal insulator. [edit]Geology

and occurrence

Diatomaceous earth as viewed under bright fieldillumination on a light microscope. Diatomaceous earth is made up of the cell walls/shells of single cell diatoms and readily crumbles to a fine powder. Diatom cell walls are made up of biogenic silica; silica synthesised in the diatom cell by the polymerisation of silicic acid. This image of diatomaceous earth particles in water is at a scale of 6.236 pixels/ m, the entire image covers a region of approximately 1.13 by 0.69 mm.

[edit]Formation Diatomite forms by the accumulation of the amorphous silica (opal, SiO2nH2O) remains of dead diatoms (microscopic single-celled algae) in lacustrine or marine sediments. The fossil remains consist of a pair of [1] symmetrical shells or frustules. [edit]Discovery In 1836 or 1837, the peasant and goods waggoner, Peter Kasten, discovered diatomaceous earth (German: kieselgur) when sinking a well on the northern slopes of the Hauelberg hill, in the Lneburg Heath in north Germany. Initially, it was thought that limestone had been found, which could be used as fertilizer. Alfred Nobel used the properties of diatomaceous earth in the manufacture of dynamite. TheCelle engineer, Wilhelm Berkefeld, recognized its ability to filter, and developed 'filter candles' fired
[2]

from diatomaceous earth. used successfully. [edit]Extraction

[3]

During thecholera epidemic in Hamburg in 1892, these Berkefeld filters were

and storage sites in the Lneburg Heath

Neuohe extraction from 1863 to 1994 Wiechel from 1871 to 1978 Htzel from 1876 to 1969 Hsseringen from ca. 1880 to 1894 Hammerstorf from ca. 1880 to 1920 Oberohe from 1884 to 1970 Schmarbeck from 1896 to ca. 1925 Steinbeck from 1897 to 1928 Breloh from 1907 to 1975 Schwindebeck from 1913 to 1975 Hetendorf from 1970 to 1994

The deposits are up to 28 metres (92 ft) thick and are all of freshwater diatomaceous earth.

ca. 19001910 Diatomaceous earth pit at Neuohe

ca.19001910 a drying area: one firing pile is being prepared; another is under way

1913 Staff at the Neuohe factory, with workers and a female cook in front of a drying shed

Until the First World War almost the entire worldwide production of diatomaceous earth was from this region.

[edit]Other

deposits
[4]

In Germany diatomaceous earth was also extracted at Altenschlirf [5] and at Klieken (Saxony-Anhalt).

on the Vogelsberg (Upper Hesse)

There is a layer of diatomaceous earth up to 4 metres (13 ft) thick in the nature reserve of Soos in the Czech Republic. In Colorado and in Clark, Nevada (USA), there are deposits that are up to several hundred metres thick in places. Sometimes diatomaceous earth is found on the surface in deserts. Research has shown that the erosion of diatomaceous earth in such areas (such as the Bodl Depression in the Sahara) is one of the most important sources of climate-affecting dust in the atmosphere. The commercial deposits of diatomite are restricted to Tertiary or Quaternary periods. Older deposits from [6] as early as the Cretaceous Period are known, but are of low quality. Marine deposits have been worked in the Sisquoc Formation in Santa Barbara County, California near Lompoc and along the Southern California coast. Additional marine deposits have been worked in Maryland,Virginia, Algeria and the MoClay of Denmark. Fresh water lake deposits occur in Nevada, Oregon, Washington and California. Lake deposits also occur in interglacial lakes in the eastern US and Canada and in Europe in Germany, France, Denmark and the Czech Republic. The worldwide association of diatomite deposits and volcanic deposits suggests that the availability of silica fromvolcanic ash may be needed for thick [6] diatomite deposits. [edit]Applications [edit]Industrial

Individual diatom cell walls often maintain their shape even in commercially processed filter media, such as this one for swimming pools

Live marine diatoms from Antarctica (magnified)

In 1866, Alfred Nobel discovered that nitroglycerin could be made much more stable if absorbed in diatomite. This allows much safer transport and handling than nitroglycerin in its raw form. He patented this mixture as dynamite in 1867, and the mixture is also referred to as guhr dynamite. [edit]Filtration Diatomaceous earth may be used as a filter medium, especially for swimming pools. It has a high porosity, because it is composed of microscopically small, coffin-like, hollow particles. Diatomaceous earth (sometimes referred to by trademarked brand names such as Celite) is used in chemistry as a filtration aid, to filter very fine particles that would otherwise pass through or clog filter paper. It is also used to filter water, particularly in the drinking water treatment process and in fish tanks, and other liquids, such as beer and wine. It can also filter syrups, sugar, and honey without removing or altering their color, [7] taste, or nutritional properties. [edit]Abrasive The oldest use of diatomite is as a very mild abrasive and, for this purpose, it has been used both in toothpaste and in metal polishes, as well as in some facial scrubs. [edit]Pest

control
[8]

Diatomite is used as an insecticide, due to its physico-sorptive properties. The fine powder absorbs lipids from the waxy outer layer of insects'exoskeletons, causing them to [9] dehydrate. Arthropods die as a result of the water pressure deficiency, based on Fick's law of diffusion. This also works against gastropods and is commonly employed in gardening to defeat slugs. However, since slugs inhabit humid environments, efficacy is very low. It is sometimes mixed with an attractant or other additives to increase its effectiveness. Medical-grade diatomite is sometimes used to de-wormboth [10][11] animals and humans, with questionable efficacy. It is most commonly used in lieu of boric acid, and [citation needed][12][13] can be used to help control and eventually eliminate cockroach and flea infestations. This [14] material has wide application for insect control in grain storage. It has also been used to [15] control bedbug infestations, but this method may take weeks to work. In order to be effective as an insecticide, diatomaceous earth must be uncalcinated (i.e., it must not be [16] heat-treated prior to application) and have a mean particle size below about 12 microns (i.e., foodgrade see below).

Although considered to be relatively low-risk, pesticides containing diatomaceous earth are not exempt from regulation in the United States under theFederal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act and [17] must be registered with the Environmental Protection Agency. [edit]Absorbent Its absorbent qualities make it useful for spill clean-up and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommends it to clean up toxic liquid spills. These qualities also lend themselves to use in facial masks to absorb excess oils. It has been employed as a primary ingredient in a type of cat litter. The type of silica used in cat litter comes from freshwater sources and does not pose a significant health risk to pets or humans. The microscopic matrix of DE make it a great desiccant. It can absorb up to six times its weight in water. It also can be used in the absorption of Ethylene Gas to reduce decay in fruits and produce. The combination of refrigeration and DE as a filter medium is one of the best ways to extend shelf life of fruits and produce commercially and in the home fridge. One should always use a food grade not a pool grade DE when using it as a desiccant filter near fruit & produce. [edit]Thermal Its thermal properties enable it to be used as the barrier material in some fire resistant safes. It is also [18] used in evacuated powder insulation for use with cryogenics. Diatomaceous earth powder is inserted into the vacuum space to aid in the effectiveness of vacuum insulation. It was used in the Classical AGA Cookers as a thermal heat barrier. [edit]DNA

purification

Diatomite (Celite) can be used for the removal of DNA in the presence of a highly concentrated chaotropic agent such as sodium iodide, guanidinium chloride and guanidinium thiocyanate. As with other silicates, the diatomites will remove double stranded DNA but not RNA or proteins. The DNA can be extracted from the diatomites using low ionic strength buffers, including water, at neutral to slightly alkaline pH. Crude diatomites of a uniform size must first be washed in a heated acid such as [19] 5M HCl. Calcination can further improve consistency of the material, while mild caustictreatment may improve adsorption with lower levels of chaotrophs. [edit]Use

in agriculture

Natural freshwater diatomaceous earth is used in agriculture for grain storage as an anticaking agent, as [20] well as an insecticide. It is approved by the US Department of Agriculture as a feed supplement to [21] prevent caking. It is also used as a neutral anthelmintic (dewormer). Some farmers add it to their livestock and poultry feed to prevent the caking of feed. Food grade diatomaceous earth is widely available in [21] agricultural feed supply stores. DE is acceptable as an anti caking agent for livestock. [edit]Hydroponics Freshwater diatomite can be used as a growing medium in hydroponic gardens. It is also used as a growing medium in potted plants, particularly as bonsai soil. Bonsai enthusiasts use it as a soil additive, or pot a bonsai tree in 100% diatomaceous earth. Like perlite,vermiculite,

and expanded clay, it retains water and nutrients, while draining fast and freely, allowing high oxygen circulation within the growing medium. [edit]Marker in livestock nutrition experiments Natural diatomaceous earth (dried, not calcined) is regularly used in livestock nutrition research as a source of acid insoluble ash (AIA), which is used as an indigestible marker. By measuring the content of AIA relative to nutrients in test diets and feces or digesta sampled from the terminal ileum (last third of the small intestine) the percentage of that nutrient digested can be calculated using the following equation: Where: is percent Nutrient Digestibility is the percent of nutrients in the feces is the percent of nutrients in the feed is the percent of AIA in the feces is the percent of AIA in the feed And:

Natural diatomaceous earth (freshwater) is preferred by many researchers over chromic oxide, which has been widely used for the same purpose, but which is also a known carcinogen and therefore a potential hazard to research personnel. [edit]Specific

varieties

Tripolite is the variety found in Tripoli, Libya. Bann clay is the variety found in the Lower Bann valley in Northern Ireland. Moler (Mo-clay) is the variety found in northwestern Denmark, especially on the islands of Fur and Mors. Freshwater-derived food grade diatomaceous earth is the type used in US agriculture for grain storage, as feed supplement, and as an insecticide. It is produced uncalcinated, has a very fine particle size, and is very low in crystal silica (<2%). Salt-water-derived pool/ beer/ wine filter grade is not suitable for human consumption nor is effective as an insecticide. It is usually calcinated before being sold to remove impurities and undesirable volatile contents, is composed of larger particles than the freshwater version, and has a high silica content (>60%).

[edit]Climatologic

importance

The Earth's climate is affected by dust in the atmosphere, so locating major sources of atmospheric dust is important for climatology. Recent research indicates that surface deposits of diatomaceous earth play an important role. For instance, the largest single

atmospheric dust source is the Bodl depression in Chad, where storms push diatomite [22] gravel over dunes, generating dust by abrasion.

DOLOMITE ROCK OR DOLOSTONE Dolostone or dolomite rock is a sedimentary carbonate rock that contains a high percentage of the mineral dolomite. In old U.S.G.S. publications it was referred to as magnesian limestone. Most [1] dolostone formed as a magnesium replacement of limestone or lime mud prior to lithification. It is resistant toerosion and can either contain bedded layers or be unbedded. It is less soluble than limestone in weakly acidic groundwater, but it can still develop solution features over time. The term dolostone was introduced to avoid confusion with the mineral dolomite. The usage of the term dolostone is controversial because the name dolomitewas first applied to the rock during the late 18th century and thus has technical precedence. The use of the term dolostone is not recommended by the Glossary of Geology published by the American Geological Institute. It is, however, used in some geological publications.

LIGNITE COAL Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad, is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat. It is considered the lowest rank of coal; it is mined in Greece, Germany, Poland, Serbia, Russia, the United States, India,Australia and many other parts of Europe and it is used almost exclusively as a fuel for steam-electric power [1] generation. Up to 50% of Greece's electricity and 24.6% of Germany's comes from lignite power plants. [edit]Characteristics Lignite is brownish-black in color and has a carbon content of around 25-35%, a high inherent moisture content sometimes as high as 66%, and an ashcontent ranging from 6% to 19% compared with 6% to [2] 12% for bituminous coal. The energy content of lignite ranges from 10 - 20 MJ/kg (917 million BTU per short ton) on a moist, mineral-matter-free basis. The energy content of lignite consumed in United States averages 15 MJ/kg (13 million BTU/ton), on the as-received basis (i.e., containing both inherent moisture and mineral matter). The energy content of lignite consumed in Victoria, Australia averages 8.4 MJ/kg (6.5 million BTU/ton). When reacted with quaternary amine, amine treated lignite (ATL) forms. ATL is used in drilling mud to reduce fluid loss.

Lignite mining in Western North Dakota, ca.1945

Lignite has a high content of volatile matter which makes it easier to convert into gas and liquid petroleum products than higher ranking coals. Unfortunately its high moisture content and susceptibility to spontaneous combustion can cause problems in transportation and storage. It is now known that efficient processes that remove latent moisture locked within the structure of brown coal will relegate the risk of spontaneous combustion to the same level as black coal, will transform the calorific value of brown coal to a black coal equivalent fuel while significantly reducing the emissions profile of 'densified' brown [3] coal to a level similar to or better than most black coals. [edit]Uses Because of its low energy density and typically high moisture content, brown coal is inefficient to transport and is not traded extensively on the world market compared with higher coal grades. It is often burned in power stations constructed very close to any mines, such as in Australia's Latrobe Valley and Luminant's Monticello plant in Texas. Primarily because of latent high moisture content of brown coal, carbon dioxide emissions from traditional brown-coal-fired plants are generally much higher

than for comparable black-coal plants, with the world's highest-emitting beingHazelwood Power Station, [4] Victoria. The operation of traditional brown-coal plants, particularly in combination with strip mining, can [5][6] be politically contentious due to environmental concerns. [edit]Geology Lignite is geologically younger than higher-grade coals, originating mainly in the Tertiary period. The Latrobe Valley in the state of Victoria, Australia contains estimated reserves of some 65 billion [7] tonnes of brown coal. The deposit is equivalent to 25% of known world reserves. The coal seams are up to 100 metres thick, with multiple coal seams often giving virtually continuous brown coal thickness of up [7] to 230 metres. Seams are covered by very little overburden (10 to 20 metres). [edit]Types Lignite can be separated into two types. The first is xyloid lignite or fossil wood and the second form is the compact lignite or perfect lignite. Although xyloid lignite may sometimes have the tenacity and the appearance of ordinary wood it can be seen that the combustible woody tissue has experienced a great modification. It is reducible to a fine powder by trituration and if submitted to the action of a weak solution of potash it yields a considerable [8] quantity of ulmic acid.

LIMESTONE Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate(CaCO3). Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera. Limestone makes up about 10% of the total volume of all sedimentary rocks. The solubility of limestone in water and weak acid solutions leads tokarst landscapes, in which water erodes the limestone over thousands to millions of years. Most cave systems are through limestone bedrock. Limestone has numerous uses: as a building material, as aggregate for the base of roads, as white pigment or filler in products such as toothpaste or paints, and as a chemical feedstock. The first geologist to distinguish limestone from dolomite was Belsazar Hacquet in 1778.
[1]

Description

Limestone quarry at Cedar Creek, Virginia, USA

La Zaplaz formations in the Piatra Craiului Mountains, Romania.

Like most other sedimentary rocks, most limestone is composed of grains. Most grains in limestone are skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera. Other carbonate grains comprising limestones are ooids, peloids, intraclasts, and extraclasts. These organisms secrete shells made of aragonite or calcite, and leave these shells behind after the organisms die. Limestone often contains variable amounts of silica in the form of chert (chalcedony, flint, jasper, etc.) or siliceous skeletal fragment (sponge spicules, diatoms, radiolarians), and varying amounts of clay, silt and sand (terrestrial detritus) carried in by rivers. Some limestones do not consist of grains at all, and are formed completely by the chemical precipitation of calcite or aragonite, i.e.travertine. Secondary calcite may be deposited by supersaturated meteoric waters (groundwater that precipitates the material in caves). This produces speleothems, such as stalagmites and stalactites. Another form taken by calcite is oolitic limestone, which can be recognized by its granular (oolite) appearance. The primary source of the calcite in limestone is most commonly marine organisms. Some of these organisms can construct mounds of rock known as reefs, building upon past generations. Below about 3,000 meters, water pressure and temperature conditions cause the dissolution of calcite to increase nonlinearly, so limestone typically does not form in deeper waters (see lysocline). Limestones may also [2][3] form in both lacustrine and evaporite depositional environments. Calcite can be either dissolved or precipitated by groundwater, depending on several factors, including the water temperature, pH, and dissolved ionconcentrations. Calcite exhibits an unusual characteristic called retrograde solubility, in which it becomes less soluble in water as the temperature increases. Because of impurities, such as clay, sand, organic remains, iron oxide and other materials, many limestones exhibit different colors, especially onweathered surfaces. Limestone may be crystalline, clastic, granular, or massive, depending on the method of formation. Crystals of calcite, quartz, dolomite or barite may line small cavities in the rock. When conditions are right for precipitation, calcite forms mineral coatings that cement the existing rock grains together, or it can fill fractures. Travertine is a banded, compact variety of limestone formed along streams, particularly where there are waterfalls, and around hot or cold springs. Calcium carbonate is deposited where evaporation of the water leaves a solution supersaturated with the chemical constituents of calcite. Tufa, a porous or cellular variety of travertine, is found near waterfalls. Coquina is a poorly consolidated limestone composed of pieces of coral or shells. During regional metamorphism that occurs during the mountain building process (orogeny), limestone recrystallizes into marble. Limestone is a parent material of Mollisol soil group.

Classification
Two major classification schemes, the Folk and the Dunham, are used for identifying limestone and carbonate rocks.

Folk classification
Main article: Folk classification Robert L. Folk developed a classification system that places primary emphasis on the detailed composition of grains and interstitial material in carbonate rocks. Based on composition, there are three main components: allochems (grains), matrix (mostly micrite), and cement (sparite). The Folk system uses two-part names; the first refers to the grains and the second is the root. It is helpful to have a petrographic microscope when using the Folk scheme, because it is easier to determine the components [4] present in each sample.

Dunham classification
Main article: Dunham classification The Dunham scheme focuses on depositional textures. Each name is based upon the texture of the grains that make up the limestone. Robert J. Dunham published his system for limestone in 1962; it focuses on the depositional fabric of carbonate rocks. Dunham divides the rocks into four main groups based on relative proportions of coarser clastic particles. Dunham names are essentially for rock families. His efforts deal with the question of whether or not the grains were originally in mutual contact, and therefore self-supporting, or whether the rock is characterized by the presence of frame builders and algal mats. Unlike the Folk scheme, Dunham deals with the original porosity of the rock. The Dunham scheme [5] is more useful for hand samples because it is based on texture, not the grains in the sample.

Limestone landscape
Main article: Karst topography

The Cudgel of Hercules, a tall limestone rock (Pieskowa Skaa Castle in the background)

Limestone makes up about 10% of the total volume of all sedimentary rocks.

[6][7]

Limestone is partially soluble, especially in acid, and therefore forms many erosional landforms. These include limestone pavements, pot holes, cenotes, caves and gorges. Such erosion landscapes are known

as karsts. Limestone is less resistant than most igneous rocks, but more resistant than most othersedimentary rocks. It is therefore usually associated with hills and downland, and occurs in regions with other sedimentary rocks, typically clays. Karst topography and caves develop in limestone rocks due to their solubility in dilute acidic groundwater. The solubility of limestone in water and weak acid solutions leads to karst landscapes. Regions overlying limestone bedrock tend to have fewer visible above-ground sources (ponds and streams), as surface water easily drains downward through joints in the limestone. While draining, water and organic acid from the soil slowly (over thousands or millions of years) enlarges these cracks, dissolving the calcium carbonate and carrying it away in solution. Most cave systems are through limestone bedrock. Cooling groundwater or mixing of different groundwaters will also create conditions suitable for cave formation. Coastal limestones are often eroded by organisms which bore into the rock by various means. This process is known as bioerosion. It is most common in the tropics, and it is known throughout the fossil record (see Taylor and Wilson, 2003). Bands of limestone emerge from the Earth's surface in often spectacular rocky outcrops and islands. Examples include the Burren in Co. Clare, Ireland; theVerdon Gorge in France; Malham Cove in North [8] Yorkshire and the Isle of Wight, England; on Fr near the Swedish island of Gotland, the Niagara Escarpmentin Canada/United States, Notch Peak in Utah, the Ha Long Bay National Park in Vietnam and the hills around the Lijiang River and Guilin city in China. The Florida Keys, islands off the south coast of Florida, are composed mainly of oolitic limestone (the Lower Keys) and the carbonate skeletons of coral reefs (the Upper Keys), which thrived in the area during interglacial periods when sea level was higher than at present. Unique habitats are found on alvars, extremely level expanses of limestone with thin soil mantles. The largest such expanse in Europe is the Stora Alvaret on the island of land, Sweden. Another area with large quantities of limestone is the island of Gotland, Sweden. Huge quarries in northwestern Europe, such as those of Mount Saint Peter (Belgium/Netherlands), extend for more than a hundred kilometers. The world's largest limestone quarry is at Michigan Limestone and Chemical Company in Rogers City, [9] Michigan.

Uses
Limestone is very common in architecture, especially in Europe and North America. Many landmarks across the world, including the Great Pyramid and its associated complex in Giza, Egypt, are made of limestone. So many buildings in Kingston, Ontario, Canada were constructed from it that it is nicknamed [10] the 'Limestone City'. On the island of Malta, a variety of limestone called Globigerina limestone was, for a long time, the only building material available, and is still very frequently used on all types of buildings and sculptures. Limestone is readily available and relatively easy to cut into blocks or more elaborate carving. It is also long-lasting and stands up well to exposure. However, it is a very heavy material, making it impractical for tall buildings, and relatively expensive as a building material.

The Great Pyramid of Giza, one of theSeven Wonders of the Ancient World; its outside cover is made entirely from limestone.

Courthouse built of limestone inManhattan, Kansas

A limestone plate with a negative map ofMoosburg in Bavaria is prepared for alithography print.

Limestone was most popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Train stations, banks and other structures from that era are normally made of limestone. It is used as a facade on some skyscrapers, but only in thin plates for covering, rather than solid blocks. In the United States, Indiana, most notably the Bloomington area, has long been a source of high quality quarried limestone, called Indiana limestone. Many famous buildings in London are built from Portland limestone. Limestone was also a very popular building block in the Middle Ages in the areas where it occurred, since it is hard, durable, and commonly occurs in easily accessible surface exposures. Many medieval churches and castles in Europe are made of limestone. Beer stone was a popular kind of limestone for medieval buildings in southern England. Limestone and (to a lesser extent) marble are reactive to acid solutions, making acid rain a significant problem to the preservation of artifacts made from this stone. Many limestone statues and building surfaces have suffered severe damage due to acid rain. Acid-based cleaning chemicals can also etch limestone, which should only be cleaned with a neutral or mild alkaline-based cleaner. Other uses include: It is the raw material for the manufacture of quicklime (calcium oxide), slaked lime (calcium hydroxide), cement and mortar. Pulverized limestone is used as a soil conditioner to neutralize acidic soils. It is crushed for use as aggregatethe solid base for many roads. Geological formations of limestone are among the best petroleum reservoirs; As a reagent in flue-gas desulfurization, it reacts with sulfur dioxide for air pollution control. Glass making, in some circumstances, uses limestone. It is added to toothpaste, paper, plastics, paint, tiles, and other materials as both white pigment and a cheap filler. It can suppress methane explosions in underground coal mines. Purified, it is added to bread and cereals as a source of calcium. Calcium levels in livestock feed are supplemented with it, such as for poultry (when ground up). It can be used for remineralizing and increasing the alkalinity of purified water to prevent pipe [12] corrosion and to restore essential nutrient levels. Used in blast furnaces, limestone extracts iron from its ore. It is often found in medicines and cosmetics. It is used in sculptures because of its suitability for carving.
[11]

Chalk

Cyrstalline

Fossiliferous

Oolitic

Travertine

SANDSTONE Sandstone (sometimes known as arenite) is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sandsized minerals or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow, red, gray, pink, white and black. Since sandstone beds often form highly visible cliffs and other topographic features, certain colors of sandstone have been strongly identified with certain regions. Rock formations that are primarily composed of sandstone usually allow percolation of water and other fluids and are porous enough to store large quantities, making them valuable aquifers and petroleum reservoirs. Fine-grained aquifers, such as sandstones, are more apt to filter out pollutants from the surface than are rocks with cracks and crevices, such as limestone or other rocks fractured by seismic activity. Sandstone is mined by quarrying. It is sometimes found where there used to be small seas. It is usually formed in deserts or dry places like theSahara Desert in Africa, the Arabian desert in the Middle East and the Australian desert (including Sydney). In the western United States and incentral Australia, most [1] sandstone is red. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. [edit]Uses

17,000 yr old sandstone oil lamp discovered at the caves of Lascaux,France.

Sandstone statue Maria Immaculata byFidelis Sporer, around 1770, in Freiburg,Germany.

Sandstone doorway in Heidelberg,Germany

Sandstone is highly absorbent. These are sandstone beverage coasters.

Sandstone has been used for domestic construction and housewares since prehistoric times, and continues to be used. Sandstone was a popular building material from ancient times. It is relatively soft, making it easy to carve. It has been widely used around the world in constructing temples, cathedrals, homes, and other buildings. It has also been used for artistic purposes to create ornamental fountains and statues.

Some sandstones are resistant to weathering, yet are easy to work. This makes sandstone a common building and paving material. However, some that have been used in the past, such as the Collyhurst sandstone used in North West England, have been found less resistant, necessitating [2] repair and replacement in older buildings. Because of the hardness of individual grains, uniformity of grain size and friability of their structure, some types of sandstone are excellent materials from which to make grindstones, for sharpening blades and other implements. Non-friable sandstone can be used to make grindstones for grinding grain, e.g., gritstone. [edit]Origins

Sand from Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, Utah. These are grains of quartz with a hematite coating providing the orange color. Scale bar is 1.0 mm.

Sandstones are clastic in origin (as opposed to either organic, like chalk and coal, or chemical, [3] like gypsum and jasper). They are formed fromcemented grains that may either be fragments of a preexisting rock or be mono-minerallic crystals. The cements binding these grains together are typically calcite, clays, and silica. Grain sizes in sands are defined (in geology) within the range of 0.0625 mm to 2 mm (0.0020.079 inches). Clays and sediments with smaller grain sizes not visible with the naked eye, including siltstones and shales, are typically called argillaceous sediments; rocks with greater grain sizes, including breccias and conglomerates are termed rudaceous sediments.

Red sandstone interior of Lower Antelope Canyon, Arizona, worn smooth by erosion from flash flooding over thousands of years.

The formation of sandstone involves two principal stages. First, a layer or layers of sand accumulates as the result of sedimentation, either from water (as in a stream, lake, or sea) or from air (as in a desert). Typically, sedimentation occurs by the sand settling out from suspension; i.e., ceasing to be rolled or bounced along the bottom of a body of water or ground surface (e.g., in a desert or erg). Finally, once it has accumulated, the sand becomes sandstone when it is compacted by pressure of overlying deposits and cemented by the precipitation of minerals within the pore spaces between sand grains. The most common cementing materials are silica and calcium carbonate, which are often derived either from dissolution or from alteration of the sand after it was buried. Colors will usually be tan or yellow (from a blend of the clear quartz with the dark amber feldspar content of the sand). A predominant additional colorant in the southwestern United States is iron oxide, which imparts reddish tints ranging from pink to dark red (terracotta), with additionalmanganese imparting a purplish hue. Red sandstones are also seen in the Southwest and West of Britain, as well as central Europe and Mongolia. The regularity of the latter favors use as a source for masonry, either as a primary building material or as a facing stone, over other construction. The environment where it is deposited is crucial in determining the characteristics of the resulting sandstone, which, in finer detail, include its grain size,sorting, and composition and, in more general detail, include the rock geometry and sedimentary structures. Principal environments of deposition may be split between terrestrial and marine, as illustrated by the following broad groupings: Terrestrial environments

1. Rivers (levees, point bars, channel sands) 2. Alluvial fans 3. Glacial outwash 4. Lakes 5. Deserts (sand dunes and ergs) Marine environments 1. Deltas 2. Beach and shoreface sands 3. Tidal flats 4. Offshore bars and sand waves 5. Storm deposits (tempestites) 6. Turbidites (submarine channels and fans) [edit]Components [edit]Framework

grains

Grus sand and granitoid it derived from

Framework grains are sand-sized (1/16 to 2 mm diameter) detrital fragments that make up the bulk of a [4][5] sandstone. These grains can be classified into several different categories based on their mineral composition: Quartz framework grains are the dominate minerals in most sedimentary rocks; this is because they [6] have exceptional physical properties, such as hardness and chemical stability. These physical properties allow the quartz grains to survive multiple recycling events, while also allowing the grains [6] to display some degree of rounding. Quartz grains evolve from plutonic rock, which are felsic in origin and also from older sandstones that have been recycled. Feldspathic framework grains are commonly the second most abundant mineral in [6] sandstones. Feldspar can be divided into two smaller subdivisions: alkali feldspars and plagioclase feldspars. The different types of feldspar can be distinguished under a petrographic [6] microscope. Below is a description of the different types of feldspar.

Alkali feldspar is a group of minerals in which the chemical composition of the mineral can range from KAlSi3O8 to NaAlSi3O8, this represents a complete solid solution.
[6]

Plagioclase feldspar is a complex group of solid solution minerals that range in composition from NaAlSi3O8 to CaAl2Si2O8.
[6]

Photomicrograph of a volcanic sand grain; upper picture is plane-polarized light, bottom picture is cross-polarized light, scale box at left-center is 0.25 millimeter. This type of grain would be a main component of a lithic sandstone.

Lithic framework grains are pieces of ancient source rock that have yet to weather away to [6] individual mineral grains, called lithic fragments or clasts. Lithic fragments can be any fine[6] grained or coarse-grained igneous, metamorphic, or sedimentary rock. Although, the most [6] common lithic fragment found in sedimentary rocks are clasts of volcanic rocks. Accessory minerals are all other mineral grains in a sandstone; commonly these minerals make up just a small percentage of the grains in a sandstone. Common accessory minerals [6][7] include micas (muscovite and biotite), olivine, pyroxene, and corundum. Many of these accessory grains are more dense than the silicates that make up the bulk of the rock. These heavy minerals are commonly resistant to weathering and can be used as an [8] indicator of sandstone maturity through the ZTR index. Common heavy minerals include zircon, tourmaline, rutile (hence ZTR),garnet, magnetite, or other dense, resistate minerals derived from the source rock.

[edit]Matrix Matrix is very fine material, which is present within interstitial pore space between the framework [6] grains. The interstitial pore space can be classified into two different varieties. One is to call the

sandstone an arenite, and the other is to call it a wacke. Below is a definition of the differences between the two matrices. Arenites are texturally "clean" sandstones that are free of or have very little matrix. Wackes are texturally "dirty" sandstones that have a significant amount of matrix.
[7]

[5]

[edit]Cement Cement is what binds the siliclastic framework grains together. Cement is a secondary mineral [6] that forms after deposition and during burial of the sandstone. These cementing materials may [6] be either silicate minerals or non-silicate minerals, such as calcite. Silica cement can consist of either quartz or opal minerals. Quartz is the most common silicate mineral that acts as cement. In sandstone where there is silica cement present the quartz grains are attached to cement, this creates a rim around the quartz grain called overgrowth. The overgrowth retains the same crystallographic continuity of quartz framework grain that is being cemented. Opal cement is found in sandstones that are rich in [6] volcanogenic materials, and very rarely is in other sandstones. Calcite cement is the most common carbonate cement. Calcite cement is an assortment of smaller calcite crystals. The cement adheres itself to the framework grains, this adhesion is [6] what causes the framework grains to be adhered together. Other minerals that act as cements include: hematite, limonite, feldspars, anhydrite, [6] gypsum, barite, clay minerals, and zeolite minerals.

[edit]Pore

space
[9]

Pore space includes the open spaces within a rock or a soil. The pore space in a rock has a direct relationship to the porosity and permeability of the rock. The porosity and permeability are [6] directly influenced by the way the sand grains are packed together. Porosity is the percentage of bulk volume that is inhabited by interstices within a given [9] rock. Porosity is directly influenced by the packing of even-sized spherical grains, [6] rearranged from loosely packed to tightest packed in sandstones. Permeability is the rate in which water flows, and this is measured in gallons per day [9] through a one square foot cross section under a unit hydraulic gradient. Hydraulic gradient is the change in depth of the water table due to the direction of groundwater flow.

SHALE Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio [1] of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel [1] layering or bedding less than one centimeter in thickness, called fissility. Mudstones, on the other hand, are similar in composition but do not show the fissility. [edit]Historical
th

mining terminology
[2]

Before the mid 19 century, the terms slate, shale and schist were not sharply distinguished. In the th [3] context of underground coal mining, shale was frequently referred to as slate well into the 20 century. [edit]Texture Shale typically exhibits varying degrees of fissility breaking into thin layers, often splintery and usually parallel to the otherwise indistinguishable bedding plane because of parallel orientation of clay mineral [1] flakes. Non-fissile rocks of similar composition but made of particles smaller than 0.06 mm are described as mudstones (1/3 to 2/3 silt particles) or claystone (less than 1/3 silt). Rocks with similar [1] particle sizes but with less clay (greater than 2/3 silt) and therefore grittier are siltstones. Shale is the [4] most common sedimentary rock.

Sample of drill cuttings of shale while drilling an oil well in Louisiana. Sand grain = 2 mm. in dia.

[edit]Composition

and color

Shales are typically composed of variable amounts of clay minerals and quartz grains and the typical color is gray. Addition of variable amounts of minor constituents alters the color of the rock. Black shale results from the presence of greater than one percent carbonaceous material and indicates [1] [5] areducing environment. Black shale can also be referred to as black metal. Red, brown and green colors are indicative of ferric oxide (hematite - reds), iron hydroxide (goethite - browns and limonite [1] yellow), or micaceous minerals (chlorite, biotite and illite - greens). Clays are the major constituent of shales and other mudrocks. The clay minerals represented are largely kaolinite, montmorillonite and illite. Clay minerals of Late Tertiary mudstones are expandable smectites whereas in older rocks especially in mid to early Paleozoic shales illites predominate. The transformation of smectite to illite produces silica, sodium, calcium, magnesium, iron

and water. These released elements form authigenic quartz,chert, calcite, dolomite, ankerite, hematite and albite, all trace to minor (except [1] quartz) minerals found in shales and other mudrocks. Shales and mudrocks contain roughly 95 percent of the organic matter in all sedimentary rocks. However, this amounts to less than one percent by mass in an average shale. Black shales which form in anoxic 2+ 2conditions contain reduced free carbon along with ferrous iron (Fe ) and sulfur (S ).Pyrite and [1] amorphous iron sulfide along with carbon produce the black coloration and purple. [edit]Formation

Limey shale overlaid by limestone,Cumberland Plateau, Tennessee

The process in the rock cycle which forms shale is compaction. The fine particles that compose shale can remain suspended in water long after the larger and denser particles of sand have deposited. Shales are typically deposited in very slow moving water and are often found in lakes and lagoonaldeposits, in river deltas, on floodplains and offshore from beach sands. They can also be deposited on the continental shelf, in relatively deep, quiet water. 'Black shales' are dark, as a result of being especially rich in unoxidized carbon. Common in some Paleozoic and Mesozoic strata, black shales were deposited in anoxic, reducing environments, such as in stagnant water columns. Some black shales contain abundant heavy metals such as [6][7][8] molybdenum, uranium, vanadium, and zinc. The enriched values are of controversial origin, having been alternatively attributed to input fromhydrothermal fluids during or after sedimentation or to slow [7][9][10] accumulation from sea water over long periods of sedimentation.

Splitting shale with a large knife to reveal fossils

Fossils, animal tracks/burrows and even raindrop impact craters are sometimes preserved on shale bedding surfaces. Shales may also contain concretions consisting of pyrite, apatite, or various carbonate minerals. Shales that are subject to heat and pressure of metamorphism alter into a hard, fissile, metamorphic rockknown as slate. With continued increase in metamorphic grade the sequence is phyllite, then schist and finally to gneiss.

Weathering shale at a road cut in southeastern Kentucky

[edit]References

in Popular Culture

In the television series, The Flintstones, in keeping with the Stone Age puns, Shale is a very commonBedrock surname (along the lines of today's "Smith" or "Jones"). Other variations include "McShale" or "O'Shale". As a prehistoric version of Yale University, it is also the arch-rival school of Princestone in an episode entitled, "Flintstone of Princestone", which originally aired on November 3, 1961.