Chemistry:Serandite

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Short description: Mineral
Serandite
Serandite from Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada
General
CategoryInosilicates
Formula
(repeating unit)
Na(Mn2+,Ca)2Si3O8(OH)
Strunz classification9.DG.05
Dana classification65.2.1.5
Crystal systemTriclinic
Crystal classPinacoidal (1)
(same H-M symbol)
Space groupP1
Unit cella = 7.683(1) Å, b = 6.889(1) Å
c = 6.747(1) Å, α = 90.53(5)°
β = 94.12(2)°, γ = 102.75(2)°
Z = 2
Identification
Coloursalmon pink to orange
TwinningAround [010] composition plane {100}, less commonly contact twin on {110}
CleavagePerfect on {001} and {100}
FractureIrregular, uneven
TenacityBrittle
Mohs scale hardness5 to 5.5
|re|er}}Vitreous to greasy; fibrous aggregates are dull to silky[1]
StreakWhite
DiaphaneityTransparent, Translucent
Density3.34 g/cm3 (measured)
Optical propertiesBiaxial (+)
Refractive indexnα = 1.668
nβ = 1.671
nγ = 1.703
Birefringenceδ = 0.035
2V angle39°
Dispersionr < v moderate
References[2]

Serandite[4] is a mineral with formula Na(Mn2+,Ca)2Si3O8(OH). The mineral was discovered in Guinea in 1931 and named for J. M. Sérand. Serandite is generally red, brown, black or colorless. The correct name lacks an accent.[5]

Description

Serandite is transparent to translucent and is normally salmon-pink, light pink, rose-red, orange, brown, black, or colorless; in thin section, it is colorless.[1] Octahedrally bonded Mn(II) is the primary contributor to the mineral's pink colors.[6]

Crystals of the mineral can be prismatic to acicular and elongated along [010], bladed, blocky, or tabular and flattened on {100}, occur as a radiating aggregate, or have massive habit.[1] Sérandite is a member of the wollastonite group and is the manganese analogue of pectolite.[2] It is sometimes used as a gemstone.[7]

History

Serandite was discovered on Rouma Island, part of the Los Islands in Guinea.[2] The mineral was described by À. Lacroix in the journal Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des séances de l'Académie des Sciences.[8] He named it sérandite in honor of J.M. Sérand, a mineral collector who helped in the collection of the mineral.[2]

Occurrence and distribution

Serandite has been found in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Guinea, Italy, Japan, Namibia, Norway, Russia, South Africa, and the United States.[2] The type material is held at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.[1]

At Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, serandite occurs in sodalite xenoliths and pegmatites cutting syenites within an intrusive alkalic gabbro-syenite complex. In Point of Rocks, New Mexico, it occurs in vugs in phonolite. At the Tumannoe deposit in Russia, serandite occurs in a manganese rich deposit associated with volcanic rocks and terrigenous (non-marine) sediments which has been altered by contact metamorphism.[1]

Serandite has been found in association with aegirine, analcime, arfvedsonite, astrophyllite, eudialyte, fluorite, leucophanite, mangan-neptunite, microcline, nepheline, sodalite, and villiaumite.[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Sérandite". Handbook of Mineralogy. Mineral Data Publishing. http://www.handbookofmineralogy.com/pdfs/serandite.pdf. Retrieved July 11, 2012. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "Sérandite". Mindat. http://www.mindat.org/min-3622.html. Retrieved July 11, 2012. 
  3. ↑ Warr, L.N. (2021). "IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols". Mineralogical Magazine 85 (3): 291–320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43. Bibcode: 2021MinM...85..291W. 
  4. ↑ "Serandite". Webmineral. http://www.webmineral.com/data/Serandite.shtml. Retrieved July 25, 2012. 
  5. ↑ Hålenius, U., Hatert, F., Pasero, M., and Mills, S.J., IMA Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification (CNMNC) Newsletter 28. Mineralogical Magazine 79(7), 1859–1864
  6. ↑ Manning, p. 357.
  7. ↑ Gemstones of North America – Volume 3 – Page 417 John Sinkankas – 1959
  8. ↑ Lacroix, p. 189.

Bibliography

Further reading