Samarskite-(Y) | |
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General | |
Category | Oxide minerals |
Formula (repeating unit) | (YFe3+Fe2+U,Th,Ca)2(Nb,Ta)2O8 |
IMA symbol | Smk-Y [1] |
Strunz classification | 4.DB.25 |
Crystal system | Orthorhombic |
Crystal class | Dipyramidal (mmm) H-M symbol: (2/m 2/m 2/m) |
Space group | Pbcn |
Unit cell | a = 5.687 Å, b = 4.925 Å c = 5.21 Å; Z = 2 |
Identification | |
Color | Black, may have a brownish tint, brown to yellowish brown due to alteration; light to dark brown in transmitted light |
Crystal habit | Crystals elongated with pyramidal terminations; commonly granular to massive |
Cleavage | {010}, indistinct |
Fracture | Conchoidal fragments |
Tenacity | Brittle |
Mohs scale hardness | 5–6 |
Luster | Vitreous – resinous |
Streak | Reddish brown |
Diaphaneity | Opaque, transparent in thin fragments |
Density | 5.6 – 5.8, Average = 5.69 |
Optical properties | Appears isotropic |
Refractive index | n = 2.1–2.2 |
Alters to | Metamict |
Other characteristics | Radioactive (Greater than 70 Bq / gram) |
References | [2] [3] [4] [5] |
Samarskite is a radioactive rare earth mineral series which includes samarskite-(Y), with the chemical formula (YFe3+Fe2+U,Th,Ca)2(Nb,Ta)2O8 [3] and samarskite-(Yb), with the chemical formula (YbFe3+)2(Nb,Ta)2O8. [6] The formula for samarskite-(Y) is also given as (Y,Fe3+,U)(Nb,Ta)O4. [5]
Samarskite crystallizes in the orthorhombic – dipyramidal class as black to yellowish brown stubby prisms although it is typically found as anhedral masses. Specimens with a high uranium content are typically metamict and appear coated with a yellow brown earthy rind.
Samarskite occurs in rare earth bearing granite pegmatites with other rare minerals. It occurs in association with columbite, zircon, monazite, uraninite, aeschynite, magnetite, albite, topaz, beryl, garnet, muscovite and biotite. [5]
Samarskite was first described in 1847 for an occurrence in Miass, Ilmen Mountains, Southern Ural Mountains of Russia. [4] The chemical element samarium was first isolated from a specimen of samarskite in 1879. Samarium was named after samarskite which was named for the Russian mine official, Colonel Vasili Samarsky-Bykhovets (1803–1870). [4]
Samarskite-(Yb) was first described in 2004 for an occurrence in the South Platte Pegmatite District, Jefferson County, Colorado. [6] [7]
Euxenite, or euxenite-(Y), is a brownish black mineral with a metallic luster.
The mineral group tantalite [(Fe, Mn)Ta2O6] is the primary source of the chemical element tantalum, a corrosion (heat and acid) resistant metal. It is chemically similar to columbite, and the two are often grouped together as a semi-singular mineral called coltan or "columbite-tantalite" in many mineral guides. However, tantalite has a much greater specific gravity than columbite (8.0+ compared to columbite's 5.2). Iron-rich tantalite is the mineral tantalite-(Fe) or ferrotantalite and manganese-rich is tantalite-(Mn) or manganotantalite.
Eudialyte, whose name derives from the Greek phrase Εὖ διάλυτος, eu dialytos, meaning "well decomposable", is a somewhat rare, nine member ring cyclosilicate mineral, which forms in alkaline igneous rocks, such as nepheline syenites. Its name alludes to its ready solubility in acid.
Tusionite is a rare colorless to transparent to translucent yellow brown trigonal borate mineral with chemical formula: MnSn(BO3)2. The mineral is composed of 18.86% manganese, 40.76% tin, 7.42% boron, and 32.96% oxygen. It is a late stage hydrothermal mineral and occurs rarely in granite pegmatites in miarolitic cavities.
Leucophanite is an inosilicate mineral with the chemical formula (Na,Ca)2BeSi2(O.OH.F)7. It may contain cerium substituting in the calcium position.
Bixbyite is a manganese iron oxide mineral with chemical formula: (Mn,Fe)2O3. The iron/manganese ratio is quite variable and many specimens have almost no iron. It is a metallic dark black with a Mohs hardness of 6.0 – 6.5. It is a somewhat rare mineral sought after by collectors as it typically forms euhedral isometric crystals exhibiting various cubes, octahedra, and dodecahedra.
Polycrase or polycrase-(Y) is a black or brown metallic complex uranium yttrium oxide mineral with the chemical formula (Y,Ca,Ce,U,Th)(Ti,Nb,Ta)2O6. It is amorphous. It has a Mohs hardness of 5 to 6 and a specific gravity of 5. It is radioactive due to its uranium content. It occurs in granitic pegmatites.
Cerite is a complex silicate mineral group containing cerium, formula (Ce,La,Ca)
9(Mg,Fe3+
)(SiO
4)
6(SiO
3OH)(OH)
3. The cerium and lanthanum content varies with the Ce rich species and the La rich species. Analysis of a sample from the Mountain Pass carbonatite gave 35.05% Ce
2O
3 and 30.04% La
2O
3.
Yttrialite or Yttrialite-(Y) is a rare yttrium thorium sorosilicate mineral with formula: (Y,Th)2Si2O7. It forms green to orange yellow masses with conchoidal fracture. It crystallizes in the monoclinic-prismatic crystal system. It has a Mohs hardness of 5 to 5.5 and a specific gravity of 4.58. It is highly radioactive due to the thorium content.
Thomasclarkite-(Y) is a rare mineral which was known as UK-93 until 1997, when it was renamed in honour of Thomas H. Clark (1893–1996), McGill University professor. The mineral is one of many rare-earth element minerals from Mont Saint-Hilaire. The only reported occurrence is in an alkalic pegmatite dike in an intrusive gabbro-nepheline syenite.
Bazzite is a beryllium scandium cyclosilicate mineral with chemical formula Be3Sc2Si6O18. It crystallizes in the hexagonal crystal system typically as small blue hexagonal crystals up to 2 cm length. It has a Mohs hardness of 6.5–7 and a specific gravity of 2.77 to 2.85.
Betafite is a mineral group in the pyrochlore supergroup, with the chemical formula (Ca,U)2(Ti,Nb,Ta)2O6(OH). Betafite typically occurs as a primary mineral in granite pegmatites, rarely in carbonatites. Originally defined by the B-site atom Ti, the development of new nomenclature for mineral names led to modernization of the system for nomenclature of pyrochlore and betafite in order to further rationalize the naming process of this grouping of minerals. Only two of the mineral species that were formerly recognized as betafite are presently retained. They are oxyuranobetafite and oxycalciobetafite. The term betafite is now a synonym or varietal group name under the pyrochlore super group.
Ancylite is a group of hydrous strontium carbonate minerals containing cerium, lanthanum and minor amounts of other rare-earth elements. The chemical formula is Sr(Ce,La)(CO3)2(OH)·H2O with ancylite-Ce enriched in cerium and ancylite-La in lanthanum.
Alluaudite is a relatively common alkaline manganese iron phosphate mineral with the chemical formula (Na,Ca)Mn2+(Fe3+,Mn2+,Fe2+,Mg)2(PO4)3. It occurs as metasomatic replacement in granitic pegmatites and within phosphatic nodules in shales.
Cyrilovite (NaFe33+(PO4)2(OH)4·2(H2O)) is a hydrous sodium iron phosphate mineral. It is isomorphous and isostructural with wardite, the sodium aluminium counterpart.
Stillwellite-(Ce) is a rare-earth boro-silicate mineral with chemical formula (Ce,La,Ca)BSiO5.
Narsarsukite is a rare silicate mineral with either the chemical formula Na2(Ti,Fe3+)Si4(O,F)11 or Na4(Ti,Fe)4[Si8O20](O,OH,F)4.
Ixiolite is an accessory oxide mineral found in granitic pegmatites. It is an oxide with the general chemical formula (Ta,Nb,Sn,Mn,Fe)4O8 or (Ta,Mn,Nb)O2.
Scandiobabingtonite was first discovered in the Montecatini granite quarry near Baveno, Italy in a pegmatite cavity. Though found in pegmatites, the crystals of scandiobabingtonite are sub-millimeter sized, and are tabular shaped. Scandiobabingtonite was the sixth naturally occurring mineral discovered with the rare earth element scandium, and grows around babingtonite, with which it is isostructural, hence the namesake. It is also referred to as scandian babingtonite. The ideal chemical formula for scandiobabingtonite is Ca2(Fe2+,Mn)ScSi5O14(OH).
Mogovidite is a very rare mineral of the eudialyte group, with formula Na9(Ca,Na)6Ca6(Fe3+,Fe2+)2Zr3[]Si(Si9O27)2(Si3O9)2(CO3)(OH,H2O)4. The formula given is based on the original one but extended to show the presence of cyclic silicate groups. It is similar to feklichevite, differing from it in the presence of essential vacancies and carbonate group. Another specific feature is the dominance of ferric iron – a feature shared with other eudialyte-group members, including feklichevite, fengchengite, golyshevite and ikranite. Similarly to golyshevite, it is calcium-dominant, however on three sites: M(1), N(3) and N(4). It has a molecular mass of 3,066.24 gm.