Brochantite (inclusions in Quartz)
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Brochantite was named in 1824 by Serve-Dieu Abailard "Armand" Lévy in honor of André-Jean-François-Marie Brochant de Villiers (1772-1840), French geologist and mineralogist.

Discovered in 1824; IMA status: Valid (pre-IMA; Grandfathered)

Chemistry

Chemical Formula:

Cu₄(SO₄)(OH)₆

Copper Sulfate Hydroxide

Molecular Weight:

452.29 gm

Composition:

Copper

56.20 %

Cu

70.35 %

CuO

Hydrogen

1.34 %

H

11.95 %

H₂O

Sulfur

7.09 %

S

17.70 %

SO₃

Oxygen

35.37 %

O

100.00 %

100.00 %

= TOTAL OXIDE

Classification

Mineral Classification:

Sulfates

Strunz 8th Ed. ID:

6/B.01-30

Nickel-Strunz 10th Ed. ID:

7.BB.25

7 : SULFATES (selenates, tellurates, chromates, molybdates, wolframates)
B : Sulfates (selenates, etc.) with additional anions, without H₂O
B : With medium-sized cations

Related to:

Two polytypes, both monoclinic, are known

Varieties:

None

Synonyms:

Blanchardite, Brogniartine (of Huot), ICSD 64688, IMA1980-s.p., Kamarezite, Koenigine, Königine, Konigite, PDF 43-1488, Waringtonite

Crystal Data

Crystallography:

Monoclinic - Prismatic

Crystal Habit:

Crystals are typically thick prismatic to acicular, elongated along [001] or [010], to 5 cm; may be flattened [001]; about 40 forms known; in aggregates, druses, crusts, also massive, granular.

Twinning:

On {100} with composition surface {100}, common. The twinned crystals are often symmetrical and pseudo-orthorhombic in appearance.

Physical Properties

Cleavage:

Perfect on {100}

Fracture:

Irregular/Uneven, Conchoidal

Tenacity:

Brittle

Moh's Hardness:

3.5 - 4.0

Density:

3.97 (g/cm³)

Luminescence:

None

Radioactivity:

Not Radioactive

Other:

Soluble in acids

Optical Properties

Color:

Emerald-green, blackish green, pale green; bluish green in transmitted light

Transparency:

Transparent to translucent

Luster:

Vitreous, somewhat pearly on cleavages

Refractive Index:

1.728 - 1.800  Biaxial ( - )

Birefringence:

0.072

Dispersion:

Medium; r < v

Pleochroism:

Weak; Slight in shades of bluish green

Occurances

Geological Setting:

Common in the oxidized zone of copper deposits, yet rarely an ore; formed under low acidity, principally in arid regions.

Common Associations:

Malachite, Azurite, Tenorite, Cuprite, Linarite, Caledonite, Cerussite, Atacamite, Chrysocolla, Cyanotrichite, iron oxides

Common Impurities:

n/a

Type Locality:

Mednorudyanskoye Cu Deposit, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovskaya Oblast', Middle Urals, Urals Region, Russia

Year Discovered:

1824

View mineral photos:

Brochantite Mineral Photos and Locations

More Information

Mindat.org
Webmineral.com

Brochantite is a common secondary copper sulfate hydroxide mineral. It typically forms as acicular or fibrous crystals aggregated into randomly arranged coatings and tufts. It is also rarely found as acicular inclusions in Quartz. Brochantite may also be found as pseudomorphs after Azurite, Malachite and Langite or altered to Chrysocolla. Brochantite is found in shades of emerald-green, blackish green or pale green with vitreous luster.

Brochantite was named in 1824 by Serve-Dieu Abailard "Armand" Lévy in honor of André-Jean-François-Marie Brochant de Villiers (1772-1840), French geologist and mineralogist.

Brochantite distribution: In Russia, from the Mednorudyanskoye copper deposit, near Nizhni Tagil, and at Gumeshevsk, southwest of Yekaterinburg (Sverdlovsk), Ural Mountains. At Băiţa Mining District (Baita Bihor; Rézbánya), Romania. From Rosas and Sa Duchessa, Sardinia, Italy. In Germany, at the Clara mine, near Oberwolfach, Black Forest. In England, numerous occurrences in Cornwall, and at Roughton Gill, Cumbria. From Tsumeb, Namibia. At Aïn-Barbar, Constantine, Algeria. In Australia, at Broken Hill, New South Wales. From many occurrences in Chile, as at Chuquicamata and Collahuasi, Antofagasta; from Potrerillos, Atacama; and at Challacollo, Tarapacá. In the USA, in Arizona, large crystals from Bisbee, Cochise County, and at the Mammoth-St. Anthony mine, Tiger, Pinal County; in the Mammoth mine, Tintic, Juab County, Utah; at Bingham, Socorro County, New Mexico; from the Cerro Gordo mine, Inyo County, California; in the Douglas Hill and Mason Pass mines, Yerington district, Lyon County, Nevada. Many other localities are known.
 

  
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