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Annabergite
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Discovered in 1852; IMA status: Valid (pre-IMA; Grandfathered)
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Chemistry
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Chemical
Formula: |
Ni3(AsO4)2
•
8H2O |
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Hydrated
Nickel Arsenate |
Molecular
Weight: |
598.03 gm
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Composition: |
Nickel |
29.44 % |
Ni |
41.48 % |
Ni2O3 |
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Arsenic |
25.06 % |
As |
38.43 % |
As2O5 |
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Hydrogen |
2.70 % |
H |
24.10 % |
H2O |
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Oxygen |
42.81 % |
O |
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100.00 % |
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104.01 % |
= TOTAL OXIDE |
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Classification
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Mineral
Classification: |
Arsenates
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Strunz 8th
Ed. ID:
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7/C.13-80
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Nickel-Strunz 10th
Ed. ID:
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8.CE.40
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8 : PHOSPHATES, ARSENATES, VANADATES
C : Phosphates without additional anions, with H2O
E : With only medium-sized cations, RO4:H2O about 1:2.5
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Related
to: |
Vivianite Group. Annabergite-Erythrite Series.
The nickel analogue of Erythrite.
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Members
of Group: |
Vivianite
Group:
Annabergite,
Arupite, Babánekite, Barićite, Erythrite, Hörnesite,
Köttigite, Manganohörnesite, Pakhomovskyite,
Parasymplesite, Vivianite
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Varieties: |
Calcian Annabergite,
Cobaltoan Magnesian Annabergite, Magnesian Annabergite,
Zincian Annabergite
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Synonyms: |
Arsenate of Nickel,
Cordillerite, Nickel Bloom, Nickel Green, Nickel Ocher,
Nickelocker
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Crystal
Data
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Crystallography:
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Monoclinic - Prismatic
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Crystal
Habit:
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Rare
crystals, typically poorly formed, elongated along [001],
flattened on [010], with {001}, {010}, {100}, several
modifying forms, to 5 mm; usually as fibrous veinlets,
crystalline crusts, or earthy.
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Twinning:
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None
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Physical
Properties
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Cleavage: |
Perfect
on {010}; indistinct on {100}, {102}; translation gliding
on T{010}, t[001]
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Fracture: |
Irregular/Uneven
Conchoidal
Fibrous Hackly Micaceous None observed Splintery Step-like
Sub-Conchoidal
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Tenacity:
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Sectile;
flexible in thin {010} laminae
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Moh's
Hardness: |
1.5
- 2.5; softest on {010}
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Density:
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3.07 (g/cm3)
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Luminescence:
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None
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Radioactivity:
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Not
Radioactive
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Optical
Properties
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Color: |
Apple
green, light grey to light apple green, white; pale rose red when rich in cobalt.
Color
may be light pink or light rose at Co:Ni ~ 1:1 (50-50 rule), then
becomes white or gray, pale green, and apple-green in the Annabergite
end of the series. May be zoned.
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Transparency: |
Transparent to
translucent |
Luster: |
Sub-Adamantine;
pearly
on {010} cleavages, may be dull or earthy when massive
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Refractive
Index: |
1.622
- 1.687 usually Biaxial
(+), may be Biaxial (–)
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Birefringence: |
0.065
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Dispersion: |
Relatively weak,
r > v |
Pleochroism: |
None |
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Occurances
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Geological
Setting: |
An
uncommon secondary mineral, formed by the alteration
of Co–Ni-bearing arsenides and sulfides, in the oxidized
zone of hydrothermal mineral deposits. |
Common
Associations: |
Erythrite,
Retgersite, Gersdorffite, Nickeline, Maucherite, Nickel-Skutterudite
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Common
Impurities: |
Co,
Mg, Ca, Zn, Fe |
Type
Locality: |
Teichgräber Flacher vein,
Teichgräber deep adit, Kippenhain Mine (Kippenhayn Mine),
Schreckenberg, Frohnau, Annaberg-Buchholz, Annaberg District,
Erzgebirge, Saxony, Germany |
Year
Discovered: |
1852
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View
mineral photos: |
Annabergite
Mineral Photos and Locations |
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More
Information
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Mindat.org
Webmineral.com
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Annabergite
is a member of the Vivianite Group of minerals that
includes
Annabergite, Erythrite
and Vivianite among
others. Annabergite is often found in beautiful shades
of bright, apple green. This characteristic color is easily noticed and was used by
miners to spot veins of nickel-bearing ore.
Annabergite is a product of weathering nickel. Where weathered cobalt and nickel
ores are found both Annabergite and Erythrite are often
used to spot veins of the two ores. Annabergite has
been call "Nickel Bloom" by miners referring
to its bright green crystals. Similarly, Erythrite is
often called "Cobalt Bloom" for its bright
reddish-purple crystals. Annabergite is isostructural with Erythrite.
Isostructural means that the two minerals have the same structure but different chemistries.
Well
developed Annabergite crystals are fairly rare as it
is usually found as fibrous veinlets or crystalline
crusts. Specimens are very attractive with the bright
green color and associated minerals such as metallic
Gersdorffite. When crystals are found they are far too
small for faceting. The picture above shows a faceted
Gersdorffite
gem with a vein of Annabergite running through
it.
Annabergite
was named by Henry J. Brooke and William Hallowes Miller in 1852 after the type locality, Annaberg, Saxony, Germany.
Annabergite
distribution: many
localities, but typically in small amounts. In Germany,
from Annaberg and Schneeberg, Saxony; at Richelsdorf,
Hesse. From Dobšiná (Dobschau), Slovakia.
At Leogang, Salzburg, Austria. In the Sierra Cabrera,
Almería Province, and at Molvizar, Granada Province,
Spain. In England, in the Dolcoath mine, Cornwall; from
the Coniston mines, Coniston, Cumbria. At Strathclyde
and Galloway, Leadhills-Wanlockhead district, Scotland.
Fine examples from the Kamariza, Plaka, and Verzekos
mines, and along the road to Laurium, Greece. From the
Bou Azzer district, Morocco. In the Tchah Shurch, and
at the Talmessi mine, Anarak district, Iran. At the
La Sorpresa mine, Tapacari, Cochabamba, Bolivia. In
the Gloria mine, Alisito, Sinaloa, Mexico. In the USA,
at the Ore Hill mine, Pacoima Canyon, Los Angeles County,
and in the Kalkar quarry, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County,
California; from the Nickel and Lovelock mines, Table
Mountain district, Churchill County, Nevada; at the
Snowbird mine, Mineral County, Montana; and in the Alhambra
mine, Grant County, New Mexico. At Cobalt, Ontario,
Canada. In the 132 North deposit, Widgiemooltha district,
Western Australia, and at several localities in the
Flinders Ranges, South Australia. From the Horai mine,
Hyogo Prefecture, and at Kuchisaka, Osaka Prefecture,
Japan.
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