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| Goosecreekite
is named for the type locality, the New Goose Creek
Quarry (Luck Company Quarry), Leesburg, Loudoun County,
Virginia, USA.
| Discovered
in 1980;
IMA
status: Valid (IMA approved). |
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Chemistry
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Chemical
Formula: |
CaAl2Si6O16
·
5(H2O) |
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Hydrated Calcium Aluminum Silicate |
Molecular
Weight: |
608.62 gm |
Composition: |
Calcium |
6.59 %
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Ca
|
9.21 %
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CaO
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Aluminum |
8.87 %
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Al
|
16.75 %
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Al2O3
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Silicon |
27.69 % |
Si |
59.23 % |
SiO2 |
Hydrogen |
1.66 % |
H |
14.80 % |
H2O |
Oxygen |
55.20 % |
O |
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|
100.00 % |
|
100.00 % |
= TOTAL OXIDE |
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Classification
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Mineral
Classification: |
Silicates (Germanates)
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Strunz 8th
Ed. ID:
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8/J.23-60
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Nickel-Strunz 10th
Ed. ID:
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9.GB.25 |
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9.GB.25 9 : SILICATES (Germanates) G : Tektosilicates with zeolitic H2O; zeolite family B : Chains of single connected 4-membered rings
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Related
to: |
Zeolite
Group. Heulandite - Barium-Brewsterite Series.
Dimorphous with Epistilbite.
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Crystal
Data
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Crystallography:
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Monoclinic
- Sphenoidal
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Crystal
Habit:
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As
equant euhedral crystals, highly curved, to 4 cm; in
polycrystalline aggregates.
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Twinning:
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None
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Physical
Properties
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Cleavage: |
[010]
Perfect
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Fracture: |
Irregular/Uneven
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Tenacity:
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Brittle
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Moh's
Hardness: |
4.5
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Density:
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2.21 (g/cm3)
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Luminescence:
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None |
Radioactivity:
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Not
Radioactive
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Optical
Properties
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Color: |
Colorless,
White
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Transparency: |
Transparent
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Luster: |
Vitreous
to Pearly on crystal faces
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Refractive
Index: |
1.495
- 1.502 Biaxial ( - )
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Birefringence: |
0.007
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Dispersion: |
Relatively
Weak
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Pleochroism: |
None
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Occurances
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Geological
Setting: |
A
late-stage mineral in vugs and fractures in a Triassic
diabase (Goose Creek Quarry, Virginia, USA); in cavities
in basalt (Nasik, India). |
Common
Associations: |
Actinolite,
Albite, Apophyllite, Babingtonite, Chlorite, Epidote,
Prehnite, Quartz, Stilbite, Titanite (Goose Creek quarry,
Virginia, USA); Quartz (Nasik, India). |
Type
Locality: |
New Goose Creek Quarry (Luck Company Quarry), Leesburg, Loudoun Co., Virginia, USA |
Year
Discovered: |
1980 |
View
mineral photos: |
Goosecreekite
Mineral Photos and Locations |
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More
Information
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|
Mindat.org Webmineral.com
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Goosecreekite
is one of the rarest
of the Zeolite
Group of minerals that includes
over 40 minerals and these gem-type minerals: Analcime,
Barrerite,
Chabazite, Epistilbite,
Gmelinite-Na, Goosecreekite,
Mordenite,
Natrolite,
Pollucite,
Scolecite, Stellerite,
Stilbite,
Thomsonite and Yugawaralite.
Goosecreekite
is one of the most unusually named minerals. It is named
after the New Goose Creek Quarry in Loudoun County,
Virginia, USA. Goosecreekite is found in the vesicles
or bubbles of volcanic rock as are most other Zeolites.
Goosecreekite is a very rare mineral and extremely rare
as a faceted gem.
Goosecreekite
is found in only three locations: the type locality
at the New Goose Creek Quarry, Leesburg, Loudoun County,
Virginia, USA; exceptional crystals are found at the
Pandulena Quarry, Nasik, Maharashtra, India; and the
OberbaumÄuhle Quarry, Windischeschenbach, Bavaria, Germany.
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Goosecreekite
gems for sale:
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