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| Wardite
is named after Henry Augustus Ward (1834-1906), Professor of Natural Sciences,
University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, USA. He was also a
collector and founder of Ward's Natural Science Establishment in
Rochester, which deals in natural history objects.
| Discovered
in 1896;
IMA
status: Valid (pre-IMA; Grandfathered). |
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Chemistry
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Chemical
Formula: |
NaAl3(PO4)2(OH)4·2(H2O) |
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Hydrated Sodium Aluminum Phosphate Hydroxide |
Molecular
Weight: |
397.94 gm |
Composition: |
Sodium |
5.78 %
|
Na
|
7.79 %
|
Na2O
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Aluminum |
20.37 %
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Al
|
38.43 %
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Al2O3
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Phosphorus |
15.57 %
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P
|
35.67 %
|
P2O5
|
Hydrogen |
2.03 % |
H |
18.11 % |
H2O |
Oxygen |
56.29 % |
O |
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|
|
100.00 % |
|
100.00 % |
= TOTAL OXIDE |
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Classification
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Mineral
Classification: |
Phosphates
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Strunz 8th
Ed. ID:
|
7/D.51-10
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Nickel-Strunz 10th
Ed. ID:
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8.DL.10 |
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8 : PHOSPHATES, ARSENATES, VANADATES D : Phosphates, etc. with additional anions, with H2O L : With large and medium-sized cations, (OH, etc.):RO4 = 2:1
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Related
to: |
Wardite
Group. Wardite - Millisite Series.
|
Synonyms: |
Soumansite
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Crystal
Data
|
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Crystallography:
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Tetragonal
- Trapezohedral
|
Crystal
Habit:
|
Crystals dipyramidal, pseudo-octahedral, exhibiting forms {010}, {011},
{012}, {100}, and rarely {001}. Commonly striated perpendicular to
[001]. Granular aggregates and crusts; subparallel aggregates of coarse
fibers; radially-fibrous and concentrically banded spherulites.
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Twinning:
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None
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Physical
Properties
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Cleavage: |
[001]
Perfect
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Tenacity:
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Brittle
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Moh's
Hardness: |
5.0
|
Density:
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2.81
- 2.87 (g/cm3)
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Luminescence:
|
None |
Radioactivity:
|
Not
Radioactive
|
Other: |
Completely soluble in acids with difficulty.
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Optical
Properties
|
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Color: |
White,
Colorless, pale Green, Blue-Green, Yellow-Green, pale
Yellow, Brown; Colorless in transmitted light
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Transparency: |
Transparent
to Translucent
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Luster: |
Vitreous
|
Refractive
Index: |
1.586
- 1.604 Uniaxial ( + )
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Birefringence: |
0.0090
- 0.0100
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Pleochroism: |
None
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Occurances
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Geological
Setting: |
A
component of low-temperature phosphatic nodules; an
uncommon species in complex zoned pegmatites. |
Common
Associations: |
Crandallite,
Millisite, Variscite (Little Green Monster mine, Utah,
USA); Eosphorite, Fairfieldite, Ferrisicklerite, Hydroxyl-Herderite,
Mitridatite, Montgomeryite, Roscherite, Siderite, Whitlockite
(pegmatites). |
Type
Locality: |
Clay Canyon, Fairfield, Oquirrh Mts, Utah Co., Utah, USA |
Year
Discovered: |
1896 |
View
mineral photos: |
Wardite
Mineral Photos and Locations |
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More
Information
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|
|
Mindat.org Webmineral.com
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|
Wardite
is a rare, little known and unusual Phosphate
mineral. Unusual in that it is one of only a few minerals
that is known to belong to the tetragonal
- trapezohedral class. Two of the other gem type
minerals in this class are Ekanite
and Mellite.
Massive green Wardite is commonly associated with Variscite nodules
in Utah, USA.
There
a several localities for finding Wardite but only a
few that could produce gem quality crystals. These include
the Feldspar quarry, Wolfsberg Mt., Spittal, Millstatt lake ridge, Carinthia, Austria;
Ilha claim (Lavra da Ilha), Taquaral, Itinga, Jequitinhonha valley, Minas Gerais, Southeast Region, Brazil;
Rapid Creek, Dawson Mining District, Yukon Territory, Canada;
the Little Green Monster mine, Clay Canyon, about nine
km west of Fairfield, Utah County, Utah, USA; Palermo No. 1 Mine (Palermo #1 pegmatite), Groton, Grafton County, New Hampshire, USA.
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Wardite
gems for sale:
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have not photographed our Wardite gems. Please
check back soon.
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