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Colemanite Mineral Data

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General Colemanite Information

Help on Chemical  Formula: Chemical Formula: Ca2B6O11•5(H2O)
Help on Composition: Composition: Molecular Weight = 411.09 gm
   Calcium   19.50 %  Ca   27.28 % CaO
   Boron     15.78 %  B    50.81 % B2O3
   Hydrogen   2.45 %  H    21.91 % H2O
   Oxygen    62.27 %  O
            ______        ______ 
            100.00 %      100.00 % = TOTAL OXIDE
Help on Empirical Formula: Empirical Formula: Ca2B6O11•5(H2O)
Help on Environment: Environment: Lacusterine limestone hosted borate deposits.
Help on IMA Status: IMA Status: Valid Species (Pre-IMA) 1884
Help on Locality: Locality: Furnace Creek district, Death Valley, Inyo Co. California. Link to MinDat.org Location Data.
Help on Name Origin: Name Origin: After William T. Coleman, owner of the Death Valley, California mine where this species was first found.
Help on Name Pronunciation: Name Pronunciation: Colemanite + Pronunciation Say COLEMANITE
Help on Synonym: Synonym: ICSD 75921
  Neocolmanite
  PDF 33-267
 

Colemanite Image

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  Colemanite

Comments: Coarsely crystalline colemanite, in part, covered with minute acicular crystals of strontianite.
Location: Boraxo #3 pit, Death Valley, California, USA. Scale: 30 cm.
© Dave Barthelmy

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  Colemanite

Comments: Large crystals of brown colemanite with second generation of absolutely clear and gemmy (colorless) colemanite. Intensely fluorescent in long and short UV..
Location: Mustafakemalpascha Mine, West-Anatolia Turkey. Scale: Crystal size: 1.3 x 1 cm.
© Fabre Minerals

Colemanite Crystallography

Help on Axial Ratios: Axial Ratios: a:b:c =0.7761:1:0.5417
Help on Cell Dimensions: Cell Dimensions: a = 8.743, b = 11.264, c = 6.102, Z = 2; beta = 110.116° V = 564.27 Den(Calc)= 2.42
Help on Crystal System: Crystal System: Monoclinic - Prismatic H-M Symbol (2/m) Space Group: P 21/a
Help on X Ray Diffraction: X Ray Diffraction: By Intensity(I/Io): 3.13(1), 3.85(0.5), 5.64(0.5),
Help on Forms: Forms:

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Drag1 - Manipulate Crystal
Drag2 - Resize

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I - Indicies
<space> - Start-Stop Rotation
F - Fit to Screen
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Help on Above

Forms: ( 1 2 1) ( 1 1 1) ( 1 0 0) ( 1 1 1) ( 1 1 0) ( 0 0 1)

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Physical Properties of Colemanite

Help on Cleavage: Cleavage: {010} Perfect, {001} Distinct
Help on Color: Color: Colorless, Gray, Gray white, Yellowish white, White.
Help on Density: Density: 2.42
Help on Diaphaneity: Diaphaneity: Transparent to translucent
Help on Fracture: Fracture: Brittle - Generally displayed by glasses and most non-metallic minerals.
Help on Habit: Habit: Blocky - Crystal shape tends to be equant (e.g. feldspars).
Help on Habit: Habit: Crystalline - Coarse - Occurs as well-formed coarse sized crystals.
Help on Habit: Habit: Massive - Granular - Common texture observed in granite and other igneous rock.
Help on Hardness: Hardness: 4.5 - Between Fluorite and Apatite
Help on Luminescence: Luminescence: Fluorescent, Short UV=yellow, blue white, Long UV=yellow, blue white.
Help on Luster: Luster: Vitreous (Glassy)
Help on Streak: Streak: white
 

Optical Properties of Colemanite

Help on Gladstone-Dale: Gladstone-Dale: CI meas= -0.024 (Excellent) - where the CI = (1-KPDmeas/KC)
CI calc= -0.024 (Excellent) - where the CI = (1-KPDcalc/KC)
KPDcalc= 0.2468,KPDmeas= 0.2468,KC= 0.241
Ncalc = 1.58
Help on Optical Data: Optical Data: Biaxial (+), a=1.586, b=1.592, g=1.614, bire=0.0280, 2V(Calc)=56, 2V(Meas)=55-56. Dispersion relatively weak.
 

Calculated Properties of Colemanite

Help on Electron Density: Electron Density: Bulk Density (Electron Density)=2.45 gm/cc
note: Specific Gravity of Colemanite =2.42 gm/cc.
Help on Fermion Index: Fermion Index: Fermion Index = 0.03
Boson Index = 0.97
Help on Photoelectric: Photoelectric: PEColemanite = 2.61 barns/electron
U=PEColemanite x rElectron Density= 6.38 barns/cc.
Help on Radioactivity: Radioactivity: GRapi = 0 (Gamma Ray American Petroleum Institute Units)
Colemanite is Not Radioactive
 

Colemanite Classification

Help on  Dana Class: Dana Class: 26.03.05.01 (26)Hydrated Borates Containing Hydroxyl or Halogen
  (26.03)Dana Type
  (26.03.05)Dana Group
 
26.03.05.01 Colemanite Ca2B6O11•5(H2O) P 21/a 2/m
Help on  Strunz Class: Strunz Class: 06.CB.10 06 - BORATES
  06.C - Triborates
  06.CB -Ino-triborates
 
06.CB.10 Colemanite Ca2B6O11•5(H2O) P 21/a 2/m
 

Other Colemanite Information

Help on References: References: NAME( Sinkankas66) PHYS. PROP.(Enc. of Minerals,2nd ed.,1990) OPTIC PROP.(Sinkankas66)
Help on See Also: See Also: Links to other databases for Colemanite :
1 - Am. Min. Crystal Structure Database
2 - Amethyst Galleries' Mineral Gallery
3 - Athena
4 - EUROmin Project
5 - Ecole des Mines de Paris
6 - GeoScienceWorld
7 - Glendale Community College
8 - Google Images
9 - Google Scholar
10 - Handbook of Mineralogy (MinSocAm)
11 - Handbook of Mineralogy (UofA)
12 - MinDAT
13 - Mineral and Gemstone Kingdom
14 - Mineralienatlas (Deutsch)
15 - Online Mineral Museum
16 - Philatelic Mineralogy
17 - QUT Mineral Atlas
18 - Ruff.Info
19 - WWW-MINCRYST

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Print or Cut-and-Paste your Colemanite Specimen Label here :

Colemanite

Ca2B6O11•5(H2O)
Dana No: 26.03.05.01 Strunz No: 06.CB.10
Locality:

 

Notes:

 

 
   
 


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