Miguelromeroite Explained

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Imasymbol:Mig[1]
System:Monoclinic
Class:Prismatic
H-M symbol: 2/m
Symmetry:B2/b
Unit Cell:1,624.38
Color:Salmon pink to orange
Twinning:None observed
Cleavage:Good on
Fracture:Conchoidal
Mohs:4
Luster:Vitreous
Opticalprop:Biaxial (−)
Refractive:nα = 1.713
nβ = 1.723
nγ = 1.729
Birefringence:0.016
Pleochroism:Visible
2V:Measured: 70°
Calculated: 75°
Streak:Pale pink
Density:3.69
Diaphaneity:Transparent

Miguelromeroite is a mineral named for Miguel Romero Sanchez by Anthony Robert Kampf. The mineral, first described in 2008[2] was named in 2009, the same year it got approved by the International Mineralogical Association.

Properties

Miguelromeroite is a member of the hureaulite group, and is the magnesium analogue of the mineral sainfeldite. It is known as a synthetic compound,[3] and was originally labeled as villyaellenite due to the very rare complex arsenate microcrystals. It shows pleochroic attributes, which is an optical phenomenon that makes gems to be seen a different color depending on the axis it is being inspected. Viewing it from the Z axis, the mineral can be seen in a pale pink color. It was redefined as an intermediate species of the series. It is the full magnesium endmember of the series. Crystals are up to 4 cms in length, and are elongated on [001] with forms, and .

Structure

The mineral's structure is defined by an octahedral edge-sharing pentamer. The pentamers are linked into a loose framework by sharing corners with octahedra in adjacent pentamers and they are further linked through AsO4 and AsO3OH tetrahedra. There are three distinct octahedral sites: M1, M2, and M3. In miguelromeroite's structure, all of the octahedral sites are occupied by magnesium and the average bond lengths for the sites fall within a relatively narrow range. Though the differences in the sites suggest that the sites M2 and M3 contain small amounts of zinc and calcium.[4]

Mines

The samples were from the Veta Negra mine in Chile. Other mines include Gozaisho mine in Honshu island, Japan, and Mina Ojuela in Mapimi, Durango, Mexico. It's a type locality only in these three mines.

Notes and References

  1. Warr. L.N.. 2021. IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine. 85. 3 . 291–320. 10.1180/mgm.2021.43 . 2021MinM...85..291W . 235729616 . free.
  2. Web site: Minerals. Dakota Matrix. Miguelromeroite mineral information and data. 2021-08-09. www.dakotamatrix.com. en.
  3. Web site: Miguelromeroite. 2021-08-09. www.mindat.org.
  4. R. Kampf. Anthony. Miguelromeroite, the Mn analogue of sainfeldite, and redefinition of villyaellenite as an ordered intermediate in the sainfeldite-miguelromeroite series. American Mineralogist. 2009. 94. 11–12. 1535–1540. 10.2138/am.2009.3278. 2009AmMin..94.1535K. 97734557.