Bismuthinite
| Bismuthinite | |
|---|---|
| Category | Sulfide mineral |
| Chemical formula | Bi2S3 |
| Identification | |
| Color | Lead-gray to tin-white, with a yellowish or iridescent tarnish. |
| Crystal habit | Slender prismatic to acicular, massive lamellar |
| Crystal system | Orthorhombic - Dipyramidal 2/m 2/m 2/m |
| Cleavage | [010] Perfect |
| Fracture | Brittle - sectile |
| Mohs Scale hardness | 2 |
| Luster | Metallic |
| Optical Properties | Opaque |
| Streak | Lead grey |
| Specific gravity | 6.8 - 7.2 |
| References | [1][2][3] |
Bismuthinite is a mineral consisting of bismuth sulfide (Bi2S3). It is an important ore for bismuth. The crystals are steel-grey to off-white with a metallic luster. It is soft enough to be scratched with a fingernail and rather dense.
Bismuthinite forms a series with the lead, copper, bismuth mineral aikinite (PbCuBiS3).[3]
It occurs in hydrothermal veins with tourmaline-bearing copper veins associated with granite, in some high temperature gold veins, and in recent volcanic exhalation deposits. Associated minerals include native bismuth, aikinite, arsenopyrite, stannite, galena, pyrite, chalcopyrite, tourmaline, wolframite, cassiterite and quartz.[1]
It was first reported in 1832 from the mines of Potosí, Bolivia.[2]
References
- a b http://rruff.geo.arizona.edu/doclib/hom/bismuthinite.pdf Mineral Handbook
- a b http://webmineral.com/data/Bismuthinite.shtml Webmineral Site
- a b http://www.mindat.org/min-686.html Mindat mineral data
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia; from the article "Bismuthinite". Image Credit.
