Schüllerite
Schullerite is an orange to brown phosphate mineral rarely found in volcanic fumaroles. It forms small blocky grains primarily of interest to micro mineral and volcanic mineral collectors.
Information about Schullerite
Schullerite is a very rare sodium barium magnesium titanium silicate mineral belonging to the heterophyllosilicate family – a group defined by their layered silicate structures in which silicon tetrahedra are linked into chains and sheets in more complex arrangements than the standard mica or clay structures.
It is known from only a very small number of localities, is primarily a micromount, and is of interest principally to specialists in Eifel mineralogy and in the crystal chemistry of titanium silicates. It is one of several minerals from this tight cluster of Eifel volcanic quarries that was named for a living amateur mineralogist, continuing a tradition of honouring field collectors at this exceptionally prolific district.
It forms tiny dark brown to reddish-brown platy to prismatic crystals, typically of sub-millimetre size, often as inclusions or intergrowths within other minerals in the calcium-rich xenoliths of the Eifel volcanic district.
Uses and History
Schullerite has no industrial or gemological applications. It is collected as a scientific specimen.
The mineral was first described in 2011 by Rastsvetaeva, Aksenov, and Chukanov, in a paper published in Doklady Chemistry. The crystal structure was revised in 2013 by Sokolova, Hawthorne, and Abdu in The Canadian Mineralogist, which corrected the formula to Na2Ba2Mg2Ti2(Si2O7)2O2F2. It was named in honour of Willi Schüller (born 1953), a German amateur mineralogist and collector, specialist in the mineralogy of the Eifel volcanic district, and author of numerous publications on Eifel minerals – an acknowledgement of the enormous contribution that informed amateur collectors have made to the documentation of this extraordinarily rich locality.
The sole confirmed localities are in the Eifel volcanic district of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, specifically the Lohley and Kahlenberg quarries – the same compact cluster of volcanological outcrops responsible for schullerite, ternesite, willhendersonite, vandermeerscheite, and zeophyllite found elsewhere on this site. No occurrences are recorded from any other country.
Mineralogy
Hazards and Warnings
No specific health risks have been formally recorded for schullerite. Mineral collectors should wash their hands after handling specimens as a matter of good practice.
Almost all rocks, minerals (and, frankly, almost all other substances on earth) can produce toxic dust when cutting, which can cause serious respiratory conditions including silicosis. When cutting or polishing rocks, minerals, shells, etc, all work should be done wet to minimise the dust, and a suitable respirator or extraction system should be used.
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