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Gajardoite, KCa0.5As3+4O6Cl2·5H2O, a new mineral related to lucabindiite and torrecillasite from the Torrecillas mine, Iquique Province, Chile

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Anthony R. Kampf ,
Barbara P. Nash ,
Maurizio Dini  and
Arturo Molina A. Donoso
Anthony R. Kampf*
Affiliation:
Mineral Sciences Department, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA
Barbara P. Nash
Affiliation:
Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112, USA
Maurizio Dini
Affiliation:
Pasaje San Agustin 4045, La Serena, Chile
Arturo Molina A. Donoso
Affiliation:
Los Algarrobos 2986, Iquique, Chile
*
*E-mail: akampf@nhm.org
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Abstract

The new mineral gajardoite (IMA2015-040), KCa0.5As3+4O6Cl2·5H2O, was found at the Torrecillas mine, Iquique Province, Chile, where it occurs as a secondary alteration phase in association with native arsenic, arsenolite,chongite, talmessite and torrecillasite. Gajardoite occurs as hexagonal plates up to ∼100 μm in diameter and 5 μm thick, in rosette-like subparallel intergrowths. Crystals are transparent, with vitreous lustre and white streak. The Mohs hardness is ∼1½, tenacity is brittleand fracture is irregular. Cleavage is perfect on {001}. The measured density is 2.64 g/cm3 and the calculated density is 2.676 g/cm3. Optically, gajardoite is uniaxial (–) with ω = 1.780(3) and ε = 1.570(5) (measured in white light). The mineral is very slowly soluble in H2O and slowly soluble in dilute HCl at room temperature. The empirical formula, determined from electron-microprobe analyses, is (K0.77Ca0.71Na0.05Mg0.05)∑1.58As4O11Cl1.96H9.62.Gajardoite is hexagonal, P6/mmm, a = 5.2558(8), c = 15.9666(18) Å, V = 381.96(13) Å3 and Z = 1. The eight strongest powder X-ray diffraction lines are [dobs Å(I)(hkl)]: 16.00(100)(001), 5.31(48)(003),3.466 (31)(103), 3.013(44)(104), 2.624(51)(006,110,111), 2.353(36)(113), 1.8647(21)(116,205) and 1.4605(17) (119,303,216). The structure, refined to R1 = 3.49% for 169 Fo > 4σF reflections, contains two types of layers. One layer of formulaKAs3+4O6Cl2 consists of two neutral As2O3 sheets, between which are K+ cations and on the outside of which are Cl– anions. This layer is topologically identical to a slice of the lucabindiite structureand similar to a slice of the torrecillasite structure. The second layer consists of an edge-sharing sheet of Ca(H2O)6 trigonal pyramids with isolated H2O groups centred in the hexagonal cavities in the sheet.

Keywords

gajardoitenew mineralarsenitecrystal structurelucabindiitetorrecillasiteTorrecillas mineChile
Type
Research Article
Information
Mineralogical Magazine , Volume 80 , Issue 7 , December 2016 , pp. 1265 - 1272
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2016

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