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Buryatite
A valid IMA mineral species
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About Buryatite
Flag of the Republic of Buryatia
Formula:
Ca3(Si,Fe3+,Al)(SO4)B(OH)4(OH,O)6 · 12H2O
Colour:
Light gray with lilac tint
Lustre:
Dull
Hardness:
2½
Specific Gravity:
1.895 (Calculated)
Crystal System:
Trigonal
Member of:
Name:
Named for the Republic of Buryatia, that includes the type locality. Buryatia lies mostly on the east side of Lake Baikal in the Russian Far East.
Unique Identifiers
Mindat ID:
11186
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:1:11186:1
Similar Names
| Buratite | A synonym of Aurichalcite |
IMA Classification of Buryatite
Approved
IMA Formula:
Ca3(Si,Fe3+,Al)S6+O4B(OH)4(OH,O)6·12H2O
Approval year:
2000
First published:
2001
Classification of Buryatite
7.DG.15
7 : SULFATES (selenates, tellurates, chromates, molybdates, wolframates)
D : Sulfates (selenates, etc.) with additional anions, with H2O
G : With large and medium-sized cations; with NO3, CO3, B(OH)4, SiO4 or IO3
7 : SULFATES (selenates, tellurates, chromates, molybdates, wolframates)
D : Sulfates (selenates, etc.) with additional anions, with H2O
G : With large and medium-sized cations; with NO3, CO3, B(OH)4, SiO4 or IO3
Mineral Symbols
As of 2021 there are now IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols (abbreviations) for each mineral species, useful for tables and diagrams.
Please only use the official IMA–CNMNC symbol. Older variants are listed for historical use only.
Please only use the official IMA–CNMNC symbol. Older variants are listed for historical use only.
| Symbol | Source | Reference for Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Buy | IMA–CNMNC | Warr, L.N. (2021). IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine, 85(3), 291-320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43 |
| Bur | The Canadian Mineralogist (2019) | The Canadian Mineralogist (2019) The Canadian Mineralogist list of symbols for rock- and ore-forming minerals (December 30, 2019). download |
Physical Properties of Buryatite
Dull
Transparency:
Transparent, Translucent
Colour:
Light gray with lilac tint
Streak:
White
Hardness:
2½ on Mohs scale
Cleavage:
Perfect
Density:
1.895(10) g/cm3 (Calculated)
Optical Data of Buryatite
Type:
Uniaxial (-)
RI values:
nω = 1.523(3) nε = 1.532(3)
Max. Birefringence:
δ = 0.009
Based on recorded range of RI values above.
Based on recorded range of RI values above.
Interference Colours:
The colours simulate birefringence patterns seen in thin section under crossed polars. They do not take into account mineral colouration or opacity.
Michel-Levy Bar The default colours simulate the birefringence range for a 30 µm thin-section thickness. Adjust the slider to simulate a different thickness.
Grain Simulation You can rotate the grain simulation to show how this range might look as you rotated a sample under crossed polars. Each grain retains its interference colour (retardation) while its brightness falls to black at extinction and reaches a maximum between extinction positions.
The colours simulate birefringence patterns seen in thin section under crossed polars. They do not take into account mineral colouration or opacity.
Michel-Levy Bar The default colours simulate the birefringence range for a 30 µm thin-section thickness. Adjust the slider to simulate a different thickness.
Grain Simulation You can rotate the grain simulation to show how this range might look as you rotated a sample under crossed polars. Each grain retains its interference colour (retardation) while its brightness falls to black at extinction and reaches a maximum between extinction positions.
Surface Relief:
Low (negative)
Relative to Canada balsam mounting medium (n ≈ 1.537).
Relative to Canada balsam mounting medium (n ≈ 1.537).
This shows the grain boundary and Becke line effect under plane-polarised
light, based on the contrast between this mineral's average refractive
index and the mounting medium. It does not take into account mineral
colouration.
In focus
Interference Figure:
This shows the idealized uniaxial interference figure - the conoscopic
(convergent-light, Bertrand-lens-in) view, for a grain cut with the optic axis
centred and vertical. The coloured rings are isochromatics, computed with the
same physics as the Michel-Lévy bar above; the dark cross is the isogyre.
For a genuinely uniaxial mineral viewed this way, that cross stays perfectly stationary if you rotate the stage - unlike a biaxial mineral, where it splits apart on rotation. That invariance is itself the standard diagnostic test for telling uniaxial and biaxial minerals apart at the microscope.
For a genuinely uniaxial mineral viewed this way, that cross stays perfectly stationary if you rotate the stage - unlike a biaxial mineral, where it splits apart on rotation. That invariance is itself the standard diagnostic test for telling uniaxial and biaxial minerals apart at the microscope.
Pleochroism:
Non-pleochroic
Solongo B deposit, Ozernoe ore cluster, Yeravninsky District, Buryatia, Russia