Nielson, H. P.; Buchwald, V. F. (1982) Roaldite, a new nitride in iron meteorites. 12th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston, Texas, Pergamon Pess. p.1343-1348.

Classification of RoalditeHide

Strunz-mindat (2026):

1.BC.05

1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
B : Metallic Carbides, Silicides, Nitrides, Phosphides and Hydrides
C : Nitrides

Dana 7th ed.:

1.1.27.2

Dana 8th ed.:

1.1.18.2

1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
1 : Metals, other than the Platinum Group

Hey's CIM Ref.:

2.12

2 : Carbides, Nitrides, Silicides and Phosphides

Mineral SymbolsHide

As of 2021 there are now IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols (abbreviations) for each mineral species, useful for tables and diagrams.

Symbol	Source	Reference for Standard
Roa	IMA–CNMNC	Warr, L.N. (2021). IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine, 85(3), 291-320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43

Physical Properties of RoalditeHide

Lustre:

Metallic

Colour:

Tin-white

Hardness:

5½ - 6½ on Mohs scale

Tenacity:

Malleable

Density:

7.21 g/cm³ (Calculated)

Comment:

synthetic

Chemistry of RoalditeHide

Mindat Formula:

(Fe,Ni)₄N

Element Weights:

Element	% weight
Fe	94.100 %
N	5.900 %

Calculated from ideal end-member formula.

Elements listed:

Fe, N, Ni - search for minerals with similar chemistry

Common Impurities:

Crystallography of RoalditeHide

Crystal System:

Isometric

Class (H-M):

m3m(4/m32/m) - Hexoctahedral

Space Group:

Pm3n

Cell Parameters:

a = 3.79(4) Å

Unit Cell V:

54.44 Å³ (Calculated from Unit Cell)

Comment:

synthetic Fe4N is P_43m

Crystal StructureHide

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Data courtesy of the American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database. Click on an AMCSD ID to view structure

ID	Species	Reference	Link	Year	Locality	Pressure (GPa)	Temp (K)
0005250	Roaldite	Bayliss P (1990) Revised unit cell dimensions, space group, and chemical formula of some metallic minerals The Canadian Mineralogist 28 751-755		1990	synthetic	0	293

CIF Raw Data - click here to close

data_global
_chemical_name_mineral 'Roaldite'
loop_
_publ_author_name
'Bayliss P'
_journal_name_full 'The Canadian Mineralogist'
_journal_volume 28 
_journal_year 1990
_journal_page_first 751
_journal_page_last 755
_publ_section_title
;
 Revised unit cell dimensions, space group,
 and chemical formula of some metallic minerals
 Note: Fe and N positions switched to match formula
 Note: cell edge taken from Handbook of Mineralogy
;
_database_code_amcsd 0005250
_chemical_compound_source 'Synthetic'
_chemical_formula_sum 'Fe4 N'
_cell_length_a 3.79
_cell_length_b 3.79
_cell_length_c 3.79
_cell_angle_alpha 90
_cell_angle_beta 90
_cell_angle_gamma 90
_cell_volume 54.440
_exptl_crystal_density_diffrn      7.241
_symmetry_space_group_name_H-M 'P -4 3 m'
loop_
_space_group_symop_operation_xyz
  'x,y,z'
  '-z,x,-y'
  '-y,z,-x'
  '-x,y,-z'
  'x,-z,-y'
  'z,-y,-x'
  'y,-x,-z'
  'x,z,y'
  'z,y,x'
  'y,x,z'
  '-z,-x,y'
  '-y,-z,x'
  '-x,-y,z'
  'z,-x,-y'
  'y,-z,-x'
  'x,-y,-z'
  '-x,z,-y'
  '-z,y,-x'
  '-y,x,-z'
  '-x,-z,y'
  '-z,-y,x'
  '-y,-x,z'
  'z,x,y'
  'y,z,x'
loop_
_atom_site_label
_atom_site_fract_x
_atom_site_fract_y
_atom_site_fract_z
Fe   0.26500   0.26500   0.26500
N   0.00000   0.00000   0.00000

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

Powder Diffraction Data:

d-spacing	Intensity
2.684 Å	(20)
2.191 Å	(100)
1.897 Å	(75)
1.342 Å	(65)
1.144 Å	(85)
1.095 Å	(40)
0.949 Å	(45)

Comments:

Synthetic.

Geological EnvironmentHide

Paragenetic Mode(s):

Paragenetic Mode	Earliest Age (Ga)
Stage 2: Planetesimal differentiation and alteration	4.566-4.550
5 : Primary asteroid phases	4.566–4.560

Type Occurrence of RoalditeHide

Type Locality:

ⓘ Youndegin meteorite, Bruce Rock Shire, Western Australia, Australia

General Appearance of Type Material:

As planar foils, to 2 µm thick but many mm long, forming bursts embedded in kamacite.

Place of Conservation of Type Material:

University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark, 1977,540.

Geological Setting of Type Material:

Iron meteorite

Associated Minerals at Type Locality:

Reference:

Nielson, H. P.; Buchwald, V. F. (1982) Roaldite, a new nitride in iron meteorites. 12th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, Houston, Texas, Pergamon Pess. p.1343-1348.

Synonyms of RoalditeHide

IMA1980-079

Other Language Names for RoalditeHide

Dutch:Roaldiet

German:Roaldit

Simplified Chinese:陨氮镍铁矿
罗氮铁矿

Spanish:Roaldita

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping Hide

1.BC.	Qingsongite	BN	Iso. 43m : F43m
1.BC.	'UM2007-16-N:Ti'	Ti₇N₃
1.BC.	Oreillyite	Cr₂N	Trig. 3m(32/m) : P31m
1.BC.10	Siderazot	FeN_x to Fe₃N_1.33	Hex. 622 : P6₃22
1.BC.15	Carlsbergite	CrN	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BC.15	Uakitite	VN	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BC.15	Osbornite	TiN	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BC.20	'UM2006-34-N:Ga'	GaN	Hex. 6mm : P6₃mc

Other InformationHide

Health Risks:

No information on health risks for this material has been entered into the database. You should always treat mineral specimens with care.

Internet Links for RoalditeHide

mindat.org URL:

https://www.mindat.org/min-3430.html
Please feel free to link to this page.

Search Engines:

Roaldite

Unique IdentifiersHide

IMA Classification of RoalditeHide