May 20 2014
Gilalite was discovered in 1980. It was named after the place where it was discovered originally: Gila County in Arizona, USA.
Properties of Gilalite
The key physical properties of Gilalite are as below:
- Cell Data
- a = 13.38
- b = 19.16
- c = 9.026
- Z = [4]
- Crystal Data
- Monoclinic
- Crystals – as spherules of radial fibers, to 0.3mm
- X-ray powder pattern: 13.4 (100), 7.786 (50), 4.790 (40), 3.897 (40), 10.97 (30), 6.684 (30), 3.315 (30)
- Chemical Composition
| Elements |
Content 1 |
Content 2 |
| SiO2 |
41.5 |
40.77 |
| MnO |
0.5 |
- |
| CuO |
36.2 |
44.97 |
| MgO |
2.3 |
- |
| CaO |
3.8 |
- |
| H2O |
14.6 |
14.26 |
- Optical Properties
- Transparent to translucent
- Lustre: non-metallic
- Color: chrysocolla-green, inclining to pale blue-green
- Optical Class: Biaxial (-)
- Estimated Properties
| Electron density |
Bulk density (electron density) = 2.77 g/cm3
note: Specific gravity of Gilalite = 2.82 g/cm3 |
| Photoelectric |
PEGilalite = 16.17 barns/electron
U=PEGilalite x ρelectron density = 44.86 barns/cm3 |
| Fermion index |
Fermion index = 0.009
Boson index = 0.99 |
Radioactivity
|
GRapi = 0 (Gamma Ray American Petroleum Institute Units)
Gilalite is not radioactive
|
How to Identify Gilalite
The color of gilalite varies from chrysocolla-green to pale blue-green. It exhibits a waxy or gummy tenacity, and a hardness of 2. Its lustre is non-metallic in appearance.
Global Distribution
Gilalite is widely distributed in the following locations:
- USA – from Christmas Copper mine, Gila Co. Arizona; Lonestar, Graham Co. Arizona
Occurrence of Gilalite and Useful Mineral Association
Gilalite occurs as a retrograde metamorphic or mesogene mineral, found at the expense of a pro-grade calc-silicate and sulfide assemblage, in tactites, commonly incursting fractures, and also in filing cracks, or interstices in diopside grains.
Some of the minerals with which gilalite is associated are kinoite, apachite, junitoite, apophyllite, tobermorite, calsite, and clinohedrite.
References