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Pyrite
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The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold due to its resemblance to gold. Pyrite is the most common of the sulfide minerals. The name pyrite is derived from the Greek p???t?? (purites), “of fire” or "in fire”, from p?? (pur), “fire”.
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The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold due to its resemblance to gold. Pyrite is the most common of the sulfide minerals. The name pyrite is derived from the Greek p???t?? (purites), “of fire” or "in fire”, from p?? (pur), “fire”. This name is likely due to the sparks that result when pyrite is struck against steel or flint. This property made pyrite popular for use in early firearms such as the wheellock.
Pyrite is usually found associated with other sulfides or oxides in quartz veins, sedimentary rock, and metamorphic rock, as well as in coal beds, and as a replacement mineral in fossils. Despite being nicknamed fool's gold, small quantities of gold are sometimes found associated with pyrite. Gold and arsenic occur as a coupled substitution in the pyrite structure. In the Carlin, Nevada gold deposit, arsenian pyrite contains up to 0.37 wt% gold. Auriferous pyrite is a valuable ore of gold.
Weathering and release of sulfate
Pyrite exposed to the atmosphere during mining and excavation reacts with oxygen and water to form sulfate, resulting in acid mine drainage. This acidity results from the action of Acidithiobacillus bacteria, which generate their energy by oxidizing ferrous iron (Fe2+) to ferric iron (Fe3+) using oxygen. The ferric iron in turn attacks the pyrite to produce ferrous iron and sulfate. The ferrous iron is then available for oxidation by the bacterium; this cycle continues until the pyrite is depleted.
Uses
Pyrite is used commercially for the production of sulfur dioxide, for use in such applications as the paper industry, and in the manufacture of sulfuric acid.
During the early years of the 20th century, pyrite was used as a mineral detector in radio receivers, and to this day is so used by 'crystal radio' hobbyists. Until the vacuum tube matured, the crystal detector was the most sensitive and dependable detector available- with considerable variation between mineral types and even individual samples within a particular type of mineral. The most sensitive mineral was galena, which was very sensitive also to mechanical vibration, and easily knocked off the sensitive point; the most stable were perikon mineral pairs; and midway between was the pyrites detector, which is approximately as sensitive as a modern 1N34A diode detector.
Formal oxidation states for pyrite, marcasite, and arsenopyrite
From the perspective of classical inorganic chemistry, which assigns formal oxidation states to each atom, pyrite is probably best described as Fe2+S22-. This formalism recognizes that the sulfur atoms in pyrite occur in pairs with clear S-S bonds. These persulfide units can be viewed as derived from hydrogen persulfide, H2S2. Thus pyrite would be more descriptively called iron persulfide, not iron disulfide. In contrast, molybdenite, MoS2, features isolated sulfide (S2-) centers. Consequently, the oxidation state of molybdenum is Mo4+. The mineral arsenopyrite has the formula FeAsS. Whereas pyrite has S2 subunits, arsenopyrite has AsS units, formally derived from deprotonation of H2AsSH. Analysis of classical oxidation states would recommend the description of arsenopyrite as Fe3+AsS3-.
Varieties
Bravoite is a nickel-cobalt bearing variety of pyrite, with >50% substitution of Ni2+ for Fe2+ within pyrite. Bravoite is not a formally recognised mineral, and is named after Peruvian scientist Jose J. Bravo (1874-1928).
Cattierite (CoS2) and Vaesite (NiS2) are similar in their structure and belong also to the pyrite group.
External links
- "Pyrite oxidation under room conditions".
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