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Sphalerite ((Zn
Zinc

Zinc is a metallic chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a first-row transition metal of the group 12 element of the periodic table....
,Fe
Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
)S
Sulfur

Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element that has the atomic number 16. It is denoted with the symbol S. It is an abundant Valence non-metal....
) is a mineral
Mineral

A mineral is a naturally occurring solid formed through Geology processes that has a characteristic chemical composition, a highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties....
 that is the chief ore
Ore

An ore is a type of Rock that contains minerals such as gemstones and metals that can be extracted through mining and refined for use. Samples of ore in the form of exceptionally beautiful crystals, exotic layering visible when sectioned or polished or metallic presentations such as large nuggets or crystalline formations of metals suc...
 of zinc
Zinc

Zinc is a metallic chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a first-row transition metal of the group 12 element of the periodic table....
. It consists largely of zinc sulfide
Zinc sulfide

Zinc sulfide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula ZincSulfur. Zinc sulfide is a white- to yellow-colored powder or crystal. It is typically encountered in the more stable cubic form, known also as zinc blende or sphalerite....
 in crystal
Crystal

A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions....
line form but almost always contains variable iron
Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
. When iron content is high it is an opaque black variety, marmatite. It is usually found in association with galena
Galena

Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals....
, pyrite
Pyrite

The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula ironsulfur2. This mineral's metallic Lustre and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold due to its resemblance to gold....
, and other sulfide
Sulfide

The term sulfide refers to several types of chemical compounds containing sulfur in its lowest oxidation number of −2.Formally, "sulfide" is the dianion, S2−, which exists in strongly alkaline aqueous solutions formed from H2S or alkali metal salts such as Li2S, Na2S, and K2...
s along with calcite
Calcite

Calcite is a Carbonate minerals and the most stable Polymorphism of calcium carbonate . The other polymorphs are the minerals aragonite and vaterite....
, dolomite
Dolomite

Dolomite is the name of a sedimentary carbonate rock and a mineral, both composed of calcium magnesium carbonate calciummagnesium2 found in crystals....
, and fluorite
Fluorite

Fluorite is a mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CalciumFluorine. It is an Cubic mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon....
.






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Sphalerite4
Sphalerite ((Zn
Zinc

Zinc is a metallic chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a first-row transition metal of the group 12 element of the periodic table....
,Fe
Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
)S
Sulfur

Sulfur or sulphur is the chemical element that has the atomic number 16. It is denoted with the symbol S. It is an abundant Valence non-metal....
) is a mineral
Mineral

A mineral is a naturally occurring solid formed through Geology processes that has a characteristic chemical composition, a highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties....
 that is the chief ore
Ore

An ore is a type of Rock that contains minerals such as gemstones and metals that can be extracted through mining and refined for use. Samples of ore in the form of exceptionally beautiful crystals, exotic layering visible when sectioned or polished or metallic presentations such as large nuggets or crystalline formations of metals suc...
 of zinc
Zinc

Zinc is a metallic chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is a first-row transition metal of the group 12 element of the periodic table....
. It consists largely of zinc sulfide
Zinc sulfide

Zinc sulfide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula ZincSulfur. Zinc sulfide is a white- to yellow-colored powder or crystal. It is typically encountered in the more stable cubic form, known also as zinc blende or sphalerite....
 in crystal
Crystal

A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions....
line form but almost always contains variable iron
Iron

Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a Group 8 element and period 4 element. Iron is lustrous and silvery in color....
. When iron content is high it is an opaque black variety, marmatite. It is usually found in association with galena
Galena

Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals....
, pyrite
Pyrite

The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula ironsulfur2. This mineral's metallic Lustre and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold due to its resemblance to gold....
, and other sulfide
Sulfide

The term sulfide refers to several types of chemical compounds containing sulfur in its lowest oxidation number of −2.Formally, "sulfide" is the dianion, S2−, which exists in strongly alkaline aqueous solutions formed from H2S or alkali metal salts such as Li2S, Na2S, and K2...
s along with calcite
Calcite

Calcite is a Carbonate minerals and the most stable Polymorphism of calcium carbonate . The other polymorphs are the minerals aragonite and vaterite....
, dolomite
Dolomite

Dolomite is the name of a sedimentary carbonate rock and a mineral, both composed of calcium magnesium carbonate calciummagnesium2 found in crystals....
, and fluorite
Fluorite

Fluorite is a mineral composed of calcium fluoride, CalciumFluorine. It is an Cubic mineral with a cubic habit, though octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon....
. Miners have also been known to refer to sphalerite as zinc blende, mock lead, false galena and black-jack.

The mineral crystallizes in the cubic crystal system
Crystal system

A crystal system is a category of space groups, which characterize symmetry of structures in three dimensions with translational symmetry in three directions, having a discrete class of Point groups in three dimensions....
. In the crystal structure, zinc and sulfur atoms are tetrahedrally coordinated. The structure is closely related to the structure of diamond
Diamond

In mineralogy, diamond is the Allotropes of carbon where the carbon atoms are arranged in an isometric-hexoctahedral crystal lattice. After graphite, diamond is the second most stable form of carbon....
. The hexagonal analog is known as the wurtzite
Wurtzite

Wurtzite is a zinc iron sulfide mineral a less frequently encountered mineral form of sphalerite.Its crystal structure is called the Wurtzite , to which it lends its name....
 structure. The lattice constant for zinc sulfide in the zincblende crystal structure is 0.596 nm, calculated from geometry and ionic radii of 0.074 nm (zinc) and 0.184 nm (sulfide). It forms ABCABC layers.

Its color is usually yellow, brown, or gray to gray-black, and it may be shiny or dull. Its luster
Lustre (mineralogy)

Lustre is a description of the way light interacts with the surface of a crystal, rock , or mineral. For example, a diamond is said to have an adamantine lustre and pyrite is said to have a metallic lustre....
 is adamantine, resinous to submetallic for high iron varieties. It has a yellow or light brown streak
Mineral

A mineral is a naturally occurring solid formed through Geology processes that has a characteristic chemical composition, a highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties....
, a hardness of 3.5 - 4, and a specific gravity
Specific gravity

Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the density of a given solid or liquid substance to the density of water at a specific temperature and pressure, typically at 4?C and , making it a dimensionless quantity ....
 of 3.9-4.1. Some specimens have a red iridescence
Iridescence

Iridescence is an optical phenomenon in which hue changes with the angle from which a surface is viewed. Iridescence may be easily seen in soap bubbles and butterfly wings....
 within the gray-black crystals; these are called "ruby sphalerite." The pale yellow and red varieties have very little iron and are translucent. The darker more opaque varieties contain more iron. Some specimens are also fluorescent
Fluorescence

Fluorescence is a luminescence that is mostly found as an optical phenomenon in cold bodies, in which the molecular absorption of a photon triggers the emission of a photon with a longer wavelength....
 in ultraviolet
Ultraviolet

Ultraviolet light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than that of visible light, but longer than x-rays, in the range 400 nanometer to 10 nm, and energies from 3 Electron volt to 124 eV....
 light. The refractive index
Refractive index

The refractive index of a medium is a measure for how much the speed of light is reduced inside the medium. For example, typical soda-lime glass has a refractive index of 1.5, which means that in glass, light travels at times the speed of light in a vacuum....
 of sphalerite (as measured via sodium light, 589.3 nm) is 2.37. Sphalerite crystallizes in the isometric crystal system and possesses perfect dodecahedral cleavage
Cleavage (crystal)

Cleavage, in mineralogy, is the tendency of crystalline materials to split along definite Crystallography structural planes. These planes of relative weakness are a result of the regular locations of atoms and ions in the crystal, which create smooth repeating surfaces that are visible both in the microscope and to the naked eye....
. Gemmy, pale specimens from Franklin, New Jersey
Franklin, New Jersey

Franklin is a Borough in Sussex County, New Jersey, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 5,160....
 (see Franklin Furnace
Franklin Furnace

Franklin Furnace is a famous mineral location for rare zinc, iron, manganese minerals in old mines in Franklin, New Jersey, USA. This locale produced more species of minerals and more different fluorescent minerals than any other location....
) are highly fluorescent orange and/or blue under longwave ultraviolet light and are known as cleiophane, an almost pure ZnS variety.

Crystals of suitable size and transparency have been fashioned into gemstone
Gemstone

A gemstone or gem, also called a precious or semi-precious stone, is a piece of attractive mineral, which — when cut and polished — is used to make jewellery or other adornments....
s, usually featuring the brilliant cut
Brilliant (diamond cut)

A brilliant is a Diamond or other gemstone, diamond cut in a particular form with numerous facets so as to have especial brilliancy. The shape resembles that of a Cone and is meant to maximize light return through the top of the diamond....
 to best display sphalerite's high dispersion
Dispersion (optics)

In optics, dispersion is the phenomenon in which the phase velocity of a wave depends on its frequency.Media having such a property are termed dispersive media....
 of 0.156 (B-G interval)—over three times that of diamond
Diamond

In mineralogy, diamond is the Allotropes of carbon where the carbon atoms are arranged in an isometric-hexoctahedral crystal lattice. After graphite, diamond is the second most stable form of carbon....
. Freshly cut gems are lively with an adamantine luster and could conceivably be mistaken for a fancy-colored diamond in passing, but due to sphalerite's softness and fragility the gems are best left unset as collector's or museum
Museum

A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment, for the purposes of education, study, and entertainment", as defined by the International Coun...
 pieces (although some have been set into pendants). Collectors may pay a premium for stones over one carat
Carat (mass)

The carat is a unit of mass used for measuring gemstones and pearls . Currently a carat is defined as exactly 200 milligram . This definition, known as the metric carat, was adopted in 1907 at the Fourth General Conference on Weights and Measures, and soon afterwards in many countries around the world....
 (200 mg), as clean crystals are usually quite small. Gem-quality material is usually a yellowish to honey brown, red to orange, or green; the two most important sources are the Chivera mine, Cananea
Cananea

Cananea is a city in the northern states of Mexico of Sonora. It is the seat of the Cananea . The population of the city was 30,515 as recorded by the 2000 census....
, Sonora
Sonora

Sonora is one of the 31 States of Mexico and is located in the northwest of the country....
, Mexico
Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federalism constitutionalism republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of Mexico....
; and the Picos de Europa
Picos de Europa

The Picos de Europa is a range of mountains some 20 km inland from the northern coast of Spain, located in the Autonomous Communities of Asturias, Cantabria and Castile and Le?n, forming part of the Cantabrian Mountains....
, Cordillera Cantabrica, near Santander
Santander, Cantabria

The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain between Asturias and the Basque Country ....
 on Spain
Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
's northern coast.

See also

  • List of minerals
    List of minerals

    This is a List of minerals for which there are Wikipedia articles. Mineral variety names and mineraloids are to be listed after the valid minerals for each letter....


External links

  • Mineralienatlas:Sphalerit (Geological Wiki)