Wyartite
Encyclopedia
Wyartite Ca
3U
(UO
2)6(C
O3)2(OH
)18 ·3-5(H2O
) is a uranium
bearing mineral
named after Jean Wyart (1902-1992), mineralogist at the Sorbonne
, Paris
. Greenish black, black, black violet in color, translucent to opaque orthorhombic crystals presentantion. A hardness of 3 - 4 Mohs. Its other names are Ianthinite (of Bignand), Wyartit and Wyartita. It belongs to the uranium carbonate
group of minerals. It is found next to rutherfordine
in Shinkolobwe
, Shaba
, Zaire
.
Determination of the structure of wyartite provided the first evidence for a pentavalent uranium mineral. Like all uranium minerals it is radioactive.
Calcium
Calcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...
3U
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
(UO
Oxygen
Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
2)6(C
Carbon
Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds...
O3)2(OH
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
)18 ·3-5(H2O
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
) is a uranium
Uranium
Uranium is a silvery-white metallic chemical element in the actinide series of the periodic table, with atomic number 92. It is assigned the chemical symbol U. A uranium atom has 92 protons and 92 electrons, of which 6 are valence electrons...
bearing mineral
Mineral
A mineral is a naturally occurring solid chemical substance formed through biogeochemical processes, having characteristic chemical composition, highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties. By comparison, a rock is an aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids and does not...
named after Jean Wyart (1902-1992), mineralogist at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Greenish black, black, black violet in color, translucent to opaque orthorhombic crystals presentantion. A hardness of 3 - 4 Mohs. Its other names are Ianthinite (of Bignand), Wyartit and Wyartita. It belongs to the uranium carbonate
Uranium carbonate
Uranyl carbonate, UO2, is a carbonate of uranium that forms the backbone of several uranyl mineral species such as Andersonite, McKelveyite and Wyartite and most importantly Rutherfordine...
group of minerals. It is found next to rutherfordine
Rutherfordine
Rutherfordine is a mineral containing almost pure uranyl carbonate. It crystallizes in the orthorhombic system in translucent lathlike, elongated, commonly radiating in fibrous, and in pulverulent, earthy to very fine-grained dense masses. It has a specific gravity of 5.7 and exhibits two...
in Shinkolobwe
Shinkolobwe
Shinkolobwe is the name of a town and a mine in the Katanga province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo , located near the larger town of Likasi and about 120 miles northwest of Lubumbashi. The former mine was located in the centre of a 400 kilometre long belt of uranified minerals, stretching...
, Shaba
Katanga Province
Katanga Province is one of the provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Between 1971 and 1997, its official name was Shaba Province. Under the new constitution, the province was to be replaced by four smaller provinces by February 2009; this did not actually take place.Katanga's regional...
, Zaire
Zaire
The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
.
Determination of the structure of wyartite provided the first evidence for a pentavalent uranium mineral. Like all uranium minerals it is radioactive.