Original paper
Arsenoflorencite-(La), a new mineral from the Komi Republic, Russian Federation: description and crystal structure
Mills, Stuart J.; Kartashov, Pavel M.; Kampf, Anthony R.; Raudsepp, Mati
European Journal of Mineralogy Volume 22 Number 4 (2010), p. 613 - 621
published: Sep 9, 2010
Abstract
Arsenoflorencite-(La) [Aρcehφπορehcht-(La)], ideally LaAl3(AsO4)2(OH)6, is a new mineral (IMA2009-078), from the Grubependity Lake cirque, Maldynyrd range, upper Kozhim River basin, Prepolar Ural, Komi Republic, Russia. It occurs in direct association with zircon, quartz, hematite, ardennite-(As), andalusite, anorthite, sericite, clinochlore, chernovite-(Y), manganiandrosite-(La), spessartine and monazite-gasparite-group minerals in Mn-rich nodules in metasediments. Arsenoflorencite-(La) forms orange-red to pink rhombohedral, pseudocubic or tabular crystals up to about 0.2 mm across. The dominant forms observed are {001} and {102}. The crystals have a vitreous lustre, are transparent to translucent, have a very light pink streak and are non-fluorescent. Mohs hardness is about 3.5 (estimated). The fracture is uneven and the tenacity is brittle. Arsenoflorencite-(La) has fair cleavage on {001}. Crystals are uniaxial (+), with the indices of refraction ω = 1.740(5) and ε = 1.750(5), measured in white light, and are nonpleochroic. The empirical formula (based on 14O atoms) is: (La0.56Ce0.18Nd0.12Pr0.04Sr0.09Ca0.03)Σ1.02(Al2.94Fe0.06)Σ3.00(As1.80P0.21)Σ2.01H5.95O14. The simplified formula is LaAl3(AsO4)2(OH)6. Arsenoflorencite-(La) is trigonal, space group R3m, a = 7.0316(3), c = 16.5151(8) Å, V = 707.16(5) Å3 and Z = 3. The crystal structure was solved from single-crystal X-ray diffraction data and refined to R1 = 0.0112 on the basis of 287 unique reflections with Fo < 4σF and R1 = 0.0116 for all 293 reflections. The five strongest lines in the powder X-ray diffraction pattern are [dobs in Å, (I), (hkl)]: 2.982, (100), (113); 3.538, (55), (110); 1.914, (38), (303, 033); 2.211, (28), (122); 5.755, (27), (101). The name is for its relationship to florencite [and arsenoflorencite-(Ce)] with La as the dominant REE.
Keywords
arsenoflorencite-(la) • grubependity lake cirque • prepolar ural • komi republic • crystal structure • alunite supergroup • lanthanum aluminium arsenate hydroxide • new mineral