Afghanite on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
group and typically occurs with sodalite group minerals. It forms blue to colorless, typically massive crystals in the trigonal crystal system. The lowering of the symmetry from typical (for
Afghanite, (Na,K)22Ca10 i24Al24O96SO4)6Cl6, is a
group and typically occurs with sodalite">Coxygen">O3)2">aluminum">Al6silicon.html" ;"title="luminum.html" ;"title="oxygen.html" ;"tit ...hydrous
In chemistry, a hydrate is a substance that contains water or its constituent elements. The chemical state of the water varies widely between different classes of hydrates, some of which were so labeled before their chemical structure was understo ...
sodium
Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable iso ...
, calcium
Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to ...
, potassium
Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...
, sulfate
The sulfate or sulphate ion is a polyatomic anion with the empirical formula . Salts, acid derivatives, and peroxides of sulfate are widely used in industry. Sulfates occur widely in everyday life. Sulfates are salts of sulfuric acid and many ar ...
, chloride
The chloride ion is the anion (negatively charged ion) Cl−. It is formed when the element chlorine (a halogen) gains an electron or when a compound such as hydrogen chloride is dissolved in water or other polar solvents. Chloride salts ...
, carbonate
A carbonate is a salt of carbonic acid (H2CO3), characterized by the presence of the carbonate ion, a polyatomic ion with the formula . The word ''carbonate'' may also refer to a carbonate ester, an organic compound containing the carbonate g ...
alumino-silicate
Aluminosilicate minerals ( IMA symbol: Als) are minerals composed of aluminium, silicon, and oxygen, plus countercations. They are a major component of kaolin and other clay minerals.
Andalusite, kyanite, and sillimanite are naturally occurrin ...
mineral
In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. ( ...
. Afghanite is a feldspathoid
The feldspathoids are a group of tectosilicate minerals which resemble feldspars but have a different structure and much lower silica content. They occur in rare and unusual types of igneous rocks, and are usually not found in rocks containing prim ...
of the cancrinite
Cancrinite is a complex carbonate and silicate of sodium, calcium and aluminium with the formula Na6 Ca2 O3)2.html" ;"title="carbon">C Coxygen">O3)2"> O3)2">aluminum">Al6silicon.html"_;"title="luminum.html"_;"title="oxygen.html"_;"tit_...
_group_and_typically_occurs_with_sodalite.html" ;"title="Coxygen">O3)2">aluminum">Al6silicon.html" ;"title="luminum.html" ;"title="oxygen.html" ;"tit ...cancrinite
Cancrinite is a complex carbonate and silicate of sodium, calcium and aluminium with the formula Na6 Ca2 O3)2.html" ;"title="carbon">C Coxygen">O3)2">_group)_hexagonal_one_is_due_to_ordering_of_Si_and_Al.
group) hexagonal one is due to ordering of Si and Al. It has a Mohs scale of mineral hardness">Mohs hardness
The Mohs scale of mineral hardness () is a qualitative ordinal scale, from 1 to 10, characterizing scratch resistance of various minerals through the ability of harder material to scratch softer material.
The scale was introduced in 1812 by th ...of 5.5 to 6 and a specific gravity of 2.55 to 2.65. It has refractive index values of nω=1.523 and nε=1.529. It has one direction of perfect cleavage and exhibits conchoidal fracture. It Fluorescence, fluoresces a bright orange.
It was discovered in 1968 in the Lapis-lazuli Mine, Sar-e-Sang, Badakhshan Province
Badakhshan Province (Persian/ Uzbek: , ''Badaxšān'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Tajikistan's Gorno-Badakhshan in the north and the Pakistani regions of Lower ...
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and takes its name from that country. It has also been described from localities in Germany, Italy, the Pamir Mountains
The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range between Central Asia and Pakistan. It is located at a junction with other notable mountains, namely the Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, Hindu Kush and the Himalaya mountain ranges. They are among the world ...
of Tajikistan
Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
, near Lake Baikal
Lake Baikal (, russian: Oзеро Байкал, Ozero Baykal ); mn, Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Repu ...
in Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part of ...
, New York and Newfoundland. It occurs as veinlets in lazurite
Lazurite is a tectosilicate mineral with sulfate, sulfur and chloride with formula . It is a feldspathoid and a member of the sodalite group. Lazurite crystallizes in the isometric system although well‐formed crystals are rare. It is usually ...
crystals in the Afghan location and in altered limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
xenolith
A xenolith ("foreign rock") is a rock fragment (country rock) that becomes enveloped in a larger rock during the latter's development and solidification. In geology, the term ''xenolith'' is almost exclusively used to describe inclusions in igne ...
s within pumice
Pumice (), called pumicite in its powdered or dust form, is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough-textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. It is typically light-colored. Scoria is another vesicular vol ...
in Pitigliano
Pitigliano is a town in the province of Grosseto, located about south-east of the city of Grosseto, Tuscany, Italy.
The quaint old town is known as ''the little Jerusalem'', for the historical presence of a Jewish community that has always bee ...
, Tuscany, Italy.
It is used as a gemstone.Tables of Gemstone Identification, By Roger Dedeyne, Ivo Quintens, p.112
References
{{Commons category, Afghanite Sodium minerals Potassium minerals Calcium minerals Aluminium minerals Feldspathoid Trigonal minerals Minerals in space group 159 Gemstones