Boussingaultite is a rare ammonium magnesium hydrated

sulfate mineral The sulfate minerals are a class of minerals that include the sulfate ion () within their structure. The sulfate minerals occur commonly in primary evaporite depositional environments, as gangue minerals in hydrothermal veins and as secondary mine ...

of the chemical formula: (NH₄)₂Mg(SO₄)₂ · 6 H₂O. The formula of boussingaultite is that of

Tutton's salt Tutton's salts are a family of salts with the formula M2M'(SO4)2(H2O)6 (sulfates) or M2M'(SeO4)2(H2O)6 (selenates). These materials are double salts, which means that they contain two different cations, M+ and M'2+ crystallized in the same regular ...

s type. It was originally described from geothermal fields in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, where it occurs together with its

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

analogue

mohrite Mohrite, (NH4)2Fe(SO4)2 · 6 H2O, is a rare ammonium iron(II) sulfate mineral originally found in the geothermal fields of Tuscany, Italy. This Fe-dominant analogue of boussingaultite is sometimes reported from burning coal dumps where it is a p ...

, but is more commonly found on burning coal dumps. The mineral possess

monoclinic In crystallography, the monoclinic crystal system is one of the seven crystal systems. A crystal system is described by three vectors. In the monoclinic system, the crystal is described by vectors of unequal lengths, as in the orthorhombic s ...

symmetry and forms clear, often rounded crystals. The mineral is named after the French chemist

Jean-Baptiste Boussingault Jean-Baptiste Joseph Dieudonné Boussingault (2 February 1801 – 11 May 1887) was a French chemist who made significant contributions to agricultural science, petroleum science and metallurgy. Biography Jean-Baptiste Boussingault – an agric ...

(1802–1887).

References

Ammonium minerals Magnesium minerals Sulfate minerals Hydrates Monoclinic minerals Minerals in space group 14 {{sulfate-mineral-stub

See also

References