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Geigerite is a mineral, a complex hydrous
manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...
arsenate The arsenate ion is . An arsenate (compound) is any compound that contains this ion. Arsenates are salts or esters of arsenic acid. The arsenic atom in arsenate has a valency of 5 and is also known as pentavalent arsenic or As(V). Arsenate res ...
with formula: Mn5(AsO3OH)2(AsO4)2·10H2O. It forms
triclinic 180px, Triclinic (a ≠ b ≠ c and α ≠ β ≠ γ ) In crystallography, the triclinic (or anorthic) crystal system is one of the 7 crystal systems. A crystal system is described by three basis vectors. In the triclinic system, the crystal i ...
pinacoidal, vitreous, colorless to red to brown crystals. It has a
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 t ...
of 3 and a
specific gravity Relative density, or specific gravity, is the ratio of the density (mass of a unit volume) of a substance to the density of a given reference material. Specific gravity for liquids is nearly always measured with respect to water at its densest ...
of 3.05. It was discovered in Grischun, Switzerland in 1989. It was named in honor of Thomas Geiger (1886–1976), Wiesendangen, Switzerland, who studied the Falotta manganese ores.


Composition

The chemical composition of geigerite is hydrous manganese arsenate (Mn5(AsO3OH)2(AsO4)2·10H2O). The chemical composition was found by using an
electron microprobe An electron microprobe (EMP), also known as an electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA) or electron micro probe analyzer (EMPA), is an analytical tool used to non-destructively determine the chemical composition of small volumes of solid materials. It ...
in the Falotta mines in Switzerland.Graeser, S.; Schwander, H.; Bianchi, R.; Pilati, T.; Gramaccioli, C. M. (1989): ''Geigerite, the manganese analogue of chudobaite: Its description and crystal structure.'' American Mineralogist: 74, 676-684.


Geologic occurrence

Geigerite can be found in the abandoned manganese mine in Oberhalbstein, Switzerland. It is mainly found in cavities in adiolarites, which are a form of igneous rock that have either a radial or fanlike texture of crystals. Geigerite is then formed by
metamorphism Metamorphism is the transformation of existing rock (the protolith) to rock with a different mineral composition or texture. Metamorphism takes place at temperatures in excess of , and often also at elevated pressure or in the presence of ch ...
of manganese oxide ores. Recently, geigerite has been found in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. Geigerite has also been found in Mt. Nero Mine,
Borghetto Di Vara Borghetto di Vara ( lij, O Borghetto de Væa, locally ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about southeast of Genoa and about northwest of La Spezia. Borghetto di Vara borders the ...
, La Spieza, Italy.


Structure

Geigerite’s crystal system is
triclinic 180px, Triclinic (a ≠ b ≠ c and α ≠ β ≠ γ ) In crystallography, the triclinic (or anorthic) crystal system is one of the 7 crystal systems. A crystal system is described by three basis vectors. In the triclinic system, the crystal i ...
with perfect cleavage on the . The Herman Mauguin symbol for geigerite is and its space group is P. Geigerite contains two arsenate ions which are independent of one another. The first is the AsO3OH group, and the second is the AsO4. In the acidic AsO3OH group, the As-O bonds are much shorter than the As-OH bonds. Similarly, in the AsO4 group, As-O bonds are also shorter than the As-O bonds. The remaining bonds within both arsenate groups have nearly equal distances. In the ions there are three manganese atoms, these three links to six oxygen atoms to form a normal octahedral formation.


Special characteristics

One interesting structural feature of geigerite is the presence of a complicated network of hydrogen bonds, which exceed the number of the hydrogen atoms. Geigerite is classified under a group of metal copper (II) arsenates called the Lindackerite group. Minerals within this group have a formula where M equals either copper, calcium, manganese, zinc, or cobalt.Hybler, M. (2003) Crystal structure of Lindackerite, (Cu,Co,Ni)CU4(AsO4)(2)(AsO3OH)(2)center dot 9 H2O from Jachymov, Czech republic. European Journal of Mineralogy, 1035-1042.


See also

*
List of minerals named after people This is a list of minerals named after people. The chemical composition follows name. A * Abelsonite: C31H32N4Ni – American physicist Philip Hauge Abelson (1913–2004)alfred *Abswurmbachite: Cu2+Mn3+6O8SiO4 – German mineralogist I ...


References

*Bergknappe (2000) Verein der Freunde des Bergbaus in Graubunden Stiftung Bergbaumuseum Graubunden Schelzboden-Davos. 31-32. {{Manganese minerals Manganese(II) minerals Arsenate minerals Triclinic minerals Minerals in space group 2