Wakefieldite () is an uncommon rare-earth element vanadate mineral. There are four main types described of wakefieldite-

wakefieldite-(La) Wakefieldite-(La) () is the lanthanum analogue of the uncommon rare-earth element vanadate mineral Wakefieldite. It is a member of the xenotime group. Wakefieldite-(La) was first described in 2008 for an occurrence in the Glücksstern mine, Gott ...

wakefieldite-(Ce) Wakefieldite-(Ce) () is the cerium analogue of the uncommon rare-earth element vanadate mineral Wakefieldite. It is a member of the xenotime group. Wakefieldite-(Ce) was first described in 1977. It was initially given the name ''kusuïte'' for ...

wakefieldite-(Nd) Wakefieldite-(Nd) () is the neodymium analogue of the uncommon rare-earth element vanadate mineral wakefieldite. It is a member of the xenotime group. Wakefieldite-(Nd) was first described in 2008 at the Arase mine, Kami city, Kōchi Prefecture, ...

, and

wakefieldite-(Y) Wakefieldite () is an uncommon rare-earth element vanadate mineral. There are four main types described of wakefieldite- wakefieldite-(La), wakefieldite-(Ce), wakefieldite-(Nd), and wakefieldite-(Y), depending upon the dominant rare-earth metal io ...

, depending upon the dominant rare-earth metal ion present. Wakefieldite has a Mohs hardness ranging from 4 to 5. Wakefieldite forms crystals of tetragonal structure. In terms of crystal structure, it is the vanadate analog of the rare-earth phosphate mineral

xenotime Xenotime is a rare-earth phosphate mineral, the major component of which is yttrium orthophosphate ( Y P O4). It forms a solid solution series with chernovite-(Y) ( Y As O4) and therefore may contain trace impurities of arsenic, as well as si ...

. Unlike xenotime, it is more favorable for wakefieldite to contain the lighter rare-earth elements over the heavier ones. Due to the lanthanide contraction, the heavier rare earths have smaller ionic radii than the lighter ones. When the phosphate anion is replaced by the larger vanadate anion, the tetragonal crystal system preferentially accommodates the larger light rare-earth elements. Wakefieldite was first described for an occurrence in the Evans Lou mine, St. Pierre de Wakefield, Quebec, Canada and later designated Wakefieldite-(Y).Mindat, Wakefieldite-(Y)

References

{{reflist Lanthanide minerals Vanadate minerals Tetragonal minerals Minerals in space group 141