|
Hyalophane |
Chemical Formula |
(K,Ba)[Al(Si,Al)Si2O8] |
Species |
Silicates |
Crystal System |
Monoclinic |
Mohs Scale |
6 |
Specific Gravity |
2.81 |
Color |
Colorless, yellow, white, red |
Streak |
White |
Luster |
Vitreous |
Refractive Index |
n = 1.542 n = 1.545 n = 1.547 |
Diaphaneity |
Transparent to translucent |
Cleavage |
perfect, imperfect |
Fracture |
Conchoidal |
Crystal Habit:Crystalline – fine – occurs as well-formed fine sized crystals; massive – uniformly indistinguishable crystals forming large masses |
Hyalophane or
jaloallofane is a crystalline mineral with chemical formula (K,Ba)[Al(Si,Al)Si
2O
8] and a hardness of 6 – 6?. It is part of the feldspar group of tectosilicates, and is considered a barium-rich potassium feldspar.
Hyalophane comes from the Greek
hyalos, meaning "glass", and
phanos meaning "to appear".
An occurrence of hyalophane was discovered in 1855 in Lengenbach Quarry, Imfield, in the municipality of Binn, Switzerland. The mineral is found predominantly in Europe, with occurrences in Switzerland, Australia, Bosnia, Germany, Japan, New Jersey, and the west coast of North America.
Hyalophane has a monoclinic crystallography, with cell properties a = 8.52 ?, b = 12.95 ?, c = 7.14 ?, and β = 116°. Optically, the material exhibits biaxial birefringence, with refractive index values of nα = 1.542, nβ = 1.545, and nγ = 1.547 and a maximum birefringence of δ = 0.005. It has weak dispersion and low surface relief.