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Dominant species
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Hyalophane
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)Si2O8] 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.