Volborthite Mineral Data

General Volborthite Information

Chemical Formula:

Cu++3V+++++2O7(OH)2•2(H2O)

Composition:

Molecular Weight = 474.56 gm

Vanadium 21.47 % V 38.33 % V₂O₅

Copper 40.17 % Cu 50.29 % CuO

Hydrogen 1.27 % H 11.39 % H₂O

Oxygen 37.09 % O

______ ______

100.00 % 100.00 % = TOTAL OXIDE

Empirical Formula:

Cu₃V⁵⁺₂O₇(OH)₂•2(H₂O)

Environment:

Secondary mineral associated with U-V Colorado Plateau type deposits.

IMA Status:

Valid Species (Pre-IMA) 1838

Locality:

Syssersk and Nizhne Taglisk, Ural Mountains, Russia. Link to MinDat.org Location Data.

Name Origin:

Named for Alexander von Volborth (1800-1876), Russian paleontologist who first noted the mineral.

Name Pronunciation:

Volborthite + Pronunciation

Synonym:

ICSD 63282

PDF 46-1443

Volborthite Image

Images:

Vashegyite Volborthite

Comments: Small bluish-white crystals of vashegyite with green volborthite.
Location: Jeremias GlÃ¼ck Mine (Fairy Grotto), Garnsdorf, Saalfeld, Thuringia, Germany. Scale: Picture size 1.8 mm.
© Thomas Witzke / Abraxas-Verlag

Images:

Volborthite

Comments: Shale with a heavy coating of brilliant green, scaly crystals of volborthite.
Location: Monument #1 Mine, Apache County, Arizona. Scale: 6.5 x 5.5 cm.
© John Veevaert

Volborthite Crystallography

Axial Ratios:

a:b:c =1.8052:1:1.2279

Cell Dimensions:

a = 10.604, b = 5.874, c = 7.213, Z = 2; beta = 94.9° V = 447.64 Den(Calc)= 3.52

Crystal System:

Monoclinic - Prismatic H-M Symbol (2/m) Space Group: C 2/m

$Help on X Ray Diffraction:$ X Ray Diffraction:

By Intensity(I/I_o): 7.26(1), 2.56(0.8), 2.87(0.8),

Physical Properties of Volborthite

Cleavage:

{???} Perfect

Color:

Brownish yellow, Greenish yellow, Yellow, Yellow green, Light brown.

Density:

3.5

Diaphaneity:

Translucent to Subtranslucent

Habit:

Globular - Spherical, or nearly so, rounded forms (e.g. wavellite).

Habit:

Scaly - Morphology like fish scales.

Hardness:

3 - Calcite

Luminescence:

Non-fluorescent.

Luster:

Vitreous - Pearly

Magnetism:

Nonmagnetic

Streak:

light green

Optical Properties of Volborthite

Gladstone-Dale:

CI meas= -0.167 (Poor) - where the CI = (1-KPDmeas/KC)
CI calc= -0.161 (Poor) - where the CI = (1-KPDcalc/KC)
KPDcalc= 0.2955,KPDmeas= 0.2971,KC= 0.2545
Ncalc = 1.89 - 1.9

Optical Data:

Biaxial (-), a=2.01, b=2.04, g=2.07, bire=0.0600

Calculated Properties of Volborthite

Electron Density:

Bulk Density (Electron Density)=3.37 gm/cc
note: Specific Gravity of Volborthite =3.52 gm/cc.

Fermion Index:

Fermion Index = 0.0007166428
Boson Index = 0.9992833572

Photoelectric:

PE_Volborthite= 21.84 barns/electron
U=PE_Volborthite x rElectron Density= 73.55 barns/cc.

Radioactivity:

GRapi = 0 (Gamma Ray American Petroleum Institute Units)
Volborthite is Not Radioactive

Volborthite Classification

Dana Class:

40.03.10.01 (40)Hydrated Phosphates, etc

(40.03)where (A++)3 (XO4)2 ï¿½ x(H2O)

(40.03.10)Dana Group

40.03.10.01 Volborthite Cu3V2O7(OH)2•2(H2O) C 2/m 2/m

40.03.10.02 Martyite! Zn3V2O7(OH)2•2H2O P 3m1 3 2/m

Strunz Class:

08.FD.05 08 - PHOSPHATES, ARSENATES, VANADATES

08.F - Polyphosphates, Polyarsenates, [4]-Polyvanadates

08.FD -Polyphosphates, etc, with OH and H2O

08.FD.05 Volborthite Cu3V2O7(OH)2•2(H2O) C 2/m 2/m

08.FD.05 Martyite! Zn3V2O7(OH)2•2H2O P 3m1 3 2/m

Other Volborthite Information

References:

NAME( Dana8) PHYS. PROP.(Enc. of Minerals,2nd ed.,1990) OPTIC PROP.(Dana8)

See Also:

Links to other databases for Volborthite :
1 - Am. Min. Crystal Structure Database
2 - Amethyst Galleries' Mineral Gallery
3 - Athena
4 - EUROmin Project
5 - Ecole des Mines de Paris
6 - GeoScienceWorld
7 - Google Images
8 - Google Scholar
9 - Handbook of Mineralogy (MinSocAm)
10 - Handbook of Mineralogy (UofA)
11 - MinDAT
12 - Mineralienatlas (Deutsch)
13 - Online Mineral Museum
14 - QUT Mineral Atlas
15 - Ruff.Info
16 - WWW-MINCRYST

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Print or Cut-and-Paste your Volborthite Specimen Label here :

Volborthite

Cu++3V+++++2O7(OH)2•2(H2O)
Dana No: 40.03.10.01 Strunz No: 08.FD.05
Locality:

Notes:

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