Suanite

Suanite
General
Category Borate mineral
Formula
(repeating unit)		 Mg2B2O5
Strunz classification 6.BA.05
Crystal system Monoclinic
Crystal class Prismatic (2/m)
(same H-M symbol)
Space group P21/a
Unit cell a = 12.31 Å, b = 3.12 Å
c = 9.2 Å; β = 104.33°
Identification
Color White to pale gray
Crystal habit Clusters of prismatic to fibrous crystals
Cleavage Perfect parallel to {010}
Mohs scale hardness 5.5
Luster Silky to pearly
Streak White
Diaphaneity Translucent
Specific gravity 2.91
Optical properties Biaxial (–)
Refractive index nα = 1.596 nβ = 1.639 nγ = 1.670
Birefringence δ = 0.074
2V angle 70°
References [1][2][3]

Suanite is a magnesium borate mineral with formula Mg2B2O5.

It was first described in 1953 by Japanese scientist Takeo Watanabe from the University of Tokyo.[4] His first contact with the mineral was during analysis of gold- and copper- bearing skarn minerals from the Hol Kol mine, located in North Korea obtained in 1939. Due to the small sample size available to him, he was only able to determine the unknown substance's optical properties under a microscope. Watanabe was able to return to the site in 1943 and obtain further samples that permitted him to perform chemical analysis on the material.[4]

References

  1. ↑ Suanite on Mindat.org
  2. ↑ Suanite data on Webmineral
  3. ↑ Suanite in the Handbook of Mineralogy
  4. 1 2 Watanabe, Takeo (September 1953). "Suanite, a New Magnesium Borate Mineral from Hol Kol, Suan, North Korea". Mineralogical Journal. 1 (1): 54–62, . doi:10.2465/minerj1953.1.54. Retrieved 4 June 2015.


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