Minerals

In this blog entry I will outline several of my favorite minerals.

Up first,Fluorite.

 Fluorite is a halide mineral and is composed of calcium fluoride CaF2. It is used primarily as a flux for industrial smelting but it can also be made into an ultra-fine lens for telescopes or microscopes.

Wulfenite

Wulfenite is a lead molybdate mineral, PbMoO4. It is often found with deposits of lead and can come as either a crystal or in a granular form.

Bornite

Bornite, Cu5FeS4, is a sulfide mineral that is often found as a secondary deposit in copper veins. It is often collected as a secondary ore because of its relatively high copper content (~60% by weight).

Apatite

Apatite can have several different chemical compositions, such as Ca₁₀(PO₄)₆(OH)₂, Ca₁₀(PO₄)₆(F)₂, Ca₁₀(PO₄)₆(Cl)₂ and Ca₁₀(PO₄)₆(Br)₂. It is one of the only minerals that is produced and consumed by biological creatures. In fact, our bones and teeth have a mineral in them called hydroxylapatite that makes up the majority of our bone mass.


Stibnite

Stibnite is an sulfide mineral, Sb2S3, and it is the primary source of antimony. This mineral can be found in small deposits around the world but is very rarely seen in large amounts naturally.