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Alwilkinsite-(Y), a new rare-earth uranyl sulfate mineral from the Blue Lizard mine, San Juan County, Utah, USA

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Anthony R. Kampf ,
Jakub Plášil ,
Jiří Čejka ,
Joe Marty ,
Radek Škoda  and
Ladislav Lapčák
Anthony R. Kampf*
Affiliation:
Mineral Sciences Department, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA
Jakub Plášil
Affiliation:
Institute of Physics ASCR, v.v.i., Na Slovance 1999/2, 18221 Prague 8, Czech Republic
Jiří Čejka
Affiliation:
Department of Mineralogy and Petrology, National Museum, Cirkusová 1740, 193 00, Prague 9, Czech Republic
Joe Marty
Affiliation:
5199 East Silver Oak Road, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, USA
Radek Škoda
Affiliation:
Department of Geological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic
Ladislav Lapčák
Affiliation:
Institute of Chemical Technology, Prague, Technická 5, 166 28, Prague 6, Czech Republic
*
*E-mail: akampf@nhm.org
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Abstract

The new mineral alwilkinsite-(Y) (IMA2015-097), Y(H2O)7[(UO2)3(SO4)2O(OH)3]·7H2O, was found in the Blue Lizard mine, San Juan County, Utah, USA, where it occurs as a secondary alteration phase.The mineral is slightly flexible before brittle failure with splintery fracture and perfect cleavage parallel to [010], has Mohs hardness of ∼2–2½, exhibits dull greenish-grey fluorescence and has a calculated density of 3.371 g cm–3. Alwilkinsite-(Y) occursas yellowish-green needles, elongate on [010], with domatic terminations and exhibits the forms {102}, {301} and {124}. It is optically biaxial (+) with α = 1.573(1), β = 1.581(1), γ = 1.601(1) (white light), the measured 2V is 65.3(1)°, the dispersion is r<v (weak), the optical orientation is X = c, Y = a, Z = b and there is no pleochroism. Electron microprobe analyses yielded the empirical formula (Y0.66Dy0.08Gd0.06Er0.05Nd0.03Yb0.03Sm0.02Ce0.01)∑0.94(H2O)7[(UO2)3(S1.01O4)2O(OH)3]·7H2O.The eight strongest powder X-ray diffraction lines are [dobs Å(I)(hkl)]: 9.88(100)(101,002), 7.47(13)(102), 5.621(17)(103,201), 4.483(18)(104), 3.886(14)(130,222), 3.322(46)(multiple), 3.223(13)(multiple) and 3.145(16)(034). Alwilkinsite-(Y) is orthorhombic,P212121, a = 11.6194(5), b = 12.4250(6), c = 19.4495(14) Å, V = 2807.9(3) Å3 and Z = 4. The structure of alwilkinsite-(Y) (R1 = 0.042 for 4244 Fo > 4σF)contains edge-sharing chains of uranyl bipyramids with outlying sulfate tetrahedra that are similar to the chain linkages within the uranyl sulfate sheets of the zippeite structure. Short segments of the uranyl sulfate chains in the alwilkinsite-(Y) structure have the same topology as portionsof the uranyl sulfate linkages in uranopilite. Alwilkinsite-(Y) is named for Alan (Al) J. Wilkins, MD (born 1955), the discoverer of the mineral.

Keywords

alwilkinsite-(Y)new mineraluranyl sulfatecrystal structureBlue Lizard mineUTAHUSA
Type
Research Article
Information
Mineralogical Magazine , Volume 81 , Issue 4 , August 2017 , pp. 895 - 907
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 2017

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