Chkalovit is a rare mineral, silicate of beryllium and sodium . It was opened in 1936 . Easily soluble in acids with the formation of flocculent silica.
| Chkalovit | |
|---|---|
| Formula | Na 2 BeSi 2 O 6 |
| Impurity | Fe, Ca, K, S |
| Physical properties | |
| Colour | white |
| Trait color | reddish white |
| Shine | glass |
| Transparency | transparent |
| Hardness | 6 |
| Cleavage | imperfect |
| Kink | uneven |
| Density | 2.662 g / cm³ |
| Syngonia | Rhombic |
Content
Properties
White colour. The color of the line is reddish white. Glitter glass. Cleavage is imperfect. Syngonia is rhombic. The formula is Na 2 BeSi 2 O 6 . The break is uneven. Density 2,662 g / cm³.
Opening
Chkalovit was first described in 1939 by Vasily Ivanovich Gerasimovsky (1907-1979), who was studying the Lovozero alkaline massif and was a specialist in the geology of uranium and other radioactive elements.
The mineral was named after Valery Pavlovich Chkalov , the first pilot to fly non-stop from Moscow to the USA via the North Pole .
Deposits
The main Chkalovita deposit is located in Russia, on the Kola Peninsula . There are also smaller deposits in Greenland , Canada, and Norway . It occurs in association with pectolite , microcline , sodalite , eudialyte , neptunite , wessingite (Lovozero massif, Russia); Williomite , Ussingite , Aegirine, Lovoserite , Woonnemite, Serandite , Lueshite , Stenstrupin-Ce (Canada).
Literature
- Khomyakov A.P., Stepanov V.I. USSR Academy of Sciences. - 1979. - T. 248, No. 3. - S. 727-730. (found during the excavation of the railway-yellow tunnel in Rasvumchorr; from pegmatites in urtites)
- American Mineralogist. - Vol. 25. - P. 380.
- Soviet Physics - Doklady. - Vol. 20. - P. 805-807.