Thortveitite
Thortveitite is a mineral consisting of scandium yttrium silicate (Sc,Y)2Si2O7. It is the primary source of scandium. Occurrence is in granitic pegmatites. It was named after Olaus Thortveit, a Norwegian engineer. It is grayish-green, black or gray in color.
| Thortveitite | |
|---|---|
 Thortveitite | |
| General | |
| Category | Mineral |
| Formula (repeating unit) | (Sc,Y)2Si2O7 |
| Strunz classification | 9.BC.05 |
| Crystal system | Monoclinic |
| Crystal class | Prismatic (2/m) (same H-M symbol) |
| Space group | C2/m |
| Identification | |
| Mohs scale hardness | 5-6 |
| Luster | vitreous |
| Streak | gray |
| Specific gravity | 3.3-3.8 |
A transparent gem quality example was found in 2004, and reported in "The Journal of Gemmology", 2008 Volume 31.
The mineral is actually a uniform mixture of oxides of silicon, scandium, and yttrium. It isn't a true compound in itself.
References
- Webmineral
- Mindat
- Riccardo Bianchi; Tullio Pilati; Valeria Diella; Carlo Maria Gramaccioli & Gregorio Mannucci (1988). "A re-examination of thortveitite" (PDF). American Mineralogist. 73: 5–6.
- Schumann, Walter (1991). Mineralien aus aller Welt. BLV Bestimmungsbuch (2 ed.). p. 223. ISBN 3-405-14003-X.
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