Microlite

This article is about isometric mineral. For lightweight, slow-flying aeroplanes, see Microlight.

Microlite
Microlite on lepidolite, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Size 6 x 4 x 3.25 cm.
General
Category	Oxide minerals
Chemical formula	(Na,Ca)2Ta2O6(O,OH,F)
Strunz classification	04.DH.15

Microlite is a pale-yellow, reddish-brown, or black isometric mineral composed of sodium calcium tantalum oxide with a small amount of fluorine (Na,Ca)₂Ta₂O₆(O,OH,F). Microlite is a mineral in the pyrochlore group that occurs in pegmatites and constitutes an ore of tantalum. It has a Mohs hardness of 5.5 and a variable specific gravity of 4.2 to 6.4. It occurs as disseminated microscopic subtranslucent to opaque octahedral crystals with a refractive index of 2.0 to 2.2. Microlite is also called djalmaite.

It occurs as a primary mineral in lithium-bearing granite pegmatites, and in miarolitic cavities in granites. Association minerals include: albite, lepidolite, topaz, beryl, tourmaline, spessartine, tantalite and fluorite.

Microlite was first described in 1835 for an occurrence on the Isalnd of Uto, State of Stockholm, Sweden. A type locality is the Clark Ledges pegmatite, Chesterfield, Hampshire County, Massachusetts. The name is from Greek mikros for "small" and lithos for "stone."

References

• Palache, C., H. Berman, and C. Frondel (1944) Dana’s system of mineralogy, (7th edition), v. I, 748–757
• Webmineral data
• Mindat with location data
• Mineral data publishing PDF

This article about a specific oxide mineral is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Oxide minerals Tantalum minerals Oxide mineral stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу Como Swings Wahb (name) Look at other dictionaries: Microlite — Mi cro*lite, n. [Micro + lite.] (Min.) [1913 Webster] 1. A rare mineral of resinous luster and high specific gravity. It is a tantalate of calcium, and occurs in octahedral crystals usually very minute. [1913 Webster] 2. (Min.) A minute inclosed… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English microlite — microlithe [ mikrɔlit ] n. m. VAR. microlite • 1884; de micro et lit(h)e 1 ♦ Géol. Petit élément cristallin des roches microlithiques. 2 ♦ Paléont. Petit outil de silex taillé, caractéristique du paléolithique. ● microlite nom masculin Dans une… …   Encyclopédie Universelle Microlite — Microlithe Le mot microlithe est composé du grec micros et lithos, et signifie petite pierre. Il a plusieurs acceptions scientifiques : Pétrologie En géologie, le terme microlithe s écrit aussi microlite et désigne les cristaux… …   Wikipédia en Français microlite — microlight UK [ˈmaɪkrəʊˌlaɪt] / US [ˈmaɪkrəˌlaɪt] or microlite UK / US noun [countable] Word forms microlight : singular microlight plural microlights a very small plane for one or two people …   English dictionary microlite — mikrolitas statusas T sritis chemija apibrėžtis Mineralas. formulė (Na,Ca)₂(Nb,Ta)₂O₆(O,OH,F) atitikmenys: angl. microlite rus. микролит …   Chemijos terminų aiškinamasis žodynas microlite — /muy kreuh luyt /, n. Mineral. 1. any microscopic crystal. 2. a mineral, principally calcium pyrotantalate, Ca2Ta2O7, usually including niobium, fluorine, and other impurities, occurring in cubic crystals. [1825 35; MICRO + LITE] * * * …   Universalium microlite — noun a) A basic fluoride of sodium, calcium, tantalum and niobium that is isomorphous with pyrochlore b) A microlith …   Wiktionary Microlite — Mi·cro·lite (miґkro līt) trademark for a kit for the preparation of technetium Tc 99m albumin colloid …   Medical dictionary microlite — mi·cro·lite …   English syllables microlite — …   Useful english dictionary 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”