Home Zinconigerite-2N1S ZnSn2Al12O22(OH)2 and zinconigerite-6N6S Zn3Sn2Al16O30(OH)2, two new minerals of the nolanite-spinel polysomatic series from the Xianghualing skarn, Hunan Province, China
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Zinconigerite-2N1S ZnSn2Al12O22(OH)2 and zinconigerite-6N6S Zn3Sn2Al16O30(OH)2, two new minerals of the nolanite-spinel polysomatic series from the Xianghualing skarn, Hunan Province, China

  • Can Rao , Xiangping Gu , Rucheng Wang , Qunke Xia ORCID logo , Chuanwan Dong , Frédéric Hatert , Fabrice Dal Bo , Xuege Yu and Wumengyu Wang
Published/Copyright: September 29, 2022
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American Mineralogist
From the journal American Mineralogist Volume 107 Issue 10

Abstract

Zinconigerite-2N1S ZnSn2Al12O22(OH)2 and zinconigerite-6N6S Zn3Sn2Al16O30(OH)2 are two new minerals with different numbers and ratios of nolanite (N) and spinel (S) modules. Both phases have been discovered in the Xianghualing skarn, Hunan Province, China. Zinconigerite-2N1S (zn-2N1S) and zinconigerite-6N6S (zn-6N6S) are named for their chemical composition, number, and ratios of N-S modules, according to the nomenclature of the nolanite-spinel polysomatic series of Armbruster (2002). Both phases occur as aggregates, sub-to-euhedral crystals, with maximal dimensions up to 100 μm, within fluorite aggregates, and they are closely associated with phlogopite, chrysoberyl, magnetite, cassiterite, margarite, and nigerite-taaffeite group minerals. They do not show fluorescence in long- or short-wave ultraviolet light. The calculated densities are 4.456 g/cm3 for zn-2N1S and 4.438 g/cm3 for zn-6N6S. Optically, zn-2N1S is uniaxial (+) with ω = 1.83(1), ε = 1.84(2); zn-6N6S is uniaxial (+) with ω = 1.85(1), ε = 1.87(2) (λ = 589 nm). Their chemical compositions by electron-microprobe analyses give the empirical formulas (Zn0.734Mn0.204Na0.122Ca0.063Mg0.044)Σ1.166(Sn1.941Zn0.053Ti0.007)Σ2 A l 11.018 F e 0.690 3 + Z n 0.200 S i 0.092 12 O 22 ( O H ) 2 for zn-2N1S and Z n 1.689 M n 0.576 M g 0.328 F e 0.407 3 + Σ 3 S n 1.882 Z n 0.047 T i 0.071 Σ 22 A l 14.675 F e 1.088 3 + N a 0.13 C a 0.086 S i 0.017 Σ 15.996 O 30 ( O H ) 2 for zn-6N6S. Both phases have trigonal symmetry; the unit-cell parameters of zn-2N1S (P3m1) and zn-6N6S (R3m), refined from single-crystal X‑ray diffraction data, are, a = 5.7191(2) and 5.7241(2) Å, c = 13.8380(6) and 55.5393(16) Å, V = 391.98(3) and 1575.96(12) Å3, and Z = 1 and 3, respectively. The structure of zn-2N1S is characterized by the alternating O-T1-O-T2-O-T1 layers stacked along the c-axis, showing the connectivity of N-S-N. The polyhedral stacking sequence of zn-6N6S is 3 × (O-T1-O-T2-O-T2-O-T1), reflecting a N-S-S-N-N-S-S-N-N-S-S-N connectivity of the polysomatic structure. By contrast, the structure of zn-2N1S shows the elemental replacements of Al → Sn and Al → Zn, suggesting the substitution mechanism of 2Al → Zn + Sn. The complex substitution of Zn by multiple elements (Al, Fe3+, Mn, Mg) in the structure of zn-6N6S, is coupled with the low occupancy of Al5-octahedra. Fe3+ → Al substitution occurs in Al1-tetrahedra of both zn-2N1S and zn-6N6S. The new polysomes, zn-2N1S and zn-6N6S, likely crystallized under F-rich conditions during the late stages of the Xianghualing skarn formation. The discovery of zn-2N1S and zn-6N6S provides new insights into the crystal chemistry of the N-S polysomatic series and its origin.

Keywords: Zinconigerite-2N1S; zinconigerite-6N6S; nolanite module; spinel module; polysomatic series; Xianghualing skarn

Acknowledgments and Funding

We thank Sergey Aksenov, one anonymous reviewer, and the technical editor for their comments and suggestions that have helped improve the quality of this paper significantly. Financial support for the research was provided by the NSF of China (Grant No. 41772031).

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Received: 2021-01-21
Accepted: 2021-10-26
Published Online: 2022-09-29
Published in Print: 2022-10-26

© 2022 Mineralogical Society of America

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https://doi.org/10.2138/am-2022-7983
Keywords for this article
Zinconigerite-2N1S; zinconigerite-6N6S; nolanite module; spinel module; polysomatic series; Xianghualing skarn

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Experimentally derived F, Cl, and Br fluid/melt partitioning of intermediate to silicic melts in shallow magmatic systems
  2. Spectroscopic study on the local structure of sulfate ( S O 4 2 − ) incorporated in scorodite (FeAsO4·2H2O) lattice: Implications for understanding the Fe(III)-As(V)- S O 4 2 − -bearing minerals formation
  3. Oxidation of arcs and mantle wedges by reduction of manganese in pelagic sediments during seafloor subduction
  4. Raman scattering and Cr3+ luminescence study on the structural behavior of δ-AlOOH at high pressures
  5. Jadeite and related species in shocked meteorites: Limitations on inference of shock conditions
  6. Pressure-induced C23–C37 transition and compression behavior of orthorhombic Fe2S to Earth’s core pressures and high temperatures
  7. Estimating ferric iron content in clinopyroxene using machine learning models
  8. Pyradoketosite, a new, unexpected, polymorph of Ag3SbS3 from the Monte Arsiccio mine (Apuan Alps, Tuscany, Italy)
  9. Pyrite geochemistry and its implications on Au-Cu skarn metallogeny: An example from the Jiguanzui deposit, Eastern China
  10. Synthesis of ferrian and ferro-saponites: Implications for the structure of (Fe,Mg)-smectites formed under reduced conditions
  11. Natural cubic perovskite, Ca(Ti,Si,Cr)O3–δ, a versatile potential host for rock-forming and less-common elements up to Earth’s mantle pressure
  12. Nazarovite, Ni12P5, a new terrestrial and meteoritic mineral structurally related to nickelphosphide, Ni3P
  13. Zinconigerite-2N1S ZnSn2Al12O22(OH)2 and zinconigerite-6N6S Zn3Sn2Al16O30(OH)2, two new minerals of the nolanite-spinel polysomatic series from the Xianghualing skarn, Hunan Province, China
  14. Tracing structural relicts of the ikaite-to-calcite transformation in cryogenic cave glendonite
  15. Oxygen-fugacity evolution of magmatic Ni-Cu sulfide deposits in East Kunlun: Insights from Cr-spinel composition
  16. New Mineral Names
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