Calumetite
Encyclopedia
Calumetite is a natural rarely occurring mineral. It was discovered in 1963 at the Centennial Mine near Calumet, Michigan
, United States
. Calumetite was first discovered along with anthonyite
. It has a chemical formula of Cu(OH,Cl)2•2(H2O).
. It is named after the locality where it was found. The centennial mine is in Houghton County in Calumet, Michigan. The centennial mine has produced other copper minerals. Calumetite has been found to occur in basalt
cavities; as painting in canvas
and frescos; and also as corrosive
products on bronze
items. It is found in association with tremolite
, quartz
, epidote
, monazite
, copper
, cuprite
, atacamite
, buttgenbachite, malachite
, paratacamite, and anthonyite
. Calumet, the locality where calumetite was found was once considered a mining
industry. The centennial mine produced approximately 37 million pounds of refined copper before it was closed down in 1966 and overtaken.
to powder blue mineral. It has a hardness of 2 with good cleavage
along the {001} direction and belongs to the orthorhombic crystal system.
Calumetite has a bluish white streak. Its luster is pearly on cleavage. Calumetite has a brittle
tenacity and is semitransparent.
The specific gravity of calumetite could not be measured because of the difficulty in separating the quartz
and epidote
from the calumetite mineral coating them.
cavities. Calumetite has been stated to be a naturally occurring mineral. It was prepared with ammonium chloride
by means of the lime blue recipe which showed that the mineral is synthetic. Calumetite was first discovered in calumet Michigan but has since been observed in other mines near the calumet mine. It was suggested that calumetite is not a post-mine evaporate because of the mode of occurrence. Calumetite is insoluble in ammonia
and water, and soluble in cold dilute acids.
Calumet, Michigan
Calumet is a village in Calumet Township, Houghton County, in the U.S. state of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, that was once at the center of the mining industry of the Upper Peninsula. Also known as Red Jacket, the village includes the Calumet Downtown Historic District, listed on the National...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Calumetite was first discovered along with anthonyite
Anthonyite
Anthonyite is a hydrous secondary copper halide mineral with chemical formula of Cu2•3.It was discovered in 1963 in the Centennial mine, Calumet, Houghton County, Michigan, USA. It was discovered by the University of Arizona mineralogist John W...
. It has a chemical formula of Cu(OH,Cl)2•2(H2O).
History
Calumetite was discovered in 1963 at the Centennial MineMining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
. It is named after the locality where it was found. The centennial mine is in Houghton County in Calumet, Michigan. The centennial mine has produced other copper minerals. Calumetite has been found to occur in basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
cavities; as painting in canvas
Canvas
Canvas is an extremely heavy-duty plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, and other items for which sturdiness is required. It is also popularly used by artists as a painting surface, typically stretched across a wooden frame...
and frescos; and also as corrosive
Corrosive
A corrosive substance is one that will destroy or irreversibly damage another surface or substance with which it comes into contact. The main hazards to people include damage to the eyes, the skin, and the tissue under the skin; inhalation or ingestion of a corrosive substance can damage the...
products on bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
items. It is found in association with tremolite
Tremolite
Tremolite is a member of the amphibole group of silicate minerals with composition: Ca2Mg5Si8O222. Tremolite forms by metamorphism of sediments rich in dolomite and quartz. Tremolite forms a series with actinolite and ferro-actinolite. Pure magnesium tremolite is creamy white, but the color grades...
, quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
, epidote
Epidote
Epidote is a calcium aluminium iron sorosilicate mineral, Ca2Al2O, crystallizing in the monoclinic system. Well-developed crystals are of frequent occurrence: they are commonly prismatic in habit, the direction of elongation being perpendicular to the single plane of symmetry. The faces are often...
, monazite
Monazite
Monazite is a reddish-brown phosphate mineral containing rare earth metals. It occurs usually in small isolated crystals. There are actually at least four different kinds of monazite, depending on relative elemental composition of the mineral:...
, copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, cuprite
Cuprite
Cuprite is an oxide mineral composed of copper oxide Cu2O, and is a minor ore of copper.Its dark crystals with red internal reflections are in the isometric system hexoctahedral class, appearing as cubic, octahedral, or dodecahedral forms, or in combinations. Penetration twins frequently occur...
, atacamite
Atacamite
Atacamite is a copper halide mineral: a copper chloride hydroxide with formula Cu2Cl3.It was first described for deposits in the Atacama Desert of Chile in 1801....
, buttgenbachite, malachite
Malachite
Malachite is a copper carbonate mineral, with the formula Cu2CO32. This green-colored mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses. Individual crystals are rare but do occur as slender to acicular prisms...
, paratacamite, and anthonyite
Anthonyite
Anthonyite is a hydrous secondary copper halide mineral with chemical formula of Cu2•3.It was discovered in 1963 in the Centennial mine, Calumet, Houghton County, Michigan, USA. It was discovered by the University of Arizona mineralogist John W...
. Calumet, the locality where calumetite was found was once considered a mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
industry. The centennial mine produced approximately 37 million pounds of refined copper before it was closed down in 1966 and overtaken.
Physical properties
Calumetite occurs as a brilliant azureAzure
In heraldry, azure is the tincture with the colour blue, and belongs to the class of tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of horizontal lines or else marked with either az. or b. as an abbreviation....
to powder blue mineral. It has a hardness of 2 with good cleavage
Cleavage (crystal)
Cleavage, in mineralogy, is the tendency of crystalline materials to split along definite crystallographic structural planes. These planes of relative weakness are a result of the regular locations of atoms and ions in the crystal, which create smooth repeating surfaces that are visible both in the...
along the {001} direction and belongs to the orthorhombic crystal system.
Calumetite has a bluish white streak. Its luster is pearly on cleavage. Calumetite has a brittle
Brittle
A material is brittle if, when subjected to stress, it breaks without significant deformation . Brittle materials absorb relatively little energy prior to fracture, even those of high strength. Breaking is often accompanied by a snapping sound. Brittle materials include most ceramics and glasses ...
tenacity and is semitransparent.
The specific gravity of calumetite could not be measured because of the difficulty in separating the quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...
and epidote
Epidote
Epidote is a calcium aluminium iron sorosilicate mineral, Ca2Al2O, crystallizing in the monoclinic system. Well-developed crystals are of frequent occurrence: they are commonly prismatic in habit, the direction of elongation being perpendicular to the single plane of symmetry. The faces are often...
from the calumetite mineral coating them.
Geologic occurrence
Calumetite was discovered with Anthonyite in 1963. Other copper mineral have been linked to calumetite which include copper, cuprite, malachite, atacamite, paratacamite, buttgenbachite. The minerals were found in the centennial mine which is known to yield copper minerals. Calumetite has been found in basaltBasalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
cavities. Calumetite has been stated to be a naturally occurring mineral. It was prepared with ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride
Ammonium chloride NH4Cl is an inorganic compound with the formula NH4Cl. It is a white crystalline salt that is highly soluble in water. Solutions of ammonium chloride are mildly acidic. Sal ammoniac is a name of natural, mineralogical form of ammonium chloride...
by means of the lime blue recipe which showed that the mineral is synthetic. Calumetite was first discovered in calumet Michigan but has since been observed in other mines near the calumet mine. It was suggested that calumetite is not a post-mine evaporate because of the mode of occurrence. Calumetite is insoluble in ammonia
Ammonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...
and water, and soluble in cold dilute acids.