Tausonite is the rare naturally occurring mineral form of strontium titanate: chemical formula: SrTiO3. It occurs as red to orange brown cubic crystals and crystal masses.
| Tausonite | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General | |
| Category | Oxide mineral |
| Formula (repeating unit) | SrTiO3 |
| IMA symbol | Tau[1] |
| Strunz classification | 4.CC.35 |
| Crystal system | Cubic |
| Crystal class | Hexoctahedral (m3m) H-M symbol: (4/m 3 2/m) |
| Space group | Pm3m |
| Unit cell | a = 3.9 Å; Z = 1 |
| Identification | |
| Color | Red, red-brown, orange, dark gray |
| Crystal habit | Cubic and octahedral crystals, granular, massive |
| Cleavage | None |
| Fracture | Conchoidal |
| Tenacity | Brittle |
| Mohs scale hardness | 6-6.5 |
| Luster | Adamantine |
| Diaphaneity | Translucent to opaque |
| Specific gravity | 4.88 |
| Optical properties | Isotropic |
| Refractive index | n = 2.40 |
| References | [2][3][4] |
It is a member of the perovskite group.
It was first described in 1982 for an occurrence in a syenite intrusive in Tausonite Hill, Murun Massif, Olyokma-Chara Plateau, Sakha Republic, Yakutia, geologically part of the Aldan Shield, Eastern-Siberian Region, Russia.[2] It was named for Russian geochemist Lev Vladimirovich Tauson (1917–1989).[4] It has also been reported from a fenite dike associated with a carbonatite complex in Sarambi, Concepción Department, Paraguay.[3] and in high pressure metamorphic rocks along the Kotaki River area of Honshu Island, Japan.[2]
References
edit- ^ Warr, L.N. (2021). "IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols". Mineralogical Magazine. 85 (3): 291–320. Bibcode:2021MinM...85..291W. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43. S2CID 235729616.
- ^ a b c Tausonite on Mindat.org
- ^ a b Tausonite in the Handbook of Mineralogy
- ^ a b Tausonite data on Webmineral