Realgar

Realgar
Realgar crystals, Royal Reward Mine, King County, Washington, US
General
CategorySulfide mineral
Formula
(repeating unit)
As4S4 or AsS
IMA symbolRlg[1]
Strunz classification2.FA.15a
Crystal systemMonoclinic
Crystal classPrismatic (2/m)
(same H-M symbol)
Space groupP21/n (no. 14)
Unit cella = 9.325(3) Å
b = 13.571(5) Å
c = 6.587(3) Å
β = 106.43°; Z = 16
Identification
ColorRed to yellow-orange; in polished section, pale gray, with abundant yellow to red internal reflections
Crystal habitPrismatic striated crystals; more commonly massive, coarse to fine granular, or as incrustations
TwinningContact twins on {100}
CleavageGood on {010}; less so on {101}, {100}, {120}, and {110}
TenacitySectile, slightly brittle
Mohs scale hardness1.5–2
LusterResinous to greasy
StreakRed-orange to red
DiaphaneityTransparent
Specific gravity3.56
Optical propertiesBiaxial (−)
Refractive indexnα = 2.538
nβ = 2.684
nγ = 2.704
Birefringenceδ = 0.166
PleochroismNearly colorless to pale golden yellow
2V angle40°
Dispersionr > v, very strong
Other characteristicsToxic and carcinogenic. Disintegrates on long exposure to light to a powder composed of pararealgar or arsenolite and orpiment.
References[2][3][4][5][6]

Realgar (/riˈælɡɑːr, -ɡər/ ree-AL-gar, -⁠gər), also known as ″arsenic blende″, ″ruby sulphur″ or ″ruby of arsenic″, is an arsenic sulfide mineral with the chemical formula α-As4S4. It is a soft, sectile mineral occurring in monoclinic crystals, or in granular, compact, or powdery form, often in association with the related mineral, orpiment (As2S3). It is orange-red in color, melts at 320 °C, and burns with a bluish flame releasing fumes of arsenic and sulfur. Realgar is soft with a Mohs hardness of 1.5 to 2 and has a specific gravity of 3.5. Its streak is orange colored. It is trimorphous with pararealgar and bonazziite.[2]

  1. ^ 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.
  2. ^ a b "Realgar" (PDF). Handbook of Mineralogy. RRUFF Project.
  3. ^ Realgar, Mindat.org
  4. ^ Realgar, WebMineral.com
  5. ^ Klein, Cornelis; Hurlbut, Cornelius S. (1985). Manual of Mineralogy (20th ed.). Wiley. p. 282. ISBN 0-471-80580-7.
  6. ^ Hejny, Clivia; Sagl, Raffaela; Többens, Daniel M.; Miletich, Ronald; Wildner, Manfred; Nasdala, Lutz; Ullrich, Angela; Balic-Zunic, Tonci (May 2012). "Crystal-structure properties and the molecular nature of hydrostatically compressed realgar". Physics and Chemistry of Minerals. 39 (5): 399–412. Bibcode:2012PCM....39..399H. doi:10.1007/s00269-012-0495-y. S2CID 96885484.