Ye'elimite | |
---|---|
General | |
Category | Sulfate mineral |
Formula (repeating unit) | Ca 4(AlO 2) 6SO 4 |
IMA symbol | Ye[1] |
Strunz classification | 7.BC.15 |
Crystal system | Isometric |
Crystal class | Gyroidal (432) H-M symbol: (432) |
Space group | I4132 |
Unit cell | a = 18.392 Å; Z = 16 |
Identification | |
Color | White, gray |
References | [2] |
Ye'elimite is the naturally occurring form of anhydrous calcium sulfoaluminate, Ca
4(AlO
2)
6SO
4. It gets its name from Har Ye'elim in Israel in the Hatrurim Basin west of the Dead Sea where it was first found in nature by Shulamit Gross, an Israeli mineralogist and geologist who studied the Hatrurim Formation.[3][4]
The mineral is cubic, with 16 formula units per unit cell, and a cell dimension of 1.8392 nm, and is readily detected and quantified in mixtures by powder x-ray diffraction.[5]