SZAIBÉLYITE
Class : Carbonates, nitrates, borates
Subclass : Borates
Crystal system : Monoclinic
Chemistry : MgBO2(OH)
Rarity : Uncommon
Szaibélyite (formerly called camsellite) is a magnesium borate forming a series with sussexite, its manganese equivalent. It is a fairly widespread mineral in various contexts having in common the presence of large quantities of magnesium and boron : skarns, metamorphic dolomites and limestones, serpentinites, salt deposits. It was named in honor of the Mining Engineer Stephen Szaibely who discovered the mineral. Szaibélyite can be massive, constituting chalky or powdery nodules, but more commonly forms white to straw-yellow fibers, which can reach a metric size ! It is an occasional boron ore.
Main photo : Szaibelyite from Brosso Mine, Piedmont, Italy © Henry Minot
Szaibélyite in the World
Twinning
Twinning is known on {100}.
Fakes and treatments
No fakes listed for this mineral species.
Hardness : 3 to 3.5
Density : 2.62
Fracture : Fibrous
Streak : White
TP : Translucent to transparent
RI : 1.530 to 1.740
Birefringence : 0.020 to 0.070
Optical character : Biaxial -
Pleochroism : None
Fluorescence : None
Solubility : Acids
Magnetism : NoneRadioactivity : None