Chkalovite
Current inventory:  0 gems
 

  
Chkalovite is named after Valerii Pavlovich Chkalov (1904-1938), the first to fly nonstop from Moscow to the USA across the North Pole.

Discovered in 1938; IMA status: Valid (pre-IMA; Grandfathered)

Chemistry

Chemical Formula:

Na₂Be(Si₂O₆)

Sodium Berylliom Silicate

Molecular Weight:

207.16 gm

Composition:

Sodium

22.20 %

Na

29.92 %

Na₂O

Beryllium

4.35 %

Be

12.07 %

BeO

Silicon

27.11 %

Si

58.01 %

SiO₂

Oxygen

46.34 %

O

100.00 %

100.00 %

= TOTAL OXIDE

Classification

Mineral Classification:

Silicates (Germanates)

Strunz 8th Ed. ID:

8/J.04-10

Nickel-Strunz 10th Ed. ID:

9.DM.20

9 : SILICATES (Germanates)
D : Inosilicates
M : Inosilicates with 6-periodic single chains

Related to:

n/a

Varieties:

None

Synonyms:

None

Crystal Data

Crystallography:

Orthorhombic - Pyramidal

Crystal Habit:

As complex equant crystals, to 5 mm; massive.

Twinning:

None

Physical Properties

Cleavage:

Fair on {100}, indistinct in two other directions

Fracture:

Irregular/Uneven, Conchoidal

Tenacity:

Brittle

Moh's Hardness:

6.0

Density:

2.662 (g/cm³)

Luminescence:

None

Radioactivity:

Not Radioactive

Optical Properties

Color:

Colorless, White

Transparency:

Transparent to Translucent

Luster:

Vitreous to Greasy

Refractive Index:

1.544 - 1.549  Biaxial ( + )

Birefringence:

0.0050

Dispersion:

Noticable

Pleochroism:

None

Occurances

Geological Setting:

In veins in pegmatite in a differentiated alkalic massif (Lovozero massif, Russia); in sodalite xenoliths in an intrusive alkalic gabbro-syenite complex (Mont Saint-Hilaire, Canada).

Common Associations:

Manganoan Pectolite, Microcline, Sodalite, Eudialyte, Neptunite, Ussingite (Lovozero massif, Russia); Villiaumite, Ussingite, Sodalite, Aegirine, Lovozerite, Vuonnemite, Sérandite, Lueshite, Steenstrupine (Mont Saint-Hilaire, Canada).

Common Impurities:

Fe, Ca, K, S

Type Locality:

Malyi Punkaruaiv Mt, Lovozero Massif, Kola Peninsula, Murmanskaja Oblast', Northern Region, Russia

Year Discovered:

1938

View mineral photos:

Chkalovite Mineral Photos and Locations

More Information

Mindat.org
Webmineral.com

Chkalovite is a very rare beryllium silicate mineral that is found only in igneous rocks that are rich in sodium and poor in silicon and aluminum compared to other, more typical igneous rocks. These types of igneous rocks are called agpaitic pegmatites and it is where many new and exotic minerals have been discovered. Chkalovite was discovered in 1938 on Malyi Punkaruaiv Mountain, Kola Peninsula, Russia. It is an extremely rare gem as gem quality crystals are rarely found and are usually very small. Most material is massive and opaque white.

There are only three known sources of Chkalovite; Poudrette quarry Mont Saint-Hilaire, Rouville County, Québec, Canada; Tasseq Slope, Ilimaussaq complex, Narsaq, Kitaa Province (West Greenland), Greenland; Karnasurt Mt, Lovozero Massif, Kola Peninsula, Murmanskaja Oblast', Northern Region, Russia.
 

  
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