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Leifite
Current inventory:  0 gems
 

Chemistry:  Na₂(Si,Al,Be)₇(O,OH,F)₁₄
[Hydrated Sodium Beryllium Aluminum Silicate Hydroxide Fluoride]

Discovered in 1915;   IMA status: Valid (pre-IMA; Grandfathered).
Leifite is named for Leif Ericson, Norse adventurer and discoverer of Greenland in 982.

Classification

Mineral Classification:

Silicates

Strunz 8th Ed. ID:

8/J.10-10

Nickel-Strunz 10th Ed. ID:

9.EH.25

9 : SILICATES (Germanates)
E : Phyllosilicates
H : Transitional structures between phyllosilicate and other silicate units

Related to:

Leifite Group. The sodium analogue of Telyushenkoite.

Crystal Data

Crystallography:

Trigonal - Hexagonal Scalenohedral

Crystal Habit:

Crystals hexagonal prisms, acicular and deeply striated, to 3 cm. In radiating fibrous masses and spherical aggregates.

Twinning:

None

Physical Properties

Cleavage:

[1010] Distinct

Fracture:

Uneven to Splintery

Tenacity:

Brittle

Hardness (Mohs):

6.0

Density:

2.57 (g/cm³)

Luminescence:

None

Radioactivity:

Not Radioactive

Optical Properties

Color:

Colorless, White

Transparency:

Transparent to Translucent

Luster:

Vitreous, Silky

Refractive Index:

1.511 - 1.522  Uniaxial ( + )

Birefringence:

0.0107

Dispersion:

None

Pleochroism:

None

Occurances

Geological Setting:

Cavities in alkali-pegmatite veins (Narsarsuk, Greenland); in a differentiated alkalic massif (Lovozero massif, Russia); associated with an intrusive alkalic gabbro-syenite complex (Mont Saint-Hilaire, Canada).

Common Associations:

Aegirine, Microcline, Zinnwaldite, Calcite (Narsarsuk, Greenland); Albite, Natrolite (Lovozero massif, Russia); Rhodochrosite, Serandite (Mont Saint-Hilaire, Canada).

Common Impurities:

Ti, Fe, Mn, Zn, Mg, K, H₂O

Type Locality:

Narsarsuk pegmatite, Igaliko, Narsaq, Kitaa (West Greenland) Province, Greenland

Year Discovered:

1915

View mineral photos:

Leifite Mineral Photos and Locations

More Information

Mindat.org
Webmineral.com

Leifite is a very rare beryllium silicate mineral that is found in cavities of igneous rocks that have high concentrations of alkali metals, especially sodium, and low concentrations of silicon and aluminum and contain little or no Quartz.

There are only three know locations for finding Leifite: Narsarsuk, Greenland; Lovozero massif, and Khibiny massif, Kola Peninsula, Russia; and Mont Saint-Hilaire, Quebec, Canada. The main source of (small) gemmy crystals is the Poudrette quarry Mont Saint-Hilaire, Rouville County, Québec, Canada.
 

  
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