Minerals and metals of increasing interest, rare and radioactive minerals Authors Moore, R.T. Rights Arizona Geological Survey. All rights reserved. Download date 06/10/2021 17:57:35 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/629904 Vol. XXIV, No.4 October, 1953 ~ui&£r5itt! of J\rij!oua ~ul1etiu ARIZONA BUREAU OF MINES MINERALS AND METALS OF INCREASING INTEREST RARE AND RADIOACTIVE MINERALS By RICHARD T. MOORE ARIZONA BUREAU OF MINES MINERAL TECHNOLOGY SERIES No. 47 BULLETIN No. 163 THIRTY CENTS (Free to Residents of Arizona) PUBLISHED BY ~tti£ll~r5itt! of ~rh!Omt TUCSON, ARIZONA TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 5 Acknowledgments 5 General Features 5 BERYLLIUM 7 General Features 7 Beryllium Minerals 7 Beryl 7 Phenacite 8 Gadolinite 8 Helvite 8 Occurrence 8 Prices and Possible Buyers ,........................................ 8 LITHIUM 9 General Features 9 Lithium Minerals 9 Amblygonite 9 Spodumene 10 Lepidolite 10 Triphylite 10 Zinnwaldite 10 Occurrence 10 Prices and Possible Buyers 10 CESIUM AND RUBIDIUM 11 General Features 11 Cesium and Rubidium Minerals 11 Pollucite ..................•.........................................................................., 11 Occurrence 12 Prices and Producers 12 TITANIUM 12 General Features 12 Titanium Minerals 13 Rutile 13 Ilmenite 13 Sphene 13 Occurrence 13 Prices and Buyers 14 GALLIUM, GERMANIUM, INDIUM, AND THALLIUM 14 General Features 14 Gallium, Germanium, Indium and Thallium Minerals 15 Germanite 15 Lorandite 15 Hutchinsonite : 15 Vrbaite 15 Occurrence 15 Prices and Producers ~ 16 RHENIUM 16 General Features 16 Occurrence 16 Prices and Producers 17 SELENIUM AND TELLURI:UM : . 17 General Features . 17 Selenium and Tellurium Minerals . 17 18 ~~~~!~~.~~~ :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 18 Rickardite .. 18 18 18 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 18 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ~~ic~~r~~~ P~~dl~~~;~S··:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.':.:.:.:.:.::.:.:.:...::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::.:.:.:..::..::..:.::.:.:..:.::.:. i~ This bulletin was prepared to give the prospector a knowledge ZIRCONIUM AND HAFNIUM 19 of the general features of some of the metals and their minerals General Features 19 which have become increasingly important in the past few years. Zirconium and Hafnium Minerals 20 Zircon 20 It supersedes Arizona Bureau of Mines Circular No. 13 "RADIO­ Badde1eyite 20 ACTIVE URANIUM AND THORIUM" by J. W. Anthony and Occurrence 20 includes several metals which were not covered in Circular Prices and Possible Buyers 20 No. 13. COLUMBIUM (Nobium) AND TANTALUM 21 The author wishes to express his appreciation to Dr. Eldred General Features 21 D. Wilson of the Arizona Bureau of Mines for his helpful criticism Columbium and Tantalum Minerals 21 during the preparation of the manuscript and for his aid in supply­ Pyrochlore-Microlite 22 ing information for the sections on Arizona occurrences. Grateful Fergusonite-Formanite 22 Columbite-Tantalite 22 acknowledgment is also given Mr. George Roseveare of the Ari­ Euxinite 22 zona Bureau of Mines for his assistance in gathering data on the Samarskite 22 uses of the various metals described. Occurrence 22 Prices and Producers 23 GENERAL FEATURES RARE-EARTH METALS 24 General Features 24 In the past decade, military and economic pressures have greatly Rare-Earth Minerals : 24 accelerated research in the field of physical metallurgy. As a Monazite 25 result, many uses have been found for elements which hitherto Allanite 25 were considered laboratory curiosities, and now some of these Bastnaesite 25 Cerite 25 minor metals are of strategic importance. This newly-created Xenotime 25 demand has prompted the extractive metallurgist to devise meth­ Occurrence 25 ods of recovering these elements and to determine which raw Prices and Producers 26 materials are the best sources. In some cases the prospector finds deposits which, because of size or some other favorable factors, URANIUM AND THORIUM 27 General Features :....................................... 27 may encourage the chemist and metallurgist to work out new Uranium and Thorium Minerals 27 recovery and refining methods, although the usual role of the Uraninite (Pitchblende) 27 prospector is to search for deposits of material already in demand. Schroeckingerite 27 In any event, the prospector should know what substances to Swartzite 27 Andersonite 28 seek, some of the important characteristics of those substances, Bayleyite 28 how they occur geologically, and what tests can be used to deter­ Carnotite 28 mine their presence. Tyuyamunite 28 The lack of uses developed for the strategic minor metals until Zippeite 28 recently is a direct reflection of the rarity of known important Johannite 28 Torbernite 28 deposits of these metals. If relatively large, rich deposits of them Autunite 28 had been known in the past, there is little doubt that the metals Becquerelite 28 would long since have been put to use. Another factor which Schoepite 28 delayed the utilization of the strategic minor metals is the dif­ Gummite 28 ficulty with which many of them are separated from their im­ Kasolite :................ 29 Uranophane 29 purities. The difficulty of separation gives rise to another problem Occurrence 31 as far as the prospector is concerned; that is, the identification Incentive Program and Buying Schedule 32 or testing for these metals. With the exception of two or three of them, there are no satisfactory field tests that can be used. ApPENDIX 34 Selected References 34 Most of the strategic minor metals occur in very minor concen­ Glossary 38 trations and bear marked chemical similarity to other, more abundant elements; hence their detection by chemical methods 5 6 UNIVERSITY ARIZOINA BULLETIN RARE AND RADIOACTIVE MINERALS 7 necessarily involves the use of elaborate, time-consuming and expensive laboratory procedures. Considerable work has been done on another laboratory method, spectroscopic examination. 114· 113- lIZ· 1lI~ 110· 109· ,.!.. --1 __ -. -'- !...-,- ~1--37 37L- * When an element is burned in an electric arc or placed in a I I I U 'U U ul high-voltage spark it emits light of various wave lengths char­ I I I UI I u J I I UU I acteristic of the particular element. By observing the arc or spark I I ( I u! I with a spectroscope it is possible to measure the wave length of ) COCONINO I I I the various colors emitted and thereby determine the element. / I' I J /-- I I I The minor metals exhibit this property but to a lesser degree 362.-("--"-/ ( I'APACHI:: ,-36 than many other elements. The Arizona Bureau of Mines is at I , U I I, I U I I ~ present negotiating for the purchase of the equipment required I M 0 H A V E . I 1-' l NAVAJO ; for this type of identification. Until the equipment can be obtained I I and put into use, the Arizona Bureau of Mines has no facilities \ I I I I I for making a complete qualitative determination of the minor ;. I UI metals that may be present in a sample. 35L- J u I \., C,\~' Holbroo~ I BERYLLIUM \ ThY IUJh I I ,Bey I I GENERAL FEATURES I I ""-. U) I ~"""""""" __JI I Beryllium was discovered in 1797. The metal is dark gray and I' Parker I I '-34 almost as hard as quartz, but very light in weight, only about 34'-- r 1---- I I 60 per cent as heavy as aluminum. As a conductor of electricity I l it is very good, better even than copper. Beryllium ranks forty­ I first in abundance in the earth's crust. ,j' Beryllium finds its most important application as an alloying I ) material with copper and nickel. Alloys containing 98 per cent '. 33°--\ copper and 2 per cent beryllium, when quick-chilled, are easily ;' worked and can be shaped into many forms. The objects made Ir Yuma in this fashion can then be heated to 725 degrees Fahrenheit (400 I '-- degrees Centigrade) and cooled slowly under controlled condi­ - '- tions to give them hardness and toughness equivalent to the best --- --- -- steels. Such an alloy is now replacing steel in certain aircraft 32'-- PIMA ~ engine valve springs. In addition to strength and hardness, these alloys have very good corrosion-resisting properties. Copper.,. 75 -- '- U 25 50 miles --- beryllium alloys also are used extensively for tools employed Scale in the vicinity of explosive vapor, because they do not throw off I I 114· 113° 112.° sparks of hot metal when struck, as do steel tools. Another commercial application of beryllium is the use of its oxide in refractory bricks. Figure I.-Index map showing reported occurrences of rare and radio­ active ore minerals in Arizona. BERYLLIUM MINERALS Beryllium does not occur as a native metal. Only one of its minerals, beryl, is presently considered commercial. Three min­ erals of potential use are phenacite, gadolinite, and helvite. If B Beryllium T Titanium large deposits of these three minerals could be found there is C Columbium and Tantalum Te Tellurium little doubt they would have commercial value. In Indium Th Thorium Beryl is a beryllium aluminum silicate containing from 8 to 14 L Lithium U Uranium per cent beryllium oxide (BeO). Crystalline or massive; crystals R Rhenium Y Rare-earths resemble those of quartz. Generally green or blue but also white, S Selenium Z Zirconium gray, yellow, or rose. Streak white, hardness 7.5 to 8, specific q RARE AND RADIOACTIVE MINERALS 9 8 UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA BULLETIN ~he gravity 2.6 to 2.8. Luster vitreous to resinous. Fracture uneven at close of 1953. The General Services Administration (G.S.A.) to conchoidal, imperfect prismatic cleavage. Emerald and aqua­ prIces at the depots in New Hampshire, North Carolina and South lot~ marine are gem varieties of beryl. Dakota, for up to 25 tons per year were: 8 to 8.9 per cent Phenacite, a beryllium silicate, contains from 40 to 45 per cent BeD, $40 per umt; 9 to 9.9 per cent BeD, $45 per unit· 10 per cent BeD. Generally as rhombohedral crystals. Yellow, rose-red, brown, or more, $50 per unit BeD. ' The following companies have been users of beryllium ores' colorless.