Vanadium

vanadium

brackebuschite

hewettite

cavansite

Images

Formula: V
Element, iron group. Until recently vanadium was thought not to occur in its native state in the Earth's crust.
Specific gravity: 6.033 calculated
Colour: Steel grey
Solubility: Resistant to attack by alkalis, hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid and salt water (ChC)
Abundance: In the Earth’s crust, 120 parts per million by mass, 50 parts per million by moles; in the Solar System, 400 parts per billion by mass, 9 parts per billion by moles (ChC)
Environments

Fumeroles

When extracted from its ore vanadium is a bright white, soft, ductile metal with good structural strength. When present in compounds, it exists mostly as V5+ (ChC).

Localities

Vanadium is a new mineral (2016) found in sublimates of high-temperature fumaroles of the Colima volcano, Mexico. The mineral precipitates over a narrow temperature range of 550–680oC, and occurs in association with colimaite and shcherbinaite. Native vanadium was found in natural incrustations and on the inner wall of a silica tube inserted into vents and subsequently in the adjacent rock of the “Z3 fumarole.” It forms smooth, irregular to flattened crystals, 5–20 μm in diameter with smaller irregular crystals observed in silica tubes (AM 101.2783).

Alteration

Vanadium oxidises in air at around 660oC to the pentoxide V2O5 (shcherbinaite when naturally occurring) (ChC).

Vanadium-bearing minerals include:

Sulphides
patrónite
sulvanite

Sulphosalts
colusite

Oxides
coulsonite
crichtonite
davidite-(Ce)
davidite-(La)
dessauite-(Y)
karelianite
mannardite
montroseite
navajoite
senaite
shcherbinaite

Chlorides
hereroite
janchevite
kombatite

Sulphates
evdokimovite
minasragrite
orthominasragrite
pauflerite
stanleyite

Phosphates
fulbrightite

Arsenates
relianceite-(K)

Vanadates
ammoniomathesiusite
ansermetite
bannermanite
bariandite
barnesite
beckettite
blossite
bokite
borisenkoite
brackebuschite
calciodelrioite
carnotite
chervetite
clinobisvanite
delrioite
descloizite
dickthomssenite
donowensite
dreyerite
duttonite
fervanite
fianelite
finchite
fingerite
francevillite
fritzscheite
gurimite
hendersonite
hewettite
heyite
howardevansite
kainotropite
lyonsite
margaritasite
martyite
mcbirneyite
medvedevite
metahewettite
metamunirite
metarossite
metaschoderite
metatyuyamunite
mikehowardite
morrisonite
mottramite
munirite
namibite
packratite
palenzonaite
pandoraite-Ba
pandoraite-Ca
pintadoite
pliniusite
pomite
postite
pseudodickthomssenite
pseudolyonsite
pseudopomite
pucherite
pyrobelonite
reznitskyite
rossite
schäferite
schoderite
schubnelite
schumacherite
sherwoodite
starovaite
steigerite
stoiberite
straczekite
tangeite
trebiskyite
turanite
tyuyamunite
udinaite
uvanite
vanadinite
vanalite
vanoxite
vesignieite
volborthite
wakefieldite-(Ce)

Decavanadates
ammoniolasalite
bluestreakite
burroite
caseyite
gunterite
huemulite
hummerite
lasalite
magnesiopascoite
okieite
pascoite
rakovanite
rauvite
schindlerite
wernerbaurite

Arsenovanadates
kegginite

Nesosilicates
goldmanite
jingwenite-(Y)

Sorosilicates
medaite

Cyclosilicates
nagashimalite

Inosilicates, single chain
bavsiite
burnettite
suzukiite

Phyllosilicates
cavansite
roscoelite

Tectosilicates
wenlanzhangite-(Y)

Polyoxovanadosilicate
waipouaite


Sulphides - the sulphide anion is S2-
Sulphosalts - sulphide minerals with the general formula AmBnXp, where A represents a metal, B usually represents a semi-metal and X is sulphur or rarely selenium and/or tellurium
Oxides - the oxide anion is O2-
Chlorides - the chloride anion is Cl-
Sulphates - the sulphate anion is (SO4)2-
Phosphates - the phosphate anion is (PO4)3-
Arsenates - Minerals that contain the radical (AsO4)3- or (AsO3OH)2-
Vanadates - Minerals that contain the radical (V5+O4)3- or (V5+O3)-
Decavanadates - Minerals that contain the [V10O28]6– polyanion
Arsenovanadates - Minerals that contain the polyoxymetalate cluster [As5+V5+12O40(VO)]12-
Nesosilicates - insular (Si4+O4)4- groups
Sorosilicates - (Si4+2O7)6- groups
Cyclosilicates - (Si4+nO3n)2n- groups
Inosilicates - single chain - (Si4+nO3n)2n- groups
Phyllosilicates - (Si2O5) groups
Tectosilicate - [Al3+xSi4+OyO(2x+2y)]x−
Polyoxovanadosilicate - [(V4+,V5+)5O17] groups

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