Vanadium

vanadium

brackebuschite

hewettite

cavansite

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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
mannardite
montroseite
navajoite
senaite
shcherbinaite

Vanadium oxysalts
bannermanite
hendersonite

Sulphates - Minerals that contain the radical (SO4)2-
minasragrite
orthominasragrite
stanleyite

Phosphates - the phosphate anion is (PO4)3-
fulbrightite

Arsenates - Minerals that contain the radical (AsO4)3- or (AsO3OH)2-
relianceite-(K)

Vanadates - Minerals that contain the radical (V5+O4)3- or (V5+O3)-
ammoniomathesiusite
ansermetite
barnesite
beckettite
blossite
bokite
borisenkoite
brackebuschite
calciodelrioite
carnotite
chervetite
clinobisvanite
descloizite
donowensite
dreyerite
fervanite
fianelite
francevillite
hewettite
heyite
kainotropite
margaritasite
martyite
medvedevite
metahewettite
metamunirite
metarossite
metatyuyamunite
mikehowardite
morrisonite
mottramite
munirite
namibite
packratite
palenzonaite
pandoraite-Ba
pandoraite-Ca
pintadoite
pliniusite
pomite
postite
pseudodickthomssenite
pseudolyonsite
pseudopomite
pucherite
pyrobelonite
reznitskyite
rossite
schumacherite
sherwoodite
starovaite
steigerite
straczekite
tangeite
trebiskyite
turanite
tyuyamunite
udinaite
uvanite
vanadinite
vanalite
vanoxite
vesignieite
volborthite
wakefieldite-(Ce)

Decavanadates - Minerals that contain the [V10O28]6– polyanion
ammoniolasalite
bluestreakite
burroite
caseyite
huemulite
hummerite
magnesiopascoite
okieite
pascoite
rakovanite
rauvite
schindlerite
wernerbaurite

Arsenovanadates - Minerals that contain the polyoxymetalate cluster [As5+V5+12O40(VO)]12-
kegginite

Nesosilicates
goldmanite
jingwenite-(Y)

Sorosilicates - Minerals that contain Si2O7 groups
medaite

Inosilicates
burnettite

Phyllosilicates - Sheet silicates, minerals that contain Si2O5 groups
cavansite
roscoelite

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