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Formula: NaAl3(PO4)2(OH)4.2H2O
Hydrated phosphate, wardite group
Crystal System: Tetragonal
Specific gravity: 2.81 to 2.87 measured, 2.805 calculated
Hardness: 5
Streak: White
Colour: Colourless, white, lightly coloured blue to green, yellow-green, light yellow, brown,
colourless in transmitted light
Solubility: Completely soluble in acids with difficulty
Environments:
Pegmatites
Sedimentary environments
Metamorphic environments
Wardite is an alteration product of amblygonite in pegmatites and it also occurs
in low temperature phosphatic nodules in sedimentary rocks.
Localities
At Tom's quarry, Kapunda, Mount Lofty ranges, South Australia, wardite is associated with
leucophosphite, mitridatite,
natrodufrénite and kapundaite
(AJM 17.1.27).
At the Mount Deverell variscite deposit, Milgun Station, Western Australia, wardite
generally occurs at the margins of variscite veins, associated with
millisite in some cases. It may also be replaced by
crandallite. The variscite deposits are hosted
by marine sedimentary rocks
(AJM 20.2.33).
At the Santa Rosa pegmatite district, Itambacuri, Minas Gerais, Brazil, beautiful groupings of small
wardite crystals on quartz were found in the Old Santa Rosa mine
around 1970
(MinRec 56.4.454).
Wardite from the Santa Rosa Mine -
Image
At Montebras, Creuse, France, wardite is an alteration product of amblygonite
(Dana).
Wardite from the Montebras Mines -
Image
At the type locality, Clay Canyon, Utah, USA, wardite is associated with millisite and
crandallite.
Wardite from Clay Canyon - Image
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