Sulfosalt mineral
Sulfosalt minerals are sulfide minerals with the general formula AmBnXp, where
- A represents a metal such as copper, lead, silver, iron, and rarely mercury, zinc, vanadium
- B usually represents semi-metal such as arsenic, antimony, bismuth, and rarely germanium, or metals like tin and rarely vanadium
- X is sulfur or rarely selenium and/or tellurium.
The Strunz classification includes the sulfosalts in a sulfides and sulfosalts superclass. A group which have similar appearing formulas are the sulfarsenides (for example cobaltite (Co,Fe)AsS). In sulfarsenides the arsenic substitutes for sulfide anions whereas in the sulfosalts the arsenic substitutes for a metal cation.
About 200 sulfosalt minerals are known. Examples include:
- As illustrated by this specimen of proustite, sulfosalt minerals are often deeply colored.
- A3BX3 type
- Pyrargyrite Ag3SbS3
- Proustite Ag3AsS3
- Tetrahedrite Cu12Sb4S13
- Tennantite Cu12As4S13
- A3BX4 type
- Enargite Cu3AsS4
- Sulvanite Cu3VS4
- Samsonite Ag4MnSb2S6
- Geocronite Pb14(Sb,As)6S23
- Gratonite Pb9As4S15
- A2BX3 type
- Bournonite PbCuSbS3
- Seligmannite PbCuAsS3
- Aikinite PbCuBiS3
- ABX2 type
- Boulangerite Pb5Sb4S11
- Matildite AgBiS2
- Smithite AgAsS2
- Chalcostibite CuSbS2
- Emplectite CuBiS2
- Teallite PbSnS2
- A2B2X5 type
- Ramdohrite Ag3Pb6Sb11S24
- Jamesonite Pb4FeSb6S14
- Cosalite Pb2Bi2S5
- A2B3X6 type
- Andorite PbAgSb3S6
- Lindstromite Pb3Cu3Bi7S15
- AB2X4 type
- Zinkenite Pb9Sb22S42
- Berthierite FeSb2S4
- Cylindrite Pb3Sn4FeSb2S14
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