Hafnon mineral
Hafnon is the hafnium silicate mineral species with ideal formula HfSiO4, approved as IMA 1974-018. It is distinct from zircon, elemental hafnium and synthetic hafnium-silicate products. The Handbook of Mineralogy describes the species as tetragonal but explicitly identifies its cell parameters, calculated density and powder pattern as synthetic data; those values are not measurements of a natural Brazilian specimen. Pereira, Ávila and Neumann (2004), in their study of cassiterite from eight concentrate samples in the São João del Rei Pegmatite Province, report zirconian hafnon as an inclusion in cassiterite from a pan concentrate collected in a stream crossing body E of the Volta Grande mine, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Table 2 assigns that occurrence to this sample, rather than to every surveyed locality. The study uses backscattered-electron imaging and semiquantitative SEM-EDS, and its hafnon discussion explicitly cites the overlapping 2002/2003 work. This is a qualified source-reported natural occurrence, not a new independent replication of the older microanalyses or a pure-phase diffraction refinement. Its geological formation interpretation is not a controlled transformation experiment. No occurrence-wide grade, extraction, microbial mechanism, industrial deployment or inherited hafnium criticality designation is assigned.
Identifiers & Classification
| System | Identifier | Label |
|---|---|---|
| IMA |
IMA:1974-018
|
Hafnon |
Sources & References
-
ima_2026_09: IMA-CNMNC. The New IMA List of Minerals, September 2026; original PDF page 1 definitions and page 88 Hafnon row: Hf(SiO4), A, 1974-018, Mozambique. Fresh issuing-authority original inspected; the listed discovery country does not identify the location of the Brazilian sampled occurrence.
https://cnmnc.units.it/files/editor/IMA_Master_List_(2026-09).pdf (accessed 2026-10-12) -
pereira2004: Pereira RM, Ávila CA and Neumann R (2004). Estudo mineralógico e químico da cassiterita e de suas inclusões sólidas: implicação com a paragênese das mineralizações da Província Pegmatítica de São João del Rei, Minas Gerais, Brasil. Arquivos do Museu Nacional 62(3), 321-336. Complete official 16-page original, Figures 1-9 and Tables 1-7 inspected. Sample origin: pages 324-325; methods: page 325; source-reported hafnon occurrence: page 326 and Table 2 on page 329; overlap and geological interpretation: pages 332-334; older source citations: page 335. The published hafnon composition range is attributed to 2003 and is not imported here. The relevant primary 2003 microanalyses and original graphics remain uninspected. Portal posting in 2021 is distinct from the printed 2004 publication.
https://revistas.ufrj.br/index.php/amn/article/view/48745 (accessed 2026-10-12) -
handbook_hafnon: Handbook of Mineralogy. Hafnon, version 1.2 (2001), one original page inspected. Secondary context for tetragonal mineral identity; density, cell data and powder diffraction entries are explicitly synthetic. Natural chemistry summaries cite separate older work and are not imported as new observations.
https://www.handbookofmineralogy.org/pdfs/hafnon.pdf (accessed 2026-10-12)
Curation History
| Timestamp | Curator | Action | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
2026-10-12T09:58:00Z |
codex (GPT-6; codex) | create | Added hafnon species identity and qualified natural-occurrence context from current IMA authority and a completely inspected 2004 primary paper. Preserved overlap with inaccessible older microanalyses and separated synthetic structural data; no mechanism, recovery or criticality claim was added. |
Record source: data/records/hafnon.yaml