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Uranopilite mineral

Uranopilite is the uranyl sulfate oxide hydroxide hydrate mineral with the September 2026 IMA formula (UO2)6(SO4)O2(OH)6(H2O)6·8H2O. Its grandfathered status G and original-description year 1882 are not a numbered approval accession. It is distinct from elemental uranium, a uranium commodity, zippeite and phases historically called metauranopilite. Burns determined the triclinic P-1 structure from a natural Joachimsthal, Bohemia specimen in Harvard Museum collection 89612. The structure contains uranyl sulfate chains with six coordinated and eight interstitial water groups per formula unit. Hydrogen positions were not directly located; the hydrogen-bond model and hydroxyl/water assignments used crystal-chemical and bond-valence arguments. The historical (UO2)6(SO4)(OH)10·12H2O formulation has the same total elemental composition but a different partition of hydroxyl and molecular water. The later natural Cervena-vein study confirmed the structure with substantial twinning and refinement limitations. Its Table 15 water content was calculated from the assumed fourteen-water structure, not independently measured. Natural crystals in ore fractures support occurrence in an alteration assemblage; they do not establish a controlled formation rate, exact formation pH or microbial causation. This record accepts natural identity and structural evidence, with thermal transformations deferred. No criticality designation, extraction yield or industrial recovery is inferred.

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Sources & References

  1. ima_2026_09: IMA-CNMNC. The New IMA List of Minerals, September 2026. Uranopilite row, PDF page 224; status and year definitions page 1. Fresh official formula and G1882 row visually checked.
    https://cnmnc.units.it/files/editor/IMA_Master_List_(2026-09).pdf (accessed 2026-10-16)
  2. burns2001: Burns PC (2001). A new uranyl sulfate chain in the structure of uranopilite. Canadian Mineralogist 39:1139-1146. DOI 10.2113/gscanmin.39.4.1139. Complete original eight-page PDF inspected, including specimen and two-microcrystal problem page 1140, Tables 1-6, Figures 1-4, hydrogen limitations pages 1143-1144 and structural-formula discussion page 1145. The final reported R1 of 7.0% followed removal of overlap-affected reflections. Deposited structure factors were not acquired or independently re-refined. This is a structure determination, not a mineral-transformation experiment.
    https://doi.org/10.2113/gscanmin.39.4.1139 (accessed 2026-10-16)
  3. plasil2014: Plasil J, Sejkora J, Skoda R, Skacha P (2014). The recent weathering of uraninite from the Cervena vein, Jachymov (Czech Republic): a fingerprint of the primary mineralization geochemistry onto the alteration association. Journal of Geosciences 59:223-253. DOI 10.3190/jgeosci.171. Complete publisher PDF acquired; locality and methods pages 223-225, section 4.2.8 pages 234-235, Figure 8, Tables 15-17 and interpretation pages 249-250 inspected. Linked uranopilite CIF acquired and metadata compared; no structure re-refinement. Table 16 and the deposited CIF disagree in refinement counts, agreement factors and calculated density. These disagreements remain unresolved and neither source is used as a precise independent determination of hydrogen content or refinement quality. Table 17 also differs from Table 16 in the printed uncertainty of beta. The limited natural identity claim is retained without selecting a preferred disputed value.
    https://doi.org/10.3190/jgeosci.171 (accessed 2026-10-16)

Curation History

Timestamp Curator Action Summary
2026-10-16T09:26:02Z codex (GPT-6; codex) CREATE Added verified natural mineral identity and primary specimen evidence with synthetic, hydration and access limits.

Record source: data/records/uranopilite.yaml