CMMMech
CMMMech > Mineral > Zektzerite

Zektzerite mineral

Zektzerite (IMA 1976-034) is an IMA-accepted sodium-lithium-zirconium silicate mineral with IMA September 2026 Master List formula NaLiZrSi6O15 and empirical formula Li1.00Na1.02(Zr0.94Ti0.05Hf0.01)Si6.06O15.15 (Table 1, p. 418 Zektzerite Analysis column: SiO2 68.24, ZrO2 21.84, TiO2 0.75, HfO2 0.5, Na2O 5.9, Li2O 2.8, total 100.0 wt%, vs theoretical NaLiZrSi6O15 Li2O = 2.82 wt%, with H2O reported as absent by the Penfield method on a 300 mg sample). Described by Dunn et al. (1977) from miarolitic cavities in riebeckite granite of the Golden Horn batholith near Washington Pass (48°32'N, 120°35'W), Okanogan County, Washington, USA (holotype NMNH 136030), where it occurs as colorless to pink pseudohexagonal tabular crystals up to 35 mm associated with microcline, quartz, riebeckite, astrophyllite, and elpidite. Orthorhombic (space group Cmca or C2ca), with a = 14.306(5) Å, b = 17.330(4) Å, c = 10.140(3) Å, V = 2514.0(9) Å3, Z = 8, Dmeas = 2.79 g/cm3, Dcalc = 2.80 g/cm3, Mohs hardness ~6, perfect {100} and {010} cleavages, light yellow short-wave UV fluorescence, and biaxial (–) optics with alpha = 1.582(3), beta = 1.584(3), gamma = 1.584(3), and 2V ~ 0°.

Explore across X-Mech: MediaIngredientMech · CultureMech · CommunityMech · HabitatMech · TraitMech · CMMMech Network Graph

Identifiers & Classification

System Identifier Label
IMA IMA:1976-034 Zektzerite

Sources & References

  1. ima_2026_09: IMA-CNMNC (Pasero M., 2026), The New IMA List of Minerals – A Work in Progress (Updated: September 2026), PDF p. 240, Zektzerite row: status A, IMA 1976-034, formula NaLiZrSi6O15, reference Dunn P.J. et al. (1977) American Mineralogist 62, 416-420.
    https://cnmnc.units.it/files/editor/IMA_Master_List_(2026-09).pdf (accessed 2026-10-24)
  2. dunn_1977_zektzerite: Dunn PJ, Rouse RC, Cannon B, and Nelen JA (1977), Zektzerite: a new lithium sodium zirconium silicate related to tuhualite and the osumilite group, American Mineralogist 62:416-420.
    https://www.rruff.net/doclib/am/vol62/AM62_416.pdf (accessed 2026-10-24)

Curation History

Timestamp Curator Action Summary
2026-10-24T07:30:00Z antigravity CREATE Created mineral record for Zektzerite (IMA:1976-034) from the IMA September 2026 Master List and the primary type-description paper by Dunn et al. (1977) in American Mineralogist 62:416-420.
2026-10-24T10:45:00Z antigravity EDIT Resolved CMM120-F16 (issue #838) by replacing the mixed theoretical/measured Table 1 oxide values and empirical formula with the exact Zektzerite Analysis column (Li2O 2.8, Na2O 5.9, ZrO2 21.84, HfO2 0.5, TiO2 0.75, SiO2 68.24, total 100.0 wt%, Penfield absence of H2O on 300 mg in prose) and p. 418 empirical formula Li1.00Na1.02(Zr0.94Ti0.05Hf0.01)Si6.06O15.15, and simplifying sources[1].title to a concise bibliographic citation.
2026-10-24T11:27:00Z antigravity EDIT Applied reviewed conservative correction for CMM120-F16 (issue #838): used broad sodium-lithium-zirconium silicate description instead of definitive tuhualite-osumilite group classification and removed arfvedsonite and okanoganite from the p. 417 association list.

Record source: data/records/zektzerite.yaml