Gersdorffite is a rare sulfide mineral that contains nickel and arsenic. Its chemical formula is NiAsS, and it typically occurs in high-temperature hydrothermal veins associated with nickel and copper deposits. Gersdorffite was first discovered in 1885 in the Himmelsfürst mine in the Erzgebirge Mountains of Saxony, Germany, and it was named after the German mineralogist, August von Gersdorff. Gersdorffite is a metallic, opaque mineral that typically occurs in massive or granular aggregates. It has a Mohs hardness of 5.5 to 6 and a specific gravity of 5.4 to 5.6. It is usually silver-white to steel gray in color, but it can also appear yellowish or greenish. Gersdorffite is an important ore of nickel, but it is not commonly mined due to its rarity and the difficulty of extracting the nickel from the mineral. It is also sometimes used as a collector's mineral because of its unique crystal forms and rarity.
No comments:
Post a Comment