Tsugaruite, Pb ₄ As ₂ S ₇ , a new mineral species from the Yunosawa Mine, Aomori Prefecture, Japan

Toyama University, Department of Earth Sciences, Toyama, Japan

Tsugaruite, Pb ₄ As ₂ S ₇ , is a new Pb-As sulphosalt from the Yunosawa mine, Aomori Prefecture, northern Japan. X-ray studies indicated it to be orthorhombic Pnn2 or Pnnm, a 15.179(1), b 38.195(1), c 8.0745(1) A. Z = 16 [Pb ₄ As ₂ S ₇ ] with a subcell with c' = 1/2c. The six strongest diffractions in the X-ray powder pattern [d (in Aa), (I), (hkl)] are: 4.47 (30) (340), 3.705 (34) (1.10.0), 3.395 (100) (450), 2.870 (34) (192), 2.819 (53) (550), and 2.739 (48) (560, 2.13.0). The average of seven electron microprobe analyses gave Pb 68.70, Tl 0.13, As 12.45, S 18.64, total 99.92 wt.%. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of total atoms = 13 is Pb (sub 3.99) Tl (sub 0.01) As (sub 2.00) S (sub 7.00) . corresponding to the ideal formula Pb ₄ As ₂ S ₇ . The calculated density is 6.83 g cm ³ for the ideal formula. Tsugaruite is opaque with a metallic lustre and lead-grey streak. No cleavage was observed. It is brittle with uneven fracture. VHN ₂₅ is 75.4-94.9 kg mm ² , mean 86.4 (n = 4), corresponding to 2.5-3 in Mohs' hardness scale. In reflected plane-polarised light in air, it is white with a greenish tint, more greenish than jordanite. Bireflectance and pleochroism are weak, weaker than those of jordanite; and anisotropism is weak to moderate, weaker than that of jordanite. No internal reflections. The reflectance spectra are tabulated in the text. Tsugaruite was found in a thin baryte veinlet exposed in the wall of a small open cut of the Yunosawa mine. It forms radiating groups of long tabular tapering crystals elongated along c and tabular to b, up to 0.04 mm wide and 2 mm long. The associated minerals are jordanite, which formed earlier than tsugaruite, and galena. The chemical similarity of tsugaruite and jordanite and their integrown character indicates that earlier jordanite analyses may also include analyses of tsugaruite.

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