Tyuyamunite (pronounced tuh-YOO-ya-moon-ite) is a very rare uranium mineral with formula Ca(UO2)2V2O8·(5–8)H2O. It is a member of the carnotite group. It is a bright, canary-yellow color because of its high uranium content. Also, because of tyuyamunite's high uranium content, it is radioactive.[6] It was named by Konstantin Avtonomovich Nenadkevich, in 1912, after its type locality, Tyuya-Muyun, Fergana Valley, Kyrgyzstan.[3]
Formation and transformation
Tyuyamunite is formed by the weathering of uraninite, a uranium-bearing mineral. Tyuyamunite, being a hydrous mineral, contains water. Yet when it is exposed to the atmosphere it loses its water. This process changes tyuyamunite into a different mineral known as metatyuyamunite[6] Ca(UO2)2(VO4)2·3-5H2O.[7]
References
- ^ Warr, L.N. (2021). "IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols". Mineralogical Magazine. 85 (3): 291–320. Bibcode:2021MinM...85..291W. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43. S2CID 235729616.
- ^ Handbook of Mineralogy
- ^ a b Tyuyamunite at Mindat
- ^ Tyuyamunite data on Webmineral
- ^ Tyuyamunite at Amethyst Galleries' Mineral Gallery
- ^ a b Lynch, Dan R. and Bob Lynch, "Tyuyamunite," Ed. Brett Ortler, Michigan Rocks & Minerals, Adventure Publications, 2010 ISBN 978-1591932390
- ^ Metatyuyamunite on Mindat
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