22 Jan New minerals are discovered in Russia

The Russian Far East gave rise to the birth of three new minerals discovered on the Kamchatka Peninsula by scientists from the Saint Petersburg State University, belonging to the Department of Crystallography and led by Professor Oleg Siydr.

These minerals were found specifically in the center of the region, in the fumaroles of the Tolbachik volcano: the itelmenite, aleutite and koriakite, as the new minerals were baptized, as homage to the indigenous peoples of Kamchatka. These minerals could become very useful in the high technology industry, going from microelectronics to quantum computers.

The mineral richness that was found in the Earth’s holes from where the steam and gas come out led the researchers to take the samples where they found the new minerals.

“Its crystalline structure and properties have no analogy with other groups of minerals,” states the university publication.

The portal www.es.rbth.com reports that the new minerals contain sulfate in the case of itelmenite and koriachite, the former with an impressive crystalline construction, while aleutite has vanadate and arsenate.

To this group is added another mineral with atoms of oxygen, sodium sulfur and copper, which form a porous structure, with interesting applications for science and sodium-ion batteries, also found at the top of the Tolbachik volcano.

The latter is the petrovite, Na10CaCu2 (SO4) 8, which according to www.esdelatino.com appears as blue globular parts of tabular crystals with gaseous inclusions.

For Stanislav Filatov, professor at the University of Saint Petersburg, “copper in its crystalline structure has a very rare and unusual coordination of seven oxygen atoms, this coordination is characteristic of only a couple of compounds, as well as saranchinaite, which it was discovered by our colleagues at the University of Saint Petersburg, the research team of Professor Oleg Siidra ”.

Source: World Energy Trade.