How do I identify Rapidcreekite?

Rapidcreekite can be identified by its hardness of 2 on the Mohs scale, White color. Look for these key characteristics when examining specimens.

What color is Rapidcreekite?

Rapidcreekite typically appears in White, colourless.. Color can vary depending on impurities and formation conditions.

How hard is Rapidcreekite?

Rapidcreekite has a hardness of 2 on the Mohs scale. This makes it a soft mineral that can be scratched easily.

Rapidcreekite

A variety of Minerals

What is Rapidcreekite?

Rapidcreekite is transparent and white to colorless. The mineral occurs as isolated clusters or pervasive crusts of radiating sprays of acicular crystals up to 3 mm (0.12 in) in length.

Rapidcreekite Market Value Calculator

Estimate the market value of Rapidcreekite using size, quality, and finish. This preview calculator is for quick context and is not a formal appraisal.

Rapidcreekite Localities Map

See where Rapidcreekite is found with a localities map, collecting zones, and geology context. Generate a sample map preview below.

Map preview

North ZoneCentral RidgeSouth Basin

Key Characteristics

Formation of Rapidcreekite

Rapidcreekite occurs in association with aragonite, gypsum, and kulanite. It has been found in Canada, Germany, Norway, and Romania. The rare mineral occurs as a secondary phase that formed along the surfaces of joints and bedding planes in a quartz-rich sideritic formation. In the Rapid Creek area, the formation occurred in Albian ironstones and shales.

Composition of Rapidcreekite

In the structure of rapidcreekite, there are two distinct calcium sites coordinated by six oxygen anions and two H2O groups arranged as a square antiprism. The sulfur site is tetrahedrally coordinated by oxygen anions and the carbon site is coordinated by a triangle of oxygen anions. The structural unit of rapidcreekite is a sheet that consists of edge-sharing CaΦ8 polyhedra (Φ, unspecified species: O or OH) cross-linked by carbonate and sulfate groups. Sheets are held together by weakening hydrogen bonds, accounting for the perfect cleavage along {100}. The structure and composition of rapidcreekite is similar to that of gypsum. If half of the sulfate groups in gypsum were replaced by carbonate, the formula of rapidcreekite is obtained. If gypsum were transformed by twinning along alternate rows of sulfate groups and the resultant triangles of oxygen along the boundary occupied by carbon, the structure of rapidcreekite would result.