Cleaning wavellite from Arkansas

I have acquired a number of specimens of wavellite from the Mauldin Mountain area north of Mt Ida, Arkansas over the last year or so. Some of them display areas of iron staining while the rest of the specimen has no coating. I have never collected at the state or county quarries, and heard that specimens from there were cleaned with a light oxalic acid solution. If the specimens were cleaned, and iron stains remained, can they be cleaned again in oxalic acid or Iron Out? I don't want to try my water gun on these specimens, because the phosphate is quite soft. Thanks for any and all comments.

Yes, I know about the difference between the Montgomery Co. wavellites and those collected near Avant in Garland County. I have samples from all the wavellite localities in Arkansas.

If you have multiple specimens, try iron out on a lesser quality piece. I suspect it will work well. I also urge you to try an ultrasonic cleaner to remove red clay, etc

i used a weak oxilic acid solution once... dissolved my sample. so be warned

Wavellite is soluble in acids including oxalic. You could try iron out as it is not acidic but like Steve said test it first.

We have had some success in cleaning Arkansas Wavellite with iron out.

Rock Currier
Crystals not pistols.

We've tried two specimens of Arkansas wavellite with mixed results. Both were first treated with oxalic acid, and both came through the treatment with most of the iron stain removed and the wavellite still lustrous. One specimen, however, had some remaining iron stain, so we put it in Iron Out solution. The only effect from that solution is that the wavellite emerged from it with a pronounced dull luster. I am still not sure if the wavellite was partially dissoved by the Iron Out (in which case the specimen is ruined) or if a precipitate formed on it, but from this experience I would advise against using both treatments, and be careful with Iron Out. Incidentally, if any of you have had a similar experience and believe the dull luster is due to a precipitate, advice on how to remove it would be very much appreciated.

I recently cleaned wavellite from the National Limestone Quarry in Mount Pleasant Mills, PA and had excellent results. The wavellite is from a deep layer where it forms a thick, lustrous coating. It had a mild orange rust coat and after a few days in Oxalic Acid, the wavellite remained lustrous and came out a very deep green color with no signs of etching.

Strange how different people get different results? I guess you just have to test a piece before you try it, you can't argue with success. I am wondering if the oxalic acid isn't dissolving some of the wavellite ( as well as the iron) but leaving it shiny something like you get with calcite when you give it a quick dip in HCl ? Earl, with that in mind you might try putting it back in Oxalic acid for a while.

I have cleaned hundreds of specimens with iron out with very few problems. I have had the best luck with the Mona Lisa mine, Mauldin Mt, and the Avant area. It does much better than oxalic acid.
Chris