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Techniques for CollectorsFluorine and Aluminum

18th Jul 2012 17:28 UTCSophiaJoy MB

I have questions...

1. If I put White Topaz and Almandine Garnet in water, do Fluorine in white topaz and Aluminum in garnet dissolve in water?

2. Fluorine is toxic, isn't it? Does it mean I should not keep touching topaz for a long time?? I don't know how fluorine in a mineral affects us...

Thanks for your help!

18th Jul 2012 17:57 UTCAlfredo Petrov Manager

SophiaJoy, don't worry about it. In both of those minerals, the elements are chemically combined as compounds that don't dissolve or decompose in water, so you can hold them in your bare hands for years, if you like, or soak them in a glass of water and then drink the water, as much as you like, with no fear of harm.

Minerals (or any chemical compounds) do not have the properties of their individual elements. A good example of this is common salt, which is present in lots of our food. Its formula is NaCl, composed of the elements sodium (Na) and chlorine (Cl). Sodium is a dangerous metal, which bursts into flame if it comes into contact with water; and chlorine is a highly toxic gas used in chemical weapons. The sea salt on your table has none of those properties, because it is combined as a stable compound, just like the fluorine in your topaz.

18th Jul 2012 17:59 UTCReiner Mielke Expert

For all practical purposes the garnet will not dissolve and the fluorine in topaz will not affect you becuase it is firmly bound up in the atomic structure of the topaz. Toxic or poisonous elements are only dangerous if the compounds that they form are able to release the elements in concentrations that are dangerous. Think of it this way, both sodium and chlorine are deadly if eaten alone but together they form salt which as you know is not deadly because the sodium and chlorine atoms are strongly bonded together.

18th Jul 2012 18:56 UTCDean Allum Expert

Sophia,

There actually is a health effect to low-level fluorine concentrations: stronger bones and teeth.

100 years ago, a local dentist, here in Colorado, noticed that children who were born here tended to have few dental cavities. Scientific investigations suggested that it was due to the natural fluoride in the water (several ppM). Large scale water-fluoridation tests in Grand Rapids, Michigan showed the effectiveness of fluoride against dental cavities.

You can read the story here:

http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/oralhealth/topics/fluoride/thestoryoffluoridation.htm

By the way, a chemical reaction similar to what you described created a cryolite mineral deposit nearby, but the reaction happened at very high temperature.

Regards,

Dean Allum

18th Jul 2012 20:21 UTCSophiaJoy MB

Alfredo, Reiner, and Dean

Thank you very much!!

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