ALMOST THERE!. Help us with a final push needed to keep mindat.org running. Click here to help.
Catawiki are hosting a mindat.org benefit auction. All proceeds to mindat.org! BID NOW
Log InRegister
Home PageAbout MindatThe Mindat ManualHistory of MindatCopyright StatusWho We AreContact UsAdvertise on Mindat
Donate to MindatCorporate SponsorshipSponsor a PageSponsored PagesMindat AdvertisersAdvertise on Mindat
Learning CenterWhat is a mineral?The most common minerals on earthInformation for EducatorsMindat Articles
Minerals by PropertiesMinerals by ChemistryAdvanced Locality SearchRandom MineralRandom LocalitySearch by minIDLocalities Near MeSearch ArticlesSearch GlossaryMore Search Options
Search For:
Mineral Name:
Locality Name:
Keyword(s):
 
The Mindat ManualAdd a New PhotoRate PhotosLocality Edit ReportCoordinate Completion ReportAdd Glossary Item
Mining CompaniesStatisticsThe ElementsUsersBooks & MagazinesMineral MuseumsMineral Shows & EventsThe Mindat DirectoryDevice Settings
Photo SearchPhoto GalleriesNew Photos TodayNew Photos YesterdayMembers' Photo GalleriesPast Photo of the Day Gallery

Bornite

This page kindly sponsored by Mark Kucera
Bornite

Dzhezkazgan mining district, Karaganda, Kazakhstan
Bornite

Carn Brea Mine, Pool, Carn Brea, Cornwall, England, UK
Bornite, etc.

Firschnitzscharte, Virgen, Virgen valley, East Tyrol, Tyrol, Austria
Bornite

Dzhezkazgan mining district, Karaganda, Kazakhstan
Bornite

Carn Brea Mine, Pool, Carn Brea, Cornwall, England, UK
Bornite, etc.

Firschnitzscharte, Virgen, Virgen valley, East Tyrol, Tyrol, Austria
Bornite

Dzhezkazgan mining district, Karaganda, Kazakhstan
Bornite

Carn Brea Mine, Pool, Carn Brea, Cornwall, England, UK
Hide all sections | Show all sections

About BorniteHide

Ignaz von Born
Formula:
Cu5FeS4
Colour:
Copper-red to pinchbeck-brown, quickly tarnishing to an iridescent purplish surface.
Lustre:
Metallic
Hardness:
3
Specific Gravity:
5.06 - 5.09
Crystal System:
Orthorhombic
Name:
Originally included with kupferkies in 1725 by Johann Friedrich Henckel. Later assigned various multi-word Latin names by Johan Gottschalk Wallerius in 1747 and variously further translated including "purple copper ore" and "variegated copper ore" in 1802 by Rene Just Haüy. Also called as buntkupfererz by Abraham Gottlieb Werner in 1791. Named "phillipsite" in 1832 by Wilhelm Sulpice Beudant. Renamed 1845 by Wilhelm Karl von Haidinger in honor of Ignaz von Born (1742-1791), Austrian mineralogist and invertebrate zoologist.
Important copper ore.
Typically found as massive metallic material, it has a copper-red color on fresh exposures which quickly tarnishes to an iridescent purple after exposure to air and moisture.
May be confused with tarnished chalcopyrite.

In the Zechstein deposits of Poland there are six varieties: pink-orange, pink-violet, pink-gray, pink-creamy, half-bornite and quatr-bornite.


Classification of BorniteHide

IMA status:
Approved, 'Grandfathered' (first described prior to 1959)
Approval Year:
1962
Strunz 8th ed.:
2/B.02-30
Nickel-Strunz 10th (pending) ed.:
2.BA.15

2 : SULFIDES and SULFOSALTS (sulfides, selenides, tellurides; arsenides, antimonides, bismuthides; sulfarsenites, sulfantimonites, sulfbismuthites, etc.)
B : Metal Sulfides, M: S > 1: 1 (mainly 2: 1)
A : With Cu, Ag, Au
Dana 7th ed.:
2.5.2.1
Dana 8th ed.:
2.5.2.1

2 : SULFIDES
5 : AmBnXp, with (m+n):p = 3:2
Hey's CIM Ref.:
3.1.23

3 : Sulphides, Selenides, Tellurides, Arsenides and Bismuthides (except the arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides of Cu, Ag and Au, which are included in Section 1)
1 : Sulphides etc. of Cu

Physical Properties of BorniteHide

Lustre:
Metallic
Transparency:
Opaque
Colour:
Copper-red to pinchbeck-brown, quickly tarnishing to an iridescent purplish surface.
Streak:
Grey-Black
Hardness:
3 on Mohs scale
Hardness:
VHN100=92 kg/mm2 - Vickers
Hardness Data:
Measured
Tenacity:
Brittle
Cleavage:
Poor/Indistinct
In traces on {111}.
Parting:
None.
Fracture:
Irregular/Uneven
Density:
5.06 - 5.09 g/cm3 (Measured)    5.09 g/cm3 (Calculated)

Optical Data of BorniteHide

Type:
Anisotropic
Anisotropism:
Weak
Colour in reflected light:
Copper-red.
Internal Reflections:
Purplish iridescence.
Pleochroism:
Weak

Chemical Properties of BorniteHide

Formula:
Cu5FeS4
Elements listed:
Cu, Fe, S - search for minerals with similar chemistry
Common Impurities:
Ag,Ge,Bi,In,Pb

Crystallography of BorniteHide

Crystal System:
Orthorhombic
Class (H-M):
mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) - Dipyramidal
Space Group:
Pbca
Cell Parameters:
a = 10.95 Å, b = 21.862 Å, c = 10.95 Å
Ratio:
a:b:c = 0.501 : 1 : 0.501
Unit Cell V:
2621.31 ų
Z:
16
Morphology:
Crystals rare, usually blocky with rough curved faces, pseudo-cubic, pseudo-dodecohedral and rarely pseudo-octahedral. Forms noted: {001}, {011}, {111}, {112}, {223} and {335}.
Twinning:
On {111}, often as penetration twins.
Comment:
Various, mostly temperature-dependent supercells are known.

Crystallographic forms of BorniteHide

Crystal Atlas:
Image Loading
Click on an icon to view
Bornite no.1 - Goldschmidt (1913-1926)
Bornite no.5 - Goldschmidt (1913-1926)
Bornite no.7 - Goldschmidt (1913-1926)
Bornite no.10 - Goldschmidt (1913-1926)
3d models and HTML5 code kindly provided by www.smorf.nl.

Toggle
Edge Lines | Miller Indices | Axes

Transparency
Opaque | Translucent | Transparent

View
Along a-axis | Along b-axis | Along c-axis | Start rotation | Stop rotation

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

Image Loading

Radiation - Copper Kα
Data Set:
Data courtesy of RRUFF project at University of Arizona, used with permission.
Powder Diffraction Data:
d-spacingIntensity
3.31(40)
3.18(60)
2.74(50)
2.50(40)
1.94(100)
1.65(30)
1.26(50)
1.12(5)

Type Occurrence of BorniteHide

Synonyms of BorniteHide

Other Language Names for BorniteHide

Varieties of BorniteHide

Argentiferous BorniteA silver-bearing variety of bornite.
Half-BorniteA variety from Zechstein copper deposits of the Fore-Sudetic Monocline, Poland; characterized by a 50% deficit in Fe.
Compare the variety Quatr-Bornite.
Quatr-BorniteA variety from Zechstein copper deposits of the Fore-Sudetic Monocline, Poland; characterized by a 75% deficit in Fe.
Compare the variety Half-Bornite.

Common AssociatesHide

Associated Minerals Based on Photo Data:
Quartz187 photos of Bornite associated with Quartz on mindat.org.
Chalcopyrite159 photos of Bornite associated with Chalcopyrite on mindat.org.
Chalcocite92 photos of Bornite associated with Chalcocite on mindat.org.
Pyrite75 photos of Bornite associated with Pyrite on mindat.org.
Calcite72 photos of Bornite associated with Calcite on mindat.org.
Silver63 photos of Bornite associated with Silver on mindat.org.
Malachite40 photos of Bornite associated with Malachite on mindat.org.
Covellite35 photos of Bornite associated with Covellite on mindat.org.
Tennantite35 photos of Bornite associated with Tennantite on mindat.org.
Sphalerite31 photos of Bornite associated with Sphalerite on mindat.org.

Related Minerals - Nickel-Strunz GroupingHide

2.BA.AlburniteAg8GeTe2S4Iso.
2.BA.DzierżanowskiteCaCu2S2Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : P3m1
2.BA.05ChalcociteCu2SMon. 2/m : P21/b
2.BA.05DjurleiteCu31S16Mon. 2/m
2.BA.05GeeriteCu8S5Trig. 3
2.BA.05RoxbyiteCu9S5Tric. 1 : P1
2.BA.10AniliteCu7S4Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pnma
2.BA.10DigeniteCu9S5Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3m
2.BA.20BellidoiteCu2SeTet. 4/m : P42/n
2.BA.20BerzelianiteCu2SeIso. m3m (4/m 3 2/m) : Fm3m
2.BA.25AthabascaiteCu5Se4Orth.
2.BA.25UmangiteCu3Se2Tet.
2.BA.30RickarditeCu7Te5Orth.
2.BA.30WeissiteCu2-xTeHex.
2.BA.35AcanthiteAg2SMon. 2/m : P21/m
2.BA.40MckinstryiteAg5-xCu3+xS4Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pnma
2.BA.40StromeyeriteAgCuSOrth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m)
2.BA.40dUM2003-13-S:AgAuCuAg6AuCu2S5
2.BA.45JalpaiteAg3CuS2Tet.
2.BA.45SelenojalpaiteAg3CuSe2Tet. 4/mmm (4/m 2/m 2/m) : I41/amd
2.BA.50EucairiteAgCuSeOrth.
2.BA.55AguilariteAg4SeSMon. 2/m
2.BA.55NaumanniteAg2SeOrth. 2 2 2 : P21 21 21
2.BA.60CervelleiteAg4TeSMon. 2/m
2.BA.60HessiteAg2TeMon. 2/m : P21/b
2.BA.60ChenguodaiteAg9Fe3+Te2S4Orth.
2.BA.65Henryite(Cu,Ag)3+xTe2 , with x ~ 0.40 Iso. m3m (4/m 3 2/m) : Fd3c
2.BA.65StütziteAg5-xTe3, x = 0.24-0.36Hex. 6 : P6
2.BA.70ArgyroditeAg8GeS6Orth. mm2 : Pna21
2.BA.70CanfielditeAg8SnS6Orth. mm2
2.BA.70Putzite(Cu4.7Ag3.3)GeS6Iso. 4 3m : F4 3m
2.BA.75FischesseriteAg3AuSe2Iso. 4 3 2 : I41 3 2
2.BA.75Penzhinite(Ag,Cu)4Au(S,Se)4Hex.
2.BA.75PetrovskaiteAuAg(S,Se)Mon.
2.BA.75PetziteAg3AuTe2Iso. 4 3 2 : I41 3 2
2.BA.75UytenbogaardtiteAg3AuS2Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3c
2.BA.80Bezsmertnovite(Au,Ag)4Cu(Te,Pb)Orth.
2.BA.80BilibinskitePbCu2Au3Te2Iso.
2.BA.80Bogdanovite(Au,Te,Pb)3(Cu,Fe)Iso.

Related Minerals - Dana Grouping (8th Ed.)Hide

2.5.2.2CalvertiteCu5Ge0.5S4Iso. 4 3m : F4 3m

Related Minerals - Hey's Chemical Index of Minerals GroupingHide

3.1.1ChalcociteCu2SMon. 2/m : P21/b
3.1.2DjurleiteCu31S16Mon. 2/m
3.1.3DigeniteCu9S5Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : R3m
3.1.4AniliteCu7S4Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pnma
3.1.5RoxbyiteCu9S5Tric. 1 : P1
3.1.6SpionkopiteCu39S28Trig.
3.1.7GeeriteCu8S5Trig. 3
3.1.8CovelliteCuSHex. 6/mmm (6/m 2/m 2/m) : P63/mmc
3.1.9BerzelianiteCu2SeIso. m3m (4/m 3 2/m) : Fm3m
3.1.10BellidoiteCu2SeTet. 4/m : P42/n
3.1.11UmangiteCu3Se2Tet.
3.1.12YarrowiteCu9S8Trig.
3.1.13AthabascaiteCu5Se4Orth.
3.1.14KlockmanniteCuSeHex. 6/mmm (6/m 2/m 2/m) : P63/mmc
3.1.15Krut'aiteCuSe2Iso. m3 (2/m 3) : Pa3
3.1.16WeissiteCu2-xTeHex.
3.1.17RickarditeCu7Te5Orth.
3.1.18VulcaniteCuTeOrth.
3.1.19BambollaiteCu(Se,Te)2Tet.
3.1.20LautiteCuAsSOrth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m) : Pnma
3.1.21MgriiteCu3AsSe3
3.1.22CubaniteCuFe2S3Orth. mmm (2/m 2/m 2/m)
3.1.24FukuchiliteCu3FeS8Iso. m3 (2/m 3) : Pa3
3.1.25ChalcopyriteCuFeS2Tet. 4 2m : I4 2d
3.1.26MooihoekiteCu9Fe9S16Tet.
3.1.27HaycockiteCu4Fe5S8Orth. 2 2 2
3.1.28IsocubaniteCuFe2S3Iso. m3m (4/m 3 2/m) : Fm3m
3.1.29IdaiteCu5FeS6Hex.
3.1.30NukundamiteCu3.4Fe0.6S4Trig. 3m (3 2/m) : P3m1
3.1.31PutoraniteCu1.1Fe1.2S2Iso.
3.1.32Orickite2CuFeS2 · H2OHex.
3.1.33EskeborniteCuFeSe2Tet.
3.1.34Chaméanite(Cu,Fe)4As(Se,S)4Iso.
3.1.35TalnakhiteCu9(Fe,Ni)8S16Iso. 4 3m : I4 3m

Other InformationHide

Health Risks:
No information on health risks for this material has been entered into the database. You should always treat mineral specimens with care.
Industrial Uses:
A major ore of copper.

Bornite in petrologyHide

An essential component of rock names highlighted in red, an accessory component in rock names highlighted in green.

References for BorniteHide

Reference List:
Sort by Year (asc) | by Year (desc) | by Author (A-Z) | by Author (Z-A)
Palache, Charles, Harry Berman & Clifford Frondel (1944) The System of Mineralogy of James Dwight Dana and Edward Salisbury Dana Yale University 1837-1892, Volume I: Elements, Sulfides, Sulfosalts, Oxides. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York. 7th edition, revised and enlarged, 834pp.: 195-197.
Acta Crystallographica: 17: 351-360.
Cuthbert, M.E. (1962) Formation of bornite at atmospheric temperature and pressure. Economic Geology: 57: 38-41.
Koto, K. and Morimoto, N. (1975) Superstructure investigation of bornite, Cu5FeS4, by the modified partial Patterson function. Acta Crystallographica, B31, 2268-2273.
Kanazawa, Y., Koto, K., Morimoto, N. (1978) Bornite (Cu5FeS4): stability and crystal structure of the intermediate form. Canadian Mineralogist, 16, 397-404.
Pierce, L. & Buseck, P. R. (1978) Superstructuring in the bornite-digenite series: a high-resolution electron microscopy study. American Mineralogist 63, 1-16.
Jagadeesh, M.S., Nagarathna, H.M., Montano, P.A., and Seehra, M.S. (1981) Magnetic and Mössbauer studies of phase transitions and mixed valences in bornite (Cu4.5Fe1.2S4.7). Phys. Rev.: B23: 2350-2356.
Buckley, A.N. and Woods, R. (1983) An X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic investigation of the tarnishing of bornite. Australian Journal of Chemistry: 36: 1793-1804.
Robie, R.A., Wiggins, L.B., Barton, P.B., Jr., and Hemingway, B.S. (1985) Low-temperature heat capacity and entropy of chalcopyrite (CuFeS2): estimates of the standard molar enthalpy and Gibbs free energy of formation of chalcopyrite and bornite (Cu5FeS4). Journal of Chemical Thermodynamics: 17: 481-488.
Vaughan, D.J., Tossell, J.A., and Stanley, C.J. (1987) The surface properties of bornite. Mineralogical Magazine: 51: 285-293.
Kratz, T. & Fuess, H. (1989) Simultane Strukturbestimmung von Kupferkies und Bornit an einem Kristall. Zeitschrift für Kristallographie, 186, 167-169.
Piestrzyński, A. (Main Ed.), Zaleska-Kuczmierczyk, M., Jasiński, A.W., Kotarski, J., Maślanka, W., Siewierski, S., Speczik, S., Śmieszek, Z. (1996) Monografia KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Lubin., 1204 pp.
Gaines, Richard V., H. Catherine, W. Skinner, Eugene E. Foord, Brian Mason, Abraham Rosenzweig (1997) Dana's New Mineralogy: The System of Mineralogy of James Dwight Dana and Edward Salisbury Dana, 8th. edition: 52.
Grguric, B. A. & Putnis, A. (1998) Compositional controls on phase-transition temperatures in bornite: a differential scanning calorimetry study. Canadian Mineralogist, 36, 215-227.
Ding, Y., Veblen, D. R., Prewitt, C. T. (2005) High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) study of the 4a and 6a superstructure of bornite Cu5FeS4. American Mineralogist, 90, 1256-1264.
Harmer, S.L., Pratt, A.R., Nesbitt, H.W., and Fleet, M.E. (2005) Reconstruction of fracture surfaces on bornite. Canadian Mineralogist, 43, 1619-1630.
Cook, N. J., Ciobanu, C. L., Danyushevsky, L. V., Gilbert, S. (2011) Minor and trace elements in bornite and associated Cu-(Fe)-sulfides: A LA-ICP-MS study. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 75, 6473-6496.
Ciobanu, C. L., Cook, N. J., Ehrig, K. (2017) Ore minerals down to the nanoscale: Cu-(Fe)-sulphides from the iron oxide copper gold deposit at Olympic Dam, South Australia. Ore Geology Review 81, 1218-1235. [on non-stoichiometry].

Internet Links for BorniteHide

Localities for BorniteHide

This map shows a selection of localities that have latitude and longitude coordinates recorded. Click on the symbol to view information about a locality. The symbol next to localities in the list can be used to jump to that position on the map.

Locality ListShow

This section is currently hidden. Click the show button to view.