Arsenic
A valid IMA mineral species - grandfathered
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About Arsenic
Formula:
As
Colour:
Tin-white, tarnishing to dark grey or black.
Lustre:
Metallic, Sub-Metallic, Dull
Hardness:
3½
Specific Gravity:
5.63 - 5.78
Crystal System:
Trigonal
Member of:
Name:
Name of early origins from the Greek αρσενικόν ("arsenikon"), "masculine", alluding to its potent properties. The Oxford English Dictionary lists the first record of the word "arsenic" in a 1310 book concerning orpiment de iiij libris de orpiment venditis, of unknown authorship.
Polymorph of:
A metallic, steel-gray to dark-gray, brittle element. Oxidises slowly in air and is then covered with a thin crust of tiny arsenolite crystals.
Used in bronzing, pyrotechny, insecticides, and poisons, and as a doping agent in transistors. Gallium arsenide is used as a laser material to convert electricity directly into coherent light. Arsenic and its compounds are poisonous.
Used in bronzing, pyrotechny, insecticides, and poisons, and as a doping agent in transistors. Gallium arsenide is used as a laser material to convert electricity directly into coherent light. Arsenic and its compounds are poisonous.
Unique Identifiers
Mindat ID:
357
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:1:357:1
GUID
(UUID V4):
(UUID V4):
e41fbf5c-6676-4eaa-9994-e326ff50f1de
IMA Classification of Arsenic
Approved, 'Grandfathered' (first described prior to 1959)
Classification of Arsenic
1.CA.05
1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
C : Metalloids and Nonmetals
A : Arsenic group elements
1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
C : Metalloids and Nonmetals
A : Arsenic group elements
Dana 7th ed.:
1.3.1.1
1.3.1.1
1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
3 : Semi-metals and non-metals
1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
3 : Semi-metals and non-metals
1.33
1 : Elements and Alloys (including the arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides of Cu, Ag and Au)
1 : Elements and Alloys (including the arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides of Cu, Ag and Au)
Mineral Symbols
As of 2021 there are now IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols (abbreviations) for each mineral species, useful for tables and diagrams.
Symbol | Source | Reference |
---|---|---|
As | IMA–CNMNC | Warr, L.N. (2021). IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine, 85(3), 291-320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43 |
Physical Properties of Arsenic
Metallic, Sub-Metallic, Dull
Transparency:
Opaque
Colour:
Tin-white, tarnishing to dark grey or black.
Streak:
Grey
Hardness:
3½ on Mohs scale
Hardness:
VHN100=72 - 173 kg/mm2 - Vickers
Tenacity:
Brittle
Cleavage:
Perfect
Perfect basal on {0001}, fair on {0114}
Perfect basal on {0001}, fair on {0114}
Fracture:
Irregular/Uneven
Density:
5.63 - 5.78 g/cm3 (Measured) 5.778 g/cm3 (Calculated)
Optical Data of Arsenic
Anisotropism:
Distinct - yellowish brown and light grey to yellowish grey
Reflectivity:
Wavelength | R1 | R2 |
---|---|---|
400nm | 56.0% | 57.5% |
420nm | 55.1% | 56.8% |
440nm | 54.2% | 56.2% |
460nm | 53.3% | 55.8% |
480nm | 52.7% | 55.7% |
500nm | 52.4% | 55.7% |
520nm | 52.0% | 55.7% |
540nm | 51.7% | 55.7% |
560nm | 51.5% | 55.6% |
580nm | 51.2% | 55.4% |
600nm | 51.0% | 55.2% |
620nm | 50.8% | 55.0% |
640nm | 50.6% | 54.9% |
660nm | 50.5% | 54.8% |
680nm | 50.4% | 54.7% |
700nm | 50.4% | 54.6% |
Graph shows reflectance levels at different wavelengths (in nm). Top of box is 100%. Peak reflectance is 57.5%.
R1 shown in black, R2 shown in red
Pleochroism:
Weak
Chemistry of Arsenic
Mindat Formula:
As
Elements listed:
Common Impurities:
Bi,Sb,Fe,Ni,Ag,S,Se
Crystallography of Arsenic
Crystal System:
Trigonal
Class (H-M):
3m (3 2/m) - Hexagonal Scalenohedral
Space Group:
R3m
Setting:
R3m
Cell Parameters:
a = 3.768 Å, c = 10.574 Å
Ratio:
a:c = 1 : 2.806
Unit Cell V:
130.01 ų (Calculated from Unit Cell)
Z:
6
Morphology:
Granular, massive, concentric layered. Reticulated, reniform, stalagtitic, columnar, acicular. small rhombohedra.
Twinning:
Rare on {1014}, Pressure twinning on {0112}
Crystallographic forms of Arsenic
Crystal Atlas:
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Data courtesy of the American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database. Click on an AMCSD ID to view structure
ID | Species | Reference | Link | Year | Locality | Pressure (GPa) | Temp (K) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0011252 | Arsenic | Wyckoff R W G (1963) Second edition. Interscience Publishers, New York, New York Crystal Structures 1 7-83 | 1963 | 0 | 293 | ||
0012833 | Arsenic | Schiferl D, Barrett CS (1969) The crystal structure of arsenic at 4.2, 78 and 299 K Journal of Applied Crystallography 2 30-36 | 1969 | 0 | 293 | ||
0012834 | Arsenic | Schiferl D, Barrett CS (1969) The crystal structure of arsenic at 4.2, 78 and 299 K Journal of Applied Crystallography 2 30-36 | 1969 | 0 | 293 | ||
0012835 | Arsenic | Schiferl D, Barrett CS (1969) The crystal structure of arsenic at 4.2, 78 and 299 K Journal of Applied Crystallography 2 30-36 | 1969 | 0 | 293 |
CIF Raw Data - click here to close
X-Ray Powder Diffraction
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Radiation - Copper Kα
Data courtesy of RRUFF project at University of Arizona, used with permission.
Powder Diffraction Data:
d-spacing | Intensity |
---|---|
3.52 Å | (26) |
3.112 Å | (6) |
2.771 Å | (100) |
2.050 Å | (24) |
1.879 Å | (26) |
1.768 Å | (10) |
1.757 Å | (7) |
1.658 Å | (6) |
1.556 Å | (11) |
1.386 Å | (6) |
1.367 Å | (4) |
1.289 Å | (5) |
1.284 Å | (5) |
1.222 Å | (1) |
1.1987 Å | (7) |
1.1722 Å | (1) |
1.1158 Å | (4) |
1.1062 Å | (2) |
1.0857 Å | (3) |
1.0631 Å | (3) |
1.0374 Å | (2) |
0.9948 Å | (2) |
0.9531 Å | (2) |
0.9397 Å | (1) |
0.9198 Å | (3) |
0.8995 Å | (1) |
0.8903 Å | (2) |
Comments:
ICDD 5-632. Synthetic.
Geological Environment
Paragenetic Mode(s):
Paragenetic Mode | Earliest Age (Ga) |
---|---|
High-𝑇 alteration and/or metamorphism | |
33 : Minerals deposited by hydrothermal metal-rich fluids (see also [#12]) |
Geological Setting:
Hydrothermal veins.
Synonyms of Arsenic
Other Language Names for Arsenic
Afrikaans:Arseen
Arabic:زرنيخ
Armenian:Մկնդեղ
Azeri:Arsen
Basque:Artseniko
Belarusian:Мыш'як
Bengali:আর্সেনিক
Bosnian:Arsen
Bulgarian:Арсен
Catalan:Arsènic
Corsican:Arsenicu
Croatian:Arsen
Czech:Arsen
Danish:Arsen
Dutch:Arseen
Esperanto:Arseno
Estonian:Arseen
Farsi/Persian:آرسنیک
Finnish:Arseeni
French:Arsenic
Friulian:Arsenic
Galician:Arsénico
German:Arsen
Scherbenkobalt
Scherbenkobalt
Greek:Αρσενικό
Haitian:Asenik
Hebrew:ארסן
Hindi:आर्सेनिक
Hungarian:Arzén
Icelandic:Arsen
Ido:Arseno
Indonesian:Arsen
Irish Gaelic:Arsanaic
Italian:Arsenico
Japanese:自然ヒ素
Javanese:Arsenik
Kapampangan:Arsenic
Korean:비소
Latin:Arsenicum
Latvian:Arsēns
Lithuanian:Arsenas
Lojban:arseniko
Low Saxon/Low German:Arsen
Luxembourgish:Arsen
Malayalam:ആര്സെനിക്
Manx:Arsnick
Marathi:आर्सेनिक
Norwegian:Arsen
Norwegian (Nynorsk):Arsen
Occitan:Arsenic
Polish:Arsen
Portuguese:Arsênio
Quechua:Arsiniku
Romanian:Arsen
Russian:Мышьяк
Sardinian:Arsènicu
Saterland Frisian:Arsen
Serbian:Арсен
Serbo-Croatian:Arsenik
Sicilian:Arsenicu
Simplified Chinese:自然砷
Slovak:Arzén
Slovenian:Arzen
Spanish:Arsénico
Swahili:Asenia
Swedish:Arsenik
Tajik (Cyrillic Script):Арсен
Tamil:ஆர்சனிக்
Thai:อาร์ซีนิก
Turkish:Arsenik
Ukrainian:Миш'як
Urdu:زرنیخ
Uzbek (Latin Script):Margimush
Vietnamese:Asen
Welsh:Arsenig
Relationship of Arsenic to other Species
Member of:
Other Members of this group:
Forms a series with:
Common Associates
Associated Minerals Based on Photo Data:
216 photos of Arsenic associated with Quartz | SiO2 |
186 photos of Arsenic associated with Silver | Ag |
177 photos of Arsenic associated with Realgar | As4S4 |
118 photos of Arsenic associated with Proustite | Ag3AsS3 |
108 photos of Arsenic associated with Calcite | CaCO3 |
93 photos of Arsenic associated with Dyscrasite | Ag3Sb |
90 photos of Arsenic associated with Sphalerite | ZnS |
89 photos of Arsenic associated with Stibarsen | AsSb |
84 photos of Arsenic associated with Galena | PbS |
64 photos of Arsenic associated with Löllingite | FeAs2 |
Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping
1.CA.05 | Antimony | Sb |
1.CA.05 | Bismuth | Bi |
1.CA.05 | Stibarsen | AsSb |
1.CA.10 | Arsenolamprite | As |
1.CA.10 | Pararsenolamprite | (As,Sb) |
1.CA.15 | Paradocrasite | Sb2(Sb,As)2 |
1.CA.20 | Phosphorus | P4 |
Fluorescence of Arsenic
Not fluorescent in UV
Other Information
Magnetism:
Non-Magnetic
Health Risks:
Safety precautions: Wash hands after handling. Avoid generating and inhaling dust when handling, breaking, grinding or cutting. Never lick or ingest. Oral lethal dosis ld50 between 100 and 300mg/kg, so it is not much of a threat compared to some other arsenic compounds.
Arsenic in petrology
An essential component of rock names highlighted in red, an accessory component in rock names highlighted in green.
Internet Links for Arsenic
mindat.org URL:
https://www.mindat.org/min-357.html
Please feel free to link to this page.
Please feel free to link to this page.
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External Links:
Mineral Dealers:
References for Arsenic
Reference List:
Broderick, S. J., Ehret, W. F. (1931) An X-Ray Study of the Alloys of Silver with Bismuth, Antimony and Arsenic. II. The Journal of Physical Chemistry, 35 (11). 3322-3329 doi:10.1021/j150329a017
Schiferl, D., Barrett, C. S. (1969) The crystal structure of arsenic at 4.2, 78 and 299°K. Journal of Applied Crystallography, 2 (1). 30-36 doi:10.1107/s0021889869006443
Localities for Arsenic
Locality List
- This locality has map coordinates listed.
- This locality has estimated coordinates.
ⓘ - Click for references and further information on this occurrence.
? - Indicates mineral may be doubtful at this locality.
- Good crystals or important locality for species.
- World class for species or very significant.
(TL) - Type Locality for a valid mineral species.
(FRL) - First Recorded Locality for everything else (eg varieties).
Struck out - Mineral was erroneously reported from this locality.
Faded * - Never found at this locality but inferred to have existed at some point in the past (e.g. from pseudomorphs).
All localities listed without proper references should be considered as questionable.
All localities listed without proper references should be considered as questionable.
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Storliden Mine, Malå, Västerbotten County, Sweden