• journal_title：The Canadian Mineralogist
• Contributor：František Laufek ; Milan Drábek ; Roman Skála ; Jakub Haloda ; Zdeněk Táborský ; Ivana Císařová
• Publisher：Mineralogical Association of Canada
• Date：2007-
• Format：text/html
• Language：en
• Identifier：10.2113/gscanmin.45.5.1213
• journal_abbrev：Can Mineral
• issn：0008-4476
• volume：45
• issue：5
• firstpage：1213
• section：Articles

Vavřínite, Ni₂SbTe₂, is a new mineral species discovered at the Kunratice Cu–Ni sulfide deposit, Czech Republic. It was observed in one polished section, where it occurs as a lath-shaped grain 20 μm long and as one additional small inclusion. Vavřínite occurs at grain boundaries between grains of pentlandite. The other associated minerals are pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite, violarite, Ni-bearing pyrite, melonite, sperrylite and altaite. In plane-polarized reflected light, the synthetic analogue of vavřínite is white-cream, weakly bireflectant, and weakly pleochroic from pale light brown to pale brown. Between crossed polars, it is anisotropic, without internal reflections. Values of reflectance in the range 400 – 700 nm are tabulated. Synthetic Ni₂SbTe₂ has a silver grey color and metallic luster. It is brittle with a perfect {0001} cleavage. The Vickers microhardness (VHN₁₀) for synthetic Ni₂SbTe₂ is 92 kg/mm² (range 73.4–111.7), which corresponds to a Mohs hardness of ~2. The calculated and measured densities are 7.88 and 7.79 g/cm³, respectively. The average result of three wavelength-dispersion electron-microprobe analyses of vavřínite is Ni 22.92, Fe 1.29, Pd 1.29, Sb 23.65, Bi 0.33, Te 49.95, total 99.43 wt.%, which corresponds to (Ni_1.93Fe_0.11Pd_0.06)_∑2.10(Sb_0.96 Bi_0.01)_∑0.97Te_1.93; synthetic Ni₂SbTe₂ gave Ni 23.85, Sb 24.33, Te 51.77, total 99.95 wt.%, corresponding Ni_2.01Sb_0.99Te_2.00 (basis: five atoms per formula unit). The mineral is hexagonal, space group P6₃/mmc, with a 3.9090(2), c 15.6820(9) Å, V 207.52(2) ų and Z = 2. The strongest lines in the powder-diffraction pattern of the synthetic analogue [d in Å(I)(hkl)] are: 3.3848(13)(100), 2.8421(81)(103), 2.0704(16)(106), 1.9556(100)(110), 1.6114(23)(203), 1.2437(20)(213) and 1.1291(14)(300). The mineral is named in honor of Ivan Vavřín in recognition of his investigations of tellurium minerals and significant contributions to research on Cu–Ni sulfide deposits.