Шаблон:Infobox mineralDiaboleite is a blue-colored mineral with formula Pb2CuCl2(OH)4. It was discovered in England in 1923 and named diaboleite, from the Greek word διά and boleite, meaning "distinct from boleite".[1] The mineral has since been found in a number of countries.
Diaboleite is deep blue in color and pale blue in transmitted light. The mineral occurs as tabular crystals up to Шаблон:Convert in size, as subparallel aggregates, or it has massive habit. Vicinal forms of the tabular crystals have a square or octagonal outline and rarely exhibit pyramidal hemihedralism.[2]
A study in 1986 synthesized diaboleite crystals up to Шаблон:Convert in size using two different methods. The study demonstrated that diaboleite is a low-temperature phase, that is stable under hydrothermal conditions at temperatures less than Шаблон:Convert. At higher temperatures, the first stable mineral to form is cumengeite.[3]
History
In 1923, diaboleite was discovered at Higher Pitts Mine in the Mendip Hills of Somerset, England,[1] and described by L. J. Spencer and E.D. Mountain.[4] The study of the similar mineral boleite was perplexing at the time and this new mineral only compounded the difficulty. As insufficient material was available for a full investigation, Spencer and Mountain named it diaboleite, meaning "distinct from boleite", out of "desperation".[5]
