Brianyoungite, a New Mineral Related to Hydrozincite, from the North of England Orefield

A. Livingstone and P. E. Champness
Department of Geology, Royal Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh EH1 1JF
Department of Geology, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PL

Abstract: Brianyoungite, which is chemically and structurally related to hydrozincite, occurs as white rosettes (<100 µm) with gypsum on rubbly limestone within the oxidised zone at Brownley Hill Mine, Nenthead, Cumbria. The mineral contains (wt.%) 71.47 ZnO, 9.90 CO2, 6.62 SO3 and 10.70 H2O+. Based on 29 oxygen atoms, the empirical formula is Zn11.73[(CO3)3.00,(SO4)1.10]4.10(OH)15.88 or ideally Zn3(CO3,SO4)(OH)4. Brianyoungite is either orthorhombic or monoclinic with β very close to 90°. Cell parameters determined by electron diffraction and refined from X-ray powder diffraction data are a = 15.724, b = 6.256 and c = 5.427 Å. Density is > 3.93, < 4.09 g/cm3 (meas.) and 4.11 g/cm3 (calc.); Z = 4. Thermogravimetric analysis, IR and XRD powder data (23 lines) are presented.

Keywords: brianyoungite • hydrozincite • Cumbria • new mineral

Mineralogical Magazine; December 1993 v. 57; no. 389; p. 665-670; DOI: 10.1180/minmag.1993.057.389.10
© 1993, The Mineralogical Society
Mineralogical Society (www.minersoc.org)