Mineral Evolution Database

Created and maintained by the Mineral Evolution Project in partnership with RRUFF and mindat.

Mineral locality data provided by mindat.org

The Mineral Evolution database is currently under development.

The goal of this page is to present localities at which the mineral is found, and estimates of the oldest possible geologic age of the minerals at these localities.

Locality Name:
Alum Cave Bluff, Sevier Co., Tennessee, USA

Oldest recorded age at locality: 1000
Youngest recorded age at locality: 0

mindat Locality ID: 5549
mindat URL: http://www.mindat.org/loc-5549.html

Tectonic Settings:

Total number of sublocalities beneath "Alum Cave Bluff, Sevier Co., Tennessee, USA": 0
Total number of bottom-level sublocalities: 0

Latitude: 35°38'21"N
Longitude: 83°26'50"W
Decimal Degree (lat, lon): 35.639166666667,-83.447222222222

A	This mineral is Anthropogenic.
G	This mineral is directly dated.
B	This mineral is reported as having this age.
Y	This mineral is using an age reported as an element mineralization period.
O	This mineral is using an age calculated from all data at the locality.
R	The age displayed for this mineral originates from a different, non-child locality.
P	The age displayed for this mineral is the range of ages for this mineral at all of this locality's children.
	This mineral's age has not yet been recorded.

Alum	Aluminite	Alunite	Botryogen	Calcite	Copiapite	Coronadite	Diaspore	Epsomite	Garnet
Gypsum	Halotrichite	Hexahydrite	Melanterite	Nickeline	None	Not in a structural group	Oxalate	Pyrite	Rutile
Starkeyite	Sulphur	Zircon

Almandine ()*	Alum-(K) ()*	Aluminite ()*	Alunogen ()*	Ammoniojarosite ()*
Apjohnite ()*	Botryogen ()*	Calcite ()*	Copiapite ()*	Coskrenite-(Ce) ()*
Destinezite ()*	Epsomite ()*	Felsőbányaite ()*	Goethite ()*	Gypsum ()*
Halotrichite ()*	Hexahydrite ()*	Hydromagnesite ()*	Jarosite ()*	Jurbanite ()*
Levinsonite-(Y) ()*	Magnesiocopiapite ()*	Melanterite ()*	Pickeringite ()*	Pyrite ()*
Pyrrhotite ()*	Rozenite ()*	Rutile ()*	Schwertmannite ()*	Slavíkite ()*
Spessartine ()*	Starkeyite ()*	Sulphur ()*	Tschermigite ()*	Zircon ()*
Zugshunstite-(Ce) ()*

This Mineral list contains entries from this locality, including sub-localities. Minerals in bold are reported by mindat.org as occurring directly at this locality, and do not occur at any children (sublocalities) of this locality.

Elements at this locality, including sub-localities: Al C Ca Ce Fe H K Mg Mn N O P S Si Ti Y Zr

Elements from minerals reported directly at this locality: Al C Ca Ce Fe H K Mg Mn N O P S Si Ti Y Zr

Structural Groups for minerals in this locality:
Alum Aluminite Alunite Botryogen Calcite Copiapite Coronadite Diaspore Epsomite Garnet
Gypsum Halotrichite Hexahydrite Melanterite Nickeline None Not in a structural group Oxalate Pyrite Rutile
Starkeyite Sulphur Zircon

36 IMA Minerals at location:

Mineral name	Structural Groups	IMA Formula	Max Age (Ma)	Min Age (Ma)	# of localities containing mineral
Almandine ()*	Garnet	Fe²⁺₃Al₂(SiO₄)₃	1000	0	2353
Alum-(K) ()*	Alum	KAl(SO₄)₂·12H₂O	1000	0	92
Aluminite ()*	Aluminite	Al₂(SO₄)(OH)₄·7H₂O	1000	0	78
Alunogen ()*	Not in a structural group	Al₂(SO₄)₃(H₂O)₁₂·5H₂O	1000	0	272
Ammoniojarosite ()*	Alunite	(NH₄)Fe³⁺₃(SO₄)₂(OH)₆	1000	0	30
Apjohnite ()*	Halotrichite	Mn²⁺Al₂(SO₄)₄·22H₂O	1000	0	28
Botryogen ()*	Botryogen	MgFe³⁺(SO₄)₂(OH)·7H₂O	1000	0	45
Calcite ()*	Calcite	Ca(CO₃)	1000	0	27770
Copiapite ()*	Copiapite	Fe²⁺Fe³⁺₄(SO₄)₆(OH)₂·20H₂O	1000	0	382
Coskrenite-(Ce) ()*	Oxalate	Ce₂(SO₄)₂(C₂O₄)·8H₂O	1000	0	1
Destinezite ()*	None	Fe³⁺₂(PO₄)(SO₄)(OH)·6H₂O	1000	0	19
Epsomite ()*	Epsomite	Mg(SO₄)·7H₂O	1000	0	484
Felsőbányaite ()*	None	Al₄(SO₄)(OH)₁₀·4H₂O	1000	0	66
Goethite ()*	Diaspore	FeO(OH)	1000	0	7437
Gypsum ()*	Gypsum	Ca(SO₄)·2H₂O	1000	0	6890
Halotrichite ()*	Halotrichite	Fe²⁺Al₂(SO₄)₄·22H₂O	1000	0	409
Hexahydrite ()*	Hexahydrite	Mg(SO₄)·6H₂O	1000	0	251
Hydromagnesite ()*	None	Mg₅(CO₃)₄(OH)₂·4H₂O	1000	0	341
Jarosite ()*	Alunite	KFe³⁺₃(SO₄)₂(OH)₆	1000	0	2228
Jurbanite ()*	Not in a structural group	Al(SO₄)(OH)·5H₂O	1000	0	7
Levinsonite-(Y) ()*	Oxalate	YAl(SO₄)₂(C₂O₄)·12H₂O	1000	0	1
Magnesiocopiapite ()*	Copiapite	MgFe³⁺₄(SO₄)₆(OH)₂·20H₂O	1000	0	54
Melanterite ()*	Melanterite	Fe(SO₄)·7H₂O	1000	0	915
Pickeringite ()*	Halotrichite	MgAl₂(SO₄)₄·22H₂O	1000	0	265
Pyrite ()*	Pyrite	FeS₂	1000	541	39462
Pyrrhotite ()*	Nickeline	Fe₇S₈	1000	541	9056
Rozenite ()*	Starkeyite	Fe²⁺(SO₄)·4H₂O	1000	0	293
Rutile ()*	Rutile	TiO₂	1000	541	5614
Schwertmannite ()*	Coronadite	Fe³⁺₁₆O₁₆(OH)_9.6(SO₄)_3.2·10H₂O	1000	0	37
Slavíkite ()*	Not in a structural group	(H₃O)₃Mg₆Fe₁₅(SO₄)₂₁(OH)₁₈·98H₂O	1000	0	44
Spessartine ()*	Garnet	Mn²⁺₃Al₂(SiO₄)₃	1000	0	1214
Starkeyite ()*	Starkeyite	Mg(SO₄)·4H₂O	1000	0	79
Sulphur ()*	Sulphur	S	1000	0	2045
Tschermigite ()*	Alum	(NH₄)Al(SO₄)₂·12H₂O	1000	0	81
Zircon ()*	Zircon	Zr(SiO₄)	1000	541	5251
Zugshunstite-(Ce) ()*	Oxalate	CeAl(SO₄)₂(C₂O₄)·12H₂O	1000	0	2

Locality Notes from all Ages at Locality:

Age ID	Locality Notes
Michelle_0048	Oxylates and sulphates are formed from the weathering of the overhanging pyrite/carbon rich phyllite. Acidic water leaches through bluff and constantly deposits salts on rock face and soil below.
Michelle_749	Oxalates and sulfates are formed by the weathering of the overhanging pyrite/carbon rich phyllite of the Anakeesta Formation. Acidic water leaches through bluff and constantly deposits salts on rock face and soil below.

2 Ages assigned to this locality:

	Excel ID	Max Age (Ma)	Min Age (Ma)	Age as listed in reference	Dating Method	Age Interpret	Prioritized?	Sample Source	Sample Num	Run Num	Age from other Locality	Dated Mineral	Minerals explicitely stated as having this age	Age applies to these Elements	MinDat Locality ID	Dated Locality (Max Age)	Location as listed in reference	Reference	Reference DOI	Reference ID	Age Notes
	Michelle_0048	0	0	0		Age of mineralization									5549	Alum Cave Bluff, Sevier Co., Tennessee, USA	Alum Cave Bluff	Coskren and Lauf (2000)		MR31_163	Salts found at locality are constantly renewed. Composition varies with unique local chemistry of water and geology. Age is inferred as the Coskrenite-(Ce) is only mentioned to be found at the surface.
	Michelle_749	1000	541	Late Precambrian		Age of Anakeesta Formation phyllite							Graphite, Muscovite, Paragonite, Pyrite, Pyrrhotite, Quartz, Rutile, Zircon		5549	Alum Cave Bluff, Sevier Co., Tennessee, USA	Alum Cave Bluff	Flohr et al. (1995)		USGSOFR1995_95_477	Age of metamorphic minerals from phyllite of the Anakeesta Formation at Alum Cave Bluff

Sample	Source Locality	Reference URL

All locality data graciously provided by mindat.org

All age data...