Antimony

antimony

silver

arsenic

stibnite

Images

Formula: Sb
Native element, metalloid, arsenic group
Forms a series with arsenic
Specific gravity: 6.61 to 6.71
Hardness: 3 to 3½
Streak: Grey
Colour: Tin-white
Antimony has the unusual property that, like water, it expands as it freezes. Four other elements expand when they freeze, namely silicon, bismuth, gallium and germanium (ChC).
Melting point: 630.79oC
Boiling point: 1587oC
Common impurities: As
Environments:

Hydrothermal environments

Abundance is 0.2 parts per million by mass, 0.03 parts per million by moles in the Earth's crust, and 950 parts per billion by mass, 10 parts per trillion by moles in the Solar System (ChC)
Antimony is seldom found in the native state, but it does occur in antimony-silver hydrothermal veins with silver, antimony and arsenic minerals (Webmin, Dana, HOM). Associated minerals include silver, stibnite, stibarsen, sphalerite, pyrite, galena and quartz (HOM, Dana, Mindat).

Localities

At Wet Swine Gill, Coombe Height, Caldbeck, Allerdale, Cumbria, England, UK, veins of native antimony in association with coatings of yellow bindheimite have been found (AESS).

At the Driggith mine, Caldbeck Fells, Cumbria, England, UK, minute grains of antimony are associated with inclusions of bournonite in galena (C&S).

Alteration

skinnerite to chalcocite, antimony and sulphur
2Cu3SbS3 → 3Cu2S + 2Sb + 3/2S2
(CM 28.725-738)

Zn-tetrahedrite to chalcocite, antimony, sphalerite and sulphur
Cu10Zn2Sb4S13 → 5Cu2S + 4Sb + 2ZnS + 3S2
(CM 28.725-738)

Zn-tetrahedrite to skinnerite, antimony, sphalerite and sulphur
3Cu10Zn2Sb4S13 → 10Cu3SbS3 + 2Sb + 6ZnS + 3/2S2
(CM 28.725-738)

The diagram below is a Pourbaix diagram for antimony (GSJ). It shows the relationship between antimony Sb and cervantite/clinocervantite Sb2O4.

Pourbaix antimony.jpg






















The commonest ore of antimony is stibnite

Antimony-bearing minerals include:

Alloys
allargentum
dyscrasite
genkinite
mertieite
naldrettite
paradocrasite
pararsenolamprite
sluzhenikinite
stibarsen
stibiopalladinite
stistaite

Antimonides - the antimonide anion is Sb3-
aurostibite
breithauptite
geversite
nisbite
sudburyite

Sulphides - the sulphide anion is S2-
andrieslombaardite
cetineite
costibite
getchellite
kermesite
nagyágite
pääkkönenite
paracostibite
stibnite
ullmannite
wakabayashilite
willyamite

Tellurides - the telluride anion is Te2-
borovskite
kanatzidisite

Arsenides
oenite

Sulphosalts - sulphide minerals with the general formula AmBnXp, where A represents a metal , B usually represents a semi-metal and X is sulphur or rarely selenium and/or tellurium
argentopolybasite
berthierite
biagioniite
boscardinite
bournonite
chabournéite
chukotkaite
clerite
dadsonite
écrinsite
falkmanite
famatinite
fizelyite
franckeite
freibergite
gruzdevite
hakite
hakite-(Cd)
hakite-(Fe)
hakite-(Hg)
hakite-(Zn)
heteromorphite
holubite
hrabákite
hyršlite
jasrouxite
jentschite
kenoargentotetrahedrite-(Fe)
livingstonite
luboržákite
madocite
nuffieldite
polybasite
protochabournéite
pyradoketosite
raberite
sicherite
skinnerite
sorbyite
stephanite
sterryite
stibiogoldfieldite
tetrahedrite
tetrahedrite-(Hg)
tetrahedrite-(Zn)
thunderbayite
tučekite
vrbaite
watanabeite

Oxides - the oxide anion is O2-
biehlite
bitikleite
cervantite
clinocervantite
filipstadite
fluorcalcioroméite
garpenbergite
hydrokenopyrochlore
oxycalcioroméite
oxyplumboroméite
rinmanite
rosiaite
senarmontite
stibiocolumbite
tredouxite
valentinite

Hydroxides - the hydroxide anion is (OH)-
cualstibite
mopungite

Halides - the halide anions are Cl-, F-, Br- and Cl--
kelyanite

Chlorides - the chloride anion is Cl-
nadorite
onoratoite

Sulphated
klebelsbergite

Tellurites - the tellurite anion is (Te4+O3)2-
choloalite

Antimonates - the antimonate anion is (Sb5+O3)-
bahianite
bindheimite
byströmite
brizziite
ordoñezite
stibiconite
tripuhyite

Antimonites - the antimonite anion is (Sb3+O3)3-
apuanite
derbylite
schafarzikite

Tantalates - salts of tantalic acid (Ta5+O3)-
stibiotantalite

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