Cassiterite Mineral Data

[Fine Minerals] [Events] [Mineral Galleries] [My Collection] [Mineral Auctions]
Full-time professional mineral dealer with over 31 years experience in mineral collecting
And 15 years selling mineral specimens on the internet and at major mineral shows

General Cassiterite Information

Chemical Formula:

SnO2

Composition:

Molecular Weight = 150.71 gm

Tin 78.77 % Sn 100.00 % SnO₂

Oxygen 21.23 % O

______ ______

100.00 % 100.00 % = TOTAL OXIDE

Empirical Formula:

SnO₂

Environment:

Granite pegmatites and alluvial placer deposits.

IMA Status:

Valid Species (Pre-IMA) 1832

Locality:

Cornwall, Wales, Great Britain. Link to MinDat.org Location Data.

Name Origin:

From the Greek kassiteros - "tin."

Name Pronunciation:

Cassiterite + Pronunciation

Synonym:

ICSD 39173

PDF 41-1445

Staringite - Mixture with ferrotapiolite

Tin Ore

Wood Tin

Cassiterite Image

Images:

Cassiterite

Comments: Very brilliant black crystals of cassiterite on white mica.
Location: Xue Bao Diang, Sichuan, China. Scale: Size Not Given.
© Fabre Minerals

Images:

Cassiterite

Comments: Gemmy, doubly terminated cassiterite on quartz-mica matrix.
Location: Langcangjiang river area, Yunnan, China. Scale: 2.7 x 2.2 x 1.8 cm.
© Fabre Minerals

Cassiterite Crystallography

Axial Ratios:

a:c = 1:0.65808

Cell Dimensions:

a = 4.738, c = 3.118, Z = 2; V = 69.99 Den(Calc)= 7.15

Crystal System:

Tetragonal - Ditetragonal DipyramidalH-M Symbol (4/m 2/m 2/m) Space Group: P 4/mnm

$Help on X Ray Diffraction:$ X Ray Diffraction:

By Intensity(I/I_o): 3.351(1), 2.644(0.81), 1.765(0.63),

Forms:

Mouse
Dbl Clk - Start-Stop Rotation
RMB - Cycle Display Modes
Drag1 - Manipulate Crystal
Drag2 - Resize
Keyboard
S - Stereo
I - Indicies
<space> - Start-Stop Rotation
F - Fit to Screen
M - Menu
Help on Above

Forms: ( 1 1 0) ( 1 1 1) ( 1 0 0) ( 1 0 1)

Warning: this large pop-up is very compute intensive and may not work well with some computers.

Crystal Structure:

Mouse
drag1 - LMB Manipulate Structure
drag2 - RMB Resize/Rotate
Keyboard
S - Stereo Pair on/off
H - Help Screen
I - Data Info
A - Atoms On/Off
P - Polyhedra On/Off
B - Bonds On/Off
Help on Above

Baur W H , Acta Crystallographica , 9 (1956) p.515-520, Uber die verfeinerung der kristallstrukturbestimmung einiger vertreter, des rutiltyps: TiO2, SnO2, GeO2 und MgF2

View Additional jPOWD Structure files for Cassiterite
[1] [2]

Physical Properties of Cassiterite

Cleavage:

{100} Perfect, {110} Indistinct

Color:

Brown, Brownish black, Colorless, Green, Gray.

Density:

6.8 - 7, Average = 6.9

Diaphaneity:

Transparent to translucent to opaque

Fracture:

Irregular - Flat surfaces (not cleavage) fractured in an irregular pattern.

Habit:

Botryoidal - "Grape-like" rounded forms (e.g.. malachite).

Habit:

Massive - Uniformly indistinguishable crystals forming large masses.

Habit:

Prismatic - Crystals Shaped like Slender Prisms (e.g. tourmaline).

Hardness:

6-7 - Orthoclase-Quartz

Luminescence:

Non-fluorescent.

Luster:

Adamantine

Streak:

brownish white

Optical Properties of Cassiterite

Dichroism (e):

yellow.

Dichroism (w):

red brown.

Gladstone-Dale:

CI meas= -0.062 (Fair) - where the CI = (1-KPDmeas/KC)
CI calc= -0.025 (Excellent) - where the CI = (1-KPDcalc/KC)
KPDcalc= 0.1466,KPDmeas= 0.1519,KC= 0.143
Ncalc = 1.97 - 2.02

Optical Data:

Uniaxial (+), w=1.99-2.01, e=2.093-2.1, bire=0.0900-0.1030.

RL Anisotrophism:

Strong.

RL Color:

Light gray with white to brownish internal reflections.

RL Pleochroism:

Strong to very weak.

Reflectivity

**Standardized Intensity (100%) Reflection Spectra of Cassiterite in Air**
λ	R₁	R₂	∑ R₁(λ)	∑ R₂(λ)
400 nm	11.70	13.20
420 nm	11.60	13.00
440 nm	11.50	12.80
460 nm	11.40	12.60
480 nm	11.30	12.50
500 nm	11.20	12.40
520 nm	11.00	12.20
540 nm	11.00	12.10
560 nm	10.90	12.00
580 nm	10.90	12.00
600 nm	10.80	12.00
620 nm	10.80	12.00
640 nm	10.70	12.00
660 nm	10.70	12.00
680 nm	10.60	12.00
700 nm	10.60	12.00

**Calculated Relative Intensity Colors of Cassiterite in Air**
Relative Intensity	0%	90%	100%	180%	270%	360%	450%	540%	630%	720%	810%
R₁
R₂

Calculated Properties of Cassiterite

Electron Density:

Bulk Density (Electron Density)=6.26 gm/cc
note: Specific Gravity of Cassiterite =7.15 gm/cc.

Fermion Index:

Fermion Index = 0.13
Boson Index = 0.87

Photoelectric:

PE_Cassiterite= 247.66 barns/electron
U=PE_Cassiterite x rElectron Density=1,550.92 barns/cc.

Radioactivity:

GRapi = 0 (Gamma Ray American Petroleum Institute Units)
Cassiterite is Not Radioactive

Cassiterite Classification

Dana Class:

04.04.01.05 (04)Simple Oxides

(04.04)with a cation charge of 4+ (A++++ O2)

(04.04.01)Rutile group (Tetragonal: P4/mnm)

04.04.01.01 Rutile TiO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.02 Ilmenorutile (Ti,Nb,Fe)O2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.03 Struverite? (Ti,Ta,Fe)O2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.04 Pyrolusite MnO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.05 Cassiterite SnO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.06 Plattnerite PbO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.07 Argutite GeO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.08 Squawcreekite? (Fe,Sb,W)O4•(H2O) P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.04.01.09 Stishovite SiO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

Strunz Class:

04.DB.05 04 - OXIDES (Hydroxides, V[5,6] vanadates, arsenites, antimonites, bismuthites, sulfites, selenites, tellurites, iodate

04.D - Metal:Oxygen = 1:2 and similar

04.DB -With medium-sized cations; chains of edge-sharing octahedra

04.DB.05 Argutite GeO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Cassiterite SnO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Rutile TiO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Pyrolusite MnO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Plattnerite PbO2 P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Varlamoffite* (Sn,Fe)(O,OH)2 P 4₁/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Squawcreekite? (Fe,Sb,W)O4•(H2O) P 4/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

04.DB.05 Tugarinovite MoO2 P 2₁/n 2/m

04.DB.05 Tripuhyite FeSbO4 P 4₁/mnm 4/m 2/m 2/m

Other Cassiterite Information

References:

NAME( Duda&Rejl90) PHYS. PROP.(Enc. of Minerals,2nd ed.,1990) OPTIC PROP.(AntBidBlaNic1)

Search for Cassiterite using:

[AOL] [Bing] [Dog Pile] [GeoScienceWorld] [HotBot] [Ixquick] [Lycos] [MAMMA] [Scirus] [Teoma] [WebCrawler] [Wikipedia] [YAHOO]

Visit our Advertisers for Cassiterite :

Cape Minerals Google Search for Cassiterite
Dakota Matrix Minerals Google Search for Cassiterite
Excalibur Mineral Corp. Google Search for Cassiterite
John Betts Fine Minerals Search for Cassiterite
McDougall Minerals Google Search for Cassiterite
Mineral News Website Link
Rock and Mineral Shows Google Search for Cassiterite
Weinrich Minerals, Inc. Google Search for Cassiterite

Ask about Cassiterite here :
Ask-A-Mineralogist from the Mineralogical Society of America
Mindat.org's Discussion Groups
Original Rockhounds Discussion Group
Rockhounds Discussion Group on Yahoo Groups
Mineral Discussion Forum from Fabre Minerals - also available in Español

Print or Cut-and-Paste your Cassiterite Specimen Label here :

Cassiterite

SnO2
Dana No: 04.04.01.05 Strunz No: 04.DB.05
Locality:

Notes: