Tourmaline (tur-mah-Leen) is a crystal boron silicate meeneral compoondit wi elements sic as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is clessifee'd as a semi-precious stane an the gemstane comes in a wide variety o colours. The name comes frae the Sinhalese wird "Thuramali" (තුරමලි) or "Thoramalli" (තෝරමල්ලි), which applee'd tae different gemstanes foond in Sri Lanka.

Tourmaline
Schorl Tourmaline
General
CategoryCyclosilicate
Formula
(repeatin unit)
(Ca,K,Na,[])(Al,Fe,Li,Mg,Mn)3(Al,Cr, Fe,V)6
(BO3)3(Si,Al,B)6O18(OH,F)4
[1][2]
Creestal seestemTrigonal
Identification
ColourMaist commonly black, but can range frae broun, violet, green, pink, or in a dual-colored pink an green.
Creestal habitParallel an elongatit. Acicular prisms, whiles radiatin. Massive. Scattered grains (in granite).
CleavageIndistinct
FracturUneven, smaa conchoidal, brickle
Mohs scale haurdness7–7.5
SkinkleVitreous, whiles resinous
StreakWhite
Speceefic gravity3.06 (+.20 -.06)[1]
Density2.82–3.32
Polish skinkleVitreous[1]
Optical propertiesDouble refractive, uniaxial negative[1]
Refractive indexnω=1.635–1.675, nε=1.610–1.650
Birefringence-0.018 to -0.040; teepically about .020 but in dark stones it may reak .040[1]
Pleochroismteepically moderate tae strang[1]
Reid Tourmaline: Definite; dark reid,licht reid
Green Tourmaline: Strang; dark green, yellae-green
Broun Tourmaline: Definite; dark broun, licht broun
Blue Tourmaline: Strang; dark blae, licht blae
Dispersion.017[1]
Ultraviolet fluorescencepink stanes—inert tae vera waik reid tae violet in lang an short wave[1]
Absorption spectraa strang narra band at 498 nm, an naur complete absorption o reid doun tae 640nm in blae an green stanes; reid an pink stanes shaw lines at 458 an 451nm as weel as a braid band in the green spectrum[1]

References

eedit
  1. a b c d e f g h i Gemological Institute of America, GIA Gem Reference Guide 1995, ISBN 0-87311-019-6
  2. Mindat tourmaline group Accessed September 12, 2005. This website details specifically and clearly how the complicated chemical formula is structured.