File:Calcite-lined vug (Vinton Member, Logan Formation, Lower Mississippian; Mohawk Dam spillway, western Coshocton County, Ohio, USA) 1 (26952928100).jpg

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Calcite-lined vug in the Mississippian of Ohio, USA.

A mineral is a naturally-occurring, solid, inorganic, crystalline substance having a fairly definite chemical composition and having fairly definite physical properties. At its simplest, a mineral is a naturally-occurring solid chemical. Currently, there are over 5400 named and described minerals - about 200 of them are common and about 20 of them are very common. Mineral classification is based on anion chemistry. Major categories of minerals are: elements, sulfides, oxides, halides, carbonates, sulfates, phosphates, and silicates.

The carbonate minerals all contain one or more carbonate (CO3-2) anions.

Calcite is a common mineral. It is calcium carbonate (CaCO3). It has a nonmetallic luster, commonly clearish to whitish to yellowish to grayish in color, is moderately soft (H≡3), moderately light-weight, has hexagonal crystals, and rhombohedral cleavage (three cleavage planes at 75º & 105º angles - cleavage pieces look like lopsided boxes). The easiest way to identify calcite is to drop acid on it - it easily bubbles (effervesces) in acid. The bubbles are carbon dioxide gas. If the acid is dilute hydrochloric acid, the chemical reaction is:

2HCl(aq) + CaCO3(s) -->> CO2(g)↑ + H2O(l) + CaCl2(aq)

The most important & voluminous calcitic rocks in the world are limestone (sedimentary), marble (metamorphic), carbonatite (igneous), and travertine (speleothem, or "cave formations", and many hotspring deposits). Quite a few hydrothermal veins in the world are calcitic or have calcite as a principal component.

The sample shown above is an irregularly shaped cavity lined with oddly-shaped calcite crystals (click on the above photo to zoom in). It is hosted in the siliciclastics-dominated Vinton Member of the Logan Formation. The Vinton is mostly siltstone, but sandstone and shale also occur. Some carbonate horizons and concretions are also present, which are the likely ultimate source for the calcium carbonate making up the crystals in this vug.

Host rock: Vinton Member, upper Logan Formation, Osagean Stage, upper Lower Mississippian

Locality: Mohawk Dam emergency spillway, northwest of the town of Nellie, western Coshocton County, eastern Ohio, USA (vicinity of 40º 21' 26.42" North latitude, 82º 04' 57.97" West longitude)


Photo gallery of calcite:

<a href="http://www.mindat.org/gallery.php?min=859" rel="nofollow">www.mindat.org/gallery.php?min=859</a>
Date
Source Calcite-lined vug (Vinton Member, Logan Formation, Lower Mississippian; Mohawk Dam spillway, western Coshocton County, Ohio, USA) 1
Author James St. John

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This image was originally posted to Flickr by James St. John at https://flickr.com/photos/47445767@N05/26952928100 (archive). It was reviewed on 10 October 2019 by FlickreviewR 2 and was confirmed to be licensed under the terms of the cc-by-2.0.

10 October 2019

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current02:13, 10 October 2019Thumbnail for version as of 02:13, 10 October 20194,000 × 3,000 (4.34 MB)Ser Amantio di Nicolao (talk | contribs)Transferred from Flickr via #flickr2commons

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