Description
Keiviite-Y has a hardness of 4 – 5 and a specific gravity of 4.45. It was named for its relationship to keiviite-(Yb), with Y dominant over Yb and written according to the IMA nomenclature for rare earth element minerals, according to Mindat, and Keiviite-Yb was originally translated from Russian to keiviite but also appears as keivite and keivyite. The root name is for the type locality, Keivy massif, Russia.
A sample analyzed by WebMineral showed the mineral to consist of roughly 34% Yttrium, 29% Oxygen, 22% Ytterbium, and 15% Silicon, so this would make for a great representation of those Rare Earths for element collectors!
While it hasn’t yet been found in Colorado, it’s been found in around 45 localities worldwide, often near pegmatites associated with Tengerite-(Y), Yttrofluorite, Yttrialite-(Y), Iimoriite-(Y), Thalénite-(Y), Allanite-(Y), Keiviite-(Yb), Fluorite, Bastnäsite-(Ce), and Vyuntspakhkite-(Y).
Neither Yttrium and Ytterbium are incredibly valuable or used commonly in very many applications, but look for a mineral like this on your next hike and make a new discovery!
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.