HYDROHETAEROLITE



Hydrohetaerolite, a zinc manganese oxide hydrate mineral, was first described from Sterling Hill by Palache (1928a, 1935), and it was restudied by Frondel and Heinrich (1942); their conclusions were discussed by Ramdohr and Frenzel (1956). It has not been reported from Franklin. The very first discovery of its uniqueness was by Moore (1877), who called it zinc hausmannite, but he failed to establish that his definition of it was correct. The history of this mineral is a confused one, as set out in the above-cited papers. The mineral was redefined by Wadsley (1955) using material of uncertain provenance and by McAndrew (1956) using material from Colorado. The description here is drawn from Palache (1935); the writer has not studied this mineral.
Hydrohetaerolite occurs in massive form, as bulbous, botryoidal, or mammillary masses, and is dark brown, nearly black, with a submetallic luster. A fibrous texture is apparent. The hardness is approximately 5, and the observed density varies from 4.85 to 4.93 g/cm3. No new analytical data have been obtained; the extant data are given by Palache (1935).
Hydrohetaerolite occurred in the Passaic Mine at Sterling Hill, mined extensively for hemimorphite in the 1870's and, together with the Noble Mine, the source of many secondary manganese oxides such as chalcophanite, hetaerolite, birnessite, cryptomelane, and others. Hydrohetaerolite occurs intimately associated with chalcophanite, and Moore (1877) argued for its formation as a result of the progressive alteration of franklinite; this proposal was supported by Palache (1935), but ignored by other investigators, and the assemblage has not been restudied. (Dunn, 1995)

 Location Found: Ogdensburg (Type Locality)
     
 
 Year Discovered: 1928
     
 Formula: ZnMn2O4 · H2O
 Essential Elements: Hydrogen, Manganese, Oxygen, Zinc
 All Elements in Formula: Hydrogen, Manganese, Oxygen, Zinc
     
 IMA Status: Valid - first described prior to 1959 (pre-IMA) - "Grandfathered"
     
     
 To find out more about this mineral at minDat's website, follow this link   Hydrohetaerolite

     
 References:
Dunn, Pete J. (1995). Franklin and Sterling Hill New Jersey: the world's most magnificent mineral deposits. Franklin, NJ.: The Franklin-Ogdensburg Mineralogical Society. p.599

Frondel, Clifford (1972). The minerals of Franklin and Sterling Hill, a checklist. NY.: John Willey & Sons. p.63
The Picking Table References
 PT Issue and PageDescription / Comment
View IssueV. 5, No. 1 - February 1964, pg. 8Mineral Notes - Hydrohausmannite and Hydrohaeterolite (small article)
     
Images
     
Hydrohetaerolite and chalcophanite from Sterling Hill Mine, Ogdensburg, NJ
Hydrohetaerolite (orange to brown-orange) and chalcophanite (black to dark gray) from the Sterling Hill Mine, Ogdensburg, NJ. Field of view 1". From the collection of, and photo by WP.






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