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Carnotite

Carnotite

A species of Minerals

Carnotite is a potassium uranium vanadate radioactive mineral with chemical formula K2(UO2)2(VO4)2·3H2O. The water content can vary and small amounts of calcium, barium, magnesium, iron, and sodium are often present.

Hardness
Hardness:

2

Density
Density:

4.91 g/cm³

General Info About Carnotite

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Physical Properties of Carnotite

Colors
Bright yellow, yellow, greenish yellow
Streak
Strontian-yellow
Hardness
2 , Extremely soft
Density
4.91 g/cm³, Obviously Heavy Weight
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Chemical Properties of Carnotite

Formula
K2(UO2)2(VO4)2 · 3H2O
Elements listed
H, K, O, U, V

Characteristics of Carnotite

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Formation of Carnotite

Carnotite is a bright to greenish-yellow mineral that occurs typically as crusts and flakes in sandstones. Amounts as low as one percent will color the sandstone a bright yellow. The high uranium content makes carnotite an important uranium ore. It is a secondary vanadium and uranium mineral usually found in sedimentary rocks in arid climates. In the United States it is an important ore of uranium in the Colorado Plateau region of the United States where it occurs as disseminations in sandstone and concentrations around petrified logs. It also occurs in the U.S. states of Wyoming, Colorado, South Dakota, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah. It also occurs incidentally in Grants, New Mexico, and Carbon County, Pennsylvania. Carnotite is reported in Congo (Kinshasa), Morocco, Australia (Radium Hill) and Kazakhstan. In Pakistan carnotite occurs in the Upper Miocene middle Siwaliks sandstone (Dhokpathan Formation), in the vicinity of Takhat Nasrati, Karak District.

Cultural Significance of Carnotite

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Uses of Carnotite

Carnotite is an ore of uranium. At times in the early 20th century, it was mined primarily for radium or vanadium. The mineral was used to produce quack devices involving radioactive substances.

Common Questions People Also Ask

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