Database of luminescent minerals 

ADAMITE

Chemical formula: Zn₂(AsO₄)(OH)

Family: Phosphates, Arseniates, Vanadates

Status: IMA-GP

Crystal system : Orthorhombic

Display mineral: OUI

Associated names (luminescent varieties, discredited names, synonyms, etc.): cupro-adamite,  manganadamite, 

Luminescence:

Daylight picture

Adamite, Mapimi Mexique.

Photo and Copyright: James Hamblen
Site of the author
Used with permission of the author

Shortwave (254nm) picture

Adamite, Mapimi Mexique,
OC (254 nm).
Photo and Copyright: James Hamblen
Site of the author
Used with permission of the author

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Phosphorescence (in the common sense of the term) observable with the naked eye:

No phosphorescence visible to the naked eye under any type of UV

Comments:

Adamite is a classical fluorescent mineral since the discovery in 1946 of large esthetical fluorescent samples in the Ojuela Mine (Mexico).

The rarely seen Chinese adamite in limonitic matrix coming from the Dachang Sn-polymetallic ore field, Nandan County, Hechi Prefecture, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous region looks like Ojuela specimens. The clear gemmy crystals fluoresce bright bluish-white in LW UV and the green cuprian Adamite fluoresces bright green LW. The SW response is similar for both, in a subdued green color. The Adamite is very short lived phosphorescent.

Cupro- and manganoan-adamite are also sometime fluorescent but usually not as bright as pure adamite..

Activator(s) and spectrum:

Activator(s): (UO₂)²⁺ (ion Uranyle) en impureté,

Peaks in the spectrum (nm):

UO₂²⁺: (496), 508, 513, 529, (539), (550), 553, (560), (578)

ADAMITE, Mapimi, Mexique. Excitation: laser 405nm. Col. G. Barmarin; Spectre: G. Barmarin

Spectrum of ADAMITE in CSV

You can download the CSV file by clicking here: fichier csv

Comments on spectrum and activators:

Lifetime: 50μs

Best localities for fluorescence (*):

• Ojuela Mine, Mapimi, Municipio Mapimi, Durango County, Mexico (Green SW+LW);
• Ojuela Mine, Mapimi, Municipio Mapimi, Durango County, Mexico (dark green var cupro-adamite, intense green SW+LW);
• Ojuela Mine, Mapimi, Municipio Mapimi, Durango County, Mexico (pinkish-purple var manganoan-adamite, green SW+LW);
• El Potosí Mine, Francisco Portillo, West Camp, Santa Eulalia Mining District, Aquiles Serdán Municipality, Chihuahua, Mexico;
• Hilarion Mine, Kamariza Mines, Agios Konstantinos [St Constantine], Lavrion District, Attikí Prefecture, Greece (var. cupro-adamite);
• Dachang Sn-polymetallic ore field, Nandan Co, Hechi Prefecture, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China;
• Pinggui District, Hezhou Prefecture, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China (cupro-adamite, green LW, minor fluorescence SW);
• Gold Hill, Gold Hill District, Deep Creek Mts, Tooele Co., Utah, USA;
• Tsumeb Mine, Tsumeb, Otjikoto Region, Namibia (minor fluorescence, Jordi Fabre ex Desmond Sacco collection))

(*)The data are not exhaustive and are limited to a few remarkable localities for fluorescence

Bibliographic reference for luminescence:

• The Henkel Glossary of Fluorescent Minerals, Dr. Gerhard Henkel, Published by the FMS, 1989 ,
• Fluorescence: Gems and Minerals Under Ultraviolet Light, Manuel Robbins, 1994, Geoscience Press, ISBN 0-945005-13-X ,
• The World of Fluorescent Minerals, Stuart Schneider, Schiffer Publishing, 2006, ISBN 0-7643-2544-2 ,
• Collecting Fluorescent Minerals, Stuart Schneider, Schiffer Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-7643-2091-2 ,
• Ultraviolet Light and Fluorescent Minerals, Th. Warren, S. Gleason, R. Bostwick, et E. Verbeek, 1995, ISBN 0-9635098-0-2 ,
• Luminescenza nel regno minerale, Guido Mazzoleni, fotografia Roberto Appiani, Libri Sandit, 2010, ISBN 978-88-95990-63-7 ,

Reference for luminescence on the Internet:

Mineralogical reference on the Internet:

  http://www.mindat.org/show.php?name=Adamite

  http://webmineral.com/data/Adamite.shtml

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