CROCIDOLITE

also called Blue Asbestos, a gray-blue to leek-green, fibrous form of the amphibole mineral riebeckite. It has a greater tensile strength than chrysotile asbestos but is much less heat-resistant, fusing to black glass at relatively low temperatures. The major commercial source is South Africa, where it occurs in ironstone; it is also found in Australia and Bolivia. Crocidolite is often replaced by quartz, forming the chatoyant semiprecious gems tigereye and hawk's-eye.