General Information:
Chemical Formula:
Pt
Composition:
(Molecular Weight = 195.08 gm)
Platinum 100.0 % Pt
Empirical Formula:
Pt
Environment:
Mainly in grains and nuggets in alluvial deposits.
IMA Status:
Approved IMA 1974
Locality:
Most notably from the Urals, Russia and Brazil.
Name Origin:
Spanish, platina = "silver."
Physical Properties:
Cleavage:
None
Color:
whitish steel gray, steel gray, or dark gray.
Density:
14 - 22, Average = 18
Diaphaniety:
Opaque
Habits:
Granular - Generally occurs as anhedral to subhedral crystals in matrix., Nuggets - Irregular lumps produced by stream transport of malleable metals.,
Hardness:
4-4.5 - Between Fluorite and Apatite
Luminescence:
Non-fluorescent.
Luster:
Metallic
Streak:
grayish white
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