to2l
The Carndian M fu.erabght
Vol.35, pp. 102r-1025(1997)

DELIENSITE,Fe(UOzlz(SOdz(OH)z.3HzO,
A NEW FERROUS
URANYLSULFATE
HYDROXYLHYDRATEFROMMAS D'ALARYLODEVE,HERAULI,FRANCERENAI.]DVOCHTEN1
Iaborotoriamvoor chzrnischc enfysische mineralogie, Departemcnt Scheikundz, IJniversiteit Antwerpen,
Midlelhctunlaan I, 8-2020 Antwerpen, Belgium

NORBERTBLATON aNn OSWALD PEETERS
Laboratoriam voor analytische chemie en medicitwle fysicochzmie, Facalteit Farmaceutische Wetenschttppen,
Katholielce Universiteit Leuveno Van Evenstaat 4, 8-3000 l-euven, Belgiam

Arsrneqr
Deliensite,
ideallyFe(UO2)z(SO+)z(OH)z.3HzO,
is a newmineralspecies
fromtheMasd'Alaryglaniumdeposit,inLoddve, Hdrault, France.It occursas sufmillimeu'ic tabular crystals axrangedin sphericalag$egates,and is associatedwith
uraninite, gypsumandpydte. The crystalsare paleyellow to grayish white in color wittr a vitreous luster,and nonfluorescent.
D^*3.268 and Dcac3.31 (empirical formula), 3.26 glcmt (idealizedformula); I/von" = 2. OpfrcalIybiaxial negarive,
2V =73121",a 1.432(calc.),F 1.470(2)arldy 1,.492(3)with optical orientationY andZ in ptane(tOO;,andZ ll elongation.
The dispenion r > v is weak,andthe crystsls arenonpleochroic.Deliensiteis orthorhombic, spacegroupPnnmor Pnn2, withunit-cellparamelersrefinedfrompowderdata:415.908(5),b1.6.274(3),c6.903(1)A,VtlSi(o)Az,o:b:":0.9775:1:O.4242,
Z= 4.T\e crystalsshowa tabularhabit,tenacityis weak,andthe {100} cleavageis perfect.Theshongestten reflectionsof
the X-ray powder-diffractionpatterntd n (A)(I)(hkDl are: 7.95(81)(200),5.90(100)(1ll), 4.26(31)(031),4.2o(37)(30t),
3.94(7r)(14o),3.45(67)(002),3.r6s(s0)(202),2.893(4r)(rsr),2.596(7o)(r42)nd 2.118(27)(033).
Electron-microprobe
andthermogravimehicanalysesgave:FeO7.42,UOr67.63,SO:
l7.37,HzO8.63,totalTOI.O5wt.Vo.Theempiricalformula(basedon O = 13)is Feo.s0e(UQ)z.0sr(SO+)r.sas(Ol{)z.o&2.3.179H2O.
Deliensiteoriginatesfrom the alterationof uraniniteandprirnary
sulfides,with a contributionfrom the host focks.The mineralnamehonorsBelgianminsral6gisfMichel Deliens.Holotypematerial is depositedi1 fts mineplogical collection of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences,Brussels,Belgium.
Keywords:deliensite,new mineral species,ferrous uranyl sulfatehydroxyl hydrate,Mas d'Alary, Loddve,H6raul! France.
So\,nr{eRs
La deliensite,de formule iddale Fe(UOz)z(SOa)z(OH)2.3H2O,
est une nouvelle espdcenindrale du glte uranifErede Masd'Alary, en LodEve,H6rault,France.Le mindralsepr6senteen amasde cristauxtabulairessubmillimdu'iquesen agr6gats
sph6rulitiques,associdse I'uraninite, au gypseet a la pyrite. [a couleur descristaux estjaune pile d gris-blanc,avecun 6c]atvitreux; aucunefluorescencen'est d6velopp6een lnmiBreultra-violette.[,e clivage {001 } est bon.D,* = 3.268glem3et
Dcar"= 3.31 g/cm3(formuleempirique),3,26 glcmz(formule id6a1e).Ilysx" = 2. optiquementbiaxe n6gative2v =13121",
a 1.432(ca1c.),p1,.470(2)ety 1.492(2), avecorientationoptiquey 2 densIe plan (100),et Z parallblei I'allongement.La
dispersionr > u est faible, et les cristaux sont non pl6ochroiques.La"1delienrsiteest orthorhombique,groupe spatialpnnm ou
PwA, ave.lesparambtre.s
r6ticulairesa 15.908(5),b rc.n4?) et c 6.903(l) A, V 1787Q)Az,a:b:c0.9775:7:0.4242,2=4.1-EAcristauxmontrentun habitustabulaire,la tenaciteest faible, et le clivage { 100} est parfait. Les dix raiesles plus intenses
ldG,n A)(r)(hk[)] sonr: 7.95(81)(200),5.90(100)(111),4.26(3r)Q31),'q.Zd?t)(7Otl, 3.s4(71)(r40),3.4s,f7)(OO2),
3.165(50)(202),2.893(41X151),2.596(70)(142),et 2.118(27)(033).Les analysesd la microsondedlectroniqueetthermogravin6trique
ont donnd:FeO7.42,1JOg67.63,SOg17.37,HzO 8.63,totzl L0l.O57o(enpoids).La formuleempirique(avecO = 13)astFe6.e6(UOrzosr(SOe)r.eag(OtDzoaz.3,l79
HzO. Le min6ralresdte de I'alr&arion de l'uraninire et dessulfiues
primaires,en combinaisonavecles 6l€mentsd6riv6sde Ia ganguedu glte uranifdre.Le nom est i I'honneur de Michel Deliens,
min6ralogistebelge.Le min6ralest conserv6dansIa collectionmingmlegiqgsfle I'Institut royal desSciencesnaturellesdeBelgique, i Bruxelles, Belgique,Mots-cMs;deliensite,nouvelleespdcemin6rale,sulfateferreux d'uranyle hydroxyd6et hydrat6,Mas d'Alary, Loddve,H6rault,France.

I E-mail address: revo@nets.ruca.ua.ac.beto22

TIIE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

Frc. l. A. Photomicrograph(scanningelectronmicroscopy)of tabularcrystalsof deliensite(scalebar: 20 pm). B. Photomicrographof spherical a59te5ateof deliensitecrystals(scalebar: 10 pm).

lxrnopusnoN
Deliensite, ideally Fe(UO2)2(SO4)2(OH)z.3HzO, isa new ferrous uranyl sulfate hydroxyl hydrate fromMas d'Alary, Loddve, H6rault, France, collected in
L994.kon-, lead- and zinc-bearing sulfides ate associated with the uranium mineralization. Uraninite andcoffinite occur as stratiform horizons, as banded lenslike masses, and seldom as veins. The exceptionallyhigh concentration ofuranium wittrin the deposits ofLoddve can only be explained by volcanic activity. The

geology and metallogenesis of these deposits wereextensively described by Deliens et al. (1992). T\ealteration of the primary ore leads to the formation ofa plethora of secondary uranium minerals. The abundance of secondary uranium minerals is primarily due
to the diversity of primary sulfides that are associatedwith uraninite. From this locality, four new uraniumbearing species have been described: metaloddvite(Aginrer et al. 1972), fontanite @eliens &Ytet1992),
seelite @ariand et al. 1993) and rabejacite @eliens &Plret 1993). The discovery specimen of deliensite was

DFI FNSITB. A NEW FERROUS URANYL SI'LFATE FTYROXYL HYDRATE

lo23

collected and given to the authorsby Jean Claude
Leydet,memberof "Associationfrangaisede micromin6ralogie",The mineral4d fts minepl name(IMAnumber96--013)wereapprovedby theCommissionon
New Minerals and Mineral Names,IMA. The typespecimenof deliensiteis storedasRC 4718in the mineralogicalcollectionofthe Royal BelgianInstituteof
Natural Sciences,Brussels,Belgium. The mineralnzme honorsMichel Deliens (b. 1939),headof thedivision ef minsl2lsgy at the Royal Belgiantnstituteof NaturalSciences,Brussels,Belgium"who hasbeen
involved in thedescriptionof twenty-fivenew urani rmbearingminerals.
Monpuol-ocy, Pgysrcar Pnopenrns
AND OCCURRENCE

Deliensiteoccursas pale yellow to grayishwhite
microtabularcrystalsarrangedin sphericalaggregatesup to 4 mm in diameter.The crystalshave a mean
lengthof 0.35mm anda width of 0.06{.15 mm. The
mineral is transparentto translucent,with a vitreous
luster andwhite streak.It is nonfluorescent.The Mohs
hardnessis 2, the tenacity,weak, and the {100} Frc. 2. Optical orientation of the vibration directions indeliensite.
cleavageoperfect. Many crystals are twinned withparting along (010). The SEM photomicrograph(Fig. lA) showscrystalswith a tabular habit and apronouncedelongationon [001]. Figure lB showsthe Jena MD-100 microdensitometer.The pattern issphericalaggregatesof the crystals.The densitymeas- unique,and could not be matchedwith any phasein
ured by flotation in heary liquids (methyleneiodide + the ICDD PowderDiffraction File. Singlecrystalsof
toluene)at25'C is 3.268(7)g/cm3.The calculatedden- deliensitewereexaminedusingWeissenberg
methods
sity is 3.31 g/cmaif basedon the empiricalformula, employingNi-filtered Cu radiation.Film dataof the 0,
and3.26g/cm3if basedon the idealizedformula.The L and 2levels for a crystal mountedalong the c axis
mineral is readily soluble in dilute HCl.
indicateorthorhombicsymmebry.Systematicabsences
Deliensitewas found in the oxidationzoneof the give the permissiblespace-groups
Pnnm(58) or Pnn2
Mas d'Alary uraniumdeposit,LodCve,H6rault,France. (34). The refinedunit-cel p:uameters:
a 15.908(5),It is found in closeassociation
with uraninite,gypsum b 16.274(3),c 6.9o3(l) A, v r787(l) 43, a:b:cand granularpyrite.
0.9775:l:0.4242,
Z = 4, arebasedon the d-valuesof
34 X-ray powder-diffractionlines. The indexing ofOpncer CncRAcrERlsrrcsthe powder-diffractionlines is conformablewith thesingle-crystalWeissenbergdata.The programPIRUM
The mineralis biaxial negative,with a measured2V (Werner 1969) was used for unit-cell refinement.
valueof73(2)" (Iobi method).The indicesofreftaction Figure of merit values are M(20) = 16, F(20) =weredeterminedat 589 nm: u 1..432(calc.),
B I.47O(2) 19(0.008140,132).A tully indexedpowder-ditfraction
and^y1.492(2).The dispersion(r>v) is weak,andthe patlernis givenin Table1.
crystalsare nonpleochroic.The optical orientationis
suchthat Y andZ arelocatedin the plane (lOO), andZ
Crumcer- ColposmoN
paralel to elongation(Frg.2).
Crystals of deliensitewere chemically analyzed
X-Ray Cnys:rarr.ocnapuy
with a CamecaSX-50 electronmicroprobe,utilizing abeamsizeof 2 pm, an operatingvoltageof 15kY andThe X-ray powder-diffraction data were recorded a berm currentof 20 nA. Exceptfor themaj61gs6t.with a Guinier-H6gg camerausing monochromated nents,no peaksof elementswith an atomicnumberof
CuKar radiation (7\ 1.5406 A). Synthetic fluor- 6 or greaterwere significantly above the detection
phlogopite(SRM-675)wasusedas a calibrantfor rhe limit, indicating that deliensiteis essentiallya pure
lower-20values,and silicon powder(SRM-460) was Fe-U-S phase.The following standardswere used:usedfor the hi$er-20 values.The relativeintensitiesof hematite(Fe), syntheticuraninite(U) and barite (S).
the difftaction lines were measuredwith a Carl-Zeiss The HzO contentwas determinedthermogravimetri-

t024

THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

TiqBLE l. X-RAY POWDER-DIFFRACTIONDATA FOR DEUENSITE

ttU?n0lllllqll
301040140w2m2051
l5l4t142
161
u2
I t3
I'tr

d*(A)

7.95
6.34
5.s
44n
4.06
394
3.45
3.165
2.942
2.89t
2.629
2.5%
2.4m
2.357
2.?55
2.rv.

d*(A)

7.954
6.355
5.901
4265
4l'.5
4.068
3.942
3.451
3.16
2.94
2.895
2.630
2.597
2.493
2.358
2255
2.192

81
l5l@
3l
37
13
7l
67
50
2t4t
16
70
9
t5
21t0

de(L)

,{dd&(A)

701
033
262
83
080
lto
053
153
43
@1',t@

2.158 2.159
2.il8
2.118
2.w
zc6t
2.46
2.U7
2.0332.934
2.0t9
z0l8
1.878 1.879
1.865 1.866
1.789 1.7t9
t;149
t.749
1.74t
t.742
1.725 L.T)6
r;tv
1.76
1.6E6 1.6&7
l.sEO 1.581
1265t7l0ll?2all

827l0I
u9920
919t22,
1914U

Calculaideal formula is Fe(UOz)z(SO+)z(OIf)z.3HzO.
fions of the Gladstone-Dalerelationship,using theconstantsof Mandarino(1981),yield a compatiblityindex of 0.072, which indicatesfair agreementbetween
physicalandchemicaldatausing the measureddensity.
Tm.MALSTABIrIY

The thermal stability of deliensite was studied
with a thermogravimetric aaalyzer TGA 2950, TA
lnstruments,utilizing a heatingrate of 5'C/min and aconstant Nz-flow of 50 ml/min. The TGA curve@4(Fig. 3) showsthat dehydrationand dehydroxylation
291
M
do not take place in distinct steps;instead,over an
144interval between110 and 500'C, the dehydrationis
155
complete,andcorrespondsto a loss of 8.63 wt.VoHzO.
674
Between 500 and 800'C, decomposition of thesulfate group takes place and correspondsto a loss
wlich is in excellentagreementwithof 17.87tttt.%o,caily. A thermogravimetricanalysis(fGA) revealed the averagedvalue of L7.37 wlTo SO3obtainedby
a total loss of 8.63 wt.Vo.Five electron-microprobe elechon-microprobe
analyses.
analyses, carried out on each of four different
crystals,yield (in vvt.Vo)FeO 7.42(5.70-8.36),UOr
67.63(65.4249.88),andSOz l7 .37(l 6.71- I 8.20); withthe 8.63VoHzO, the total is lol.05 wt.Vo.Fe3+could
not be detectedby microchemicaltestsusing KCNS on Wavqmbq(mt)Asigm€dWamEbs(@-r)
Asiglmrdrseparatecrystals.This doesnot precludethat somecrystalsof deliensitemay be partialy oxidized.The3a09(qb)vrI4O
933(n)
vzUQ
oxide formula calculatedon the basisof 13 O atomsis:(w)
1629(m)0 tt"oE54-813
vrUQ
(s)
(w)
1120,10El
vr
s93
vnSOn
SOr
0.909FeO'2,081UOg'1.949503.4.2'4 HzO.The empirical formula,taking into accountelectroneutrality,is:(SOa)r.s+s(OH)2.sg2.3.179H2O.
Feo.gog(UOz)z.oer
The Slmbols:s: suong c ms{i'm, fr wek, b: brcsd * I\r@ke 0964 1966)

soo_3.9)
o=(oC)
Temperature
Ftc. 3. Thermogravimetric curve of deliensite.

t025

DELIENSITE. A NEW FERROUS I,JRANYL SI'LFATE HYRO)TYL HYDRAIEoE80(It'EocE

F

Wavenumber (cm-I)
Ftc. 4. Fourier-transform infrared-absorption spectrum of deliensite from 400 to4fr)0 cm-t.

Ixmenro Spnsrnoscopy

andto Mrs. D. Delen for typing the manuscript.We arealso indebtedto some anonymousmembersof theCommissionon New Minerals and Mineral Names,IMA, to AssociateEditor A.C. Roberts,and to refereeDr. J.A. Mandarinofor their valuablecomments.

The infrared spectrumwas recordedusing the KBr
dispersionlsshnique(1 mg sampleand 300 mg KBr)
with anAti-Mattson GenesisFouriertransforminfrared
spectrometer,
which coversthe range400-4000cm-1.
The infraredspectrum(Fig. ) is characterized
RrrnnnNcss
by thevibrations of HzO molecules,OH, UO2 and SO+F., GEm,oy, J., HERy,B., BAcIEr,groups.The absorptionbandsat3409 and 1629cm-l Acnnvnn, H., CHaN"rn-g"r,
B. & Vncrer, H . (L972):Unenouvelleesp3cemin6rale:laate due to HzO stretchingvibrations and deformation
m6talod0vite (ars6niatehydrat6d'uranium et de zinc).
modes,respectively(Moenke L962, 1966).The assignBuIl. Soc.fr Mindral. Cristallogr. 95, 36O-3G.
ment of the absorptionbandsis snmmarizedin Table2.
RELdToNSHp
ro Orrnn Spncms

BanraNp, P., Becner, 8., Bnessv, C., Meorxrecn, O.,
DELEI.IS,
M. & PRsr, P. (1993):Seelite,a new uranium
mineral from the Talmessi mine, Iran, and Rabejac,
France.M ineral. Rec. 24, 463467 .

After rabejacite,deliensiteis the seconduranyl
sulfateto be found at Mas d'Alary. Like most uranyl
sulfates,deliensiteoccursasa microcrystalline
cruston Dpr.rrus,M., Ifui.rnror, O., Menus, V. & Cauneq A. (1992):
the surface 6f samples.It differs from rabejacite,
Min6raux desgisementsd'uranium du Lod6vois.Bordure
Ca(UOz)+(SO+)z(OII)e.6
H2O,which alsooccursin thesud du Massif Central, H6rault, France. Association
Frangaisede Micromin6ralogie,60 Bd Saint-Michel,samearea,by the grayish white color of the flakes andF- 75252Paris,France.
by its vitreous luster.The X-ray powder-diffractionpafternis also characteristicand cannotbe confirsed& PREr, P. (1992): La fonranite, carbonate hydratdwith that of any otherknown species.
AcK].rowlj,DGEIIGNTS
We thank the National Fund for Scientific Research(NFWO) for financial support awarded to one of us(R9.We are indebted to Ing. J. Jansensof the Laboratory of Inorganic Chemistry, University of Antwerp,
for recording the TGA curveo Mr. J. Wauthier, of theDepartrnent of Geosciences of the University oflouvain-la-Neuve, for the elechon-microprobe analyses,

d'uranyle et de calcium, nouvelle espdce mindrale deRabejac, Hdrault, France. Eur. J. Mineral. 4, 127l-1274.

&(1993): Larabejacite,

Ca(UOz)+(SO+)z(OfI)e'6HzO' nouYeau sulfate d'wanyle
et de calci',m des gites du Lod6vois, Hdrault France. EanJ. Mineral. 5.873-877.
MANDAR$ro,J.A. ( I 98 1) : The Gladstone-Dale relationship.
fV. The compatibility concept aad its application. Can.
Mineral.19. 441450.

LO26

THEcANADrANMrNERAr,ocrsr

MoENre, H. (1962):MineralspektrezI. Akademie-Verlag, WenNnn,P.-E.(1969):A Fortranprogam for least-squares
Berlin, Germany.
refinementof crystal-structurecell dimensions.Ar&rv
Kemi3l.5L3-516.
(1966): MineralspeLtren

Berlin, Germany.

II. Akademie-Verlag,Received November 8, 1996, revised manuscript accepted

March 17, 1997.