Inderite, also known as lesserite, is a mineral that was named after its source, the
Inder lake, near the Inder Mountains in
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
. The samples were described in English by the soviet mineralogist Boldyreva in 1937. It is a rare secondary mineral but common in salt, potassium and borate deposits.
Crystallography
Inderite is a member of the inderite group, and a
dimorph of
kurnakovite. It contains boron, hydrogen, magnesium, and oxygen. It can form continuous layers. Deposits include Argentina, China, Italy, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey, and the US. It contains 8.69%
magnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 ...
, 11.59%
boron
Boron is a chemical element; it has symbol B and atomic number 5. In its crystalline form it is a brittle, dark, lustrous metalloid; in its amorphous form it is a brown powder. As the lightest element of the boron group it has three ...
, 5.40%
hydrogen
Hydrogen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol H and atomic number 1. It is the lightest and abundance of the chemical elements, most abundant chemical element in the universe, constituting about 75% of all baryon, normal matter ...
and 74.32% oxygen.
Usage
Inderite is one of the natural borates commonly used in the chemical industry. This hydrated neotriborate is still used in iron metallurgy. It is also used in gemology despite its qualities. Since inderite is very soft, it is hard to cut, but sometimes a
cabochon
A cabochon (; ) is a gemstone that has been shaped and polished, as opposed to faceted. The resulting form is usually a convex (rounded) obverse with a flat reverse. Cabochon was the default method of preparing gemstones before gemstone cuttin ...
cut is possible. There are many cuttable sized specimens, and although there are only a few mines containing inderite, it is not considered a great rarity. After cutting, inderite's surface can become white and cloudy, hence why it needs to be dried and properly stored after cutting.
[{{Cite web, title=Inderite color stone, url=https://www.wikigempedia.com/inderite.html, access-date=2021-04-18, website=Gemstone's Information, language=en] It is cleaned with water after cutting as it is insoluble in water, but can be dissolved in
hydrochloric acid
Hydrochloric acid, also known as muriatic acid or spirits of salt, is an aqueous solution of hydrogen chloride (HCl). It is a colorless solution with a distinctive pungency, pungent smell. It is classified as a acid strength, strong acid. It is ...
.
References
Borate minerals