Article
Article
Kernite
Article By:
Klein, Cornelis Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Last reviewed:November 2019
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.363200
A hydrated borate mineral with chemical composition Na2B4O6(OH)2·3H2O. It is monoclinic with symmetry . It occurs only very rarely in crystals but is found most commonly in coarse, cleavable masses (see illustration) and aggregates. It has two perfect cleavages, {001} and {100}, at about 71° to each other, which together produce cleavage fragments that are elongated parallel to the b crystallographic axis. It is colorless to white; colorless and transparent specimens tend to become chalky white on exposure to air with the formation of tincalconite, Na2B4O5(OH)4·3H2O. The structure of kernite, with space group P , contains infinite chains of composition [B4O6(OH)2]2- which run parallel to the b crystallographic axis. The chains are linked to each other by bonding to Na+ and by hydroxyl-oxygen bonds.
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