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Lepidolite (KLi2Al(Al,Si)3O10(F,OH)2) is a lilac or rose-violet colored mineral of the mica group that is a secondary source of lithium. It is associated with other lithium-bearing minerals like spodumene in pegmatite bodies.
Physical Properties
Color: violet to pale pink to white, sometimes gray or yellow.
Luster: vitreous to pearly.
Transparency: transparent to translucent.
Crystal System: monoclinic; 2/m.
Crystal Habits: include tabular to prismatic crystals with a prominent pinacoid termination. Lepidolite forms pseudo-hexagonal "books." Also as micaceous or granular masses.
Cleavage: perfect in one direction perpendicular to the c-axis.
Fracture: uneven.
Hardness: 2.5
Specific Gravity: 2.8+
Streak: white.
Associated Minerals: quartz, feldspar, spodumene, amblygonite, tourmaline.
Notable Occurrences: Brazil; Ural Mountains, Russia; California.
Reference
"Manual of Mineralogy, 20th Ed." by Cornelius Hurlbut and Cornelis Klein
See also: List of minerals
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