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Pyrite's metallic luster and pale brass-yellow hue give it a superficial resemblance to gold, hence the well-known nickname of fool's gold. The color has also led to the nicknames brass, brazzle, and brazil, primarily used to refer to pyrite found in coal. [8] [9] The name pyrite is derived from the Greek πυρίτης λίθος (pyritēs ...
When the concentration of oxygen molecules in the atmosphere reached 1% of the present level, the chemical reactions during weathering were much like they are today. Siderite and pyrite were replaced by the iron oxides magnetite and hematite; dissolved Fe 2+ ions that had been carried out to sea were now deposited in extensive banded iron ...
The important sulfur cycle is a biogeochemical cycle in which the sulfur moves between rocks, waterways and living systems. It is important in geology as it affects many minerals and in life because sulfur is an essential element (), being a constituent of many proteins and cofactors, and sulfur compounds can be used as oxidants or reductants in microbial respiration. [1]
The Gunflint Iron Formation is a banded iron formation, composed predominantly of dense chert and slate layers interbedded with ankerite carbonate layers. The chert layers can be subdivided into black layers (containing organic material and pyrite), red layers (containing hematite), and green layers (containing siderite). [5]
The group is named for its most common member, pyrite (fool's gold), which is sometimes explicitly distinguished from the group's other members as iron pyrite. Pyrrhotite (magnetic pyrite) is magnetic, and is composed of iron and sulfur, but it has a different structure and is not in the pyrite group.
This disintegration of marcasite in mineral collections is known as "pyrite decay". When a specimen goes through pyrite decay, the marcasite reacts with moisture and oxygen in the air, the sulfur oxidizing and combining with water to produce sulfuric acid that attacks other sulfide minerals and mineral labels.
When deposits of arsenopyrite become exposed to the atmosphere, the mineral slowly converts into iron arsenates. Arsenopyrite is generally an acid-consuming sulfide mineral, unlike iron pyrite which can lead to acid mine drainage. [citation needed] The crystal habit, hardness, density, and garlic odour when struck are diagnostic.
Also, the mineral pyrite is both the most common and most abundant sulfide mineral in the Earth's crust. [6] If rocks containing pyrite undergo metamorphism, there is a gradual release of volatile components like water and sulfur from pyrite. [6] The loss of sulfur causes pyrite to recrystallize into pyrrhotite. [6]