Mud Hills Mine, Rainbow Basin, Mud Hills (Strontium Hills), Barstow Mining District, San Bernardino County, California, USAi
| Regional Level Types | |
|---|---|
| Mud Hills Mine | Mine |
| Rainbow Basin | Basin |
| Mud Hills (Strontium Hills) | Group of Hills |
| Barstow Mining District | Mining District |
| San Bernardino County | County |
| California | State |
| USA | Country |
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Latitude & Longitude (WGS84):
35° 0' 59'' North , 117° 0' 0'' West
Latitude & Longitude (decimal):
Type:
Köppen climate type:
Nearest Settlements:
| Place | Population | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Barstow | 23,692 (2017) | 13.3km |
| Barstow Heights | 24,202 (2006) | 17.1km |
| Lenwood | 3,543 (2011) | 18.2km |
| Fort Irwin | 8,845 (2011) | 39.6km |
| Silver Lakes | 5,623 (2017) | 43.3km |
Nearest Clubs:
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
Local clubs are the best way to get access to collecting localities
| Club | Location | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Mojave Desert Gem & Mineral Society | Barstow, California | 13km |
A former zeolite occurrence/mine located in sec. 28, T11N, R1W, SBM, 3.6 km (2.2 miles) ESE of Rainbow Basin (coordinates of record) (about 15 km N of Barstow and 2 km W of Copper City Road), on Bureau of Land Management administered land. Previously owned by Occidental Minerals Corporation (1978-1982) and Phelps Dodge Zeolites (1982-1988). Owned by Steelhead Resources, Ltd. (1992- ). Operated during the period 1981 to 1984. MRDS database stated accuracy for this location is 100 meters.
Mineralization is hosted in rocks of the Furnace Creek Formation (Miocene clastic sedimentary rock and rhyolite tuff). The ore body strikes E-W and dips 15S at a thickness of 5 meters. The zeolite occurs in an air fall rhyolite tuff. The main zeolite-bearing unit is 3 to 6 meters thick and laterally continuous. Local rocks include Miocene nonmarine rocks.
The cell spacing and physical character of clinoptilolite is well-suited to absorb cesium-137 and strontium-90 (nuclear waste isotopes). The Oak Ridge (Tennessee) National Laboratory scientists determined that clinoptilolite from the Mud Hills Mine outperformed 14 other commercially available natural and synthetic zeolites in removing radioactive isotopes from nuclear waste materials (1988).
Local geologic structures include a closed basin and gentle folding.
Workings include unspecified surface openings (the USGS MRDS database file mentions a pit at least twice).
At least several thousand tons have been produced. The pit-run material runs 70-90% clinoptilolite within the deposit. Most production from this mine was sold to British Nuclear Fuels, Ltd. for the absorption of nuclear waste spillage. Several thousand tons of clinoptilolite-bearing material is stored at the mine in bilk product bags.
Estimated reserves are 207,000 short tons described as premier deposit used for radioactive waste treatment. Campaign Mining.
Select Mineral List Type
Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Chemical ElementsMineral List
Rock Types Recorded
Note: data is currently VERY limited. Please bear with us while we work towards adding this information!
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Alphabetical List Tree DiagramDetailed Mineral List:
| ⓘ 'Clinoptilolite Subgroup' Formula: (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
Gallery:
List of minerals arranged by Strunz 10th Edition classification
| Unclassified | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ⓘ | 'Clinoptilolite Subgroup' | - | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
List of minerals for each chemical element
| H | Hydrogen | |
|---|---|---|
| H | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
| O | Oxygen | |
| O | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
| Na | Sodium | |
| Na | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
| Al | Aluminium | |
| Al | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
| Si | Silicon | |
| Si | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
| K | Potassium | |
| K | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
| Ca | Calcium | |
| Ca | ⓘ Clinoptilolite Subgroup | (Na/Ca/K)3-6[Al6-7Si29-30O72] · 20H2O |
Other Databases
| Link to USGS MRDS: | 10023741 |
|---|
Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality
North AmericaContinent
North America PlateTectonic Plate
- Basin and Range BasinsBasin
- Mojave DomainDomain
- Southern Basin and RangeWide Rift
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