Native Chromium
A valid IMA mineral species
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About Native Chromium
Formula:
Cr
Colour:
White
Lustre:
Metallic
Hardness:
9
Specific Gravity:
7.17
Crystal System:
Isometric
Name:
From the Greek chroma, color, since all chromium compounds are colored.
Type Locality:
This page provides mineralogical data about Native Chromium.
Unique Identifiers
Mindat ID:
1037
Long-form identifier:
mindat:1:1:1037:1
IMA Classification of Native Chromium
Classification of Native Chromium
1.AE.05
1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
A : Metals and Intermetallic Alloys
E : Iron-chromium family
1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
A : Metals and Intermetallic Alloys
E : Iron-chromium family
Dana 7th ed.:
1.1.15.1
1.1.12.1
1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
1 : Metals, other than the Platinum Group
1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
1 : Metals, other than the Platinum Group
1.55
1 : Elements and Alloys (including the arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides of Cu, Ag and Au)
1 : Elements and Alloys (including the arsenides, antimonides and bismuthides of Cu, Ag and Au)
Mineral Symbols
As of 2021 there are now IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols (abbreviations) for each mineral species, useful for tables and diagrams.
| Symbol | Source | Reference for Standard |
|---|---|---|
| Cr | IMA–CNMNC | Warr, L.N. (2021). IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine, 85(3), 291-320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43 |
Physical Properties of Native Chromium
Metallic
Transparency:
Opaque
Colour:
White
Hardness:
9 on Mohs scale
Hardness:
VHN100=1875 - 2000 - Vickers
Tenacity:
Brittle
Comment:
On synthetic material
Density:
7.17 g/cm3 (Measured) 7.20 g/cm3 (Calculated)
Optical Data of Native Chromium
Type:
Isotropic
Reflectivity:
| Wavelength | R1 (%) |
|---|---|
| 480nm | 65.3% |
| 546nm | 67.9% |
| 589nm | 68.8% |
| 656nm | 70.0% |
Graph shows reflectance levels at different wavelengths (in nm). Peak reflectance is 70.0%.
Colour in reflected light:
White with yellow tint
Chemistry of Native Chromium
Mindat Formula:
Cr
Element Weights:
| Element | % weight |
|---|---|
| Cr | 100.000 % |
Calculated from ideal end-member formula.
Elements listed:
Crystallography of Native Chromium
Crystal System:
Isometric
Class (H-M):
m3m(4/m32/m) - Hexoctahedral
Space Group:
Im3m
Cell Parameters:
a = 2.8839 Å
Unit Cell V:
23.99 ų (Calculated from Unit Cell)
Z:
2
Morphology:
Grains to 20 microns.
Comment:
Synthetic
Crystal Structure
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Data courtesy of the American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database. Click on an AMCSD ID to view structure
| ID | Species | Reference | Link | Year | Locality | Pressure (GPa) | Temp (K) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0014168 | Native Chromium | Kimoto K, Nishida I (1967) An electron diffraction study on the crystal structure of a new modification of chromium Journal of the Physical Society of Japan 22 744-756 | 1967 | synthetic | 0 | 293 | |
| 0014671 | Native Chromium | Bradley A J, Ollard E F (1926) Allotropy of chromium Nature 117 122-122 | 1926 | synthetic | 0 | 293 | |
| 0011209 | Native Chromium | Wyckoff R W G (1963) Second edition. Interscience Publishers, New York, New York Body centered cubic, bcc, structure Crystal Structures 1 7-83 | 1963 | 0 | 293 | ||
| 0011170 | Native Chromium | Wyckoff R W G (1963) Second edition. Interscience Publishers, New York, New York Hexagonal closest packed, hcp, structure Crystal Structures 1 7-83 | 1963 | 0 | 293 | ||
| 0011144 | Native Chromium | Wyckoff R W G (1963) Second edition. Interscience Publishers, New York, New York Cubic closest packed, ccp, structure Crystal Structures 1 7-83 | 1963 | 0 | 293 | ||
| 0015114 | Native Chromium | Hull A W, Davey W P (1919) Crystal structure of chromium Physical Review 14 540-540 | 1919 | 0 | 293 |
CIF Raw Data - click here to close
X-Ray Powder Diffraction
Powder Diffraction Data:
| d-spacing | Intensity |
|---|---|
| 2.04 Å | (100) |
| 1.1774 Å | (30) |
| 0.9120 Å | (20) |
| 1.0195 Å | (18) |
| 1.4419 Å | (16) |
| 0.8325 Å | (6) |
Geological Environment
Paragenetic Mode(s):
| Paragenetic Mode | Earliest Age (Ga) |
|---|---|
| Stage 3a: Earth’s earliest Hadean crust | >4.50 |
| 7 : Ultramafic igneous rocks | |
| Stage 3b: Earth’s earliest hydrosphere | >4.45 |
| 13 : Hadean serpentinization | |
| Stage 4b: Highly evolved igneous rocks | >3.0 |
| 36 : Carbonatites, kimberlites, and related igneous rocks | |
| Stage 5: Initiation of plate tectonics | <3.5-2.5 |
| 38 : Ophiolites |
Type Occurrence of Native Chromium
General Appearance of Type Material:
Grains of about 20 µm in size. Rimmed by danbaite.
Place of Conservation of Type Material:
National Museum for Geology; Beijing, China, number M10485 (type).
Geological Setting of Type Material:
Heavy sands derived from contact metamorphic zone between siliceous marble and ultramafic rock.
Associated Minerals at Type Locality:
Synonyms of Native Chromium
Other Language Names for Native Chromium
Afrikaans:Chroom
Albanian:Kromi
Arabic:كروم
Armenian:Քրոմ
Asturian:Cromu
Azeri:Xrom
Basque:Kromo
Belarusian:Хром
Bengali:ক্রোমিয়াম
Bosnian:Hrom
Bulgarian:Хром
Catalan:Crom
Corsican:Cromu
Croatian:Krom
Czech:Chróm
Danish:Krom
Dutch:Chroom
Esperanto:Kromo
Estonian:Kroom
Farsi/Persian:کروم
Finnish:Kromi
French:Chrome
Friulian:Crom
Galician:Cromo
German:Chrom
Greek:Χρώμιο
Haitian:Kwòm
Hebrew:כרום
Hindi:क्रोमियम
Hungarian:Króm
Icelandic:Króm
Ido:Kromio
Indonesian:Kromium
Italian:Cromo
Kannada:ಕ್ರೋಮಿಯಮ್
Korean:크로뮴
Kurdish (Latin Script):Krom
Latin:Native Chromium
Latvian:Hroms
Lithuanian:Chromas
Lojban:Rogjinme
Low Saxon/Low German:Chrom
Luxembourgish:Chrom
Macedonian:Хром
Malay:Kromium
Malayalam:ക്രോമിയം
Manx:Cromium
Maori:Konukita
Nahuatl:Tlapāltepoztli
Norwegian:Krom
Norwegian (Nynorsk):Krom
Occitan:Cròme
Polish:Chrom
Portuguese:Crômio
Quechua:Krumu
Romanian:Crom
Russian:Хром
Saterland Frisian:Chrom
Serbian:Хром
Serbo-Croatian:Hrom
Sicilian:Cromu
Simplified Chinese:自然铬
Slovak:Chróm
Slovenian:Krom
Spanish:Cromo
Swahili:Chromi
Swedish:Krom
Tamil:குரோமியம்
Thai:โครเมียม
Turkish:Krom
Ukrainian:Хром
Uzbek (Latin Script):Xrom
Vietnamese:Crom
Common Associates
Associations Based on Photo Data:
| 1 photo of Native Chromium associated with Chalcopyrite | CuFeS2 |
| 1 photo of Native Chromium associated with Native Platinum | Pt |
| 1 photo of Native Chromium associated with Oreillyite | Cr2N |
| 1 photo of Native Chromium associated with Kahlenbergite | KAl11O17 |
| 1 photo of Native Chromium associated with Corundum | Al2O3 |
| 1 photo of Native Chromium associated with Chromferide | Fe3Cr1-x (x = 0.6) |
Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping
| 1.AE. | Native Vanadium | V |
| 1.AE.05 | Hexamolybdenum | (Mo,Ru,Fe,Ir,Os) |
| 1.AE.05 | Native Tungsten | W |
| 1.AE.05 | 'Native Molybdenum' | Mo |
| 1.AE.05 | 'UM2001-06-E:CrFeNi' | Fe7Cr2Ni |
| 1.AE.05 | Native Iron | Fe |
| 1.AE.10 | Taenite | (Ni,Fe) |
| 1.AE.10 | Tetrataenite | FeNi |
| 1.AE.10 | 'Antitaenite' | Fe3Ni |
| 1.AE.15 | Chromferide | Fe3Cr1-x (x = 0.6) |
| 1.AE.15 | Wairauite | CoFe |
| 1.AE.15 | Ferchromide | Cr3Fe1-x |
| 1.AE.20 | Awaruite | Ni3Fe |
| 1.AE.25 | Jedwabite | Fe7(Ta,Nb)3 |
| 1.AE.30 | 'Native Manganese' | Mn |
| 1.AE.35 | Nisnite | Ni3Sn |
Other Information
Health Risks:
No information on health risks for this material has been entered into the database. You should always treat mineral specimens with care.
Internet Links for Native Chromium
mindat.org URL:
https://www.mindat.org/min-1037.html
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References for Native Chromium
Localities for Native Chromium
Showing 31 localities.
symbol to view information about a locality.
The Locality List
- This locality has map coordinates listed.
- This locality has estimated coordinates.
ⓘ - Click for references and further information on this occurrence.
? - Indicates mineral may be doubtful at this locality.
- Good crystals or important locality for species.
- World class for species or very significant.
(TL) - Type Locality for a valid mineral species.
(FRL) - First Recorded Locality for everything else (eg varieties).
All localities listed without proper references should be considered as questionable.
Asia | |
| Rappenglück (2022) |
Belarus | |
| Levitskiy et al. (2018, July) |
China | |
| Peixue Tian et al. (1983) |
| Zexian Xu et al. (1987) |
| Jingsui Yang et al. (2006) |
| Zhao |
| Gorshkov et al. (2006) |
| Yue Suqin et al. (1981) |
| Mingyu Zhu and Yunxiang Liu (1981) |
| Pujol-Solà et al. (2021) |
| Wenji Bai et al. (2001) |
| Zhu et al. (2016) |
| Shengwei Wang et al. (2012) |
Egypt | |
| Azer et al. (2007) |
Israel | |
| Bindi et al. (2020) |
Japan | |
| Bideaux +1 other reference |
Kyrgyzstan | |
| Yusupov et al. (1982) +1 other reference |
Pacific Ocean | |
| Astakhova et al. (2014) |
| Astakhova et al. (2014) | |
Russia | |
| Rudashevskii et al. (1984) +1 other reference | |
| Keren Tan (1998) +1 other reference |
| Pekov (1998) |
| [AmMin 84:993] |
| Yudovskaya et al. (2006) |
| Kozlov et al. (2011) |
| Ерохин Ю.В. ... |
| Rappenglück (2022) |
| 6th orogenic lherzolite conference 2014 ... +1 other reference |
South Africa | |
| PMPB Meulenbeld collection Photo ID: ... |
Ukraine | |
| Rappenglück (2022) | |
The Moon | |
| Pavel M. Kartashov (n.d.) |
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Sichuan, China