INDERITE

    Class : Carbonates, nitrates, borates
    Subclass : Borates
    Crystal system : Monoclinic
    Chemistry : MgB3O3(OH)5 5H2O
    Rarity : Rare

Inderite (or lesserite) is a rare hydrated magnesium borate. It is found in evaporitic borate deposits. It is named after its place of discovery : Lake Inder in Kazakhstan. Inderite forms prismatic or acicular crystals, sometimes large (up to 20 cm by 2 cm), frequently doubly-terminated, and reniform aggregates. Inderite is colorless, white or slightly shaded with yellowish or pinkish. It is a boron ore.

Main photo : Inderite from Rio Tinto, Boron, California, USA © Rock Currier

inderite in the World

Although rare, inderite is known in significant quantities in Californian borate deposits (Boron, Furnace Creek). It also forms small nodules in the red clays of the Inder Lake borate deposit, near Atyrau (Kazakhstan), in the Kirka borate deposit (Turkey) and in a few other deposits around the world.

Right photo : Inderite from Rio Tinto, Boron, California, USA © Rock Currier

Inderite in France

Inderite is not present in the French underground.

Twinning

No twins known for this mineral species.

Fakes and treatments

No fakes recorded for this mineral species.


Hardness : 3
Density : 1.80
Fracture : Undeterminated
Streak : White

TP : Translucent to transparent
RI : 1.488 to 1.505
Birefringence : 0.017
Optical character : Biaxial +
Pleochroism : None
Fluorescence : None

Solubility : Hydrochloric acid


Magnetism : NoneRadioactivity : None