Serpentine
Mineral (Mg,Fe)3Si2O5(OH)4
Take care.
- Can shed asbestos fibres: Keep it in a closed box, and never break, saw, sand, or scrape it.
About it
Group name for the soft, green, greasy-feeling minerals of serpentinite; antigorite and lizardite are massive, but chrysotile is fibrous asbestos. Each species is listed separately.
- Type
- Mineral
- Group
- Silicate (phyllosilicate), serpentine group
- Formula
- (Mg,Fe)3Si2O5(OH)4
- Hardness (Mohs)
- 2.5–4
- Specific gravity
- 2.5–2.65
- Streak
- white
- Lustre
- greasy, waxy, silky
- Colours
- green, yellow-green, olive, black, white, brown
- Transparency
- transparent, translucent, opaque
- Cleavage and fracture
- none in massive forms; splintery or conchoidal fracture; fibrous forms split into fibres
Typical values: real specimens vary. For more, see mindat.org.