Mineral Factbook

Chrysotile

Mg₃Si₂O₅(OH)₄IMA symbol: Ctlredefined

Chrysotile is a silicate mineral with the formula Mg3Si2O5(OH)4, crystallizing in the orthorhombic system. It has a calculated density of 2.514 g/cm3. Its streak is white.

Photos

Chrysotile specimen photo — James St. John · CC BY 2.0 · Commons

Chrysotile specimen photo — James St. John · CC BY 2.0 · Commons

Chrysotile specimen photo — Ra'ike (see also: de:Benutzer:Ra'ike) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Commons

Chrysotile specimen photo — James St. John · CC BY 2.0 · Commons

Crystallography

Crystal system	orthorhombic crystal systemWikidata (CC0)
Space group	C 1 2/m 1
Cell (Å, °)	a = 14.66, b = 18.5, c = 5.33; α = 90, β = 93.27, γ = 90
Cell volume	1443.2 Å³, Z = 4
Axial ratios	0.7924:1:0.2881calculated from COD 1010960
Source structure	COD 1010960 (Zeitschrift fuer Kristallographie, Kristallgeometrie, Kristallphysik, Kristallchemie (-144,1977), 1931) — 1 of 2 structures

Physical properties

Density (calculated)	2.514 g/cm³calculated from COD 1010960
Streak	whitesingle sourceWikidata (CC0)

Chemistry (calculated)

Molecular weight	277.11 g/molcalculated from the IMA formula
Composition (wt%)	Mg 26.31%, Si 20.27%, O 51.96%, H 1.45%

Classification

Nickel-Strunz (10th)	9.ED.15Wikidata (CC0)
Nickel-Strunz (9th)	9.ED.15Wikidata (CC0)