sphalerite


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Related to sphalerite: bornite

sphal·er·ite

 (sfăl′ə-rīt′)
n.
The primary ore of zinc, occurring in usually yellow-brown or brownish-black crystals or cleavage masses, essentially ZnS with some cadmium, iron, and manganese. Also called blende, zinc blende.

[Greek sphaleros, slippery, deceitful (from its being easily mistaken for galena) (from sphallein, to trip, from sphalos, fetter, pair of stocks; akin to Sanskrit skhalate, he stumbles, and Armenian sxalem, I stumble) + -ite.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

sphalerite

(ˈsfæləˌraɪt; ˈsfeɪlə-)
n
(Minerals) a yellow to brownish-black mineral consisting of zinc sulphide in cubic crystalline form with varying amounts of iron, manganese, cadmium, gallium, and indium: the chief source of zinc. Formula: ZnS. Also called: zinc blende
[C19: from Greek sphaleros deceitful, from sphallein to cause to stumble]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

sphal•er•ite

(ˈsfæl əˌraɪt, ˈsfeɪ lə-)

n.
an ore mineral, zinc sulfide, ZnS.
[1865–70; < Greek sphaler(ós) slippery, deceptive + -ite1]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.sphalerite - an ore that is the chief source of zincsphalerite - an ore that is the chief source of zinc; consists largely of zinc sulfide in crystalline form
atomic number 49, indium, In - a rare soft silvery metallic element; occurs in small quantities in sphalerite
atomic number 81, thallium, Tl - a soft grey malleable metallic element that resembles tin but discolors on exposure to air; it is highly toxic and is used in rodent and insect poisons; occurs in zinc blende and some iron ores
mineral - solid homogeneous inorganic substances occurring in nature having a definite chemical composition
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
References in periodicals archive ?
Visible gold is found within quartz-calcite veinlets in association with sulfides including sphalerite and pyrite.
The industry includes establishments developing mine sites, mining and preparing lead ores including smithsonite mining, sphalerite mining, willemite mining, calamine mining, cerussite mining, galena mining, lead ore mining, and lead-zinc ore mining.
Mineralization consists not only of disseminated and banded massive sulphides, but also of vein style polymetallic occurrences consisting of pyrite, sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, tetrahedrite, argentite, electrum, bornite and ruby silver.
- Strong alteration over 500m in strike is associated with sphalerite and galena mineralisation.
Mineralisation consists of native gold associated with pyrite, chalcopyrite and sphalerite disseminated in quartz veins within a linear body of diorite within volcanic rocks.
This quartz occurs (1) at the borders of mineralized zones, together with sericite/muscovite and fine-grained pyrite and (2) at the borders of the massive quartz crystals, or filling cavities and micro-cracks in coarse-grained pyrite crystals, that occur associated with galena, chalcopyrite, sphalerite and gold.
The overarching goal of this work was to test the possibility of replacing sodium cyanide by chitosan polymer as a selective pyrite depressant in the bulk flotation of complex sulfide ore sample containing galena (PbS), chalcopyrite (CuFe[S.sub.2]), sphalerite (ZnS), pyrite (Fe[S.sub.2]), dolomite (CaMg[(C[O.sub.3]).sub.2]), and marcasite (a polymorph of pyrite).