Nomenclature of the Micas

End members and species defined with permissible ranges of composition are presented for the true micas, the brittle micas and the interlayer-cation-deficient micas. The determination of the crystallochemical formula for different available chemical data is outlined, and a system of modifiers and suffixes is given to allow the expression of unusual chemical substitutions or polytypic stacking arrangements. Tables of mica synonyms, varieties, ill-defined materials and a list of names formerly or erroneously used for micas are presented. The Mica Subcommittee was appointed by the Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names (“Commission”) of the International Mineralogical Association (IMA). The definitions and recommendations presented were approved by the Commission.

[1]  A. Guinier,et al.  Nomenclature of Polytype Structures Report of the International Union of Crystallography Ad-Hoc Committee on the Nomenclature of Disordered, Modulated and Polytype Structures* , 1984 .

[2]  M. Ross,et al.  Mica polytypism; identification and origin , 1995 .

[3]  H. Nickel.  Standardisation of polytype suffixes , 1993, Mineralogical Magazine.

[4]  E. Nickel.  Nomenclature for mineral solid solutions , 1992 .

[5]  D. Fisher.  An Index of Mineral Species and Varieties Arranged Chemically , 1951 .

[6]  M. D. Foster,et al.  Interpretation of the composition of trioctahedral micas , 1960 .

[7]  B. B. Zvyagin.  Electron-Diffraction Analysis of Clay Mineral Structures , 1967 .

[8]  M. Hey.  Appendix to the second edition of an index of mineral species and varieties arranged chemically , 1950 .

[9]  W. Schreyer,et al.  Natural sodium phlogopite coexisting with potassium phlogopite and sodian aluminian talc in a metamorphic evaporite sequence from Derrag, Tell Atlas, Algeria , 1980 .

[10]  S. W. Bailey,et al.  Report of the Clay Minerals Society Nomenclature Committee for 1977 and 1978 , 1979 .

[11]  E. Nickel.  Standardization of polytype suffixes , 1993 .

[12]  S. W. Bailey.  Classification and structures of the micas , 1984 .

[13]  S. W. Bailey,et al.  Report of the Clay Minerals Society Nomenclature Committee for 1980–1981 , 1982 .

[14]  J. Rimšaite.  Structural formulae of oxidized and hydroxyl-deficient micas and decomposition of the hydroxyl group , 1970 .

[15]  C. H. Hewitt,et al.  STUDIES IN THE NATURAL HISTORY OF MICAS , 1953 .

[16]  M. Fleischer,et al.  Report of the International Mineralogical Association (IMA)–International Union of Crystallography (IUCr) Joint Committee on Nomenclature , 1977 .

[17]  M. Ross,et al.  Mica Polytypes: Systematic Description and Identification , 1966, Science.