Butianite
Chemical formula: Ni<sub>6</sub>SnS<sub>2</sub>
A substance with the formula Ni₆SnS₂, described as a new mineral from the Norilsk region, which has not been officially approved.
Description
## Characteristics Butianite is a proposed name for a naturally occurring nickel and tin sulfide that has been identified in copper-nickel ores. This substance forms microscopic, irregular grains, usually not exceeding several tens of micrometers in size. In reflected light, it has a creamy-white color with a distinct yellowish or reddish tint and is characterized by a strong metallic luster. ## Physical Properties It is an opaque mineral with a metallic luster. Due to its microscopic nature, many of its physical properties, such as hardness or density, have not been fully characterized and approved according to mineralogical standards. ## Colors and Varieties Only its creamy-white color with a yellowish or reddish tint has been described. No varieties are known. ## History and Name The name "butianite" was first used in a Russian scientific publication in the late 1990s. It was intended to honor the Russian geologist Yuri Andreevich Butian, a researcher of the Norilsk deposits. However, neither this name nor the mineral itself has ever been formally approved by the International Mineralogical Association (IMA), and therefore butianite is not recognized as an official, distinct mineral species. In databases, it is listed as an unapproved or hypothetical mineral. ## Uses This substance has no commercial or industrial application. Its significance is purely scientific and is limited to research on the mineralogy of sulfide deposits.
Diagnostic features
## Identification Identification of butianite is possible only through advanced laboratory techniques, such as ore microscopy in reflected light and chemical composition analysis using an electron microprobe (EDS/WDS). Visual identification at a macroscopic scale is not possible. ## Distinguishing from Similar Minerals It can be confused with many other metallic sulfides of similar color, such as pentlandite, cubanite, or chalcopyrite, with which it often coexists. Differentiation requires chemical analysis to confirm the presence of tin in the composition. ## Crystal Forms It usually occurs as anhedral (irregular), irregular grains and aggregates intergrown with other sulfide minerals.
Geological environment
## Genesis It is a hydrothermal mineral associated with magmatic deposits. It forms in the late stages of crystallization of Cu-Ni sulfide ores, probably as a result of metasomatic interaction of tin-rich solutions with previously crystallized nickel sulfides. ## Mineral Associations It coexists with other ore minerals from the Norilsk deposits, such as pentlandite, chalcopyrite, talnakhite, cubanite, magnetite, and other rare sulfides and platinum-group metal alloys. ## Localities The only known and described occurrence of this substance is in the copper-nickel deposits in the Norilsk and Talnakh regions of Siberia, Russia.
Rarity
Extremely rare
Collector aspects
## Quality Criteria Butianite is not a collector's mineral. It occurs exclusively as microscopic grains visible only under high magnification and does not form specimens of aesthetic or market value. ## Market Prices No market for this material. ## Popular Localities It is not collected for hobby purposes. The only known locality (Norilsk, Russia) is of purely scientific significance.
Care and storage
## Cleaning Due to its microscopic nature and occurrence as inclusions in other minerals, individual specimens of butianite are not extracted or cleaned. ## What to Avoid Rock specimens containing microscopic butianite should be protected from strong acids, which can react with sulfides. ## Storage Store under standard conditions for sulfide minerals, in a dry environment, to prevent oxidation.