Page:Journal and proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales (IA Journalproceedi421908roya).djvu/285

 NOTE ON PUCHERITE FROM WEST AUSTRALIA. By E. Griffiths, Caird Scholar, University of Sydney.

[Communicated by J. A. Schofield, Acting-Professor of Chemistry, University of Sydney.]

[Read before the Royal Society of N. S. Wales, November 4, 1908.]

During 1907 a few grams of concentrates from an oxidised quartz reef at Niagara, 115 miles north of Kalgoorlie, W.A., were forwarded to the Chemical Laboratory from Mr. C. F. de J. Grut, M.A., B.E., of Kalgoorlie, with the suggestion that they might contain Pucherite, a Bismuth vanadate. Mr. Grut stated that the quartz reef occurred in the typical so-called "diorite" (more strictly amphibolite) country.

The concentrates consisted largely of grains of silica, magnetite, pieces of metallic sulphides and metallic bismuth. In addition to the above there was a mineral which occurred in the form of approximately cubical, crystalline grains about mm. diameter, chrome yellow in colour, brittle and with a resinous lustre. These were picked out by hand with the aid of a lens. On crushing in an agate mortar a lemon yellow powder was obtained. The mineral dissolved in sulphuric and hydrochloric acids yielding a red solution. On warming the hydrochloric acid solution chlorine was evolved. On passing H 2 S through the HC1 solution and filtering, a deep blue filtrate was obtained, which on evaporation with HNO s yielded a dark red fusible residue, having the properties of vanadium pentoxicle. The mineral gave a light green borax bead in the reducing flame. On charcoal in the reducing flame it fused and yielded a metallic bead of bismuth.

The specific gravity, determined on the original grains by means of a pyknometer was 5*7.