albite

American  

[al-bahyt] / ˈæl baɪt /

noun

Mineralogy.

1. the sodium end member of the plagioclase feldspar group, light-colored and found in alkalic igneous rocks.

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albite British  

/ ˈælbaɪt, ælˈbɪtɪk /

noun

1. a colourless, milky-white, yellow, pink, green, or black mineral of the feldspar group and plagioclase series, found in igneous sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. It is used in the manufacture of glass and ceramics. Composition: sodium aluminium silicate. Formula: NaALSi 3 O 8 . Crystal structure: triclinic

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albite Scientific  

/ ăl′bīt′ /

1. A clear to milky white triclinic mineral of the plagioclase group. Albite is common in igneous rocks, especially granite, and in metamorphic rocks that formed at low temperatures. Chemical formula: NaAlSi ₃ O ₈ .

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Other Word Forms

• albitic adjective

Etymology

Origin of albite

1835–45; < Latin alb ( us ) white + -ite ¹

Example Sentences

Zygadite, zig′a-dīt, n. a variety of albite found in thin twin crystals at Andreasberg, in the Harz Mountains.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various

The original clastic characters of the strata are obscured and the rocks between Arrochar and Inverarnan in Glen Falloch merge into quartz-biotite gneisses and albite schists.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various

Augite in fragments, in gneiss. —with albite, in lava.

From Geological Observations on South America by Darwin, Charles

In the northern islands, the basaltic lavas seem generally to contain more albite than they do in the southern half of the Archipelago; but almost all the streams contain some.

From Volcanic Islands by Darwin, Charles

Their hornblende in microscopic section is usually dark green, rarely brownish; their felspar may be clear and recrystallized, but more frequently is converted into a turbid aggregate of epidote, zoisite, quartz, sericite and albite.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 6 "English Language" to "Epsom Salts" by Various