glauconite

[glaw-kuh-nahyt]

noun

1. a greenish micaceous mineral consisting essentially of a hydrous silicate of potassium, aluminum, and iron and occurring in greensand, clays, etc.

glauconite

/ ˈɡlɔːkəˌnaɪt, ˌɡlɔːkəˈnɪtɪk /

noun

1. a green mineral consisting of the hydrated silicate of iron, potassium, aluminium, and magnesium: found in greensand and other similar rocks. Formula: (K,Na,Ca) 0.5-1 (Fe,Al,Mg) 2 (Si,Al) 4 O 10 (OH) 2 .nH 2 O

Other Word Forms

• glauconitic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of glauconite¹

1830–40; < Greek glaukón, neuter of glaukós ( glauco- ) + -ite ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of glauconite¹

C19: from Greek glaukon, neuter of glaukos bluish-green + _-ite ¹ ; see _glaucous

Example Sentences

Less than a half-hour from Philadelphia, the Edelman, which opened March 29, takes full advantage of its site, once a sea teeming with marine creatures and, more recently, a glauconite quarry.

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It has been suggested that certain deposits of iron ores may owe their origin to deposits of glauconite, as for example those of the Mesabi range, Minnesota, U.S.A.

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The term was introduced by the early English geologists for certain sandy rocks which frequently exhibited a greenish colour on account of the presence of minute grains of the green mineral glauconite.

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The green colour, on close inspection, is seen to be due to the presence of innumerable small green grains of a mineral called glauconite.

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Similar bodies are found in the lower part of the Siluro-Cambrian, in the Quebec group at Point Levis; and there they are filled with a species of glauconite constituting a sort of greensand rock.

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