Hausmannite

Hausmannite is a complex oxide of manganese containing both di- and tri-valent manganese. The formula can be represented as Mn2+Mn3+2O4. It belongs to the spinel group and forms tetragonal crystals. Hausmannite is a brown to black metallic mineral with Mohs hardness of 5.5 and a specific gravity of 4.8.Hausmannite from Wessels Mine, Kalahari manganese fields, Northern Cape Province, South AfricaCrystal structure of hausmanniteCluster from Wessels Mine, Hotazel, Kalahari manganese fields, Northern Cape Province, South AfricaEttringite crystal on a matrix of hausmannite and hematite, coated by oyelite Hausmannite is a complex oxide of manganese containing both di- and tri-valent manganese. The formula can be represented as Mn2+Mn3+2O4. It belongs to the spinel group and forms tetragonal crystals. Hausmannite is a brown to black metallic mineral with Mohs hardness of 5.5 and a specific gravity of 4.8. The type locality is Oehrenstock (Öhrenstock), Ilmenau, Thuringian Forest, Thuringia, Germany, where it was first described in 1813. Locations include Batesville, Arkansas, US; Ilfeld, Germany; Langban, Sweden; and the Ural Mountains, Russia. High quality samples have been found in South Africa and Namibia where it is associated with other manganese oxides, pyrolusite and psilomelane and the iron-manganese mineral bixbyite. Wilhelm Haidinger (1827) named it in honour of Johann Friedrich Ludwig Hausmann (1782–1859), Professor of Mineralogy, University of Göttingen, Germany.