Home
Explore
Minerals
Sphalerite

Minerals

Sphalerite

ZnS

Didier Descouens / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source

Overview

Primary zinc ore.

Identification characteristics

Mohs hardness 3.5–4
Streak: Light brown
Lustre: Resinous to adamantine

Formation and occurrence

Hydrothermal deposits

Common uses

Zinc ore

Physical properties

Chemical formula: ZnS
Mineral group: Sulfide
Mineral class: Sulfides
IMA status: approved mineral and/or valid name (A)
Crystal system: Isometric
Mohs hardness: 3.5–4
Specific gravity: 3.9–4.2
Colour: Yellow, brown, black
Streak: Light brown
Lustre: Resinous to adamantine
Transparency: Transparent to translucent

Image credits

Didier Descouens / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Vikent’eva, O.V.; Shilovskikh, V.V.; Shcherbakov, V.D.; Vikentyev, I.V.; Bortnikov, N.S. / CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0 · Source
Ulmanová, J.; Dolníček, Z.; Škácha, P.; Sejkora / CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0 · Source
Ulmanová, J.; Dolníček, Z.; Škácha, P.; Sejkora / CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0 · Source
Robert M. Lavinsky / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Robert M. Lavinsky / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Robert M. Lavinsky / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Robert M. Lavinsky / CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution, NMNH - Mineral Sciences Dept.. · CC0 1.0 · Source

Have a specimen like this?

Upload a photo and see how it compares.

Identify from a photo