Diopside Archives - Cochise College Geology

Diopside

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Chemical Group: Silicate-pyroxene

Chemical Formula: CaMgSi₂O₆

Color: White, yellowish, pale gray, pale green, dark green, black, colorless

Luster: Vitreous Transparency: Transparent to translucent

Hardness: 5 to 6 Specific Gravity: 3.2 to 3.38

Cleavage: Imperfect prismatic cleavage (110); angles of 87⁰ and 93⁰.

Crystal Forms: Monoclinic system. Crystal prismatic with square or 8-sided cross section.

Mineral Associations: Diopside is commonly a contact metamorphic mineral in crystalline limestones. It is associated with tremolite, scapolite, idocrase, garnet, and sphene.

Identifying Characteristics: Crystal form, light color, and angles between cleavage surfaces.

Uses: If transparent, it is cut as a gemstone.

Occurrences: U.S.S.R, Austia, Switzerland, Italy, Sweden: in the USA in Connecticut and New York

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Photos

Diopside 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

diopside-grayish green crystal — Diopside - Grayish Green Crystal

diopside-green massive-brazil-belkis — Diopside - Green Massive – Brazil - Belkis

diopside-pale yellow-massive — Diopside - Pale Yellow - Massive

diopside-light green crystal — Diopside - Light Green Crystal

diopside-right brown crystal — Diopside - Right Brown Crystal

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