Liebigite Locality: Schwartzwalder Mine (Ralston Creek Mine), Ralston Buttes District, Jefferson County, Colorado , USA ( Locality at mindat.org ) Size: 6.4 x 4.9 x 2.6 cm. A very rare example of this fantastically beautiful mineral, one of the few species that forms the purest yellow crystals. The crystals here reach over 1 cm and are clustered nicely in the middle of the specimen. An American classic, it should be - but it’s so rare, that few know of it these days! — Photo: Robert M. Lavinsky · CC BY-SA 3.0
Liebigite
A greenish-yellow secondary uranium carbonate of the oxidized zone.
Intro adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Liebigite is an IMA-recognized mineral species in the carbonate class, with the chemical formula Ca₂(UO₂)(CO₃)₃·11H₂O.
It crystallizes in the orthorhombic crystal system (space group Bba2).
Key properties: Mohs hardness 2–3; specific gravity 2.41; Vitreous to pearly on cleavages luster; refractive index 1.513; optically biaxial.
IMA symbol Lbi, grandfathered status — known before the IMA’s founding, named in 1848.
An uncommon secondary mineral typically formed as an alteration product of uraninite in alkaline carbonate solutions.
It is found associated with Uraninite, schröckingerite, uranophane-beta, tyuyamunite, autunite, uranophane, bayleyite, carnotite, gypsum, calcite.
The mineral was named to honor Professor Justus von Liebig (1803–1873), German chemist, University of Munich, Munich, Germany.