Tenorite from Mount Vesuvius, Italy — Photo: Kritzolina · CC BY-SA 4.0
Tenorite
Also known as: Melaconite.
Black copper oxide — the sooty secondary mineral of copper deposits.
Intro adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
Tenorite is an IMA-recognized mineral species in the oxides & hydroxide class, with the chemical formula CuO.
It crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system (space group C2/c).
Key properties: Mohs hardness 3.5; specific gravity 6.45; typically black or gray; black streak; Metallic luster; optically biaxial.
IMA symbol Tnr, IMA status: approved, named in 1842.
is commonly found in the oxidized zone of hydrothermal copper deposits; a volcanic sublimate.
It is found associated with Cuprite, copper, chrysocolla, malachite, azurite, Fe–Mn oxides (hydrothermal); copper chlorides, alkali chlorides, cotunnite (volcanic).
The mineral was named to honor Professor Michele Tenore (1781–1861), Italian botanist, University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
Collections: Metals & Native Elements.