The Detail Definition of Muscovite



Muscovite

 Muscovite has a highly-perfect basal cleavage yielding remarkably-thin lamin(sheets) which are often highly elastic. Sheets of muscovite 5 metres by 3 metres have been found in Nellore, India.
Muscovite has a Mohs hardness of 2–2.25 parallel to the [001] face, 4 perpendicular to the  and a specific gravity of 2.76–3. It can be colorless or tinted through grays, browns, greens, yellows, or (rarely) violet or red, and can be transparent or translucent. It is anisotropic and has high birefringence. Its crystal system is monoclinic. The green, chromium-rich variety is called fuchsite; mariposite is also a chromium-rich type of muscovite.Muscovite is the most common mica, found in granites, pegmatites, gneisses, and schists, and as a contact metamorphic rock or as a secondary mineral resulting from the alteration of topaz, feldspar, kyanite, etc. In pegmatites, it is often found in immense sheets that are commercially valuable. Muscovite is in demand for the manufacture of fireproofing and insulating materials and to some extent as a lubricant.
Read more:Micro-crystal muscovite