Kamacite

Kamacite is a nickel-rich variety of iron and is the principle constituent of a iron that is typical meteorite. Iron found on Earth is certainly caused by within the type of meteorites that have affected our planet’s surface. There are very few resources of “native” iron. A couple of rare terrestrial gabbros (intrusive igneous rocks) and sulfide deposits do contain iron-nickel that is elemental. These are truly the only iron-nickel that is really native.

All iron that is natural whether it is indigenous or meteoritic, is actually an alloy of iron and nickel. The 2 elements are combined in varying percentages from significantly less than 6% nickel up to 75% nickel, although iron is through much more typical than nickel. Kamacite contains about 92% iron and 7% nickel. Another variety that is nickel-rich of meteorite is Taenite which typically contains about 25 – 40% iron.

Terrestrial occurrences of native iron are available at Blaafjeld, near Ovifak, Disko Island, Greenland; in Germany, from Bühl, near Weimar, Hesse; on the Putorana Plateau, Taimyr Peninsula, Russia. Iron meteorites are found worldwide.

Chemical Formula:	alpha-(Fe,Ni)
	Elemental Iron-Nickel
Molecular Weight:	56.13 gm

Composition:	Iron	89.54 %	Fe
	Nickel	10.46 %	Ni
		100.00 %		100.00 %	= TOTAL OXIDE

 

Crystallography:	Isometric – Hexoctahedral
Crystal Habit:	As plates and lamellar masses and in regular intergrowth with Taenite. May occur in crystals, to 30 cm; in extended plates and ribbons in Widmanstätten bands.
Twinning:	None

 

Cleavage:	{???} Indistinct
Fracture:	Hackly – Jagged, torn surfaces, (e.g. fractured metals).
Tenacity:	n/a
Moh’s Hardness:	4.0
Density:	7.90 (g/cm3)
Luminescence:	None
Radioactivity:	Not Radioactive
Other:	Magnetic

 

Color:	Steel-Gray to iron-Black
Transparency:	Opaque
Luster:	Metallic
Refractive Index:	n/a
Birefringence:	0.00  (Isotropic)
Dispersion:	Distinct; r > v
Pleochroism:	None