earth science

Rakovanite

Rakovanite is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Rakovanite rather than just read about it. In short: Rakovanite, (NH4)3Na3(V10O28) · 12H2O; formerly given as Na3(H3V10O28).15H2O; later, the ammonium ion was shown to be present and essential, is a member of the pascoite family. It is a transparent, brittle mineral occurring in the monoclinic crystal system.

Key takeaways

Rakovanite belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Rakovanite to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Rakovanite from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Rakovanite, (NH4)3Na3(V10O28) · 12H2O; formerly given as Na3(H3V10O28).15H2O; later, the ammonium ion was shown to be present and essential, is a member of the pascoite family. It is a transparent, brittle mineral occurring in the monoclinic crystal system. It is orange in color and has an orange-yellow colored streak. Rakovanite is soft with a Mohs hardness of 1 and a calculated density of 2.407g cm−3. It does not fluoresce in long- or short-wave ultraviolet radiation. Rakovanite crystals are up to one mm in maximum dimension and vary in habit from blocky to prismatic on [001], commonly exhibiting steps and striations parallel to [001].

Name Its name honors John Rakovan, former professor, Department of Geology and Environmental Earth Science, Miami University, State Mineralogist and Senior Museum Curator, New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources.

Occurrence Rakovanite was found on specimens from the Sunday mine and the West Sunday mine, Slick Rock district, San Miguel County, Colorado, US. It occurs as crystalline crusts on sandstone fractures in the mine walls of the Sunday and West Sunday mines. The best crystals were found perched on an amorphous dehydrated vanadium phase along with crystals tightly adhered to a corvusite-montroseite matrix. It forms from the oxidation of montroseite-corvusite assemblages. It is associated calcite, corvusite, hewettite, hughesite, montroseite, munirite, paramontroseite, pascoite, rossite, sherwoodite, and other unidentified vanadium phases as well as at least two other potentially new decavanadate species. It forms aqueous solutions of relatively low pH when water reacts with pyrite in the deposit under ambient temperatures and generally oxidizing near-surface environments.

Atomic arrangement Rakovanite crystal unit consists of the decavanadate polyanion similar to that found in other decavanadate-bearing mineral. The decavanadate polyanion is formed of ten distorted, edge-sharing octahedra.

Chemical composition

The empirical formula with calculated H2O and (NH4)2O contents is [(NH4)2.94K0.06]Σ3.00(Na2.97Al0.01 Ca0.01)Σ2.99[V10O28]12H2O (–0.01 H for charge balance) and the ideal formula is (NH3)3Na3 [V10O28]12H2O.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rakovanite

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rakovanite claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Rakovanite before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Rakovanite ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Rakovanite

In research: Rakovanite appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Rakovanite in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Rakovanite is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Minerals in space group 14, Monoclinic minerals, Oxide minerals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Rakovanite outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Rakovanite in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Rakovanite means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Rakovanite out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rakovanite in simple terms?

Why does Rakovanite matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Rakovanite?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Rakovanite.