earth science

Wardite

Wardite 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 Wardite rather than just read about it. In short: Wardite is a hydrous sodium aluminium phosphate hydroxide mineral with formula: NaAl3(PO4)2(OH)4·2(H2O). Wardite is of interest for its rare crystallography.

Key takeaways

Wardite 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 Wardite to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Wardite from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Wardite is a hydrous sodium aluminium phosphate hydroxide mineral with formula: NaAl3(PO4)2(OH)4·2(H2O). Wardite is of interest for its rare crystallography. It crystallizes in the tetragonal trapezohedral class and is one of only a few minerals in that class. Wardite forms vitreous green to bluish green to white to colorless crystals, with pyramidal {102} or {114} faces and with {001} usually present masses. Also appears as fibrous encrustations. It has a Mohs hardness of 5 and a specific gravity of 2.81–2.87. Wardite was named for Henry Augustus Ward (1834–1906) of the University of Rochester in New York. It first described in 1896 for an occurrence in Clay Canyon, Fairfield, Utah County, Utah, US.

Occurrence It occurs with variscite in phosphate nodules and occurs uncommonly in pegmatites and phosphate deposits through alteration of amblygonite. Wardite is a rare mineral, which has been found in approximately 70 locations worldwide, but generally on a microscopic scale, with only a few occurrences of significant specimens. The finest specimens, boasting crystals up to 4 cm in size, originate from Rapid Creek and the Big Fish River in the Dawson mining district, Alaska (USA). Good quality specimens, measuring up to 1 cm, have also been discovered in Lavra da Ilha, Taquaral, Itinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil. In Spain, it appears in the form of crystals up to 1 cm found in cavities within montebrasite at the Tita mine in Golpejas, Salamanca.

See also List of minerals List of minerals named after people

References

Mineral galleries Archived 2005-10-29 at the Wayback Machine

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Wardite

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Wardite 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 Wardite 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 Wardite 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 Wardite

In research: Wardite 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 Wardite 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: Wardite is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Aluminium minerals, Minerals in space group 92, Phosphate minerals, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Wardite 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 Wardite in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Wardite 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 Wardite out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Wardite in simple terms?

Wardite is a hydrous sodium aluminium phosphate hydroxide mineral with formula: NaAl3(PO4)2(OH)4·2(H2O). Wardite is of interest for its rare crystallography.

Why does Wardite 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 Wardite?

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 Wardite.