Re: What is the use of a phillipsite crystal?

Jeff,
Phillipsite is a fairly common mineral, and the group of minerals to which it belongs (zeolites) have some very important industrial uses. Here is what I can tell you about it:

Phillipsite is an alumno-silicate mineral which means its crystal famework is composed of silica - oxygen and aluminum - oxygen building blocks. Accessory elements include calcium, potassium, and sodium. It normally forms colorless, white, yellow, or gray small rodlike crystals. It has two main occurrences: in conjuction with voclanic rocks, often lining air bubble cavities left in basalt lavas; and in deep sea sediments. Geographically it is found in Italy including lavas from Mt. Vesuvius, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, and the USA, as well as the deep ocean bottoms.

Phillipsite is in the zeolite group. Zeolites are very interesting and have many industrial uses in the water purification and water softening industry. Because the size of the voids between the silica--oxygen and aluminum-oxygen building blocks is large, water can travel through the crystal framework. Upon heating, water is driven out of the mineral lattice, making room for other elements such as unwanted metals to enter the crystal and stay trapped there. Zeolites therefore can act as a molecular seive to purify water. However, today most of the the zeolites used in industry are synthetic man made varieties. I don1t know whether Phillipsite specifically is used or ever has been used in industry, but certainly the family to which it belongs is very important.

If you are interested in learning more about Phillipsite and zeolites, I recommend looking at a rock and mineral guide (such as Simon and Schuster1s Guide to Rocks and Minerals) available at all libraries and book stores. For even more details, college mineralogy textbooks will provide you with more than you ever wanted to know about them. Many public libraries and certaily your local college geology library will have these specialized mineralogy books.

Good luck and thanks for your interesting question.

-Dr. Bill Raatz
Dallas, TX