Halite and Anhydrite Physical Properties
Solubility
Water-soluble
Not Available
Durability
Not Available
Not Available
Specific Gravity
2.17
2.90-2.98
Fracture
Conchoidal, Brittle, Metallic
Conchoidal, Brittle, Conchoidal, UnevenArthur Thomas, Gemstones (2009), Brittle, Conchoidal
Cleavage
Perfect {001}, three directions cubic
Rare tabular and prismatic crystals. Usually occurs as fibrous, parallel veins that break off into cleavage fragments.
Mohs Hardness
2.0-2.5
3.5
Chemical Composition
NaCl
CaSO 4Michael OâDonoghue , Gems, Sixth edition (2006) More from other references
Halite and Anhydrite Chemical Formula
While comparing Halite and Anhydrite physical properties, the important data you should know is its chemical composition. Since chemical formula defines the molecular structure of the crystal, most of the physical properties like color, tenacity, solubility are governed by Halite and Anhydrite chemical formula.
- Chemical formula of Halite- NaCl
- Chemical formula of Anhydrite- CaSO 4Michael OâDonoghue , Gems, Sixth edition (2006) More from other references
Halite and Anhydrite Specific Gravity
Another important criteria for qualitative analysis of gemstones is Halite and Anhydrite Specific gravity. Specific gravity is the relative density of a gemstone compared with respect to density of water. Gemologists use Halite and Anhydrite Optical Properties during the identification of gemstone. Specific gravity of Halite is 2.90-2.98 whereas that of Anhydrite is 2.90-2.98.