Mineralogy and Crystallography

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apatite

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences | 1999 | | Copyright

apatite A widely distributed phosphate mineral, with the formula Ca₅(PO₄)₃(F,Cl,OH); sp. gr. 3.1–3.3; hardness 5; hexagonal; usually a shade of green or grey-green, but may also be white, brown, yellow, bluish, or red; white streak; vitreous lustre; crystals commonly hexagonal prisms, and often tabular, also occurs massive, and granular; cleavage, basal {0001}, imperfect prismatic {1010}; found as an accessory mineral in igneous rock, in pegmatites and high-temperature hydrothermal veins, and in metamorphic rocks. It is the principal constituent of fossil bones (see also COLLOPHANE). Apatite is widely used as a phosphate fertilizer, and for the production of phosphoric acid and various other chemicals.

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AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "apatite." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "apatite." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O13-apatite.html

AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "apatite." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O13-apatite.html

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apatite

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2008 | Copyright

apatite , mineral, a phosphate of calcium containing chlorine or fluorine, or both, that is transparent to opaque in shades of green, brown, yellow, white, red, and purple. Apatite is a minor constituent in igneous and metamorphic rocks. Yellow-green asparagus stone and blue-green manganapatite are used in jewelry. Apatite is mined to make phosphatic fertilizers and is used in fission track dating of rocks (see dating ). Commercial deposits are mined in Idaho, Tennessee, and Wyoming, and in N Africa and Russia.

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"apatite." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"apatite." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-apatite.html

"apatite." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-apatite.html

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apatite

A Dictionary of Biology | 2004 | Copyright

apatite A complex mineral form of the salt calcium phosphate, Ca₅(PO₄)₃(OH,F,Cl), that is the main constituent of the enamel of teeth.

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"apatite." A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"apatite." A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O6-apatite.html

"apatite." A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O6-apatite.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Apatite.(Jewel of the Month) Magazine article from: Jewelers Circular Keystone; 11/1/2004
	ORTHOPAEDICS: Apatite-organic polymer composites may prove useful in bone repair Newspaper article from: Biomedical Materials; 2/1/1996
	Nanocrystalline apatite-based biomaterials.(Brief article)(Book review) Magazine article from: SciTech Book News; 6/1/2009