November 2022 – Ferberite

The mineral of the month November is ferberite, which belongs to the group of wolframites. Tungsten from these minerals is built into our smartphones, for example, where it is used to trigger the vibration alarm when someone calls us. Wolframites are partly mined in Central Africa, where they belong to the so-called conflict minerals. Geoscientists have developed an “analytical fingerprint” for this, which can be used to find out whether a particular mineral comes from a conflict-free mine or not. This shows how geosciences can also play a role in global politics.

ferberite

FeWO₄

Locality: Tasna, Bolivia

Size: (HxLxW)

Weight: 153 g