Constituent
Name
Olivine
IMA name
Olivine group
Class
silicate mineral
Compound type
nesosilicate
Constituent abundance in material
Relevance
main - major
Arrangement
heterogeneous in multi-phases
Chemical composition
Formula
$A_{2-3}(SiO_4)_{1-2} \ \ \ \ \ $ where $A = Mg,Fe^{2+},Fe^{3+},Ni$ and/or $Mn$
Chemical formula
(Mg,Fe2+,fe3+,Mn,Ni)(2-3)(SiO4)(1-2)
Elemental formula
(Mg)0-2 (Mn)0-2 (Ni)0-2 (Fe2+)0-2 (Fe3+)0-2 (Si)1-2 (O)4-8
Isotope mixture type
terrestrial abundance
  Formula Name Family Number min-max Isotope mole fraction State Relevance
$Mg$ Magnesium element 0 - 2 constituent element main
$Mn$ Manganese element 0 - 2 constituent element main
$Ni$ Nickel element 0 - 2 constituent element main
$Fe^{2+}$ Iron(II) cation element 0 - 2 constituent element main
$Fe^{3+}$ Iron(III) cation element 0 - 2 constituent element main
$Si$ Silicon element 1 - 2 constituent element main
$O$ Oxygen element 4 - 8 constituent element main
Chemical functions
  Function Number
$(SiO_4)^{4-}$
Chemical bonds
  Bond Number
$\geq Si-O^-$ 4
Oxides
Formula $MgO$ $MnO$ $FeO$ $Fe_{2}O_{3}$ $NiO$ $SiO_{2}$
Mass fraction (%)

Strunz

Class
silicates (09)
Division
nesosilicate (09.A)
Family
without additional anions; cations in octahedral [6] coordination (09.AC)
Code
09.AC.05

Dana

Major class
silicates (VIII)
Class
nesosilicate insular SiO4 groups only (51)
Type
with all cations in octahedral [6] coordination (51.03)
Group
Olivine group (51.03.01)
Phase type
crystalline
Crystal system
various
Crystal class
various
Crystal class symbol
various
Crystal spacegroup
various
Texture
unknown
Molar mass
140.69-351.71 $g/mol$
Density
3.21-4.6 $g/cm^3$
Refringence type
unknown
Refringence sign
unknown
Diaphaneity
transparent to opaque
Luster
various