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Tantalcarbide

A valid IMA mineral species - grandfathered

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Photos of Tantalcarbide (5)Discuss Tantalcarbide

Tantalcarbide Gallery Search Photos of Tantalcarbide

Edit Tantalcarbide Add Synonym Edit CIF structures Clear Cache

Tantalcarbide, etc.

Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide

Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide

Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide, etc.

Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide

Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide

Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide, etc.

Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Tantalcarbide

Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

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About TantalcarbideHide

Formula:

TaC

Colour:

Bronze

Lustre:

Metallic

Hardness:

6 - 7

Specific Gravity:

14.5 (Calculated)

Crystal System:

Isometric

Name:

Re-named in 1966 by Hugo Strunz in reference to its composition: tantalum and carbon. Originally thought to be native tantalum by Paul Walther in 1909. Re-named tantalum carbide in 1926 by Victor Goldschmidt. The composition was verified in 1962 by Clifford Frondel.

Type Locality:

ⓘ Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Isostructural with:

Niobocarbide

The Ta analogue of niobocarbide. Unique combination of elements: the only Ta-C mineral known.

Unique IdentifiersHide

Mindat ID:

7327

Long-form identifier:

mindat:1:1:7327:7

IMA Classification of TantalcarbideHide

IMA status:

Approved, 'Grandfathered' (first described prior to 1959)

IMA Formula:

Ta⁴⁺C^4-

Classification of TantalcarbideHide

Strunz-mindat (2026):

1.BA.20

1 : ELEMENTS (Metals and intermetallic alloys; metalloids and nonmetals; carbides, silicides, nitrides, phosphides)
B : Metallic Carbides, Silicides, Nitrides, Phosphides and Hydrides
A : Carbides

Dana 8th ed.:

1.1.29.2

1 : NATIVE ELEMENTS AND ALLOYS
1 : Metals, other than the Platinum Group

Mineral SymbolsHide

As of 2021 there are now IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols (abbreviations) for each mineral species, useful for tables and diagrams.

Symbol	Source	Reference for Standard
Tcb	IMA–CNMNC	Warr, L.N. (2021). IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols. Mineralogical Magazine, 85(3), 291-320. doi:10.1180/mgm.2021.43

Physical Properties of TantalcarbideHide

Lustre:

Metallic

Transparency:

Opaque

Colour:

Bronze

Hardness:

6 - 7 on Mohs scale

Cleavage:

None Observed

Density:

14.5 g/cm³ (Calculated)

Optical Data of TantalcarbideHide

Type:

Isotropic

Colour in reflected light:

Grayish yellow, dark brownish gray

Chemistry of TantalcarbideHide

Mindat Formula:

TaC

Element Weights:

Element	% weight
Ta	93.776 %
C	6.225 %

Calculated from ideal end-member formula.

Elements listed:

C, Ta - search for minerals with similar chemistry

Crystallography of TantalcarbideHide

Crystal System:

Isometric

Class (H-M):

m3m(4/m32/m) - Hexoctahedral

Space Group:

Fm3m

Setting:

Fm3m

Cell Parameters:

a = 4.453 Å

Unit Cell V:

88.30 Å³ (Calculated from Unit Cell)

Comment:

Space Group: Fm3 - m

Crystal StructureHide

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Data courtesy of the American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database. Click on an AMCSD ID to view structure

ID	Species	Reference	Year	Temp (K)
0011409	Tantalcarbide	Wyckoff R W G (1963) Second edition. Interscience Publishers, New York, New York rocksalt structure Crystal Structures 1 85-237	1963	293
0017535	Tantalcarbide	Schwarz M, Summa O (1933) Die Kristallstruktur von Tantalkarbid _cod_database_code 1010654 Metallwirtschaft, Metallwissenschaft, Metalltechnik 12 298-298	1933	293
0018166	Tantalcarbide	Becker K, Ebert F (1925) Die Kristallstrukturen einiger binaerer Carbide und Nitride. _cod_database_code 1011324 Zeitschrift fur Physik 31 268-272	1925	293

CIF Raw Data - click here to close

data_global
_chemical_name_mineral 'Tantalcarbide'
loop_
_publ_author_name
'Wyckoff R W G'
_journal_name_full 'Crystal Structures'
_journal_volume 1 
_journal_year 1963
_journal_page_first 85
_journal_page_last 237
_publ_section_title
;
 Second edition. Interscience Publishers, New York, New York
 rocksalt structure
;
_database_code_amcsd 0011409
_chemical_formula_sum 'Ta C'
_cell_length_a 4.4540
_cell_length_b 4.4540
_cell_length_c 4.4540
_cell_angle_alpha 90
_cell_angle_beta 90
_cell_angle_gamma 90
_cell_volume 88.359
_exptl_crystal_density_diffrn     14.505
_symmetry_space_group_name_H-M 'F m 3 m'
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loop_
_atom_site_label
_atom_site_fract_x
_atom_site_fract_y
_atom_site_fract_z
Ta   0.00000   0.00000   0.00000
C   0.50000   0.50000   0.50000

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

Powder Diffraction Data:

d-spacing	Intensity
2.56 Å	(100)
2.22 Å	(90)
1.572 Å	(41)
1.342 Å	(35)
0.857 Å	(13)
0.995 Å	(11)
1.285 Å	(10)

Locality:

Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

Geological EnvironmentHide

Paragenetic Mode(s):

Paragenetic Mode	Earliest Age (Ga)
Near-surface Processes
26 : Hadean detrital minerals

Type Occurrence of TantalcarbideHide

Type Locality:

ⓘ Avrorinskii Placer, Aktai River, Baranchinsky Massif, Nizhnii Tagil, Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

General Appearance of Type Material:

intergrown cube-octahedral and skeletal crystals, to 0.2 mm

Place of Conservation of Type Material:

A.E. Fersman Mineralogical Museum, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia (21298).

Geological Setting of Type Material:

Placer deposit. Possible synthetic material added in to natural placer minerals.

Associated Minerals at Type Locality:

Native Gold	'Apatite'	'Titanium-bearing Magnetite'	Dolomite	Zircon
Wüstite	Serpentine Subgroup	Graphite

Other Language Names for TantalcarbideHide

German:Tantalcarbid
Tantal (in part)

Russian:Танталкарбид

Common AssociatesHide

Associations Based on Photo Data:

7 photos of Tantalcarbide associated with Niobocarbide

(Nb,Ta)C

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping Hide

1.BA.05	Cohenite	Fe₃C	Orth. mmm(2/m2/m2/m)
1.BA.10	Haxonite	NiFe₂₂C₆	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BA.10	Isovite	(Cr,Fe)₂₃C₆	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BA.15	Tongbaite	Cr₃C₂	Orth. mmm(2/m2/m2/m) : Pnma
1.BA.20	Niobocarbide	(Nb,Ta)C	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BA.20	Khamrabaevite	(Ti,V,Fe)C	Iso. m3m(4/m32/m) : Fm3m
1.BA.25	Qusongite	WC	Hex. 6m2 : P6m2
1.BA.25	Zoyashlyukovaite	MoC	Hex. 6m2 : P6m2
1.BA.30	Yarlongite	Cr₄Fe₄NiC₄	Hex. 6mm : P6₃mc
1.BA.35	Edscottite	Fe₅C₂	Mon. 2/m : B2/b

Other InformationHide

Health Risks:

No information on health risks for this material has been entered into the database. You should always treat mineral specimens with care.

Internet Links for TantalcarbideHide

mindat.org URL:

https://www.mindat.org/min-7327.html
Please feel free to link to this page.

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External Links:

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Raman and XRD data at RRUFF project

References and PDF downloads at RRUFF project

American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database

Handbook of Mineralogy page PDF

Mineral Dealers:

Buy from D. Joyce minerals

References for TantalcarbideHide

Reference List:

Walther, P. (1909) A new mineral from a gold-washing locality in the Ural Mountains. Nature, 81, 335-335.

Becker, K., Ewest, H. (1930) Die physikalischen und wärmeausstrahlen Eigenschaften von Tantalcarbide (The physical and radiating properties of tantalum carbide). Zeitschrift für technische Physik, 11, 216-220.

Frondel, C. (1962) Non-existence of native tantalum. American Mineralogist, 47, 786-787.

Novgorodova, M. I., Generalov, M. E., Trubkin, N. V. (1997) The new TaC-NbC isomorphic row and niobocarbide - a new mineral from platinum placers of the Urals. Zapiski Vserossijskogo Mineralogicheskogo Obshchestva, 126 (1) 76-95

(2020) Tantalcarbide. Handbook of Mineralogy. Mineralogical Society of America

Localities for TantalcarbideHide

Showing 1 localities.

This map shows a selection of localities that have latitude and longitude coordinates recorded. Click on the

symbol to view information about a locality. The

symbol next to localities in the list can be used to jump to that position on the map.

Hide all sections | Show all sections

Locality ListHide

- This locality has map coordinates listed.

- This locality has estimated coordinates. ⓘ - Click for references and further information on this occurrence. ? - Indicates mineral may be doubtful at this locality.

- Good crystals or important locality for species.

- World class for species or very significant. (TL) - Type Locality for a valid mineral species. (FRL) - First Recorded Locality for everything else (eg varieties). ~~Struck out~~ - Mineral was erroneously reported from this locality. Faded * - Never found at this locality but inferred to have existed at some point in the past (e.g. from pseudomorphs).

All localities listed without proper references should be considered as questionable.

Russia (TL)

Sverdlovsk Oblast

Nizhnii Tagil

Baranchinsky Massif

Aktai River

ⓘ Avrorinskii Placer (TL)

Novgorodova et al. (1997) +1 other reference

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Tantalcarbide

About TantalcarbideHide

Unique IdentifiersHide

IMA Classification of TantalcarbideHide

Classification of TantalcarbideHide

Mineral SymbolsHide

Physical Properties of TantalcarbideHide

Optical Data of TantalcarbideHide

Chemistry of TantalcarbideHide

Crystallography of TantalcarbideHide

Crystal StructureHide

X-Ray Powder DiffractionHide

Geological EnvironmentHide

Type Occurrence of TantalcarbideHide

Other Language Names for TantalcarbideHide

Common AssociatesHide

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat GroupingHide

Other InformationHide

Internet Links for TantalcarbideHide

References for TantalcarbideHide

Localities for TantalcarbideHide

Locality ListHide

Related Minerals - Strunz-mindat Grouping Hide