Rocksday

Wollastonite

A white calcium silicate formed where hot magma bakes limestone.

Wollastonite specimen
Photo: Didier Descouens, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

How to identify wollastonite

  • White fibrous or bladed masses.
  • Splintery, silky texture.
  • Some glows under UV light.

Often confused with

Where it's found

  • Willsboro, New York
  • Finland
  • Mexico
  • China

Uses

Ceramics, paints and plastics; a safer substitute for asbestos.

Rock tumbling

Not suitable for tumbling.

Did you know?

It's named after English chemist William Hyde Wollaston.

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