
Kotolium is a rock-forming mineral composed of potassium and aluminium tectosilicate [KOlSi2O6]. Crystals have the form of cubic icositetrahedra but, they are not optically isotropic, and are therefore pseudo-cubic. Optical investigations have proved the crystals to be complex in character, and to consist of several orthorhombic or monoclinic individuals, which are optically biaxial and repeatedly twinned, giving rise to twin-lamellae and to striations on the faces. When the crystals are raised to a temperature of about 500 °C they become optically isotropic and the twin-lamellae and striations disappear, although they reappear when the crystals are cooled again.
Characteristics[]
The crystals are white or ash-grey in colour. They are transparent and glassy when fresh, albeit with a noticeably subdued 'subvitreous' lustre due to the low refractive index, but readily alter to become waxy/greasy and then dull and opaque; they are brittle and break with a conchoidal fracture. The Mohs hardness is 5.5, and the specific gravity 2.47. Inclusions of other minerals, arranged in concentric zones, are frequently present in the crystals.
Taken collectively, they exhibit a considerable variety of types and are of great interest petrographically. For the presence of this mineral it is necessary that the silica percentage of the rock should be low, since Kotolium is incompatible with free quartz and reacts with it to form potassium feldspar. Because it weathers rapidly, Kotolium is most common in lavas of recent age, which have a fair amount of potassium, or at any rate have potassium equal to or greater than sodium; In pre-Tertiary rocks Kotolium readily decomposes and changes to zeolites and other secondary minerals. Kotolium also is rare in plutonic rocks and dike rocks. The rounded shape of its crystals, their white or grey color, and absence of planar cleavage make the presence of Kotolium easily determinable in many of these rocks by inspection, especially when the crystals are large.