On the Deutarseniuret of Nickel. ' 241 



Art. VIII. — On the Deutarseniuret of Nickel, from Riechehdorf 

 in Hessia; by James C. Booth. 



Forwarded for insertion in this Journal from Berlin, Prussia, April 26th, 1835. 



In the xxv vol. of " Poggendorf 's Annalen," p. 491, is a de- 

 scription of an arseniuret of nickel, from " Schneeberg" in Saxony, 

 which is a higher arseniuret than that commonly found and known 

 under the name of " kupfernickel." According to the analysis of 

 Hoffmann, it consists of 



102.27 



The proportion, by weight, in which arsenic and nickel stand to 

 each other is equivalent to 2 atoms of the former and 1 atom of the 

 latter, and its chemical formula would consequently be ISi As^ . 



A similar combination has lately been found in the cobalt mines 

 in Riechelsdorf in Hessia, differing only by containing a small 

 quantity of cobalt, which is not found in that from Schneeberg. 

 This arsenuiret of nickel is generally found massive and mingled 

 with sulphate of baryta, which forms the gangue of the cobalt ore 

 at this place. It is fine grained, and where it meets the heavy spar, 

 is generally crystallized. The spar may be readily removed with a 

 knife and the crystals, thus exposed to view, present the form of 

 hexaeder with flattened (?) edges and corners, that is, they are 

 combinations of hexaeder, dodecaeder and octaeder ; the same as 

 the " speiskobalt," with which this mineral has a similar composi- 

 tion and is consequently isomorphous. The crystals are | — j\ of 

 an inch in size and have smooth and lustrous surfaces. The mine- 

 ral is likewise found with a columnar structure, the columns being 

 ^ — 3 inches long, parallel and either straight or curved. Where 

 the columns enter into the spar, they generally terminate in the 

 above-mentioned crystals, and this columnar structure in a mineral, 

 which belongs to the regular system, is remarkable. 



The color of this arseniuret is tin white, with a shade of blue 

 gray, and is somewhat darker than that from Schneeberg. 



Vol. XXIX.— No 2. 31 



