Aeschynite-(Ce)

Aeschynite-(Ce) (or Aschynite, Eschinite, Eschynite) is a rare earth mineral of cerium, calcium, iron, thorium, titanium, niobium, oxygen, and hydrogen with formula: (Ce,Ca,Fe,Th)(Ti,Nb)2(O,OH)6.  Its name comes from the Greek word αισχύνη ("aeschyne") for "shame" because early chemists had difficulty with separations of titanium from zirconium.

The "-(Ce)" means it has more cerium than the yttrium variety aeschynite-(Y). Its Mohs scale rating is 5-6.

References

Category:Lanthanide minerals