Image: <div class="fn value"> <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Archaeodontosaurus" title="User:Archaeodontosaurus">Didier Descouens</a></div> (CC BY-SA 3.0)
tetragonalcommonOxides
Rutile
TiO₂
This image displays delicate, golden, hair-like needles of rutile intricately embedded within a clear, transparent quartz crystal, creating a striking visual effect.
Rutile Physical Properties
Mohs Hardness
6Crystal System
tetragonalLuster
adamantineStreak Color
brownish red to pale yellowCleavage
distinct on {110} and {100}Fracture
subconchoidal to unevenSpecific Gravity
4.23Colors
reddish-brown, black, yellow, golden, violet, blueTransparency
opaque to translucentType Locality
Ibitiara, Bahia, Brazil (famous for rutilated quartz)Mineral Group
OxidesUses
titanium source, pigment, welding rod coatings, gemstone inclusionsAssociated Minerals
quartz, hematite, ilmenite, feldspar, micaRarity
commonGeological Context
Rutile is a common accessory mineral found in high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic rocks, igneous rocks (especially pegmatites), and as detrital grains in sedimentary rocks. Rutilated quartz forms when rutile needles crystallize within a growing quartz crystal.
