Albitite
“Nearly pure albite from sodium-rich fluids”
Albitite is a rare, pale rock composed almost entirely of the sodium feldspar albite. It typically forms through intense sodium metasomatism — where sodium-rich fluids percolate through existing rock and replace the original minerals with albite — often at the margins of granitic intrusions.
albite (90%+), quartz (minor), muscovite, tourmaline, apatite, rutile
Spruce Pine (North Carolina, USA), Evje-Iveland (Norway), Petaca (New Mexico, USA), Olary (South Australia), Bahia (Brazil)
6-6.5
Ultra-pure albitite from Spruce Pine, North Carolina is the world's primary source of high-purity quartz — after processing, it supplies the semiconductor industry with the essential raw material for silicon wafers in computer chips.
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