How can you identify Brucite?

Compare several properties rather than relying on colour alone. This entry records colour: White, pale green, blue, gray; lustre: Vitreous to waxy; streak: White; Mohs hardness: 2.5; cleavage: Perfect basal; crystal system: Hexagonal Trigonal; transparency: Transparent to translucent. Confirm an important identification with additional field tests or qualified laboratory work.

What is Brucite commonly confused with?

Brucite may be confused with Talc, Muscovite, Gibbsite. Compare multiple diagnostic properties because colour and surface appearance can overlap.

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Brucite identification and geology

Magnesium hydroxide forming waxy platy crystals. Important in refractory materials and as a flame retardant. Color: White, pale green, blue, gray. Luster: Vitreous to waxy. Streak: White. Cleavage: Perfect basal. Hardness: 2.5. Transparency: Transparent to translucent. Crystal system: Hexagonal Trigonal. Chemical formula: Mg OH ₂. Specific gravity: 2.39. Formation: Forms by low-temperature alteration of periclase in metamorphosed dolomites and by serpentinization. Common geological settings: USA Nevada, Texas , Russia, Italy, Canada; found in metamorphosed dolomites. Common look-alikes and related entries: Talc, Muscovite, Gibbsite.

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Talc
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Sources, scope & corrections

These authoritative resources support category-level nomenclature, terminology, identification methods, and safety. When a specimen-specific safety warning appears, the public-health source listed here directly supports that precaution. They are not line-by-line citations for every other property on this entry, and natural specimens vary.

Editorial owner: GeoMiner
Last updated: 2026-03-30T14:37:42.59696+00:00
Review status: Published; not independently peer-reviewed

IMA–CNMNC List of Mineral Names — International Mineralogical Association. Official mineral-name, nomenclature, and classification records.
Mineral ID Key — Mineralogical Society of America. Physical-property identification methods, repeat-testing guidance, and limitations.

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Common questions

What is Brucite?: Magnesium hydroxide forming waxy platy crystals. Important in refractory materials and as a flame retardant.
How can you identify Brucite?: Compare several properties rather than relying on colour alone. This entry records colour: White, pale green, blue, gray; lustre: Vitreous to waxy; streak: White; Mohs hardness: 2.5; cleavage: Perfect basal; crystal system: Hexagonal Trigonal; transparency: Transparent to translucent. Confirm an important identification with additional field tests or qualified laboratory work.
How does Brucite form?: Forms by low-temperature alteration of periclase in metamorphosed dolomites and by serpentinization.
Where is Brucite commonly found?: USA Nevada, Texas , Russia, Italy, Canada; found in metamorphosed dolomites.
What is Brucite commonly confused with?: Brucite may be confused with Talc, Muscovite, Gibbsite. Compare multiple diagnostic properties because colour and surface appearance can overlap.

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Brucite identification and geology

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Sources, scope & corrections

Common questions