Lepidolite

Lepidolite (KLi2Al(Al,Si)3O10(F,OH)2  is a lilac-gray or rose-colored phyllosilicate mineral of the mica  group that is a secondary source of lithium.[3]  It is associated with other lithium-bearing minerals like spodumene  in pegmatite  bodies. It is one of the major sources of the rare alkali metals rubidium and caesium.[4]  In 1861 Robert Bunsen and Gustav Kirchhoff extracted 150 kg of lepidolite and yielded a few grams of rubidium salts for analysis, and therefore discovered the new element rubidium.[5]

It occurs in granite pegmatites, in some high-temperature quartz veins, greisens, and granites. Associated minerals include quartz, feldspar, spodumene, amblygonite, tourmaline, columbite, cassiterite, topaz, and beryl.[1]

Notable occurrences include Brazil; Ural Mountains, Russia; California; Tanco Mine, Bernic Lake, Manitoba, Canada; and Madagascar.

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