'Completely unique' purple mineral found in Australia: Brittle crystals spotted in volcanic rock are just half a millimetre big 
 
 Putnisite crystals measure no more than half a millimetre in diameter 
 
 They were found south of Lake Cowan near Norseman, Western Australia 
 
 Purple crystal has a 'unique structure and composition' and is unrelated to any of the world’s other 4,000 known mineral species 
 
 Buried deep within volcanic rock of Western Australia, researchers have stumbled across a mineral that is unlike any other crystal on Earth. 
 
 
 
 The purple mineral is ‘completely unique in its structure and composition' and contains an unusual combination of elements, including: strontium, calcium, chromium, sulphur, carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. 
 
 It has been named putnisite and its tiny crystals are are no more than half a millimetre in diameter. 
 
 
 
 Deep purple: The mineral has been named putnisite and the tiny crystals are no more than half a millimetre in diameter, found on volcanic rock (pictured) This sample measures 0.4mm and was recovered from Armstrong Mine in Widgiemooltha, Western Austalia 
 
 WHAT IS PUTNISITE? Putnisite is a newly discovered mineral with tiny crystals less than 0.5mm in diameter. 
 
 It was found on volcanic rock near Lake Cowan in Western Australia. 
 
 The crystals appear as tiny pink spots on dark green and white rock, which under a microscope look like tiny glistening cubes. The purple mineral is very brittle and is unique among the world's 4,000 known minerals. 
 
 Putnisite does not belong to a family and is not related to anything. 
 
 The mineral is made up of a ‘very unusual’ combination of elements, including: strontium, calcium, chromium, sulphur, carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. 
 
 It is not yet known to have a practical use but has been named after important Australian mineralogists Andrew and Christine Putnis. 
 
 Dr Peter Elliott, a mineralogy researcher at the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Museum, has described the mineral that was discovered south of Lake Cowan near the town of Norseman in Western Australia. 
 
 
 
 The purple mineral is associated with quartz and is very brittle. 
 
 
 
 It is unique among the world’s 4,000 known mineral species, according to the study published in Mineralogical Magazine. 
 
 
 
 ‘What defines a mineral is its chemistry and crystallography,’ Dr Elliott said. 
 
 
 
 ‘By X-raying a single crystal of mineral you are able to determine its crystal structure and this, in conjunction with chemical analysis, tells you everything you need to know about the mineral. 
 
 
 
 Found: Dr Peter Elliott, a mineralogy researcher at the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Museum, described the mineral that was discovered south of Lake Cowan (pictured) near the town of Norseman in Western Australia 
 
 ‘Most minerals belong to a family or small group of related minerals, or if they aren't related to other minerals they often are to a synthetic compound - but putnisite is completely unique and unrelated to anything. 
 
 
 
 ‘Nature seems to be far cleverer at dreaming up new chemicals than any researcher in a laboratory.’ 
 
 
 
 The new mineral occurs as tiny crystals, no more than 0.5 mm in diameter and is found on a volcanic rock. 
 
 
 
 It appears as dark pink spots on dark green and white rock which, under the microscope, look like square, cube-like crystals. 
 
 
 
 The mineral is made up of a ‘very unusual’ combination of elements, including: strontium, calcium, chromium, sulphur, carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. 
 
 
 
 Not quite part of the family: The newly-discovered purple mineral is associated with quartz (pictured) and is very brittle. Experts said that while most minerals belong to a family, putnisite is completely unique and unrelated to anything 
 
 It has yet to be determined if the new mineral will have any practical use, but putnisite has been named for important Australian mineralogists Andrew and Christine Putnis. 
 
 The mineral was first discovered during prospecting by a mining company in the area and was passed on to CSIRO for initial before being handed to Dr Elliott for more detailed analysis. 
 
 
 
 Dr Elliott has researched 12 new Australian minerals in the past seven years and found seven of those himself. 

 (Phys.org) —A University of Adelaide mineralogy researcher has discovered a new mineral that is unique in structure and composition among the world's 4,000 known mineral species. 
 
 Published in Mineralogical Magazine, Visiting Research Fellow in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences Dr Peter Elliott has described 'putnisite', found in a surface outcrop at Lake Cowan, north of Norseman in Western Australia. 
 
 "What defines a mineral is its chemistry and crystallography," says Dr Elliott, who is also a Research Associate with the South Australian Museum. 
 
 "By x-raying a single crystal of mineral you are able to determine its crystal structure and this, in conjunction with chemical analysis, tells you everything you need to know about the mineral. 
 
 "Most minerals belong to a family or small group of related minerals, or if they aren't related to other minerals they often are to a synthetic compound - but putnisite is completely unique and unrelated to anything. 
 
 "Nature seems to be far cleverer at dreaming up new chemicals than any researcher in a laboratory." 
 
 The new mineral occurs as tiny crystals, no more than 0.5 mm in diameter and is found on a volcanic rock. It appears as dark pink spots on dark green and white rock which, under the microscope, appears as square, cube-like crystals. It combines the elements strontium, calcium, chromium, sulphur, carbon, oxygen and hydrogen - a very unusual combination. It has yet to be determined if the new mineral will have any practical use. 
 
 The mineral was discovered during prospecting by a mining company in WA and handed on to CSIRO for initial research and then to Dr Elliott for more detailed analysis. 
 
 Dr Elliott has researched 12 new Australian minerals in the past seven years and seven of those he found himself. 
 
 Two of these new minerals were discovered in South Australia - domerockite and hylbrownite - named respectively after Dome Rock, where the mineral was first was found, and Henry Yorke Lyle Brown, Government Geologist of South Australia from 1882-1912. 
 
 Putnisite has been named for Australian mineralogists Andrew and Christine Putnis. 
 
 Explore further: Mineral targeting made easy with database 
 
 More information: Paper: Putnisite, SrCa4Formula (CO3)8SO4(OH)16·25H2O, a new mineral from Western Australia: description and crystal structure, DOI: 10.1180/minmag.2014.0 
 
 

 Scientists in Australia have discovered a new mineral that occurs as tiny dark pink or dark green crystals on volcanic rocks. 
 
 Named Putnisite, after Aussie mineralogists Andrew and Christine Putnis, the mineral is unique both in its composition and structure, making it one-of-a-kind among the 4,000 known minerals across the globe! 
 
 The new mineral does not seem to occur in crystals that are larger than 0.5mm in diameter and while they might be of no practical use as of now, scientists believe that their exclusive combination holds endless possibilities. 
 
 Appearing like square, cubic structures under a microscope, this volcanic mineral is comprised of strontium, calcium, chromium, sulphur, carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. 
 
 After X-ray analysis of the mineral crystals, it was shown that the structure of the mineral did not belong to any known family of either natural or synthetic minerals. 
 
 The mineral was discovered while a mining company was prospecting in WA and has since been handed over to Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) for further research. 
 
 While Putnisite might have a special composition that sets it apart from the existing family of minerals, experts in the field believe that is not the only one and many such minerals still are waiting to be uncovered in volcanic rocks. 
 
 Both high pressure and temperature below the earth’s crust could well hide many such minerals which only come to surface when molten magma finds its way out. 
 
 
 

– Miners prospecting for nickel and gold in Western Australia have stumbled on a rare find: a mineral that's unique among the world's 4,000 discovered mineral species, LiveScience reports. Called putnisite, it ranges from dark to light purple, has a pink streak, and is found on volcanic rock, where it looks like pink spots on a surface of white and green (it's also very brittle, the Daily Mail notes). What makes putnisite so unique? Its crystal structure and chemical composition differ from other known minerals, says Peter Elliott, co-author of the first study on putnisite. Most minerals are related to a family or small group of minerals, or to a synthetic compound, "but putnisite is completely unique and unrelated to anything," Elliott tells Phys.org. "Nature seems to be far cleverer at dreaming up new chemicals than any researcher in a laboratory." Occurring as tiny crystals no bigger than 0.2 inches in diameter, putnisite is made of calcium, chromium, strontium, carbon, sulphur, oxygen, and hydrogen—a bizarre mix. Elliott can't say whether it will serve practical purposes, but apparently it's not alone: Experts believe that "many such minerals" lie undiscovered along volcanic rocks, Greenpacks reports.