What is "bicchulite"

n. (context mineral English) An isometric-hextetrahedral colorless mineral containing aluminum, calcium, hydrogen, oxygen, and silicon.

Bicchulite has an ideal chemical formula of 2CaO •AlO •SiO •HO, which was formularized from the hydrothermal synthesis of synthetic gehlenite (2CaO •AlO •SiO). Also, bicchulite was sighted in the mines of Japan with related minerals. This sodalite-type structured bicchulite has an uncommon ratio of aluminium to silicon, causing difficulties deciphering the structure. Because of bicchulite’s structure it has a powdery texture, which leads to complications in obtaining information on the mineral’s physical properties. Despite this problem, the color, specific gravity, and crystal size of bicchulite are known. Although bicchulite was only discovered about 40 years ago, technology has been rapidly advancing, allowing more accurate results to be made from experiments done today.