Lecontite

Lecontite (sodium ammonium sulfate dihydrate, with potassium substituting for some ammonium, typically about a fourth[2]) is a sulfate mineral with the formula (NH4,K)NaSO4·2H2O.

It was found by John Lawrence LeConte in Las Piedras Cave in Honduras as a breakdown product of bat guano, including crystals up to an inch long[3] and identified as a separate mineral by W.J.

[4] As of 1963 most natural specimens came from the same cave.

[5] Lecontite can easily be synthesized by reacting ammonium sulfate with sodium sulfate in aqueous solution and crystallized.

This article about a specific sulfate mineral is a stub.