A new bismuth sulfosalt mineral, sunshuite (FeBi2S4), proposed by a Chinese research team, has been officially approved by the International Mineralogical Association Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification (IMA2025-013). The study was conducted by Dr. Kaixuan Hui, Prof. Kezhang Qin, Prof. Mingjian Cao, and Senior Engineer Lihui Jia from IGGCAS, in collaboration with Prof. Guowu Li, Ningyue Sun, and Dr. Yuan Xue from the China University of Geosciences (Beijing), and Prof. Ting Li from the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology.
Sunshuite crystallizes in the monoclinic system (space group C2/m) and belongs to the pavonite homologous series. Although this mineral group currently includes approximately a dozen recognized members, sunshuite is the first to be discovered and named by Chinese scientists.
The mineral was identified in the Chaganbulagen Ag-Pb-Zn deposit, located south of Manzhouli in Inner Mongolia. It is closely associated with silver-gold mineralization, providing new scientific insights into the transport, precipitation, and enrichment mechanisms of these economically significant metals. Consequently, Sunshuite may serve as a potential indicator mineral in silver-gold exploration.
The new mineral is named in honor of Professor Sun Shu (1933–2018), a distinguished Chinese geologist and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in recognition for his outstanding contributions to the advancement of geological sciences in China.
Crystal structure diagram of sunshuite (FeBi2S4). (Image by IGGCAS)
