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nesosilicate
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silicate structural linkages
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silicate structural linkages
silicate structural linkages The basic structural unit of all silicate minerals is the silicon tetrahedron in which one silicon atom is surrounded by and bonded to (i.e., coordinated with) four oxygen atoms, each at the corner of a regular tetrahedron.

nesosilicate

mineral
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Also known as: island silicate, orthosilicate
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Formerly called:
orthosilicate

nesosilicate, compound with a structure in which independent silicate tetrahedrons (each consisting of a central silicon atom surrounded by four oxygen atoms at the corners of a tetrahedron) are present. Because none of the oxygen atoms is shared by other tetrahedrons, the chemical formula contains a multiple of SiO4, as in zircon, topaz, or olivine.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by John P. Rafferty.