safflorite

mineral

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 13, 2026

Quick Summary

Safflorite is a mineral composed of cobalt arsenide, with the chemical formula CoAs₂. It is isomorphous with loellingite and dimorphous with smaltite. This mineral typically appears as tin-white masses. The name "safflorite" is derived from the German word "saflor," which itself is a modification of the Italian word "zaffera" (meaning zaffer) and influenced by "safflower".1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

3 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

cobalt processing
Ores
Cobalt arsenides, such as smaltite, safflorite, and skutterudite, with the sulfoarsenide cobaltite and the arsenate erythrite, are mined in Morocco and on a much smaller scale in many other countries. These are the only primary cobalt ores.
Read More
Cobalt arsenides, such as smaltite, safflorite, and skutterudite, with the sulfoarsenide cobaltite and the arsenate erythrite, are mined in Morocco and on a much smaller scale in many other countries. These are the only primary cobalt ores.
Read More