History of Science and Engineering Annotation << Back NOTES ON THE OUTSTANDING RUSSIAN MINERALOGIST ALEXANDER PETROVICH KHOMYAKOV (1933-2012) Gorobets B.S. Shelekhova-Khomiakova Е.Е. Khomyakov P.A. This essay deals with the life and work of the outstanding Russian scientist, Doctor of Geology and Mineralogy Alexander Petrovich Khomyakov, discoverer of more than a hundred new minerals, and author of over 500 published works covering a wide range of problems and research areas. His most significant contribution was in studying the Khibiny and Lovozero alkaline massifs (Kola Peninsula), in whose deep parts he identified and thoroughly researched unique hyperagpaitic rocks characterized by extraordinary mineral diversity. A new mineral, natrite, which he discovered and described in these rocks, was found to be a new promising type of soda resource. He also discovered many other salt (water-soluble) minerals, which provided the key to understanding the conditions of formation of these rocks and their accompanying giant deposits of rare metals and phosphates. These and many other issues were fully covered in his classic monograph (1990), «Mineralogy of Hyperagpaitic Alkaline Rocks» (published in English in 1995), which filled many gaps in the mineralogical understanding of the Khibiny and Lovozero massifs. A.P. Khomyakov collaborated in determining the crystal structures of about 100 different minerals on the basis of his samples. These studies have greatly contributed to a better understanding of the structural diversity of the mineral kingdom and the crystalline state of matter in general. One of Khomyakov’s most important theoretical achievement was to formulate and justify the principle of an unlimited number of mineral species. There are two minerals named after: khomyakovite and manganokhomyakovite. Keywords: A.P. Khomyakov; mineral; mineral species; hyperagpaitic rocks; peralkaline rocks; Khibiny mountains; Lovozero. Contacts: E-mail: bgorobets@rambler.ru Pp. 17-35.