Spinellartig

Spinellartig is a German adjective meaning "spinel-like" and is used to describe minerals, textures, phases or structures that resemble those of spinel. The term derives from Spinell (spinel) and the suffix -artig (‑like), and appears primarily in German-language scientific literature in mineralogy, petrology and materials science.

In mineralogy and petrology, spinellartig may describe grains or inclusions whose appearance, composition or crystal habit is similar to members of the spinel group (general formula AB2O4, where A and B are metal cations). It is also applied to textures characteristic of rocks formed under specific metamorphic conditions, for example spinel-bearing peridotites or certain contact-metamorphosed limestones in which spinel-group phases occur. The adjective can refer to color, luster, euhedral crystal form or chemical affinity to spinel minerals.

In materials science, spinellartig can denote synthetic compounds or ceramic materials that adopt the spinel crystal structure (sometimes called the spinel-type structure), which influences physical properties such as magnetic behavior, catalytic activity and ionic conductivity.

As a descriptive term rather than a strict taxonomic label, spinellartig is context-dependent and typically accompanied by additional qualifiers (e.g., spinellartige Phase, spinellartige Körner) to clarify whether the resemblance is structural, compositional or merely visual. The direct English equivalent is "spinel-like."