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Minerals
Calisaan, Naki, Refuerzo
EARTH
— one of the four terrestrial
planets in the Solar System
GEOSPHERE
— one of the four interacting
spheres that allow life to exist
— refers to the solid Earth
— composed of rock and regolith
which are essentially aggregates
of various minerals
Characteristics of Minerals
Refuerzo
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1. Naturally-occuring
— Minerals exist
naturally.
— Steel and synthetic
diamonds are created
artificially, and
therefore, are not
minerals.
shine bright
like a diamond
2. Inorganic
— Minerals are limited to substances
formed through inorganic processes,
and exclude materials derived from
living organisms which involved
organic processes.
— Coal, which is composed of
remains of plants and other inorganic
compounds, is not a mineral.
3. Solid
— All liquids and gases (even
those that are naturally formed
such as petroleum) are not
considered minerals.
4. Definite Chemical
Composition
— The chemical composition of
minerals should express the exact
chemical formula with the elements
and compounds in specific ratios.
— The only exception is the atomic
substitution, which is characteristic
of certain minerals.
5. Ordered Internal
Structure
— The atoms in minerals are
organized in regular, repetitive
geometric patterns or crystal
structure.
— Volcanic glass, even if it is
formed naturally, is not
considered a mineral because it
is amorphous and has no form.
Obsidian
Pearl
Amber
Opal
Mineraloids
— substances that fulfill all the requirements
but do not have an ordered internal structure
Composition of Minerals
Calisaan
SILICATES
— primarily silicon oxygen
tetrahedrons
- major rock forming minerals
Ex: Olivine and Quartz
OXIDES
—metal cations bonded to
oxygen anions
Ex: Magnetite and Hematite
SULFIDES
—metal cation bonded to sulfide
—common ore minerals along
with oxides
Ex: Galena and Pyrite
SULFATES
—metal cation bonded to the
anionic group
Ex: Gypsum
HALIDES
—are composed of a halogem
ion
Ex: Halite and Flourite
CARBONATES
—presesnce of carbonic ion
—calcium or magnesium
Ex: Calcite and Dolomite
NATIVE METALS
—single metal
Ex: Copper and
Gold
Crystal Structure of Minerals
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Crystal Structure
— is dependent on the chemical
composition of the mineral
— Minerals that have similar
chemical compositions often
share the same crystal
structure and generally belong
to the same crystal system.
— There are six crystal systems
used in grouping minerals
based on structure:
Isometric
Orthorhombic
Tetragonal
Monoclinic
Hexagonal
Triclinic
Physical Properties of Minerals
Calisaan, Naki, Refuerzo
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Crystal Form
and Habit
Since minerals have a definite chemical
composition, it forms a definite
structure which crystallizes into a
specific crystal form. The outward
appearance of the minerals is referred
to as the crystal form, while on the
other hand, the characteristic external
shape is called the crystal habit.
Crystal Habit
— Crystal habit is the tendency for
specimens of a mineral to repeatedly
grow into characteristic shapes. These
shapes are influenced by the atomic
structure of the mineral, but they can
also be influenced by the environment
of crystal growth.
Tabular
Drusy
Acicular
Encrusting
Crystal
Habit
Reniform
Cleavage
-The tendency of a mineral
to break along specific
internal planes of weakness
.
-Determined by atomic
arrangement of the minerals
Factors
-Quality
-Number of sides
exibiting
cleavage
Category of
Quality
-excellent
-good
-poor
-indistinct
-none
Fracture
-Is a break in a mineral
that is not along a
cleavage plane
-it is not determined by
the structure of the
mineral.
conchoidal
uneven
even
hackly
Types of
Fractures
splintery
Luster
— The luster of a mineral describes the
appearance of light as it is reflected off its
surface.
— A mineral may be described as metallic,
like that of a polished metal.
— Alternatively, it may be described as
nonmetallic, which can be vitreous (like
glass), resinous (like resin), pearlescent,
silky, greasy, earthy, and dull.
Metallic Luster
Nonmetallic
Luster
Vitreous
Greasy
Resinous
Pearlescent
Silky
Dull
Color
-is not a reliable feature.
-it can be altered by
chemical
impurities
within its structure
-minerals come in many
colors
-many have the same
color
-some colors change
Streak
-is the color of a mineral in
powdered form
-this can be done by scraping
the corner of the sample across
a streak plate
-it is not affected by
weathering
Hardness
— The hardness of a mineral is a
measurement of the strength of
the chemical bonds in its
structure. It can be measured by
scratching it with another
mineral or a reference material
with known hardness.
The
Mohs Scale
The Mohs scale of mineral hardness is
a qualitative ordinal scale, from 1 to 10,
characterizing scratch resistance of
minerals through the ability of harder
material to scratch softer material. The
scale was introduced in 1812 by the
German geologist and mineralogist
Friedrich Mohs.
The
Mohs Scale
Density
— Density or Specific gravity
is the ratio of a measure of a
mineral's mass and volume.
It is the weight of a mineral
relative to the weight of an
equal volume of water.
Common
Rock- Forming
Elements
The abundance and variety of
minerals are controlled by their
chemistry, which is dependent
on elemental abundances on
Earth. About 98% of Earth's
crust is composed of eight
elements.
Back to Agenda
Mineral
Graphite
Galena
Lust
er
M
e
t
a
l
l
i
Colors
Silver
to gray
Metalli
c silver
Hard
ness
1-2
2.5
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
Characterist
ics
Uses
Composition
✓
Black
streak,
greasy feel
Pencil
lead,
lubricant
C
✓
Very dense,
gray-black
streak,
Ore of
lead
PbS
Mineral
Magnetite
Pyrite
Lus
ter
m
e
t
a
l
l
i
c
Colors
Ha
rdn
ess
Black to
silver
5.5
6.5
Brassy
6.5
Cle
ava
ge
Fr
act
ur
e
Characteristics
Uses
Compositi
on
✓
Magnetic, black
streak
Ore of iron
Fe3O4
✓
Green-black
streak, cubic
crystals
Ore of sulfur
FeS2
Mineral
Lus
ter
Colors
Ha
rdn
ess
Hematite
E
i
t
h
e
r
Metallic
silver to
earthy
red
16.5
Cle
ava
ge
Fr
act
ur
e
✓
Characteristics
Red-brown streak
Uses
Compositi
on
Ore of iron
Fe2O3
Mineral
Lust
er
Talc
Sulfur
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
white
to
green
yellow
to
amber
Hard
ness
1
2
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
✓
✓
Characterist
ics
Uses
Composition
Greasy feel
talcum
powder,
soapstone
Mg3 Si4 O10 (OH)2
Easily
melted,
may smell
vulcanize
rubber,
sulfuric
acid
S
Mineral
Gypsum
(selenite)
Muscovite
mica
Lust
er
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
white to
pink to
grey
colorless
to yellow
Har
dne
ss
2
22.5
Cle
ava
ge
✓
✓
Fra
ctu
re
Characteristics
Uses
Compositi
on
easily scratched by
fingernail
plaster of
paris and
drywall
CaSO4
2H2O
electrical
insulator
KAI3SI3
O10(OH)
2
flexible in thin
sheets
Mineral
Halite
Biotate mica
Lust
er
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
Hard
ness
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
Characterist
ics
Uses
Composition
food
additive,
melts ice
NaCl
electrical
insulator
K(Mg,Fe)3AlSi3
O10(OH)2
colorle
ss to
white
2.5
✓
cubic
cleavage,
salty taste
black
to dark
brown
2.5 3
✓
flexible in
thin sheets
Mineral
Calcite
Dolomite
Lust
er
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
colorless
/variable
colorless
/variable
Har
dne
ss
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
Characteristics
Uses
Compositi
on
CaCO3
CaMg
(CO3)2
3.5
✓
bubbles with acid
cement,
polarizing
prisms
4
✓
bubbles with acid
when powdered
source of
magnesium
Mineral
Fluorite
Pyroxene
(augile)
Lust
er
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
colorle
ss/vari
able
black
to dark
green
Hard
ness
Cle
ava
ge
4
5 -6
Fra
ctu
re
Characterist
ics
Uses
Composition
✓
cleaves in 4
directions
hydroflu
oric acid
CaF2
✓
cleaved in 4
directions
in 90
degrees
mineral
collection
s
(Ca,Na)(Mg,Fe,Al)
(Si,Al)2O6
Mineral
Amphiboles
(hornblende)
Potassium
feldspar
(orthoclase)
Lust
er
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
black to
dark
green
white to
pink
Har
dne
ss
5.5
6
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
Uses
Compositi
on
✓
cleaves at 56 and
124 degrees
mineral
collections
Ca,Na(M
g,Fe)4
(Al,FeTi)
3Si6022(
O,OH)2
✓
cleaves in 2
directions of 90
degrees
ceramics and
glass
KalSi3O
3
Characteristics
Mineral
Plagioclase
feldspar
(Na-Ca
fledspar)
Olivine
Lust
er
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
white
to grey
green
to
grey/
brown
Hard
ness
6
6.5
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
✓
✓
Characterist
ics
Uses
Composition
cleaves in 2
directions,
striations
visible
ceramics,
glass
(Na, Ca) AlSi₃ O₈
commonly
light green
and
granular
furnace
bricks,
jewelry
(Fe, Mg)₂ SiO₄
Mineral
Lust
er
Quartz
Garnet
(almandine)
no
nm
eta
llic
Colors
colorless
/variable
dark red
to green
Har
dne
ss
7
7
Cle
ava
ge
Fra
ctu
re
Characteristics
Uses
Compositi
on
✓
glassy luster, may
form hexagonal
crystals
glass, jewelry,
electronics
SiO₂
✓
glassy luster, seen
as red grains in
NYS metamorphic
rocks
jewelry,
abrasives
Fe₃Al₂Si₃
O₁₂
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
Have a great week!
— Calisaan, Naki, & Refuerzo —
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