Minerals

•What is a mineral?
What is a mineral? The traditional
definition • Naturally occurring substance
• Solid
• Inorganic
NOTE: many minerals are produced by BOTH inorganic AN
biological processes (biomineralization).
Calcite - shells of marine organisms
Magnetite- bacteria
Apatite- bones and teeth
• Has a specific chemical composition
• Has a specific crystal structure, consisting of a repeating
orderly pattern.
• Has a set of physical properties that are the same for an
all samples of a given mineral.
 The building blocks of minerals
A (paraphrased) question from Super Millionaire
What is the most abundant element in the Earth’s crus
Element symbol
Oxygen O
Silicon Si
Aluminum Al 8 elements make up
Iron Fe 98.6 % of the Earth’s crust.
Calcium Ca
Sodium Na
Potassium K
Magnesium Mg
 Main rock-forming mineral groups
Silicates
• make up the majority of crustal rocks
• building block is SiO4 tetrahedron
Oxides
• composed on metal + oxygen
Carbonates
• important component of sedimentary rocks
• building block is CO3 ion
 Mineral properties
• Minerals are distinguished by their
physical and chemical properties.
• The same properties are responsible
for the many of the mechanical
characteristics of rocks.
• Most common minerals can be
recognized from one or two
characteristics.
Physical Properties of
Minerals • COLOUR
• HARDNESS
• CLEAVAGE
• SPECIFIC
GRAVITY
• STREAK
• CRYSTAL FACES
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:

1. Colour
The colour of minerals is rarely
diagnostic when used alone but some
minerals (native sulphur - YELLOW,
amethyst quartz - PURPLE, hematite
- RED, azurite - BLUE GREEN) are
very distinctively coloured.
 Topic 2: Page 47 Earth Textbook

Color
* first, most easily observed
* least useful when identifying minerals
1. impurities change mineral’s colors
2. mineral’s colors are similar
3. colors change/react in air
 Colour......................
Minerals tend to
occur in a range
of colours, and
colour patterns
which help to
identify them
It is chromium which
produces the intense red of
ruby and the brilliant green
Most minerals are
coloured by a limited
number of metals
present as impurities.
The most common
elements affecting
colour are:
chromium, iron,
manganese, titanium
and copper.
Quartz displays a profusion of colours, patterns
and optical effects unsurpassed by any other gem
colourless is rock crystal

purple quartz is amethyst

yellow is citrine

brown is smoky quartz

pink is rose quartz.

black is morion
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:

Crystal Habits
This is the name given to the form or
shape of crystals. Cubic, dodecahdral,
octahedral, rhombohdral, prismatic,
columnar, pinacoidal and pyramidal are
a few of the many forms that crystal
can display.
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Lustre
Lustre is the way in which light is
reflected from mineral surfaces and
is more frequently diagnostic than
colour. Metallic lustre is often found
in sulphide minerals, non-metallic
lustres include glassy, dull and earthy.
Topic 2: Page 47 Earth Textbook

Luster
the way a mineral shines
* Metallic Luster
* Nonmetallic Luster
Topic 2: Page 47 Earth Textbook

Metallic Luster
*shines like polished metal
*(galena, pyrite, chalcopyrite)
Topic 2: Page 47-48 Earth Textbook

Nonmetallic Luster
*vitreous – shining glass (quartz)
*pearly – like a pearl (mica)
*resinous – like wax (sphalerite)
*greasy, oily – (talc & graphite)
*dull, earthy – (kaolinite, limonite)
*brilliant, adamentine – (diamond)
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
• Transparency
• The ability to see through a mineral is
a measure of transparency. Reflecting
surfaces are called translucent.
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Hardness
Mineral hardness is measured on a non-
linear relative scale called Mohs Scale
of Hardness
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
8. Hardness Mineral hardness is measured on a non-linear relative scale called
Mohs Scale of Hardness

HARDNESS MINERAL COMMON EXAMPLE

1 Talc Pencil lead 1.0-2.0
2 Gypsum Fingernail 2.5
3 Calcite Copper penny 3.5, brass
4 Fluorite Iron
5 Apatite Tooth enamel, knife blade, glass 5.5-6.0
6 Orthoclase Steel file 6.5
7 Quartz Scratches glass
8 Topaz ------
9 Corundum Saphire, ruby
10 Diamond Synthetic diamond
 Topic 3: Page 49-50 Earth Textbook

Hardness
minerals resistance to being scratched
*Mohs’ Hardness Scale –
•minerals ranked on a scale of 1 to 10
•need fingernail, copper, steel, glass, topaz
•1 softest (talc), 7 hardest common (quartz)
and 10 is the hardest of all (diamond)
 Hardness................... -
• Hardness depends upon the
forces holding the atoms of the
mineral together.
• In 1812, a scientist, F. Moh
devised a scale of hardness into
which all minerals can be placed.
• He selected ten minerals and
arranged them in order so that
any one mineral could be used to
scratch only minerals which are
less.
• Diamond is the- hardest natural
material, 140 times harder than
corundum.
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
8. Hardness Mineral hardness is measured on a non-linear relative scale called
Mohs Scale of Hardness

MINERA
HARDNESS COMMON EXAMPLE
1 L
Talc Pencil lead 1.0-2.0
2 Gypsum Fingernail 2.5
3 Calcite Copper penny 3.5, brass
4 Fluorite Tooth enamel,Iron
knife blade, glass
5 Apatite
Orthocla
6 5.5-6.0
Steel file 6.5
7 se
Quartz Scratches glass
8 Topaz
Corundu ------
9 Saphire, ruby
10 m
Diamond Synthetic diamond
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Streak
Streak is the name given to the colour
of a mineral when powdered by
abraision against a stronger material
(usually a ceramic or porcellain plate).
Streak is a much more useful
diagnostic characteristic than colour.
Topic 3: Page 48 Earth Textbook

Streak
the color of a mineral’s powder
* rub mineral on unglazed white tile
metallic - streak dark as mineral
nonmetallic - streak colorless to light
 Streak…………
• When minerals are scratched, the powder
that is made by the scratch is called the
streak.
• Sometimes the colour of the streak can be
used to identify the mineral.
• Eg. Haemetite a black mineral has a red
streak. No other black mineral has a red
streak.
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:

Cleavage
This refers to the characteristic manner in
which minerals split along planes
determined by their crystal structure.
Mica has a perfect basal cleavage in one
direction and splits into thin sheets.
Feldspars commonly show two strong
cleavages. Cubic minerals such as halite
often display three mutually orthogonal
 Distinc
t
Cleavage................ cleavag
e
planes
can be
illustra
The manner in which a mineral splits
ted inis an aid to
identification. this
box
These planes are related to the lattice
mica work of the
mineral's atomic structure. specim
en
Topic 3: Page 49 Earth Textbook

Cleavage
minerals split along flat surfaces
1 direction – micas, gypsum, talc
2 directions – feldspars, hornblende
3 directions – galena, halite, calcite
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:

Fracture
Fracture is mineral breakage which is
unrelated to crystal structure.
Quartz has no cleavage but can often
show conchoidal fracture patterns.
Topic 3: Page 49 Earth Textbook

Fracture
minerals break along non-cleavage surfaces

•concoidal fractures – shell-like fracture

•fiberous or splintery – jagged and sharp
•uneven or irregular – rough surface
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Specific Gravity
S.G. is an easily measured physical
property that can be readily
estimated. In general, sulphides and
oxides have much higher specific
gravities than silicates.
 Topic 4: Page 50 Earth Textbook

Specific Gravity
the ratio of the mass of a mineral to the mass of
an equal volume of water
•specific gravity = mass of sample in air
mass lost in water
•nonmetals - less than 4
•metals - above 5
 Specific Gravity...................

• It was Archimedes who first worked out the

principal of specific gravity or relative density.
Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of the
weight of a substance compared to that of an
equal volume of water.
• For example, a piece of galena (lead ore), with a
specific gravity of 7.4 will feel much heavier than
a piece of quartz of a similar size but with
specific gravity of 2.65, reflecting the way the
atoms are packed together.
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
9. Specific Gravity S.G. is an easily measured physical property that can be readily estimated.
In general, sulphides and oxides have much higher specific gravities than silicates.

MINERAL GROUP MINERAL SPECIFIC GRAVITY

Framework Silicate Quartz 2.6-2.7
Framework Silicate Feldspar 2.6-2.7
Sheet Silicate Mica 2.8-3.0
Chain Silicate Amphibole 2.9-3.2
Chain Silicate Pyroxene 3.2-3.6
Isolated Silicate Olivine 3.3-4.4
Isolated Silicate Garnet 3.5-4.4
Sulphide Sphalerite 4.0
Sulphide Chalcopyrite 4.2
Sulphide Pyrite 5.0
Oxide Magnetite 5.2
Oxide Hematite 5.3
Sulphide Galena 7.2
Oxide Pitchblende 9.5
Element Native Gold 12.4
 Topic 6: Page 51 Earth Textbook

Special Properties
•taste – halite is salty
•magnetic - magnetite
•double diffraction – calcite/Iceland par
splits images into 2
•flourescence – glows under ultraviolet
light, fluorite, sphalerite, willemite
•phosphorescence – glows even after
ultraviolet off
 Topic 5: Page 51 Earth Textbook

Acid Test
weak acid will release bubbles of CO2
*calcium carbonate fizzes in acid (HCl)
*calcite is calcium carbonate, CaCo3
*dolomite - CaMg(CO3) must be powdered
*malachite & azurite are copper carbonates
*limestone & marble calcite
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Other Characteristics:
Some minerals have special characteristics
that are diagnostic for only a few species.
Refractive index (calcite), effervescence
with dilute acids (calcite), fluorescence
(fluorite), phosphorescence,
piezoelectricity (quartz), resistivity
(halite), taste (halite) and magnetic
properties (magnetite) are all used to
identify particular minerals.
 Mineral properties
• PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
4. Crystal System Crystal symmetry is a very important
diagnostic aid. Minerals fall into one of seven crystal
classes.
 Crystal System

ISOMETRIC TETRAGONAL HEXAGONAL TRIGONAL

DIAMOND WULFENITE BERYL QUARTZ
variety - AMETHYST

ORTHORHOMBIC MONOCLINIC TRICLINIC AMORPHOUS

TANZANITE GYPSUM MONTEBRASITE AMBER
 Crystal System
SEVEN CRYSTALLOGRAPHIC SYSTEMS:

1. ISOMETRIC, requires 4 three fold axis of rotation.

2. TETRAGONAL, requires 1 four fold axis of rotation.
3. HEXAGONAL, requires 1 six fold axis of rotation.
4. TRIGONAL, requires 1 three fold axis of rotation.
5. ORTHORHOMBIC, requires either 3 two fold axis of rotation or 1
two fold axis of rotation and two mirror planes.
6. MONOCLINIC, requires either 1 two fold axis of rotation or 1
mirror plane.
7. TRICLINIC, requires either a center or only translational
symmetry.

AMORPHOUS; no symmetry is present and it is therefore not a

crystallographic system.
 Common minerals
• the most common minerals you'll find in rocks
”rock forming minerals”
• This pile contains plagioclase feldspar, potassium
feldspar, quartz, muscovite mica, biotite mica,
amphibole, olivine, and calcite.
 Crystals
Crystals are minerals or
elements that have been
cooled slowly enough for
crystals to have formed.
Such conditions occur
most often in pegmatites
or pipes.
Crystals can be classified
by their shapes into seven
groups.
 Topic 2: Page 47-48 Earth Textbook

Crystal System (shape)

*cubic – all 90º, all lengths equal
*orthorhombic – all 90º, no lengths equal
*tetragonal – all 90º, some lengths equal
*triclinic – none @ 90º
*monoclinic – some @ 90º
*hexagonal – 3 axes @ 60º
Topic 7: Page 53-54 Earth Textbook

Silicates
made with silica tetrahedrons (light colored)
a) quartz
b) feldspars: orthoclase, plageoclase
c) micas: muscovite, biotite(black)
d) talc
 Topic 7: Page 54-55 Earth Textbook

Ferromagnesian Silicates
silicates with iron and magnesium (darker)
e) amphiboles: horneblende
f) pyroxenes: augite
g) olivine
h) garnets
i) kaolinite