Minerals Building Blocks of Rocks Minerals Building Blocks of Rocks.
Minerals & Rocks
description
Transcript of Minerals & Rocks
Minerals & RocksHonors Notes
A Mineral is a naturally occurring Inorganic Solid with a definite chemical composition and a
crystalline structure.
Lets put that in a list format:1. Minerals are a naturally occurring substance.
2. Minerals are solids. 3. Minerals have a definite chemical composition.4. The atoms that make up minerals are arranged in an orderly pattern (They form crystals).5. Minerals are inorganic. (They were never alive.)
Two Major Types of MineralsSilicate Minerals
◦Contain silicon (Si) plus oxygen (O) or silicon dioxide (SiO2).
◦The most common rock-forming minerals ◦May contain one or more other elements with the silicon
and oxygen. EX: Feldspars are formed depending on what else combines
with the silicon and oxygen.◦Orthoclase- Si, O, K, AL◦Plagioclase- Si, O, Ca, Na
EX: Quartz composed of only Si and O◦Make up 96% of the Earth’s crust.
Earth’s oceanic crust is denser and contains a larger percentage of silicates than continental crust.
Two Major Types of Minerals (cont’d)
Non-silicates◦Contain no silicon◦Many important mineral groups are not silicates.◦Non-Silicate Minerals include: carbonates,
(limestone, marble) oxides (hematite), halides (halite/rock salt), sulfides (pyrite), sulfates (gypsum), and native metals (gold, silver, copper).
◦The non-silicate groups are a source of many valuable ore minerals and building materials.
◦To be an ore, a mineral must occur in large enough quantities to be economically recoverable.
Non-Silicate Minerals
Non-Silicate Minerals
Flourite
Gold
Galena
Physical Properties
Mineral appearance HardnessLusterSpecific gravityStreakCleavage and fracture
Mineral appearance How it looks like What color is it?Which one of the following is gold?
Identify by appearance.
Hardness A measure of how easily a mineral can be
scratched Mohs Hardness Scale
◦ developed in 1812 by Friedrick Mohs (an Austrian mineral expert) as a method to identify minerals.
Luster The way a mineral reflects a light.Either metallic or nonmetallic
Specific GravityThe specific gravity of a mineral is the
ratio of its weight compared with the weight of an equal volume of water.
Gold has specific gravity of 19It means gold is 19 times heavier
than water.
19 times heavier
Specific gravity
Streak When a mineral is rubbed across a piece
of porcelain tile a streak of powdered mineral is left behind.
Cleavage
Cleavage is the way that mineral breaks.
Minerals that break along smooth, flat surfaces have cleavage.
Mica has cleavage
and Fracture!...Mineral that breaks uneven, rough, or
jagged surfaces have fracture.Quartz has fracture
quartz
Atom ArrangementSome physical properties are controlled
by the orderly arrangement of atoms in a mineral’s structure.
The arrangement of atoms and the bonds between them can reflect the way a mineral breaks, how hard it is, and what types of crystal shape it has.
Crystal Shape – Types of Symmetry
Which of these would halite be the shape of?
Plane Name
1 =Basal
2
3
3
=Prismatic
=Cubic
=Rhombo-hedral
An illustration appearance:luster,color and streak
An illustration cleavage and fracture
Identify the minerals below for cleavage and fracture
CLEAVAGE FRACTURE
Special Properties of MineralsMagnetic – use a magnet and see if it sticksTaste – certain minerals have a specific tasteFluorescence – glowing while under a U.V. lightPhosphorescent – continues to glow after the
U.V. light is offRadioactive – test minerals with a Geiger
counterDouble Refraction – Splits light rays into 2
parts. (see a double image) Look through the mineral for the image.
RocksA rock is a naturally formed consolidated
solid mixture made up of minerals, rock fragments, or volcanic glass
Essential Minerals: always occur in the rock
Accessory Minerals: sometimes occur in rock
Classify Rocks by how they formIgneous
◦ - Made up of magma or lava when it cools and hardens
Sedimentary◦ - Made from sediments
Metamorphic◦ - Rocks changed by pressure &
heat
Igneous RocksFormed from lava or magma
◦Lava : extrusive or volcanic◦Magma: Intrusive or plutonic (pillow-like)
Intrusive Igneous rocks Formed from magma which cools and solidifies
below Earth’s surface Cooling and solidification take a long time
resulting in large visible crystals (coarse-grained)Extrusive Igneous Rocks
Small to no mineral crystals due to faster cooling lava above Earth’s surface (fine-grained)
Occurs at volcanoes or through ocean floor
Sedimentary Rocks
Rock is a fused mixture of minerals. Some of these minerals could be in bits and pieces of other rocks.
Broken into pieces (clasts) through weathering◦ Rock exposed at the surface is attacked by the weather
Water: enters cracks, expands, & breaks rocks down
Rain: acidic dissolves minerals
Movement in rivers: collects at the bottom
Sedimentary Rocks Formation Build very slowly in layers, until the environment
changes◦ Compaction: pieces compact due to weight squeezing
them together◦ Cementation: minerals acting as cement holding
sediments together◦ Precipitation: water evaporates & minerals are left
behind
Classifying Sedimentary RocksClastic Rocks: pieces of other rocks
NonClastic RocksMinerals in water which evaporates to
leave behind deposits (rocks) or fossil materials that compact into rock.
Ex:◦1. Limestone: calcite and seashells◦2. Rock salt: halite◦3. Rock gypsum: gypsum◦4. Chert: Quartz◦5. Coal: fossil materials
Metamorphic RocksForm from pre-existing igneous,
sedimentary, or metamorphic rocks, as a result of temperature and pressure changes
3 types of changes:1. Rearrangement of mineral grains2. Enlargement of crystals3. Change in chemistry of rock
Characteristics of Metamorphic Rocks Foliation: Foliated textures in metamorphic
rocks have lots of layers or bands.Non-Foliated: metamorphic textures
include rocks whose grains are in more random orientations. (no bands)◦Tend to have random crystal orientation and
uniform grain size.◦Mineral grains tend to grow larger as
metamorphism increases.
Characteristics of Metamorphic Rocks Foliation Nonfoliated
Hints for Identifying RocksIgneous
◦ crystals intersecting at angles◦ size of the grain
Sedimentary◦ layers of rock pieces
Metamorphic◦ pressure created results in lines ◦ pressure and heat create grains in foliation (wavy
patterns)◦ hardest of the 3 rocks
Rock CycleChanges of rocks from one rock type to another
Magma
Igneous Rock
cooling
wea
ther
ing
Sediments cementation or compaction Sedimentary Rock
heat
& p
ress
ure
Metamorphic Rock
melting