Mineralogy

Dr. M.R. HASAN

 Minerals
The ‘minerals’ may be defined as the
inorganic substances with definite
chemical compositions and atomic
structures; and the study of minerals is
termed as mineralogy. A mineral may
consists of one or more elements.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
The following are the
important physical properties
which help in describing and
identifying different minerals.
1. Form
The minerals, during their
formation by processes like
crystallization, precipitation, and
solidification, acquire some
characteristic forms or shapes bearing
resemblance to some common
substances. The following are the
different types.
Fibrous form : When the mineral occurs in
the form of fibres, e.g., Asbestos.
Bladed form : When the mineral is shaped
like knife blades, e.g., Kyanite.
Foliated form : When the mineral is in the
form of thin sheets or flakes, e.g., Muscovite.
Columnar form : When the mineral occurs in
the form of columns, elg., Hornblende.
Acicular form : When the mineral is in the
form of small needles, e.g., Stibnite
(antimony ore).
Radiating form : It is a type of acicular form in
which the needles are arranged in a radiating
manner, e.g., Pyrite.
Granular form : When the mineral occurs in the
form of a granular mass, e.g., Chromite
(chromium ore).
Botryoidal form : When the mineral is shaped
like bunch of grapes, e.g., Psilomelane
(manganese ore).
Reni form : When the mineral occurs in the form
of kidney-shaped bodies, e.g., Hematite (iron
ore).
Amygdaloidal form : When the mineral occurs in
the form of almond-shaped bodies, e.g., Zeolites.
Pisolitic form : When the mineral in the form of an
aggregate of small pea-like bodies, e.g., Bauxite.
Tabular form : When the mineral is in the form of
flattened thick plates, e.g., Wollastonite.
Massive form : When the mineral occurs as a mass
without any definite form, e.g., Orthoclase.
2. Colour
The minerals show a vast variety of
colours. Though, many times, a mineral may
occur in more than one colour, however, the
colours shown by minerals are quite
characteristic and thus serve as an important
physical property for their identification, e.g.,
Pyrite is brass-yellow; Hornblende is
greenish-black; Biotite is brownish-black
Muscovite is colourless; Sulphur is yellow:
and calcite is white.
3. Lustre
The shine of a mineral is called ‘lustre’. It
may be of the following types.
Vitreous lustre :A mineral having a glassy
shine is said to have vitreous [Link]. Quartz
and calcite
Pearly lustre : A mineral having a pearly shine
has a pearly luster, e.g., Muscovite.
Metallic lustre : A mineral with a metallic
shine is said to have a metallic lustre, e.g.,
Magnetite, (iron ore).
Silky lustre : A mineral with a silky shine
is said to have a silky lustre. e.g., Abestos.
Resinous lustre : A mineral with a
resinous or greasy shine has a resinous
lustre, e.g., Talc.
Admantine lustre : This lustre indicates
the shine of a diamond, e.g., Diamond
and Zircon.
4. Transparency
The degree of transparency varies widely
among minerals. The following terminology is used
in this respect.
Transparent : A mineral which allows light to pass
through it fully, is said to be transparent, e.g.,
Quartz and Calcite (colourless varieties).
Semi-transparent : When a mineral does not allow
light to pass through fully and the objects seen
through it appear hazy, it is said to be semi-
transparent. e.g., Quartz and Calcite (slightly milky
varieties).
Translucent : A mineral which allows
only some diffused light to pass
through, is called translucent, e.g.,
Quartz and Calcite (milky white
varieties).
Opaque : A mineral which does not
allow any light to pass through, is said
to be opaque, e.g., Orthoclase,
Magnetite, and Hornblende.
5. Streak
The streak of a mineral is the colour of
its powder. For some minerals their colour is
seen to be entirely different from that of their
powder, which makes it a useful physical
property. The streak proves to be a useful
property only in the identification of ore
minerals. While the other minerals including
all the silicates show a white streak and thus
it does not help in distinguishing them.
Streak of a mineral can be readily observed by
scratching it on a streak plate which is made of
unglazed porcelain or roughened glass. While
determining streak for a mineral, care should be
taken to scratch it from its obscure part and to give
only a small scratch producing a small quantity of its
powder.
Examples:- Hematite : Colour-black, streak-
cherry red;
Chromite : Colour-greenish black, streak-
greenish brown;
Pyrite: Colour-brass yellow, streak-black.
6. Fracture
The fracture o a mineral is the
nature of its irregular surface along
which it breaks, when hammered. It is
a characteristic feature of several
minerals, thus helping in their
identification. The following are the
different types of fracture seen in
various minerals.
 Even Fracture : When the broken
surfaces of a mineral are smooth, it is
said to have an even fracture, e.g.,
Chert.
Uneven fracture : When a mineral
breaks with very rough and course
surfaces, the fracture is said to be
uneven, e.g., Chromite.
 Conchoidal fracture : The broken surfaces of
the mineral show concentrically arranged
grooves and ridges, resembling with the
concentric lines of growth on a shell (conch).
Thus, this fracture is known as conchoidal
fracture. e.g., Quartz.
Earthy fracture : When the broken surfaces
of a mineral show an earthy appearance, it is
said to have an earthy fracture, e.g., Sulphur
and Chalk.
7. Cleavage
The capability of some minerals to split
along certain planes is called cleavage; the
planes are known as cleavage planes. The
cleavage bears a definite relation to the
crystal structure. As a result the cleavage
planes of a mineral are always parallel to
some of the crystal faces of the form in which
it crystallizes. The degree of cleavage in the
minerals varies and is commonly given by
using the terms, such as, perfect, distinct,
poor, and indistinct.
The number of cleavage directions in
a mineral also varies. If a mineral
cleaves along only one direction, it is
said to have one set of cleavage; if
two, two sets of cleavage, and so on.
There is no cleavage in the
amorphous or non-crystalline
minerals. The following are the
various types of cleavage seen in the
minerals.
 Basal Cleavage : There is only one set of
cleavage. The minerals with this cleavage can
readily cleave or split into thin sheets, e.g.,
Muscovite.
Prismatic cleavage : There are two sets of
cleavage. The cleavage planes are parallel to
the vertical sets of crystal faces, e.g.,
Hornblende.
Cubic cleavage : There are three sets of
cleavage, at right at angles to each other, e.g.,
Galena.
 Rhombohedral cleavage : The are
three sets of cleavage, at angles
other than right angle. e.g., Calcite.

Octahedral cleavage : There are four

sets of cleavage. The cleavage planes
are parallel to the crystal form called
an octahedron, e.g., Fluorspar and
Magnetite.
8. Hardness
The hardness of a mineral may be
defined as the resistance which it offers
to be scratched. The minerals may be
hard or soft in nature. Thus showing a
varying degree of hardness of a mineral
the Moh’s scale of hardness (which
incorporates ten minerals assigned with
standard hardnesses) is followed.
 Moh’s scale of hardness
Name of the mineral Hardness (H)
Talc 1
Gypsum 2
Calcite 3
Fluorite 4
Apatite 5
Felspar 6
Quartz 7
Topaz 8
Corundum 9
Diamond 10
Besides these ten minerals of
known hardness, certain very
common and readily available
substances with their hardness
known, prove useful in finding
hardness of other minerals.
These include the following:
 Substance Hardness (H)

Knife blade 6.5

Broken glass 5

Finger nail 2.5

9. Play of Colours
It is the phenomenon in which
some minerals, when seen from
different angles or turned around,
display a series of prismatic colours,
e.g., Labradorite (a variety of felspar).
10. Tenacity
Tenacity of a mineral defines its characters like
brittleness, sectility malleability, flexibility and
elasticity.
Brittleness : It is the property because of which a
mineral crumbles when hammered. Such a mineral
is said to be ‘brittle’. Most of the minerals are brittle
in nature, e.g., Quartz, Calcite, Fluorite and
Magnetite.
Sectility : It is the property because of which a
mineral can be easily cut with a knife. Such minerals
are said to be ‘sectile’ and these are normally very
soft, e.g., Talc and Graphite.
Malleability : It is the property by virtue of which a
mineral flattens into a sheet when hammered. Such
a mineral is said to be ‘malleable’, e.g. Silver and
Gold.
Flexibility : It is the property by virtue of which a
mineral can be easily bent. Such a mineral is said to
be ‘flexible’, e.g. Chlorite.
Elasticity : It is the property because of which a
flexible mineral when bent, springs back to regain
its original position as the bending force is removed,
e.g., Muscovite and Biotite.
11. Florescence
It is the phenomenon in which some
minerals emit light while they are exposed to
radiations like X-rays, e.g., Fluorspar.
12. Phosphorescence
It is the phenomenon in which some
minerals emit light after they have been
either exposed to certain radiations or
subjected to heating or rubbing. For
example, Diamond (exposed to X-rays),
Quartz (fragments rubbed mutually), and
Fluorite (on heating), show
phosphorescence.
13. Magnetism
Though most of the minerals are non-
magnetic, however, some show varying degree of
magnetism. Depending upon the degree of
magnetism, the minerals may further be termed as
strongly magnetic, e.g. Magnetite; moderately
magnetic, e.g., Hematite and Chromite; and poorly
magnetic, e.g., Tourmaline. Accordingly, the
magnetic minerals exhibit varying degree of a
(traction towards and electromagnet, which
provides a very suitable method for their
separation.
14. Electricity
Some minerals show very peculiar
phenomena of electricity. A mineral may
develop electric charge on heating,
when it is said to be a pyroelectric
mineral, e.g. Tourmaline, Also, mineral
may develop charge on being subjected
to pressure changes, when it is called a
piezo-electric mineral, e.g., Quartz.
15. Specific gravity
The specific gravity of a substance is
defined as the ratio of its weight to the weight
of an equal volume of water. Though the
temperature variations bring a slight change n
the value of specific gravity, however, in the
present study, this may be overlooked. The
following methods are used for determining
specific gravity of the minerals.