MINERALS
Identify common rock-forming minerals using their
physical and chemical properties.
Dolomite 2
It type of limestone, the carbonate fraction
of which is dominated by the mineral
dolomite, calcium magnesium carbonate
[CaMg(CO3)2].
Dolomite Mining in Cebu
3
What are their
differences?
MINERALS 4
They make up Earth’s solid part and provide us
valuable resources. Scientists have identified
over 4,000 different minerals.
A small group of these minerals make up almost 90% of
the rocks of Earth’s crust which are known as the
common rock-forming minerals.
5
That Mineral Looks
6
Familiar ?!
There are a lot of common minerals that you’ll probably encounter everyday. Here are
some of them. Can you identify them?
halite (salt) for graphite (pencil) gold and quartz as
cooking for writing jewelry
But, what’s the
snowflakes is also a
requirement to
mineral!
become a mineral?
It possess the properties as
Let’s learn more..
a mineral.
MINERALS
5 Requirements that must be met in order for a substance to be classified as a mineral
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Naturally occurring
It is NOT man-made or machine generated.
Inorganic
It is NOT a by-product of living things.
Solid
It is a NOT liquid or gas at standard temperature and pressure.
Definite chemical composition
It means that all occurrences of that mineral have a chemical
composition identical within a specific limited range.
Ordered crystal structure
Atoms in a mineral are arranged in a systematic and repeating pattern
Common Rock-forming Minerals 8
To be considered a common rock-forming mineral, a mineral must be:
one of the most abundant minerals in
Earth’s crust
one of the original minerals present
at the time of a crustal rock’s
formation
an important mineral in determining
classification of a rock
Common Rock-forming Minerals 9
plagioclase amphiboles
feldspars micas
alkali clays
feldspars olivine
quartz calcite
pyroxenes dolomite
Rock-Forming Minerals 10
in Major Rock Types:
This chart shows the relative abundance of
the common rock forming minerals in some
of Earth's most abundant rock types.
Basalt and gabbro account for most of the
rock in the oceanic crust, granite (rhyolite)
and andesite (diorite) represent abundant
rock types of the continental crust.
Sandstone, shale and carbonates represent
the common materials in the sedimentary
cover of continents and ocean basins.
Mineral Primary Occurrence
Ferromagnesian silicates
Olivine igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks
Pyroxene group
Augite most common igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks Important 11
Amphibole group
Hombiende most common igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks
Biotite All rock types Rock-
Nonferromagnesian silicates
Quartz
Potassium feldspar group
All rock types
forming
Orthociase, microcine All rock types
Plagiociase feldspar group All rock types
Muscovite All rock types
Minerals
Clay mineral group Soils, sedimentary rocks,
some metamorphic rocks
Carbonates
Calcite Sedimentary rocks
Dolomite Sedimentary rocks
Sulfates
Anhydrite Sedimentary rocks
Gypsum Sedimentary rocks
Halides
Halite Sedimentary rocks
MINERALOGY 12
The study of minerals and their properties
(chemical and physical).
is a subject of geology specializing in the
scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure,
and physical (including optical) properties of
minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific
studies within mineralogy include the processes of
mineral origin and formation, classification of
minerals, their geographical distribution, as well
as their utilization.
MINERALOGIST 13
is a scientist trained in mineralogy or a
person who studies minerals.
Mineralogists determine the physical and chemical properties
of minerals, how to efficiently retrieve them from ores and
how to process them.
Physical and 14
Chemical Properties
of Minerals
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS 15
are the characteristics which can be
observed and determined easily
Color Cleavage or Fracture
Crystal Form/Habit Specific Gravity
Hardness Other properties
Streak (taste, odor..)
Luster
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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COLOR
It is the most obvious property but not always definitive.
It can also tell the impurities present in a mineral. Example, the same
mineral can be in different colors because of different impurities.
It is reliable for opaque and metallic minerals but not on transparent
or translucent minerals.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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CRYSTAL FORM or HABIT
It is the morphology of the crystal growth.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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HARDNESS
it is a measure of the resistance of a
mineral (not specifically surface) to
abrasion.
It is measured using a hardness scale
designed in 1892 by Friedrich Mohs, a
German geologist/ mineralogist which is
known as the Mohs Scale of Hardness
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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HARDNESS
Mohs Scale of Hardness
It measures the scratch resistance of
various minerals from a scale of 1 to
10, based on the ability of a harder
material/mineral to scratch a softer
one.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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STREAK
It refers to the color displayed in finely powdered
form left behind when rubbed on a rough surface.
It is definitive.
Streak Test
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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CLEAVAGE or FRACTURE
CLEAVAGE is how smoothly the
minerals break. If the minerals
break apart in similar pieces, it is
said to have good cleavage.
FRACTURE is when a mineral
breaks like a piece of glass with
uneven, jagged edges,
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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CLEAVAGE or FRACTURE
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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LUSTER
it is the quality and intensity of reflected light
exhibited by the mineral.
A. Metallic Luster – generally opaque and exhibit a
resplendent shine similar to a polished metal
Galena
B. Non-metallic Luster – vitreous (glassy), adamantine
(brilliant/diamond-like), resinous, silky, pearly, dull
(earthy), greasy, among others.
Shale
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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SPECIFIC GRAVITY
It is the ratio of the
density of the mineral
and the density of water
This parameter indicates
how many times more
the mineral weighs
compared to an equal
amount of water (SG 1).
For example, a bucket of silver (SG 10) would
weigh ten times more than a bucket of water.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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Other Properties
MAGNETISM
(ex: magnetite is strongly magnetic)
ODOR (ex: sulfur has distinctive smell)
TASTE (ex: halite is salty)
REACTION TO ACID
(ex: calcite fizzes with acid as with dolomite but
in powdered form)
CHEMICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS 34
The most stable and least ambiguous basis for classification of
minerals is based on their chemical compositions.
Element + Element + Element + Element +
Element Element + O2 Element + S2
SiO4 SO4 CO3 Halogens
Native Silicate Oxide Sulfate Sulfide Carbonate Halide
Gold Quartz Hematite Gypsum Pyrite Calcite Chlorine
Bismuth Olivine Magnetite Barite Galena Dolomite Fluorine
Diamond Talc Chromite Anhydrite Bornite Malachite Halite
