Minerals Sample

1. MINERALS
Identify common rock-forming minerals using their
physical and chemical properties.

2. Dolomite Mining in Cebu
Dolomite 2
It type of limestone, the carbonate fraction
of which is dominated by the mineral
dolomite, calcium magnesium carbonate
[CaMg(CO3)2].

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What are their
differences?

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MINERALS
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.

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6. That Mineral Looks
Familiar ?!
halite (salt) for
cooking
graphite (pencil)
for writing
gold and quartz as
jewelry
snowflakes is also a
mineral!
It possess the properties as
a mineral.
But, what’s the
requirement to
become a mineral?
Let’s learn more..
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There are a lot of common minerals that you’ll probably encounter everyday. Here are
some of them. Can you identify them?

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MINERALS
5 Requirements that must be met in order for a substance to be classified as a mineral
 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

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Common Rock-forming Minerals
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

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Common Rock-forming Minerals
plagioclase
feldspars
alkali
feldspars
quartz
pyroxenes
amphiboles
micas
clays
olivine
calcite
dolomite

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Rock-Forming Minerals
in Major 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.
This chart shows the relative abundance of
the common rock forming minerals in some
of Earth's most abundant rock types.

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Mineral Primary Occurrence
Ferromagnesian silicates
Olivine igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks
Pyroxene group
Augite most common igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks
Amphibole group
Hombiende most common igneous rocks, metamorphic rocks
Biotite All rock types
Nonferromagnesian silicates
Quartz All rock types
Potassium feldspar group
Orthociase, microcine All rock types
Plagiociase feldspar group All rock types
Muscovite All rock types
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
Important
Rock-
forming
Minerals

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MINERALOGY
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.

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MINERALOGIST
 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.

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Physical and
Chemical Properties
of Minerals

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
 Color
 Crystal Form/Habit
 Hardness
 Streak
 Luster
 Cleavage or Fracture
 Specific Gravity
 Other properties
(taste, odor..)
 are the characteristics which can be
observed and determined easily

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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.

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
CRYSTAL FORM or HABIT
 It is the morphology of the crystal growth.

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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.

20. Streak Test
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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
STREAK
 It refers to the color displayed in finely powdered
form left behind when rubbed on a rough surface.
 It is definitive.

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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,

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
CLEAVAGE or FRACTURE

23. Galena
Shale
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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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
B. Non-metallic Luster – vitreous (glassy), adamantine
(brilliant/diamond-like), resinous, silky, pearly, dull
(earthy), greasy, among others.

24. For example, a bucket of silver (SG 10) would
weigh ten times more than a bucket of water.
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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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).

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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES of MINERALS
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)