Minerals 💎 Flashcards
What is a mineral?
Natural occurring, inorganic solid that has a crystalline structure and definite chemical composition…
Five criteria’s to be a mineral
Solid
Natural
Inorganic
Fixed composition
Crystal structure
SNIFC
Minerals are mostly…
Compounds but some are just elements.
Compound example
Quartz
Element example
Gold, Cobalt, SILVER IS MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN A CAT, copper, Arsenic, Bismuth.
How do the minerals often look like when they are found?
Minerals are often dull looking and encased in rock when they are originally found.
What can you get when you polish some minerals?
Gemstones
How many shapes of mineral are there?
6
Where are minerals found?
Minerals are usually found in ore.
What is ore?
An ore is a type of rock that contains sufficient minerals and with important elemts like metals that can be economically extracted from the rock.
How is the ore extracted?
By mining.
How are the ores refined?
By smelting to extract the valuable elements.
How are the minerals classified?
Based on their chemical composition, minerals are classified into 8 group.
What are the 8 groups of minerals?
Silicates
Native elements
Carbonates
Halides
Oxides
Phosphates
Sulfates
Sulfides
How are Minerals Identified?
On the basis of their chemical composition and crystalline structure.
Does same mineral has the always same color?
No
What is a streak?
A streak is the color of a mineral in powdered form
How can you observe the streak of a mineral?
Rub the mineral against a piece of unglazed ceramic tile, this is called a streak plate.
What is the streak of a metallic mineral?
A metallic mineral will have a dark streak.
What is the streak of a non-metallic mineral?
A nonmetallic mineral will have a very light or no streak.
What would cause a mineral to leave no streak?
Minerals that are harder than the streak plate are said to have “no streak” or a “colorless streak.”
What is a luster?
Luster is the way a mineral reflects light.
What is a metallic luster?
Metallic Luster reflects light like polished metal.
What is a non-metallic luster?
Nonmetallic Luster - Does not reflect light like a metal.
What are some examples of luster?
Metallic, non-metallic, glassy, waxy, pearly, dull or earthy
What is hardness?
The ability of a mineral to resist scratching.
What is the Mohs Hardness Scale?
The scale which the hardness of a minerals is rated.
How do you test an unknown mineral’s hardness?
You must determine the hardest mineral on the scale that the unknown mineral can scratch.
What does the density of a mineral depend on?
The kinds of atoms in the mineral
How closely those atoms are packed
What is a crystalline structure?
The pattern of atomic structure.
How a mineral breaks?
Cleavage and fracture.
What kind of break is a cleavage?
When a mineral splits evenly along a flat surface
What kind of break is a fracture?
When a mineral breaks in an irregular way. (unevenly)
What is a Double Refraction?
These minerals produce a double image of any object viewed through the mineral
Why would a mineral be attracted to a magnet?
Contains iron.
Wha tis a Fluorescence?
The ability to glow under UV light
What is a Phosphorescence?
The mineral glows under UV light, when the light is turned off, the mineral continues to glow
How do minerals form?
Formation from organic processes
Crystallization from dissolved materials in water
Crystallization of cooling magma or lava
What is a Formation from organic processes ?
This means a living thing helped create it, but it is not from the living thing itself
Examples: Coral and shells are made out of the mineral calcite.
What is a Crystallization from dissolved materials in water?
When elements and compounds leave a dissolved solution, crystallization can occur.
Evaporation
Cooling hot water solutions
Geodes
What is a Crystallization of cooling magma or lava?
Cooling magma can create igneous rocks - these rocks contain crystalized minerals such as quartz, feldspar and biotite mica.
What is a definite crystalline structure?
A crystal is a solid in which atoms or molecules are arranged in a definite pattern that is repeated over and over and over and over again.
