Minerals Flashcards
What are rocks made out of?
aggradations of minerals
What is a mineral?
naturally occurring, inorganic, solid element or compound with a definite chemical composition and a regular crystal structure.
What are minerals formed from?
Compounds
What is ionic bonding?
Atoms gain or lose outermost electron to form ions
What is covalent bonding?
Atoms share electrons to achieve electrical neutrality.
Which is stronger ionic bond or covalent bond?
covalent bond
What is a polymorph?
Minerals with the same composition but different crystalline structures.
What is crystal lattice?
Ordered atoms in crystal for a 3d lattice. A pattern that repeats in 3 dimensions.
What are the 5 ways that crystals grow?
Solidification from molten rock.
Precipitation from solution.
Chemical reaction high p and T.
Biomineralization(Oysters)
Solid-state diffusion
What is crystal face influence by?
The surroundings
In what direction do crystals grow?
They grow outward to fill all available space.
What interrupts crystal growth?
Competition for space
Rapid loss of heat
What is a geode?
Crystal formation in an open cavity in rocks. no space restriction = nice crystal face
What 3 ways can minerals be destroyed?
Melting
Dissolving
Chemical reaction
How does melting destroy a mineral?
heat breaks the bonds holding the atoms together.
How does dissolving destroy a mineral?
A solvent (usually water) breaks the atomic bond.
How does a chemical reaction destroy a mineral?
Reactive materials break bonds,
What is an Independent tetrahedron?
Tetrahedra share no oxygen- they are linked by cations.
Olivine
What does more shared oxygen govern?
Melting temperature
Mineral structure and cations present
susceptible to weathering
What are single-chain silicates?
Share one unique oxygen between tetrahedra.
pyroxene
What are double-chain silicates?
A double chain of silica tetrahedra bonded together.
What is sheet silicate?
Two dimensional sheets of linked tetrahedra.
What is a framework silicate?
All four oxygens in silica tetrahedra are shared.
What is Bowen Reaction Series?
Silicate minerals solidify in a specific order as igneous magma cools to a rock.
