Minerals

Question 1

mineral resource

Answer 1

minerals or rocks mined for products

Question 2

Mineral commodities

Answer 2

specific elements extracted from processing minerals

Question 3

ex of mineral commodity
(want aluminum)

Answer 3

extract gibbsite (mineral containing aluminum) from bauxite

Question 4

beneficiation to make computer chips

Answer 4

extract silicon from quartz

Question 5

what elements does hematite have?

Answer 5

iron & oxygen

Question 6

benefication

Answer 6

process of extracting desired mineral or element from and ore

Question 7

what are the five characteristics that define a mineral

Answer 7

1. naturally occurring or mimics nature
2. Inorganic or identical to inorganic material
3. Solid
4. Orderly crystalline structure/chemically homogeneous
5. definite chemical comp. that allows for some variation

Question 8

inorganic

Answer 8

inorganic: found naturally in the ground and have no carbon chains attached to hydrogen

Question 9

how are animals involved in the production of inorganic minerals?

what do annimals secrete (mineral) & in what forms? when is it a mineral

Answer 9

secrete calcite in the form of shells or coral reefs, when buried, they’re considered minerals

Question 10

Is volcanic glass considered a mineral?

Answer 10

no, doesn’t have an orderly crystalline structure

Question 11

explain the fifth characteristic of minerals

Answer 11

specimen of same mineral have the same chemical formula (equal proportions of atoms), but can have impurities that cause composition to vary

Question 12

Impurities

Answer 12

element can substitute other elements of similar size without changing the mineral’s internal structure

Question 13

4 example of minerals containing one element and what that element is

Answer 13

gold (Au), diamonds (C), native copper (Cu), sulfur (S)

Question 14

Chemical formula of quartz, hematite, and halite

Answer 14

SiO2
Fe2O3
NaCl

Question 15

Will specimen of the same mineral break in the same fashion?

Answer 15

yes

Question 16

What varies with specimen of the same mineral and what doesn’t?

Answer 16

physical properties change, but chemical properties don’t

Question 17

Diagnostic properties
ex. halite

Answer 17

aid in mineral identification (something unique about that mineral)

halite-salty

Question 18

Ambiguous properties
ex.

Answer 18

properties that vary among specimen of the same mineral

color

Question 19

what are some minerals that come in a variety of colors?

Answer 19

quartz and flourite

Question 20

Luster

Answer 20

the appearance/quality of light reflected from the surface of a mineral

Question 21

metallic luster

Answer 21

minerals that have the appearance of a metal (shiny)

Question 22

what are examples of minerals that have two types of luster

submetallic and metallic

Answer 22

galena and native copper: metallic but when exposed to atmosphere, they get tarnished and dull (submetallic luster)

Question 23

Nonmetallic luster adjectives

Answer 23

vitreous (glassy), dull/earthy, pearly, silky, greasy

Question 24

Streak
what’s a streak plate made of?

Answer 24

Color of a mineral in powdered form
porcelain

Question 25

What mineral will not have a streak? Why?

Answer 25

quartz, harder than streak plate

Question 26

why is streak useful when working with specimen? Give an example using a mineral and its luster as well (nonmetallic and metallic)

Answer 26

specimen of the same mineral, despite having a dif color, will have a consistent streak color

hematite comes in reddish-brown (nonmetallic) and blackish (metallic) but will both have a brick red streak

Question 27

Streak of metallic minerals vs nonmetallic

Answer 27

metallic: dense, dark
nonmetallic: light color

Question 28

luster of limonite, gypsum, talc

Answer 28

dull/earthy
silky (satin)
greasy

Question 29

Opaque

Answer 29

no light transmitted

Question 30

translucent

Answer 30

light transmitted

Question 31

transparent

Answer 31

light and image transmitted

Question 32

Why are silicate minerals the most abundant in Earth’s crust and mantle?

Answer 32

Oxygen and silicon are the most common elements in the Earth’s crust and are two of the most common elements in the Earth’s mantle.