Minerals Flashcards
Mineral
A naturally occurring and inorganic compound whose composition can be expressed as a chemical formula
Native mineral
A mineral composed of a single element
Compound mineral
Made of a combination of elements
Accessory mineral
Minerals occurring within a rock in small quantities
Lustre
The surface appearance of the mineral
Habit
The shape of the mineral
Cleavage
Planes of weakness in the mineral
Fracture
the way the mineral breaks if no cleavage is present
Order of minerals in Mohs scale of hardness
Talc Gypsum Calcite Fluorite Apatite Feldspar Quartz Topaz Corundum Diamond
Twinning
When 2 or more crystals grow with different orientations from a common plane
Silicate minerals
Minerals composed of silicon and oxygen
Bridging oxygen
An O2 atom shared by 2 SiO4 tetrahedra in a crystal structure
Rock
A naturally occurring substance composed of an aggregate of 1 or more minerals
Weathering
The in situ breakdown of material by mechanical and chemical processes
Erosion
A process whereby particles are detached from rock by the action of wind water and ice
Transport
The process whereby eroded rock particles are moved by the action of wind water or ice
Deposition
The laying down of rock particles after being transported by water ice or wind
Extrusion
The process where igneous rock has flowed out to the surface
Burial
The term for when successive layers of sedimentary rock are laid on top of one another
Diagenesis
The change that takes place in sedimentary rock due to burials and involving low temps and pressures
Recrystallisation
A process where the form and texture of a rock minerals changed without changing the overall composition
Metamorphism
A process whereby changes are brought to rocks in the earths crust by the action of heat and pressures
Partial melting
The incomplete melting of a rock to produce a melt of a different composition
Magma accumulation
The collection of magma at the base of the earths crust prior to the intrusion
Crystallisation
The gradual solidification of minerals from a melt
Intrusion
A body of igneous rock that has forced its way into pre-existing rock
Orogenesis
Mountain building/ significant tectonic uplift
