Minerals and Rocks Flashcards
Building blocks of rocks
Minerals
Type of rock that formed from the cooling and solidification of lava and magma
Igneous Rock
type of igneous rock that forms when magma remains inside the Earth’s crust where it cools and solidifies in chambers within pre-existing rock. The magma cools very slowly over many thousands or millions of years until is solidifies.
- forms large crystals
Intrusive/Plutonic Igneous Rock
Type of igneous rock that is produced when magma exits and cools as lava at or near the Earth’s surface. Exposed to the relatively cool temperatures of the atmosphere, the lava cools quickly meaning that mineral crystals don’t have much time to grow.
- may be vesicular (contains air bubbles)
Extrusive/Volcanic Igneous Rock
Type of rock that is formed from the compaction and cementation of sediments
Sedimentary rock
group of sedimentary rocks most people think of when they think of sedimentary rocks. Clastic sedimentary rocks are made up of pieces (clasts) of pre-existing rocks. Pieces of rock are loosened by weathering, then transported to some basin or depression where sediment is trapped.
-classified by size
Clastic sedimentary rocks
This sedimentary rocks are composed of crystals having formed from a chemical reaction in a solution or from evaporation.
Crystalline Sedimentary Rocks
Two types of crystalline sedimentary rocks
evaporites and precipitates
layered crystalline sedimentary rocks that form from brines generated in areas where the amount of water lost by evaporation exceeds the total amount of water from rainfall and influx via rivers and streams.
evaporites
This sedimentary rocks are those such as halite and gypsum, and some limestones, which form direct precipitation (crystallization) of the dissolved ions in the water
precipitates
This sedimentary rocks are those containing large quantities of organic molecules. Organic molecules contain carbon, but in this context we are referring specifically to molecules with carbon-hydrogen bonds, such as materials from the soft tissues of plants and animals.
- biological matter
Organic sedimentary rocks
Type of rocks that are changed as a result of exposure to intense heat and/or pressure
Metamorphic Rocks
This metamorphism occurs due to heating, with or without burial, of rocks that lie close to a magma intrusion.
Contact metamorphism
metamorphism that occurs over broad areas of the crust
- due to pressure
regional metamorphism
5 Criteria of minerals
- solid under normal conditions
- naturally occuring
- inorganic
- fixed chemical formula
- atoms must be orderly structured (definite, crystalline)
All properties of Matter are due to the _________ and ____________
composition. internal arrangement of atoms
One of the most obvious properties of a mineral. Should be considered when identifying a mineral, but should never be used as the major identifying characteristic.
- not reliable
Color
The ability of a mineral to resist being scratched
hardness
Who designed the hardness scale
Friedrich Mohs
How a mineral reflects light. The terms metallic and nonmetallic describe the basic types.
Luster
A luster that looks like a polished metal
metallic luster
A luster having the look of metal that is dulled by weathering
Submetallic Luster
the type of luster for minerals that do not look metallic.
nonmetallic luster
(nonmetallic luster) this possess a superlative luster, which is most notably seen in diamond. Such minerals are transparent or translucent, and have a high refractive index
adamantine luster
(nonmetallic luster) describing yellow, dark orange, or brown minerals with slightly high refractive indices – honey like, but not necessarily the same color.
resinous luster
Describes a luster similar to the inside of a mollusk shell or shirt button. (pearls)
pearly luster
(nonmetallic luster) resembles fat or grease. It often occurs in minerals containing a great abundance of microscopic inclusions, with examples including opal and cordierite, jadeite. These minerals also feel greasy to the touch.
greasy luster
(nonmetallic) also known as ‘earthy’ and is used to describe minerals that have poor reflectivity. The surface of minerals is coarse and porous.
dull/earthy luster
(nonmetallic luster) have a parallel arrangement of extremely fine fibres, giving them a lustre reminiscent of silk.
(basta yung may lines)
silky luster
(nonmetallic luster)This type of lustre is one of the most commonly seen, and occurs in transparent or translucent minerals with relatively low refractive indices (white to gray)
vitreous luster
Two types of breakage
Fracture and cleavage
(breakage) The tendency of a mineral to break along flat planar surfaces as determined by the structure of its crystal lattice (regular pattern)
cleavage
(breakage) When a mineral breaks irregularly
fracture
the color of the powdered mineral, which is usually more useful for identification than the color of the whole mineral sample.
- using black or white plate to identify
- can be colored/none/white
streak
What is the density of most minerals?
Greater than 1 (has the ability to sink in water)
What do you call an almost mineral (lacks one of the criteria)
Mineraloids
(Mineral Classification based on chemical composition)
- 90% of the earth’s mineral
- presence of oxygen and silicon
Silicates
(Mineral Classification based on chemical composition)
minerals that do not include the silicon-oxygen units characteristic of silicates
Non-silicates (Oxides, Carbonates, Sulfides, Sulfates, Holides, Native Elements)
How are minerals formed?
- Cooling of Magma (Magmatic Crystallization)
- Secondary Processes (weathering, etc.
- metamorphism
