PROPERTIES OF MINERALS MRS SANDY GOMEZ

CHARACTERISTICS OF MINERALS  Naturally Occuring: Formed by natural processes in the world

CHARACTERISTICS OF MINERALS  Inorganic: must not be formed by the remains of living things. Basalt Coal

CHARACTERISTICS OF MINERALS  Solid: Has a definite volume and definite shape. Its particles are very tightly packed.

CHARACTERISTICS OF MINERALS  Crystal Structure: particles line up in a pattern that repeats over and over again.

CHRACTERISTICS OF MINERALS  Definite Chemical Composition: A mineral will always contain certain elements in a definite proportion.

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS

 Color  Streak  Luster  Density  Hardness  Crystal system  Cleavage and fracture  Special Properties

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Color: Is the easiest to observe, but so reliable. Pyrite Gold Chalcopyrite

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Streak: Is the color of its powder. Even if the color of the mineral varies, its streak won’t. Which makes this property useful.

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Luster: Is the term used to describe how light is reflected from a minerl’s surface. (How shiny it is).  Types:  Metallic luster  Glassy Luster

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Silky luster  Pearly luster

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Density: Is the amount of mass in a given volume.

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Hardness: Is determined with a scratch test. A mineral can scratch any other softer than itself.  Is measured using the Moh´s Hardness Scale

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Crystal Systems: It refers to the crystal structure in each mineral.

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Cleavage and Fracture:  Cleavage: Is present when a mineral splits easily along flat surfaces.  Fracture: Is present when a mineral breaks apart in an irregular way.

PROPERTIES THAT HELP IDENTIFY MINERALS  Special properties Fluorescence Bend light (produce double image) Magnetism