Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Earth Systems 3209 Unit: 3 Earth’s Materials Reference: Chapters 2, 3, 6, 7; Appendix A & B

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Mineral Properties (other) Unit 3: Topic 1.4 Focus on...  identifying and describing other mineral properties that can be used to identify minerals (less common)

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  Each and every mineral has certain mineral properties.  The properties of each mineral depends on the following: 1)They type of elements present 2)The arrangement of atoms 3)The strength of bonding Mineral Properties Text Reference: Pages 40-44

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 1) Specific Gravity8) Color 2) Hardness9) Taste 3) Streak10) Feel 4) Cleavage11) Magnetism 5) Fracture12) Acid Test 6) Luster13) Fluorescence 7) Crystal Shape (Form) Mineral Properties  The following are a list of physical properties that each mineral may display:

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  A mineral that do not have any cleavage planes is said to break by “Fracture". Example is glass or the mineral quartz which is said to have Conchoidal Fracture. 5) Fracture

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  Another example of a mineral that fractures is Asbestos. This mineral displays a Fibrous Fracture. 5) Fracture

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  The appearance of the mineral in reflected light.  Most minerals can be described as: 1.Metallic 2.Non-Metallic A)Glassy B)Greasy C)Earthy or Dull D)Pearly 6) Luster

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Most minerals can be described as; 1.Metallic 6) Luster – Metallic

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Most minerals can be described as; 2.Non-Metallic A) Glassy 6) Luster – Non - Metallic

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Most minerals can be described as; 2.Non-Metallic B) Greasy 6) Luster – Non - Metallic

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Most minerals can be described as; 2.Non-Metallic C) Earthy or Dull 6) Luster – Non - Metallic

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Most minerals can be described as; 2.Non-Metallic D) Pearly 6) Luster – Non - Metallic

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  The crystal form of a mineral describes its visible external shape.  It can apply to an individual crystal or an assembly of crystals. 7) Crystal Shape (Form)

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  The actual color of the mineral that you see.  This property is less distinctive. (not as reliable as the others) WHY?  Two reasons: 1) Different minerals can have the same color Halite Calcite 8) Color

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador  Two reasons: 2)Some minerals may have impurities, which cause a single mineral to have different colors. 8) Color

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Other Properties  These physical properties can be helpful to identify minerals that are similar: 9)Taste - what the actual mineral taste like. Ex. Halite (rock salt) taste salty. 10)Feel - what the mineral feels like. Ex. Graphite - greasy

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Other Properties  These physical properties can be helpful to identify minerals that are similar: 9)Magnetism - if a mineral is magnetic or not. Ex. Magnetite (Loadstone). 10)Acid Test - drop acid on the sample to see if the mineral reacts (fizzes). Used to test the Carbonate group. Ex. Calcite (Limestone)

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 13)Fluorescence – is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light. Fluorescent minerals emit visible light when exposed to ultraviolet light. Example: Other Properties

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Example 1: Which mineral property is evident in the diagram below? (A) cleavage(B) fracture (C) hardness(D) luster Which mineral property refers to the quality of light reflected from the surface? (A) colour(B) crystal form (C) luster(D) streak

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Example 2: Minerals are commonly identified using physical criteria. For which of the following does the description match the test? (A) Fracture – the tendency of the mineral to break in an irregular manner. (B) Cleavage –.the appearance of the mineral in reflected light. (C) Lustre – the colour of the powdered form of the mineral. (D) Streak – the resistance of the mineral to scratching. Which of the following minerals can be identified by the physical property of taste? (A) apatite(B) basalt (C) halite(D) graphite

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Your Turn... Take the time and complete the following questions... (Solutions to follow) Question: Explain why color is not reliable when identifying minerals.

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Solutions... Question: Explain why color is not reliable when identifying minerals. Color is NOT a reliable property to identify a mineral for two reasons: 1)Different minerals can have the same color. Example: Halite and Calcite. 2)A given mineral can have more than one color. Example: quartz has several colors.

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Summary... Overview of Points covered:  The properties of each mineral depends on the following: 1) The type of elements present 2) The arrangement of atoms 3) The strength of bonding  Less reliable mineral properties include: 1) Fracture5) Taste 2)Luster6) Feel 3)Crystal Shape7) Magnetism 4)Color8) Acid Test 9) Fluorescence