1. Mineral Notes Mineral = a naturally formed solid substance with a crystal structure, which was not formed from living things. Crystal structure = a definite pattern in the way the particles in a substance are arranged. pyrite

2. Properties used to identify minerals Hardness – ability of a mineral to resist being scratched *a harder mineral will scratch a softer mineral *Friedrich Mohs developed a system for comparing hardness of a mineral to 10 common minerals.

3. Properties used to identify minerals Color – a mineral may be one color or many colors. You cannot identify a mineral by color alone, but color is helpful along with other properties. Streak – the color of a mineral in powder form. Streak Test = rub mineral across unglazed porcelain

4. Luster – describes how a mineral reflects light from its surface.

5. Properties used to identify minerals Cleavage and Fracture – minerals break according to how their atoms are arranged. Cleavage = the tendency of a mineral to break along a flat surface. Fracture = the tendency of a mineral to break in a way that is not along a flat surface. Salt = cleavageQuartz = fracture