1. Minerals

2. Minerals

4. What is a Mineral? Never Sneeze in Denver, Colorado!
Naturally Occurring (found naturally in nature)
Solid
Inorganic (Do not come from living
things)

5. What is a Mineral? Never Sneeze In Denver, Colorado!
Definite Chemical Composition: Minerals are expressed by a specific chemical formula which tells you the types and amounts of elements are found in a given type of mineral.
-Gold (Au)
-Calcite (CaCO3)
-Quartz (SiO2)
-Pyrite (FeS2)

6. What is a Mineral? Never Sneeze in Denver, Colorado!
Crystal Structure: Ordered arrangement of atoms in patterns that give each type of mineral a characteristic crystal shape .

7. Naturally Occurring
Formed by natural processes not in the laboratory

8. Solid Not gas or liquid -H2O as ice in a glacier is a mineral, but
water is not

9. Inorganic Do not come from living things Formed by inorganic processes
Does not contain chains of carbon atoms

10. Definite Chemical Composition
Minerals are expressed by a specific chemical formula which tells you the types and amounts of elements found in a given type of mineral.
-Gold (Au)
-Calcite (CaCO3)
-Quartz (SiO2)
-Pyrite (FeS2)

11. Crystal Structure Ordered arrangement of atoms in patterns
Minerals have a characteristic crystal shape resulting from the atomic packing of the atoms when the mineral is forming
Apatite
Feldspar
Diamond
Quartz 8

12. Economic Importance of Minerals
Minerals are in many things we see and use everyday such as; glass, cement, plaster, iron, gold.
An ore is a rock that contains a metal or economically useful mineral.

13. Uses of Minerals
Minerals are also the source of metals, gems, food and medicines.
A gemstone is a hard, colorful mineral that has a brilliant or glassy luster.

14. Every American Requires 40,000 Pounds of New Minerals per Year
at this level of consumption the average newborn infant will need a lifetime supply of:
795 lbs of lead (car batteries, electric components)
757 lbs of zinc (to make brass, rubber, paints)
1500lbs of copper (electrical motors, wirings
3593 lbs aluminum (soda cans, aircraft)
32,700 lbs of iron (kitchen utensils, automobiles, buildings)
28,213 lbs of salt (cooking, detergents)
1,238,101 lbs of stone, sand, gravel, cement (roads, homes, etc.)

15. Where Do Minerals Come From?
Magma
Evaporation

16. How do minerals form? Crystallization from magma
Precipitation (rain, sleet, snow)
Pressure and temperature
Hydrothermal solutions (hydro=water,
thermal = heat)

17. How Are Minerals Identified?
Minerals are identified by a combination of properties that are unique to each type of mineral.
Color
Luster
Hardness
Streak
Density
Crystal Shape
Cleavage and Fracture (how it breaks apart)
Other Unique or Special Properties

18. ~5 Steel of a pocket knife
Hardness
The ability of a mineral to resist being scratched
Resistance to scratching by different items; “scratchability”
Mohs Hardness Scale
>2 fingernail
3 penny
~5 Steel of a pocket knife
5.5 Window Glass
6.6 Steel of a file
7 quartz crystal

19. Mohs Mineral Hardness Scale
1) Talc
2) Gypsum
3) Calcite
4) Flourite
5) Apatite
6) Feldspar
7) Quartz
8) Topaz
9) Corundum
10) Diamond
Softest 1 9 5 2 6 10 3 7
Hardest 4 8

20. Streak
The color of the powder left when a mineral is scratched on a surface
Determined by rubbing the mineral on a piece of unglazed porcelain (streak plate)

21. Luster The way a mineral reflects light
General appearance of a mineral surface in reflected light
Glassy-Obsidian