Geology Ch. 3: Minerals – Flashcards
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-naturally occurring -generally inorganic -solid substance -orderly crystalline structure -definite chemical composition
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mineral
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solid aggregate of minerals or mineral- like matter that occurs naturally
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rock
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-smallest particles of matter that cannot be chemically split -composed of protons: charge of +1, neutrons: charge of 0, electrons: charge of -1
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atoms
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outermost shell contains these, which interact with other atoms to or chemical bonds
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valence electrons
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-number of protons in the nucleus of an atom -determines the atom's chemical nature
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atomic number
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-group of the same kind of atoms -approximately 90 natural elements and several synthesized in a laboratory -organized in a periodic table
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element
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-formation of a compound by combining two or more elements -transferring or sharing electrons that allows each atom to attain a full valence shell of electrons
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chemical bonding
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atoms tend to gain, lose, or share electrons until they are surrounded by eight valence electrons
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octet rule
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atoms gain or lose outermost valence electrons to form ___
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ions
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attraction of oppositely charged ions to one another
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ionic bond
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atoms share a pair of electrons
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covalent bonding
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-valence electrons are free to migrate among atoms -accounts for the high electrical conductivity of metals
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metallic bonding
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-many chemical bonds are actually hybrids that exhibit some degree of electron sharing and some degree of electron transfer
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hybrid bonds
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-similar to water freezing -when the magma is hot, the atoms are mobile -when the magma cools, the atoms slow and begin to chemically combine
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crystallization of molten rock
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appearance of a mineral in reflected light -two categories: metallic, nonmetallic
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luster
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-luster -ability to transmit light -color -streak
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optical properties
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minerals resistance to breaking or deforming
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tenacity
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-tenacity -hardness -cleavage -fracture
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crystal shape
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resistance of a mineral to abrasion or scratching -all minerals are compared to a standard scale called the Mohs scale of hardness
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hardness
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-tendency to break along planes of weak bonding -produces smooth, flat surfaces -described by: number of planes, angles between adjacent planes, resulting geometric shapes
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cleavage
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absence of cleavage when a mineral is broken -irregular fractures -conchoidal fractures -splintery fractures -fibrous fractures
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fracture
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defined as mass per unit volume
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density
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ratio of the weight of a mineral t the weight of an equal volume of water
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specific gravity
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-what all mineral samples are -any natural solid with orderly, repeating internal structures
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crystalline solid
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atomic arrangement that results in the basic building blocks of a mineral crystal
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unit cells
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minerals with the same composition but different crystalline structures
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polymorphs
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transforming one polymorph into another
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phase change
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-only a few dozen -common minerals that make up most of the rocks of earth's crust -composed mainly of the eight elements that make up most of the continental crust
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rock-forming minerals
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collection of specimens that exhibit similar internal structure and chemical compositions
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mineral species
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most common type of minerals -contain oxygen and silicon
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silicate minerals
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not as common as the silicates but important economically
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nonsilicate minerals
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-fundamental building block -four oxygen ions surrounding a much smaller silicon ion
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silicon-oxygen tetrahedron
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most common silicate group and make up more than 50 percent of earth's crust
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feldspars
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second-most abundant mineral in the continental crust and the only common mineral made completely of silicon and oxygen
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quartz
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-generally light in color -have a specific gravity of approximately 2.7 -contain varying amounts of aluminum, potassium, calcium, and sodium -lacking iron and magnesium
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light (nonferromagnesium) silicates
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-contain iron and/or magnesium in their structure -generally dark in color -have a specific gravity between 3.2 and 3.6
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dark (ferromagnetism) silicates
