EARTH AND LIFE SCIENCE -Q1: WEEK 1C

COMMON ROCK-FORMING MINERALS

OBJECTIVE S:
At the end of the lesson, the learners will be able to: a.
describe the different properties of minerals;
b. test for the hardness of mineral found in their community; and

c. recognize the importance of rock-forming minerals in shaping the

Earth’s crust.

LEARNING COMPETENCY:

Identify common rock-forming minerals using their physical and chemical

properties. (S11/12ES-Ia-e-9)

I. WHAT HAPPENED

What is a mineral?
How is a mineral different from a rock?

 Minerals are the building blocks of rocks. These minerals that are
common and abundant on Earth’s crust are known as rock-forming
minerals.
 There are five important characteristics which define a mineral:
 Naturally-occurring (NOT man-made or machine
generated)
 Inorganic (not a byproduct of living things)
 Solid (should exhibit stability at room temperature)

1
  Crystalline structure (looks like crystals since the
arrangement of their atoms is ordered and repetitive)
 Can be represented by a chemical formula (most minerals
are chemical compounds and can be represented using a
fixed or variable chemical formula. For example: quartz
(SiO2) which indicates that the mineral quartz contains one
silicon atom and two oxygen atoms).

II. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

MINERAL POPERTIES

A. PHYSICAL PROPERTIES:

We are going to use halite (table salt) to demonstrate the different mineral
properties.
Mineral Name Halite (table salt)
Chemical composition NaCl
Luster Non-metallic – vitreous; transparent to translucent

Hardness Soft (2-2.5)

Color White
Streak White
Crystal Form/Habit Cubic
Cleavage Perfect cubic
Specific Gravity Light (2.2)
Other Properties Salty taste; very soluble; produces reddish spark in flame

There are several mineral properties which must be identified and defined.

1. Luster
 it is the quality and intensity of reflected light exhibited by the mineral.

2
 a. metallic – generally opaque and exhibit a resplendent shine similar to a
polished metal.
b. non-metallic – vitreous (glassy), adamantine
(brilliant/diamond-like), resinous, silky, pearly, dull
(earthy), greasy, among others.

(https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Properties-of-Minerals-Luster-5E-Activity-3959187)
2. Hardness
 it is a measure of the resistance of a mineral (not specifically surface) to
abrasion.

a. German geologist/mineralogist Friedrich Mohs designed the “Mohs Scale

of Hardness”.

(https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo/friedrich-mohs.html)

3
 b. The “Mohs Scale of Hardness” measures the scratch resistance of various
minerals from a scale of 1 to 10, based on the ability of a harder
material/mineral to scratch a softer one.

c. Advantages of Mohs scale:

i. The test is easy.
ii. The test can be done anywhere, anytime, as long as there is
sufficient light to see scratches.
iii. The test is convenient for field geologists with scratch kits who
want to make a rough identification of minerals outside the lab.

d. Disadvantages of Mohs scale:

i. The scale is qualitative, not quantitative.
ii. The test cannot be used to accurately test the hardness of
industrial materials.

(https://www.nps.gov/articles/mohs-hardness-scale.htm)
Big Idea:
• If you will be able to scratch a mineral using your finger nail, then its
hardness is around 1 – 2.5.

4
 • If you will be able to scratch a mineral using a coin, then its hardness
is around 2.5 – 3.5.
• If you will be able to scratch a mineral using a knife or glass plate,
then its hardness is around 3.5 – 5.5.
• If you will be able to scratch a mineral using a steel nail, then its
hardness is around 5.5 -6.5.
• If you will be able to scratch a mineral using a masonry drill, then its
hardness is around 6.5 to 8.5.
• If you will not be able to scratch a mineral using all the materials
mentioned above, then its hardness is around
8.5 – 10.
 From the picture above, we can say that diamonds are the hardest and
talc is the least hard.

3. Crystal Form/Habit
 The external shape of a crystal or groups of crystals is displayed/observed as
these crystals grow in open spaces.
 The form reflects the supposedly internal structure (of atoms and ions) of the
crystal (mineral)
 It is the natural shape of the mineral before the development of any cleavage
or fracture.
 Examples include: prismatic, tabular, bladed, platy, reniform, and equant.
 A mineral that do not have a crystal structure is described as amorphous.

5
 (http://www.geologyin.com/2019/10/crystal-habits-and-forms.html)

4. Color and Streak

 A lot of minerals can exhibit same or similar colors. Individual minerals can
also display a variety of colors resulting from impurities and also from some
geologic processes like weathering.
 Examples of coloring: quartz can be pink (rose quartz), purple (amethyst),
orange (citrine), white (colorless quartz) etc.

6
 (https://openpress.usask.ca/physicalgeology/chapter/5-6-mineral-properties-2/)
 Streak on the other hand, is the mineral’s color in powdered form. It is
inherent in almost every mineral, and is a more diagnostic property
compared to color. Note that the color of a mineral can be different from its
streak.
 Examples of streak: pyrite (FeS2) exhibits gold color but has a black or dark
gray streak.

7
 (https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/1005344/view/pyrite-streak-test)

5. Cleavage
 The property of some minerals to break along specific planes of weakness to
form smooth, flat surfaces.

a. These planes exist because the bonding of atoms making up the

mineral happens to be weak in those areas.

b. When minerals break evenly in more than one direction, cleavage is

described by the number of cleavage directions, the angle(s) at which they
meet, and the quality of cleavage (e.g. cleavage in 2 directions at 90o).

c. Cleavage is different from habit; the two are distinct, unrelated

properties. Although both are dictated by crystal structure, crystal habit
forms as the mineral is growing, relying on how the individual atoms in the

8
 crystal come together. Cleavage, meanwhile, is the weak plane that
developed after the crystal is formed.

(http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/geology/grocha/mineral/cleavage.html)

6. Specific Gravity
 The ratio of density of the mineral and the density of water.
 This parameter indicates how many times more the mineral weighs
compared to an equal amount of water (SG 1).
 For example, a bucket of silver (SG 10) would weigh ten times more than a
bucket of water.

9
 (https://www.rocksmins.com/products/physical-properties-used-to-identify-minerals-collections/mineralsspecific -gravity-collection)

7. Others
 Magnetism
 Odor  Taste
 Tenacity
 Reaction to acid
 For example, magnetite is strongly magnetic; sulfur has distinctive smell;
halite is salty; calcite fizzes with acid as with as with dolomite but in
powdered form…

Question: Can minerals be grouped together? What will be the basis for such
groupings?

10
Although physical properties are useful for mineral identification, some minerals
may exhibit a wide range of properties. Minerals, like many other things, can also
be categorized based on their chemical compositions: Silicates, Oxides, Sulfates,
Sulfides, Carbonates, Native elements, and Halides.

B. CHEMICAL PROPERTIES:

1. Silicates
 Minerals containing the two most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust,
namely, silicon and oxygen.
 When linked together, these two elements form the silicon oxygen
tetrahedron – the fundamental building block of silicate minerals.
 Over 90% of rock-forming minerals belong to this group.

2. Oxides
 Minerals composed of oxygen anion (O2-) combined with one or more metal
ions.

3. Sulfates
 Minerals containing sulfur and oxygen in the form of the (SO4)- anion.

4. Sulfides
 Minerals containing sulfur and a metal; some sulfides are sources of
economically important metals such as cooper, lead, and zinc.

5. Carbonates
 Minerals containing the carbonate (CO3)2- anion combined with other
elements.

6. Native elements
 Minerals that formed as individual elements.

a. metals and intermetals – minerals with high thermal and electrical

conductivity, typically with metallic luster, low hardness (gold, lead)

b. semi-metals – minerals that are more fragile than metals and have lower
conductivity (arsenic, bismuth).
11
 c. nonmetals – nonconductive (sulfur, diamond)

7. Halides
 Minerals containing halogen elements combined with one or more metals.

The table below shows the summary of mineral group categorization based on their
chemical compositions.
Element Element Element + Element + Element Element + Element
O SO +S +
+ SiO CO Halogens
3

Native Silicate Oxide Sulfate Sulfide Carbonate Halide

Gold Quartz Hematite Gypsum Pyrite Calcite Chlorine
Bismuth Olivine Magnetite Barite Galena Dolomite Fluorine
Dismond Talc Chromite Anhydrite Bornite Malachite Halite

The elements listed below comprise almost 99% of the minerals making up the
Earth’s crust.
Element Symbol % by weight of % atoms
Earth’s crust
Oxygen O 46.6 62.6
Silicon Si 27.7 21.2
Aluminum Al 8.1 6.5
Iron Fe 5.0 1.9
Calcium Ca 3.6 1.9
Sodium Na 2.8 2.6
Potassium K 2.6 1.4
Magnesium Mg 2.1 1.8
All other elements 1.4 <0.1

III. WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

Activity 2: Let’s Recall

12
1. What are the different characteristics that define a mineral?

2. Which is more abundant in the Earth’s crust: silicates or all other

mineral groups combined? Explain.

3. How does streak differ from color, and why is it more reliable for
rock identification?

4. What is the difference between a habit and a cleavage plane?

5. What is a “rock-forming mineral” and give three examples.

Activity 3: Finding and Testing

Identify at least 3 minerals found in your own house/locality/community

and try to test its hardness using the following: finger nails, coin, knife,
steel nail, and masonry drill bit (if available).
With your knowledge regarding Mohs scale of
Hardness, rate each mineral you’ve found. Be very careful while doing
this activity.

EVALUATION/POST TEST:

Identification:

1. A qualitative scale used to measure the scratch resistance of various

minerals from a scale of 1 to 10.
____________________

2. It is the quality and intensity of reflected light exhibited by the

mineral. ____________________

13
3. It is the mineral’s color in powdered form which is more reliable in
identifying minerals compared to color.
____________________

4. It is the weak plane that developed after the crystal is formed.

____________________

5. It indicates how many times more the mineral weighs compared to an

equal amount of water.
____________________

Modified True or False. Write True if the statements below are correct.
Otherwise, change the underlined word to make the statements correct.
Write your answers on the space provided.

6. According to Mohs scale of Hardness, talc is harder than quartz.

_______________

7. Sulfates are minerals containing sulfur and silicon elements.

_______________

8. Water is not considered mineral because it is not solid and crystalline.

_______________

9. Tube ice is not a mineral because it is not naturally-occurring.

_______________

10. Rose quartz, amethyst, and citrine are all quartz with different colors.
_______________

References:

Cortez, Leah Amor S. and Sia, Shila Rose D. (2016). Science in

14
Today’s World Earth and Life Science. Sibs Publishing House, Inc., 9-30

Licuanan, Patricia B. (2016). Earth and Life Science Teacher’s

Guide. Commission on Higher Education. 24-40, 46-55

15