Group 2: EARTH MATERIALS AND RESOURCES

2.1 MINERALS AND ROCKS

MINERALS 
 A Mineral is a homogeneous solid that can be made of single native element
or more usually a compound. Minerals makes up the Earth’s rocks and
sands, and are an important component of soils.

  Minerals are naturally occurring, inorganic, homogeneous solid with definite

chemical composition and crystalline structure.

 They are building blocks of rocks. 

Mineralogist- a person who studies minerals.

Mineralogy- the study of all aspects of minerals. 

CHARACTERISTICS: 
 1. Naturally occurring- a product of Earth’s natural process. 

2. Inorganic- the object is not alive, and was not a part of anything that was alive.

3. Homogeneous Solid- physically and chemically uniform down to the atomic level.

4. Definite chemical composition- represented by a chemical formula.

5. Orderly crystalline structure- have a typical ordered internal structure. Atoms are
arranged in an orderly and repeating pattern. 

DIFFERENT PROPERTIES OF MINERALS:

a. Color- the color of the mineral.

b. Streak- color of mineral in powdered form.
c. Hardness- resistance to scratch
d. Luster- The reflection of light from the surface of a mineral, described by its
quality and intensity. Luster is described as metallic, glassy, earthy, etc.
e. Cleavage- the tendency of a mineral to break weak planes. 
f. Specific Gravity- the ratio of the density of a mineral to an equal volume of
water.

COMMON MINERALS

QUARTZ -is one of the most common minerals in the Earth’ crust. Quartz has a
glassy luster and hardness of 7.
POTASSIUM FELDSPAR- is a member of the feldspar family and is a silicate
mineral. It contains a considerable amount of potassium and is typically pink-
salmon to white in color. Has a hardness of 6. 

PLAGIOCLASE FELDSPAR- is also a member of the feldspar mineral family.

Plagioclase feldspar is stubby prism, general white to gray and have a glassy
luster.
ROCKS

ROCKS are made up of different minerals, broken pieces of crystals, broken

pieces of rocks. Some rocks are made of the shell of once-living animals, or
compressed pieces of plants. 

Rocks are divided into three basic types depending on how they were formed:
IGNEOUS ROCKS, SEDIMENTARY ROCKS, METAMORPHIC ROCKS.

 IGNEOUS ROCKS

Igneous rocks (the name “igneous” comes from the word “ignis” which
means “fire” in Latin) form when hot molten rock(magma) crystallizes and
solidifies. Igneous rocks are classified into two groups depending upon
where the molten rock solidifies: EXTRUSIVE AND INTRUSIVE.
EXTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCK
                Extrusive or volcanic, igneous rock is produced when magma
exits and cools as lava at or near the Earth’s surface. Exposed to the
relative cool temperature of the atmosphere, the lava cools quickly
meaning that, minerals crystals don’t have much time to grow. This results
in rocks with a very fine-grained or even glassy texture. Hot gasses are
often trapped in the quenched lava, forming bubbles (vesicles). 

Types of Extrusive rocks includes:

 Pumice
 Obsidian
 Andesite
 Rhyolite
 Basalt

INTRUSIVE IGNEOUS ROCKS 

             Intrusive or plutonic igneous rock forms when magma remains
inside the Earth’s crust where it cools and solidifies in chambers within pre-
existing rock. The magma cools very slowly over many thousands or
millions of years until is solidifies. Slow cooling means the individual
mineral grains have a very long time to grow, forming a rock with large,
visible crystal. 

 APHANITIC TEXTURE – describes the texture of fine-grained igneous rock in

which different components are not distinguish by the unaided eye. 
PHANERITIC TEXTURE – describes an igneous rock texture in which mineral
grains are large enough to be seen with the unaided eye and are approximately equal
size. 

 SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

 Sedimentary rock is formed from deposits of pre-existing rocks or

pieces of once-living organism that accumulate on the earth’s
surface.
 Formed when sediments are transformed into solid rocks.
 May be formed by compaction and cementation. 
         

COMPACTION- happens when sediments are buried so deeply that it places then
under the pressure cause by the weight of the layers above. This tightens the grains of
sediments together, minimizing pores and spaces. 

CEMENTATION- is the process by which the water which contains cementing

materials seeps through the pores and spaces between particles, binding the particles
together. 
Sedimentary rocks are also classified on how they are formed. So we have
here the:

CLASTIC SEDIMENTARY ROCKS – are made up to pieces of pre-existing rocks

loosened by weathering.

BIOCHEMICAL SEDIMENTARY ROCK- form when living organisms die, pile up

and are then compressed and cemented together.

CHEMICAL SEDIMENTARY ROCK- form when chemical precipitation that

begins when water traveling through rock dissolves some of the minerals.

 METAMORPHIC ROCKS

 Form when high temperature and pressure act on a rock to alter

its physical and chemical properties.
 Formed by metamorphism of protolith through changes in
pressure or temperature.
 May be formed beneath the Earth’s surface or by tectonic plates
collision.
 Can be broadly classified as foliated or non-foliated. 
FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS- as pressure squeezes on a parent rock
during recrystallization it causes the platy of elongated minerals within the rock to
become aligned, or foliated. Foliated rocks develop a platy or sheet like structure that
reflects the direction that pressure was applied in. Types of foliated metamorphic rocks
include slate, schist and gneiss. 

NON-FOLIATED METAMORPHIC ROCKS- not all parent rocks have platy or

elongated minerals and when these rocks undergo metamorphism, the individual
mineral grains do not align. Types of non-foliated metamorphic rocks include marble,
quartzite, and hornfels.