SLK 3

Color - The color of the mineral present is the color of the light spectrum of minerals that has not been
absorbed that is why some rocks have varied colors.

Streak - Using a ceramic plate, a mineral can be scraped through it, thus producing a powder. The color of the
powder may be a variable in identifying the mineral present.

Luster - Luster describes a mineral on how its surface is reflected by light. Example, there are metals that have
metallic luster while some do not have the presence of metallic luster or nonmetallic luster. There are some
types of nonmetallic luster such as glassy, pearly or earthly.

Hardness - This refers to the resistance of a mineral to scratching. By using a scale devised by a mineralogist
named Friedrich Mohs, a list of minerals in sequence of relative hardness was assigned in numbers of 1-10 in
order of their increasing hardness based on their ability to scratch one another.

Fracture - If it breaks in uneven shape, it is classified as fracture.

Cleavage - If a mineral breaks in similar pieces, it means it has a good cleavage.

Specific Gravity - This refers to the mass of the mineral compared to the mass of an equal volume of water.
This means that a mineral’s weight can be determined how many times it is heavier than water.

Silicates - minerals containing 2 of the most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust, namely, silicon and oxygen
(e.g. Silica tetrahedra which is made up of silicon and oxygen forms chains and bonds with cations to form
silicate minerals).

Oxides - minerals containing oxygen anion (O2-) combined with one or more metal ions.

Sulfates - minerals containing sulfur and oxygen anion (SO4)- combined with other ions.

Sulfides - minerals containing sulfur anion (S2)- combined with one or more ions (e.g. copper, lead and zinc).

Carbonates - minerals containing the carbonate anion (CO3)2- combined with other elements.

Native Elements - minerals that form as individual elements.

a. Metals and Inter-metals – minerals with high thermal and electric 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)
c. c. Nonmetals – nonconductive (sulfur, diamond)
Halides - minerals containing halogen elements combined with one or more elements

SLK 4

Mineral Occurrence - Concentration of a mineral that is of scientific or technical interest

Mineral Deposit - Mineral occurrence of sufficient size and grade or concentration to enable extraction under
the most favorable conditions
Ore Deposit - Mineral deposit that has been tested and known to be economically profitable to mine

Aggregate - Rock or mineral material used as filler in cement, asphalt, plaster, etc.; generally used to describe
nonmetallic deposits

Ore - Naturally- occurring material from which a mineral or minerals of economic value can be extracted.

MINERAL EXPLORATION
1. Pre-production Feasibility Study - The feasibility study determines and validates the accuracy of all data
and information collected from the different stages. The purpose is for independent assessors to satisfy
interested investors to raise funds and bring the project into production.
2. Project Design - This is the initial stage in formulating a project. This involves review of all available
data (geologic reports, mining history, maps, etc.), government requirements in acquiring the project,
review of social, environmental, political, and economic acceptability of the project, and budget and
organization proposals.
3. Field Exploration - This stage involves physical activities in the selected project area.
a. Detailed Exploration - This involves more detailed surface and subsurface activities with the
objective of finding and delineating targets or mineralized zones.
b. Prospect Evaluation - The main objective is to assess market profitability by
1. extensive resource, geotechnical and engineering drilling,
2. metallurgical testing
3. environmental and societal cost assessment.
c. Regional Reconnaissance - The main objective is to identify targets or interesting mineralized
zones covering a relatively large area (regional).

METHODS FOR FINDING ORE

1. Gravimetric - The darker ore body causes a higher gravity reading due to its higher density compared
to the surrounding
2. Self-potential - The orebody generates a current through the surrounding rocks. This current can be
detected at the surface.
3. Induced Polarization - By measuring the voltage caused by this field with a second pair of electrodes, a
given distance away, the geophysicist can calculate the electrical property of the ground, which is
known as the resistivity.
4. Exploratory Drilling - From a single drill site core is drilled in several different directions, to see whether
minerals are present. The drills bring up cores which are cylinders of rock that can be analyzed.

MINING METHODS
1. Underground Mining - involves digging down into the earth and creating tunnels and shafts that reach
the deposits of resources. deposits. The type of underground mining technique used is typically based
on the geology of the area, especially the amount of ground support needed to make mining safe.
Underground mining is expensive and dangerous. Hazards in underground mines include toxic gasses,
lack of fresh air, total darkness, and the potential for accidents such as explosions and mine collapses.
2. Surface Mining - involves removal of plant life, soil and potentially bedrock to be able to access
resource deposits. It is normally used for fairly shallow, non-precious deposits.
a. Open-pit mining - involves digging out rocks to form an open pit or borrow pit, from which
resources are then extracted. typically worked until either the mineral deposit is depleted, or
various factors make the mine non-profitable.
 b. Strip mining - mostly used to extract shallow, "bedded" deposits, where a mineral layer is
covered by a layer of soft topsoil and weathered rocks. The relatively soft top layer of earth is
stripped by either a dragline or industrial shovel to uncover a deposit.
3. Placer Mining - Normally formed by weathering via water and/or wind action, placers are
unconsolidated deposits of resources. Placer mining is generally done in riverbeds, sands or other
sedimentary environments and involves sifting valuable materials from sediments.
4. In-situ mining - Also referred to as solution mining. It involves pumping chemicals underground to
dissolve resource-containing ore and then pumping what is known as the "pregnant solution" back up to
the surface, where it can be processed to recover minerals. This technique is mainly used in uranium
mining. This technique causes very little disturbance to the surface and does not produce large
amounts of waste rock. To use this technique, the ore body must be permeable to the extraction liquids,
and it must be possible to complete the process without the significant risk of contaminating nearby
groundwater.

MILLING PROCESS
1. Heavy media separation - The crushed rocks are submerged in liquid where the heavier/ denser
minerals sink thus are separated from the lighter minerals.
2. Magnetic separation - If the metal or mineral is magnetic, the crushed ore is separated from waste
materials using a powerful magnet.
3. Flotation - The powdered ore is placed into an agitated and frothy slurry where some minerals and
metals based on physical and chemical properties may either sink to the bottom or may stick to the
bubbles and rise to the top thus separating the minerals and metals from the waste.
4. Cyanide heap leaching - This method used for low-grade gold ore where the crushed rock is placed on
a “leach pile” where cyanide solution is sprayed or dipped on top of the pile. As the leach solution
percolates down through the rocks, the gold is dissolved into the solution.

CONCEPT MAP

SLK 5

- Fossil fuels are made up of carbon-containing (organic) molecules left over from the bodies of tiny
plants and animals that lived and died millions of years ago.
- Fossil fuels are a non-renewable, finite resource that includes coal, oil or petroleum and natural gas.
- Fossil fuel is mainly the world’s source of energy. The energy obtained from fossil fuels is cheap and
easy to obtain.
- Fossil formed in major phases and through time, pressure and temperature. Fossil fuels are used to
power steam engines, factories, generate electricity, used for lighting, cooking, heating and many
others.
1. Coal - solid, black and readily combustible fossil fuel that contains large amounts of carbon-based
material often occurred in stratified sedimentary deposits.
2. Petroleum - a fossil fuel that has been created by the decomposition of marine organic matter over
millions of years. A naturally occurring liquid found beneath the earth’s surface that can be refined into
fuel such as gasoline, kerosene, and diesel oil. This liquid mixture of hydrocarbons is present in certain
rock strata beneath the earth’s surface. It is formed by the combination of hydrocarbons and other
substances, mainly Sulfur.
a. Gasoline - used to fuel cars, sport utility vehicles, light trucks, and motorcycles., recreational
vehicles and boats, small aircraft, equipment and tools used in construction, farming, forestry,
and landscaping and electricity generators for portable and emergency power supply.
b. Diesel - used to run turbines for the production of electricity for major industries
c. Oil - used to produce electricity at homes and shops also used as lubricant for machines in
industries,
d. Kerosene - used for domestic purposes at home, used by chemical industries to produce
plastics, dyes, synthetic rubber, pesticides and perfume.
3. Natural Gas - are colorless highly flammable gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane
and ethane. Natural gas is a type or petroleum that commonly occurs in association with crude oil.
Natural gas is used for electricity generation, heating, cooking, and as a fuel for certain vehicles. It is
also used as a chemical feedstock in the manufacture of plastics and is necessary for a wide array of
other chemical products including fertilizers and dyes.

● Petroleum or Oil and Natural gas are formed when large quantities of dead organisms-primarily
zooplanktons or tiny sea animals and algae or tiny sea plants died and were buried on the ocean floor
over time they were covered by layers of silt and sand.
● The process of forming a coal varies from different areas depending on the plants and conditions that
are present, but the overall process is similar.
● There are two main phases of coal formation: Peatrification and Coalification.
● Peatification is the process of partial decomposition of plant material in a swampy, waterlogged
environment with the action of bacteria forming a peat.
● Peat is the thick layer of spongy material formed from the accumulation of partially decayed vegetation
or organic matter. Peat is the first step of coal formation.
● Lignite also known as “brown coal” contains 60-70% carbon on a dry ash free basis.
● Bituminous coal or also known as “soft coal” which has a higher carbon concentration of up to 86%. It is
the most abundant type of coal used in electric power plants and other commercial purposes due to its
lower moisture, and high heat value upon combustion.
● Anthracite also known as “ hard coal” which are black in color having an almost metallic luster. This
coal type contains 86% carbon , least moisture and least volatile, 14% on a dry- ash free basis.
Anthracite is rarely used due to its relative high cost and limited abundance.

● Global warming is an increase of Earth’s average atmospheric temperature that causes corresponding
changes in climate that may result from the greenhouse effect. As the surface of the Earth is heated by
sunlight, a portion of this energy in the form of infrared radiation is released back toward space.
● Acid rain is any form of precipitation with acidic components such as sulfuric acid or nitric acid that fall
to the ground from the atmosphere in a form of rain, snow, fog, hail or even dust that is acidic. These
can deplete the nutrient of the soil affecting plant growth. It can also corrode surfaces and deteriorates
limestone and marble made structures like statue and monuments
 ● Oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine
ecosystem due to human activity and is a form of pollution.
● Land, Air and Water pollution: Pollution is contamination of land, water and air or other parts of the
environment that becomes dirty and not safe or suitable for use. The usual source of contaminants that
pollutes our air, land and water is the burning of fossil fuels.

SLK 6

- Extracting heat from underground provides geothermal energy.

a. Renewable energy is a natural resource that can be replenished
b. non- renewable energy is a natural resource that depletes and cannot be replenished by any
natural means.

1. Geothermal Energy - this heat can be recovered using different geothermal technologies depending on
the temperature.
a. Low-temperature geothermal energy (20°C to 90 °C) uses geothermal heat and water for
geothermal heating.
b. Medium-temperature geothermal energy (90 °C to 160 °C ) uses water on the surface in liquid
form.
c. High-temperature geothermal energy ( above 160 °C) uses water and turns it into steam when it
reaches the Earth’s surface. It drives turbines to generate power.
2. Thermal Gradient - the adjective geothermal comes from the Greek words “geo” meaning Earth and
“thermos” meaning Heat. It covers all techniques used to recover the heat that is naturally present in
the Earth’s subsurface, particularly in aquifers of the rock reservoir that contain groundwater.
3. Geothermal Reservoirs - are found in all the Earth’s sedimentary basins, but high- temperature
geothermal energy is most likely to be found near volcanoes.

HYDROPOWER
- Leading renewable energy
- The kinetic energy generated by moving water has been used by humankind for centuries, to drive
watermills that produce mechanical energy. Then a generator converts the mechanical energy from the
turbine into electrical energy.
- Components:
a. A dam that creates a large waterfall and stores enough water to supply the plant at all times as
well as producing and storing energy.
b. A penstock that channels water from its natural environment (river or lake) to supply the dam
reservoir. It may be an open channel, a tunnel or pipeline.
c. A powerhouse that houses the turbines driven by the waterfall and the generator driven by the
turbines.

● Run-of-river plants produce energy using the flow of the river. With dams less than 25 meters high,
these “small hydro” plants generate power continuously to meet daily needs.
● Off-stream plants are modular, meaning energy can be produced on demand with dams used to create
reservoirs that can be released as required.
● Pumped storage power plants are specifically designed for modular operation. They have two
reservoirs at different heights.
- When demand requires, water is released from the higher reservoir to the lower reservoir.
- When there is excess production (e.g. wind or solar sources) the surplus electricity is used to
pump water into the higher reservoir.
SUBSYSTEMS

System - a set of interconnected components that are interacting to form a unified whole
- e.g. Ecosystem (organisms are interrelated and interacting)

● The Earth system is essentially a CLOSED SYSTEM (a system in which there is only an exchange of
heat or energy and no exchange of matter)
● The earth receives energy from the sun and returns some of this energy to space

THE EARTH SUBSYSTEMS

Biosphere
● Includes all life forms on earth
● It covers all ecosystems—from the soil to the rainforest, from mangroves to coral reefs, and from the
plankton-rich ocean surface to the deep sea.
● James Lovelock used the "Daisy World Model" to illustrate how the biosphere is capable of regulating
its environment.

Hydrosphere
● Dynamic mass of water that is continuously on the move
● About 70% of the Earth is covered with liquid water (hydrosphere) and much of it is in the form of ocean
water.
 ● Only 3% of Earth's water is fresh: two-thirds are in the form of ice, and the remaining one-third is
present in streams, lakes, and groundwater.

Atmosphere
● The atmosphere is the thin gaseous layer that envelops the lithosphere.
● The present atmosphere is composed of 78% nitrogen (N), 21% oxygen (O2), 0.9% argon, and trace
amounts of other gasses.
● Atmospheric Circulation
- One of the most important processes by which the heat on the Earth's surface is redistributed

Geosphere
● .The Solid Earth extends from the surface to the center

Lithosphere
● The lithosphere includes the crust and the upper part of the mantle.

LAYERS OF THE EARTH

1. CRUST (continental & oceanic)
- It’s the light and very thin outer skin of the Earth.
- The outermost layer where energy and mineral resources are derived.
2. MANTLE (upper & lower)
- Less dense layer
- Made up of silicate rocks, mostly made of the elements silicon, oxygen, iron and magnesium.
3. CORE (outer & inner)
- Denser layer
- The Earth’s magnetic field
- Strengthens the idea that the Earth’s outer core is molten/liquid.

DIFFERENT ELEMENTS THAT COMPOST THE EARTH'S CRUST

Oxygen 46.60

Silicon 27.72

Aluminum 8.13

Iron 5.00

Calcium 9.63

Sodium 2.83

Potassium 2.59

Magnesium 2.09

Titanium 0.40

Hydrogen 0.14
ALBEDO EFFECT
● Albedo is an expression of the ability of surfaces to reflect sunlight (heat from the sun). Light-coloured
surfaces return a large part of the sun rays back to the atmosphere (high albedo). Dark surfaces absorb
the rays from the sun (low albedo).

MAJOR THEMES
1. Scale
- Processes in the Earth system act on length scales of microns to thousands of kilometers, and
on time scales of milliseconds to millions of years.
2. Energy
● The Earth system is powered by:
- one external source: the Sun
- two internal ones: radioactive decay gravitational energy (heat still being lost from
planetary formation).
3. Cycle
- Material in the Earth system is continually recycled in numerous overlapping cycles.

CARBON CYCLE

COMPONENTS OR SUBSYSTEMS OF THE EARTH SYSTEM

ROCK CYCLE
HYDROLOGIC CYCLE

CONCEPT MAP ON HOW THE SUBSYSTEMS ARE INTERCONNECTED TO EACH OTHER

HISTORY DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONCEPT OF EARTH SYSTEM

STRUCTURE OF THE EARTH

ADDITIONAL NOTES FROM PPT

MINERALS

● Mineralogy
- Study of minerals
- Building blocks of rocks
● Mineral
- defined as naturally formed, generally inorganic, crystalline solid composed of an ordered array
of atoms and having a specific chemical composition.

MINERALS ARE…
1. INORGANIC
- formed by natural geologic processes formed in nature
2. SOLIDS
- crystalline substance that are solid at temperature at Earth’s surface
3. ATOMS HAVE THE SAME CRYSTALLINE PATTERN and with SPECIFIC CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
4. CRYSTALLINE ATOMS
- are arranged in an orderly repetitive manner
- Can be represented by a CHEMICAL FORMULA

Minerals are naturally formed, rocks are naturally occuring.

CRYSTAL FORM
- External features of a mineral reflect its orderly internal arrangement of atoms

CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF MINERALS

● Simple chemical test
a. Taste test
- NaCl (common table salt) has a distinctly salty taste.
b. Fizz test
- carbonate minerals in hydrochloric acid , giving carbon bubbles of dioxide gas.

NATURAL RESOURCES
● The Earth’s crust and oceans are the sources of a wide variety of useful and essential minerals.
● Renewable resources can be replenished.
● Nonrenewable are the same basic resources such as iron, aluminum and copper. Others are fuels like
oil, natural gas and coal.
● Rich deposits of metallic minerals such as iron, nickel, copper, gold, silver, chromium, zinc and lead
are also located.
● Gold is the precious metal which can be found pure in nature.
● Mercury reserves are located in Albay and Palawan.
● Our biggest lead deposits are found in Ayala, Zamboanga.
● Molybdenum deposits occur in Batangas.
● Gold is a metal for adornment, It exhibits a shiny yellow color and a specific gravity of 29.3.
● Platinum is a catalyst in refining petroleum.

MINERALS IN THE PHILIPPINES

 1. Nonmetallic
a. limestone
- used to make concrete and cement. It is found in Cebu, Negros and Bulacan
b. feldspar – used in making tiles and ceramic toilet ware found in Ilocos Norte and Pampanga
c. silica
- used in making glass found in Palawan and Negros Occidental.
d. clay
- used for pottery found in Ilocos Norte.
e. Red marble
- found in romblon.

ROCKS
● A rock is a naturally occurring solid mixture of one or more minerals, or organic matter rocks are
classified by how they are formed, their composition, and texture rocks change over time through the
rock cycle

TYPES OF ROCKS
1. Igneous rocks (e.g. Obsidian)
a. begins as magma. Magma can form:
- When rock is heated
- When pressure is released
b. When rock changes composition Magma freezes between 700 °C and 1,250 °C Magma is a
mixture of many minerals

● Felsic
- light colored rocks that are rich in elements such as aluminum, potassium,
silicon, and sodium
● Mafic
- dark colored rocks that are rich in calcium, iron, and magnesium, poor in silicon
● Coarse-grained
- takes longer to cool, giving mineral crystals more time to grow
● Fine-grained
- cools quickly with little to no crystals

● Intrusive Igneous Rocks:

- magma pushes into surrounding rock below the Earth’s surface
● Extrusive rocks
- forms when magma erupts onto the Earth’s surface (lava), cools quickly with very small or no
crystals formed

2. Metamorphic rocks
- Meaning to change shape
- Changes with temperature and pressure, but remains solid
- Usually takes place deep in the Earth

● Contact metamorphism
- heated by nearby magma
- Increased temperature changes the composition of the rock, minerals are changed into
● hornfels
 - Fine-grained non-foliated metamorphic rock produced by contact metamorphism
● Regional metamorphism
- pressure builds up in rocks that is deep within the Earth Large pieces of the Earth’s crust collide
and the rock is deformed and chemically changed by heat and pressure
● Non-Foliated
- mineral grains are not arranged in plains or bands Marble is a non-foliated metamorphic rock
that is produced from the metamorphism of limestone.
- It is composed primarily of calcium carbonate.
● foliated
- contain aligned grains of flat minerals
- Gneiss is foliated metamorphic rock that has a banded appearance and is made up of granular
mineral grains.
- It typically contains abundant quartz or feldspar minerals.

3. Sedimentary rocks
- Sedimentary rock is formed by erosion.
- Sediments are moved from one place to another
- Sediments are deposited in layers with the older ones on the bottom
- The layers become compacted and cemented together
- Sedimentary Rocks are formed at or near the Earth’s surface
- No heat and pressure involved

● Strata
- layers of rock
● Stratification
- the process in which sedimentary rocks are arranged in layers
● clastic
- made of fragments of rock cemented together with calcite or quartz
● Breccia
- is a term most often used for clastic sedimentary rocks that are composed of large angular
fragments (over two millimeters in diameter).
● The spaces between the large angular fragments can be filled with a matrix of smaller particles or a
mineral cement that binds the rock together.
● Limestone
- is a sedimentary rock composed primarily of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in the form of the
mineral calcite.
- It most commonly forms in clear, warm, shallow marine waters.
- It is usually an organic sedimentary rock that forms from the accumulation of shell, coral, algal
and fecal debris.
● Coal
- is an organic sedimentary rock that forms from the accumulation and preservation of plant
materials, usually in a swamp environment.
- Coal is a combustible rock and along with oil and natural gas it is one of the three most
important fossil fuels.
● Chemical sedimentary
- formed by precipitation of minerals from water. Precipitation is when dissolved materials come
out of water.
● Organic sedimentary
- remains of plants and animals
G’luck sa quiz
- <3