2.

MINERALOGY

2.1 INTRODUCTION

A mineral is a naturally occurring chemical compound. All matter consists of atoms of

the elements.

Although 90 of the known elements form mineral species, most of the earth's crust is
composed of only 11 elements (Table 1).

Table 1: Average Composition of the Earth's Crust:

Element Mass %
Oxygen 46.60
Silicon 27.72
Aluminium 8.36
Iron 5.00
Calcium 3.63
Sodium 2.83
Potassium 1.84
Magnesium 2.09
Titanium 0.44
Hydrogen 0.14
Phosphorous 0.12
_____________________
Total 98.77

Only very tiny quantities of most economically important metallic elements are present
in the average rock of the earth's crust. (Cu 0.0055%, Ni 0.0075%, Zn 0.0070%, Sn
0.0002%, W 0.00015%, Au 0.0000004%).

Elements combine to form compounds according to the factors affecting chemical

bonding. The features that control the affinity of anions and cations are the electronic
charge and the ionic radius.

If the ratio in the anion and cation size ratio is approximately 1:2 then six of the larger
ions will pack in an octahedral structure with a space just the correct size for the smaller
ion inside. This dense packing structure has a very low energy and is therefore a
chemical very stable structure.
Similarly if the anion and cation size ratio is approximately 1:3 (as with silicon and
oxygen) four of the larger ions can pack in a tetrahedral structure with a space just the
correct size for the smaller ion to fit inside. This produces another dense packing
structure of very low energy and stable chemical structure (Fig. 17).

The SiO44- complex ion thus formed is a very stable covalent combination, and as the
element silicon constitutes over half of the anions in the earth's crust this ionic complex
forms the basis of a very important mineral group. The SiO44- has a negative charge
and can bond ionically with a variety of cations to form the various minerals known as
the Silicate minerals which compose over 95% of the earth's crust.

All other minerals are termed Non-silicates. They are combinations of cations with
anionic stable covalent compounds and anions. Minerals are classified in terms of their
defining anions as shown in Table 2 below:

Table 2: The chemical classification of minerals

MINERAL CLASS DEFINING ANION EXAMPLE

4-
Silicates SiO4 Mg2SiO4, forsterite
2-
Carbonates CO3 CaCO3, calcite
2-
Sulphates SO4 CaSO4, anhydrite
3-
Phosphates PO4 CaFPO4, apatite
2-
Oxides O Fe2O3, haematite

Hydoxides OH- Al(OH)3, gibbsite

Halides I-, F-, Cl- CaF, fluorite

Sulphides S2- ZnS, sphalerite

Native elements None Gold, graphite

Almost all rocks are a combination of silicate minerals. Only under very special
circumstances are rocks formed that containing less than 50% silicate minerals and
these rock constitute less than 2% of the earth's crust.
The silicate ion complex does not have an affinity for many of the economically
important 'transition' group of metals, and, due to their very stable structure, silicates
require high extraction energies. Thus, almost all the metalliferous ore minerals belong
to the non-silicate group. Hence the importance of the non-silicate mineral group is far
greater than the crustal abundance of these minerals suggests. However, certain
silicate and non-silicate minerals have economic importance as a result of their special
physical and chemical properties, rather than their chemical composition, and are
referred to as industrial minerals.

Figure 17: Some atomic structures which occur in nature as a result of specific
cation/anion ratios.
2.2 PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF MINERALS

Colour
Although the most obvious this is the least reliable of all the physical attributes of a
mineral. All minerals have a colour but this is not normally characteristic and many
minerals occur in a great variety of colours.

Lustre
This is the ability of the mineral to reflect light and is far more distinctive than the colour.
The lustre of a mineral may be classified as:

a) Metallic (reflects light like polished metal)

b) Vitreous (glassy)
c) Resinous (duller than glassy)
d) Pearly (reflects light like a pearl)
e) Silky (reflects light like silk material)
f) Adamantine (sparkles like a diamond)
g) Opalescence and iridescence (The surface layers of some minerals
interacts with light to produce milky effect (opalescence) or a play
of colours (iridescence).

Transparency
This is the ability of a mineral to transmit light and is classified as transparent,
semitransparent, translucent and opaque.

Crystal System
In some samples evidence of the crystal system can be detected in a mineral sample.
The crystal shape of a mineral is the external expression of its internal atomic structure
(Lattice) (Fig. 17). Crystal faces in hand specimen scale exemplifies the lattice planes,
which exist on an atomic scale. Whereas there are great number of possible crystal
forms in nature, they can all be classified into one of six crystallographic systems on
the basis of crystallographic axes (Fig. 18). The six crystal systems are as follows:

 Cubic
 Orthorhombic
 Tetragonal
 Hexagonal
 Monoclinic
 Triclinic
Figure 18: The six crystallographic systems and some examples of forms that occur
within each system. Note that all the forms within each system can be described
geometrically by the crystallographic axes that define that form.
Cleavage and fracture
When broken some minerals fracture with an uneven surface, but others split or cleave
along distinctive crystallographic planes (Fig. 19).

Figure 19: Mineral specimens which consist of one crystal (euhedral or anhedral) mat
exhibit cleavage planes which are smooth, flat planes which recur at regular intervals
giving the mineral a distinct texture. The number of cleavage directions and their relative
orientations is a diagnostic property of minerals. The photograph on the left displays a
sample of the mineral mica showing well-developed cleavage in one direction, giving
the mineral a platy or flaky form. The photograph on the right shows the rhombohedral
shape of a calcite crystal (note the cleavage traces on the top surface).

Form
Some minerals are commonly found as well-developed crystals, but others are only
occur in fine-grained masses. The terms used to describe the form (also referred to as
the habit) of a mineral are (Fig. 20):

Crystallised or euhedral (well developed crystals)

Crystalline (intergrown crystals)
Microcrystalline (microscopic crystals)
Cryptocrystalline (sub-microscopic crystals)
Irregular or anhedral (no evidence of the crystal structure)

In addition the following descriptive terms for mineral aggregates are used (Fig. 21):

Acicular (needle like) bladed

stellate (star shaped)
botriodal columnar
dendritic (tree like) fibrous
reniform (kidney shaped) wiry

Figure 20: Diagram of some typical crystal forms. The photograph shows hexagonal
crystals of quartz with well-developed smooth crystal faces.
 (a) (b)

(c) (d)

Figure 21: Diagram of some common forms of crystal aggregates. (a) Radial fibrous.
(b) Prismatic. (c) Radial acicular. (d) Botriodal.
Texture
The texture of a mineral is described as smooth, greasy, unctuous (soapy), and harsh
or rough.

Taste & Smell

A few minerals have a distinctive taste or smell. The mineral halite, for example, tastes
like salt (because it is salt).

Density
The density of a mineral can be estimated in g/ml or kg/m3. The specific gravity (SG) is
the density of the mineral relative to the density of water. For example:

Density of quartz = 2700kg/m3

Density of water = 1000kg/m3
Therefore, Specific Gravity of quartz = 2700 kg/m3 / 1000 kg/m3 = 2,7
Note that the specific gravity is equal to the density expressed as g/cm3.
i.e. SG of quartz = 2.7; density of quartz = 2.7 g/cm3.

Hardness
The relative hardness of a mineral can be tested by comparison with the standards of
the Moh hardness scale:

1 talc
2 gypsum
3 calcite
4 fluorite
5 apatite
6 orthoclase
7 quartz
8 topaz
9 corundum
10 diamond
A human finger nail has a hardness of 2½, and glass a hardness of ~5½ on the Moh
hardness scale. This means that if a mineral specimen can scratch a piece of glass it
has a hardness of six or higher.
Streak
The mark made by a mineral fragment on a porcelain plate is normally far more
distinctive than the colour of the sample.

Magnetism
A few minerals are naturally magnetic and can easily be identified with a magnet.
Examples include the minerals magnetite and pyrrhotite.

Reaction with dilute HCl

Certain minerals react with dilute hydrochloric acid in a distinctive manner. Calcite is an
important example in this regard.

Special reactions
Several other features such as natural radioactivity (Thorianite, Uraninite), fluorescence
(Scheelite) and the effect of heating in oxidising or reducing conditions can also be used
to identify a mineral specimen, but these techniques are not commonly used.

All the above physical properties can be used to describe and identify minerals in hand
specimen. Some of these properties such as magnetism and density, and others such
as electrical conductivity and surface chemistry are utilised to separate various mineral
types during mineral processing. Moreover, some minerals have special industrial uses
as a result of their specific physical properties; for example, quartz has piezoelectric
properties; diamond and corundum have high hardness and are used as abrasives.
2.3 DESCRIPTION OF SOME COMMON MINERALS

2.3.1 SILICATES

QUARTZ

VARIATIONS: Crystalline
Microcrystallline quartz is called chalcedony

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Hexagonal

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION SiO2
COLOUR colourless; white; smokey; rose; etc.
STREAK None (too hard)
LUSTRE Vitreous (glassy)
TRANSPARENCY Transparent to translucent
CLEAVAGE None
FRACTURE Conchoidal
HARDNESS 7
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2,7
COMMON FORM Pyramidal hexagonal crystals; massive; microcrystalline

FELDSPAR

VARIATIONS: K-feldspar (including sanidine, orthoclase, micricline)

Plagioclase

K-feldspar: Plagioclase:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Triclinic Monoclinic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION KAl Si3O8 NaAlSi3O8 - CaAl2Si2O8 solid solution
COLOUR Red-brown White
STREAK White White
LUSTRE Subvitreous Subvitreous
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 2 direction at 90 2 Directions at 90
FRACTURE Rough Rough
HARDNESS 6 6
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2,6 2,6
COMMON FORM Tabular grains Tabular grains

PYROXENE

VARIATIONS: Diopside, Augite, Hypersthene, bronzite, enstatite, etc

Augite: Diopside: Hypersthene:

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Monoclinic Monoclinic Orthorhombbic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION Ca(FeMg)Si2O6 Ca(Mg)Si2O6 (FeMg)SiO3
COLOUR Black Green Brown
STREAK Brown White Brown
LUSTRE Subvitreous Subvitreous Vitreous
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 2 directions at 90 2 directions at 90 2 direction at 90
FRACTURE Rough Rough Rough
HARDNESS 5½ 5½ 6
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 3.2 3.3 3.4
COMMON FORM Tabular Tabular Tabular

AMPHIBOLE

VARIATIONS: Hornblende; tremolite; anthophyllite; amosite; crockidolite)

Hornblende: Amosite (asbestos):

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Monoclinic Monoclinic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION Ca2(MgFeAl)5(SiAl)8O22(OH)2 (MgFe)7Si8O22(OH)2
COLOUR Green - Black Brown
STREAK Green White
LUSTRE Vitreous Silky
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 2 directions at 60 Not visible (same as hbl)
FRACTURE Jaggerd smooth
HARDNESS 5½ 5½
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 3.2 3.2
COMMON FORM Prismatic grains Fibrous

MICA

VARIATIONS: Biotite; muscovite; phlogopite; margarite; etc

Biotite: Muscovite:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Monoclinic Monoclinic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION K(MgFe)3(AlSi)4O10(OH)2 KAl2(AlSi)4O10(OH)2
COLOUR Brown-black Colourless-white-green
STREAK White White
LUSTRE Pearly Pearly
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 1 direction 1 direction
FRACTURE Rough on edges Rough on edges
HARDNESS 2½ 2½
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 3.0 2.8
COMMON FORM Platy Platy

OLIVINE

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Orthorhombic

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION FeMgSiO4
COLOUR Olive green
STREAK White
LUSTRE Vitreous
TRANSPARENCY Translucent
CLEAVAGE 1 direction, poor
FRACTURE Smooth
HARDNESS 6½
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 3.3 – 3.5
COMMON FORM Granular
CLAY

VARIATIONS Kaolinite; montmorillonite; vermiculite; illite; etc

Kaolinite: Monmorillonite:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Triclinic Monoclinic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION Al2Si2O5(OH)4 (ALFeMg)4(SiAlFe)8O20(OH)4.6H2O
COLOUR White-pink Black-brown
STREAK White Brown
LUSTRE Dull Earthy
TRANSPARENCY Opaque Opaque
CLEAVAGE 1 direction (never visible) 1 direction (never visible)
FRACTURE Smooth Smooth
HARDNESS 2 2
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2.6 3.0
COMMON FORM Masses of microsopic grains Masses of microcrystalline grains

2.3.2 OXIDES

HAEMATITE: MAGNETITE: CHROMITE:

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Hexagonal Cubic Cubic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION Fe2O3 Fe3O4 FeCr2O4
COLOUR Red - grey Black Black
STREAK Red Brown Brown
LUSTRE Dull-metallic Submetallic Metallic
TRANSPARENCY Opaque Opaque Opaque
CLEAVAGE 1 direction None None
FRACTURE Uneven Subconchoidal Uneven
HARDNESS 6 6 5
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 5 5 4½
COMMON FORM Massive Granular Granular
Botryoidal Octahedra Massive
Micaceous Massive Octahedra

2.3.3 CARBONATES

CALCITE: DOLOMITE:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Hexagonal Hexagonal
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION CaCO3 CaMg(CO3)2
COLOUR Colourless-white-brownish Usualy grey
STREAK White White-grey
LUSTRE Subglassy Vitreous - dull
TRANSPARENCY Ttranslucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 3 directions 3 directions
FRACTURE None none
HARDNESS 3 3½
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2.7 2.9
COMMON FORM Rhomboherdal crystals Laminated masses of microcrystals
2.3.4 SULPHIDES

CHALCOPYRITE: GALENA: SPHALERITE: PYRITE:

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Tetragonal Cibic Cubic Cubic
CHEMICAL COMP. FeCuS2 PbS ZnS FeS2
COLOUR Yellow Grey Yellow-black Brass
STREAK Greenish black Grey Reddish brown Green-black
LUSTRE Metallic Metallic Resinous Metallic
TRANSPARENCY Opaque Opaque Translucent Opaque
CLEAVAGE Indistinct 3 directions Multiple Indistinct
FRACTURE Uneven Subconcoidal conchoidal Uneven
HARDNESS 3½ 2½ 3½ 6
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 4.2 7.6 4 5
COMMON FORM anhedral masses cubes Massive cubes

2.3.5 SULPHATES

GYPSUM: BARITE:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Monoclinic Orthorhombic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION CaSO4.2H2O BaSO4
COLOUR Variable White-variable
STREAK White White
LUSTRE Subglassy Vitreous
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 2 directions 3 directions
FRACTURE Concoidal Uneven
HARDNESS 2 3
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2.3 4.5
COMMON FORM Prismatic crystals platy crystals, or rhombs

2.3.6 HALIDES

HALITE: FLOURITE:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Cubic Cubic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION NaCl CaF2
COLOUR White Colourless - purple
STREAK White White
LUSTRE Glassy Glassy
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 3 directions 4 directions
FRACTURE none none
HARDNESS 2 4
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2.2 3
COMMON FORM cubes ocahedra, cubbes or
laminated micrcrystalline masses
2.3.7 PHOSPHATES

APATITE:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Hexagonal
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION Ca5F(PO4)3
COLOUR Green-brown
STREAK White
LUSTRE Resinous
TRANSPARENCY Translucent
CLEAVAGE 1 direction
FRACTURE concoidal
HARDNESS 5
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 3.2
COMMON FORM Prismatic crystals or small anhedral grains

2.3.8 HYDROXIDES

DIASPORE: GOETHITE:
CRYSTAL SYSTEM Orthorhombic Orthorhombic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AlO(OH) FeO(OH)
COLOUR Grey Brown
STREAK Grey Brown
LUSTRE Vitreous Dull
TRANSPARENCY Translucent Translucent
CLEAVAGE 1 direction 1 direction
FRACTURE UNKNOWN UNKNOWN
HARDNESS 7 5½
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 3.4 4.4
COMMON FORM Pisolitic Botryoidal

Bauxite is a mixture of diaspore and other Al-hydroxides such as gibbsite and boehmite. Limonite is a
mixture of goethite and other Fe-hydroxides.

2.3.9 NATIVE ELEMENTS

GRAPHITE: DIAMOND: COPPER: SULPHUR:

CRYSTAL SYSTEM Hexagonal Cubic Cubic Orthorhombic
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION C C Cu S
COLOUR Grey-black Colourless Copper-red Yellow
STREAK Black None Copper-red Yellow
LUSTRE Metallic Adamantine Metallic Resinous
TRANSPARENCY Opaques Transparent Opaque Opaque
CLEAVAGE 1 direction 4 directions None 2 directions
FRACTURE Smooth Concoidal Hackly Rough
HARDNESS 1½ 10 2½ 2
SPECIFIC GRAVITY 2.2 3.5 8.8 2
COMMON FORM scaly octahedra Massive Massive
2.4 ECONOMIC USES OF MINERALS

The economic value of minerals lies in their chemical content (ore minerals), physical
properties (industrial minerals) and physical appearance (gemstones).

2.4.1 ORE MINERALS

An ore mineral is a mineral that contains useful metallic elements (Table 3). These
minerals are mined and the metal extracted from them and purified for industrial use.

An economic ore deposit represents a concentration of a mineral, which contains

useful metals. Since these metals are very rare in the earth's crust (because they are
not major elements), the concentration is many times the normal crustal abundances.

To form an iron ore deposit, an enrichment factor of only 10, relative to the average
crustal abundance is needed. For the less abundant metals such as copper, up to 300
times the crustal abundance may be needed for a deposit to be economically viable. For
tin the enrichment factor is between 700 and 1500, and for gold it is 3000 times.

The level of concentration of a type of valuable mineral within an ore deposit is referred
to as the grade of the deposit. The grade can be reported as a weight percentage of the
rock or in grammes per ton (g/t).

Ores are variable materials. Within a single ore body there may be a great variety of
minerals and grades. A body may even change from one type of ore to another; e.g.. a
copper ore to a tin ore. Furthermore, weathering (oxidation) of an ore near the surface
can alter the character of the ore in a way that can affect mining and extraction
metallurgical processes.

Ore consists of ore minerals (the valuable ones) and gangue minerals (the useless
ones in the rock that is mined). Most ore contain more than one type of ore mineral.
Examples include:
 A copper ore can contain more than one type of copper bearing mineral such as;
chalcopyrite, bornite and chalcosite.
 Some ore deposits may provide a number of different minerals and metals, for
example; chalcopyrite (copper ore), sphalerite (zinc ore) and galena (lead ore) are
sometimes found occurring together in one ore deposit.

Metal associations in ore deposits are not haphazard, but occur in specific geological
environments and a metal may have different associations in different geological
environments. These associations may be understood through a knowledge of the
geochemical and geological processes involved in the genesis of the ores deposits.
Some of these will be mentioned during the course of this text (Chapters 3, 4, and 5)

2.4.2 INDUSTRIAL MINERALS

Some minerals are used in many branches of industry because of their physical
properties as, for example; construction material, chemcals, fluxes, fillers, fertilisers,
abrasives, ceramics, cements and plasters. Such minerals are called industrial
minerals.

Industrial minerals are not exploited for their metal content but are used either in their
natural state or with a little modification such as calcination or size classification. They
are usually of low value and so processing must be kept to a minimum to keep the costs
down. Therefore, deposits must be investigated in detail to ensure that they are pure.

Some gangue minerals from metalliferous mining may be useful as industrial mineral by
products. For example; waste rock from Witwatersrand gold mines is sold as aggregate
for use in road construction.

Some metallic minerals may also be used as industrial minerals. For example, chromite,
from which Cr metal is recovered for use in metallurgical and chemical applications,
may also be used as a bulk material in making chrome refractory bricks or as chromite
casting sand for metal casting. Manganese is a metal used for and in
chemical applications or the mineral from which it is recovered (pyrolusite; MnO2) may
be used in an unprocessed form as a pigment in the ceramics/glass industry.
Table 3: Examples of ore minerals
Metal Ore mineral Chemical composition of ore
mineral
Fe Haematite Fe2O3
Magnetite Fe3O4
Limonite Fe2O3.3H2O
Siderite FeCO3
Goethite FeO.OH
Lepidocrocite FeO.OH
Au Gold (native metal) Au
Krennertite AuTe2
Pt Cooperite PtS
Braggite (PtPdNi)S
Laurite (RuOsIr)S2
Sperrylite PtAs2
Al Gibbsite Collectively Al2O3.3H2O
Boehmite called Al2O3.H2O
Diaspore Bauxite Al2O3.H2O
Cr Chromite Cr2FeO4
Cu Chalcopyrite CuFeS2
Bornite Cu5FeS4
Tetrahedrite 3Cu2S.Sb2S3
Tennantite 3Cu2S.As2S3
Enargite 3Cu2S.As2S5
Chalcosite Cu2S
Covellite CuS
Malachite CuCO3.Cu(OH)2
Azurite 2CuCO3.Cu(OH)2
Cuprite Cu2O
Chrysocolla CuSiO3.2H2O
Pb Galena PbS
Cerussite PbCO3
Li Spodumene LiFeSiO3
Lepidolite K(Li,Al)2-3(AlSi3O10)(O,OH,F)2
Mn Pyrolusite MnO2
Braunite MnO.3Mn2O3.SiO2
Bixbyite (MnFe)2O3
Hausmannite MnO.Mn2O3
Jacobsite Mn2FeO4
Mo Molybdenite MoS
Ni Pentlandite (NiFe)9S8
Pyrrhotite (FeNi)S
Bravoite (FeNi)S2
Violarite Ni2FeS4
Niccolite NiAs
Trevorite Ni2FeO4
Si Silica SiO2
Nb Columbite (FeMn)Nb2O5
Ta Tantalite (FeMn)Ta2O5
Sn Cassiterite SnO2
W Scheelite CaWO4
Wolframite (FeMn)WO4
U Uraninite UO2
Ti Ilmenite TiFeO3
Rutile TiO2
Zn Sphalerite ZnS
Zincite ZnO
Gahnite Zn2AlO4
Zr Zircon ZrSiO4
Construction.

a) Dimension stone, rock is cut into blocks or slabs and may be polished, these blocks
or slabs are used to cover buildings, as paving slabs or for monuments and tombstones.
Typical rock types that are used are gabbro, syenite, granite, charnockite and marble.
Sandstone cut into blocks can be used for buildings, e.g. the Union Buildings in
Pretoria. Slate is used as a roof covering and for paving.
South Africa has a large dimension stone industry and exports large amounts of
quarried rock.

b) Aggregate, this is crushed rock usually size graded gravel or size classified sand. It is
mixed with cement to form concrete or with tar to surface roads. Ballast is crushed rock
used to support sleepers for railway lines and as a major portion of a rock-fill dam wall.

c) Portland cement is made by fusing clay and limestone in a rotating kiln. The resulting
klinker is milled to a usable cement powder.

d) Calcined gypsum is plaster of paris. Barite cement is used to make plaster for x-ray
rooms beacuse of Barium's high absorption coefficient for radioactive irradiation.

Fillers, Extenders, Dilutants and Carriers.

Fillers are inert substances used in bulk in certain manufactured items, to give them
weight, body, increase their durability or reduce their cost. For example; vinyl flooring is
filled with calcite or clay to give it more bulk. Most plastic products are filled with calcite.
Rubber mats and conveyor belting are filled with slate, clay or calcite depending on the
quality of the product. Writing paper is filled with calcite, kaolin or talc, without these
ingredients it has a tissue-like texture.
Paint is extended with calcite and bentonite (a Mg clay mineral) which gives the paint
non-drip properties. Ground muscovite or specularite is used in reflective road marking
paints.

Chemically active ingredients such as pharmacuetical chemicals are diluted with pure
calcite to make them easier to handle (without the dilutant they would be too small to
handle). A typical pill is mostly calcite containing a very small proportion of the active
ingredient. Calcite dust is sprayed on the walls in coal mines to reduce the risk of fire
from fine coal dust; i.e. the coal dust is diluted.

Many clay minerals are very absorbant and can be used as carriers for liquid chemicals,
for example kaolinite is used as an insecticide carrier for crop dusting from aeroplanes.

Abrasives

a) Hard Abrasives.
Diamonds which are not gem quality are used as abrasives in many applications
including rock drill bits and cutting wheels which are made of metal alloys impregnated
with diamonds. Industrial diamonds are also used as dies for wire drawing and the
making of synthetic fibres. South Africa has large deposits of diamonds and is a world
leader in making synthetic diamonds. The size of synthetic diamonds can be closely
controlled thus they are very useful for making products used in grinding and polishing
applications.

Corundum has a Moh's hardness of 9 and is used as an abrasive. Garnet sand, a by

product of beach heavy mineral mining, is often used for sand-blasting as it is heavier
and harder than quartz sand and, therefore, lasts longer and cuts better.

b) Soft Abrasives.
These are used in scouring detergents, toothpaste and polishes. Examples include:
Quartz in "VIM"; Calcite and /or dolomite in toothpaste and handy Andy ; and bentonite
clay in motor car polish.
Fluxes.

Fluxes are materials added to furnace charges during smelting to lower the melting
temperature of the silicate gangue minerals, to reduce the surface tension of the metal
so that it flows more easily, and to control the chemistry of the slag.

a) Carbonate flux; limestone (calcite) is a common flux, it is converted to calcium oxide

(CaO) in a furnace and reacts with SiO2 to form a calc-silicate slag:

CaO + SiO2 ----» CaSiO3 (wollastonite)

b) Silica flux; this is usually derived from quartz rich sediments or sedimentary rock. It
is used in Cu and Ni smelting to remove iron from sulphide minerals, to form iron rich
silicates.

c) Fluorite removes silicon, sulphur, phosphorus and carbon from molten iron during
steelmaking.
South Africa has the largest reserves of fluorite in the world and is the second largest
producer.

Pigments.

Many modern pigments are made from organic chemicals. These tend to bleach in the
sun (are not colour fast) and so inorganic pigments are preferred for some aplications
such as road marking paint. Some bulk minerals are used as pigments:

Ochre - limonite. Mainly used in colouring cement

Umbre - manganese oxides. Mainly used for coloured cement bricks.
Red oxide - hematite
Specular hematite Used in roof tiles, roof paint and heavy duty rust
preventing paint.
Rutile TiO2 Used as a white pigment, but must be chemically
produced from rutile or ilmenite.
Antimony sulphides and oxides Used in military paints because they reflect infrared
radiation so giving military vehicles protection from
photo-reconnaissance aircraft. SouthAfrica ranks 4th in
the world in antimony reserves and is 2nd in
production.
Ceramics.

a) Refractories.
Refractory bricks can be divided into three groups:

ai) Alumina or acid refractorys; these are made from kaolin. Andalusite is added to
increase the aluminium oxide content to produce high alumina bricks. South Africa has
the worlds largest reserves of andalusite and is the worlds largest producer.
aii) Basic bricks are made of magnesia often produced from magnesite:

MgCO3 ----» MgO + CO2

Chromemagbricks are made from magnesite and chromite.

aiii) Specialist Refractorys may be made from:

Graphite; usually with kaolin as a binder.
ZrO; the mineral baddeleyite or produced from zircon (ZrSiO4).

b) Domestic Ceramics.
Kaolin predominates as the raw material for making wall and floor tiles, sanitary ware
and china. Poorer clays, with high iron contents and containing other clay minerals, e.g.
illite and montmorillonite are used to make pipes and building bricks.

For tiles, sanitary ware, china, etc. the clay is mixed with silica, feldspar and grog
(broken bits and waste) to reduce shrinkage during firing.
Feldspar is a used in glaze, e.g. on china and enameled metals.

c) Specialist Ceramics.
These include wear resistant linings for pipes conveying abrasive materials, these are
usually high alumina ceramics.

Medical ceramics, bone replacement parts for arthritis sufferers. Some ceramic
materials have a similar porosity and texture to bone and performs better than other
replacement materials such as teflon and stainless steel.

Glass

Most glass is made by melting pure quartz sand + lime (from calcite) + sodium
carbonate (SiO2 + CaO + Na2CO3)

The viscous hot liquid is chilled so that no crystals develop. Special glasses have
certain other crystals added:
Pyrex Glass has borax added (Na2B2O4.10 H20) this gives it heat resisting properties.
Optical glass for lenses contains fluorite or GeO for increased refractive index.

Industrial minerals used in electrical and electronic applications

Micas are used as insulators in heaters, toasters and irons.

Vein quartz, if pure and untwinned is of value for making electronic timers where the
piezo-electricity property is used.

Solid state devices (semiconductors) are made from silicon, which is produced from
pure quartz. Silicon's conductance is modified (called doping) by adding elements which
are recovered as byproducts from a number of metallurgical processes such as
selenium which is recovered from blister copper during electrolytic purification.
2.5 FURTHER READING

Battey, M.H. Mineralogy for students. Longman Scientific publications.

Read, H.H. Rutley’s elements of mineralogy. George Allen publishers.

2.6 EXERCISES

2.6.1 Explain the meaning of the following terms (Illustrate your answer with examples
where possible):

 Crystal lattice  Cleavage

 Crystal form  Fracture
 Crystal system  Density
 Common form  Silicate
 Lustre  Oxide
 Mineral Hardness  Sulphide
 Streak

2.6.2 Describe the following types of mineral common forms (use diagrams and
examples to illustrate your answer):

 Botryoidal
 Acicular
 Fibrous
 Radial
 Tabular

2.6.3 Explain the economic value of the following minerals:

 Diamond
 Pentlandite
 Pyrolusite
 Galena
 Sphalerite
 Chalcopyrite
 Haematite
 Magnetite
 Calcite
 Graphite
2.6.4 As a practical exercise, describe the physical properties of the following rock
forming minerals from hand specimen:

 Quartz
 Orthoclase (feldspar group)
 Olivine
 Augite (pyroxene group)
 Diopside (pyroxene group)
 Hornblende (amphibole group)
 Biotite (mica group)
 Muscovite (mica group)
 Calcite
 Dolomite

2.6.5 As a practical exercise, describe the physical properties of the following ore
minerals from hand specimen:

 Pyrite
 Chalcopyrite
 Galena
 Sphalerite
 Cassiterite
 Haematite
 Magnetite
 Pyrolusite
 Chromite