Minerals and Rocks

5. Minerals and Rocks

5.1. Minerals
• Almost all solid geologic materials are made up of
aggregates of minerals, which are naturally occurring
inorganic, solid substances having a definite crystal
structure, specific physical properties, and a
composition that is fixed or varies within fixed limits
• There are about 2000 known mineral species, but
only about 100 minerals are common and perhaps
20 truly abundant; fewer than 10 make up over 99%
of all rocks, which are the aggregates of minerals
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• Average crustal composition of the Earth
Element Chemical Symbol Weight (%) Volume (%)
Oxygen O 46.60 93.77
Silicon Si 27.72 0.86
Aluminum Al 8.13 0.47
Iron Fe 5.00 0.43
Calcium Ca 3.63 1.03
Sodium Na 2.83 1.32
Potassium K 2.59 1.83
Magnesium Mg 2.09 0.29

• Oxygen is absolutely dominant in terms of both

weight and volume
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5.1.1. Physical Properties of Minerals
Each mineral has an orderly arrangement of atoms;
crystalline structure and a definite properties;
- Hardness
- Fracture(kırılma) and Cleavage(yarılma)
- Specific Gravity
- Color and Streak
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• Hardness; is the resistance of a mineral to abrasion
and is measured by scratch tests on materials of
known relative hardness
• The Mohs mineral hardness scale is used
• Each mineral is capable of scratching the one below
it on the scale
• Any mineral of known hardness can compared to
these in Mohs scale or to other objects of known
hardness
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• Fracture and Cleavage; minerals break in
characteristic ways
• If the broken surface is irregular it is called fracture
• If the mineral breaks along a plane surface that is
related to the structure, it has cleavage
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• Specific Gravity; specific gravity of a mineral is the ratio of
its weight to that of an equal volume of water
• Most common minerals have a specific gravity between 2
and 3
• For example, quartz has a specific gravity of 2.65
• By contrast, some metallic minerals, such as pyrite, native
copper, and magnetite, are more than twice as dense and
thus have more than twice the specific gravity of quartz
• Galena, an ore of lead, has a specific gravity of roughly
7.5, whereas the specific gravity of 24-karat gold is
approximately 20
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• Color and Streak; color is combined effect of
mineral’s constituents(bileşen) and their
arrangement, chemical impurities, and various
crystal imperfections
• Streak(çizgi) is the color of a powdered mineral and
is obtained by rubbing the mineral across a piece of
unglazed porcelain
• Streak can be different than the color of a mineral
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• 5.1.2. Mineral Classification
• The two most abundant elements are silicon and
oxygen, which combine to form the framework of
the most common mineral group, the silicates
• Therefore we will group mineral as;
- Silicate minerals (silicon+oxygen)
- Nonsilicate minerals
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• Clay minerals; the term clay is used to describe
either a group minerals, a particle size (<2 mm), or a
set of properties
• Clay minerals are the products of the chemical
weathering of silicate minerals, especially feldspars
• They are fine-grained minerals with sheet like
crystalline structures similar to micas
• The more important clay minerals are kaolinite,
montmorillonite and illite
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• Clay minerals are important due to their common
occurrence and peculiar properties in association
with water, which may lead to hazardous conditions
if they make up the bulk of material at an
engineering site
• The mechanical response of a material such as a
soil is strongly conditioned by its clay mineral
content
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• Ore minerals; an ore is one or more minerals from
which a valuable material may be extracted at a
profit
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5.2. Rocks(kayaç)
Rocks are solid aggregates of mineral or other
particles held together by the interlocking of grains
or an inter-granular cement
Rocks constitute the outer portion, or lithosphere, of
the Earth and are formed and transformed in the
mantle, crust, or at the Earth’s surface
The rock forming processes in the deeper subsurface
go on in a region of high temperature and pressure
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• They involve both the recrystallization of mineral
aggregates in the solid state, metamorphism, and
the production of silicate melts called magma
• Magma bodies, being liquid, tend to rise and
intrude the surrounding country rock where they
cool and crystallize into deep-seated igneous rocks,
which are variable in shape and often of very large
size
• Sometimes the magma is extruded on the surface
as lava or as other products of volcanic action
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• Rock-forming and decay processes on the surface of
the Earth involve the physical and chemical
transformation of previously formed rocks to
materials more or less stable in the markedly
different surface environment
• Here lower pressure and temperature together
with abundance of such active chemical agents as
water and free oxygen tend to disaggregate,
transform, and dissolve rocks in the process termed
weathering
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• The products of weathering may remain in place as a
residual blanket called soil or regolith, or to be
transported and deposited as
sediments(tortu/çökelti)
• These sediments, in turn, may form into sedimentary
rocks by compaction or the introduction of
cementing materials from groundwater
• Substances dissolved in groundwater can be
transformed into solid sedimentary rocks; evaporites
by the evaporation of surface waters
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• These processes leading to the formation of different
rock types are then grouped under three categories as;
- The cooling of molten material
- Settling, depositional, or precipitation processes
- Heating or squeezing (sıkıştırma)processes
• Each of these processes then produce;
- Igneous rocks (magmatik kayaç)
- Sedimentary rocks (tortul kayaçlar)
- Metamorphic rocks
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5.2.2. Classification of Rocks
Geologically the rocks are classified into three major
divisions in accordance with their origins;
- Igneous rocks; are formed by the cooling and
crystallization of molten material called magma
- Metamorphic rocks; recrystallization of previously formed
rocks at elevated temperature and in the solid state
- Sedimentary rocks; are formed by aggregation and
cohesion of mineral matter or other grains at or near the
Earth’s surface
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5.2.3. Igneous Rocks
• Igneous rocks form from siliceous melts, when magma cools and
crystallizes
• This molten rock, which originates at depths as great as 200 km
within the Earth, consists primarily of the elements found in silicate
minerals, along with some gases, particularly water vapor, which
are confined within the magma by the pressure of the surrounding
rocks
• Natural magmas are hot, viscous siliceous melts in which the chief
elements are silicon and oxygen, and the metals, potassium,
sodium, calcium, magnesium, aluminum, and iron
• Together with these main constituents are small amounts of many
other elements, and gases such as CO2, SO2, and H2O
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• The formation of igneous rocks are from a molten mass of
when it cools
• Therefore, the characteristics of igneous rocks are controlled
by two basic factors;
- The rate of cooling
- The chemical composition of the molten mass
• The cooling rate controls the size of the mineral crystals that
form in the melt
• Thus, igneous rocks with similar chemical characteristics;
mineral composition can be glassy or can have crystal sizes
ranging from very fine to very coarse, or a combination
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• Crystal size is a diagnostic feature is therefore one
component of the classification of igneous rocks
• Rapid cooling precludes the growth of crystals, while
slow cooling allows their growth
• Extrusive igneous rocks form on or near the surface of
the Earth and cool rapidly because they are not well
insulated; they are fine crystalline to glassy rocks
• Intrusive igneous rocks are intruded into deeper parts
of the crust, insulated and cooled slowly; they are
medium to coarse crystalline rocks
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• Igneous rocks are divided into three general groups
depending on the depth at which emplacement
occurs;
- Plutonic rock; or deep seated, intrusive rock
- Hypabyssal rock, or shallow intrusive rock
- Volcanic rock, extruded at the surface
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• 5.2.3.1. Classification of igneous rocks
• Igneous rocks are classified on the basis of their;
- Texture
- Mineral composition
• The various igneous textures results from different
cooling histories, whereas the mineral composition
of an igneous rock is the consequence of the
chemical make up of the parent magma and the
environment of crystallization
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• The term granitic refers to igneous rocks which are
composed mainly of potassium feldspars and
quartz; such rocks may also be referred to as felsic
(derived from feldspar and silica meaning quartz)
• Intermediate igneous rocks contain amphiboles and
plagioclase feldspars, and these are given the name
andesitic
• Basaltic rocks contain pyroxene and calcium-rich
feldspars, with lesser amount of olivine and
amphibole
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• Pyroclastic rocks are those which form from fragments
ejected during a volcanic eruption
• One of the most common pyroclastic rocks, called tuff,
is composed of tiny ash-sized fragments which were
later cemented together
• Pyroclastic rocks composed of particles larger than ash
are called volcanic breccia
• The particles in volcanic breccia can consist of
streamline fragments that solidified in air, blocks broken
from the walls of the vent, crystals and glass fragments
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5.2.4. Sedimentary Rocks
The products of mechanical and chemical weathering of
pre-existing rocks constitute the raw materials for
sedimentary rocks
Weathered debris is constantly being swept form bedrock,
carried away, eventually deposited in lakes, river valleys,
seas, and other places
The particles in a desert sand dune, the mud on the floor
of a swamp, the gravels in a stream bed, and even
household dust are examples of this never ending process
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• Since the weathering of bedrock and the transport
and deposition of the weathering products are
continuous, sediment is found almost everywhere
• As piles of sediment accumulate, the material near
the bottom are compacted
• Over long periods, these sediments are cemented
together by mineral matter deposited in the space
between particles to form solid rock
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• It is estimated that sedimentary rocks account for only
5% by volume of the Earth’s outer 16 km
• However the importance of this group of rocks is far
greater than this percentage would imply
• If we were to sample the rocks exposed on the surface,
we would find that the great majority are sedimentary;
indeed, about 75% of all outcrops on the continents are
sedimentary
• Therefore we may think of sedimentary rocks as
comprising a relatively thin and somewhat discontinuous
layer in the uppermost portion of the crust
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• Since sediments accumulate at the Earth’s surface,
the rock layers that they eventually form contain
evidence of past events at the surface
• They contain within them indications of past
environments in which their particles were
deposited and in some cases, clues to the
mechanisms involved in their transport
• Furthermore, it is sedimentary rocks that contain
fossils, which are vital tools in the study of the
geologic past
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• It should be mentioned that many sedimentary
rocks are very important economically
• Coal for example, is classified as sedimentary rock,
whereas major energy resources, petroleum and
natural gas are found in association with
sedimentary rocks
• Still others represent major sources of iron,
aluminum, manganese, and fertilizer as well as
numerous materials essential to the construction
industry
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5.2.4.1. Types of Sedimentary Rocks
• Depending upon the sources, sedimentary rocks are of
two types
• First, sediments may be accumulations of materials that
originate and are transported as solid particles derived
from both mechanical and chemical weathering; deposits
of this type are termed detrital
• The second source is soluble material produced largely by
chemical weathering; when these dissolved substances
are precipitated by either inorganic or organic processes,
chemical sedimentary rocks are formed
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5.2.4.2. Detrital Sedimentary Rocks
• Clay minerals and quartz are the major constituents
of most detrital sedimentary rocks
• Other common minerals are the feldspars and
micas
• Particle size is the primary basis for distinguishing
among various detrital sedimentary rocks
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• Shale; is a sedimentary rock consisting of silt and
clay sized particles
• These fine grained detrital rocks account for well
over half of all sedimentary rocks
• The particles in these rocks are so small that can
not be visible without great magnification
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• Sandstone; is the name given to rocks when sand size grains
predominate
• After shale, sandstone is the most abundant sedimentary rock
• Sandstones form in a variety of environments
• Due to its durability, quartz is the predominant mineral in
most sandstones, forming quartz sandstone
• When a sandstone contains appreciable quantities of
feldspar, the rock is called arkose
• A third variety of sandstone is graywacke, which contains
abundant rock fragments and clay along with quartz and
feldspar
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• Conglomerate; consists largely of gravels
• If the large particles are angular in shape rather
than rounded, the rock is called breccia
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5.2.4.3. Chemical Sedimentary Rocks
• Chemical sedimentary rocks are formed from chemical
sediments carried in solution to lakes and seas
• This material does not remain dissolved in the water
indefinitely some of it precipitates to form chemical
sediments
• This precipitation may occur directly as the result of
inorganic processes or indirectly as the result of life
processes of water dwelling organisms
• Sediment formed in the second way is said to have a
biochemical origin
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• Limestone; is the most abundant chemical
sedimentary rock
• It is chiefly composed of the mineral calcite (CaCO3)
and forms by inorganic means or as the result of
biochemical processes
• Limestones having an inorganic origin form when
chemical changes or high water temperatures
increase the concentration of calcium carbonate to
the point that it precipitates; travertine is an example
to this type limestone, commonly seen in caves
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• Dolomite; is closely related to limestones,
composed of calcium-magnesium mineral
• Dolomite can form by direct precipitation from
seawater and can also originate when magnesium
in seawater replaces some of the calcium in
limestone
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• Chert; is name used for a number of very dense and
hard rocks made of microcrystalline silica; SiO2
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• Evaporites; minerals which are precipitated by
evaporation include halite (NaCl), gypsum
(CaSO4•H2O)
• Halite is the common salt used in seasoning and
cooking foods
• Gypsum is the basic ingredient of plaster of Paris
• This material is used most extensively in the
construction industry for wallboard and plaster for
interior use
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• The unconsolidated sediments are transformed into solid
sedimentary rocks by processes known as lithification
• One of the most common processes affecting sediments is
compaction; as sediments accumulate through time, the
weight of overlying material compresses the deeper
sediments
• Cementation is another means by which sediments are
converted to sedimentary rocks
• The cementing materials are carried in solution by water
through the open spaces between particles
• Calcite, silica, and iron oxide are the most common cements