EARTH’S

PROCESSES
BY: MYLENE IBI BATANG
 ROCK-
FORMING
MINERALS
 HOW IS A
MINERAL
DIFFERENT
FROM A ROCK?
 MINERALS
• Are building blocks of rocks.
•It is naturally-occurring,
inorganic solid that exhibits
crystalline structure.
•Is a solid formation that
occurs naturally in the earth.

WHILE……
 ROCK
• Is a solid combination of more than one
mineral formations which is also
occurring.
• Can also contain organic remains and
mineraloids apart from regular mineral.
 GENERAL
CHARACTERIST
ICS OF
MINERALS
NATURALLY OCCURING
•It is a mineral that has
been formed by geologic
processes without
human intervention.
 INORGANIC
•Is formed by inorganic
processes and does not
contain any organic
compounds.
 SOLID
•A mineral should exhibit
stability at room
temperature, which can
only be attained if it is solid.
 DEFINITE CHEMICAL
COMPOSITION
• Most minerals are chemical compounds
and can therefore be represented using
a fixed or variable chemical formula.
•SiO2 - Quartz
• Mg2SiO4 or Fe2SiO4 -Olivine
 CRYSTALLINE STRUCTURE
•The atoms in minerals are
organized in a regular,
repetitive geometric patterns
or crystal structure.
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
 WHICH 2 OF THE FOLLOWING ARE
NOT MINERALS? WHY?
• Talc
• Fluorite
• Galena
• Crude Oil
• Quartz
• Pyrite
• Coal
• Talc
• Fluorite
• Galena
• Crude Oil- liquid (not solid) and organic (made of
plant and animal remains)
• Quartz
• Pyrite
• Coal- Organic (made of plant and animal remains)
COMPOSITION
OF MINERALS
 SILICATES
•Composed mainly of silicon-
oxygen tetrahedrons.
•Are the major rock-forming
minerals.
 QUARTZ - SIO2

HERKIMER DIAMOND AMETRINE

RUTILATED QUARTZ

SCEPTRED QUARTZ BLUE QUARTZ

ROSE QUARTZ PRASIOLITE

ROCK CRYSTAL

CHALCEDONY CITRINE
OLIVINE - MG2SIO4 OR FE2SIO4
 OXIDES
•Consist of metal cations
bonded to oxygen anions.
 MAGNETITE - (FE3O4 )

DARK GREY OCTAHEDRAL

MAGNETITE DARK SILVER MAGNETITE
MAGNETITE
 HEMATITE - ( FE2O3 )

WEATHERED REDDISH- WEATHERED GREY SILVERY HEMATITE

BROWN HEMATITE TO REDDISH
HEMATITE
 SULFIDES
•Consist of metal cation bonded to
sulfide (S ).
2-

•They are common ore minerals

along with oxides since metals form
a high proportion of the mineral.
Galena - PbS
Pyrite - FeS2
 SULFATES
•Consist of metal cation
bonded to the SO4 anion
2

group.
•They usually precipitate out of
water near earth’s surface.
Gypsum - CaSO4* 2H2O
 HALIDES
•Are composed of a halogen ion,
such as chlorine or fluorine,
which forms a halite or rock salt
(NaCl) and fluorite (CaF2).
FLUORITE - CAF2
 CARBONATES
•Are characterized by the presence
of carbonic ion CO3 which bond
2-

elements such as calcium or

magnesium to form a calcite
(CaCO3) or dolomite CaMg(CO3)2
DOLOMITE - CaMg(CO3)2
CALCITE - CACO3
 NATURAL METALS

• Consist of a single metal such

as copper (Cu) and gold (Au)
Copper – Cu Gold - Au
 HOW TO
IDENTIFY
MINERALS ?
 CRYSTAL SYSTEM
• The crystals of minerals grow atom
by atom to create that mineral’s
crystal system.
• Geologists classify crystal systems
into six groups based on the number
and angles of the crystal faces
CRYSTAL SYSTEMS
 PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
• These include:
• Color/Appearance
• Luster
• Streak
• Hardness
• Cleavage/Fracture
 COLOR

• Many minerals will have a

similar appearance, but will
have different impurities.
• Color and appearance are not
enough to distinguish.
minerals.
 LUSTER
• Luster refers to the way a mineral reflects
light from its surface
• Metallic = shiny or polished like metal
• Non-metallic = can include dull, vitreous,
pearlescent, silky, earthy and greasy.
 Pyrite has a Calcite has a non-
metallic luster metallic luster
 Streak
• The color of the powdered form of
the mineral
• We find a minerals streak by
rubbing it on a white ceramic plate
• The color of the streak can be
different than the mineral
• Minerals must be softer than the
streak plate.
STREAK…CAN HELP IDENTIFY
QUARTZ
 Hardness
• How easily a mineral scratches materials
• Mohs Hardness Scale
• A relative measure of hardness using
common materials and standard
minerals to represent a specific
hardness value the mineral can
scratch different.
• Scale from 1 (softest) to 10
(hardest)
HARDNESS- MOHS HARDNESS SCALE
 Cleavage and Fracture

• The way the mineral breaks

• Cleavage —minerals break along smooth, flat
surfaces and every fragment has the same
general shape
• Fracture —minerals that break at random
with rough or jagged edges. Does not split
apart evenly.
CLEAVAGE
FRACTURE
CLEAVAGE OR FRACTURE?
1. 2.

3. 4.
 SPECIAL PROPERTIES
• Some minerals have special physical
properties that help to identify the
minerals, such as
• Fluorescence means that mineral can
glow under ultraviolet light
• Double Refraction produces two images
when something is viewed through the
mineral
SPECIAL PROPERTIES
Fluorescence Double Refraction