MODULE 2: STUDY OF MINERALS

• Study of rock forming minerals, their physical properties & uses.

• Feldspar group, Quartz group, Pyroxene group, Mica group and Clay minerals.
 MINERAL
• A mineral is a naturally occurring homogenous substance
which has a more or less definite chemical composition
and definite atomic structure.
• The minerals may be divided into two broad groups:
1. Rock-forming minerals
2. Ore-forming minerals
• Over 2000 minerals are known to exist but it is interesting
to note that only 8 elements compose the bulk of these
minerals and about 98% of the continental crust. These
8 elements are oxygen, silicon, aluminium, iron, calcium,
potassium, sodium and magnesium. Out of these, two abundant
elements are silicon and oxygen which combine to form the mineral
Fig: Minerals
group known as the “silicates”. There are 6 silicate groups.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF MINERAL

• These are the properties which are determined in hand specimens, which is very important
in the recognition of minerals in the field.
• The chief physical properties are:
• Color, streak, lustre, hardness, habit, cleavage & fracture, tenacity, luminescence,
density & specific gravity.
 COLOR
• Color of any object is a light dependent property. It is the appearance of the particular object in
light.
• A particular color is produced by reflection of some and absorption of other components of
white light. A mineral shows color of that wavelength of the white light which is not absorbed
by it by virtue of its composition and atomic structure.
• Some minerals possess characteristic and fairly constant color, for example, the lead-grey of
galena, brass yellow of pyrite and green of chlorite.

Fig (a): Galena Fig (b): Pyrite Fig (c): Chlorite

• The most significant control on color is a mineral’s chemical composition. The elements that gives
mineral its color are called chromophores. Example are transition metals such as iron (Fe) and copper
(Cu)
• On the basis of color, a mineral may belong to any one of the three types:
1. Idiochromatic: If the elements controlling the selective reflectance of certain wavelengths are major
components in a mineral the mineral is called idiochromatic, or “self-coloring”. For example
Sphalerite(ZnS). Its color changes from white to yellow to brown to black.
2. Allochromatic: In allochromatic mineral, minor and trace elements imparts the color. Example:
very small amounts of iron (Fe) and titanium (Ti) imparts blue color to sapphire.

Fig: Sapphire blue Fig: Ruby red due to

due to iron and Chromium
titanium
STREAK

• The color of the mineral powder is called “streak”. It is more consistent and reliable than the body color
of the mineral.
• The streak is obtained by rubbing a mineral against an unglazed porcelain plate , called streak plate.
• The study of streak is most useful in case of colored minerals which gives a much lighter streak than
their body color. Example: hematite appears black in color which appears red colored streak.

Fig: red streak of hematite

LUSTRE
• Lustre is a very important characteristic and useful property of minerals. It is a measure of the
reflectivity of the mineral surface. The lustre may be defined as the general appearance of a
mineral surface in reflected light.
 HARDNESS

• Hardness is one of the most useful diagnostic

properties of a mineral.
• It is defined as the resistance of a mineral to
abrasion or scratching.
• It is determined by rubbing a mineral of unknown
hardness against one of known hardness.
• A numerical value is obtained by using the
“Mohs scale of hardness”. In this scale there are
10 minerals which are arranged in the order of
their increasing hardness.
 HABIT

• Habit of mineral may be defined as the size and shape of the crystals, and the structure or form shown
by the crystal aggregates and cryptocrystalline masses. The chief habit are:
1. Accicular: minerals showing needle like crystals. Example: Natrolite.
2. Fibrous: minerals showing an aggregate of long thin fibres. Example: Asbestos and satinspar.
3. Foliated: minerals with platy habit commonly occur as foliated aggregates containing thin separable
sheets. Example: Muscovite and biotite.
4. Bladed: minerals showing bladed habit occur as small knife blades. Example: kyanite.
5. Tabular: minerals showing broad flat surfaces. Example: Feldspar.
6. Columnar: minerals showing columnar cyrstals. Example tourmaline.
7. Botryoidal: minerals showing aggregate of rounded masses resembling bunch of grapes. Example:
Chalcedony.
8. Pisolitic: minerals which occur as aggregate of rounded grains of a pea size. Example: Bauxite.
Fig (a): natrolite showing Fig (b): satin spar and asbestos showing fibrous habit Fig (c): Kyanite showing bladed
Accicular habit habit

Fig (d): feldspar Fig (e): Fig (f): Chalcedony showing Fig (g): bauxite showing
showing tabular habit tourmaline botryoidal habit pisolitic habit
showing
columnar habit
CLEAVAGE AND FRACTURE

• If a mineral breaks along a flat plane, it is said to possess a cleavage, if it breaks with an irregular
surface, it is said to show a fracture.
• Thus, the cleavage may be defined as the tendency of a mineral to break more easily with smooth
surfaces along planes of weak bonding.
• Cleavage is the property which is related to the atomic arrangement within the mineral.
• Example: Galena has 3 sets and mica has 1 set of cleavage.
Fracture types:
• Conchoidal fracture
• Even fracture
• Uneven fracture
• Hackly fracture
ODOR

• Some minerals give a characteristic smell when rubber, breathed upon or heated. The chief types of
odor are as follows:
1. Arsenical. The arsenical odor is like the odor of garlic
2. Sulfurous. This odor is like odor of burning sulfur.
3. Argillaceous. This odor is like the odor of clay.
FEEL
• It is the sensation upon touching or handling minerals. The different types of feel are “greasy”,
“soapy”, “rough” and “harsh”.
• The example of greasy is talc, that of soapy feel is kaolin and that of rough feel is bauxite.
TENACITY

• Tenacity of mineral denotes the degree or character of cohesion. Tenacity is classified as follows.
1. Sectile. Minerals which may be cut with knife but slices are not malleable. Eg. Gypsum.
2. Malleable. Minerals which flattens under the hammer. Eg. Copper.
3. Flexible. Minerals which may be bent. Eg. Talc and chlorite.
4. Elastic. Minerals which spring back after bending. Eg. Mica minerals.
5. Brittle. Minerals which break easily. Brittle is the opposite of tough. Eg: halite, quartz.
6. Friable. Minerals which crumble easily.
7. Pulverulent. Minerals which are powdery and have little or no cohesion. Example clay or chalk.
FLUORESCENCE AND PHOSPHORESCENCE

• Some minerals when exposed in sunlight or ultraviolet light, produce a color quite
different from their own.
• Thus, green or colorless fluorite shows a blue or purple colour in ultraviolet light. This
property of minerals is called fluorescence. The other minerals which shows fluorescence
are calcite and scheelite.
• Whereas, some minerals which glow and emit light when they are placed in ultraviolet
light are called as phosphorescence. For example: diamond and sphalerite.
 SPECIFIC GRAVITY

• Specific gravity is number which represents the ratio of the weight of a mineral to the weight of an
equal volume of water. Thus, a mineral with specific gravity 4.0 is four times as heavy as water. The
specific gravity of common silicate minerals is about 2.65 and those of ore minerals varies between 4.5
to 10.
𝑤1
• Specific gravity=
𝑤1 −𝑤2

Where, W1= weight of a mineral

W2= weight of an equal volume of water