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Questions and Answers
What is a characteristic of minerals that distinguishes them from rocks?
What is a characteristic of minerals that distinguishes them from rocks?
What is the primary way to classify minerals?
What is the primary way to classify minerals?
What is true about diamonds?
What is true about diamonds?
What is necessary for magma to become a mineral?
What is necessary for magma to become a mineral?
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What is an example of a mineral that can be found in a particular type of rock?
What is an example of a mineral that can be found in a particular type of rock?
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Which of the following is used to classify crystal structures?
Which of the following is used to classify crystal structures?
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What is an example of a Cubic Close-Packed (CCP) crystalline structure?
What is an example of a Cubic Close-Packed (CCP) crystalline structure?
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What is the study of rocks called?
What is the study of rocks called?
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What percentage of the Earth's crust is composed of sedimentary rock?
What percentage of the Earth's crust is composed of sedimentary rock?
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What is the process by which sedimentary rocks can change into metamorphic rocks?
What is the process by which sedimentary rocks can change into metamorphic rocks?
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Study Notes
Rocks vs Minerals
- Rocks are different from minerals, but both are solids and can be found in the earth's crust.
- Minerals are naturally occurring substances with unique chemical and physical properties.
- Minerals are inorganic, multicolored, have a specific structure, and are defined by their chemical composition.
- Minerals have a definite crystalline structure and can have nutritional value.
Mineral Definition
- Minerals are inorganic uniform chemical compositions of a solid that have a crystalline internal structure and occur naturally.
- Minerals can be made from multiple types of elements or just one.
- Minerals can be vast, like the size of a tree, or very small, like a grain of sand.
- Salt or NaCl is an example of the crystalline structure of minerals.
Classifying Minerals
- Minerals are classified by their chemical composition and crystalline structure.
- Other ways to characterize minerals include examining the color, density, hardness, streak, luster, and solubility.
- Geologists classify crystal structures by the number of sides, angles, cleavage, and fracture.
- There are three main types of crystalline structures: Body-Centered Cubic (BCC), Hexagonal Close-Packed (HCP), and Cubic Close-Packed (CCP).
Rock Definition
- A rock is a solid interconnected collective of two or more crystalline minerals.
- Rocks are usually made up of various types of mineral grains, held together in one solid form, and can be large or small.
- The study of rocks is called petrology.
- Rocks do not always have a repeating arrangement of atoms like minerals do.
Classifying Rocks
- Rocks are classified based on how they are formed.
- There are three main rock classifications: igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.
- Rocks are made through the rock cycle, which either creates new rocks or recycles old rocks.
Igneous Rocks
- Made from hot magma that cools to create rock.
- Emerges from volcanoes.
- The quicker it cools, the finer the grain texture; the slower it cools, the larger the grain texture.
- Can be intrusive or extrusive.
Sedimentary Rocks
- Made over time by pressure from other rocks.
- Shows fossil records.
- Used to interpret history.
Metamorphic Rocks
- Made from other rocks.
- Chemical reactions can alter the minerals.
- Different levels of heat can create different rocks from the same minerals.
The Rock Cycle
- The process in which all rock is made or recycled.
- Igneous → Sedimentary: through weathering, sedimentation, and lithification.
- Sedimentary → Metamorphic: through heat & pressure, deformation and recrystallization.
- Metamorphic → Igneous: through melting and crystallization.
Is a Rock a Mineral?
- A rock is not a mineral, and minerals do not always make rocks.
- Most rocks are made of minerals, but some rocks have no minerals.
- Rocks that contain minerals: granite, shale, limestone, marble, sandstone, coal.
- Rocks that do not contain minerals: peat, chalk, flint.
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Description
Learn about the differences between rocks and minerals, and explore the unique properties of minerals found in the earth's crust.
