Identifying and Classifying Minerals

Minerals

• The basic components that rocks are made of.
• The natural, inorganic, solid structure of atoms has a definite internal arrangement and chemical makeup.
• Mineraloid has an indefinite chemical composition and lacks an ordered atomic structure.

Classification of Minerals

• Minerals are grouped according to their anion because of the large impact on their properties.
• Silicates are minerals with a silicon-oxygen tetrahedron structure, which forms the base of all silicate minerals.
• Isolated Tetrahedra are the most basic shape, connected by iron or magnesium.
• Chain Silicates feature tetrahedra sharing an oxygen atom in a single-chain formation.
• Sheet silicates form sheets when tetrahedra share three oxygen atoms; all contain water(OH-).
• Feldspar: Contains a lot of framework silicates and is sorted using a ternary system with three end members.
• Quartz only contains silicon tetrahedron in a three-dimensional structure (one silicon and two oxygen atoms), giving it hardness and an uneven break.
• Carbonates contain carbon, oxygen, and one or more metallic elements.
• Oxides contain oxygen and one or more additional elements (usually metals).
• Sulfates and Sulfides both contain sulphur.
• Halides consist one or more elements + a halogen ion.
• Phosphates are made up of phosphate plus one or more elements, they comprise tooth enamel.
• Native elements are made up of one element, including silver, gold, or sulphur.

Physical Properties of Minerals

• Crystal systems are categorized into seven groups:
  • Cubic
  • Tetragonal
  • Hexagonal
  • Trigonal(Rhombohedral)
  • Orthorhombic
  • Monoclinic
  • Triclinic
• Luster refers to a mineral's surface's reflection of light, reflection or bending helps determine the type of mineral.
  • Metallic luster is reflective and bright like metal, opaque, and smooth. The reflectivity increases with brightness, giving colours similar to native metals.
  • Non-metallic luster does not look like metal.
    • Vitreous luster is glassy 70% of minerals reflect this property.
    • Dull Luster appears "earthy", granular, rough, porous, nonreflective and scatters light instead of reflecting.
    • Greasy luster looks like it has been coated in a thin layer of oil or grease.
    • Pearly luster (nacreous) is similar to pearl, often on cleavage surfaces; light reflects and enters from many atomic planes, resulting in an out-of-focus light.
    • Resinous luster appears like resin produced from coniferous trees.
    • Silky luster features many parallel fibers or crystals that are bound together and reflect light.
    • Waxy luster appears like the surface candle, light that is translucent produce it directly.
    • Adamantine luster has the greatest luster, similar to vitreous but more reflective, lacking a clear separation between adamantine and vitreous, like a diamond.

Properties of Minerals

• Color can be used to identify some minerals, while others have a variety of colors because to impurities in their chemical composition.
• Streak refers to the colour of a mineral's powder after rubbing it on a porcelain plate, which can differ from the mineral's actual colour.
• Hardness is a mineral's resistance to abrasion, ranging on a scale of 1 (softest) to 10 (hardest).
• Cleavage can be seen in minerals that tend to break along one or more flat surfaces.
  • Perfect: Have surfaces that are easily spotted and split easily along flat surfaces .
  • Good: Show weaker cleavage planes and reflect less light.
  • Poor: The most difficult to recognize, identifiable by looking in different lighting for tiny light fragments.
  • Cleavage planes may run throughout the mineral the mineral or could be slightly offset from each other.
  • One direction of cleavage is basal cleavage
• Fracture is a mineral's propensity to break along curved, distinct lines.
• Specific gravity refers to the relativeness of mineral to an equal volume of water.
• Tenacity measures a mineral's capacity to withstand breaking.
  • Brittle minerals break into sharp fragments when crushed.
  • Malleable can be modified without breaking, able to be hammered to thin sheets.
  • Sectile Minerals can be sliced into thin shavings.
  • Flexible minerals bend but do not return to their original shape when released.
  • Elastic deforms under pressure but returns to its original shape upon release.
• Acid Test: Cold, dilute hydrochloric acid causes carbonates to produce foam and emit carbon dioxide gas. Sulfides produce a rotting egg odour.
• Fluorescence will occur in some minders exposed to ultraviolet (UV) radiation The UV rays that cause this are not normally visible, and can harm the eye.

Petrology

• Study of the formation and transformation of sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks.
• Mineralogy examines the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical characteristics of minerals.
• Rock is a naturally occurring solid made composed of mineraloids or minerals and that has been categorized into metamorphic, sedimentary, and igneous forms based on its formation and make-up.
• Igneous Rocks are classified by where they solidified, chemical composition, and texture. They result from the solidification and crystallization of hot, molten rock.
  • Extrusive (volcanic) rocks form when lava cools and solidifies.
  • Intrusive (plutonic) rocks in the crust solidify from magma.

Identifying and Naming Igneous Rocks

Texture

• Texture is a characteristic of a mineral's crystal size, shape, and arrangement.
• Aphanitic: No crystal growth as a result of rapid cooling.
• Phaneritic: Crystals can grow as a result of slow cooling.
• Porphyritic: Due to variable cooling rates, large crystals are found in a finer-grained matrix.
• Glassy: extremely rapid cooling stops crystal creation.
• Pyroclastic: Explosive eruptions will result in fragmented glassy material.
• Vesicular: Rocks with a pitted appearance in the surface and interior due to numerous cavities (vesicles).

Composition

• Felsic rocks: Contain a lot of silica and feldspar.
• Mafic rocks: Have a high magnesium and iron concentration.
• Ultramafic rocks: Contain extremely elevated levels of magnesium and iron.
• Intermediate rocks: Lies somewhere in between granite and basalt.
• Bowen’s Reaction Series is a tool that helps identify the original composition of and conditions in which cooled and solidified.

Sedimentary Rocks

• Form on the earth's surface by cementing and compacting organic and mineral components (lithification).
• Sedimentation occurs when these particles settle.

Types of Sediments

• Lithogenous Sediments are delivered by rivers, wind, ice and other land processes.
• Biogenous Sediments are produced from plankton and other creatures as their exoskeletons disintegrate.
• Hydrogenous Sediments are created by chemical processes that occur in water.
• Cosmogenous Sediments are made up of extraterrestrial things microscopic spherules (asteroids) and significant meteor debris.

Formation Process:

• Erosion & Transportation: The process of particles being transported and deposited is called
• Deposition: More and more layers will accumulate with time.
• Compaction. layers are compressed as moisture escapes.
• Cementation: Crystals of minerals develop, which binds together.

Types of Sedimentary Rocks

• Clastic Weathered rock fragments, that makes 85% of sedimentary rocks (clay, silt, gravel, sand).
• Organic Material: Formed by aggregated organic materials, plentiful in carbon & fossils.
• Bioclastic: Consists of plant and/or animal materials, frequently with fossils.

Metamorphic Rock

• Metamorphic rock begins as one rock type before being significantly altered by intense heat, pressure, and mineral-rich fluids.

Types of Metamorphism:

• Contact: Magma alters the rock through heat.
• Burial: Deep burial leads to transformations.
• Regional (Dynamothermal): Large-scale deformation in subduction zones/mountains.
• Hydrothermal: Hot fluids modify rock and is prevalent at mid-ocean ridges.
• Cataclastic: High-pressure crushing/shearing produces mylonites.

Agents of Metamorphism

• Heat is the driving force behind chemical reactions.
• Pressure: Compresses rocks, thus raising their density.

Types of Metamorphic Rocks

• Foliated results from aligned minerals caused by pressure in a certain direction.
• Non-foliated: It develops under the same amount of pressure in all directions.

Pedology: Introduction to Soil

• Pedology, a subfield of soil science, studies the genesis, structure, and classification of soils in natural settings.
• Regolith (rhegos-blanket lithos=stone) A coating of mineral and rock fragments is created by weathering.

Basic Components of Soil

• The basic components of the soil is
  • Organic 5%
  • Water 25%
  • Air 25%
  • Mineral 45%

Soil Texture

• Soil texture describes the proportions of different particle sizes.
• Sand : Requires roots that are embedded in the ground, low nutrients, huge particles, and low Hv2O.
• Silt: Easiily erodible, fine particles ideal for cropland.
• Clay requires that the roots are firmly planted, very tiny space separate very little between particles. very thin components.
• Loam is one of the soil types required to plant plants (SAND+ CLAY = LOAM).

Controls of Soil Formation

• Parent material, time, climate, topography, plants, and animals are significant components.
• Pedogenesis describes the process of soil development.

Parent material

• Determined by weathering rate and chemical composition, which affects soil fertility.

Climate

• Climate refers to atmospheric elements like temperature and precipitation and exerts the greatest influence regarding soil growth.

Time

• Soil characteristics are largely determined by the length of time that processes have been running.

Plants and Animals

• Plants serve as the primary source of soil fertility, which depends on the amount of organic matter present. (e.g. earthworms).

Topography

• Varying topographies can result in the development of distinct kinds of localized soil.

Classifying soils

• O horizons consist largely of decaying organic material, broken down by insects, algae, fungus, and bacteria.
• A horizon has a primarily mineral make-up, is rich in biological activity and typically makes up 30% of the total
• The topsoil consist of Horizon A & 0.
• E horizon is characterized for having light color, it contains little organic material. As well as Eluviation- the depth in where fine soil and leaching are both washing out soluble material .
• Horizon B often referred to as subsoil is also referred to as a accumulation area.
• The solum (true soil) formed of O, A, E, and B horizons, and that contain living root and plants being contained.
• The deepest layer is unweathered parent material.

Soil taxomony

• the ordering of observable soil traits and chemical/physical qualities as part of the profile.
• There are main 2 types of physical properties: Alfisol & Andisols
  • Alfisol- Is one that is found semi-arid with moist regions. That are mainly formed by mixed vegetative forests. Being productive for most crops
  • Andisols- Commonly found in cool regions consisting of high precipitation rates with places often connected to material which form from volcanos.
  • Aridisols exists in dry conditions
    • With desert regions that exists around the desert side found within the world.
  • Entisol a area of newly parent deposited materials
    • Regions where the rate of erosion is faster than development of soils
    • Can consist of steeper dunes & floodplains
  • Gelisols regions with surface that is have permafrost on soil
    • Common across the higher altitudes
  • Histosols regions which contain organic matter that does not have permafrost
    • Often called mucks are bogs
  • Vertisols which has a high content to enlarge the minerals of clay
    • With a high degree of fair fertility towards material which forms from nature
  • MASS MOVEMENTS occurs in response to mass movement
  • Called often mass wasting

MASS MOVEMENTS

• Where downslope of motion snow, rock and regolith occurs. With strong forces over stress
• The shear strength with shear stress
  • Measure resistance of the material to move- shear strength Forces that is expressed with the weight that can be moved with shear stress
• When there is a slope that is steep which fails and doesn't have existing strength the slopes fails

Angle of Repose

• Angle of repose: Where both rock & soil stands stable where downslope could not be moved. Which determine the principles on slope and strength toward materials the underlie? Water: Common elements that change significance in resistance with shear Weakness within sedimentary rocks
• Factor that changes toward strength with shear

Mass Wasting Trigger & Mitigation

• changes which affect the triggers toward landslides which can occur at specific instance with mass-wasting
  • Could contain melting of snow with heavy rainfall & earth quake
  • Increased counts regarding the water counts is due to the main factor contributing toward waiting mass

Mitigation- Slope Reinforcements

• The movement on different masses that base on 4 different elements:

1 Type of Material: Includes snow, Rock & regolith 2Velocity of Movement: With slow fast speeds 3 Cloud of chaotic slurry with mass that is coherent 4 Environment: Is submarines is involved?

• MOVEMENT PROGRESS TYPE OF MASS
• Downhill with debris flowing down the hill side mixed which include air or water: Sediment flows
• Caused by slope failures where sudden slope happens that result toward transit involving debris downwards that goes sliding, rolling, & slumping downward.

Slope Movement

• Where downward rotation occurs with regolith or surface occurs that cause a concave in side with upward curved.
• Thick for transit materials type that cause Fall- Occurs where they place one piece regarding the rock where steep slopes that they become loose & falls. They involve the mixture with vegetation with the rocks and the regolith which cause fragments and for transit the material type

SLIDES Occurs where translations moves along the pre-existing surfaces such bedding formation & where joints form. With a block where material forms at larger area of the rocks causing it be

Sediment Flows

• Contains about %40 and %20 which can cause material that is saturated with water = Slurry Flows
• Composed of contents from %0 and %20 due to water causing materials that are saturated = Granular Flows

- SLURRY SEDIMENT

Where distinct forms lobes that show hillside sides and saturated flowing waters

• SOILFLICTION Has material type with other mixed instances from ice and or overburden

With mass movement progress

• Heavy rains which triggers greater amounts that runs faster which causes debris flow where begins forming irregular lobes and slumps

With looser content that signifies silty or clayey with high amount of content: Mud Flows- This happens when fluids with mixture of sediments takes occur towards the top when having with rain

LAHARS: Type of Volcanic debris, the type has essential component with clay.

Type of Mass Movement:

Granular with Sedimentary Flows Creep- This type can happen when downhill has motion with rock and soil and when a bent is recognize which causes tracks and bent trees etc. Consist of ice mixed and soil for example with material type has the other overburden Occurs in Long Last which can make flows be forming to an area where there is narrow that are looking scarp feature

Grain Flows Forms from sand with dry components and steeps slope that makes relatively materials A small issue sends which consolidated materials causing it to rapidly flow.

Debris Avalanches

• Flows that have high/large quick moving volume as they travel across from sloping side hills & often trigger because of eruptions or earthquakes.
  • Type of Materials: A massive rock which slides and fragments smaller. Snow Avalanches that Move quick that causes more recurring which can be causing deaths in large numbers Different kinds regarding which motions with mass

Mass Wasting

Mass Wasting: The mass that is triggers that result because triggers toward the chain affect and other that cause of specific landslides- They often erupt with humans & Intense with Rainfall, and Snow melt- These can cause content is waiting or increased

Triggers of Landslide • Intense Rainfall as snow is melting • Because of Volcanic Eruption cause is being triggered with humans Type that Consist is mass that is wasted • When is toppled of cause is that it creep towards soil.

The 7 Continent

Continental Drift THEORY Alfred Wegener proposed that all the continents were once made of Pangea which were stated that they all were. (First mention during 1912 by Abraham Ortelius in 1596) and Surrounded from Panthalassa Around from million years ago, from the continents divided and now forming Laurasia and Gondwana

Evendices of The continental Drift

WITH THE MATCHING OF CONTINENTS(with JIG SAW FIT The highlight with matching of the coastlines where across from Africa and America that show what the shift where 1964 occurred, Bulard help with program where helps to see what side of the Atlantic that were further proven with different plant pieces

Same rock age of where is across

The time which where dating happens the where rocks which come along coast can be like those Brazil and those that came during Western time with helped give theory for drift to the continent

The sediments which happen from glaciers which the system in Gondwana can see that they are like where the area of the hemisphere has there where India and that area show that they are able to have material for climates that past during transit with climates

• Placer has its place when they make the coast which causes a local matter where there from which they came for • Other deposits show where that there for Madagascar and Antarctic that come like Gondwana to show it reinforce theory

Delivery of Materials

The discovery of delivery of materials in various countries like India & Africa give a theory of landmass names Lemura: Which those materials small reptile were for shallow backwash areas and comes support across these countries

Are to be found in lemura- fossils

• cynognathus; Which connects to mammals and has middle location and southern parts
  • mesosaurus connects amphibian and reptiles in south glossopteris one that is connect to the Extinct

An herbavious has many areas from Europe: Its name means lizard and is during the perminian age.: -Lystrosaurus

Movement

• Theory goes to Weager where drifting of continents will can divide the planet's rotations with forces with the link as the interact - Drivers of the Scholars still show their with drifting as well

Later

• Because from after maps shown that America can create the shift, shows the America helped create through the Ocean ridge that makes to be long side within Atlantic Continental shift that were caused through the sonar side:
• In 1560 to the spreading as floor side comes material that has mantels rise along the mid ocean and 80 km side, and moves through ridges: Sea Floor.
• The plates there, ocean there where gradually widening through what comes for the earth mantle - that come at annual by with the center of the Earth.