Properties of Minerals myteacherpages性能的矿物 myteacherpages.pptVIP

Properties of Minerals Geologists use characteristics to tell one mineral from another Color / Luster / Hardness Break Patterns / Density / Special Properties I. Color Not a reliable property for identifying minerals Examples: Quartz – smoky, rose, or amethyst, Fluorite – many colors A mineral can be many different colors. Below is Mica. Many minerals can be the same color. Below are gold colored minerals. Which one is gold? II. Luster Refers to the way light reflects from the surface of the mineral. There are two types of luster, Metallic: looks like polished metal. Nonmetallic: does not look like polished metal. Nonmetallic - Vitreous, Silky, Resinous, Waxy, Pearly, Earthy Pyrite has metallic luster Quartz has nonmetallic luster III. Hardness A minerals resistance to being scratched. Friedrich Mohs German Mineralogist Gypsum is soft, it can be scratched by a fingernail. Calcite is soft, but a little harder because it cannot be scratched by a fingernail, but it can be scratched by a penny. Fluorite is harder. It can be scratched by a nail, but not a penny or fingernail. Diamonds are the hardest mineral, so it scratches every mineral. IV. Break Patterns Cleaving – When minerals break along flat surfaces Fracture – Some minerals break unevenly along curved or irregular surfaces Many types of fracture cleaving Quartz: Conchoidal Fracture Mica cleaves in one direction. It breaks along one line. Feldspar has two lines of cleavage. It breaks along two lines. V. Streak The color of a minerals powder Minerals are scratched along a streak plate to create powder Some minerals powder is a different color from its regular color Use both black and white plates Gold When gold is run across a streak plate it makes a yellowish-gold color. That makes sense. Pyrite or “Fool’s Gold” When pyrite is run across a streak plate, it has a black or dark green streak. Pyrite is not worth much money, while gold is worth a lot. They look alike,