Week 4 Minerals
Week 4 Minerals
Week 4 Minerals
Chapter 2
Learning Goals
• Define a mineral
• Describe the atomic structure and bonding of
common minerals
• Categorize minerals based on composition
• Explain some mechanisms of formation
• Describe some techniques for identification
and the relationships between
• physical properties of minerals
• internal crystal structure
• identification
2
Definitions
Mineral:
1. Naturally occurring
2. Defined chemical composition
3. Repeating three-dimensional structure
4. Inorganic
5. crystalline solid
Opal
Atomic Structures and Bonding
Minerals ← Element ← Atom
← Protons, Electrons, and Neutrons
Types of Bonding in Minerals
In ionic bonds, one ion
donates one or more electrons
to an ion of opposite charge
Types of Bonding in Minerals
• Covalent bonds -
adjacent ions share
one or more
electrons
• (makes strong
bonds)
• e.g., diamond
Other Types of Bonding in Minerals
• Metallic – a weak covalent bond; occurs
in metallic elements, where outer
electrons travel freely between
adjacent atoms
• Van der Waals - weak bonds between
slightly polarized atoms
• Why is bonding important?
• Different types of bonds lead to
different physical properties - used to
identify minerals, and their properties
make minerals useful to society
• In graphite the carbon
atoms within the sheets
are covalently bonded
• The individual sheets
are held together by Van
der Waals bonds which
are very weak
Olivine
Enstatite
MgSiO3
Mg2SiO4
Most Minerals are in the Crust
• The lithosphere is dynamic and conditions are
incredibly diverse both across the surface and a few
km below the surface
1) Silicate Minerals
• Silicates are one third of all known minerals, but
make up 90-95% of the crust
• Silica tetrahedron SiO4-4, the basic building block
of all silicate minerals
• Silica refers to % SiO2
Arrangement of Tetrahedra in
Silicate Structures
Silicate Minerals
Six-sided ring
structure in beryl
NesosilicatesSilicate
(isolated silicate structure)
Structures
Anion is SiO4
Six-sided ring
structure in beryl
Mg2SiO4
Olivine For some minerals, ions of similar size
can substitute for one another. This gives
a range of chemical formulae for the
mineral
Forsterite Fayalite
Mg2SiO4
Fe2SiO4
• Since Iron and Magnesium are similar in size, they can
substitute for one another
More Nesosilicates
Kyanite
Garnet (Pyrope)
Mg3Al2(SiO4)3
Al(SiO4)O
Inosilicates (Single Chain)
Anion is SiO3
Enstatite
CaSiO3
MgSiO3 FeSiO3
Diopside MgCaSiO3
Inosilicates (Double Chain Silicates)
Hornblende
Sheet Silicates
Silica tetrahedra arranged in sheets. This structure
leads to more sharing of tetrahedra and yet an even
lower Si:O ratio
The mica group
The sheet like silicate structure is evident in the
minerals which are part of the mica group
Muscovite Biotite
KAl2(AlSi3)O10(OH)2 K(Mg,Fe) 3(A,Fe)Si3O10(F,OH)2
Framework Silicates
• Framework silicates make up more than 60% of the
Earth’s crust
• Includes light coloured minerals like quartz and
feldspars
• Each silica tetrahedron is bonded
to 4 other silica tetrahedra
• This results in quartz having a
high hardness and lack of
cleavage
• Quartz is very abundant and takes
a variety of appearances
• The feldspar group is another
solid solution solution series
with end members Anorthite
depending on presence of K, CaAlSi2O8
Na, or Ca
K-Feldspar
KAlSi3O8
Albite
NaAlSi3O8
Silicate Minerals
Dark silicates called
Mafic or
→ high Mg, Fe content
E.g., pyroxene,
amphibole amphibole, a chain silicate
Light-colored silicates
called Felsic
→ lack Fe, less Mg
E.g., quartz, feldspar
Ferromagnesian Minerals
• Ferromagnesian minerals are minerals with either
Fe, Mg, or both in their chemical formula
• These minerals are typically darker and denser than
non-ferromagnesian minerals
High More
density Mafic
Low More
density Felsic
Predicting mineral distribution
within the Earth’s layers
The Mantle Mantle
• O, Si, Fe, Mg dominate
• Mostly olivine and
pyroxene (mafic silicates
– leads to ultramafic
material)
Lava
flow
Mantle
Xenolith
The Crust
Crust
Granite
Other Mineral Groups
• Oxides Anion: O
• Sulfides Anion: S
• Sulphates Anion: SO4
• Halides Anion: Halogen (F,Cl,Br,etc.)
• Carbonates Anion: CO3
• Native Minerals No anion, single element
Carbonates
• End in CO3
• React with acid to varying
degrees Malachite
Cu2CO3(OH)2
Cinnabar
• End in S HgS
• Typically metallic in lustre and
high density
• Many sulfides are ore Galena
minerals PbS
Pyrite Bornite
FeS2 Sphalerite
Cu5FeS4
ZnS
Sulphates
• End in SO4
Barite
BaSO4
Gypsum
CaSO4·2H2O
Halides
• End in a halogen group element (F, Cl, Br, etc.)
Fluorite
CaF2
Halite
NaCl
Native Minerals
• Native minerals are made up of just one element
Gold (Au)
Copper ( Cu )
Diamond ( C )
Identifying Minerals Using Physical Properties
amethyst
Examples of simple diagnostic
properties/tests done in the lab or in
the field to help identify minerals:
Amethyst
Azurite
Sulphur Malachite
Diamond like many other minerals can take on a wide range of
colours.
Metallic
Non-metallic
Hardness
• We use a non-linear scale called the Mohs scale of
hardness. Scale is from 1-10.
Crystal Habit
• If minerals are allowed to grow freely
under the right conditions they can
form distinctive crystal habits.