Earth Science

QUARTER 1 / TOPIC 3 / PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF MINERALS

PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF TYPES OF CRYSTAL HABIT

MINERALS
EQUANT
TOPIC OUTLINE
1 Introduction
2 Crystal Habit
3 Luster
4 Cleavage and Fracture
5 Hardness
6 Color
7 Streak
8 Additional Properties
9 Classification of Minerals
→ Three dimensions of the mineral have
about the same length, like that of a cube or
INTRODUCTION sphere. (ei. Garnet)
ELONGATE

→ Minerals can be found anywhere, and

some examples can be found right at home.
Because of its significance, we must ascertain
its physical and chemical properties.
→ Forms prismatic or prism-like crystals that
CRYSTAL HABIT are thicker than the needle as in a pencil. (ei.
Indicolite)
PLATY

→ This refers to the overall shape or growth

pattern of the mineral. It can be described as → Looks like a flattened and thin crystal (like
equant, elongate, and platy. plate). (ei. Wulfenite)

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LUSTER CLEAVAGE AND FRACTURE

→ The tendency of minerals to break along

→ Describes the appearance of a mineral very smooth, flat, and shiny surfaces is
when light is reflected from its surface. It can referred to as “cleavage”. It can be one, two,
be described as opaque, transparent, dull, or three, four, or all directions.
shiny. → A mineral fracture can occur along any
random or irregular surface. It has
TWO TYPES OF LUSTER conchoidal, uneven, hackly, splintery, and
earthy characteristics.
METALLIC LUSTER → Some minerals only fracture, whereas
others cleave and fracture.
→ Biotite and mica have only one direction,
orthoclase has two directions, galena has
three, and fluorite has four.
→ Quartz fractures conchoidally, whereas
asbestos fractures splintery.

HARDNESS
→ Opaque and very reflective like gold and
silver.
NONMETALLIC LUSTER

→ Is a measure of the mineral’s resistance to

scratching. Harder minerals will scratch softer
minerals.
→ Friedrich Mohs in 1812 ranked minerals
according to hardness as shown the table 1.
He selected ten minerals of distinctly
different hardness that ranged from a very
→ Dull, silky, greasy, and pearly like silicates.
soft mineral (talc) to a very hard mineral
(diamond).

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TABLE 1: MOH’S SCALE OF HARDNESS the same color as the mineral.

SCALE MINERAL → According to Bayo-ang (2016) streak is
1 Talc obtained by scratching the mineral on an
2 Gypsum unpolished piece of white porcelain called a
2.5 Fingernail streak plate. When the excess powder is
3 Calcite blown away, what remains is the color of the
3.5 Copper Penny streak.
4 Fluorite → Streak is more reliable property than color
5 Apatite as streak shows the true color of minerals. It
5.5 Steel Knife Blade/ does not vary even if the color does.
Glass Plate
6 Orthoclase feldspar ADDITIONAL PROPERTIES
7 Quartz
8 Topaz MAGNETISM
9 Corundum (ruby)
10 Diamond

COLOR

→ Some minerals are attracted to hand

magnet.
→ To test a mineral for magnetism, just put
the magnet and mineral together and see if
they are attracted.
→ Magnetite is the only common mineral
→ One of the most obvious properties of a that is always strongly magnetic.
mineral but not reliable alone. Some STRIATIONS
minerals come in just one color, while others
come in many colors and varieties.
→ Quartz varies widely in color, due to minor
(parts per billion) impurities and even defect
its crystalline structure.

STREAK

→ Presence of very thin, parallel grooves.

→ The grooves are present in only one of the
two sets of cleavages and are best seen with
a hand lens. They may not be visible on all
parts of a cleavage surface.
→ Before you decide if there are no
→ Refers to the color of the mineral in its striations, look at all parts of all visible
powdered form, which may or may not be
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cleavage surfaces, moving the sample around powder of some sulfide minerals, such as
as you look wherein light is reflected from sphalerite, a zinc sulfide, smells like rotten
these surfaces at different angles. eggs), and some have a distinctive feel (talc
SPECIFIC GRAVITY feels slippery).

CLASSIFICATION OF MINERALS

NATIVE ELEMENTS
→ These minerals are naturally occurring in
nature in an uncombined form with a distinct
mineral structure. It can be classified as
metal, semimetals and non-metals.
→ Example: Silver

→ Is the weight of that mineral divided by

the weight of an equal volume of water. The
specific gravity of water is equals to 1.0. SILICATES
→ Most silicate, or rock-forming, minerals → This is the largest group of minerals. It
have specific gravities of 2.6 to 3.4; the ore contains silicon and oxygen, with some
minerals are usually heavier, with specific aluminum, magnesium, iron, and calcium.
gravities of 5 to 8. → Example: Feldspar
→ For most minerals, specific gravity is not a
particularly noteworthy feature, but for
some, high specific gravity is distinctive
(examples are barite and galena).
TASTE, ODOR, FEEL

OXIDES
→ It is formed from the combination of a
metal with oxygen. This group ranges from
dull ores like bauxites to gems like rubies and
sapphires.
→ Example: Magnetite

→ Some minerals have distinctive taste

(halite is salt, and tastes like it).
→ Some give off a distinctive odor (the
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CARBONATES
→ These are group of minerals made of
carbon, oxygen, and a metallic element.
→ Example: Dolomite

SULFIDES
→ These are made of compounds of sulfur
usually with a metal. They tend to be heavy
and brittle.
→ Example: Pyrite PHOSPHATES
→ They are often formed when other
minerals are broken down by weathering.
They are often brightly colored.
→ Example: Apatite

SULFATES
→ These are made of compounds of sulfur
and combined with metals and oxygen. It is a
large group of minerals that tend to be soft,
and translucent.
→ Example: Gypsum
MINERALOID
→ It is the terms used for those substances
that do not fit neatly into one of the eight
classes.
→ Example: Amber

HALIDES
→ They form from halogen elements like
chlorine, bromine, fluorine, and iodine
combined with metallic elements. They are
very soft and easily dissolved in water.
→ Example: Halite/Table salt

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