MINERALS
Minerals are the solid constituents of all rocks,
igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic (p. 1), and
occur as crystals. A mineral can be defined as a
natural inorganic substance having a particular
chemical composition or range of composition, and a
regular atomic structure to which its crystalline form is
related.
A. Physical characters
Included under this head are properties such as color,
luster, form, hardness, cleavage, fracture, tenacity,
and specific gravity. Not all of these properties would
necessarily be needed to identify any one mineral; two
or three of them taken together may be sufficient, apart
from optical properties.
● Color refers to the natural color of the mineral
● Luster describes how the mineral reflects light.
● Hardness is a measure of how difficult it is to
scratch the mineral
● Cleavage refers to the way the mineral breaks
along flat surfaces.
● Fracture describes how the mineral breaks
along irregular surfaces.
● Streak refers to the color of the powdered
mineral.
● Specific gravity is a measure of how dense
the mineral is compared to water.
B. Crystalline form is the specific
arrangement of atoms, ions, or molecules
within a crystal. This arrangement gives a
mineral its characteristic shape and structure.
Crystalline form is determined by the internal
arrangement of atoms and the symmetry of
the crystal lattice. The crystal lattice is a
repeating three-dimensional pattern of atoms,
which determines the shape of the crystal.
Different minerals can have different
crystalline forms depending on the way the
atoms are arranged and the conditions under
which the crystal formed. The study of
crystallography is dedicated to understanding
the structures and properties of crystals.
1. In the Cubic System many crystals are
bounded by faces which are all similar;
such a shape is called a form.
2. A crystal form is a set of planar faces
which are geometrically equivalent
and whose spatial positions are
related to one another by a specified
set of symmetry operations. If one
face of a crystal form is defined, the
specified set of point symmetry
operations will determine all of the
other faces of the crystal form.
○ Cubic- 3 equal axis at right
angles to one another.
○ Tetragonal- 3 axes at right
angles two equal and
horizontal, one vertical axis
longer or shorter than the other.
○ Hexagonal and Trigonal- 4
axes: three equal and
horizontal, and spaced at equal
intervals; one vertical axis.
○ Orthorhombic (or Rhombic)- 3
axes at right angles, all
unequal.
○ Monoclinic- 3 unequal axes: the
vertical axis (c) and one
horizontal axis (b) at right
angles, the third axis (a)
inclined in the plane normal to
b.
○ Triclinic- 3 unequal axes, no
two at right angles.
3. Twin Crystal- When two closely
adjacent crystals have grown together
with a crystallographic plane or
direction common to both, but one
reversed relative to the other, a twin
crystal results. In most instances, the
twin crystal appears as if a single
crystal had been divided on a plane,
and one half of the crystal rotated
relative to the other half on this plane.
If the rotation is 180 degrees, points at
the opposite of the crystal are thus
brought to the same end as a result of
the twinning and re-entrant angles
between crystal faces are then
frequently produced: they are the
characteristics of many twins.
C. Optical Properties of Minerals
It describes how they interact with light and
can help in identifying them. Some of the
important optical properties of minerals are
 color, transparency, luster, and refractive
index.
● Refraction is the bending of light as it passes
through a mineral or any other medium. This
bending occurs because the speed of light
changes when it enters a medium with a
different density.
● Refractive Index is a measure of how much
a medium, such as mineral, slows down light
compared to its speed in a vacuum.
● POLARIZED LIGHT
❖ Light can vibrate in every direction, but when
forced through polarizers, it is forced to only
vibrate in one direction
❖ Isometric and amorphous minerals have an
R.I. that does not vary depending on the
direction in which the light is vibrating. (we
call these minerals ISOTROPIC)
❖ However, many minerals have an R.I. that
depends on the vibration direction of the light
(these minerals are ANISOTROPIC)
● BIREFRINGENCE
❖ Anisotropic minerals will have variable colors
depending on their orientation.
❖ Their birefringence leads to interference
colors. Minerals with high birefringence (such
as pyroxene, ~0.025) will have higher order
interference colors (such as yellow, red, and
blue) than those with low birefringence (such
as plagioclase, ~0.012, which produces gray
and white)
❖ Isotropic minerals will be the same color
independent of their orientation
● INTERFERENCE COLORS
❖ Interference color is produced when 2
perpendicular rays, which are traveling at
different speeds, get recombined in the upper
polarizer, they are slightly out of phase
❖ Interference color range from low to high
order, increasing with birefringence
● ACCESSORY PLATES
❖ To distinguish between fast and slow light ray,
an accessory plate is often used
❖ If the fast and slow vibration directions of the
crystal line up with that of the accessory
plate, the interference color will increase (for
example, a first-order red could become a
second-order blue)
❖ If the vibration directions oppose each other,
the interference color will decrease in order
(example: first-order red to first order yellow)
● EXTINCTION
❖ A crystal is in extinction when no light passes
through it under cross polarization (it appears
black)
❖ Isometric minerals do not affect polarized light
and always appear black. These are termed
isotropic.
❖ Non-isometric minerals which do not affect
polarized light, have specific ‘extinction
positions’ and are termed anisotropic.
● PLEOCHROISM AND ABSORPTION
❖ Under plane polarized light, color and
absorption can be observed.
❖ Color is a result of the way specific
wavelengths of light interact with a mineral
based on its structure.
❖ When polarized light is used, the mineral
color can change due to absorption of
different wavelengths of light in different
directions in the crystal.
❖ This variation in color is called
PLEOCHROISM
D. The Rock-forming Minerals
● any mineral that forms igneous, sedimentary,
or metamorphic rocks
● In contrast are those minerals that have a
limited mode of occurrence or are formed by
more unusual processes, such as the ores of
metals, vein minerals, and cavity fillings. Also,
some precipitates and secondary minerals
are not properly classified as rock-forming
minerals; these form at a later time than the
original rock and tend to destroy its original
character.
● Secondary minerals are those which result
from the decomposition of earlier minerals.
● Identification of minerals in hand
specimen
It should be possible to identify the common
rock-forming minerals in the hand specimen
with a pocket lens where one dimension of
the mineral grain is not less than 1 mm. The
most useful characteristics for this purpose
are:
(1) General shape of grains
(2) Colour and transparency.
(3) Presence or absence of cleavage.
(4) Presence or absence of twinning, and
type of twinning.
(5) Hardness.
E. Silicate Minerals
1. The Olivine Group
Olivine occurs chiefly in basic and ultrabasic
rocks. It crystallizes at a high temperature of
over 1000°C. It is one of the first minerals to
form from many basic magmas.
● Figure: Olivine in thin section
a. With serpentine filled cracks
b. Almost completely altered
c. Fresh
d. Exhibiting weak cleavage
e. In straight extinction
f. Color: None when fresh. Alteration to
g. greenish is very characteristic
2. The Pyroxene Group
There are two systems of crystallization in
this group of minerals:
a. Orthorhombic
Enstatite, MgSiO3. Hypersthene
(MgFe)SiO3 The names 'enstatite' and
'hypersthene' have Greek derivations
which refer to color changes in
pleochroism: enstates, weak; sthene,
strong. Crystals: Usually dark brown or
green
b. Monoclinic
Augite - An aluminous silicate.
The relative proportions of the metal
ions (Ca, Mg, Fe, Al) are variable
within limits, giving a range of
composition and different varieties of
the mineral.
Crystals: Commonly 8-sided and
prismatic, terminated by two pyramid
faces at each end; brown to black in
colour, vitreous to resinous lustre.
THE FELDSPATHOID GROUP
● Minerals of this group resembles feldspar
chemically, but differs from feldspar in their
lower content of silicon,
● Occur in certain undersaturated lavas, which
have a low silica- and high alkali-content
● Ex. leucite- it occurs only in igneous rocks,
particularly potassium-rich, silica-poor, recent
lavas.
Forms of silica
Quartz
● has an atomic structure built of interlocked
tetrahedra. It is colorless when pure, but
small amounts of impurities may produce one
of a range of coloured varieties. Manganese
is present in rose quartz, and iron may give
purple amethyst or red-brown jasper,
depending on the amount of oxygen
combined with it
● As the quartz content of a rock increases so
may its strength and also its abrasiveness to
machinery used for drilling and excavating.
● When drilling quartz rich rock fine dust may
be created which should not be inhaled as it
may damage lung tissue
Chalcedony,
● Radiating aggregates of quartz fibers, their
ends often forming a curved surface; white or
brownish color and of waxy appearance in the
mass.
● Chiefly found in layers lining the vesicles of
igneous rocks. In thin section, such layers
show a radiating structure, of which the
crystal fibers have straight extinction and give
an extinction 'brush' which remains in position
as the stage is rotated.
Flint.
● Often black in color on a freshly broken
surface, with conchoidal fracture.
● Split flints were much used in the past as a
decorative facing to buildings.
● flint are varieties of cryptocrystalline silica
which can be used as aggregate in concrete if
they are weathered. If flint is fresh, it may be
 alkali reactive and therefore unsuitable to use
with Portland cement. limestone sequences.
Opal
● amorphous. White, gray, or yellow in color,
with a pearly appearance
● Occurs as a filling to cracks and cavities in
igneous rocks
● When it replaces woody tissues it preserves
the original textures and is known as wood
opal.
● Opal is an undesirable constituent in rocks
used for concrete aggregates, owing to the
possibility of reaction occurring between it
and alkalis in the cement.
Accessory Minerals
● These are present in common rocks but at
low abundances
● They do not determine the property of the
rock but may be important sources of metals
● Minerals that occur as small crystals and in
limited quantities are described as accessory.
● Occasionally they may develop to form large
crystals and in certain circumstances can be
concentrated to become a major rock
constituent.
Zircon,
● Zircon occurs in granites and syenites as an
original constituent. Crystals are usually very
small and in thin section are recognized
chiefly by their shape.
Sphene,
● Sphene occurs as small wedge-shaped
crystals in granite, diorites and syenites.
Garnet
● Color, pale pink.
● occurs in metamorphic rocks such as
mica-schist.
● Garnet is extremely resistant to both chemical
attack and abrasion, but is rare in soils
because it is rare in most rocks.
Secondary minerals
● result from the alteration of pre-existent
minerals.
● These minerals have little mechanical
strength and small angles of friction. Their
presence on fractures can significantly reduce
the strength of a rock mass.
● When rock minerals undergo a transformation
process due to the change of temperature
and pressure (such as metamorphism and
weathering), the newly created stable
minerals are known as the secondary
minerals.
Chlorite
● The chlorites (Greek chloros, green) form a
family of green flaky minerals which are
hydrous silicates of magnesium and
aluminum.
● Chlorite is found in igneous rocks,and in
metamorphic rocks such as chlorite-schist,
and in some clays.
● Chlorite occurs as an alteration product of
biotite, augite, or hornblende; it may replace
these minerals completely, forming a
pseudomorph ( = 'false form') in which the
aggregate of chlorite flakes and fibers retains
the shape of the original mineral.
Serpentine,
● Serpentine is an alteration product of olivine,
or of hornblende. This reaction takes place in
an igneous rock while it is still moderately hot
(hydrothermal action), the source of the hot
water being magmatic
● Serpentine grows as a mass of green fibres
or plates, which replace the original mineral
as a pseudomorph.
● In the mass, serpentine is rather soapy to the
touch, and may be coloured red if iron oxide
is present. The change to serpentine involves
an increase in volume,
Talc
● A soft, flaky mineral, white or greenish in
color, which occurs as a secondary product in
basic and ultrabasic rocks, and in talc-schist
associated with serpentine.
● Flakes are flexible but not elastic, and are
easily scratched by the finger-nail.
F. CLAY MINERALS
● Clays can form as either primary or
secondary minerals.
● The specific type of clay formed depends
upon the composition of the original mineral
undergoing alteration and the surface
conditions where weathering is taking place.
● One clay mineral may be transformed into
another more stable one as conditions
change.
There are three main groups of clay minerals:
Kaolinite
 ● Kaolinite is a soft, earthy, usually white,
mineral produced by the chemical weathering
of aluminum silicate minerals like feldspar.
● It has a low shrink–swell capacity.

Illite
● Also includes glauconite (a green clay sand)
and are the commonest clay minerals
● formed by the decomposition of some micas
and feldspars predominant in marine clays
and shales.

Smectites or montmorillonites
● Also includes bentonite and vermiculite;
formed by the alteration of mafic igneous
rocks rich in Ca and Mg; weak linkage by
cations results in high swelling/shrinking
potential.