ROCK, MINERAL, MINERALOID, METAL, NONMETAL, METALLOID, ORE, CRYSTALL,

GLASS, SAND, SALT.

Halite
Halite is the mineral name for the substance that everyone knows as "salt." Its chemical name is sodium chloride
(compound), and a rock composed primarily of halite is known as "rock salt."

What is a rock?
In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals
included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed.

A rock is a solid collection of minerals. There are three main types of rock, classified by how they are sourced and formed:
· sedimentary
· igneous
· metamorphic

Rocks- are generally made up of two of more minerals, mixed up through geological processes.
o Rocks: a rock is made up of 2 or more minerals.
o All rocks are made of minerals.
o You need minerals to make rocks, but you don't need rocks to make
minerals.
o Some rocks made of mostly one mineral like Limestone made of calcite

For example:
Granite is a mixture of the minerals, quartz, feldspar, and biotite.

The classification of rocks also depends on their mineral and chemical composition, texture and the process of formation.
A rock cycle defines how one rock form changes to another.
Rocks are therefore classified as igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic.

Main rocks on earth contain minerals like magnetite, quartz, feldspar, mica, epidote etc.
But more than half of the mineral types classified in geological studies are considered rare.

Therefore, Rocks have minerals, which in large concentration are called ores and these are mined for metals!
What is a mineral?
A mineral is a naturally occurring substance with distinctive chemical and physical properties, composition and atomic structure.
 Minerals are solid, naturally occurring inorganic substances found in the Earth’s crust.
 They have a unique chemical composition and crystal structure.

A mineral is:
1. Naturally formed - it forms in nature on its own (without the aid of humans]
2. Solid (it cannot be a liquid or a gas)
3. With a definite chemical composition (every time we see the same mineral it has the same chemical composition that can be
expressed by a chemical formula)
4. A characteristic crystalline structure (atoms are arranged within the mineral in a specific ordered manner).
5. Usually inorganic, although a mineral can be formed by an organic process.

Broadly speaking, is a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally
in pure form.

· A mineral is solid
· A mineral is made of atoms (meaning it has a definite chemical composition)
· A mineral has crystal structure
· A mineral is naturally occurring
· A mineral is inorganic

A mineral is composed of the same substance throughout.

Minerals are made of chemicals - either a single chemical element or a combination of chemical elements.
There are more than 3000 different minerals in the world.

Minerals are formed by different elements combination and composition

 The geological definition of mineral normally excludes compounds that occur only in living organisms. However, some minerals are often biogenic (such as calcite) or are organic
compounds in the sense of chemistry (such as mellite).
 Moreover, living organisms often synthesize inorganic minerals (such as hydroxylapatite) that also occur in rocks.

Minerals are naturally occurring solids, having a particular chemical composition and repeating crystalline structure.
Example: malachite.
Compositionally, malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide, which tells you the constituent elements involved: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen,
and copper. That last element is an example of a metal.

What is a mineraloid?
A Mineraloid is a substance that satisfies some, but not all of the parts of the definition.
Example: Opal does not have a characteristic crystalline structure, so it is considered a mineraloid.
*Note: also that the "minerals" as used in the nutritional sense are
not minerals as defined geologically.

What is a metal?
Metals are elements whereas minerals are compounds of various elements.
Metals rarely occur in native form except few metals like Gold, Silver, Copper etc.
 1. Metals are elementary substances, such as gold, silver and copper.
2. They are crystalline when solid
3. Naturally occur in minerals.
4. They are often good conductors of electricity and heat, shiny, malleable and some ductile.

Example: iron (Fe) is a metal.

Iron occurs in nature as minerals like hematite (Fe2O3), Magnetite (Fe3O4).
Iron metal occur in nature in minerals shuch as oxides, sulphides, carbonates, silicates etc.
(Such compounds are called minerals.)

One characteristic of metals is that due to the free flow of electrons, they are typically highly conductive and pliable—able to be hammered into
sheets and pulled into strings.
While metals have a crystalline structure, they are not themselves minerals.

 Metal is a material (an element, compound or alloy) that is typically hard, opaque, shiny and has good electrical and thermal
conductivity.
 Metals are generally malleable, that is, they can be hammered or pressed permanently out of shape without breaking or
cracking.

Metals in the periodic table

1. Alkali metals: Litio, Sodio, Potasio, Rubidio, Cesio y Francio
2. Alkaline earth metals: Berilio, Magnesio, Calcio, Estroncio, Baro, Radio.
3. Transition metals: Escandio, Titanio, Vanadio, Cromo, Manganeso, Hierro, Cobalto, Nique, Cobre, Zinc, Itrio, Circonio, Niobio, Molibdeno, Tecnecio,
Rutenio, Rodio, Paladio, Plata, Cadmio, Hafnio, Tántalo, Wolframio, Renio, Osmio, Iridio, Platino, Oro, Mercurio, Rutheronio, Dubnio, Seaborgio, Bohrio,
Hasio.
4. Lanthanides: Lantanio, Cerio, Praseodimio, Neodimio, Prometio, Samario, Europio, Gaolinido, Terbio, Disprosio, Holmio, Erbio, Tulio, Iterbio, Lutecio.
5. Actinides: Actinio, Torio, Protactinio, Uranio, Plutonio, Amercio, Curio, Berkelio, Californio, Einstenio, Fermio, Mendelevio, nobelio, Lawrencio.
6. Post-transition metal: Aluminio, Galio, Indio, Talio, Estaño, Plomo, Bismuto, Polonio, Astato.

Metals grouped by their function.

 Precious metals: This includes gold, silver, platinum and diamonds. About 90 per cent of the total gold production comes from gold mines. The remaining
10 per cent is produced as a by-product from mining other metals, such as copper and nickel. Precious metals are traded on world markets and used in a
range of applications from jewelry to electronics to catalytic converters in cars.

 Base metals: This mainly means copper, lead and zinc, which have a lower value. Refined forms of these metals are commonly traded on world markets.
These are the basic building materials for much of the world around us.

 Ferrous metals: Those alloys with a high iron content, which includes all types of steel. Chromium, cobalt, manganese and molybdenum are commonly
included in this group because their major use is to improve the properties of steel.

 Non-ferrous metals: This includes aluminum, copper, lead, magnesium, nickel, tin and zinc, since they have principal uses unrelated to steelmaking.
| Note that there is some overlap with the base metals group – the choice of the group depends on the context.

 Rare earth metals: These are not actually all that rare but their extraction is complex and difficult.
They include scandium, yttrium, lanthanum and the 14 elements (lanthanides) following lanthanum in the periodic table.
They have widespread uses, though in small volume, in the manufacturing of glass, ceramics, glazes, magnets, lasers and television tubes, as well as in
refining petroleum.

 Alloys: These are made by mixing two or more metallic elements to form a new, unique substance that has differing chemical and physical properties to its
component parts. Over 90 per cent of the metals in use today are alloys.

What (why) is a nonmetal?

A nonmetal are those elements that have a tendency to steal electrons.
Non-metals just need 1–4 more electrons to fill their outer shell, so they tend to take electrons. Metals tend to lose electrons from their outer shell, to leave the d-
subshell as full or half-full whenever they can.

No metales reactivos: Carbono, Nitrógeno, Oxigeno, Flúor, Fósforo, Azufre, Cloro, Selenio, Bromo, Yodo.
Gases NobleS: Helio, Neón, Argón, Kriptón, Xenon, Radón.

Metal vs. nonmetal: What’s the difference?

If it’s able, an atom will steal electrons from a neighboring atom. It won’t steal all of them, but just enough to be stable. Different elements have different numbers of
electrons that — at least in theory — can be stolen by a neighbor.
These are called valence (VAY-lents) electrons.

They are the outer, orbiting electrons that can become part of chemical bonds.
 Metal atoms differ from nonmetal ones in how well they steal valence electrons from other atoms.
 One might say that metals are bad thieves. Instead of capturing a neighbor’s electrons, they usually give up their own.
 This tendency to lose electrons is described as their “metallic character.”

Nonmetallic elements, therefore, have a low metallic character.

Among these nonmetals are carbon, oxygen and nitrogen.
When it comes to electron thieves, nonmetals are the best.

King of those nonmetals is fluorine.

When it comes to electron-stealing, fluorine’s a downright bully. So it’s highly reactive.
Metals do desire electrons, but only weakly. In many ways, however, this weakness turns out to be metals’ strength.
Their malleability (bendiness), ductility (stretchiness) and conductivity come from the tendency of these elements to lose electrons.
Nonemetalic mineral: Quartz.

What is metalloid?
A metalloid is a type of chemical element which has a preponderance of properties in between, or that are a mixture of, those of metals and
nonmetals.
There is no standard definition of a metalloid and no complete agreement on which elements are metalloids.
Despite the lack of specificity, the term remains in use in the literature of chemistry.

Metalloids: Boro, Silicio, Germanio, Arsénico, Antimonio, Telurio.

Boron, germanium, silicon, antimony, arsenic, tellurium and polonium.

Metalloids tend to have a metallic appearance, but behave more like nonmetals in most chemical reactions.
All Metalloids are solid at room temperature.
They are much more brittle than metals but are much poorer electrical conductors.
The hybrid characteristics metalloids possess offer a broad range of real-world applications such as metal alloys, flame retardants, and
semiconductors/electronics.

Metalloids are by far the smallest group of elements, as there are only seven elements definitively classified as metalloids . They can have
anywhere from three to six valence electrons in their outer energy shell.

What is Ore?

Metal from rocks.

Some metals are held inside rocks as minerals. The rock or mineral that holds an abundant quantity of metal is called an ore.
 An ore is heated with chemicals until it melts and the pure metal separates out as a liquid.
 The liquid then cools and hardens.
 A few metals, such as gold, silver, and copper can be found in pure form as metal elements .

Ore is a deposit in Earth’s crust of one or more valuable minerals.

The most valuable ore deposits contain metals crucial to industry and trade, like copper, gold, and iron.

What is a crystal?
A crystal is any solid that has an organized structure.
That means that the atoms of this thing are positioned in very accurate distances and angles one from the other, as opposed to glass for example, in
which atoms are in an more or less random arrangement.

Minerals are inorganic, naturally occurring substances that have crystalline structures. So, it is a prerequisite to be a crystal in order to be a mineral.
All minerals, therefore, form crystals.

On the other hand, there are crystals that are not minerals, because they are not naturally occurring, or because they are not inorganic.
Sugar and proteins are examples of solids that form crystals but are organic, so are not minerals.
Some synthetic substances used in nanotechnology are crystalline, but are man-made, so not considered minerals either.

Crystals and minerals differ, not only through the ways in which they are used but they also differ in terms of structure. To put it simply:
 A crystal is a structure made up of various natural materials whereas a mineral is a material in itself.
 Two or more minerals can actually have the same chemical composition and yet completely differ when it comes to crystal structure. These
are known as polymorphs.

Crystal structure can greatly influence the physical properties of a mineral. A good example of this would be diamonds and graphite. As you already
know, diamonds are known to be the hardest of all minerals and yet, whilst it has the same composition as the graphite, the latter is very malleable in
nature.

By definition (with just a few special exceptions) minerals must be crystalline. This means that they are solids with an orderly repetitive atomic
arrangement.

What is Sand?
Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.
The composition of sand varies, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental
settings and non-tropical coastal settings is silica (silicon dioxide, or SiO2), usually in the form of quartz.

Sandstone: It is composed mostly of sand particles, which are of medium size; therefore, sandstone is a medium-grained clastic sedimentary rock.
More precisely, sand is between 1/16 millimeter and 2 mm in size (silt is finer and gravel is coarser). The sand grains that makeup sandstone is aptly
referred to as framework grains.

What is Sediment?
Sediment Sediment is solid material that is moved and deposited in a new location. Sediment can consist of rocks and minerals, as well as the
remains of plants and animals

What is glass?
Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent amorphous solid, that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example,
window panes, tableware, and optics. Some glasses such as volcanic glass are naturally occurring.

Glass is made from liquid sand.

You can make glass by heating ordinary sand (which is mostly made of silicon dioxide) until it melts and turns into a liquid.
You won't find that happening on your local beach: sand melts at the incredibly high temperature of 1700°C (3090°F).

When molten sand cools, it becomes a kind of frozen liquid or what materials scientists refer to as an amorphous solid. It's like a cross
between a solid and a liquid with some of the crystalline order of a solid and some of the molecular randomness of a liquid.

Volcanic glass: Volcanic glass is the amorphous (uncrystallized) product of rapidly cooling magma. Like all types of glass, it is a state of matter
intermediate between the closely packed, highly ordered array of a crystal and the highly disordered array of liquid.
Volcanic glass may refer to the interstitial material, or matrix, in an aphanitic (fine-grained) volcanic rock, or to any of several types of vitreous
igneous rocks.

Example: Obsidian
Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It
is an igneous rock.
Obsidian is mineral-like, but not a true mineral because, as a glass, it is not crystalline; in addition, its composition is too variable to be
classified as a mineral. It is sometimes classified as a mineraloid.
What is salt?

Salt is a mineral.
Salt is an ionic compound that contains a cation (base) and an anion (acid).(metal and nonmetal)
Salt is composed of the chemical reaction of two elements.

Example:
Sodium (Na) and Chlorine (Cl).
Sodium and chlorine are strongly attracted to each other and stack together into a cubic crystal structure (see figure).

Individual salt (halite) crystals have a cubic shape to them, which is mimicking the way that the individual elements are stacking together. Even
though the elements are much too small to be able to see with your eyes (or even most microscopes), you can tell how they are stacking together by
looking at the shape of the salt crystals.

Rock Salt
Rock salt is the name of a sedimentary rock that consists almost entirely of halite, a mineral composed of sodium chloride, NaCl. It forms
where large volumes of sea water or salty lake water evaporate from an arid-climate basin -- where there is a replenishing flow of salt water and a
restricted input of other water.

Example: Himalayan salt

Is rock salt (halite) mined from the Punjab region of Pakistan.