mineral resources

• Resource - stock or supply of anything that can be drawn on by anyone to function effectively
• Mineral - a solid, inorganic substance of natural occurrence
• Ordered internal structure - minerals must have regular, repetitive geometric patterns or crystal structures
• Definite chemical composition - minerals are defined by their chemical composition, which must be expressed by their chemical formula in specific ratios
• Naturally Occurring - minerals are made, and exist, naturally
• Silicates - composed primarily of silicon-oxygen tetrahedrons (SiO4 2−)
• Oxides - consist of metal cations bonded to oxygen anions (O 2−)
• Sulfides - consist of metal cations bonded to sulfides (S 2−); commonly found mineral alongside oxides since metals are found in large proportions in the minerals
• Sulfates - consist of metal cations bonded to sulfate (SO4 2−) anionic groups; usually precipitate out of the water near the Earth's surface
• Halides - consist of metal cations bonded to halogens
• Carbonates - consist of minerals with carbonic ion present that easily bond with metals
• Natives / Native metals - consist of singular metal elements
• Crystal Structure - formation of the mineral according to its chemical composition
• determine the crystal structure of these rocks

  A) isometric

  B) hexagonal

  C) tetragonal

  D) triagonal

  E) orthorhombic

  F) monoclinic

  G) triclinic

  
• Isometric - common crystal system whose unit cell is in the shape of a cube
• Monoclinic - crystal structure whose axes have different lengths; both x- and z-axes meet at 90° while the y-axis does not
• Orthorhombic - crystal structure whose axes have different lengths; all three (3) axes meet at 90°
• Tetragonal - crystal structure whose two (2) axes have equal lengths while the third axis is longer; all three (3) axes meet at 90°
• Hexagonal - has 4 crystallographic axes consisting of 3 equilateral axes angling at 120° to each other, with 1 perpendicular axis
• Triclinic - aka. The rhombohedron system. crystal system that is similar to the isometric system, but it has been skewed to one (1) side, making it oblique
• Habit - the typical outward appearance of a mineral's crystal form
• Cleavage - the tendency of minerals to break along the planes of weakness
• Fracture - the resulting surface of a mineral after experiencing cleavage and/or parting
• Parting - results from applying stress to a mineral. the tendency of minerals to break along planes of structural weakness (similar to cleavage), but is due to external stress
• Specific gravity - is the measure of a mineral's density. It is the weight of a mineral relative to the weight of an equal volume of water
• Luster/Lustre - property of a mineral to reflect light. describes how brilliant or dull it is
• mineral - is a naturally occurring substance that is solid and stable at room temperature, representable by a chemical formula, usually abiogenic/inorganic, and has an ordered atomic structure.
• The Mohs scale - measures the hardness of a material