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• Mineral


  Naturally occurring inorganic crystalline solid with a specific chemical composition
• "naturally occurring" means it was formed through geologic processes
• Synthetic diamonds, although it may possess the attributes of natural diamond, cannot be considered as a true mineral
• Mineral's chemistry and internal structure


  • Responsible for its properties and distinguishes it from other minerals
  • Can be seen by the unaided eye or needs instrument that will reveal properties like color, shape, luster, hardness, chemical composition, and the ability to transmit light
• Minerals are part of lithosphere, and some minerals also interact with the hydrosphere
• Calcite


  • Mineral present in limestone, forms when calcium and CO2 are precipitated by seawater
  • Can also be formed by organisms in the biosphere as exoskeletons and other hard parts
• Halite (NaCl)


  • Forms when salty water is evaporated by heat provided by the sun
  • Dissolves when mixed with freshwater
• Clay minerals


  • Form when water with dissolved atmospheric gases reacts with other minerals
  • Newly formed clay mineral has water incorporated into its crystal structure
• Human uses of minerals

  • Bricks from clay
  • Jewelry from gold, and gems like diamonds and emeralds
  • Steel is manufactured from iron-rich and other metal-containing materials
• Rocks


  Naturally formed aggregates of minerals or mineral-like substances
• Rock: Granite


  • Composed of several minerals: quarts, potassium feldspar, plagioclase feldspar, and biotite mica
• Atoms


  • Smallest electrically neutral particles of energy and matter
  • Consists of a centrally nucleus, surrounded by a cloud of negatively charged electrons
  • Nucleus contains the positive protons and neutrally charged neutrons
• Atoms, elements, minerals, rocks

  • Atoms → elements → minerals → rocks
• Element


  Each "species" of an atom, defined by the number of protons in its nucleus or its atomic number (Z)
• Atomic mass number (A)


  Gives the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus
• Element: Gold


  • Has 79 protons, 118 neutrons, and 79 electrons
• Isotopes


  • Atoms that contain the same number of protons, but different number of neutrons
  • May be stable or unstable (radioisotope)
• Atomic weight or atomic mass


  Weight of an average atom of an element
• Sodium has only one naturally occurring isotope, therefore its atomic mass and weight is identical – 23
• Chlorine has two common isotopes with mass numbers 35 and 37, and its atomic weight is 35.5 because the lighter isotope is more common than the heavier one
• Electrons


  • Continuously moving in an energy level or shell
  • Each energy level can hold 2n^2 electrons, where n is a number assigned to the energy level
• Octet configuration


  Most stable configuration for an atom, having 8 electrons in the outermost energy level
• Noble gases on the right-hand column of the Periodic Table are chemically unreactive because they have the octet configuration
• Most atoms do not have an octet configuration and are therefore reactive, forming chemical bonds to acquire octet
• Chemical bonding


  • Provides the energy necessary to hold two different atoms together as part of a chemical compound
  • Strength of the bond depends on the molecules or atoms involved in the process of bond formation
• Types of Bonding

  • Ionic Bonds
  • Covalent Bonds
  • Metallic Bonds
• Ionic Bond


  • Formed when an electron leaves one atom and exothermically enters into orbit around another, creating oppositely charged ions that attract each other
  • Generally formed between metals and nonmetals
• Ionic Bond

  • Example not provided
• Covalent Bond


  • Formed by mutual sharing of electrons between two atoms
  • Can be single, double, or triple covalent bond
• Covalent Bond

  • Hydrogen gas formed when two hydrogen atoms share electrons
• Metallic Bond


  Exhibited by closely packed metal atoms, with delocalized electrons responsible for high electrical conductivity
• The two most abundant elements in the Earth's crust are oxygen (46.4% by weight) and silicon (27.7% by weight)
• Most minerals contain silicon, and the common mineral quartz is pure silica
• Most silicates also contain one or more of the other elements
• Mineral


  Naturally occurring inorganic crystalline solid with a specific chemical composition
• "naturally occurring" means it was formed through geologic processes
• Synthetic diamonds, although it may possess the attributes of natural diamond, cannot be considered as a true mineral
• Importance of minerals to human life


  • Minerals supply us with our dietary needs like magnesium and calcium
  • Minerals are the building blocks of rocks which make up the Earth
  • Minerals provide information about the origin of the planet and Earth-like planets
• Mineral's chemistry and internal structure


  • Responsible for its properties and distinguishes it from other minerals
  • Can be seen by the unaided eye or needs instrument that will reveal properties like color, shape, luster, hardness, chemical composition, and the ability to transmit light
• Minerals are part of lithosphere, and some minerals also interact with the hydrosphere