MINERALS
- Minerals are an indispensable part of our lives .
- Almost everything that we use is made up of minerals, from a tiny pin to a ship or to a huge building.
- Minerals are those elements on the earth and in foods that our bodies need to develop and function normally.
What is a mineral?
- Geologists define mineral as a homogenous, naturally occurring substance with a definable internal structure.
- Minerals are found in varied forms in nature, ranging from the hardest diamond to the softest talc.
- Rocks are combinations of homogenous substances called minerals. Some rocks like limestone consist of a single mineral only.
- Over 2000 minerals have been identified, only a few are abundantly found on Earth.
- A particular mineral that will be formed under certain combination of elements depends on the physical and chemical conditions under which the material forms.
- Which in turn, results in a wide range of colours, hardness, crystal forms, lustre and density that a mineral possesses.
- Geologists use these properties for classifying minerals.
For general and commercial purposes, minerals can be classified under :
