Minerals
Minerals Test
Terms
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- shaft mine
- a network of tunnels that go deep into the ground, following the veins of the ore
- useful minerals
- talc, fluorite, quartz, gypsum, coreundum, kaolin
- Mineral
- A naturally occurring, inorganic solid that had a crystal structure and a definite chemical composition
- metals
- aluminum, iron, copper, silver
- definite chemical composition
- always certain elements in definite proportions
- gemstone
- a hard, colorful mineral that has a brilliant or glassy luster
- naturally occuring
- a substance that is found in nature, not man made
- luster
- term used to describe how a mineral reflects light from surface
- how to identify a mineral
- each mineral has it's own specific properties that can be used to identify it
- color
- color can only be used to identify the minerals that have their own characteristic colors
- crystal structure
- particles of a mineral line up in a pattern that repeats
- where are minerals found
- near volcanic activity and mountain building
- cleavage
- splitting along flat surfaces
- prospecting
- searching for ore deposits
- smelting
- The process by which ore is melted to separate the useful metal from other elements.
- hardness
- the Mohs Hardness scale can be used to descibe and compare harness of minerals
- strip mine
- earth moving equipment scrapes away soil to expose ore
- inorganic
- not formed from living things or the remains of living things
- density
- the mass in a given space, amount per unit size
- metals
- good conductors of heat, electricity; solid; can be formed;
- solid
- particles are tightly packed, they move back and forth but they don't change places
- open pit mine
- miners use giant earth moving equipment to dig a huge pit and remove ore deposits; starts near surface and can extend down for hundreds of miles
- process that forms minerals
- crystallization of melted material
- fracture
- is the physical property of a mineral that causes it to break with rough or jagged edges.
- ores
- A mineral or rock that contains a useful substance - metal or economically useful material
- crystal systems
- The way geologists classify minerals into 6 groups based on the the number and angle of the crystal faces.