Properties of Minerals

Properties primarily controlled by atomic

arrangement and bonding:

hardness crystal habit double refraction

tenacity density magnetic attraction
striations

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 Properties primarily controlled by the
turquoise
types of atoms: tourmaline

taste and smell

color
solubility in acid
fluorescence A3B2(SiO4)3
garnet

ruby Al2O3

Properties primarily associated with

light:
luster streak
reflections tarnish
iridescence transparency

plagioclase
CaF2

NaAlSi3O8 - CaAl2Si2O8

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 Luster
Luster is the appearance of a mineral’s fresh surface in
reflected white light.
Luster is broadly divided into metallic and non-metallic
Generally, minerals with metallic bonding tend to have a
metallic luster.

Au
Corundum,
var. ruby
(nonmetallic)

Gold
(metallic luster)
Al2O3

Luster

Magnetite - metallic Artintite - non-metallic/silky

Fe3O4

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 Luster

Gypsum - vitreous luster

CaSO4·2H2O Apatite - gumdrop luster
Ca5(PO4)3(F,Cl,OH)

Luster

Topaz - adamantine Amber - resinous

Al2SiO4(F,OH)2

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 Luster

Plagioclase - iridescence Emerald - vitreous/glassy

(Beryl- Be3Al2(Si6O18)

Habit
Habit: the external shape (appearance) of a mineral

Galena - cubic
PbS

C
Cu2(CO3)(OH)2
Malachite - botryoidal: Diamond - 0ctahedron
hemispherical/globular

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 Habit

Pyrite - striated Quartz - prismatic

FeS2 SiO2

Habit

blocky fibrous

tabular
• fibrous: long, slender fibers
• acicular: elongate, needlelike platy
• bladed: elongate, slender, flat
• columnar: shaped like a column; moderately
• tabular: shaped like a book
• blocky: box-like
• lathlike: flat elongate crystals
• radiating: a group of radiating single crystals
radiating

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 Color of Minerals
•Not always a reliable property
•Many minerals have different colors
•Caused by the absorption, or lack of absorption,
of various wavelengths of light
•If light is absorbed, light that leaves the crystal
will no longer be white

FeO·OH·nH2O MnCO3
limonite rhodochrosite

Color of
Minerals
•Some trace elements produce colors
•Usually transition metals
Cr, produces the color orange-red color of crocoite
Fe, produces the red color of limonite
Mn, produces the pink color of rhodochrosite
Cu, produces the azure blue color of azurite
PbCrO4
azurite crocoite
Cu(CO3)2(OH)2

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 Streak
•The color of a finely powdered mineral is known
•Streak is much less variable than mineral color

Specific Gravity
Specific gravity is used to identify minerals, but more often in a laboratory. The
specific gravity of a mineral is the weight of that mineral compared to the weight of
the same volume of water. Specific gravity can also be determined as the density of a
mineral. Minerals that have a low specific gravity will seem light while minerals
with a high specific gravity will seem heavy. Metallic minerals will have a higher
specific gravity than nonmetallic minerals. The average specific gravity for a
metallic mineral is about 5.5, while 2.5 is the average for a nonmetallic mineral.

Barite has a specific gravity of about 4.5, which

makes it extremely heavy for a nonmetallic
mineral and also makes it easy to identify by
holding it in your hand.

BaSO4

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 Specific Gravity
This is the ratio of the density of the mineral to the density of water.
It is obtained by weighing a piece of mineral in air and then in water.
The difference in weight is equal to the volume of water displaced.

Weight Air/(Weight Air-Weight in water) = specific gravity

Specific Gravity increases with increasing atomic weight of the cation.

For example in the orthorhombic carbonates:

Aragonite CaCO3 2.95

Strontianite SrCO3 3.76
Witherite BaCO3 4.29
Cerrusite PbCO3 6.55

Anhydrite CaSO4 2.98

Celestite SrSO4 3.97
Barite BaSO4 4.50
Anglesite PbSO4 6.38

Hardness
One of the better physical properties for minerals
Related to the atomic structure of the mineral
Minerals with strong covalent bonds are the hardest
Softest minerals have metallic or van der Waals bonds
Tested through scratching
Mohs Hardness Scale:
1. Talc
2. Gypsum
fingernail at 2.5
3. Calcite
4. Fluorite
5. Apatite window glass or knife blade - 5.5
6. Orthoclase
plate or steel file - 6.5
7. Quartz
8. Topaz
9. Corundum (ruby and sapphire)
10. Diamond

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 Feldspar
Copper

Tenacity
Resistance to breaking

Brittle - breaks and powders easily (e.g., quartz, feldspar)

Malleable - can be hammered into thin sheets (e.g., gold, copper)
Sectile - can be cut into thin shavings (e.g., gypsum)
Ductile - can be stretched into a wire (e.g., gold, silver)
Flexible - can be bent but not elastic (e.g., chlorite)
Elastic - can be bent and return to original position (e.g., mica)
Biotite
Silver

Gypsum

Muscovite

Cleavage and Fracture Plagioclase

Cleavage - breaks along flat planes
Fracture - broken surface is irregular
1 plane - mica
2 planes - feldspar
3 planes - calcite, halite
4 planes - fluorite Calcite
6 planes - sphalerite

Sphalerite Fluorite

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 Fracture
•Conchoidal: curved fracture
•Fibrous/splintery
•Uneven/irregular

Fibrous - serpentine

Conchoidal fracture -
flint (quartz) arrowheads

Irregular fracture
- rose quartz

Twinning
•Two general types of twin styles - contact and penetration
•Form as a result of an error during crystallization
Staurolite

Calcite
Albite twinning
- plagioclase

microcope view

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 Taste
* Borax (sweet alkaline)
* Chalcanthite (sweet metallic & slightly poisonous)
* Epsomite (bitter)
* Glauberite (bitter salty)
* Halite (salty)
* Hanksite (salty)
* Melanterite (sweet, astringent and metallic)
* Sylvite (bitter)
* Ulexite (alkaline)

Sylvite KCl

Halite NaCl

Acid Solubility
- calcite

CaCO3

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 Magnetic Attraction

Pyrrhotite FeS2

Magnetite
- Fe3O4

Pyroelectricity and
Piezoelectricity
•The flow of electrons as a consequence of heat and pressure.

Modern application: timing devices, infrared detectors, imaging

tourmaline

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 Properties of Minerals II

dioptase
•Color

magnetite
•Magnetism

zircon
•Radioactivity ZrSiO4
Acknowledgement - some images are
from George Rossman

Color of Minerals
Why is a ruby red and sapphire blue?
Both are varieties of corundum (Al2O3), which is colorless

ruby sapphire

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 Multicolored minerals - Fluorite
Color results from a mineral’s chemical composition, impurities that
may be present, and flaws or damage in the internal structure.

The color of a mineral is one of its most obvious attributes. Some minerals, such as fluorite
(CaF 2), display a rainbow of colors.

Single-colored minerals
Other minerals have only a single color which can be diagnostic, as for instance the yellow of
sulfur, the green of malachite, and the blue of azurite.

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 Visible Light Interaction with
Minerals
Visible light has the wavelength range of 350-750 nm

When light strikes the mineral’s surface, it may be transmitted,

refracted, reflected, scattered, or absorbed.

Scattering and reflection of light yields a mineral’s luster

Absorption yields the mineral’s color, but you only see what is reflected

pyrite kyanite

Color of Minerals
But Why are Minerals Colored?

The color of minerals can depend on the

presence of certain atoms, such as iron or olivine
chromium which strongly absorb portions of
the light spectrum.

The mineral olivine, containing iron, absorbs

all colors except green, which it reflects, so we
see olivine as green.
corundum,
Some minerals such as corundum get their var. sapphire
colors from impurities. Blue corundum
(sapphire) is formed when small amounts of
iron and titanium are dissolved in the solid
crystal.
smoky quartz
Finally some crystals get their color from
growth imperfections. Smoky (black) quartz
is a good example. Growth imperfections
interfere with light passing through the crystal
making it appear darker, or almost black.

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*This color wheel demonstrates which color a compound will appear
if it only has one absorption in the visible spectrum.

*For example, if the compound absorbs red light, it will appear

green.
absorbed versus color observed
400nm Violet absorbed, Green-yellow observed ( 560nm)
450nm Blue absorbed, Yellow observed ( 600nm)
490nm Blue-green absorbed, Red observed ( 620nm)
570nm Yellow-green absorbed, Violet observed ( 410nm)
580nm Yellow absorbed, Dark blue observed ( 430nm)
600nm Orange absorbed, Blue observed ( 450nm)
650nm Red absorbed, Green observed ( 520nm)

Color of Minerals
Crystal Field Transitions
Metal ions cause the color of many common and uncommon minerals.
Cr3+ causes red and green colors. Cr 3+ causes green color in emerald,
synthetic orthopyroxene and jadeite. Red color from Cr 3+ is seen in ruby
and spinel.

Crystal field transitions, in partially-

corundum,
filled 3d orbitals of transition metals
var. ruby
(Cr, V, Ti, Mn, Fe, Co, ni, and Cu)
lead to partial absorption of light and
the resultant emission of color

Light wavelength correspond to the

energy differences between the 3d
orbitals, thus creating an environment
conducive to absorption of those
specific wavelengths

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 Color of Minerals
Crystal Field Transitions

Mn 2+ usually results in a pink color in octahedral sites. Rhodonite is a pyroxenoid containing

Mn 2+ and has the typical pink color of Mn 2+ minerals. Rhodocrosite has a high concentration of
Mn 2+ and a bright red color.

rhodochrosite

Color of Minerals
Crystal Field Transitions
Cu2+ usually occupies sites distorted from octahedral geometry. It produces blue
and green color in minerals such as azurite, malachite, aurichalcite and the blue
elbaite tourmaline.

malachite

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 Color of Minerals
Molecular Orbital or Charge Transfer Transitions

Intervalence Charge Transfer, involving metal ions in mixed oxidation states is another
important factor in the coloration of minerals. Most commonly, we encounter minerals
with the Fe 2+ - Fe 3+ interaction and with the Fe 2+ - Ti4+ interaction.

Mn 2+ - Ti4+ interactions have been

documented in tourmaline. The band
of pale yellow color in elbaite
tourmaline arises from the the Mn 2+ -
Ti4+ interaction. The light and dark
brown zones are from the Fe 2+ - Ti4+
interaction.

Color of Minerals
Molecular Orbital or Charge Transfer Transitions
Fe 2+ - Fe 3+ interactions are the kind most commonly
found in terrestrial minerals. They are a major cause of
color in a variety of common and uncommon minerals.
The Fe2+ - Fe 3+ interaction typically results in absorption
of light in the red portion of the spectrum.
Consequently, most minerals with this interaction are
either blue or green
kyanite

corundum, var. sapphire

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 Color Centers
Color of Minerals
Color can also be caused by structural
defects occupied by an excess electron
generated by natural or imposed radiation

Colors from natural ionizing radiation are

frequently encountered in nature. Most common
minerals have had a long history of exposure to
ionizing radiation from natural radiation purple calcite
sources in rocks.

A variety of minerals can also be colored by

artificial irradiation which enter the
commercial market in the form of colored
gemstones, such as these diamonds. blue diamond
yellow diamond

green diamond

Color of Minerals
Inclusions
Color can also be caused by the presence of colored
mineral inclusions, such minute particles of hematite in
orthoclase (pink to red) and chalcedony (jasper).

orthoclase jasper

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 Color of Minerals
Finally, color in the form of iridescence (play of colors) is
caused by diffraction of light by layers as thin as the wavelength
of light, such as seen in opal (quartz) and labradorite
(plagioclase)

opal
labradorite

Magnetism in Minerals
Magnetism occurs in minerals results from the spin of electrons, termed the magnetic
moment, which is the fourth quantum number. A spinning electron behaves as a small magnet
and creates its own magnetic field. Most minerals are not magnetic as the electronic spins
cancel. But some minerals produce magnetic attraction and these all have unshared electrons
(not involved in bonding) in the 3d orbitals. The most important elements includes Fe and
Mn, but also Ti and Cr.

Magnetite, var. lodestone

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 Magnetism in Minerals
Magnetite is a ferromagnetic mineral form of iron(II,III) oxide, with
chemical formula Fe3O4, one of several iron oxides and a member of
the spinel group. Magnetite is the most magnetic of all the minerals
on Earth, and these magnetic properties led to lodestone being used
as an early form of magnetic compass.

calcite Magnetism in Minerals olivine

There are four charactizations of magnetic character:

1. Diamagnetic - not attracted to a magnet (e.g., calcite,
quartz, feldspar)
2. Paramagnetic - weakly attracted (e.g., olivine,
pyroxene); not permanent
3. Ferrimagnetic - strong attraction (magnetite, ilmenite,
pyrrhotite); permanent
4. Ferromagnetic - very strong attraction (metal iron);
also permanent

magnetite pyrrhotite iron meteorite

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 Magnetism in Minerals
Magnetic minerals, in addition to their economic importance
as ore minerals, have significant geologic applications,
including:

1. Paleomagnetism - used to document lateral movement of

oceanic and continental terranes

Magnetism in Minerals
2. Age dating and sea floor spreading rates - through magnetic
reversals

3. Level of oxidation of magmas and metamorphic fluids

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 Radioactivity in Minerals
There are a range of highly radioactive minerals that serve as
ores of uranium and other elements. Examples include
uraninite (UO2) and carnotite, K2(UO2) 2(VO4) 2*3H2O

uraninite carnotite

Radioactivity in Minerals
Many minerals carry high to trace amounts of radioactive
elements allowing their use as “rock clocks”, meaning as a tool
to accurately date the mineral and a range of processes active in
the earth’s recent and distant past.

Carbon 14 - a fast clock used to date

recent ice age events and human evolution
coal *1/2 life of ≈5730 years

K-Ar and Ar-Ar - used to date

volcanism, thermal history, and uplift
microcline
*1/2 life of 1.26 billion years

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Radioactivity in Minerals
Rb-Sr, to date igneous,
metamorphic, and crustal
cooling history, particularly
with feldspars and micas

orthoclase biotite

Radioactivity in Minerals garnet

garnet
zircon

zircon

sphene

U-Pb, Nd-Sm to date igneous and

metamorphic events and crust
formation through the use of such
minerals as zircon, sphene, and garnet

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