300 likes | 319 Views
AIM: Sample. Do now: 1. What is a mineral? 2. If you put different types of mineral, what are you creating?. AIM: How do we identify minerals?.
E N D
AIM: Sample • Do now: • 1. What is a mineral? • 2. If you put different types of mineral, what are you creating?
AIM: How do we identify minerals? • Do now: What do you know about minerals? Where do you use minerals? Let’s say you found a mysterious mineral. How would you find out what the mineral is?
Mineral Identification • Every mineral has a unique set of physical properties, or characteristics. • These properties are used to identify minerals
Mineral Identification • Density • Hardness • Color • Streak • Luster • Cleavage
Mineral Identification • 1. Density • The heavier mineral has a higher density. It very high or a very low density can help identify a mineral
Mineral Identification • 2. Hardness • Scientists measure the hardness of a mineral by observing how easily it is scratched or how easily it scratches something else.
Mineral Identification • 2. Hardness • The Mohs Scale of Hardness ranks how hard minerals are. • The softest mineral is talc. • The hardest mineral is diamond.
Mineral Identification • The softest mineral is talc. • The hardest mineral is diamond.
Mineral Identification • 3. Color • Some minerals can be identified by their unique color.
Different minerals might present the same color. How would you tell one from the other?
Mineral Identification • 3. Color • The colors of most minerals vary so it is hard to identify minerals just by observing its color
Mineral Identification • 4. Streak • The color of a mineral’s powder is called its streak. • You can observe streak by scratching the mineral across a streak plate. • Sometimes, the color of a mineral and the color of its streak are different.
Mineral Identification • 5. Luster • Minerals reflect light in different ways. • Luster describes the way that a mineral’s surface reflects light. • Some terms used to describe mineral luster are metallic, glassy, earthy, or pearly.
Mineral Identification • 6. Cleavage • Sometimes the way a mineral breaks helps identify it. • Minerals break in two ways. If a mineral breaks along smooth, flat surfaces, it displays cleavage.
6. Cleavage • A mineral that breaks along rough or irregular surfaces displays fracture. • A mineral can break along a single cleavage direction or along several directions.
Mineral Identification • Can you name any two ways to identify minerals?