Minerals
Minerals=Is a common substance that is nonliving, or not made by man. Minerals are the building blocks of rocks, the igneous rock,”GRANITE,” has several minerals in it, the metamorphic rock,”marble,” has only one mineral, and that mineral is quartz. The rocks that are formed by those minerals have different attributes from each other because of their minerals,and also minerals have the same element .
Our mineralogists have discovered over three-thousand minerals, and only thirty of them are common in rocks. have discerals that we have identified are common in rocks. Those minerals tha we have identified are rock forming minerals, and Some of those minerals are even in your backyard. Calcite can be either white or a colorless mineral, and also quartz comes in lots of colors.
All the elements make-up matter, the mineral graphite is made from carbon, table salt is also made from sodium and chlorine. Each and every mineral has their own chemical combination, and each one has it’s own crystal shape, and a crystal shape can also be a cube. Some shapes are like hexagons. A mineral’s shape is different from others because of the way it is formed.
Quartz can come in rose, white, or purple, hornblende is also a mineral used in granite, mica is a mineral that can be peeled easily. Feldspar forms have of earth’s crust, minerals that we often use come from ores. Ores contains lots of useful minerals, like Galena makes lead, Hematite also contains iron, and Bauxite contains aluminum.
Minerals are in the products that we use every day. Quartz is being used to make glass,and your toothpaste is made from fluorite, drywall is made from gypsum, and mica or talc makes paint, also copper makes cooking utensils, gems make jewelry or other accessories for women, diamonds are also used in tools. Also diamonds, rubies, and emeralds are removed from the earth’s crust.
Some of the common minerals that we know of is:Copper, Diamond, Gold, Graphite, Platinum, Silver, Sulfer, Bombsite, Chalcopyrite, Galena, Molybdenite, Pyrite, Sphalerite, and Stibnite
Igneous rocks are formed by magma and lava, they are also classified how they are formed. Igneous means made from fire. Common elements are oxygen and silicon. Here are some igneous rocks in igneous environment; orthodase, feldspare, biotite mica, hornblende, augite, olivine, and quartz.
Magma is molten rock beneath Earth’s surface. Lava is molten rock above Earth’s surface. Magma is in the magma chamber in a volcano. And when magma goes up the crater, it’s lava.
Intrusive/Extrusive Igneous Rocks
Intrusive igneous rocks are formed when lava cools below Earth’s surface. Extrusive igneous rocks are formed when lava cools above Earth’s surface.
Properties of Some Igneous Rocks
Granite
A mineral gives granite its variety of colors. Made out of feldspar, quartz, mica, hornblende. It’s an intrusive igneous rock, plus it has large mineral crystals. Granite is also the most common igneous rock.
Pumice
Pumice crumbly from the way it forms. It’s an extrusive igneous rock. And it’s light. It is sometimes called lave rock. The tiny holes is caused by gases that escaped as lava cools.
Uses of Some Igneous Rocks
Granite is used to make schools, office buildings, roads, and homes.
Pumice is used to scrub the dirt of your body
Sedimentary Rock
Sedimentary Rock = formed with sediments in layers It picks up water wind and ice. That is the process of weathering. There is similar rock called the the Skeleton rock . It means animal’s body sinks to the ocean. The properties of Sedimentary rocks are Limestone, Sandstone, Conglomerate rocks. Limestone is formed at the bottom of the sea. Sandstone is mostly made with quartz. Finally Conglomerate has larger stones and has coarse and chunky spots on it. Some are soft and some are hard. Some have distinct layers. Also some don’t show layers, but it is still Sedimentary.
Metamorphic Rocks
Metamorphic rocks are rocks made from other rocks under extreme heat and pressure inside Earth. Under the extreme heat and pressure their properties change, like getting harder. They can be formed by Igneous rocks, Sedimentary rocks, or even other Metamorphic rocks.
Metamorphic Rock Formation & Properties
Metamorphic rocks are formed in extreme heat from other rocks. All metamorphic rocks are made from other rocks. Metamorphic rocks have different physical properties because of the different minerals they are made of. The rocks properties change when the rock changes like the hardness.
Types of Metamorphic Rocks
Gneiss is a rock that is made from granite. It has layers called bands. They are formed from when the heat and presser pushes the minerals in to layers. Gneiss also has large crystals which makes it have a course texture. Slate is made from shale. It has thin layers like shale, but it is much harder. It break in layers. Slate has very small crystals which gives it a fine texture. Marble is another type of Metamorphic rock. It is formed from Limestone. Marble has different crystal sizes. When it has small crystals it has a fine texture, but if it has large crystals it has a coarse texture. It doesn’t have any bands. The color is mostly white, but they can come in different colors. The last rock is Quartzite. It doesn’t have any bands. Form far away it looks like Sandstone. It has small crystals, which gives it a medium texture.
Uses of Metamorphic Rock
There are many ways to use Metamorphic Rocks. Quartzite is used for glass. Slate is used for the roof. It is also waterproof. Most metamorphic rocks turn into small chunks. Those chunks are used for roads. And there are other types rocks used for stuff, too.
Uses for Gems
Gems are valued for beauty and cutting. Most often, gems are used for jewelry. It’s very valuable like gold. Gemstones are used for cutting. For example, a geode (a rock) was sliced in half by a diamond-bladed saw. Another thing is clothing, accessories, and shoes. Some people could use it for arts and crafts, too. And they also can use it for furniture, too.
Pearls are produced by living things. A pearl is mostly formed in an oyster. First, the sand gets in the oyster. Next, oyster covers sand with nacre. Then, layers of nacre build up. Finally, a pearl is formed. There are other kinds of gemstones like emeralds and sapphire. Some gemstones have a date which are called birthstones. January is garnet, February is amethyst, March is aquamarine, June is pearl, July is ruby, August is peridot, September is sapphire, October is opal, November is topaz, and December is turquoise.
Rocks All Around Us
Earth in fact is actually a gigantic sphere made from rocks, it measures nearly 8,000 across and weighs about 6.6 six trillion tons(6.7six trillion metric tons, the part that we live on is called the crust; which is made of rock that is 45 miles thick; the crust at the bottom of the ocean is is extremely thin; it is 3 to 5 miles thick. Beneath crust is a very thick layer called, mantle, which is an extremely hot magma-like rock, it is “so” hot that it melts and forms a soft, yet hot syrup called”magma”, sometimes magma forces it’s way up through earth’s crust which it is now lava, under the mantle earth’s outer core(dense liquid made of minerals called nickel, iron, and sulfur), the very center of the earth(heavy dense solid ball made of nickel and iron).
A rock cycle is that all rocks change from one kind to another which is the rock cycle. For an example this is the way the rock cycle goes. First the lava and magma makes Igneous rocks then the sand turns it to Sedimentary rock then to Metamorphic Rocks and finally back the lava and magma. Some rocks like slate change when the temperatures are around 392 Fahrenheit they are called low-grade Metamorphosis. If it’s higher than 392 degrees Fahrenheit they are called high-grade Metamorphosis.
Rocks and Minerals for Kids 