Bonds and Properties in Mineral Structure A mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic, homogeneous solid with a definite chemical composition and an ordered atomic arrangement(*). Despite the most minerals are chemical compound, some of them are elements such as Gold, Cupper, Sulfur. There are approximately 3000 minerals in the nature. The minerals separate from the each other with their specific chemical and atomic structure. They crystallize regularly in 3-Dimesions. When that happens, some forces bind together the atoms and lead to the formation of an aggregate as an independent molecular species. These forces are called the chemical bonds and they have four main types; covalent, ionic, …show more content…
It is most stable configuration for atom because the outer shell of the atom is completely filled. Minerals that contains covalent bonds are insoluble, stable, brittle and they have high melting points. The elements in the Carbon group like carbon, silicon, tin prefer covalent bonding. For instance, two Carbon atoms bond together with covalent bonding and that is the strongest bond in nature. (**) Secondly, the ionic bond involves transfer the electrons to achieve a completely filled outer shell. This type of bond occurs between metals and nonmetals. When the metals want to lose their electron, the nonmetals want to gain to achieve noble gas configuration. The crystals which have this type of bond, have hardness and specific gravity moderately. They have also high melting point and they are poor conductors. Bonding in most of the minerals is largely ionic. (***) Thirdly, in the metallic bond, electrons are free to float about the metal crystalline structure. This type of bond occurs only between metals like gold. The metals lose their other electrons easily. Because of the movement of the electrons, the minerals which have the metallic bond, conduct the electricity very well. The metallic bonding is seen in native mineral like Au, Ag, Cu(****). It is known that they have ductility and low …show more content…
We said that the minerals have crystalline structures in three dimensions. Some of these minerals have weak bonds in their structures. Because of the weakness, there is some fractions in their surfaces parallelly. This tendency of these minerals to break is called cleavage. The surfaces of the minerals which have cleavage, also have minimum cohesion. (*******) The another property is parting. The parting looks like the cleavage but not the same. The difference between cleavage and parting is that if the broken piece remains a crystal shape, this situation is called cleavage. However, when the parting occurs crystals divide in two. The fracture, on the other hand, occurs randomly because of the crest impact. (Sample of fracture) (********) Lastly, Hardness is the strength of the minerals. It is about the forces of the bonds between the atoms. Although some minerals are soft, some of them are very hard. For instance, the diamond is the hardest one but the talc is the
...the more stable there is. However, the fracture toughness decreases if the phase is too stable. While tetragonal phase transform to monoclinic, the mechanical properties decrease at the same time but fracture toughness will increase.
Metals contain a sea of electrons (which are negatively charged) and which flow throughout the metal. This is what allows electric current to flow so well in all metals. An electrode is a component of an electric circuit that connects the wiring of the circuit to a gas or electrolyte. A compound that conducts in a solution is called an electrolyte. The electrically positive electrode is called the anode and the negative electrode the cathode.
An atom, by definition, is the smallest part of any substance. The atom has three main components that make it up: protons, neutrons, and electrons. The protons and neutrons are within the nucleus in the center of the atom. The electrons revolve around the nucleus in many orbitals. These orbitals consist of many different shapes, including circular, spiral, and many others. Protons are positively charged and electrons are negatively charged. Protons and electrons both have charge of equal magnitude (i.e. 1.602x10-19 coulombs). Neutrons have a neutral charge, and they, along with protons, are the majority of mass in an atom. Electron mass, though, is negligible. When an atom has a neutral charge, it is stable.
Minerals play an important role in our day-to-day life but we often not contemplate how the minerals are obtained. Minerals are scattered all over the world just like any other resources. Due to the natural processes of magma flow, hydrothermal gradients, sedimentation, and evaporation, Minerals are concentrated in various areas of the Earth’s crust. Obtaining these minerals for human use involves four general steps:
Also, I will know what a chemical and physical property is and I will know how to find them out. Materials = == == ==
One very important piece of information is that gemstones and crystals are grown during the cooling, formative stages of Earth’s development and so it has lead me to the conclusion that they are gifts from nature. According to physics, gemstones and crystals consist of natural balances and solid sta...
Crystalline silica may be of several distinct types. Quartz, a form of silica and the most common mineral in the earth's crust, is associated with many types of rock. Other types of silica include cristobalite and tridymite.
The Periodic Table is based around the Atomic Theory. Firstly people believed that everything was made up the four elements Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water. This theory evolved into everything being made up of atoms. Breakthroughs throughout history such as the discoveries of the nucleus, protons, neutrons and electrons have pushed this theory forward to where it is today.
Chemical Weathering is when water weakens the structure of the rock and Mechanical Weathering is where water seeps into the rock face causing fragments of rock to break off.
The field of geology has many different branches. Some of these areas have hardly anything in common. The one thing that they all include, though, is that each one concentrates on some part of the Earth, its makeup, or that of other planets. Mineralogy, the study of minerals above the Earth and in its crust, is different from Petrology, the st...
Each type of crystal has its own properties and shapes. Crystals are an organized arrangement of atoms and molecules. The atoms sodium (Na) and chlorine (Cl) make up salt crystals and have a cubic shape. A salt solution will contain sodium and chlorine atoms that are separated by water molecules. Crystals are formed when the water evaporates from the solution and the sodium and chlorine atoms start bonding together (Crystallization). According to the background of all-science-fair-projects “Placing a porous material like a sponge, charcoal or broken ceramic in the salt solution helps to draw in the mixture through capillary action”(Science). Crystals are left behind from the porous material’s water evaporating from the surface of it. Evaporation of water is what drives the crystallization process. According to all-science-fair-projects “Placing the solution in a dry place or under a slight breeze will help the crystals to grow faster” 0(Science).
Solids are more stable than liquids and gases. One type of solid is a Crystalline solid. The particles in a crystalline solid have a regular repeating pattern. The types of crystalline solids are metals, alloys, salts, valence crystals, molecular crystals, polymers, and plastics.
As for the valence electrons, they are simply electrons that are shared when atoms bond together. Moreover, you can find the number of valence electrons an element has just by looking at the periodic tables. The number of valence electrons is the same as the atom's group number which can be found by looking at its column. For example, carbon is in group 4; therefore, it has 4 valence electrons. The elements of the periodic table can be divided into three categories; metals, nonmetals, and metalloids. The periodic table is mostly elements that are metals which are good conductors of heat, however nonmetals are not good conductors of heat, and metalloids have properties of both metals and nonmetals. The elements in the periodic table are divided into groups. Group 1 are the "Alkali Metals" and they're the first column in the periodic table however, excluding Hydrogen. The Alkali metals are so soft and very reactive metals. In addition, Group 2 the " Alkaline Earth metals " are listed in the second column of the periodic
Finally, there are 2 classifications of minerals, macro mineral and micro mineral. “Macro minerals are present at larger levels in the animal body or required in larger amounts in the diet. Macro minerals include calcium, chlorine, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and sulfur” (The difference between macro and micro minerals. (n.d.). Compared to macro minerals, “micro minerals are often referred to as trace minerals, meaning they are present at low levels in the body or required in smaller amounts in the animals diet. Micro minerals include chromium, cobalt, copper, fluorine, iodine, iron, manganese, molybdenum, selenium, and zinc” (The difference between macro and micro minerals. (n.d.).
In summary, the rate of cooling from the austenite phase is the main determinant of final structure and properties.