Portal:Minerals
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The Minerals Portal
In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid substance with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.
The
The concept of mineral is distinct from rock, which is any bulk solid geologic material that is relatively homogeneous at a large enough scale. A rock may consist of one type of mineral or may be an aggregate of two or more different types of minerals, spacially segregated into distinct phases.
Some natural solid substances without a definite crystalline structure, such as opal or obsidian, are more properly called mineraloids. If a chemical compound occurs naturally with different crystal structures, each structure is considered a different mineral species. Thus, for example, quartz and stishovite are two different minerals consisting of the same compound, silicon dioxide. (Full article...)
Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the processes of mineral origin and formation, classification of minerals, their geographical distribution, as well as their utilization. (Full article...)
Selected articles
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Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula CuAl6(PO4)4(OH)8·4H2O. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone for millennia due to its hue.
Like most other opaque gems, turquoise has been devalued by the introduction of treatments, imitations, and synthetics into the market. The robin egg blue or sky blue color of the Persian turquoise mined near the modern city of Nishapur, Iran, has been used as a guiding reference for evaluating turquoise quality. (Full article...)Image 5Image 6Image 7Image 8Image 9
Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the processes of mineral origin and formation, classification of minerals, their geographical distribution, as well as their utilization. (Full article...)Image 10Image 11Image 12Image 13Image 14Image 15Image 16
Zeolite is a family of several microporous, crystalline aluminosilicate materials commonly used as commercial adsorbents and catalysts. They mainly consist of silicon, aluminium, oxygen, and have the general formula Mn+
1/n(AlO
2)−
(SiO
2)
x・yH
2O where Mn+
1/n is either a metal ion or H+. These positive ions can be exchanged for others in a contacting electrolyte solution. H+
exchanged zeolites are particularly useful as solid acid catalysts.
The term was originally coined in 1756 by Swedish mineralogist Axel Fredrik Cronstedt, who observed that rapidly heating a material, believed to have been stilbite, produced large amounts of steam from water that had been adsorbed by the material. Based on this, he called the material zeolite, from the Greek ζέω (zéō), meaning "to boil" and λίθος (líthos), meaning "stone".
Zeolites occur naturally, but are also produced industrially on a large scale. , 253 unique zeolite frameworks have been identified, and over 40 naturally occurring zeolite frameworks are known. Every new zeolite structure that is obtained is examined by the International Zeolite Association Structure Commission (IZA-SC) and receives a three-letter designation. (Full article...)Image 17Image 18Image 19Image 20Image 21Image 22Image 23Image 24Selected mineralogist
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Image 1Image 2Image 3Michigan College of Mines (now Michigan Technological University) and curator of the A. E. Seaman Mineral Museum which bears his name. (Full article...)Image 4mineralogist.)
Baron von Engelhardt was a descendant of a Baltic German noble family Engelhardt. (Full article...Image 5Image 6Image 7
Gustav Adolph Kenngott (January 6, 1818 – March 7, 1897) was a German mineralogist. (Full article...)Image 8Peggy-Kay Hamilton (1922–1959) was born in Illinois in 1922 and was an American Research Associate in Mineralogy in the Department of Geology at Columbia University. One of Hamilton's first research breakthroughs was developing Research Project 49, otherwise known as the study of clay minerals. In her later research years, her focus shifted and led to her becoming involved full time in the study of uranium.
Hamilton achieved success in the fields of geology and mineralogy; according to her frequent research partner and friend Paul F. Kerr, Hamilton was held in high regard by both students at Columbia University as well as professional colleagues at multiple scientific research institutions. (Full article...)Image 9Image 10geochemist. Garrels applied experimental physical chemistry data and techniques to geology and geochemistry problems. The book Solutions, Minerals, and Equilibria co-authored in 1965 by Garrels and Charles L. Christ revolutionized aqueous geochemistry.)
Garrels earned a bachelor's degree in geology from the University of Michigan in 1937. He went on to earn an M.S. degree from Northwestern University in 1939, his thesis work was on iron ores of Newfoundland in 1938. His Ph.D. was awarded in 1941 based on lab studies of complex formation between lead and chloride ions in aqueous solution. (Full article...Image 11mineralogist and crystallographer. (Full article...)Image 12
Wolfgang Sartorius Freiherr von Waltershausen (17 December 1809 – 16 March 1876) was a German geologist. (Full article...)Image 13mineralogist.)
From 1879, he studied at the polytechnic college in Stuttgart, followed by classes at the Universities of Strasbourg and Tübingen. In 1888 he was habilitated for mineralogy and petrography at Strasbourg, where in 1894, he became an associate professor. Later the same year, he was named professor of mineralogy and geology at the University of Jena, a position he maintained until his retirement in 1930. On five occasions, he served as university rector at Jena. (Full article...Image 14German Southwest Africa. The expedition was organized by merchant Adolf Lüderitz (1834-1886) and was under the leadership of Karl Höpfner (1857-1900). Several noted scientists participated in the venture, including Swiss botanist Hans Schinz (1868-1941), who performed botanical investigations in the northern part of German Southwest Africa. In the southern part of the colony, Schenck collected minerals and plants, particularly lichens. Prior to returning to Germany, he visited mines and goldfields that are now located in the present-day nations of South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique. (Full article...)Image 15Image 16University of Kiel. (Full article...)Image 17Image 18Image 19Image 20Full article...)Image 21
Frederick Augustus Ludwig Karl Wilhelm Genth (May 17, 1820 – February 2, 1893) was a German-American chemist, specializing in analytical chemistry and mineralogy. (Full article...)Image 22
Bernard (Bernie) Wood FRS MAE is a British geologist, and professor of mineralogy and senior research fellow at the University of Oxford. He specializes in the thermodynamics of geological systems, using experimental techniques. He is a prominent figure in the field of experimental petrology, having received multiple awards throughout his career and taught at several universities worldwide. (Full article...)Image 23Image 24mineralogist from Pennsylvania. (Full article...)Image 25Braunschweig University of Technology. In 1976 he became a professor at the Free University of Berlin, where he continued until retirement. His research led him to many countries, among others England, Spain, Poland, Tanzania and the Adriatic Sea coast. (Full article...)More at List of mineralogistsRelated portals
Get involved
For editor resources and to collaborate with other editors on improving Wikipedia's Minerals-related articles, see WikiProject Rocks and minerals.
General images
The following are images from various mineral-related articles on Wikipedia.-
Image 1Pink cubicbaking soda). (from Mineral)
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Image 2Native gold. Rare specimen of stout crystals growing off of a central stalk, size 3.7 x 1.1 x 0.4 cm, from Venezuela. (from Mineral)
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Image 3Schist is a metamorphic rock characterized by an abundance of platy minerals. In this example, the rock has prominent sillimanite porphyroblasts as large as 3 cm (1.2 in). (from Mineral)
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Image 5An example of elbaite, a species of tourmaline, with distinctive colour banding. (from Mineral)
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Image 7Perfect basal cleavage as seen in biotite (black), and good cleavage seen in the matrix (pink orthoclase). (from Mineral)
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Image 8Red cinnabar (HgS), a mercury ore, on dolomite. (from Mineral)
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Image 9Muscovite, a mineral species in the mica group, within the phyllosilicate subclass (from Mineral)
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Image 10Hübnerite, the manganese-rich end-member of the wolframite series, with minor quartz in the background (from Mineral)
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Image 11Asbestiform tremolite, part of the amphibole group in the inosilicate subclass (from Mineral)
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Image 12Sphalerite crystal partially encased in calcite from the Devonian Milwaukee Formation of Wisconsin (from Mineral)
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Image 15When minerals react, the products will sometimes assume the shape of the reagent; the product mineral is termed a pseudomorph of (or after) the reagent. Illustrated here is a pseudomorph of kaolinite after orthoclase. Here, the pseudomorph preserved the Carlsbad twinning common in orthoclase. (from Mineral)
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Image 16Black andradite, an end-member of the orthosilicate garnet group. (from Mineral)
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Image 19Diamond is the hardest natural material, and has a Mohs hardness of 10. (from Mineral)
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Image 21Gypsum desert rose (from Mineral)
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Image 22Mohs hardness kit, containing one specimen of each mineral on the ten-point hardness scale (from Mohs scale)
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Image 25Epidote often has a distinctive pistachio-green colour. (from Mineral)
Did you know ...?
- ... that leonite (pictured) has been found on Mars?
- ...that crystals of Paulingite, a rare zeolite mineral found in vesicles in the basaltic rocks from the Columbia River, form a perfect clear rhombic dodecahedron?
- ... that abernathyite is both fluorescent and radioactive and is named for the mine operator who discovered it?
Subcategories
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Topics
Overview Common minerals - ore deposits
Ores Oxides Sulfides - Acanthite (silver)
- Argentite (silver)
- Bornite (copper)
- Chalcopyrite (copper)
- Chalcocite (copper)
- Cinnabar (mercury)
- Cobaltite (cobalt)
- Galena (lead)
- Molybdenite (molybdenum)
- Pyrite (iron)
- Pentlandite (nickel)
- Sphalerite (zinc)
Carbonates Other Deposit types Borates Carbonates - Ankerite
- Kutnohorite
- Rhodochrosite
- Manganoan Calcite
Oxides Simple Mixed - Birnessite
- Bixbyite
- Ferrocolumbite
- Ferrotantalite
- Galaxite
- Jacobsite
- Manganotantalite
- Psilomelane
- Romanèchite
- Tantalite
- Todorokite
- Umber
Phosphates Silicates Sulfides Other - Axinite (borosilicate)
- Geigerite (arsenate)
- Manganese nodule (various)
- Samsonite (Sulfosalt)
- Zincobotryogen (sulfate)
- Wolframite (tungstate)
- Hübnerite (tungstate)
- Phyllosilicates
Micas - Aluminoceladonite
- Anandite
- Annite
- Aspidolite
- Balestraite
- Bityite
- Biotite
- Boromuscovite
- Bramallite
- Celadonite
- Chernykhite
- Chromphyllite
- Clintonite
- Eastonite
- Ephesite
- Ferroaluminoceladonite
- Ferroceladonite
- Fluorannite
- Fluorokinoshitalite
- Fluorophlogopite
- Fluorotetraferriphlogopite
- Garmite
- Glauconite
- Gorbunovite
- Hendricksite
- Illite
- Kinoshitalite
- Lepidolite
- Luanshiweiite
- Manganiceladonite
- Margarite
- Masutomilite
- Montdorite
- Muscovite
- Nanpingite
- Norrishite
- Orlovite
- Oxyphlogopite
- Paragonite
- Phlogopite
- Polylithionite
- Preiswerkite
- Roscoelite
- Siderophyllite
- Suhailite
- Tainiolite
- Tetraferriannite
- Trilithionite
- Voloshinite
- Wonesite
- Yangzhumingite
Talcs Pyrophyllite series Kaolinites Serpentines Corrensites Smectites and vermiculite family Chlorites Allophanes Sepiolites Pyrosmalites Stilpnomelanes Structural groups mainly; based on rruff.info/ima, modifiedCrystalline Cryptocrystalline Amorphous Miscellaneous Notable varieties Chalcedony Opal Quartz Oxide minerals Simple Mixed Silicate minerals Other Gemmological classifications by E. Ya. Kievlenko (1980), updatedJewelry stones 1st order 2nd order 3rd order - Yellow, Green, Violet Sapphires
- Aquamarine
- Orange topaz (Imperial)
- Elbaite
- Precious White and Fire Opal
4th order - Tourmaline – Verdelite
- Indicolite, polychromous
- Heliodor, pink, yellow-green
- Topaz yellow, blue, pink
- Peridot
- Garnets – Spessartine (malaya), Rhodolite, Almandine, Pyrope
- Amethyst
- Citrine
- Blue Turquoise
Jewelry-Industrial
stones1st order 2nd order Industrial stones - Jasper
- Graphic granite
- Petrified wood
- Cacholong (Porouse opal)
- Marble onyx
- Obsidian
- Listwanite (green mica)
- Jet
- Selenite
- Fluorite
- Serpentinite
- Aventurine quartzite
- Ophicalcite (Serpentine/Calcite)
- Pagodite (Pyrophyllite/Talc)
Mineral identification"Special cases"
("native elements and organic minerals")- "Native elements" (IDs 1)
- Organic minerals (IDs 10)
"Sulfides and oxides" - Sulfides (IDs 2.A–F)
- Sulfosalts; sulfarsenites, sulfantimonites, sulfbismuthites (IDs 2.G)
- Sulfosalts; sulfarsenates, sulfantimonates (IDs 2.K)
- Other sulfosalts (IDs 2.H–J and 2.L–M)
- Oxides (IDs 4.A–E, e.g. pyrochlore supergroup and corundum group)
- Hydroxides (IDs 4.F–G)
- Arsenates(IV), sulfates(IV) and iodates (IDs 4.J–K)
- Tellurium oxysalts
- Vanadium oxides (IDs 4.H)
"Evaporites and similars" - Carbonates (IDs 5.A–E)
- Nitrates (IDs 5.N)
- Borates (IDs 6)
- Halides (IDs 3)
"Mineral structures with tetrahedral units"
(sulfate anion, phosphate anion,
silicon, etc.)- Monomeric minerals (similar to nesosilicates)
- Sulfates(VI) (IDs 7.A–E)
- Thiosulphates (IDs 7.J)
- Chromates(VI) (IDs 7.F)
- Molybdates, wolframates, niobates(VI) (IDs 7.G–H)
- Phosphates(V) (IDs 8)
- Arsenates, vanadates(V) (IDs 8)
- Monomeric, isolated silicates(IDs 9.A)
- Germanates(IDs 9.J)
- Silicate frameworks, tectosilicates
- Zeolite frameworks, zeolite family (IDs 9.G)
- Other feldspathoids: nephelines (IDs 9.FA.05)
- Cancrinite-sodalite groups (IDs 9.FB.)
- Other tectosilicates (IDs 9.FA. and 9.FB.15, e.g. feldspars)
- Other silicate frameworks
- Cyclosilicates(IDs 9.C)
- Phyllosilicates (IDs 9.E, e.g. clays)
- Silica family (IDs 4.DA.)
- Inosilicates
- Single chain inosilicates (IDs 9.D, e.g. pyroxenes)
- Ribbon or multiple chain inosilicates (IDs 9.D, e.g. amphiboles)
- Other non monomeric minerals
- Unclassified silicates (IDs 9.H)
- Sorosilicates (IDs 9.B, e.g. epidote and seidozeritesupergroups)
- Polymeric, isolated silicates (IDs 9.A, e.g. olivine and gadolinite supergroups)
- Other inorganic polymers (e.g. polyoxometalates; "polyphosphates", IDs 8.F)
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