Earth Sciences 1022A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Mafic, Drywall, Calcite
Document Summary
Earth sciences 1022b lecture brief 12 jan 16. Minerals are solid chemical compounds that combine to form rocks. They are found in nature and vary in atomic bonding, molecular structure, and element composition, all of which determine their chemical, physical properties and permit their identification. An infinite number of chemical combinations are possible and almost 4700 natural minerals are known; however, only about 20 minerals dominate the earth"s crust. Common minerals: natural solid compounds found commonly in earth"s crust. Ores of metals include hematite (fe2o3; iron ore), sphalerite (zns, zinc ore), galena (pbs; lead ore), and native gold and silver that are important to our economy. Many minerals tend to occur together because they were formed under similar pressure and temperature conditions, but with different combinations of elements.