MINERALS AND ROCKS Flashcards
(94 cards)
1
Q
fundamental components of rocks
A
Minerals
2
Q
naturally occurring inorganic substances with a specific chemical composition and an orderly repeating atomic structure that defines a crystal structure
A
Minerals
3
Q
most abundant components of rocks on the Earth’s surface
A
Silicate minerals
4
Q
fundamental chemical building block of silicate minerals
A
Silicon tetroxide, SiO4
5
Q
How many are the naturally occurring elements
A
92
6
Q
how many elements are the most common on the earths crust
A
8
7
Q
8 most common elements on the Earth’s crust
A
Oxygen
Silicon
Aluminum
Iron
Calcium
Sodium
Potassium
Magnesium
8
Q
% Oxygen
A
46.6%
9
Q
% Silicon
A
27.7%
10
Q
% Aluminum
A
8.1%
11
Q
Iron
A
5.0%
12
Q
Calcium
A
3.6%
13
Q
% Sodium
A
2.8%
14
Q
% Potassium
A
2.6%
15
Q
% Magnesium
A
2.1%
16
Q
What are the physical properties of minerals
A
Hardness
Luster
Color
Cleavage
Fracture
Relative Density
17
Q
essential building blocks of the geosphere
A
Minerals and rocks
18
Q
There are over _____ species of minerals
A
3,000
19
Q
A cycle that rocks gradually are transformed from one type to another
A
the Rock Cycle
20
Q
what are the Common Rock forming Minerals
A
- Quartz
- Plagioclase feldspar
- Alkali feldspar
- Micas
- Amphiboles
- Pyroxene
- Olivine
- Calcite
21
Q
usually called silica
A
Quartz
22
Q
one of the most common minerals in the earth’s crust
A
Quartz
23
Q
usually hexagonal and prismatic in shape
A
quartz crystals
24
Q
raw material used for making glass
A
quartz
25
sodium or calcium rich feldspar
plagioclase feldspar
26
generally white to grey and has a vitreous luster
plagioclase feldspar
27
important industrial mineral used in ceramics
plagioclase feldspar
28
rich in alkali metal ions
Alkali feldspar
29
made up of silicon dioxide (SiO2)
quartz
30
used as raw material to make porcelain
Alkali feldspar
31
form flat, book-like crystals that split into individual sheets, separating into smooth flakes along the cleavage planes
Micas
32
They are common minerals in intrusive igneous rocks, and can be found in sedimentary and metamorphic rocks
Micas
33
is a dark, black or brown mica
Biotite
34
light colored or clear mica
muscovite
35
form prismatic or needle-like crystals
Amphiboles
36
common member of the amphibole group of rock-forming minerals
Hornblende
37
form short columnar prismatic crystals
Pyroxenes
38
generally contain iron, magnesium, calcium and aluminum as well as silicon, oxygen and water
Amphiboles
39
generally contains magnesium, iron, calcium and aluminum as well as silicon and oxygen
Pyroxene
40
contains iron and magnesium
Olivine
41
is a green, glassy material
Olivine
42
is common in mafic and ultramafic rocks, but has not been found in Hong Kong
Olivine
43
made up of calcium carbonate
Calcite
44
generally white to clear, and is easily scratched with knife
Calcite
45
common sedimentary mineral that is the major component of calcareous sedimentary rocks such as limestone
Calcite
46
metamorphism of limestone produces ____
marble
47
metamorphism of _____ produces marble
limestone
48
are naturally occurring aggregates of minerals, rock fragments, or organic matter
Rocks
49
Rocks are classified into 3 main types:
1. Igneous Rocks
2. Sedimentary Rocks
3. Metamorphic Rocks
50
2 important characteristics that may help to confirm the origin of a rock
Texture and mineral composition
51
2 important characteristics that may help to confirm the origin of a rock
Texture and mineral composition
52
refers to the size and shapes of the component minerals or grains and to their collective arrangement in a rock
texture
53
refers to the crystals, minerals or grains, and/or fossils, that make up a rock
Composition
54
It also refers to the chemical constituents of a rock
composition
55
form when hot, molten rock (magma) cools and solidifies
Igneous rocks
56
originates deep within the Earth near active plate boundaries or hot spots, then rises toward the surface
magma
57
Sub-divided Igneous Rocks
1. Intrusive rocks
2. Extrusive rocks
58
are formed when rising magma is trapped deep within the Earth, where it cools very slowly over many thousands or million of years until it finally solidifies
Intrusive Igneous Rocks
59
Other words for Intrusive Igneous Rocks
Plutonic
60
have coarse-grained texture with interlocking minerals
Intrusive rocks
61
commonly occurring intrusive rock in Hong Kong
Granite
62
are produced when magma is erupted at, or very near, the Earth’s surface
Extrusive Igneous rocks
63
Other term for Extrusive Igneous Rocks
Volcanic
64
2 common volcanic rocks
Lava and Tuff
65
contain predominantly feldspar and quartz minerals, with subordinate amphiboles and micas
Granitic rocks
66
occur as plutons, dykes or sills
Granitic rocks
67
may contain larger crystals (phenocrysts) within the fine-grained groundmass
Lava
68
may display a flow fabric
Lava
69
contains fragments of minerals, glass, pumice and/or pre-existing rocks
Tuff
70
is classified on the basis of the relative components of the various fragments
Tuff
71
generally angular and broken
Tuff
72
is commonly dark grey in color when the rock is unweathered
Tuff
73
are formed from eroded fragments of pre-existing rocks, or from skeletal fragments of once-living plants or organisms
Sedimentary Rocks
74
commonly have distinctive layering or bedding
Sedimentary Rocks
75
Sedimentary rocks are subdivided into 3 groups
1. Clastic
2. Biological
3. Chemical
76
are made up of fragments (clasts) of pre-existing rocks
Clastic sedimentary rocks
77
is formed when the sediment is buried, then compacted and cemented
Clastic sedimentary rocks
78
form when large quantities of living plants or organisms die and accumulate
Biological Sedimentary Rocks
79
are formed by chemical precipitation from solutions
Chemical sedimentary rocks
80
This process begins when water passes through rock dissolving some of the minerals and carrying them away from their source
Chemical sedimentary rocks
81
is an aggregate of silt-sized grains
siltstone
82
composed of sand-sized grains
sandstone
83
are formed when a pre-existing rock is subject to high temp, high pressure, hot and mineral-rich fluid, or a combination of these conditions
Metamorphic Rocks
84
replaced by new minerals and the original textures are commonly masked due to the deformation that may accompany metamorphism
Metamorphic Rocks
85
generally formed deep within the Earth, or where tectonic plates meet
Metamorphic Rocks
86
exhibit a platy or sheet-like structure
Foliated metamorphic rocks
87
develops when platy or prismatic minerals within the rock are compressed and aligned under extreme pressure
Foliation
88
display a massive structure
Non-foliated metamorphic rocks
89
can be formed by contact metamorphism that occurs around intrusive igneous rocks
non-foliated metamorphic rocks
90
examples of non foliated metamorphic rocks
Quartzite and marble
91
conceptual model that explains how geological processes acting in any one of the three main rock types can change one rock type to another over geological time
The Rock Cycle
92
is the driving force of the Rock Cycle
Plate tectonics
93
What are the Rock forming processes
1. Igneous rock-forming processes involve melting, cooling and crystallization
2. Sedimentary rock-forming processes involve weathering, erosion, deposition, burial and lithification
3. Metamorphic rock forming processes involve changed to rock textures and mineral compositions under different temperature, pressure or hot fluid conditions
94
Explain the rock cycle
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