MINERALS

Minerals! These oh so precious matters are one of the most beautiful objects in nature. These things are actually used for making things we use every day—including the salt your mom uses for cooking. YES. It’s true. Keep reading to discover more about minerals.

Often times, people presume glittering crystals as minerals. Yes, they may almost certainly be right. But, how can we be sure that those crystals indeed are minerals?

Let’s define minerals first.

Minerals are naturally occurring. They are not made by humans. Also, they are inorganic which means they have never been alive and are not brought up from plants and animals. Obviously, minerals are solid. Not liquid, nor gas. Moreover, minerals have definite chemical composition. Each one is made of a particular mix of chemical elements. Think of it as if you are baking a cake. The chemicals in a mineral are just like the ingredients in making a cake—there has to be an EXACT amount of each ‘ingredient’ to form them perfectly. Furthermore, the chemical elements that make up each mineral are organized in a specific way.

Now let’s go to the fiddly bits---how minerals are formed.

Minerals are made up of chemical elements. A chemical element is a substance that is made up of only one kind of atom. An atom is the smallest unit of any chemical element. They are so small, it's impossible to see them with the naked eye. They are the building blocks that make up each chemical element. Each mineral has a fixed chemical composition. Some minerals are made up of just one chemical element-they contain only one type of atom.Now what is a chemical compound? Here,just as chemical elements are made up of atoms, a chemical compound is made up of molecules. Each molecule in a chemical compound is made up of two or more different atoms connected together.

Now remember what I mentioned earlier about the salt being a mineral? Rock salt is a chemical compound-yes, the kind you put on your fish and chips. Each molecule of this salt contains one atom of an element called sodium connected to one atom of an element called chlorine. Rock salt always contains just as many sodium atoms as it does chlorine atoms: this 'formula' does not vary--rock salt, like all the other minerals has a definite chemical composition.

Now you have the basic knowledge about minerals, try to explore more about the wonders of minerals. Goodluck!

Source:

http://www.oum.ox.ac.uk/thezone/minerals/define/index.htm


Checked by: Prof. Crisencio Paner