-
Home
| Where
to Find
Rocks | Field
Equipment | Home
Tools | Organise
Your Collection | Storage
and Display | Field
Safety | Blog
Mineral Identification
Mineral identification can be a
complex process.
Often not only hand samples are identified, but also thin sections are studied under microscope and chemical analysis may be made in laboratories.
For a home collection though, studying a hand sample is enough.
1. Check crystal habit and grain shape. Does this mineral have a massive habit or does it grow crystals? Can you identify what shape of crystals? Have a close look with a hand lens or a simple microscope.
Mineral habit. By Cobalt 123 via Flickr.com
2. Check the mineral colour, transparency, streak and lustre. If you haven't got a scratch board (streak plate), crush a bit of mineral powder onto a white paper and see what colour it is.
Transparent quartz and transculent pink quartz. By Orbital Joe via Flickr.com
3. Measure specific gravity, which is best done with a Jolly balance or pychnometre, but if you haven't got any of them, and the sample is large enough, with a little bit of experience you can make an estimate of specific gravity by simply hefting the sample in your hands.
Mohs' hardness scale. ©collecting-rocks-and-minerals.com
4. Measure the hardness by scratching with a fingernail (H = 2 – 2 ½ ); copper penny (H = 3); knife blade (H = 5); piece of glass (H = 5 ½ ); and/or piece of quartz (H = 7). Even better if you get yourself a proper Mohs hardness kit or Mohs' hardness testing minerals.
Mineral cleavage. By play4smee via Flickr.com
5. Break the mineral with a geological hammer or a chisel to determine if it has cleavage and/or fracture, and what kind of cleavage and fracture they are.
Mineral fracture. By Orbital Joe via Flickr.com
6. Check any other properties - does the mineral react to HCl or other acids? Test with a magnet if it is magnetic? Does it show fluorescence?
Custom Search
What's New
About Us
About Using Content
PHOTOS
MAKE MONEY BUYING AND SELLING GOLD!
CRYSTAL HEALING
[?] Subscribe To This Site
Home | Site Map | Site Search | Site Policies | About Us | Contact Us
This site uses British English, which is the English we use in Australia.
Disclaimer:
Although
best efforts have been made to ensure that
all the information on this
site is correct,
collecting-rocks-and-minerals.com is not to be blamed should there be a
mistake.
Copyright notice:
All contents of this website are strictly protected
by the Law of
Copyright. What does that
mean?
Copyright 2010-2021 collecting-rocks-and-minerals.com. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.