What are minerals?

Mineral:

  • A naturally occurring, homogeneous inorganic solid substance having a definite chemical composition and characteristic crystalline structure, color, and hardness is called a mineral.

  • Mineral salts are Inorganic compounds required by living organisms for healthy growth and maintenance​. Some minerals are made up of single element like gold silver, some are made up of combination of 2 or more elements like calcite. Vast majority of minerals are compounds or mixtures of elements.

  • There are about 4000 known minerals on earth. Each one is unique with its unique properties and chemical formula. The elements oxygen, aluminium, iron, silicon, calcium, magnesium , potassium and sodium make up 99% of minerals found on earth

 

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A mineral is a naturally occurring substance that is solid and stable at room temperature, representable by a chemical formula, usually abiogenic, and has an ordered atomic structure. It is different from a rock, which can be an aggregate of minerals or non-minerals, and does not have a specific chemical composition. The exact definition of a mineral is under debate, especially with respect to the requirement a valid species be abiogenic, and to a lesser extent with regards to it having an ordered atomic structure. The study of minerals is called mineralogy. 

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