What is rock and mineral by definition? I'm confused when trying to figure out the Hydrolysis process of chemical weathering. Is it either the rock or mineral in the rock or the rock AND mineral that changes form during hydrolysis weathering?
Example. Orthoclase (mineral in granite) undergoes hydrolysis to form Kaolinite (mineral found in clay).
What changes here and in what mineral or rock form. Does the mineral composition of the 'rock' change into something else thus breaking down the physical body of the rock??
Another example is quartz.
I just need someone who can explain this in a simple way.
Thanks
2007-06-23 05:42:28 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
Another example is Gypsum.
Gypsum rock containing gypsum mineral do exist. So if the mineral gypsum is the rock/crystal then what is the rock name by definition?
Its hard to distinguish the name of the rock from gypsum mineral. I'm really confused now. argh!!
2007-06-23 05:56:55 · update #1
You've got at least 4 different questions there.
On the first one, Ami's answer is almost correct - my only objection would be that rocks are composed of one or more minerals. Any geological dictionary or school text book will give you an adequate defintion of a rock and of a mineral to allow you to generally distinguish between them. Geology is probably the least exact of all the sciences, so there's always exceptions.
Most rocks do indeed contain more than one mineral. For example, think of granite (a common intrusive igneous rock containing the minerals quartz, feldspar, hornblende, amphibole, mica, etc.) or basalt (a common volcanic rock containing plagioclase, pyroxene, olivine, magnetite, and maybe some apatite).
However, there are many kinds of rocks that consist of essentially of only one mineral, such as anorthosite (plagioclase), limestone (calcite), and sandstone (quartz).
Some minerals can also be a rock, such as gypsum, obsidian, or dolomite. The size of the sample or the outcrop could be used to determine whether gypsum is a rock or a mineral, but there's no widely accepted standard for that. If you had a single crystal of gypsum, then you could safely call it a mineral.
Some people would consider coal a rock but not a mineral. Thats because a mineral, by every definition, is inorganic.
2007-06-23 06:20:31 · answer #1 · answered by minefinder 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
All rocks are composed of more than one mineral. A mineral is a naturally occurring solid with a specific chemical composition and distinctive structure; it can be a compound or, less often, an element if it is in an unreactive form such as gold, silver, or the element carbon in the diamond allotrope.
Chemical weathering decomposes the rock mass to form new minerals and substances. However, both chemical and physical weathering can also be brought about by the activity of plants and animals, in which case it is referred to as biological weathering.
these are 2 definition of which you were confused. It depends on the mineral if it is reactive or not to hydrolysis
2007-06-23 05:54:06 · answer #2 · answered by Amy 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
minerals are th eindividual elements and compounds found in rock. Lots of minerals bound together in a mixture is a rock.
A rock is basically made of minerals.
2007-06-23 05:55:57 · answer #3 · answered by Spenelli 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Rock : Solid made up of one or more minerals, but is not restricted to the 5 mineral rules
Mineral : 5 rule: occur naturally, inorganic, solid, crystal structure, and definite chemical (disco)
2007-06-28 15:37:18 · answer #4 · answered by R.C. 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This question has been answered several times. please check yahoo answers.
2007-06-23 05:50:48 · answer #5 · answered by saudipta c 5 · 2⤊ 3⤋