Igneous Rocks

“Born of Fire”
• Igneous rocks get their name from the
latin word for fire “igneus”. The name is
appropriate because these rocks are born
of fire. Beneath the thin rocky crust of the
earth is the inferno of the mantle! The
mantle is the origin of this rock type.
• All Magma is made up of a fairly uniform mixture
of elements. Some of the major elements
present are silica, iron, sodium, potassium,
aluminum, magnesium, and gasses including
water vapor, oxygen, carbon dioxide, nitrogen,
hydrogen and sulfur dioxide.
• These elements form chemical combinations
that crystallize in patterns to form eight basic
rock forming minerals. These eight minerals
form most rock. They are olivine, pyroxene,
amphibole, orthoclase, plagioclase,
muscovite, biotite, and quartz.
 The Formation of Igneous Rock
• Igneous rocks are formed from this molten
magma. These rocks form when the magma
cools and crystallizes. This can happen above
ground as with volcanoes it is then called
extrusive.
• The molten magma can also crystallize below
the surface. When the molten rock rises in the
crust but cools before it reaches the surface it is
plutonic igneous rock and is categorized as
intrusive.
 Sedimentary Rocks

• Sedimentary rocks are classified in three main

groups: clastic, chemical, and organic.
• The word Sedimentary comes from the Latin
word sedimentum, which means settling. All of
the clastic rocks are formed from broken bits and
pieces of other existing rocks that settle out of
water or air. The broken bits and pieces are
called sediments and are caused by weathering
• Chemical sedimentary rocks are not
formed from sediments in the way that
clastic sedimentary rocks are. Instead,
they are formed from chemicals
(elements) dissolved in water. Lakes,
rivers, oceans, and ground water all have
elemental chemicals dissolved in them.
 There are three types of chemical
sedimentary rocks
• Evaporites
– Halite or rock salt
– Gypsum
– travertine
• Carbonates
– limestones
– dolostones
• Siliceous rocks
– chert
• Evaporates
Evaporites form when bodies of water
evaporate leaving behind deposits of one
or more chemicals. Those white deposits
on your sinks and faucets are the
beginnings of this type of rock.
• Another example of evaporate rocks can
be found in your kitchen. Most table salt
comes from Utah. The Great Salt Lake is
the remnant of a vast inland sea that once
covered much of the western United
States. It is slowly shrinking in size due to
evaporation. As the water evaporates the
lake can no longer hold the same amount
of salt. The salt precipitates out and is
deposited as crystallized halite.
• The Carbonates
The carbonates are formed by chemical
and biochemical processes. Limestones
and dolostones are included in this group.
They are made up primarily of two
minerals, calcite CaCO3 and dolomite
CaMg(CO3)2
• Siliceous rocks
The siliceous rocks are dominated by
silica SiO2. Silica-secreting organisms like
diatoms and radiolarians are responsible
for the formation of this type of rock
• Organic sedimentary rocks
Organic sedimentary rocks are composed
of organic matter in the form of plant
fragments. We usually think of this group
of rocks as coal.
• Lignite is black and has a crumbly
consistency.
• Bituminous coal can be dull to shiny and
black.
 Metamorphic rocks
• are one of the three types of rock
classifications, the other two being
igneous and sedimentary. Rocks are
classified by the processes under which
they were formed. The differences in
formation account for variations in the
appearance of the rocks and, with some
practice, you can learn to recognize the
different types by sight.
• Metamorphic Rocks are rocks that have
changed form due to heat and pressure.
Metamorphic comes from the Greek words
meta and morph. Meta means change
and morph means form. So we get
metamorphic meaning to change form.
• Metamorphic rocks were once
sedimentary, igneous or even other
metamorphic rocks that have been
changed by heat and pressure.
• There are two kinds of metamorphism.
Contact metamorphism
Regional metamorphism
• Contact metamorphism occurs when magma
intrudes or forces its way into existing rock.
• The heat of the magma bakes the surrounding
rocks causing them to change. This is a local
event.
• The changes due to contact metamorphism are
relatively small and are said to be low-grade
metamorphism. An example of contact
metamorphism is the metamorphic rock marble.
Marble is created from limestone that has been
subjected to heat
• Regional metamorphism by contrast
takes place over large areas and is high-
grade metamorphism. Regional
metamorphism is associated with
mountain building
 The Causes or Agents of
Metamorphism
• The causes or agents of metamorphism
are heat, pressure, and hydrothermal
solution.
• Heat
For metamorphism to occur energy is
needed to fuel the chemical reactions.
Heat is the primary source of this energy.
• Pressure
The pressure within the earth is the result of
gravity pulling the crust of the earth
downward. Like heat, pressure increases
with depth. This pressure can actually
squeeze the spaces out of the minerals
within the rock. This makes the rocks
denser. The heat and pressure together
cause the rock to flow instead of break or
fracture. The mineral grains become
realigned. They flatten out and get longer.
 Properties of Minerals
Color
• Most minerals have a distinctive color that can
be used for identification. In opaque minerals,
the color tends to be more consistent, so
learning the colors associated with these
minerals can be very helpful in identification.
Translucent to transparent minerals have a
much more varied degree of color due to the
presence of trace minerals. Therefore, color
alone is not reliable as a single identifying
characteristic.
 Streak
• Streak is the color of the mineral in powdered form.
Streak shows the true color of the mineral. In large solid
form, trace minerals can change the color appearance of
a mineral by reflecting the light in a certain way. Trace
minerals have little influence on the reflection of the
small powdery particles of the streak.
• The streak of metallic minerals tends to appear dark
because the small particles of the streak absorb the light
hitting them. Non-metallic particles tend to reflect most of
the light so they appear lighter in color or almost white.
• Because streak is a more accurate illustration of the
mineral’s color, streak is a more reliable property of
minerals than color for identification.
 Hardness

• Hardness is one of the better properties of minerals to

use for identifying a mineral. Hardness is a measure of
the mineral’s resistance to scratching.
• The Mohs scale is a set of 10 minerals whose hardness
is known. The softest mineral, talc, has a Mohs scale
rating of one.
• Diamond is the hardest mineral and has a rating of ten.
Softer minerals can be scratched by harder minerals
because the forces that hold the crystals together are
weaker and can be broken by the harder mineral.
 Moh’s scale of Hardness
1. Talc
2. Gypsum
3. Calcite
4. Fluorite
5. Apatite
6. Orthoclase Feldspar
7. Quartz
8. Topaz
9. Corundum
10. Diamond
 Cleavage & Fracture
• Cleavage is defined using two sets of criteria.
The first set of criteria describes how easily the
cleavage is obtained. Cleavage is considered
perfect if it is easily obtained and the cleavage
planes are easily distinguished. It is considered
good if the cleavage is produced with some
difficulty but has obvious cleavage planes.
Finally it is considered imperfect if cleavage is
obtained with difficulty and some of the planes
are difficult to distinguish.
 Crystalline Structure
• Mineral crystals occur in various shapes
and sizes.
• The particular shape is determined by the
arrangement of the atoms, molecules or
ions that make up the crystal and how
they are joined. This is called the crystal
lattice.
 Transparency or Diaphaneity
• Diaphaneity is a mineral’s degree of
transparency or ability to allow light to
pass through it. The degree of
transparency may also depend on the
thickness of the mineral.
 Tenacity
• Tenacity is the characteristic that
describes how the particles of a mineral
hold together or resist separation. The
chart below gives the list of terms used to
describe tenacity and a description of
each term.
 Magnetism
• Magnetism is the characteristic that allows
a mineral to attract or repel other magnetic
materials. It can be difficult to determine
the differences between the various types
of magnetism, but it is worth knowing that
there are distinctions made.
 Luster
• Luster is the property of minerals that
indicates how much the surface of a
mineral reflects light. The luster of a
mineral is affected by the brilliance of the
light used to observe the mineral surface.
Odor
• Most minerals have no odor unless they
are acted upon in one of the following
ways: moistened, heated, breathed upon,
or rubbed.
• Taste
Only soluble minerals have a taste, but
it is very important that minerals not be
placed in the mouth or on the tongue.
 Specific Gravity
• Specific Gravity of a mineral is a
comparison or ratio of the weight of the
mineral to the weight of an equal amount
of water. The weight of the equal amount
of water is found by finding the difference
between the weight of the mineral in air
and the weight of the mineral in water
• Weathering
All rocks are subject to weathering.
Weathering is anything that breaks the
rocks into smaller pieces or sediments.
This can happen by the forces of wind,
rain, or moving and freezing water
• Erosion
The combination of weathering and
movement of the resulting sediments is
called erosion
• Compaction occurs after the sediments
have been deposited. The weight of the
sediments squeezes the particles
together. When more and more sediments
are deposited on top, the weight on the
sediments below increases. Waterborne
sediments become so tightly squeezed
together that most of the water is pushed
out.
• Cementation happens when dissolved
minerals fill in the spaces between the
sediment particles. These liquid minerals
act as glue or cement to bind the
sediments together