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About Me
About Me
Hello and welcome to my website! My name is Isaac, and I am a geology undergraduate student at IU Indianapolis. I enjoy pretty much any activity that gets me outdoors: hiking, camping, birdwatching, fossil hunting, kayaking, etc. My curiosity and love for the natural world and never truly outgrowing my dinosaur phase naturally led to a passion for geology.
The Big 10 Minerals
The big 10 minerals are the 10 most common minerals in the Earth's crust. These minerals often have other importance, such as the cultural impacts of quartz through history or the important role calcite plays in the global carbon cycle. The purpose of this website is to provide diagnostic information for each of the big 10 minerals below, simply click on the image of the mineral you're interested in and you will be brought to a new page describing the properties of that mineral.
Quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the most common mineral in Earth's crust and has been known about in some form for thousands of years. Quartz is a tectosilicate with the chemical formula SiO4.
Orthoclase
Orthoclase
Orthoclase is a tectosilicate in the feldspar group with the chemical composition KAlSi3O8. Orthoclase is most common in igneous rocks like granite and often used in ceramics.
Albite
Albite
Albite is another tectosilicate feldspar with the composition NaAlSi3O8. Albite is often found in igneous and metamorphic rocks, and is often used to assess the temperature and pressure conditions of metamorphic rocks.
Anorthite
Anorthite
The last tectosilicate feldspar in our group with the chemical composition CaAl2Si2O8. Found in Igneous and metamorphic rocks, anorthite can also be used to determine the conditions rocks formed in.
Muscovite
Muscovite
Muscovite is a phyllosilicate in the mica group with the chemical composition KAl2(AlSi3O10)(OH)2. Particularly common in granite and schist, muscovite has a wide variety of uses from electric insolation to cosmetics.
Biotite
Biotite
Biotite is another phyllosilicate in the mica group with the chemical composition K(Mg,Fe)3(AlSi3O10)(OH)2. Found often in granite, basalt, and schist biotite can be used to radiometrically date rocks.
Amphibole
Amphibole
Amphibole actually a group name of double chain inosilicate minerals with the chemical composition (Ca,Mg,Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2. Found in igneous and metamorphic rocks, amphiboles have a variety of uses including the use in roads and paving stones.
Pyroxene
Pyroxene
Pyroxene is another group of single chain inosilicate minerals with the chemical composition (Ca,Mg,Fe)2Si2O6. Found in Igneous and metamorphic rocks, pyroxenes provide key information about high temperature rock formation.
Olivine
Olivine
Olivine also refers to a group, composed of orthosilicate minerals with the chemical composition (Mg,Fe)2SiO4. Found in mafic Igneous rocks, olivine is often used as abrasives in manufacturing.
Calcite
Calcite
Calcite is a non-silicate mineral with the chemical composition CaCO3 found in sedimentary rocks, especially limestone. Calcite plays a very important role in the global carbon cycle.
Bonus Minerals
Garnet
Garnet
Garnet is a group of silicate minerals known for vibrant colors including red, green, orange, yellow, and even black. Garnet crystals have been popular in jewelry due to their hardness and brilliance. Garnet is also used industrially as an abrasive for sandpaper and waterjet cutting due to its durability.
Kyanite
Kyanite
Kyanite is a silicate mineral known for its striking color and distinctive, elongated crystal structure. It is commonly found in metamorphic rocks and is often associated with minerals like quartz and garnet. Kyanite is valued for its heat resistance and stability, making it useful in refractory materials, ceramics, and electrical insulators.
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