MINERALS AND ENERGY RESOURCES
According to geologists, a mineral is a homogeneous, naturally occurring substance with a definable internal structure. This means that a mineral is uniform in composition, occurs naturally, and has a regular, often crystalline, internal arrangement of atoms. Minerals are essential components of the Earth’s crust, and they serve as the building blocks for rocks.
Rocks are essentially aggregates of one or more minerals. Some rocks like limestone are composed of a single mineral, while most rocks are composed of multiple minerals in different proportions. For example, granite is made up of quartz, feldspar, and mica. The combination of these minerals gives rocks their unique characteristics and properties.
The Earth’s crust is home to over 2000 identified minerals, though only a handful are commonly found in most rocks. Minerals can have a wide range of colours, hardness, crystal forms, lustre, and density. These characteristics are a result of the conditions under which they were formed, including temperature, pressure, and the presence of other elements. Geologists use these properties to identify and classify minerals.
Minerals are indispensable to human civilisation. They are used in a wide range of applications, including: