Properties of Minerals 2.3

Streak

• The color of a mineral in powdered form.

Luster• Used to describe how light is reflected

from the surface of a mineral.

Crystal Form• The visible expression of a mineral’s

internal arrangement of atoms.

Hardness

• A measure of the resistance of a mineral to being scratched.

Mohs Scale

• It consists of 10 minerals arranged from 10 (hardest) to 1 (softest).

Cleavage • The tendency of a mineral to cleave, or

break, along flat, even surfaces.

Fracture

• Uneven breakage of a mineral.

Density• A property of all matter that is the ratio

of an object’s to its volume.

Key Concept

• What properties can be used to identify minerals?–Streak, luster, color, hardness,

cleavage, and density are all used to identify minerals.

Key Concept

• What is the Mohs Scale?–It consists of 10 minerals arranged

from 10 (hardest) to 1 (softest).

Key Concept

• What are some distinctive Properties of minerals?–Feeling, mineral group/chemical

formula, color, density, and hardness are all distinctive properties of minerals.