矿产

 

Can you eat minerals?
::你能吃矿物质吗?

You might not think of   and minerals as food, but you probably have enjoyed eating the mineral halite. That's just table salt, after all.
::你也许不认为矿物是食物, 但你可能喜欢吃矿泉水。毕竟这只是桌盐。

What is a Mineral?
::什么是矿物?

A  mineral  is a solid material that forms by a natural process. A mineral can be made of an  element  or a compound. It has a specific chemical composition. Its chemical composition is different from other minerals. Each type of mineral has physical properties that differ from others. These properties include  crystal  structure,  hardness , density, and color. For example, silver is a soft, shiny metal. Salt is a white, cube-shaped crystal. Diamond is an extremely hard, translucent crystal.
::矿物是一种由自然过程形成的固体材料。 矿物可以由元素或化合物组成, 它有特定的化学成分。 它的化学成分与其他矿物不同。 每种矿物的物理特性都不同于其他矿物。 这些特性包括晶体结构、 坚硬度、 密度和颜色。 例如, 银是一种软的闪亮金属。 盐是一种白色的立方体形晶体。 钻石是一种极其硬的、 半透明晶体 。

Forms by Natural Processes
::自然过程的形态

Minerals form by natural processes. Minerals are created by processes that happen in or on the Earth. For example, when hot  lava  cools, mineral crystals form. Minerals also  precipitate  from  water . Some minerals grow when rocks are exposed to high pressures and temperatures.
::矿物由自然过程形成。矿物由地球上或地球上发生的过程产生。例如,热熔岩冷却时,矿物晶体形成。矿物也由水产生。有些矿物在岩石受到高压和高温影响时生长。

Could a mineral be made by a process that was not natural? Plastic is sometimes used to make artificial  gemstones  for use in costume jewelry. But that stone is not a mineral. That's because a mineral must be created by natural processes, and plastic does not occur in nature.
::矿物能否由非自然过程制成?塑胶有时被用于制造用于服装首饰的人工宝石。但该宝石不是矿物。这是因为矿物必须由自然过程产生,而塑料并非自然产生。

Inorganic Substance
::无机物质

A mineral is an  inorganic  substance. It was not made by living organisms.  Organic  substances always contain carbon. Some types of organic substances are  proteins ,  carbohydrates , and oils. Everything else is inorganic. In a few cases, living organisms make inorganic materials. The calcium  carbonate  shells made by marine animals are inorganic.
::矿物是一种无机物质,不是活生物体制造的,有机物质总是含有碳。某些类型的有机物质是蛋白质、碳水化合物和油。其他所有物质都是无机的。在少数情况下,活生物体制造无机材料。海洋动物制造的碳酸钙壳是无机的。

Definite Composition
::明确构成

All minerals have a definite chemical makeup. A few minerals are made of only one kind of element. Silver is a mineral made only of silver atoms. Diamond and graphite are both made only of the element carbon.
::所有矿物都有明确的化学成分。 少数矿物只由一种元素组成。 银是仅由银原子组成的矿物。 钻石和石墨都是由元素碳制成的。

Minerals that are not just a single element are made of chemical compounds. For example, the mineral quartz is made of the compound silicon dioxide, or SiO ₂ . This compound has one  atom  of the element silicon for every two atoms of the element oxygen.
::不仅仅是一个元素的矿物由化学化合物组成,例如,矿物石英由二氧化硅化合物或二氧化硅化合物组成。该化合物对元素氧的每两个原子就有一个元素硅原子。

Each mineral has its own unique chemical formula. For example, the mineral hematite has two iron atoms for every three oxygen atoms. The mineral  magnetite  has three iron atoms for every four oxygen atoms. Many minerals have very complex chemical formulas that include several elements. However, even in more complicated compounds, the elements occur in definite ratios.
::每个矿物都有其本身独特的化学公式。 例如, 矿物高棉岩每三个氧原子有两个铁原子。 矿物磁石每四个氧原子有三个铁原子。 许多矿物有非常复杂的化学公式, 包括几个元素。 但是, 即使在更复杂的化合物中, 元素也以确定的比例出现 。

Solid Crystals
::固体水晶

Minerals are typically solid at room  . For example, ice and water have the same chemical composition. Ice is a solid, so it is a mineral, but liquid water is not.  The element mercury is a liquid at room temperature, but it forms a crystalline solid when it freezes, and is sometimes considered a mineraloid.
::例如,冰和水具有相同的化学成分。冰是固体,因此是矿物,但液态水不是。元素汞在室温下是一种液体,但在冻结时形成晶状固体,有时被视为矿物。

Some solids are not crystals. Glass, or the rock obsidian, are solid. However, they are not crystals. In a  crystal , the atoms are arranged in a pattern. This pattern is regular and it repeats. The image below shows how the atoms are arranged in halite (table salt) ( Figure  ). Halite contains atoms of sodium and chlorine in a pattern. Notice that the pattern goes in all three dimensions.
::有些固体不是晶体。 玻璃或岩石硬石是固态的。 但是, 它们不是晶体。 在晶体中, 原子是按一个模式排列的。 这个模式是常规的, 重复的。 下面的图像显示原子是如何用沥青( 盐盐) (图示 ) 排列的。 Halite 含有一个模式中的钠和氯原子。 注意这个模式会在所有三个维度中进行 。

 

The pattern of atoms in all halite is the same. Think about all of the grains of salt that are in a salt shaker. The atoms are arranged in the same way in every piece of salt.
::所有的青石棉中原子的形态都是一样的。 想想盐汁中所有的盐粒。 原子在每块盐中都是以同样的方式排列的。

Sometimes two different minerals have the same chemical composition. But they are different minerals because they have different crystal structures. Diamonds are very valuable as gemstones because they are very pretty and very hard. Graphite is the “lead” in pencils. It's not hard at all! Amazingly, both are made just of carbon. Compare the diamond with the pencil lead ( Figure  ). Why are they so different? The carbon atoms in graphite bond to form layers. The bonds between each layer are weak. The carbon sheets can just  slip  past each other. The carbon atoms in diamonds bond together in all three directions. This strong network makes diamonds very hard.
::有时两种不同的矿物具有相同的化学成分。 但它们是不同的矿物, 因为它们有不同的晶体结构。 钻石作为宝石非常宝贵, 因为它们非常漂亮和非常硬。 石墨是铅笔中的“ 铅” 。 令人惊讶的是, 石墨是铅笔中的“ 铅 ” 。 这并非难事! 令人惊讶的是, 两者都是碳制的。 将钻石与铅笔铅笔作比较( 图表 ) 。 它们为什么如此不同? 石墨债券中的碳原子组成层。 每层之间的碳原子是薄弱的。 碳板可以相互滑过。 碳板可以相互滑过。 钻石中的碳原子在三个方向都结合在一起。 这个强大的网络使得钻石变得非常困难。

 

Physical Properties
::物理属性

The patterns of atoms affect a mineral's physical properties. A mineral's crystal shape is determined by the way the atoms are arranged. For example, you can see how atoms are arranged in halite ( Figure  ). Below, you can see how salt crystals look under a microscope ( Figure  ). Salt crystals are all cubes whether they're small or large.
::原子的形态会影响矿物的物理特性。 矿物的晶体形状是由原子的排列方式决定的。 例如, 您可以看到原子是如何在青石棉中排列的( 图 ) 。 下面, 您可以看到盐晶在显微镜下是如何看的( 图 ) 。 盐晶体是所有大小的立方体。

 

Physical properties help scientists identify different minerals; this is explored in the concept " ."
::物理特性有助于科学家识别不同的矿物;在“......”的概念中探讨了这一点。

Summary
::摘要

• A mineral is an inorganic, crystalline solid.
  ::矿物是无机的晶体固体

• A mineral forms through natural processes. It has a definite chemical composition.
  ::一种通过自然过程形成的矿物质,具有明确的化学成分。

• Minerals can be identified by their characteristic physical properties. These include crystalline structure, hardness, and color.
  ::矿物可以用其特有的物理特性来识别,其中包括晶体结构、坚硬度和颜色。

Review
::回顾

1. What properties does a substance have to have to be a mineral?
   ::物质必须具有什么特性才能成为矿物?

1. How are diamond and graphite similar? How are they different?
   ::钻石和石墨如何相似?它们有何不同?

1. How is a mineral's shape determined?
   ::矿物的形状是如何确定的?

Explore More
::探索更多

Use this resource to answer the questions that follow.
::使用此资源回答下面的问题 。

1. What are the first two criteria for something to be a mineral?
   ::矿物质头两个标准是什么?

1. What is the third thing? What does that mean?
   ::第三件事是什么?这是什么意思?

1. What is the common name for halite? What is it made of chemically?
   ::青石棉的通用名称是什么?化学名称是什么?

1. What is true about the elements that make up a mineral?
   ::矿物质成分的真伪是什么?

1. Why does halite break into little cubes?
   ::为什么闪电会冲进小立方体?

1. What is the evidence for an ice cube being a mineral?
   ::冰块是矿物质的证据是什么?

1. Why isn't glass a mineral?
   ::为什么玻璃不是矿物?