How do minerals form?• Minerals form through processes

called crystallization.• Crystallization is a “crystal-forming

process”. •Minerals are Crystals• Not all crystals are minerals!

• Sugar is a crystal…Why is it not a mineral?• It is not naturally made, but processed by drying sugar cane plants.Mineral (Crystals) can form in two ways1.Cooling of Magma2.Solution

Evaporation

Cooling of Magma• Magma is melted rock liquefied into a pool

of elements.• Things like Fe, Mg, Ca are all floating around in the liquid magma.

• Just like water cooling to form ice, magma can cool so the elements in the liquid become solids.

• The elements solidify and group together to form solid crystals called minerals and fall out of the liquid magma.

Cooling of Magma• The size of the minerals

crystal depends on how fast the magma cools…

• Magma that cools Fast:• The minerals do not have enough time to grow to they are small.• COOLS FAST = SMALL CRYSTALS

• Magma that cools Slow • The minerals crystals have lots of time to grow so they are large. • COOLS SLOW = LARGE CRYSTALS

Cooling of Magma

Cooling of Magma•Where would magma cool the slowest?•Magma cools slowest inside Earth (intrusive)

•Where would magma cool the fastest?•Lava cools fastest when outside the Earth (extrusive)

•Where would we find large crystals in minerals?•Large crystals are found inside of Earth.

Solution Evaporation• Minerals dissolve in water and create a

solution.• Eventually, the water will evaporate and the

minerals will fall out of solution and be left behind.

• When minerals fall out of a solution they are said to precipitate.

• EXAMPLE: Salt Water evaporating with salt crystals left behind.