A mineral is a natural substance of organic or inorganic origin with chemical and physical properties.
Types of Minerals
Normally two types of minerals are recognized:
- Metallic Minerals
- Non-metallic Minerals
Metallic Minerals
These minerals contain metal. Iron ore, copper, manganese, nickel, etc. are important examples of metallic minerals. Metallic minerals are further sub-divided into ferrous and non-ferrous minerals.
Ferrous Minerals
These minerals have iron content. Iron ore, manganese, tungsten, nickel, cobalt, etc. are important examples of ferrous minerals.
Non-Ferrous Minerals
These minerals do not have iron content. Gold, silver, copper, lead, bauxite, tin, magnesium, etc. are important examples of non-ferrous minerals.
Non-metallic Minerals
These minerals do not contain metal. Such minerals can either be organic or inorganic.
Organic minerals
These minerals contain organic matter. Fossil fuels also known as mineral fuels are derived from the buried animal and plant life such as Coal and petroleum are the outstanding examples.
Inorganic minerals
They do not contain organic matter. Mica, limestone, graphite, gypsum etc. are examples of inorganic minerals.
