Author Question: Why do some minerals exist in more than one color? What will be an ideal ... (Read 37 times)

storky111

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 561
Why do some minerals exist in more than one color?
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Does a TEM image detect all the elements in a mineral sample? Why or why not?
 
  What will be an ideal response?



micaelaswann

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 314
Answer to Question 1

Element substitutions. Examples: purple quartz contains iron substituting for silicon, pink quartz contains titanium substituting for silicon, dark blue, green, or brown calcite contain iron substituting for calcium, pale purple to deep red calcite contains manganese substituting for calcium.
Impurities without element substitution. Examples: milky quartz has water droplet impurities.
Radiation damage: black smoky quartz.

Answer to Question 2

Most of the size of an atom consists of the cloud of electrons that orbit the nucleus. If there are many electrons in a small area around the nucleus, then there is a good chance that electrons fired in the TEM will collide with an orbiting electron and bounce off elsewhere in the microscope rather than continuing through to the detector. If, however, the electrons are widely spaced around a nucleus, then the fired electrons may pass through the atom without hitting any obstacles. This means that the shadows in the TEM image may not represent all of the types of atoms in a mineral, but rather only the atoms with closely clustered electrons.



Related Topics

Need homework help now?

Ask unlimited questions for free

Ask a Question
 

Did you know?

HIV testing reach is still limited. An estimated 40% of people with HIV (more than 14 million) remain undiagnosed and do not know their infection status.

Did you know?

Critical care patients are twice as likely to receive the wrong medication. Of these errors, 20% are life-threatening, and 42% require additional life-sustaining treatments.

Did you know?

In the United States, an estimated 50 million unnecessary antibiotics are prescribed for viral respiratory infections.

Did you know?

Thyroid conditions may make getting pregnant impossible.

Did you know?

The toxic levels for lithium carbonate are close to the therapeutic levels. Signs of toxicity include fine hand tremor, polyuria, mild thirst, nausea, general discomfort, diarrhea, vomiting, drowsiness, muscular weakness, lack of coordination, ataxia, giddiness, tinnitus, and blurred vision.

For a complete list of videos, visit our video library