Portal:Minerals

Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu₂CO₃(OH)₂. This opaque, green-banded mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fractures and deep, underground spaces, where the water table and hydrothermal fluids provide the means for chemical precipitation. Individual crystals are rare, but occur as slender to acicular prisms. Pseudomorphs after more tabular or blocky azurite crystals also occur. (Full article...)

Micas (/ˈmaɪkəz/ MY-kəz) are a group of silicate minerals whose outstanding physical characteristic is that individual mica crystals can easily be split into fragile elastic plates. This characteristic is described as perfect basal cleavage. Mica is common in igneous and metamorphic rock and is occasionally found as small flakes in sedimentary rock. It is particularly prominent in many granites, pegmatites, and schists, and "books" (large individual crystals) of mica several feet across have been found in some pegmatites.

Micas are used in products such as drywalls, paints, and fillers, especially in parts for automobiles, roofing, and in electronics. The mineral is used in cosmetics and food to add "shimmer" or "frost". (Full article...)

Tourmaline (/ˈtʊərməlɪn, -ˌliːn/ TOOR-mə-lin, -⁠leen) is a crystalline silicate mineral group in which boron is compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. This gemstone comes in a wide variety of colors.

The name is derived from the Sinhalese tōramalli (ටෝරමල්ලි), which refers to the carnelian gemstones. (Full article...)

Dolomite (/ˈdɒl.əˌmaɪt, ˈdoʊ.lə-/) is an anhydrous carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate, ideally CaMg(CO₃)₂. The term is also used for a sedimentary carbonate rock composed mostly of the mineral dolomite (see Dolomite (rock)). An alternative name sometimes used for the dolomitic rock type is dolostone. (Full article...)

In crystallography, a crystal system is a set of point groups (a group of geometric symmetries with at least one fixed point). A lattice system is a set of Bravais lattices. Space groups are classified into crystal systems according to their point groups, and into lattice systems according to their Bravais lattices. Crystal systems that have space groups assigned to a common lattice system are combined into a crystal family.

The seven crystal systems are triclinic, monoclinic, orthorhombic, tetragonal, trigonal, hexagonal, and cubic. Informally, two crystals are in the same crystal system if they have similar symmetries (though there are many exceptions). (Full article...)

Chalcopyrite (/ˌkælkəˈpaɪˌraɪt, -koʊ-/ KAL-kə-PY-ryte, -⁠koh-) is a copper iron sulfide mineral and the most abundant copper ore mineral. It has the chemical formula CuFeS₂ and crystallizes in the tetragonal system. It has a brassy to golden yellow color and a hardness of 3.5 to 4 on the Mohs scale. Its streak is diagnostic as green-tinged black.

On exposure to air, chalcopyrite tarnishes to a variety of oxides, hydroxides, and sulfates. Associated copper minerals include the sulfides bornite (Cu₅FeS₄), chalcocite (Cu₂S), covellite (CuS), digenite (Cu₉S₅); carbonates such as malachite and azurite, and rarely oxides such as cuprite (Cu₂O). It is rarely found in association with native copper. Chalcopyrite is a conductor of electricity.

Copper can be extracted from chalcopyrite ore using various methods. The two predominant methods are pyrometallurgy and hydrometallurgy, the former being the most commercially viable. (Full article...)

Galena, also called lead glance, is the natural mineral form of lead(II) sulfide (PbS). It is the most important ore of lead and an important source of silver.

Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms. It is often associated with the minerals sphalerite, calcite and fluorite. (Full article...)

Talc, or talcum, is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate, with the chemical formula Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂. Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder. This mineral is used as a thickening agent and lubricant. It is an ingredient in ceramics, paints, and roofing material. It is a main ingredient in many cosmetics. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, and in an exceptionally rare crystal form. It has a perfect basal cleavage and an uneven flat fracture, and it is foliated with a two-dimensional platy form.

The Mohs scale of mineral hardness, based on scratch hardness comparison, defines value 1 as the hardness of talc, the softest mineral. When scraped on a streak plate, talc produces a white streak, though this indicator is of little importance, because most silicate minerals produce a white streak. Talc is translucent to opaque, with colors ranging from whitish grey to green with a vitreous and pearly luster. Talc is not soluble in water, and is slightly soluble in dilute mineral acids.

Soapstone is a metamorphic rock composed predominantly of talc. (Full article...)

Rutile is an oxide mineral composed of titanium dioxide (TiO₂), the most common natural form of TiO₂. Rarer polymorphs of TiO₂ are known, including anatase, akaogiite, and brookite.

Rutile has one of the highest refractive indices at visible wavelengths of any known crystal and also exhibits a particularly large birefringence and high dispersion. Owing to these properties, it is useful for the manufacture of certain optical elements, especially polarization optics, for longer visible and infrared wavelengths up to about 4.5 micrometres. Natural rutile may contain up to 10% iron and significant amounts of niobium and tantalum.

Rutile derives its name from the Latin rutilus ('red'), in reference to the deep red color observed in some specimens when viewed by transmitted light. Rutile was first described in 1803 by Abraham Gottlob Werner using specimens obtained in Horcajuelo de la Sierra, Madrid (Spain), which is consequently the type locality. (Full article...)

In crystallography, crystal structure is a description of ordered arrangement of atoms, ions, or molecules in a crystalline material. Ordered structures occur from intrinsic nature of constituent particles to form symmetric patterns that repeat along the principal directions of three-dimensional space in matter.

The smallest group of particles in material that constitutes this repeating pattern is unit cell of the structure. The unit cell completely reflects symmetry and structure of the entire crystal, which is built up by repetitive translation of unit cell along its principal axes. The translation vectors define the nodes of Bravais lattice.

The lengths of principal axes/edges, of unit cell and angles between them are lattice constants, also called lattice parameters or cell parameters. The symmetry properties of crystal are described by the concept of space groups. All possible symmetric arrangements of particles in three-dimensional space may be described by 230 space groups.

The crystal structure and symmetry play a critical role in determining many physical properties, such as cleavage, electronic band structure, and optical transparency. (Full article...)

Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica (SiO₂·nH₂O); its water content may range from 3% to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6% and 10%. Due to the amorphous chemical structure, it is classified as a mineraloid, unlike crystalline forms of silica, which are considered minerals. It is deposited at a relatively low temperature and may occur in the fissures of almost any kind of rock, being most commonly found with limonite, sandstone, rhyolite, marl, and basalt.

The name opal is believed to be derived from the Sanskrit word upala (उपल), which means 'jewel', and later the Greek derivative opállios (ὀπάλλιος).

There are two broad classes of opal: precious and common. Precious opal displays play-of-color (iridescence); common opal does not. Play-of-color is defined as "a pseudo chromatic optical effect resulting in flashes of colored light from certain minerals, as they are turned in white light." The internal structure of precious opal causes it to diffract light, resulting in play-of-color. Depending on the conditions in which it formed, opal may be transparent, translucent, or opaque, and the background color may be white, black, or nearly any color of the visual spectrum. Black opal is considered the rarest, while white, gray, and green opals are the most common. (Full article...)

Zeolite is a family of several microporous, crystalline aluminosilicate materials commonly used as commercial adsorbents and catalysts. They mainly consist of silicon, aluminium, oxygen, and have the general formula Mⁿ⁺
_1/n(AlO
₂)⁻
(SiO
₂)
_x･yH
₂O where Mⁿ⁺
_1/n is either a metal ion or H⁺.

The term was originally coined in 1756 by Swedish mineralogist Axel Fredrik Cronstedt, who observed that rapidly heating a material, believed to have been stilbite, produced large amounts of steam from water that had been adsorbed by the material. Based on this, he called the material zeolite, from the Greek ζέω (zéō), meaning "to boil" and λίθος (líthos), meaning "stone".

Zeolites occur naturally, but are also produced industrially on a large scale. As of December 2018^[update], 253 unique zeolite frameworks have been identified, and over 40 naturally occurring zeolite frameworks are known. Every new zeolite structure that is obtained is examined by the International Zeolite Association Structure Commission (IZA-SC) and receives a three-letter designation. (Full article...)

Corundum is a crystalline form of aluminium oxide (Al₂O₃) typically containing traces of iron, titanium, vanadium, and chromium. It is a rock-forming mineral. It is a naturally transparent material, but can have different colors depending on the presence of transition metal impurities in its crystalline structure. Corundum has two primary gem varieties: ruby and sapphire. Rubies are red due to the presence of chromium, and sapphires exhibit a range of colors depending on what transition metal is present. A rare type of sapphire, padparadscha sapphire, is pink-orange.

The name "corundum" is derived from the Tamil-Dravidian word kurundam (ruby-sapphire) (appearing in Sanskrit as kuruvinda).

Because of corundum's hardness (pure corundum is defined to have 9.0 on the Mohs scale), it can scratch almost all other minerals. It is commonly used as an abrasive on sandpaper and on large tools used in machining metals, plastics, and wood. Emery, a variety of corundum with no value as a gemstone, is commonly used as an abrasive. It is a black granular form of corundum, in which the mineral is intimately mixed with magnetite, hematite, or hercynite.

In addition to its hardness, corundum has a density of 4.02 g/cm³ (251 lb/cu ft), which is unusually high for a transparent mineral composed of the low-atomic mass elements aluminium and oxygen. (Full article...)

Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Chalk is common throughout Western Europe, where deposits underlie parts of France, and steep cliffs are often seen where they meet the sea in places such as the Dover cliffs on the Kent coast of the English Channel.

Chalk is mined for use in industry, such as for quicklime, bricks and builder's putty, and in agriculture, for raising pH in soils with high acidity. It is also used for "blackboard chalk" for writing and drawing on various types of surfaces, although these can also be manufactured from other carbonate-based minerals, or gypsum. (Full article...)

Zircon (/ˈzɜːrkɒn, -kən/) is a mineral belonging to the group of nesosilicates and is a source of the metal zirconium. Its chemical name is zirconium(IV) silicate, and its corresponding chemical formula is ZrSiO₄. An empirical formula showing some of the range of substitution in zircon is (Zr_1–y, REE_y)(SiO₄)_1–x(OH)_4x–y. Zircon precipitates from silicate melts and has relatively high concentrations of high field strength incompatible elements. For example, hafnium is almost always present in quantities ranging from 1 to 4%. The crystal structure of zircon is tetragonal crystal system. The natural color of zircon varies between colorless, yellow-golden, red, brown, blue, and green.

The name derives from the Persian zargun, meaning "gold-hued". This word is changed into "jargoon", a term applied to light-colored zircons. The English word "zircon" is derived from Zirkon, which is the German adaptation of this word. Yellow, orange, and red zircon is also known as "hyacinth", from the flower hyacinthus, whose name is of Ancient Greek origin. (Full article...)

Hematite (/ˈhiːməˌtaɪt, ˈhɛmə-/), also spelled as haematite, is a common iron oxide compound with the formula, Fe₂O₃ and is widely found in rocks and soils. Hematite crystals belong to the rhombohedral lattice system which is designated the alpha polymorph of Fe
₂O
₃. It has the same crystal structure as corundum (Al
₂O
₃) and ilmenite (FeTiO
₃). With this it forms a complete solid solution at temperatures above 950 °C (1,740 °F).

Hematite occurs naturally in black to steel or silver-gray, brown to reddish-brown, or red colors. It is mined as an important ore mineral of iron. It is electrically conductive. Hematite varieties include kidney ore, martite (pseudomorphs after magnetite), iron rose and specularite (specular hematite). While these forms vary, they all have a rust-red streak. Hematite is not only harder than pure iron, but also much more brittle. Maghemite is a polymorph of hematite (γ-Fe
₂O
₃) with the same chemical formula, but with a spinel structure like magnetite.

Large deposits of hematite are found in banded iron formations. Gray hematite is typically found in places that have still, standing water, or mineral hot springs, such as those in Yellowstone National Park in North America. The mineral may precipitate in the water and collect in layers at the bottom of the lake, spring, or other standing water. Hematite can also occur in the absence of water, usually as the result of volcanic activity.

Clay-sized hematite crystals also may occur as a secondary mineral formed by weathering processes in soil, and along with other iron oxides or oxyhydroxides such as goethite, which is responsible for the red color of many tropical, ancient, or otherwise highly weathered soils. (Full article...)

Andesite (/ˈændəzaɪt/) is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predominantly of sodium-rich plagioclase plus pyroxene or hornblende.

Andesite is the extrusive equivalent of plutonic diorite. Characteristic of subduction zones, andesite represents the dominant rock type in island arcs. The average composition of the continental crust is andesitic. Along with basalts, andesites are a component of the Martian crust.

The name andesite is derived from the Andes mountain range, where this rock type is found in abundance. It was first applied by Christian Leopold von Buch in 1826. (Full article...)

The mineral pyrite (/ˈpaɪraɪt/ PY-ryte), or iron pyrite, also known as fool's gold, is an iron sulfide with the chemical formula FeS₂ (iron (II) disulfide). Pyrite is the most abundant sulfide mineral.
Pyrite's metallic luster and pale brass-yellow hue give it a superficial resemblance to gold, hence the well-known nickname of fool's gold. The color has also led to the nicknames brass, brazzle, and brazil, primarily used to refer to pyrite found in coal.

The name pyrite is derived from the Greek πυρίτης λίθος (pyritēs lithos), 'stone or mineral which strikes fire', in turn from πῦρ (pŷr), 'fire'. In ancient Roman times, this name was applied to several types of stone that would create sparks when struck against steel; Pliny the Elder described one of them as being brassy, almost certainly a reference to what is now called pyrite.

By Georgius Agricola's time, c. 1550, the term had become a generic term for all of the sulfide minerals. (Full article...)

Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO₄·2H₂O. It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk chalk. Gypsum also crystallizes as translucent crystals of selenite. It forms as an evaporite mineral and as a hydration product of anhydrite. The Mohs scale of mineral hardness defines gypsum as hardness value 2 based on scratch hardness comparison.

Fine-grained white or lightly tinted forms of gypsum known as alabaster have been used for sculpture by many cultures including Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Ancient Rome, the Byzantine Empire, and the Nottingham alabasters of Medieval England. (Full article...)

Beryl (/ˈbɛrəl/ BERR-əl) is a mineral composed of beryllium aluminium silicate with the chemical formula Be₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈. Well-known varieties of beryl include emerald and aquamarine. Naturally occurring hexagonal crystals of beryl can be up to several meters in size, but terminated crystals are relatively rare. Pure beryl is colorless, but it is frequently tinted by impurities; possible colors are green, blue, yellow, pink, and red (the rarest). It is an ore source of beryllium. (Full article...)

Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF₂. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon.

The Mohs scale of mineral hardness, based on scratch hardness comparison, defines value 4 as fluorite.

Pure fluorite is colourless and transparent, both in visible and ultraviolet light, but impurities usually make it a colorful mineral and the stone has ornamental and lapidary uses. Industrially, fluorite is used as a flux for smelting, and in the production of certain glasses and enamels. The purest grades of fluorite are a source of fluoride for hydrofluoric acid manufacture, which is the intermediate source of most fluorine-containing fine chemicals. Optically clear transparent fluorite has anomalous partial dispersion, that is, its refractive index varies with the wavelength of light in a manner that differs from that of commonly used glasses, so fluorite is useful in making apochromatic lenses, and particularly valuable in photographic optics. Fluorite optics are also usable in the far-ultraviolet and mid-infrared ranges, where conventional glasses are too opaque for use. Fluorite also has low dispersion, and a high refractive index for its density. (Full article...)

Asbestos (/æsˈbɛstəs, æz-, -tɒs/ ass-BES-təs, az-, -⁠toss) is a group of naturally occurring, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre (particulate with length substantially greater than width) being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere by abrasion and other processes. Inhalation of asbestos fibres can lead to various dangerous lung conditions, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer. As a result of these health effects, asbestos is considered a serious health and safety hazard.

Archaeological studies have found evidence of asbestos being used as far back as the Stone Age to strengthen ceramic pots, but large-scale mining began at the end of the 19th century when manufacturers and builders began using asbestos for its desirable physical properties. Asbestos is an excellent thermal and electrical insulator, and is highly fire resistant, so for much of the 20th century, it was very commonly used around the world as a building material (particularly for its fire-retardant properties), until its adverse effects on human health were more widely recognized and acknowledged in the 1970s. Many buildings constructed before the 1980s contain asbestos.

The use of asbestos for construction and fireproofing has been made illegal in many countries. Despite this, around 255,000 people are thought to die each year from diseases related to asbestos exposure. In part, this is because many older buildings still contain asbestos; in addition, the consequences of exposure can take decades to arise. The latency period (from exposure until the diagnosis of negative health effects) is typically 20 years. The most common diseases associated with chronic asbestos exposure are asbestosis (scarring of the lungs due to asbestos inhalation) and mesothelioma (a type of cancer).

Many developing countries still support the use of asbestos as a building material, and mining of asbestos is ongoing, with the top producer, Russia, having an estimated production of 790,000 tonnes in 2020. (Full article...)

Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula CuAl₆(PO₄)₄(OH)₈·4H₂O. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone for millennia due to its hue.

Like most other opaque gems, turquoise has been devalued by the introduction of treatments, imitations, and synthetics into the market. The robin egg blue or sky blue color of the Persian turquoise mined near the modern city of Nishapur, Iran, has been used as a guiding reference for evaluating turquoise quality. (Full article...)

Borax (also referred to as sodium borate, tincal (/ˈtɪŋkəl/) and tincar (/ˈtɪŋkər/)) is a salt (ionic compound), a hydrated or anhydrous borate of sodium, with the chemical formula Na₂H₂₀B₄O₁₇.

It is a colorless crystalline solid that dissolves in water to make a basic solution.

It is commonly available in powder or granular form and has many industrial and household uses, including as a pesticide, as a metal soldering flux, as a component of glass, enamel, and pottery glazes, for tanning of skins and hides, for artificial aging of wood, as a preservative against wood fungus, and as a pharmaceutic alkalizer. In chemical laboratories, it is used as a buffering agent.

The terms tincal and tincar refer to native borax, historically mined from dry lake beds in various parts of Asia. (Full article...)

Garnets ( /ˈɡɑːrnɪt/) are a group of silicate minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives.

All species of garnets possess similar physical properties and crystal forms, but differ in chemical composition. The different species are pyrope, almandine, spessartine, grossular (varieties of which are hessonite or cinnamon-stone and tsavorite), uvarovite and andradite. The garnets make up two solid solution series: pyrope-almandine-spessartine (pyralspite), with the composition range [Mg,Fe,Mn]₃Al₂(SiO₄)₃; and uvarovite-grossular-andradite (ugrandite), with the composition range Ca₃[Cr,Al,Fe]₂(SiO₄)₃. (Full article...)

Matthew Forster Heddle FRSE (28 April 1828 – 19 November 1897) was a Scottish physician and amateur mineralogist active through the 19th century. (Full article...)

Martine de Bertereau, also known as Baroness de Beausoleil, (c. 1600 – after 1642) was the first recorded female mineralogist as well as mining engineer along with her husband, Jean de Chastelet. She traveled extensively throughout Europe in search of mineral deposits and fresh ground water under the employment of various nobles and royals. During the reign of the French King, Louis XIII, Martine and her husband surveyed the sites of potential mines in France. During one of their mining expeditions Martine and her family were accused of witchcraft and fled to Hungary. Later, Martine, her husband and oldest daughter were arrested and eventually died in prison sometime after 1642. During her life, she produced multiple pieces of literature derived largely from the Roman engineer Vitruvius's book on architecture, De architectura. Her writings describe the use of divining-rods, similar to dowsing, as well as other scientific ideas of that time. Martine de Bertereau was not forthcoming about her use of different scientific ideas, and preferred the public to believe she was using magic, or renowned ancient scientific ideas. Her success came from her development in the understanding of the geologic world around her. It is uncertain of her reasoning behind the decision to lie about her actual means of success. Her literature provides a unique glimpse into the craft and skills required to mine in the seventeenth century. (Full article...)

Charles Palache (July 18, 1869 – December 5, 1954) was an American mineralogist and crystallographer. In his time, he was one of the most important mineralogists in the United States. (Full article...)

Nikolai Ivanovich Koksharov (Russian: Николай Иванович Кокшаров) (23 November (5 December), 1818 – 21 December (2 January), 1893) was a Russian mineralogist, crystallographer, and major general in the Russian army. He was noted for his measurements of crystals using a goniometer. (Full article...)

Pierre Bernard Palassou (9 June 1745, Oloron-Sainte-Marie – 9 April 1830, Ogenne-Camptort) was a French naturalist known for pioneer geological and mineralogical studies of the Pyrénées.

He was a correspondent member of the Académie des sciences (1816–1830) and an honorary member of the Société linnéenne de Paris (1821). His name is associated with the "Poudingues de Palassou", which are enormous beds of conglomerate rock found in the Pyrénées. In 1784 he described Quercus palensis (Pyrenean oak) of the botanical family Fagaceae, (synonym Quercus pyrenaica Willd.). (Full article...)

Friedrich Katzer (Czech: Bedřich Katzer; 5 June 1861, Rokitzan – 3 February 1925) was an Austrian geologist and mineralogist.

From 1880 to 1883 he was a student at the University of Prague and at the Technische Hochschule in Prague, where he later worked as an assistant. In 1888 he was head of a testing station for construction materials in Wrschowitz. In 1890 he obtained his PhD from the University of Giessen, later becoming an assistant in mineralogy and geology at the University of Leoben (1892). (Full article...)

Günther Friedrich (15 April 1929 – 24 November 2014) was a German mineralogist and university professor at the RWTH University at Aachen. He was an expert in the field of the creation of marine Manganese nodule concretions. (Full article...)

Gustav von Leonhard (12 November 1816 in Munich – 27 December 1878 in Heidelberg) was a German mineralogist and geologist. He was the son of mineralogist Karl Cäsar von Leonhard.

He studied mineralogy and related sciences at the University of Heidelberg, receiving his doctorate in 1840. He continued his education in Berlin, and in 1841 obtained his habilitation at Heidelberg. In 1853 he became an associate professor of mineralogy at the University of Heidelberg. (Full article...)

Johann Karl Wilhelm Voigt (20 February 1752 in Allstedt – 2 January 1821 in Ilmenau) was a German mineralogist and mining engineer.

He initially studied law at the University of Jena, then in 1776 enrolled at the Mining Academy in Freiberg as a pupil of Abraham Gottlob Werner. He later relocated to Weimar, where in 1783 he was named secretary of the Bergwerkskommission (mining commission). During his time spent in Weimar he developed a close friendship with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe — through Voigt, Goethe received an education in mineralogy. From 1789 to 1821, he served as Bergrath (councillor of mines) in Ilmenau. (Full article...)

Christian Samuel Weiss (26 February 1780 – 1 October 1856) was a German mineralogist born in Leipzig.

Following graduation, he worked as a physics instructor in Leipzig from 1803 until 1808. and in the meantime, conducted geological studies of mountain formations in Tyrol, Switzerland and France (1806–08). In 1810 he became a professor of mineralogy at the University of Berlin, where in 1818/19 and 1832/33, he served as university rector. He died near Eger in Bohemia. (Full article...)

Konrad Oebbeke (2 November 1853, Hildesheim – 1 February 1932) was a German geologist and mineralogist.

He studied at the Universities of Heidelberg and Erlangen, obtaining his doctorate at the University of Würzburg in 1877. Afterwards he worked as an assistant to the Geological Survey of Bavaria. He served as privat-docent at the University of Munich, later becoming a professor of mineralogy and geology at Erlangen (1887).
From 1895 to 1927 he was a professor at the Technische Hochschule of Munich. (Full article...)

David Forbes FRS (6 September 1828 – 5 December 1876) was a Manx mineralogist, metallurgist, and chemist. (Full article...)

Carl Ernst Arthur Wichmann (9 April 1851 in Hamburg – 28 November 1927 in Hamburg) was a German geologist and mineralogist. He was professor in geology at Utrecht University from 1879 to 1921, where he founded the geological institute. His daughter was the jurist and anarchist-socialist Clara Wichmann, his son the artist and fascist Erich Wichmann.

Arthur Wichmann spent his youth in Hamburg, where his father ran a boarding school. From 1871 to 1874 he studied at Leipzig University, where he was a pupil of Ferdinand Zirkel, from whom he got his interest in mineralogy. After he spent a few years as assistant to Zirkel he became professor at Utrecht University. (Full article...)

Lewis Caleb Beck (4 October 1798 Schenectady – 20 April 1853 Albany, New York) was an American physician, botanist, chemist, and mineralogist. The standard author abbreviation L.C.Beck is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.^[1] (Full article...)

Hans Schneiderhöhn (2 June 1887, in Mainz – 5 August 1962, in Sölden) was a German geologist and mineralogist who specialized in ore microscopy. (Full article...)

Michael Tuomey (September 29, 1805 – March 30, 1857) was the State Geologist of South Carolina from 1844 to 1847, and the first State Geologist of Alabama, appointed in 1848 and serving until his death. His early descriptions and maps of the Birmingham District's unique coincidence of mineral resources for the making of steel opened the way for the early industrial development of the state. (Full article...)

Frederick Augustus Ludwig Karl Wilhelm Genth (May 17, 1820 – February 2, 1893) was a German-American chemist, specializing in analytical chemistry and mineralogy. (Full article...)

Georg August Goldfuß (18 April 1782 – 2 October 1848) was a German palaeontologist, zoologist and botanist. He became a professor of zoology at the University of Erlangen and later at the University of Bonn. He coined the terms "protozoa" and "pelecypoda". (Full article...)

Antonio D'Achiardi (28 November 1839, in Pisa – 10 December 1902, in Pisa) was an Italian geologist, paleontologist and mineralogist known for his mineralogical and paleontological studies of Tuscany. He was the father of the mineralogist Giovanni D'Achiardi [it], and the artist, Pietro D'Achiardi.

In 1859 he received his doctorate in sciences from the University of Pisa, afterwards working as an assistant for chemistry (from 1861). Three months after this appointment, he lost the use of his left eye due to a laboratory accident involving nitric acid. He subsequently abandoned his career in chemistry, and instead devoted his attention to geology and mineralogy, becoming a student of Giuseppe Meneghini. He later became a professor of geology at Pavia and in 1874 was appointed a professor of mineralogy at the University of Pisa. In 1881 he established a laboratory of mineralogy at Pisa. (Full article...)

Vasily Mikhailovich Severgin (Russian: Василий Михайлович Севергин; 19 September 1765 – 29 November 1826) was a Russian academician, chemist, mineralogist, and geologist. For three decades, he was the only academician elected to the Geological Society of London. He has been described as being among the most influential pioneers of geology in Russia. (Full article...)

Linus Carl Pauling FRS (/ˈpɔːlɪŋ/ PAW-ling; February 28, 1901 – August 19, 1994) was an American chemist, biochemist, chemical engineer, peace activist, author, and educator. He published more than 1,200 papers and books, of which about 850 dealt with scientific topics. New Scientist called him one of the 20 greatest scientists of all time. For his scientific work, Pauling was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1954. For his peace activism, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1962. He is one of five people to have won more than one Nobel Prize (the others being Marie Curie, John Bardeen, Frederick Sanger, and Karl Barry Sharpless). Of these, he is the only person to have been awarded two unshared Nobel Prizes, and one of two people to be awarded Nobel Prizes in different fields, the other being Marie Curie.

Pauling was one of the founders of the fields of quantum chemistry and molecular biology. His contributions to the theory of the chemical bond include the concept of orbital hybridisation and the first accurate scale of electronegativities of the elements. Pauling also worked on the structures of biological molecules, and showed the importance of the alpha helix and beta sheet in protein secondary structure. Pauling's approach combined methods and results from X-ray crystallography, molecular model building, and quantum chemistry. His discoveries inspired the work of Rosalind Franklin, James Watson, Francis Crick, and Maurice Wilkins on the structure of DNA, which in turn made it possible for geneticists to crack the DNA code of all organisms. (Full article...)

John Henry Heuland (March 21, 1778 Bayreuth – November 16, 1856 Hastings) was a German born (Johann Heinrich) English mineralogist and dealer. He was a Fellow of the Geological Society of London. His collection is held by the Natural History Museum, London. In 1804 he purchased mineral specimens in Lisbon. He subsequently travelled through France, Germany, Sweden, and Russia, collecting and buying minerals. About the year 1806 he acquired minerals collected in Europe between the years 1766 and 1806 by his uncle Adolarius Jacob Forster whose London dealership later became Heuland's. Armand Lévy categorised his mineral collection.

The mineral Heulandite is named for him. He played a dubious role in the discovery of Palladium. (Full article...)

Arnold Constantin Peter Franz von Lasaulx (14 June 1839 – 25 January 1886) was a German mineralogist and petrographer. (Full article...)

Emil Wilhelm Cohen (12 October 1842 – 13 April 1905) was a German mineralogist and petrographer, born in Jutland. (Full article...)

William Hyde Wollaston FRS (/ˈwʊləstən/; 6 August 1766 – 22 December 1828) was an English chemist and physicist who is famous for discovering the chemical elements palladium and rhodium. He also developed a way to process platinum ore into malleable ingots. (Full article...)