Mineralogy and Petrology

We come in contact with several minerals in our day-to-day life. But do we know how one is different from the other? We hardly know why iron is so hard but mercury, which is also a mineral, is liquid and very soft. All this research and deep analysis about minerals come within the purview of the mineralogy discipline. 

But understanding minerals is almost incomplete without understanding the rocks which are responsible for the formation of these minerals. Therefore similar to the branch of mineralogy is the discipline of Petrology. Petrology is concerned with deeply analysing the properties, structure, and other concerns about naturally occurring rocks. In this article, we will understand everything about these two disciplines. 

Meaning and working of mineralogy discipline: 

Mineralogy is made up of two words Mineral (meaning naturally occurring substances) and logy meaning the study of  Something. Therefore Mineralogy is concerned with the study of all physical, chemical, structural, and distributional properties of minerals. It also looks into the origin of these minerals and is concerned with the discovery of any new mineral. 

In mineralogy, scientists are particularly concerned with the following things: 

1. Finding a new or rare mineral and understanding its composition and origin. 
2. Scientifically analysing the chemical structure of a mineral and how the atoms are packed inside the material.
3. Checking out the possibility of artificial synthesis of certain minerals by subjecting them to high temperature and pressure in the laboratory.
4. Follow various scientific methodologies like X-ray diffraction, simple identification tests, isotopic analysis, and other such chemical examinations for decoding the structure and properties of a mineral. 
5. Conduct laboratory experiments for understanding the theoretical principles behind the origin of a mineral and if they fit in existing physical theories or not. 

Examples of Mineralogy:

Let’s take the example of two important minerals to understand how mineralogy works: 

• Mineralogy of gold: mineralogy of gold is concerned with understanding why it’s so rare (making it so costly) and what special properties it possesses. In the mineralogy of gold, we will look into resistance-free chemical properties of Gold, its distribution, physical properties like colour and shine, the chemical composition, etc. 

• Mineralogy of copper: In the mineralogy of copper, we understand the physical and chemical properties of Copper like ductility, malleability, and a good conductor of heat and electricity. Further, we look into its mining, use, and other such concerns. 

Meaning and working of Petrology branch: 

Petrology can be again broken down into two words: Petro (meaning rocks) and logy (meaning the study of something). Therefore Petrology is that branch of Earth Sciences that deals with the in-depth analysis of rocks. It takes into account the structural composition, the texture, the evolution, the features, and the distribution patterns of various rocks. 

The rocks are usually divided into three categories: 

• Igneous ( which are formed from the lava of volcanoes) 
• Sedimentary:  (formed from sediments or fragments of other rocks) 
• Metamorphic rocks: That has changed due to heat and pressure. 

The Petrology department is concerned with all three kinds of rocks. 

The working of Petrology discipline is as follows: 

1. It attempts to decode the geological processes behind the origin of the rock.
2. It is also concerned with the artificial analysis of rocks in the laboratory so that it can keep track of the physical and chemical situations that rock has to undergo for formation. This particular method is called experimental Petrology. 
3. Sometimes a special microscope called a petrographic microscope is also used to study the properties of rock and classify them systematically. 
4. It also works in association with analysing the mineralogy branch because of the close relationship between rocks and minerals. 
5. The scientists of the Petrology branch also make sure that the rock units are mapped and sampled properly so that the data used for the conclusion is appropriate. 

Application of mineralogy and Petrology: 

Mineralogy and Petrology are used for several geological questions and phenomena because they help in understanding the environmental conditions related to rock and mineral formation. Some of the applications of the two branches are: 

1. Volcanic formation: To understand volcanic activity and the source of magma, the Petrology branch comes in handy. This is because this branch has already dealt with the properties and structure of rocks present on Earth’s crust. 
2. Mountain belts and Earth crust related research: The two branches help provide answers to several questions related to Mountain belts and Earth crust because of the deep study. 
3. Relation with other branches of Earth sciences: Several other branches like geochemistry, tectonics, sedimentology, etc. also take help from the Petrology and mineralogy branch to solve certain intriguing questions. 
4. Processes on other planets: By understanding the complexities of minerals and rocks on Earth, attempts are made to decode the processes undergoing on other planets. 

In this way, these two branches help us a lot in understanding the Earth and its processes and even the planets which are beyond Earth. 

Conclusion:   

Earth Sciences is a very intriguing branch of science and it is further divided into various disciplines. Mineralogy and Petrology are also amongst these disciplines of Earth sciences that particularly deal with the composition of minerals and rocks. These two branches work together to help us understand the origin, chemical composition, structure, and other notable details about rocks and minerals which have become an inseparable part of our life. 

So next time you use something, try to understand what minerals you are using. With your inquisitive mind, notice how these minerals differ from each other and what makes them so special.