Mineral Identification and Cloud Formation
Lab report about mineral identification and cloud formation.
Complete the following table based on the observations you made during the lab.
| Experiment | Observations |
| Cold water | Once the bottle is opened some condensation goes to the top of the bottle. |
| Cold water plus match | The air in the bottle took over due to the smoke, and it caused condensation. |
| Hot water | Once the bottle was opened the steam went up. |
| Hot water plus match | The condensed air and smoke caused the bottle to make a cloud. |
Why do you think the presence of smoke contributed to cloud formation?
The smoke particles allow the water molecules to stick together around the smoke and condense. Those particles acted like cloud condensation nuclei.
What role did pressure play in the formation of the clouds?
The warm air always rises because it is less dense and lighter than colder air. The temperature and pressure drop as the warm air rises and it cause water vapor condensation. After some time, cloud is formed due to condensation of enough moisture.
Based on what you have discovered, which of the following conditions would lead to the formation of clouds?
1. Moist air moves up as it encounters a mountain range.
2. High pressure is moving into an area.
3. The air over a large parking lot is warmer in the afternoon than the surrounding park is.
4. The horse latitudes are areas of sinking air.
5. Low pressure moves into your area.
1. Moist air moves up as it encounters a mountain range.
5. Low pressure moves into your area.
Complete the following Data Table as you conduct the lab.
Data Table: Mineral Identification
| Mineral Number | Color | Luster | Streak | Hardness |
| Mica | Yellowish | Vitreous to pearly | White | 3 |
| Quartz | White | Vitreous | White | 7 |
| Pyrite | Yellowish | Metallic | Black | 6 |
| Megnitite | Black | Metallic | Black | 6 |
What are the identities of each unknown mineral?
| Mineral Number | Identity |
| color | White |
| streak | White |
| luster | Vitreous |
| hardness | 7 |
Why was it important to examine both the color and the streak of your minerals?
It is important to examine both because the streak color is constant but surface color of minerals can vary.
Is luster a good characteristic to use for the identification of minerals? Why or why not?
Luster is a good characteristic for the identification of minerals. However, luster can vary within a particular mineral, for instance calcite might be vitreous and also it may be dull. When we use luster for identity we require fresh.
You have been given a sample of quartz, which has a hardness of 7. How can you use this mineral to determine the hardness of other minerals?
We can use it by scratching other minerals with quartz. For instance if quartz can scratch other mineral, we can tell the mineral has less than 7 hardness. On the other hand if quartz is scratched by other mineral, we know that mineral has more than 7 hardness.
Which property or properties did you find most useful in the identification of the mineral samples? Which properties were less useful? Be specific in your explanation.
The most useful properties of mineral samples are hardness, fracture, cleavage, streak and also crystal habit. Their least useful property is color.