Elements and
Minerals
What do they mean to us?
The rocks you see
around you are all
made of minerals.
A rock is made up of
two or more
minerals.
Think of a chocolate chip
cookie as a rock.
The cookie is made of flour,
butter, sugar & chocolate.
The cookie is like a rock
and the flour, butter, sugar
& chocolate are like
minerals.
You need minerals to make
rocks, but you don't need
rocks to make minerals.
All rocks are made of
minerals!
There are over 3000 different minerals
in the world.
A mineral is composed of the same
substance throughout.
If you were to cut a mineral sample into
pieces, it would look the same
throughout.
Minerals are made of elements - either a
single element or a combination of
elements.
Elements are the building blocks of all matter. An element is a
substance made entirely from one type of atom.
Everything on Earth is made from the approximately
117 known elements.
Some of these elements are basic, naturally occurring elements
that can be found on Earth.
As a matter of fact, almost 90% of Earth’s crust is made up of
only 4 of these elements –
• oxygen – 47%
• silicon – 28%
• aluminum – 8%
• iron – 5%
Here are some important basic
elements that compose minerals.
Silicon
Oxygen
Iron
Sodium
Chlorine
Calcium
Carbon
Hydrogen
Aluminum
And some facts about them…
Calcium (Ca)
• It is the fifth most abundant element in Earth’s crust.
• Chalk, marble, and limestone all contain calcium.
• It is one of the most abundant element in our bodies.
• It accounts for 2-3 lbs of our body weight.
• It is important for building and maintaining strong bones and
muscles.
• It helps control muscle growth and electrical impulses in your
brain.
Carbon (C)
• Carbon is one of the most important elements to life.
• Carbon is the base of fuels like coal and oil.
• Graphite (used in pencils) is a form of
carbon.
• Diamonds (used for jewelry and for cutting tools like saw
blades and drill bits) are another form of carbon.
• Carbon combined with oxygen makes carbon monoxide and
carbon dioxide.
Chlorine (Cl)
• Chlorine is commonly used to make drinking water safe,
keep swimming pools clean, and as an antiseptic.
• Large amounts of chlorine are used in industrial processes
such as making paper, plastic, dyes, insecticides, solvents
and paints.
• Chlorine is essential for the human body. It is found in
blood, in the fluid inside cells, and in the fluid between the
cells.
• It is one of the electrolytes in our body that allows our
nerve cells to work.
Hydrogen (H)
• Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe.
• It is the fuel that most stars (like our sun) burn to produce
energy.
• Hydrogen mixed with nitrogen makes ammonia.
• Liquid hydrogen mixed with liquid oxygen can make
rocket fuel.
•Water, which we need to survive, is made with hydrogen
and oxygen.
• Table sugar and hydrogen peroxide are also made with
hydrogen.
Iron (Fe)
• Iron makes up almost 6% of Earth’s
crust and nearly all of its core.
• Iron is used to make steel.
• It is magnetic.
• Iron helps keep plants alive by
helping them create chlorophyll.
• It is an essential part of hemoglobin,
which is the part of our blood that
carries oxygen.
• It also helps our bodies make tendons
and ligaments and maintain a healthy
immune system.
Oxygen (O)
• People, animals, and plants need oxygen to survive.
• Oxygen combined with hydrogen can make water which
makes up about 50% of our bodies.
• It is the third most abundant element in the universe.
• It makes up 21% of our atmosphere.
• Ozone, the thin protective layer around the Earth that helps
shield us from the Sun’s ultraviolet radiation, is made of
oxygen.
• Oxygen accounts for almost half the mass of the Earth’s crust.
Sodium (Na)
• Sodium is used in the production of titanium.
• Sodium is highly reactive and can ignite on contact with
water.
• It is the sixth most abundant element on Earth,
composing 2.6% of the crust.
•Sodium is part of many useful compounds including
table salt, baking soda, and borax.
• Together with potassium and chlorine, sodium makes
the part of our blood called plasma.
• It allows us to maintain the correct amount of water in
our blood and helps us contract our muscles normally.
Silicon (Si)
• Silicon is used in the
manufacturing of solid-state
electronic devices such as
transistors, solar cells, and
microchips.
• It is a key component of sand.
• It is used, along with calcium, to
grow strong, healthy bones.
• It is also important for growing
hair, skin, and fingernails.
• It is the second most abundant
element in Earth’s crust.
Aluminum (Al)
•Aluminum is a strong, light material which can conduct
electricity.
• It is non-magnetic.
• Aluminum and aluminum alloys are used to make everything
from cans, foil, and kitchen utensils to airplanes and rockets.
• Bauxite is a sedimentary rock that is an aluminum ore.
Bauxite is mined in Arkansas and is the state rock.
It’s ELEMENTary
Next time you turn on a television, take a
ride in a car, eat some cereal, or brush your
teeth, remember that you owe it all to
elements, minerals, and rocks!