differences between rocks and minerals

Difference Between Rocks and Minerals

As everyone says and the fact that earth is made of land, water, rocks, soils, minerals, etc; Here the rocks and minerals are not the same. 

What are rocks?

Rocks are organic and inorganic solid substances that occur naturally without any chemical composition. This is in solid form occurs in the earth’s crust. There are 3 kinds that are as follows

Kinds of rocks :

  1. Igneous:

It is formed through the cooling and solidification of lava or magma.

  1. Sedimentary:

 Sedimentary is formed from the formed rocks or organic material.

  1. Metamorphic:

Metamorphic is formed from the original rock with heat or pressure.

All these are formed with changes in the earth like melting, compacting, eroding, cooling. Minerals are organized to form rocks and they don’t have any internal atomics structure.

What are minerals?

Minerals are also inorganic solid substances but with a chemical composition. It has a definite crystalline structure and outlined shape. In nature, there are many minerals. Some are rare and some are very popular. They are classified into 3. 

Classified minerals are as follows:

  1. Metallic 
  2. Non metallic 
  3. Energy mineral

Many elements are organized to form compounds that are known as minerals. They have an atomic structure.

Let’s dive into the differences

Differences between Rocks and Minerals:

Rocks Minerals
Meaning
Rocks are organic and inorganic solid substances that occur naturally without any chemical composition. Minerals are also inorganic solid substances that have a chemical composition, crystalline structure, and have a shape.
Structure
This doesn't have any internal atomic structure. It has an internal atomic structure.
Dependency/ Independency
Rocks are an aggregate of minerals. Minerals are independent and stand-alone.
Organized
Minerals are organized to form rocks. Elements are organized to form compounds that are known as minerals.
Classification
Classification of rocks: Igneous Sedimentary Metamorphic Classification of minerals: Metallic Non-metallic Energy mineral
Examples
Example; Granite, basalt, limestone, pebbles. Example: Quartz, calcite, feldspar, gold, petroleum.

Bottom line:

As a result of the preceding discussion, Although there are numerous differences between rocks and minerals, there are only a few similarities. The Earth’s crust contains both rocks and minerals. Another point of similarity between the two is that both rocks and minerals have commercial value. Rocks are important because of the minerals they contain, and minerals are widely used in all aspects of the manufacturing industry.

Finally, both rocks and minerals are used as raw materials in the manufacturing of everyday products in the industrial process.

Further related reading:

Difference between Physical change and Chemical change

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