| Unit name | Mineralogy and Petrology |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EASC20035 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Schumacher |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites | |
| Co-requisites | |
| School/department | School of Earth Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
This unit studies minerals and the major rock types that they compose. We will explore the structure, composition and stability of rock-forming minerals. The unit is also concerned with optical properties of minerals, which are used as a means of characterising and identifying minerals with the petrographic microscope. In the latter parts of the course, after mineral identification becomes routine, textural settings of the minerals are used to infer geological events from sequential mineral growth or crystallisation, deformation or reaction textures in igneous or metamorphic rock types. The metamorphic section applies chemical equilibrium, the phase rule to the evaluation of metamorphic rocks. The igneous section of the unit focuses on processes that produce the wide range rock types and textures emphasising the role of simple chemical equilibria and kinetics.
