Tenacity (mineralogy)

Short description: Mineral's behavior when deformed or broken

In mineralogy, tenacity is a mineral's behavior when deformed or broken.

## Contents

* 1 Common terms
* 1.1 Brittleness
* 1.2 Malleability
* 1.3 Ductility
* 1.4 Sectility
* 1.5 Elasticity
* 1.6 Plasticity
* 2 References

## Common terms

### Brittleness

Main article: Physics:Brittleness

The mineral breaks or powders easily. Most ionic-bonded minerals are brittle.[1]

### Malleability

The mineral may be pounded out into thin sheets. Metallic-bonded minerals are usually malleable.

### Ductility

Main article: Physics:Ductility

The mineral may be drawn into a wire. Ductile materials have to be malleable as well as tough.

### Sectility

Main article: Earth:Sectility

May be cut smoothly with a knife. Relatively few minerals are sectile. Sectility is a form of tenacity and can be used to distinguish minerals of similar appearance.[2] Gold, for example, is sectile but pyrite ("fool's gold") is not.

### Elasticity

Main article: Physics:Elasticity

If bent by an external force, an elastic mineral will spring back to its original shape and size when the stress, that is, the external force, is released.

### Plasticity

Main article: Physics:Plasticity

If bent by an external force, a plastic mineral will not spring back to its original shape and size when the stress, that is, the external force, is released. It stays bent.

## References

1. ↑ Nesse, William D. (2000). "Physical Properties of Minerals". Introduction to mineralogy. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 122. ISBN 9780195106916. OCLC 39961846. https://books.google.com/books?id=7JTdwAEACAAJ.
2. ↑ "Sectile - Minerals.net Glossary of Terms". http://www.minerals.net/mineral_glossary/sectile.aspx.

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