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Cleavage vs. Fracture in Minerals

Cleavage is the tendency of a mineral to break along smooth planes parallel to zones of weak bonding, while fracture is the tendency to break along curved surfaces without a definite shape since these minerals lack planes of weakness and break irregularly. Some minerals, such as halite and calcite, exhibit cleavage and break along certain crystalline planes, whereas quartz breaks irregularly due to the absence of cleavage planes.

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72 views5 pages

Cleavage vs. Fracture in Minerals

Cleavage is the tendency of a mineral to break along smooth planes parallel to zones of weak bonding, while fracture is the tendency to break along curved surfaces without a definite shape since these minerals lack planes of weakness and break irregularly. Some minerals, such as halite and calcite, exhibit cleavage and break along certain crystalline planes, whereas quartz breaks irregularly due to the absence of cleavage planes.

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Cleavage and Fracture

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Cleavage is the tendency of a mineral to break along smooth planes
parallel to zones of weak bonding.

Fracture is the tendency of a mineral to break along curved surfaces


without a definite shape. These minerals do not have planes of
weakness and break irregularly. See the picture below:

Type of
Breakage

Mineral
Halite

CLEAVAGE
Cleavage in
three
directions
at right
angles
(90o). Cubic
cleavage.

Calcite

CLEAVAGE
Cleavage in
three
directions
not at right
angles
(120o and
60o).
Rhombohed
ral
cleavage.
Gypsum

CLEAVAGE
Cleavage in
one
direction.

Muscovite

CLEAVAGE
Cleavage in
one
direction.

Feldspar

CLEAVAGE
Cleavage in
two
directions
at right
angles.

Quartz

FRACTURE
Mineral
does not
exhibit
cleavage, it
breaks or
fracture in
an irregular
manner.

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