This article discusses single term undergraduate mineralogy course completion of a project involving the characterization and identification of mineral unknowns. These identifications are based on physical properties, unit cell parameters or d-spacings determined from powder X-ray diffraction scans, chemical composition determined on an electron microbeam instrument, and optical properties determined with a petrographic microscope. Each phase of the project is timed to compliment the sequence of concepts covered in mineralogy lecture and lab. Such a project serves to illustrate applications of methods discussed in lecture and to pique the interest of students for pursuing mineralogic research projects later in their careers.
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