Mohs's scale of hardness

A Dictionary of Earth Sciences | 1999 | 415 words | Copyright

Mohs's scale of hardness Scale, devised in 1812 by the German mineralogist Friedrich Mohs, of the scratch hardness of minerals, as: 1 talc; 2 gypsum; 3 calcite; 4 fluorite; 5 apatite; 6 orthoclase; 7 quartz; 8 topaz; 9 corundum; and 10 diamond. The scale is linear up to a hardness of 9 (corundum), but then rises dramatically to 10, with diamond about 10 times harder than corundum. The scale is still used today.

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AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "Mohs's scale of hardness." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "Mohs's scale of hardness." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O13-Mohssscaleofhardness.html

AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "Mohs's scale of hardness." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O13-Mohssscaleofhardness.html

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