silicate

silicates

silicates The most important and abundant group of rock-forming minerals, which can be classified according to the structural arrangement of the fundamental SiO4 tetrahedra which are the main building blocks of the group. (a) Nesosilicates have independent SiO4 tetrahedra linked by cations, e.g. olivine group, (b) Sorosilicates have two SiO4 tetrahedra sharing one oxygen, e.g. epidote group. (c) Cyclosilicates have rings of three, four, or six linked SiO4 tetrahedra, e.g. axinite and tourmaline. (d) Inosilicates (chain silicates) have SiO4 tetrahedra linked either into single chains by sharing two oxygens, e.g. pyroxene group, or into double chains (band silicates) by alternately sharing two or three oxygens, e.g. amphibole group, (e) Phyllosilicates (sheet silicates) share three oxygens to form a flat sheet, e.g. mica group. (f) Tectosilicates have SiO4 tetrahedra linked into a three-dimensional framework by sharing all the oxygens, e.g. feldspar and quartz groups.

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AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "silicates." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "silicates." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O13-silicates.html

AILSA ALLABY and MICHAEL ALLABY. "silicates." A Dictionary of Earth Sciences. 1999. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O13-silicates.html

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silicate

silicate chemical compound containing silicon, oxygen, and one or more metals, e.g., aluminum, barium, beryllium, calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, sodium, or zirconium. Silicates may be considered chemically as salts of the various silicic acids. For a long time classified as ortho-, meta-, di-, or trisilicates according to the acid from which they are (theoretically) derived, they are now also classified by an X-ray diffraction method according to their crystalline structure. Silicates are widely distributed in nature, making up most of the earth's outer crust. Most of the common rock-forming minerals (e.g., quartz , feldspar , mica , and pyroxene ) are silicates, as are asbestos , beryl , aquamarine , emerald , serpentine , and talc . Clay consists essentially of hydrous aluminum silicates mixed with other substances. Glass is a mixture of silicates, as is water glass . See sodium silicate .

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"silicate." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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silicate

sil·i·cate / ˈsiləˌkāt; -kit/ • n. Chem. a salt in which the anion contains both silicon and oxygen, esp. one of the anion SiO42−. ∎  any of the many minerals consisting primarily of SiO42− combined with metal ions, forming a major component of the rocks of the earth's crust.

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"silicate." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"silicate." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 11, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-silicate.html

"silicate." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 11, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-silicate.html

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silicate

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"silicate." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 11 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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