Question

Of the more than 2,000 known minerals, approximately 95% of them belong to what mineral group?

A. Silicates
B. Carbonates
C. Oxides
D. Sulfates

Answer 1

The most common minerals are the silicates, as one would guess by looking at the abundances of the elements in the Earth's crust, but there is a great variety of minerals. Minerals are classified in many ways, including hardness, optical properties, crystal structure, etc. over 2000 minerals have been found in the Earth's crust, but that about 20 of them are common and fewer than 10 account for over 90% of the crust by mass.
Non-silicates constitute less than 10% of the Earth's crust. The most common non-silicates are the carbonates, the oxides, and the sulfides. There are also naturally occuring phosphates and salts. There are a few elements which occur in pure form, including gold, silver, copper, bismuth, arsenic, lead and tellurium. Carbon is found in both graphite and diamond form.