Rocks & Minerals

How to Clean Minerals

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

You may have found the latest addition to your mineral collection in a field, mine or quarry. It will most certainly need to be cleaned in order to preserve it and prevent it from tainting the rest of your collection. With the right tools and the ... more »

How to extract silicon in a very cheap way

By prerakp

0 comments

Normally silicon is extracted by heating silica (sand Si2O) with coke(not the drink, but a form of carbon) which takes away the oxygen from silica as silicon doesn't have as much affinity towards oxygen as carbon has. This process causes lots of ... more »

How to Help Kids Appreciate Nature

By Judy Ford

1 comments

Parents don’t need buckets of money to entertain kids during summer. There’s an entire universe of entertainment outdoors. Kids hooked on the natural wonders of the world don’t complain about being bored because they can always find entertainment ... more »

How to Use Rose Quartz Energy

By Patricia Resnick

2 comments

Rose Quartz is used to encourage self-love, love of others and compassion. It is a wonderful choice for opening the heart to love. Rose Quartz has to do with wisdom and faith. Great dedication, inner strength and a sense of purpose are a few ... more »

How to Dig Crystals on the Oklahoma Salt Plains

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

1 comments

The Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma is the only spot on earth where you can dig for selenite crystals. The crystals grow in the Salt Plains' unique soil, which contains gypsum and saline. The hourglass shape of many of the ... more »

How to Find Out More About Sodium

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

Sodium, the eleventh element in the periodic table, is best known for exploding with water. This element has much to offer students not only of science but also of history. A little research will produce fun facts about the uses, dangers and ... more »

How to Get Boron

By eHow Education Editor

0 comments

Boron is too reactive to ever be found in nature and it is difficult to isolate. Almost all of the boron in the world comes from Turkey and the United States, with the commercially important sources being rasorite and tincal (borax ore). The ... more »

How to Grow A Crystal Garden!

By KCout

2 comments

Kids love science projects that change daily! Try this colorful crystal garden for a fun project during school holidays... more »

How to Identify Gold Ore

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

Gold is a precious metal mined to create practical and ornamental pieces of work. Refined gold ore can be melted, poured and cast into almost any shape to make jewelry. There are numerous industrial applications for gold, as well. Many ... more »

How to Obtain Aluminum

By eHow Education Editor

0 comments

Aluminum is common in the Earth's crust but rare in its free form. Aluminum is difficult to extract because its primary ore, aluminum oxide (Al2O3), is so stable. The following steps will explain how aluminum is isolated... more »

How to Obtain Gold

By eHow Education Editor

0 comments

Gold does not combine with other elements readily and is primarily found in elemental form or alloyed with other metals. It is one of the most valuable metals in the world and is worth mining even when the concentrations are low. Consequently, ... more »

How to Choose a Field Guide for Rocks and Minerals

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

You may be a rock hound if you pick up rocks on vacation as souvenirs, you have a rock paper weight on your desk, or if your flowerbed has a huge rock for a conversation piece. If you fit any of these, a field guide will help you identify your ... more »

How to Get Beryllium

By eHow Education Editor

0 comments

Beryllium is too reactive to be found in elemental form but is an important part of about 100 minerals, with beryl (Al2Be3Si6O18) and bertrandite (Be4Si2O7(OH)2) being the most commercially important. The United States is the largest producer of ... more »

How to Grow Borax Crystals

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

7 comments

You can easily make these icy-blue crystals - and have snowflakes year-round! You can make borax crystals in the shape of snowflakes or as ordinary crystals. See "Grow Sugar Crystals," under Related eHows, for instructions... more »

How to Hunt for Pyrite

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

Pryite, also known as fool's gold, is a common but beautiful mineral in the earth. Finding pyrite is easy if you know where to look. Here's how you can find pyrite of your own... more »

How to Identify Pumice

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

Pumice is a volcanic rock that is formed from lava with a high gas and water content. The lava becomes frothy as the gas escapes, and then becomes light, solidified foam when it cools and hardens. The word pumice comes from the Latin term "pumex" ... more »

How to Carve a Bowl out of Purple Jasper

By Wildscribe

2 comments

The art of carving gemstones and rocks is known as Lapidary, and it is a challenging and rewarding hobby. If would like to learn how to carve purple jasper, a mentor is the preferable way to learn... more »

How to Completely Destroy a Diamond

By cclough

2 comments

This will show you how to completely destroy a diamond... more »

How to Cut Gems

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

Faceting is the art of cutting precious gemstones. Some of the most popular gems are sapphire, ruby, emerald and topaz. Learning how to cut gems can be an interesting, fun hobby. It can also turn into a career... more »

How to Grow Alum Crystals

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

3 comments

Alum crystals form as attractive glasslike squares. Add different shades of food coloring and grow numerous crystals to make a colorful alum-crystal garden... more »

How to Grow Salt Crystals

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

7 comments

You can make salt crystals from either table salt or Epsom salt, and each forms crystals of a different shape. Use food coloring to make your crystals dazzling and colorful... more »

How to Grow Sugar Crystals

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

31 comments

The process of making sugar crystals is very similar to making salt crystals, but sugar crystals can be more fun because they're tasty treats. Try this recipe for your son or daughter's next science project, it's guaranteed to earn a good grade... more »

How to Identify Snowflake Obsidian

By eHow Hobbies, Games & Toys Editor

0 comments

Obsidian is lava that has cooled too rapidly for crystallization to occur. It is not a true mineral but is sometimes classified as mineraloid. It has a smooth, glassy appearance and the fracture edges are extremely sharp. Obsidian consists of at ... more »

How to Make a Volcano

By renatanycbz

1 comments

If your kid needs to make an erupting volcano for a science fair, I'll teach you how to make one. You only need a couple of ingredients to make this volcano. Also, after you finish your volcano, you can go ahead and decorate it with miniature ... more »

How to Smash and Melt a Diamond

By ishnupune

1 comments

A common misconception is that diamonds are unbreakable. It's true diamonds are strong enough to cut glass, however that doesn't mean they are indestructible. After speaking with a pawn shop representative he has revealed to me some steps to ... more »

Check Out All Categories

Articles in Rocks & Minerals