Minerals Specific Gravity

Reference data and engineering information about minerals specific gravity for thermodynamics applications.

mineralsspecificgravity

Overview

Engineering reference data for Minerals Specific Gravity in thermodynamics.

Key Formulas

First Law

$\Delta U = Q - W$

Energy is conserved — heat added minus work done.

Ideal Gas Law

$PV = nRT$

Relates pressure, volume, and temperature of an ideal gas.

Carnot Efficiency

$\eta = 1 - T_C/T_H$

Maximum efficiency between two temperatures.

Variables

Symbol	Description	Unit
$U$	Internal energy	J
$Q$	Heat	J
$W$	Work	J
$P$	Pressure	Pa
$V$	Volume	m³
$T$	Temperature	K

Mineral Specific Gravity Reference Table

The following table provides specific gravity values for common minerals, ores, and rock materials used in engineering and mining applications. Specific gravity is defined as the ratio of a material's density to the density of water (ρ_water = 1000 kg/m³ at 4°C).

84 rows

Specific gravities of common minerals, ores, and rock materials
Mineral	Formula	Specific Gravity
Andesite	—	2.8
Barite	—	4.3
Basalt	—	2.9
Bauxite	—	2.4
Biotite	complex	2.8 – 3.2
Calcite	CaCO₃	2.71
Cement clinker	—	3.1
Cement raw material	—	2.7
Chrome ore	—	4.1
Clay	—	2.2
Clay, calcined	—	2.3
Coal	—	1.6
Coke	—	1.5
Copper ore	—	3.0
Coral	—	2.7
Diorite	—	2.8
Dolomite	CaMg(CO₃)₂	2.85
Emery	—	3.5
Feldspar	—	2.6
Ferrochrome	—	6.7
Ferromanganese	—	5.9
Ferrosilicon	—	4.9
Flint	—	2.7
Fluorspar	—	3.0
Gabbro	—	2.8
Galena	—	5.4
Garnet	—	3.3
Glass	—	2.6
Gneiss	—	2.7
Gold ore	—	2.9
Granite	—	2.7
Graphite	—	1.8
Gravel	—	2.7
Gypsum	CaSO₄·2H₂O	2.3
Gypsum rock	—	2.7
Hematite	Fe₂O₃	5.2 – 5.3
Illite	complex	2.6 – 2.86
Ilmenite	—	4.3
Iron ore	—	4.0
K Feldspar	KAlSi₃O₈	2.54 – 2.57
Kaolinite	Al₂Si₂O₅(OH)₄	2.61 – 2.66
Kyanite	—	3.2
Lead ore	—	3.4
Lead-zinc ore	—	3.4
Limestone	—	2.7
Limestone for cement	—	2.7
Magnesite, dead burned	—	5.2
Manganese ore	—	3.7
Mica	—	2.9
Molybdenum	—	2.7
Montmorillonite	complex	2.74 – 2.78
Muscovite	varies	2.76 – 3.0
Na Feldspar	NaAlSi₂O₈	2.62 – 2.76
Nickel ore	—	3.3
Oil shale	—	1.8
Phosphate fertilizer	—	2.7
Phosphate rock	—	2.7
Potash ore	—	2.4
Potash salt	—	2.2
Pumice	—	2.0
Pyrite ore	—	3.5
Pyrrhotite ore	—	4.0
Quartz	SiO₂	2.65
Quartzite	—	2.7
Rutile ore	—	2.8
Sandstone	—	2.7
Serpentine	Mg₃Si₂O₅(OH)₄	2.5 – 2.6
Shale	—	2.6
Silica	—	2.7
Silica sand	—	2.7
Silicon carbide	—	2.7
Silver ore	—	2.7
Sinter	—	3.0
Slag	—	2.9
Slate	—	2.5
Sodium silicate	—	2.1
Spodumene ore	—	2.8
Syenite	—	2.7
Tile	—	2.6
Tin ore	—	3.9
Titanium ore	—	4.2
Trap rock	—	2.9
Uranium ore	—	2.7
Zinc ore	—	3.7

Source: engineeringtoolbox.com

Practical Applications

Specific gravity values are essential for:

Bulk material handling — Converting between volume and weight for stockpile estimation and conveyor capacity calculations
Mineral processing — Gravity separation techniques exploit differences in specific gravity to concentrate valuable minerals
Geotechnical engineering — Estimating in-situ density of rock masses and foundation materials

References

Original Source

Source: engineeringtoolbox.com