Formation of Minerals from Solutions   - Water on Earth, such as water in the oceans, contains dissolved chemical elements mixed into a solution. Various processes can cause these dissolved elements to combine and form solid minerals.     One way minerals can form from solutions is by evaporation. When water evaporates, elements dissolved in the water are left behind as mineral crystals. Another way minerals can form from solutions is by precipitation. Water can hold only a certain amount of dissolved elements. When this limit is exceeded, particles come together to form mineral solids,... Show more

Formation of Minerals from Solutions   - Water on Earth, such as water in the oceans, contains dissolved chemical elements mixed into a solution. Various processes can cause these dissolved elements to combine and form solid minerals.    
One way minerals can form from solutions is by evaporation. When water evaporates, elements dissolved in the water are left behind as mineral crystals. Another way minerals can form from solutions is by precipitation. Water can hold only a certain amount of dissolved elements. When this limit is exceeded, particles come together to form mineral solids, which sink to the bottom of the water. Both halite and calcite easily precipitate out of water in this way.    
A third way minerals can form from solutions is by deposition in rock underground. Magma heats nearby underground water, and the hot water dissolves elements from rock. Then, as the water flows through open spaces in rock, it cools. The cool water cannot hold as many dissolved elements as the hot water, so it deposits some of the elements as mineral crystals. When minerals are deposited in cracks in rock, they form long, narrow deposits called veins.    
When minerals are deposited in open spaces in rock, they form large mineral crystals called geodes.    

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