Mineralogy 101
Disclaimer: At the time of writing, all information in this book is correct. However, over time, the information may become out of date.
Introduction
The distinction between minerals in a mining and/or manufacturing environment can sometimes get rather confusing. Over the course of this handbook, we hope to give you at least a rudimentary education on the various minerals most commonly found in a space environment, and what they should be used for. This is especially helpful if you are trying to understand the recent (as of the time of writing) changes made to the NanoTrasen "AutoArtisan" standard-issue Manufacturing Units.
Mauxite
Classification: Sturdy Metal
Mauxite is a common metal alloy, characterised by its dull reddish-brown color and mild coppery smell. It is commonly used in construction projects due to being very durable while still rather easy to work with, no doubt due to it being an alloy comprised mostly of naturally occurring steel with elements of copper and zinc also present among other elements. It tends to be rather easy to find in space due to its abundance, and poses little risk during extraction or refinement.
Pharosium
Classification: Metal, Conductor
Easily recognizable due to its distinct bright orange hue, Pharosium is a conductive metal found in plentiful quantity and as such is generally considered an industry standard. It finds most common use in electrical wiring and circuit boards. Often, basic electronics are comprised mostly of Pharosium and Mauxite in their construction.
Molitz
Classification: Crystal
Somewhat similar to both Quartz and glass found on Earth, Molitz is a crystal formation that bears the best qualities of both, being durable enough to withstand significant shock, and at the same time easy to work with due to its abundance and malleability. It most often finds use in glass installations on space stations, most often affixed into place as a fine sealant and durable enough to not pose a potential atmospheric hazard in everyday circumstances.
Char
Classification: Not Construction Grade Material
Char is a black, flaky substance mostly comprised of carbon, and bears a significant similarity to coal. While it is not generally used in construction projects due to its brittle and weak structure, it does often find use as a fuel source for basic combustion power systems. It can also be used in chemistry, as a means of acquiring large amounts of carbon and other trace elements. The origin of this mineral is unknown, as the process of creating coal could not feasibly occur in deep space.
Cobryl
Classification: Metal
While it rarely finds use in industrial and construction projects, Cobryl nevertheless finds itself as a notable material due to its popularity with industries that deal in luxury. It is light blue in coloration, and when properly treated and cleaned displays a unique lustre not seen in other materials. It has marginal strength as a metal and as such can be used in small-scale constructions, but it should not be used for anything that requires significant sturdiness.
Cytine
Classification: Crystal
Cytines are small gemstones of varying color. While no stronger than Molitz at best, they are prized by jewel collectors and luxury goods traders for their compact shapes, light weight and highly varied color.
Fibrilith
Classification: Not Construction Grade Material
Fibrilith is a highly strange mineral known for both its unusual threaded molecular structure and its extreme softness for a mineral substance. While it is not paticularly useful in any kind of construction project, it has been successfully woven into a fabric highly similar to linen. As such, it is prized by textile industries and used in clothing.
Bohrum
Classification: Dense Metal, Dense Matter
Well known among the scientific community for its bizarre chemical makeup, Bohrum is equally well known among the construction industry for its incredible resilience to damage. It is known to be an alloy of iron, titanium, krypton, xenon, silver and lead, as well as several previously undiscovered chemical elements which are subject to intense research. While the noble gases have been formed into compounds in laboratory settings, having them occur naturally with such complexity was previously considered unthinkable. In spite of these unknown qualities, Bohrum as has yet proven to be an incredibly safe material to work with and possesses immense strength as a construction material, though its high density makes it very heavy and thus it is not suited to certain structural projects.
Claretine
Classification: High Energy Conductor
A mineral salt of a brilliant bright red coloration, Claretine is a high-end electrical conductor, able to conduct immense amounts of electricity without suffering any damage at all. At paticularly high energy states, Pharosium and other lower grade conductors have been known to lose efficiency due to heat and eventually break down and melt - Claretine appears to have an incredible resistance to heat in general, and thus is spun into wire spools and used for electrical wiring in paticularly high-energy systems. It is not common however, and should be used resourcefully.
Telecrystal
Classification: Crystal, High Energy Power Source
With its deep purple coloration and constantly shimmering lustre, one may be prone to mistaking Telecrystal as any other kind of gemstone - beautiful, but ultimately of little practical use. This is not the case; Telecrystal is well known among industries and science for its extremely unusual spatial warping properties. Though it is generally not able to transmit large amounts of matter reliably, it has seen some use in experimental (often illegal) technology, particularly by smugglers and terrorists dealing in articles of contraband. However, despite its use as a matter transmitter and potent energy source, Telecrystal is generally not established as a safe material, and caution should be exercised when handling and using it. Research continues on this mineral to this day.
Miracle Matter
Classification: Anomalous
Extremely unusual in every regard, Miracle Matter is largely considered a chameleon among minerals, well known for arbitrarily mimicing the molecular structure and chemical composition of other minerals under highly specific conditions. While research continues on the subject, it is suspected that subjecting Miracle Matter to a high degree of shock in the presence of dust or regolith from other minerals will cause it to mimic the structure of whatever mineral dust first touches it after the Miracle Matter is "activated", so to speak.
Uqill
Classification: High Density Matter
Uqill is an extremely dense and heavy mineral, known for its dull jet black appearance. While extremely difficult to work with due to its profound resilience, Uqill is generally used when large amounts of raw matter are needed in a compressed space, such as the industry standard Dyna*Tech Rapid Construction Device (known more coloquially as "RCD". It also finds use in drills and other materials that require a great deal of robustness.
Cerenkite
Classification: Metal, Power Source
Cerenkite is a light blue highly radioactive soft metal that is used as a power source in various industries. While the dangers of mining radioactive minerals are already well known, Cerenkite poses its own particular hazard in that it is notoriously prone to accumulating regolith (a fine mineral dust) which is easily disturbed and dispersed into the air when the mineral is handled. As such, miners risk being exposed both externally and internally to the radiation if the proper precautions are not taken when handling Cerenkite.
Plasmastone
Classification: Crystal, Power Source
One of the physical naturally occurring forms of the scientifically nebulous "Plasma" substance that almost exclusively powers modern space travel and industry. This is plasma in a crystalline form - care should be taken when handling it, as it will explode if exposed to high temperatures or flames, though not to the same degree as the far more violent Erebite (which can sometimes be found in plasmastone seams). Plasmastone of course has many of the same properties as plasma in other matter states and such can find use as a power source for certain devices.
Syreline
Classification: Metal
Syreline is of immense value to the luxury commodity industry, being an alloy of several precious metals and having beautiful light refracting and reflecting properties in its natural state. While it is soft and a poor choice for building materials, the prices it commands on the mineral market more than make up for its physical weakness.
Erebite
Classification: Power Source
Erebite is an infamously dangerous and volatile mineral that has become increasingly rare in space mining as of late, no doubt due to its propensity to violently explode if exposed to even mild amounts of heat or shock. Several high profile industrial accidents have been caused by improper erebite handling. In spite of its hostile and deadly nature however, erebite has unique energy-altering properties that make it invaluable as an internal power source, or as explosives.
Starstone
Classification: Crystal
Starstone is a highly rare mineral not found in the vast majority of mining areas. While not paticularly useful as a construction grade material (being only as strong as mid-grade Molitz at best), the unusual star-shaped crystal lattices making up this jewel make the few instances of it found by astrogeologists highly prized collectors items. Sapient members of the Rock Snake race in paticular tend to buy these for high prices, as even a small five gram crystal is able to provide several months worth of nutrients for them.