Feldspar is the most abundantly found rock forming mineral on Earth. It constitutes about 60% percent of Earth's surface.
Feldspar is the foundation of the Earth's surface and even the oceans. It is used to provide strength, as a fluxing agent, reduce production costs and bring in gloss and shine in a finished product.
Feldspar is an integral part of our lives!
USES OF FELDSPAR
Builders love Feldspar as it provides durability and good looks to their creation!
Feldspar is primarily used in industrial applications for its alumina and alkali content. It is used heavily in the construction industry.
Feldspar minerals are used to manufacture a wide variety of glass and ceramic products. They are also widely used as fillers in paints, plastics and rubber.
Several popular gemstones are Feldspar minerals. These include moonstone, sunstone, labradorite, amazonite and spectrolite.
Most of the products we use on a daily basis are made with Feldspar
Glass for drinking and protection
Fiberglass for insulation
Building tiles ( ceramics) and shower basins in our bathrooms
Dinnerware from which we eat
ETYMOLOGY
The name is of German origin with an English twist!
The name is derived from the German Feldspat that consists of the words Feld ("field") and Spat ("flake"). Spat means "a rock easily cleaved into flakes".
The change from Spat to -spar is believed to be influenced by the English word spar which means a non-opaque mineral with good cleavage.
EXTRATERRESTRIAL PRESENCE
Feldspar is universal!
Feldspar has been discovered in other parts of our Solar System.
Astronauts brought back samples of rocks during their Lunar Apollo Missions. These samples have been found to be rich in Feldspar.
"Genesis Rock" is one of the most famous rocks ever collected from the surface of the Moon. Apollo 15 astronauts James Irwin and David Scott collected it from the Moon in 1971. It is approximately 4 billion years old.
A few dozen meteorites thought to have originated from Mars ("Black Beauty", the most famous one) have been analyzed. Most of them contain Feldspar minerals.
Many meteorites found on Earth are thought to have originated from the Vesta Asteroid, and many of them contain large amounts of Feldspar.
Feldspar is strong, beautiful, universal and above all immensely useful!
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