PERIODIC TABLES FOR GEOLOGY

Geologists teach many topics that include Periodic Tables as tools of instruction. Students from non-major freshmen in Physical Geology to geology majors in capstone courses use the same static Periodic Table. Nine different Periodic Tables have been developed to enhance teaching geology. Each table has colored coded boxes and triangles that indicate each element’s chemical affinity. We use a seven-fold classification of the elements into siderophile, chalcophile, lithophile, atmophile, biophile, hydrophile, and cosmophile.

The nine different Periodic Tables are Physical Geology, Mineralogy, Distribution of Elements in Minerals, Geochemistry, Environmental Geochemistry, Economic Geology, Radioactive Elements, Distribution of the Elements, and Cosmochemistry. Common features are: including just the elements 1 – 94 (H to Pu) and geochemical classification of the elements with each element coded with its chemical affinity. Surrounding each table are short descriptions of topics, tables, and figures. For example the Periodic Table for Economic Geology has USGS and other data such as mineral and element production, price, and import/export. The Periodic Table for Physical Geology includes a table of the classification of the elements and tables of abundance of elements in Earth’s crust, ocean, and humans. Additionally, it defines the classification of the elements and displays them on in the body of the table. Furthermore, it has short definitions and examples of elements, minerals, rocks, and geology. The tables for teaching mineralogy within the Periodic Table include size, electronegativity, and charge. Further information included are figures and tables of common coordination sites and tables of common lithophile, siderophile and chalcophile minerals. There is also a discussion of the factors that control substitution in minerals. The Periodic Tables can be printed in any size from 9 x 11 inches to large format printers. Geology classrooms and labs can have on the walls large Periodic Tables that focus on one of nine subjects.