what is the most common type of bonding in minerals?
In molecules, elements are not merely mixed together, but are joined by chemical bonds. Chemical bonds in minerals are of four types: covalent, ionic, metallic, or Van der Waals, with covalent and ionic bonds most common. Two or more of these bond types can and do coexist in most minerals. Covalent bonds are very strong bonds formed when atoms share electrons with neighboring atoms. Sulfur, and both of carbon's natural forms, graphite and diamond, are covalently-bonded minerals. So is quartz, which contains only silicon and oxygen.