Porphyry

Felsite

Porphyry vs Felsite

Porphyry

Felsite

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1 Definition

1.1 Definition

Porphyry is a reddish-brown to purple igneous rock containing large phenocrysts of various minerals embedded in a fine-grained matrix

Felsite is a very fine grained volcanic rock that may or may not contain larger crystals and light colored rock that typically requires petrographic examination or chemical analysis for more precise definition

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Egypt

Unknown

1.2.2 Discoverer

Unknown

1.3 Etymology

From Old French porfire, from Italian porfiro and in some cases directly from Latin porphyrites

From English feldspar and -ite

1.4 Class

Igneous Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Plutonic

Volcanic

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Porphyritic

Arborescent Patterned, Vitreous

2.2 Color

Black, Brown, Colourless, Green, Grey, Red, Rust, White

Black, Blue, Brown, Green, Orange, Red, Tan, Yellow

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

81% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

81% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

86% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

86% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

66% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

66% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

49% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

49% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

48% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

48% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

2.5 Appearance

Dull

Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, Flooring, Interior Decoration

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

Garden Decoration, Paving Stone

Paving Stone, Garden Decoration

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

Construction Aggregate

Arrowheads, Cutting Tool, Knives, Scrapers, Spear Points

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Not Yet Used

Surgery

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Artifacts

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry

Mirror, Jewelry

4 Types

4.1 Types

Rhomb Porphyry

Not Available

4.2 Features

Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Surfaces are often shiny

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Clasts are smooth to touch, Splintery, Very fine grained rock

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

Not Yet Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

Data Not Available

Not Applicable

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

Not Yet Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Data Not Available

Not Applicable

4.3.5 Pictographs

Not Used

Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Not Used

Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

Not Yet Used

4.4 Fossils

Absent

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Porphyry is formed in two stages: the magma cools slowly deep within the crust or the magma is cools rapidly as it erupts from a volcano, creating small grains that are usually invisible to naked eye.

Felsite is a fine-grained, hard rock which is a type of metasomatite, essentially altered basalt. It forms with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive rocks or on the surface as extrusive rocks.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Biotite, Chert, Feldspar, Garnet, Graphite, Quartz, Silica

Feldspar, Iron Oxides

5.2.2 Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

97% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

97% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

99% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

99% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Not Registered

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

92% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

92% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

6-7

5-5.5

6.1.2 Grain Size

Fine Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Irregular

Conchoidal

6.1.4 Streak

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

Very Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull

Vitreous

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

Flint

⊕

▶

▼

Not Available

Rank: N/A (Overall)▶

0.15 N/mm²

Rank: 33 (Overall)▶

▲

Obsidian

⊕

▶

175 (Granite)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.1.8 Cleavage

Imperfect

Non-Existent

6.1.9 Toughness

1.7

Not Available

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.5-4

2.6-2.7

6.1.11 Transparency

Translucent to Opaque

Translucent

6.1.12 Density

2.5-2.52 g/cm³

2.6 g/cm³

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

Banded iron for..

⊕

▶

▼

Not Available

Rank: N/A (Overall)▶

0.92 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 10 (Overall)▶

▲

Granulite

⊕

▶

1.09 (Travertine)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

China, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam

Afghanistan, Indonesia, Japan, Russia

7.1.2 Africa

Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa

Kenya

7.1.3 Europe

Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland

Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Turkey

7.1.4 Others

Greenland

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

Canada, Cuba, Jamaica, USA

Canada, Mexico, USA

7.2.2 South America

Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay

Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand, Western Australia

New Zealand

Porphyry vs Felsite Information

Earth’s outer layer is covered by rocks and these rocks have different physical and chemical properties. As two rocks are not same, it’s fun to compare them. You can also know more about Porphyry and Felsite Reserves. Porphyry is a reddish-brown to purple igneous rock containing large phenocrysts of various minerals embedded in a fine-grained matrix. Felsite is a very fine grained volcanic rock that may or may not contain larger crystals and light colored rock that typically requires petrographic examination or chemical analysis for more precise definition. These rocks are composed of many distinct minerals. The process of formation of rocks is different for various rocks. Rocks are quarried from many years for various purposes. You can check out Porphyry vs Felsite information and Porphyry vs Felsite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Porphyry vs Felsite Characteristics

Though some rocks look identical, they have certain characteristics which distinguish them from others. Characteristics of rocks include texture, appearance, color, fracture, streak, hardness etc. Porphyry vs Felsite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Porphyry and Properties of Felsite. Learn more about Porphyry vs Felsite in the next section. The interior uses of Porphyry include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Felsite include Decorative aggregates, Flooring and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Porphyry and Felsite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Porphyry in construction industry include Construction aggregate and that of Felsite include Arrowheads, Cutting tool, Knives, Scrapers, Spear points.

More about Porphyry and Felsite

Here you can know more about Porphyry and Felsite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Porphyry and Felsite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Porphyry includes Biotite, Chert, Feldspar, Garnet, Graphite, Quartz, Silica and mineral content of Felsite includes Feldspar, Iron Oxides. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Porphyry vs Felsite, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Porphyry is available in black, brown, colourless, green, grey, red, rust, white colors whereas, Felsite is available in black, blue, brown, green, orange, red, tan, yellow colors. Appearance of Porphyry is Dull and that of Felsite is Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny. Properties of rock is another aspect for Porphyry vs Felsite. The hardness of Porphyry is 6-7 and that of Felsite is 5-5.5. The types of Porphyry are Rhomb Porphyry whereas types of Felsite are Not Available. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Porphyry and Felsite is white. The specific heat capacity of Porphyry is Not Available and that of Felsite is 0.92 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Porphyry is heat resistant, impact resistant whereas Felsite is heat resistant, impact resistant.