Pumice

Chert

Pumice vs Chert

Pumice

Chert

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1 Definition

1.1 Definition

Pumice is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals

Chert is a hard, dark, opaque sedimentary rock which is composed of silica with an amorphous fine-grained texture

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Spain

Unknown

1.2.2 Discoverer

Unknown

1.3 Etymology

From Old French pomis, from a Latin dialect variant of pumex

From flint-like quartz, 1670s, of unknown origin- a local term, which has been taken into geological use

1.4 Class

Igneous Rocks

Sedimentary Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Volcanic

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Vesicular

Banded, Rough

2.2 Color

Beige, Colourless, Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Pink, White, Yellow- grey

Black, Brown, Green, Grey, Red, White

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

81% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

59% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

86% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

62% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

66% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

43% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

49% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

38% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

48% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

22% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

2.5 Appearance

Vesicular

Glassy or Pearly

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Flooring, Homes, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, Homes

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing, Powder

Curbing

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, In landscaping and horticulture, Making natural cement, Production of lightweight concrete blocks

Arrowheads, Construction Aggregate, Cutting Tool, Spear Points

3.2.2 Medical Industry

As an abrasive in skin exfoliating products, In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

Not Yet Used

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts

Artifacts, Monuments

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

As a traction material on snow-covered roads, As an abrasive in pencil erasers, Fine abrasive used for polishing, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Used in aquariums

Creating Artwork, Gemstone, In fire-starting tools, Jewelry, To ignite fire, Used in flintlock firearms

4 Types

4.1 Types

Scoria

Flint, Jasper, Radiolarite, Common Chert, Chalcedony, Agate, Onyx, Opal, Magadi-type Chert, Porcelanite, Siliceous Sinter

4.2 Features

Host Rock for Lead

Clasts are smooth to touch, Easily splits into thin plates, Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Not Yet Used

Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

Not Applicable

Data Not Available

4.3.3 Sculpture

Not Yet Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Not Applicable

4.3.5 Pictographs

Used

Not Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Used

Not Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Not Yet Used

4.4 Fossils

Absent

Present

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Pumice rock forms when the magma cools so quickly that atoms in the melt are not able to arrange themselves into a crystalline structure.

Chert forms when microcrystals of silicon dioxide grow within soft sediments that become limestone or chalk. The chert formation can be either of chemical or biological origin.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Aluminum Oxides, Calcite, Carbonate, Iron Oxides, Silica

Quartz, Silicon

5.2.2 Compound Content

Al, Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, MgO, Silicon Dioxide

Silicon Dioxide

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

97% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

19% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism

Not Applicable

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

99% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

78% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Not Applicable

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

92% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

86% Sedimentary Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Chemical Erosion

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

6.5-7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Fine Grained

Very fine-grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Planar

Uneven, Splintery or Conchoidal

6.1.4 Streak

White, Greenish White or Grey

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Highly Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Earthy

Waxy and Dull

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

Flint

⊕

▶

▼

51.20 N/mm²

Rank: 26 (Overall)▶

450.00 N/mm²

Rank: 1 (Overall)▶

▲

Obsidian

⊕

▶

175 (Granite)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.1.8 Cleavage

Perfect

Non-Existent

6.1.9 Toughness

1.5

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.86

2.5-2.8

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

Translucent to Opaque

6.1.12 Density

0.25-0.3 g/cm³

2.7 g/cm³

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

Banded iron for..

⊕

▶

▼

0.87 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 14 (Overall)▶

0.74 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 19 (Overall)▶

▲

Granulite

⊕

▶

1.09 (Travertine)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.2.2 Resistance

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

Afghanistan, Indonesia, Japan, Russia

China, India, Iran, Japan, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam

7.1.2 Africa

Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania

Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania

7.1.3 Europe

Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Turkey

Austria, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

Greenland, Mid-Atlantic Ridge

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

Bahamas, Barbados, Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico, USA

Canada, Mexico, USA

7.2.2 South America

Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru

Bolivia, Brazil

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

New Zealand, Western Australia

New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia

Pumice vs Chert 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 Pumice and Chert Reserves. Pumice is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. Chert is a hard, dark, opaque sedimentary rock which is composed of silica with an amorphous fine-grained texture. 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 Pumice vs Chert information and Pumice vs Chert characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Pumice vs Chert 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. Pumice vs Chert characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Pumice and Properties of Chert. Learn more about Pumice vs Chert in the next section. The interior uses of Pumice include Decorative aggregates, Flooring, Homes and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Chert include Decorative aggregates and Homes. Due to some exceptional properties of Pumice and Chert, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Pumice in construction industry include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, In landscaping and horticulture, Making natural cement, Production of lightweight concrete blocks and that of Chert include Arrowheads, Construction aggregate, Cutting tool, Spear points.

More about Pumice and Chert

Here you can know more about Pumice and Chert. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Pumice and Chert consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Pumice includes Aluminum Oxides, Calcite, Carbonate, Iron Oxides, Silica and mineral content of Chert includes Quartz, Silicon. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Pumice vs Chert, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Pumice is available in beige, colourless, grey, light green, light grey, pink, white, yellow- grey colors whereas, Chert is available in black, brown, green, grey, red, white colors. Appearance of Pumice is Vesicular and that of Chert is Glassy or Pearly. Properties of rock is another aspect for Pumice vs Chert. The hardness of Pumice is 6 and that of Chert is 6.5-7. The types of Pumice are Scoria whereas types of Chert are Flint, Jasper, Radiolarite, Common Chert, Chalcedony, Agate, Onyx, Opal, Magadi-type Chert, Porcelanite, Siliceous Sinter. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Pumice and Chert is white, greenish white or grey. The specific heat capacity of Pumice is 0.87 kJ/Kg K and that of Chert is 0.74 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Pumice is impact resistant, pressure resistant whereas Chert is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.