Basalt

Gabbro

Basalt and Gabbro

Basalt

Gabbro

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Definition

Basalt is a common extrusive igneous rock formed by the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of Earth

Gabbro is an intrusive igneous rock which is chemically equivalent to plutonic Basalt

History

Origin

Egypt

Germany

Discoverer

Georgius Agricola

Christian Leopold von Buch

Etymology

From Late Latin Basaltes (variant of basanites ), very hard stone, which was imported from Ancient Greek Basanites

From Latin glaber bare, smooth, bald

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic

Plutonic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular

Phaneritic

Color

Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey

Dark Grey to Black

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull and Soft

Veined and Shiny

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

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

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

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing, Whetstones

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

Arrowheads, As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones, Cutting Tool, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone

As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

An Oil and Gas Reservoir, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Used in aquariums

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Laboratory bench tops, Jewelry, Sea Defence, Tombstones

Types

Alkaline Basalt, Boninite, High Alumina Basalt, Mid Ocean Ridge Basalt (MORB), Tholeiitic Basalt, Basaltic trachyandesite, Mugearite and Shoshonite

Anorthosite Gabbro and Norite Gabbro

Features

Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate, Very fine grained rock

Smooth to touch

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Easter Island in the Polynesian Triangle, Pacific Ocean, Gateway of India in Mumbai, India, Gol Gumbaz in Karnataka, India

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Basalt forms when lava reaches the Earth's surface near an active volcano. The temperature of lava is between 1100 to 1250° C when it gets to the surface.

Gabbro, a mafic rock, forms due to cooling and crystallization of magma underneath Earth's surface.

Composition

Mineral Content

Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene

Augite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene

Compound Content

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

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Chromium(III) Oxide, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Sulfur Trioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Contact Metamorphism

Impact Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering

Chemical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Coastal Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine Grained

Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Streak

White to Grey

Black

Porosity

Less Porous

Highly Porous

Luster

Compressive Strength

37.40 N/mm²225.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

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Cleavage

Toughness

2.3

1.6

Specific Gravity

2.8-32.86-2.87

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

2.9-3.1 g/cm³2.7-3.3 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.71 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

India, Russia

Africa

South Africa

Europe

Iceland

Germany, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Turkey

Others

Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA

South America

Brazil

Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New Zealand, Queensland

All about Basalt and Gabbro Properties

Know all about Basalt and Gabbro properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Basalt and Gabbro belong to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Basalt is Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular whereas that of Gabbro is Phaneritic. Basalt appears Dull and Soft and Gabbro appears Veined and Shiny. The luster of Basalt and Gabbro is . Basalt is available in black, brown, light to dark grey colors whereas Gabbro is available in dark grey to black colors. The commercial uses of Basalt are an oil and gas reservoir, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, used in aquariums and that of Gabbro are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, laboratory bench tops, jewelry, sea defence, tombstones.