Basalt

Anthracite

Basalt vs Anthracite

Basalt

Anthracite

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1 Definition

1.1 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

Anthracite is a type of sedimentary rock which is hard and is variety of coal that has high luster

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Egypt

Pennsylvania, U.S.

1.2.2 Discoverer

Georgius Agricola

Unknown

1.3 Etymology

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

From Greek anthrakites, from anthrax, anthrak meaning coal

1.4 Class

Igneous Rocks

Metamorphic Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Soft Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Volcanic

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular

Amorphous, Glassy

2.2 Color

Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey

Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

81% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

81% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

86% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

65% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

66% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

42% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

49% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

19% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

48% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

15% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

2.5 Appearance

Dull and Soft

Veined or Pebbled

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Not Yet Used

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

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

Not Yet Used

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing, Whetstones

Not Yet Used

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

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

Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel Production

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Not Yet Used

In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Manufacture of Aspirins

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments

Not Yet Used

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

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

Alumina Refineries, Electricity Generation, Liquid Fuel, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Paper Industry

4 Types

4.1 Types

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

Semi-anthracite and Meta-anthracite

4.2 Features

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

Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

Not Yet Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

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

Not Applicable

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

Not Yet Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Data Not Available

Not Applicable

4.3.5 Pictographs

Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

Not Yet Used

4.4 Fossils

Absent

5 Formation

5.1 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.

Anthracite forms from the accumulation of plant debris in a swamp environment. When plant debris dies and falls into the swamp, the standing water of the swamp protects it from decay.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene

Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals

5.2.2 Compound Content

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

Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

97% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

50% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Contact Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

99% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

65% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering

Not Applicable

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

92% Igneous Rocks Rocks have it !

✔ ✘

77% Metamorphic Rocks Rocks have it !

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Not Available

Not Applicable

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

1-1.5

6.1.2 Grain Size

Fine Grained

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Conchoidal

6.1.4 Streak

White to Grey

Black

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Not Available

Shiny

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

Flint

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37.40 N/mm²

Rank: 28 (Overall)▶

Not Available

Rank: N/A (Overall)▶

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Obsidian

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175 (Granite)

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6.1.8 Cleavage

Not Available

Non-Existent

6.1.9 Toughness

2.3

Not Available

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.8-3

1.1-1.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.9-3.1 g/cm³

1.25-2.5 g/cm³

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

Banded iron for..

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▶

▼

0.84 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 15 (Overall)▶

1.32 kJ/Kg K

Rank: 4 (Overall)▶

▲

Granulite

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▶

1.09 (Travertine)

◀ ▶ ADD ⊕

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Heat Resistant, Water Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

India, Russia

Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam

7.1.2 Africa

South Africa

Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania

7.1.3 Europe

Iceland

Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

Canada, USA

Canada, Mexico, USA

7.2.2 South America

Brazil

Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

Not Yet Found

New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria

Basalt vs Anthracite 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 Basalt and Anthracite Reserves. Basalt is a common extrusive igneous rock formed by the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of Earth. Anthracite is a type of sedimentary rock which is hard and is variety of coal that has high luster. 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 Basalt vs Anthracite information and Basalt vs Anthracite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Basalt vs Anthracite 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. Basalt vs Anthracite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Basalt and Properties of Anthracite. Learn more about Basalt vs Anthracite in the next section. The interior uses of Basalt include Floor tiles, Homes, Hotels and Kitchens whereas the interior uses of Anthracite include Not yet used. Due to some exceptional properties of Basalt and Anthracite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Basalt in construction industry include Arrowheads, As dimension stone, Cobblestones, Cutting tool, Rail track ballast, Roadstone and that of Anthracite include Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Steel production.

More about Basalt and Anthracite

Here you can know more about Basalt and Anthracite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Basalt and Anthracite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Basalt includes Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene and mineral content of Anthracite includes Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Basalt vs Anthracite, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Basalt is available in black, brown, light to dark grey colors whereas, Anthracite is available in black, brown, dark brown, grey, light to dark grey colors. Appearance of Basalt is Dull and Soft and that of Anthracite is Veined or Pebbled. Properties of rock is another aspect for Basalt vs Anthracite. The hardness of Basalt is 6 and that of Anthracite is 1-1.5. The types of Basalt are Alkaline Basalt, Boninite, High Alumina Basalt, Mid Ocean Ridge Basalt (MORB), Tholeiitic Basalt, Basaltic trachyandesite, Mugearite and Shoshonite whereas types of Anthracite are Semi-anthracite and Meta-anthracite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Basalt is white to grey while that of Anthracite is black. The specific heat capacity of Basalt is 0.84 kJ/Kg K and that of Anthracite is 1.32 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Basalt is heat resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant whereas Anthracite is heat resistant, water resistant.