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Basalt
Basalt

Breccia
Breccia



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Basalt vs Breccia

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Definition

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
Breccia is a rock consisting of angular fragments of stones which are cemented by finer calcareous material

History

Origin

Egypt
England

Discoverer

Georgius Agricola
Unknown

Etymology

From Late Latin Basaltes (variant of basanites ), very hard stone, which was imported from Ancient Greek Basanites
From Italian, literally gravel, Germanic origin and related to break

Class

Igneous Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic
-

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular
Brecciated, Clastic

Color

Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey
Beige, Black, Blue, Brown, Buff, Green, Grey, Orange, Pink, Purple, Red, Rust, White, Yellow

Maintenance

More
Less

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Dull and Soft
Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

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

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing, Whetstones
Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

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

Medical Industry

-
-

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments
Artifacts, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

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

Types

Types

Alkaline Basalt, Boninite, High Alumina Basalt, Mid Ocean Ridge Basalt (MORB), Tholeiitic Basalt, Basaltic trachyandesite, Mugearite and Shoshonite
Collapse Breccia, Fault Breccia, Flow Breccia, Pyroclastic Breccia, Igneous Breccia and Impact Breccia

Features

Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate, Very fine grained rock
Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Clasts are 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
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Sculpture

-
-

Famous Sculptures

-
-

Pictographs

-
-

Petroglyphs

-
-

Figurines

-
-

Fossils

Absent
Present

Formation

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.
Breccia is a clastic sedimentary rock which is composed of broken fragments of minerals or rock which are cemented together by a fine-grained matrix and it forms where broken, angular fragments of rock or mineral debris accumulate.

Composition

Mineral Content

Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene
Calcite, Clay, Feldspar, Phosphates, Quartz, Silica

Compound Content

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

Transformation

Metamorphism

Types of Metamorphism

Contact Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism

Weathering

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

Types of Erosion

-
Chemical Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

67
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine Grained
Medium to Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal
Uneven

Streak

White to Grey
White

Porosity

Less Porous
Less Porous

Luster

-
Dull to Pearly

Compressive Strength

37.40 N/mm2180.00 N/mm2
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

-
-

Toughness

2.3
-

Specific Gravity

2.8-32.86-2.87
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.9-3.1 g/cm30 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

India, Russia
China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, South Korea, Uzbekistan

Africa

South Africa
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa

Europe

Iceland
Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Others

-
Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Barbados, Canada, Mexico, Panama, USA

South America

Brazil
Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

-
New South Wales, New Zealand

Basalt vs Breccia 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 Breccia 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. Breccia is a rock consisting of angular fragments of stones which are cemented by finer calcareous material. 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 Breccia information and Basalt vs Breccia characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Basalt vs Breccia 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 Breccia characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Basalt and Properties of Breccia. Learn more about Basalt vs Breccia in the next section. The interior uses of Basalt include Floor tiles, Homes, Hotels and Kitchens whereas the interior uses of Breccia include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Entryways, Floor tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Basalt and Breccia, 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 Breccia include As dimension stone, Construction aggregate, Landscaping, Roadstone.

More about Basalt and Breccia

Here you can know more about Basalt and Breccia. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Basalt and Breccia consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Basalt includes Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene and mineral content of Breccia includes Calcite, Clay, Feldspar, Phosphates, Quartz, Silica. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Basalt vs Breccia, 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, Breccia is available in beige, black, blue, brown, buff, green, grey, orange, pink, purple, red, rust, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Basalt is Dull and Soft and that of Breccia is Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny. Properties of rock is another aspect for Basalt vs Breccia. The hardness of Basalt is 6 and that of Breccia is 7. 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 Breccia are Collapse Breccia, Fault Breccia, Flow Breccia, Pyroclastic Breccia, Igneous Breccia and Impact Breccia. 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 Breccia is white. The specific heat capacity of Basalt is 0.84 kJ/Kg K and that of Breccia is 0.84 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 Breccia is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.