Basalt

Litchfieldite

Basalt vs Litchfieldite

Basalt

Litchfieldite

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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

Litchfieldite is a rare igneous rock which is coarse-grained, foliated and a variety of nepheline syenite, sometimes also called as nepheline syenite gneiss or gneissic nepeheline syenite

History

Origin

Egypt

USA

Discoverer

Georgius Agricola

Bayley

Etymology

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

From its occurrence at Litchfield, Maine, USA

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic

Plutonic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular

Granular

Color

Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey

Brown, Buff, Cream, Green, Grey, Pink, White

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull and Soft

Banded and Foilated

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Flooring, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

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

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing, Whetstones

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

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

As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Landscaping, Making natural cement, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories, Production of Glass and Ceramics

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

Creating Artwork

Types

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

Borolanite and Litchfieldite

Features

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

Application of acids on the surface causes cloudy frosting, Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Dissolves in hydrochloric acid, Is one of the oldest rock

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.

Litchfieldite 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.

Composition

Mineral Content

Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene

Albite, Amphibole, Biotite, Cancrinite, Feldspar, Hornblende, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Sodalite

Compound Content

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

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Contact Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering

Biological Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

65.5-6

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine Grained

Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Conchoidal to Uneven

Streak

White to Grey

White

Porosity

Less Porous

Luster

Greasy to Dull

Compressive Strength

37.40 N/mm²150.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Toughness

2.3

Specific Gravity

2.8-32.6

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Translucent to Opaque

Density

2.9-3.1 g/cm³2.6 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.79 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

India, Russia

Africa

South Africa

Europe

Iceland

Finland, Norway, Portugal

Others

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA

Canada

South America

Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

Basalt vs Litchfieldite 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 Litchfieldite 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. Litchfieldite is a rare igneous rock which is coarse-grained, foliated and a variety of nepheline syenite, sometimes also called as nepheline syenite gneiss or gneissic nepeheline syenite. 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 Litchfieldite information and Basalt vs Litchfieldite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Basalt vs Litchfieldite 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 Litchfieldite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Basalt and Properties of Litchfieldite. Learn more about Basalt vs Litchfieldite in the next section. The interior uses of Basalt include Floor tiles, Homes, Hotels and Kitchens whereas the interior uses of Litchfieldite include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Flooring and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Basalt and Litchfieldite, 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 Litchfieldite include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Landscaping, Making natural cement, Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories, Production of glass and ceramics.

More about Basalt and Litchfieldite

Here you can know more about Basalt and Litchfieldite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Basalt and Litchfieldite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Basalt includes Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene and mineral content of Litchfieldite includes Albite, Amphibole, Biotite, Cancrinite, Feldspar, Hornblende, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Sodalite. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Basalt vs Litchfieldite, 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, Litchfieldite is available in brown, buff, cream, green, grey, pink, white colors. Appearance of Basalt is Dull and Soft and that of Litchfieldite is Banded and Foilated. Properties of rock is another aspect for Basalt vs Litchfieldite. The hardness of Basalt is 6 and that of Litchfieldite is 5.5-6. 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 Litchfieldite are Borolanite and Litchfieldite. 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 Litchfieldite is white. The specific heat capacity of Basalt is 0.84 kJ/Kg K and that of Litchfieldite is 0.79 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 Litchfieldite is heat resistant, impact resistant, wear resistant.