Basalt vs Sandstone

Basalt vs Sandstone 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 Sandstone 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. Sandstone is defined as a rock which is composed of sand-sized grains of various minerals mostly of uniform size and often are smooth and rounded. 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 Sandstone information and Basalt vs Sandstone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Basalt vs Sandstone 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 Sandstone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Basalt and Properties of Sandstone. Learn more about Basalt vs Sandstone in the next section. The interior uses of Basalt include Floor tiles, Homes, Hotels and Kitchens whereas the interior uses of Sandstone include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Basalt and Sandstone, 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 Sandstone include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Production of glass and ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar.

More about Basalt and Sandstone

Here you can know more about Basalt and Sandstone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Basalt and Sandstone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Basalt includes Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene and mineral content of Sandstone includes Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Basalt vs Sandstone, 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, Sandstone is available in beige, black, brown, colourless, cream, dark brown, green, grey, light green, light to dark grey, pink, red, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Basalt is Dull and Soft and that of Sandstone is Rough. Properties of rock is another aspect for Basalt vs Sandstone. The hardness of Basalt is 6 and that of Sandstone is 6-7. 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 Sandstone are Grey Sandstones, Crystallized Sandstones, Hard Sandstones , Carbonate Cemented Sandstones and Ganister. 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 Sandstone is white. The specific heat capacity of Basalt is 0.84 kJ/Kg K and that of Sandstone is 0.92 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 Sandstone is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant.