Blueschist

Skarn

Blueschist and Skarn

Blueschist

Skarn

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Definition

Blueschist is a metamorphic rock which is generally blue in color and is formed under conditions of high pressure and low temperature

Skarns are formed during regional or contact metamorphism and from a variety of metasomatic processes involving fluids of magmatic, metamorphic, and/or marine origin

History

Origin

USA

USA, Australia

Discoverer

Edgar Bailey

Tornebohm

Etymology

From French schiste, Greek skhistos i.e. split

From an old Swedish mining term originally used to describe a type of silicate gangue or waste rock.

Class

Metamorphic Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Foliated

Earthy, Mud-rich, Rough

Color

Blue, Bluish - Grey, Purple, Shades of Blue

Black, Brown, Green, Grey, White

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull and Banded

Dull

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

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

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone

As a Flux in the Production of Steel and Pig Iron, As a Sintering Agent in Steel Industry to process Iron Ore, As Dimension Stone, Gold and Silver production, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Curling, Tombstones

Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry, Metallurgical Flux, Source of Magnesia (MgO)

Types

Metamorphic rock

Endoskarns

Features

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

Host Rock for Lead, Zinc and Copper Deposits

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Blueschist forms due to the metamorphism of basalt and other rocks with similar composition at high pressures and low temperatures and approximately corresponding to a depth of 15 to 30 kilometers and 200 to 500 °C.

Due to change in environmental conditions, rocks are heated and pressurized deep inside the Earth's surface. Skarn is formed from the extreme heat caused by magma or by the intense collisions and friction of tectonic plates.

Composition

Mineral Content

Albite, Chlorite, Epidote, Garnet, Glaucophane, Lawsonite, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz

Calcite, Enstatite, Epidote, Garnet, Magnetite, Pyroxene, Titanite

Compound Content

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

Au, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Cu, Fe, MgO

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

3.5-46.5

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine to Medium Grained

Fine Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Irregular

Streak

White to Grey

Light to dark brown

Porosity

Highly Porous

Less Porous

Luster

Dull

Waxy and Dull

Compressive Strength

220.00 N/mm²70.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Slaty

Toughness

1.5

2.4

Specific Gravity

3-3.22.86

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

2.8-2.9 g/cm³2.8-2.9 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Heat Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Japan, Turkey

China, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sri Lanka

Africa

Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa

South Africa, Western Africa

Europe

France, Greece, Iceland

United Kingdom

Others

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

USA

Canada

South America

Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New Zealand

Central Australia, Western Australia

All about Blueschist and Skarn Properties

Know all about Blueschist and Skarn properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Blueschist and Skarn belong to Metamorphic Rocks.Texture of Blueschist is Foliated whereas that of Skarn is Earthy, Mud-rich, Rough. Blueschist appears Dull and Banded and Skarn appears Dull. The luster of Blueschist is dull while that of Skarn is waxy and dull. Blueschist is available in blue, bluish - grey, purple, shades of blue colors whereas Skarn is available in black, brown, green, grey, white colors. The commercial uses of Blueschist are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, curling, tombstones and that of Skarn are creating artwork, gemstone, jewelry, metallurgical flux, source of magnesia (mgo).