Blueschist

Websterite

Blueschist and Websterite

Blueschist

Websterite

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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

Websterite is ultramafic and ultrabasic rock that consists of roughly equal proportions of orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene. It is a special type of pyroxenite.

History

Origin

USA

Webster, North Carolina

Discoverer

Edgar Bailey

Unknown

Etymology

From French schiste, Greek skhistos i.e. split

From the town of Webster located in North Carolina

Class

Metamorphic Rocks

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Plutonic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Foliated

Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic

Color

Blue, Bluish - Grey, Purple, Shades of Blue

Black to Grey, Bluish - Grey, Dark Greenish - Grey, Green, Light Greenish Grey

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull and Banded

Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, 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 Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

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

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Laboratory bench tops, Jewelry, Sea Defence, Tombstones

Types

Metamorphic rock

Ultramafic rock

Features

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

Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock

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.

Websterite can be formed as cumulates in ultramafic intrusions by accumulation of pyroxene crystals at the base of the lava chamber.

Composition

Mineral Content

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

Amphibole, Augite, Bronzite, Chromite, Diopside, Enstatite, Garnet, Hornblende, Hypersthene, Magnetite, Pyroxene

Compound Content

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

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Chromium(III) Oxide, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Sulfur Trioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Mechanical Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

3.5-47

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine to Medium Grained

Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Uneven

Streak

White to Grey

White, Greenish White or Grey

Porosity

Highly Porous

Less Porous

Luster

Dull

Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic

Compressive Strength

220.00 N/mm²95.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Slaty

Toughness

1.5

Specific Gravity

3-3.23.2-3.5

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

2.8-2.9 g/cm³3.1-3.6 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.79 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Japan, Turkey

India, Russia

Africa

Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa

South Africa

Europe

France, Greece, Iceland

Germany, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Turkey

Others

Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

USA

Canada, USA

South America

Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New Zealand

New Zealand, Queensland

All about Blueschist and Websterite Properties

Know all about Blueschist and Websterite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Blueschist belongs to Metamorphic Rocks while Websterite belongs to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Blueschist is Foliated whereas that of Websterite is Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic. Blueschist appears Dull and Banded and Websterite appears Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny. The luster of Blueschist is dull while that of Websterite is dull to vitreous to submetallic. Blueschist is available in blue, bluish - grey, purple, shades of blue colors whereas Websterite is available in black to grey, bluish - grey, dark greenish - grey, green, light greenish grey colors. The commercial uses of Blueschist are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, curling, tombstones and that of Websterite are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, laboratory bench tops, jewelry, sea defence, tombstones.