Breccia

Argillite

Breccia and Argillite

Breccia

Argillite

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Definition

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

Argillites are highly compact sedimentary or slightly metamorphosed rocks that consist largely or wholly of particles of clay or silt but lack the fissility of shale or the cleavage characteristic of slate

History

Origin

England

Discoverer

Unknown

Etymology

From Italian, literally gravel, Germanic origin and related to break

From Latin Argilla (clay) and -ite in English which became agrilla+ -ite = Argillite

Class

Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Durable Rock, Soft Rock

Family

Group

Other Categories

Coarse Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Brecciated, Clastic

Clastic, Polished

Color

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

Dark Grey to Black, Pink, Red, White

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny

Rough and Dull

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

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

Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

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

As Building Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Curbing, Whetstones

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Construction Aggregate, Landscaping, Roadstone

Used for flooring, stair treads, borders and window sills.

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Sculpture

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry

Fire resistant, Used to manufracture paperweights and bookends

Types

Collapse Breccia, Fault Breccia, Flow Breccia, Pyroclastic Breccia, Igneous Breccia and Impact Breccia

Metamorphic rock

Features

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Clasts are smooth to touch

Is one of the oldest rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Present

Formation

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.

An argillite is a fine-grained sedimentary rock mainly composed of clay particles which forms from lithified muds which contain variable amounts of silt-sized particles.

Composition

Mineral Content

Calcite, Clay, Feldspar, Phosphates, Quartz, Silica

Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyrite, Quartz

Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, Ca, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Silicon Dioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Biological Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

72-3

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Medium to Coarse Grained

Fine Grained

Fracture

Uneven

Conchoidal to Uneven

Streak

White

White to Grey

Porosity

Less Porous

Highly Porous

Luster

Dull to Pearly

Waxy and Dull

Compressive Strength

180.00 N/mm²-

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Slaty

Toughness

2.6

Specific Gravity

2.86-2.872.56-2.68

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

0 g/cm³2.54-2.66 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.84 kJ/Kg K0.87 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

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

Bangladesh, China, India, Russia

Africa

Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa

Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania

Europe

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

Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland

Others

Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Barbados, Canada, Mexico, Panama, USA

USA

South America

Brazil

Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand

New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia

All about Breccia and Argillite Properties

Know all about Breccia and Argillite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Breccia and Argillite belong to Sedimentary Rocks.Texture of Breccia is Brecciated, Clastic whereas that of Argillite is Clastic, Polished. Breccia appears Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny and Argillite appears Rough and Dull. The luster of Breccia is dull to pearly while that of Argillite is waxy and dull. Breccia is available in beige, black, blue, brown, buff, green, grey, orange, pink, purple, red, rust, white, yellow colors whereas Argillite is available in dark grey to black, pink, red, white colors. The commercial uses of Breccia are creating artwork, gemstone, jewelry and that of Argillite are fire resistant, used to manufracture paperweights and bookends.