Definition
Breccia is a rock consisting of angular fragments of stones which are cemented by finer calcareous material
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
England
USA, Australia
Discoverer
Unknown
Tornebohm
Etymology
From Italian, literally gravel, Germanic origin and related to break
From an old Swedish mining term originally used to describe a type of silicate gangue or waste rock.
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Family
Group
-
-
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Brecciated, Clastic
Earthy, Mud-rich, Rough
Color
Beige, Black, Blue, Brown, Buff, Green, Grey, Orange, Pink, Purple, Red, Rust, White, Yellow
Black, Brown, Green, Grey, White
Maintenance
Less
Less
Durability
Durable
Durable
Water Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Scratch Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Stain Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Wind Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Acid Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Appearance
Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny
Dull
Architecture
Interior Uses
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration
Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Paving Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone
Other Architectural Uses
Curbing
Curbing
Industry
Construction Industry
As Dimension Stone, Construction Aggregate, Landscaping, 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, Sculpture
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture
Other Uses
Commercial Uses
Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry
Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry, Metallurgical Flux, Source of Magnesia (MgO)
Types
Collapse Breccia, Fault Breccia, Flow Breccia, Pyroclastic Breccia, Igneous Breccia and Impact Breccia
Endoskarns
Features
Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Clasts are smooth to touch
Host Rock for Lead, Zinc and Copper Deposits
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
-
-
Famous Monuments
-
-
Sculpture
-
-
Famous Sculptures
-
-
Pictographs
-
-
Petroglyphs
-
-
Figurines
-
-
Fossils
Present
Absent
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.
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
Calcite, Clay, Feldspar, Phosphates, Quartz, Silica
Calcite, Enstatite, Epidote, Garnet, Magnetite, Pyroxene, Titanite
Compound Content
Aluminium Oxide, Ca, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide
Au, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Cu, Fe, MgO
Transformation
Metamorphism
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Weathering
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
-
Erosion
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion
-
Physical Properties
Hardness
76.5
1
7
👆🏻
Grain Size
Medium to Coarse Grained
Fine Grained
Fracture
Uneven
Irregular
Streak
White
Light to dark brown
Porosity
Less Porous
Less Porous
Luster
Dull to Pearly
Waxy and Dull
Compressive Strength
180.00 N/mm270.00 N/mm2
0.15
450
👆🏻
Cleavage
-
Slaty
Toughness
-
2.4
Specific Gravity
2.86-2.872.86
0
8.4
👆🏻
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
0 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
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant
Heat Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, South Korea, Uzbekistan
China, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sri Lanka
Africa
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa
South Africa, Western Africa
Europe
Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Others
Greenland
-
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Barbados, Canada, Mexico, Panama, USA
Canada
South America
Brazil
Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, New Zealand
Central Australia, Western Australia