Definition
Chalk is a soft, white, powdery limestone consisting mainly of fossil shells of foraminifers
Conglomerate is a sedimentary rock which forms from rounded gravel and boulder sized clasts which are cemented together in a matrix
History
Origin
-
Italy
Discoverer
Unknown
Unknown
Etymology
From old English cealc chalk, lime, plaster; pebble, from Greek khalix small pebble, in English transferred to the opaque, white, soft limestone
From Latin conglomeratus, to roll together, i.e. from com together + glomerare to gather into a ball, from glomus (genitive glomeris) a ball
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Family
Group
-
-
Other Categories
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Clastic or Non-Clastic
Clastic
Color
Grey, White, Yellow
Beige, Black, Brown, Buff, Light to Dark Grey, Orange, Rust, White, Yellow
Maintenance
Less
More
Durability
Durable
Durable
Water Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Scratch Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Stain Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Wind Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Acid Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Appearance
Soft
Shiny and Rounded
Architecture
Interior Uses
Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration
Decorative Aggregates, Floor Tiles, Homes
Exterior Uses
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Paving Stone, Garden Decoration
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings, Roof Tiles
Other Architectural Uses
Powder
Curbing
Industry
Construction Industry
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, raw material for manufacture of quicklime and slaked lime, Source of calcium
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Roadstone
Medical Industry
-
-
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Other Uses
Commercial Uses
Alumina Refineries, Creating Artwork, Drawing on blackboards, Gymnasts, athletes and mountain climbers use for grip, In aquifers, Paper Industry, Production of Lime, Raw material for manufacture of quicklime, slaked lime, Soil Conditioner, Whiting, Whiting material in toothpaste, paint and paper
Cemetery Markers, In aquifers, Tombstones
Types
Chalk Marl and Marl
Orthoconglomerate and Paraconglomerate
Features
Clasts are smooth to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Smooth to touch, Very fine grained rock
Clasts are smooth to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Matrix variable
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
-
-
Famous Monuments
-
-
Sculpture
-
-
Famous Sculptures
-
-
Pictographs
-
-
Petroglyphs
-
-
Figurines
-
-
Fossils
Present
Present
Formation
Chalk is formed from lime mud, which accumulates on the sea floor which is then transformed into rock by geological processes.
Conglomerate forms where sediments consisting mainly of pebble and cobble-size clasts at least two millimeters in diameter starts accumulating.
Composition
Mineral Content
Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Quartz, Sand
Clay, Sand, Silica, Silt
Compound Content
Ca, NaCl, CaO
NaCl, CaO
Transformation
Metamorphism
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Metamorphism
-
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Weathering
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering
-
Erosion
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion
Physical Properties
Hardness
12-3
1
7
👆🏻
Grain Size
Very fine-grained
Coarse Grained
Fracture
-
Uneven
Streak
White
White
Porosity
Highly Porous
Highly Porous
Luster
Dull
Dull
Compressive Strength
5.00 N/mm270.00 N/mm2
0.15
450
👆🏻
Cleavage
-
-
Toughness
1
-
Specific Gravity
2.3-2.42.86-2.88
0
8.4
👆🏻
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
2.49-2.50 g/cm31.7-2.3 g/cm3
0
1400
👆🏻
Thermal Properties
Specific Heat Capacity
0.90 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K
0.14
3.2
👆🏻
Resistance
Heat Resistant
Heat Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam
China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Uzbekistan
Africa
Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa
Europe
England, France, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom
Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Others
-
Greenland
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, USA
Canada, USA
South America
Colombia
Brazil
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula
New South Wales, New Zealand