Dolomite

Limestone

Dolomite vs Limestone

Dolomite

Limestone

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1 Definition

1.1 Definition

Dolomite is a sedimentary rock containing more than 50 percent of the mineral dolomite by weight

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Southern Alps, France

New Zealand

1.2.2 Discoverer

Dolomieu

Belsazar Hacquet

1.3 Etymology

From French, from the name of Dolomieu (1750–1801), the French geologist who discovered the rock

From lime and stone in late 14th Century

1.4 Class

Sedimentary Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Earthy

Clastic or Non-Clastic

2.2 Color

Black, Brown, Colourless, Green, Grey, Pink, White

Beige, Black, Blue, Brown, Cream, Gold, Green, Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Linen, Pink, Red, Rust, Silver, White, Yellow

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

2.5 Appearance

Glassy or Pearly

Rough and Banded

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

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

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Not Yet Used

Curbing

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

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, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Serves as an Oil and Gas Reservoir rock

Cement Manufacture, Cobblestones, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium

In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Jewellery, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

An Oil and Gas Reservoir, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Gemstone, Metallurgical Flux, Production of Lime, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO)

Animal feed filler, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Paper Industry, Raw material for manufacture of quicklime, slaked lime, Soil Conditioner, Used in aquariums, Whiting material in toothpaste, paint and paper

4 Types

4.1 Types

Boninite and Jasperoid

Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa

4.2 Features

Host Rock for Lead, Traps for subsurface fluids like Oil and Natural Gas., Zinc and Copper Deposits

Host Rock for Lead, Stalactites and stalagmites are formed from this rock, Zinc and Copper Deposits

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

Data Not Available

Acropolis of Athens in Greece, Agia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Big Ben in London, Charminar in Hyderabad, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, India, Chichen Itza in Mexico, Empire State Building in New York, Khajuraho Temples, India, Kremlin in Moscow, Louvre in Paris, France, Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Potala Palace in Lahasa, Tibet, Wailing Wall in Jerusalem

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Data Not Available

Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India

4.3.5 Pictographs

Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

4.4 Fossils

Present

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Dolomite rocks are originally deposited as calcite or aragonite rich limestone, but during diagenesis process, the calcite or aragonite is transformed into dolomite.

Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is mainly made up of calcium carbonate.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Clay Minerals, Pyrite, Quartz, Sulfides

Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt

5.2.2 Compound Content

NaCl, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Magnesium Carbonate, MgO

Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism

Not Applicable

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Not Applicable

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Not Applicable

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

3.5-43-4

1 7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

Fine Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Conchoidal

Splintery

6.1.4 Streak

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Vitreous and Pearly

Dull to Pearly

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

140.00 N/mm²115.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

6.1.8 Cleavage

Perfect

Non-Existent

6.1.9 Toughness

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.8-32.3-2.7

0 8.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Transparent to Translucent

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.8-2.9 g/cm³2.3-2.7 g/cm³

0 1400

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

0.92 kJ/Kg K0.91 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Pressure Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

China, India

Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam

7.1.2 Africa

Morocco, Namibia

Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe

7.1.3 Europe

Austria, Italy, Romania, Spain, Switzerland

United Kingdom

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

Mexico, USA

USA

7.2.2 South America

Brazil, Colombia

Colombia

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

New South Wales, Queensland, Yorke Peninsula

Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Tonga, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula

Dolomite vs Limestone Information

Earth’s outer layer is covered by rocks and these rocks have different physical and chemical properties. As two rocks are not same, it’s fun to compare them. You can also know more about Dolomite and Limestone Reserves. Dolomite is a sedimentary rock containing more than 50 percent of the mineral dolomite by weight. Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. These rocks are composed of many distinct minerals. The process of formation of rocks is different for various rocks. Rocks are quarried from many years for various purposes. You can check out Dolomite vs Limestone information and Dolomite vs Limestone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Dolomite vs Limestone Characteristics

Though some rocks look identical, they have certain characteristics which distinguish them from others. Characteristics of rocks include texture, appearance, color, fracture, streak, hardness etc. Dolomite vs Limestone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Dolomite and Properties of Limestone. Learn more about Dolomite vs Limestone in the next section. The interior uses of Dolomite include Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Limestone include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Dolomite and Limestone, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Dolomite in construction industry include 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, Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories, Production of glass and ceramics, Serves as an oil and gas reservoir rock and that of Limestone include Cement manufacture, Cobblestones, For road aggregate, Production of glass and ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium.

More about Dolomite and Limestone

Here you can know more about Dolomite and Limestone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Dolomite and Limestone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Dolomite includes Clay Minerals, Pyrite, Quartz, Sulfides and mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Dolomite vs Limestone, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Dolomite is available in black, brown, colourless, green, grey, pink, white colors whereas, Limestone is available in beige, black, blue, brown, cream, gold, green, grey, light green, light grey, linen, pink, red, rust, silver, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Dolomite is Glassy or Pearly and that of Limestone is Rough and Banded. Properties of rock is another aspect for Dolomite vs Limestone. The hardness of Dolomite is 3.5-4 and that of Limestone is 3-4. The types of Dolomite are Boninite and Jasperoid whereas types of Limestone are Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Dolomite and Limestone is white. The specific heat capacity of Dolomite is 0.92 kJ/Kg K and that of Limestone is 0.91 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Dolomite is heat resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant whereas Limestone is pressure resistant.