Felsite

Pyroxenite

Felsite and Pyroxenite

Felsite

Pyroxenite

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Definition

Felsite is a very fine grained volcanic rock that may or may not contain larger crystals and light colored rock that typically requires petrographic examination or chemical analysis for more precise definition

Pyroxenite is a dark, greenish, granular intrusive igneous rock consisting mainly of pyroxenes and olivine

History

Origin

Discoverer

Unknown

Etymology

From English feldspar and -ite

From pyro- fire + Greek xenos stranger as the mineral group was new to igneous rocks

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic

Plutonic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Arborescent Patterned, Vitreous

Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic

Color

Black, Blue, Brown, Green, Orange, Red, Tan, Yellow

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

Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Flooring, Interior Decoration

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration, Kitchens

Exterior Uses

Paving Stone, Garden Decoration

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

Arrowheads, Cutting Tool, Knives, Scrapers, Spear Points

As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate

Medical Industry

Surgery

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Mirror, Jewelry

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

Types

Igneous rock

Clinopyroxenites, Orthopyroxenites and Websterites

Features

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Clasts are smooth to touch, Splintery, Very fine grained rock

Generally rough to touch, Host rock for Diamond, Is one of the oldest rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Felsite is a fine-grained, hard rock which is a type of metasomatite, essentially altered basalt. It forms with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive rocks or on the surface as extrusive rocks.

Pyroxenites are ultramafic igneous rocks which are made up of minerals of the pyroxene group, such as augite and diopside, hypersthene, bronzite or enstatite.

Composition

Mineral Content

Feldspar, Iron Oxides

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, Contact Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

5-5.57

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine Grained

Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Uneven

Streak

White

White, Greenish White or Grey

Porosity

Very Less Porous

Less Porous

Luster

Vitreous

Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic

Compressive Strength

0.15 N/mm²150.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Toughness

Specific Gravity

2.6-2.73.2-3.5

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Translucent

Opaque

Density

2.6 g/cm³3.1-3.6 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.92 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Afghanistan, Indonesia, Japan, Russia

India, Russia

Africa

Kenya

South Africa

Europe

Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Turkey

Germany, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Turkey

Others

Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, Mexico, USA

Canada, USA

South America

Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru

Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New Zealand

New Zealand, Queensland

All about Felsite and Pyroxenite Properties

Know all about Felsite and Pyroxenite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Felsite and Pyroxenite belong to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Felsite is Arborescent Patterned, Vitreous whereas that of Pyroxenite is Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic. Felsite appears Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny and Pyroxenite appears Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny. The luster of Felsite is vitreous while that of Pyroxenite is dull to vitreous to submetallic. Felsite is available in black, blue, brown, green, orange, red, tan, yellow colors whereas Pyroxenite is available in black to grey, bluish - grey, dark greenish - grey, green, light greenish grey colors. The commercial uses of Felsite are mirror, jewelry and that of Pyroxenite are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, laboratory bench tops, jewelry, sea defence, tombstones.