Gossan

Wehrlite

Gossan and Wehrlite

Gossan

Wehrlite

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Definition

Gossan is intensely oxidized, weathered or decomposed rock, usually the upper and exposed part of an ore deposit or mineral vein.

Wehrlite is an ultramafic and ultrabasic rock that is a mixture of olivine and clinopyroxene. It is a subdivision of the peridotites

History

Origin

Indonesia

Egypt

Discoverer

Cornish Gossen

Alois Wehrle

Etymology

From Cornish gossen from gos, blood from Old Cornish guit

From the name of a professor, Alois Wehrle

Class

Metamorphic Rocks

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Family

Group

Plutonic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Rough, Sandy

Banded

Color

Brown, Brown- Black, Gold, Green, Rust

Dark Greenish - Grey, Green

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull and Banded

Rough and Banded

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, 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

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate

As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Gemstone

Cemetery Markers, Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry

Types

Translocated gossan and Leakage gossan

Ultramafic rock

Features

Clasts are smooth to touch, Easily splits into thin plates

Constitutes upper part of the Earth's mantle, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Earth movements can cause rocks to be either deeply buried or squeezed and hence the rocks are heated and put under great pressure.

Wehrlite 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.

Composition

Mineral Content

Apatite, Augite, Biotite, Bronzite, Calcite, Chert, Epidote, Feldspar, Hornblende, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz, Sulfides, Zircon

Pyroxene

Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Fe, FeO, Silicon Dioxide, Sulphur

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Wind Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

4-55.5-6

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine to Medium Grained

Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Irregular

Streak

White to Grey

White

Porosity

Highly Porous

Less Porous

Luster

Metallic

Compressive Strength

-100.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect

Toughness

2.1

Specific Gravity

2.08.4

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

-9999 g/cm³2.6-3.7 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.24 kJ/Kg K0.63 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

China, India, Indonesia, Russia, Singapore, South Korea

China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey

Africa

Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Western Africa

Morocco, South Africa

Europe

Albania, France, Germany, Great Britain, United Kingdom

Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland

Others

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA

South America

Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador

Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia

New Zealand, Western Australia

All about Gossan and Wehrlite Properties

Know all about Gossan and Wehrlite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Gossan belongs to Metamorphic Rocks while Wehrlite belongs to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Gossan is Rough, Sandy whereas that of Wehrlite is Banded. Gossan appears Dull and Banded and Wehrlite appears Rough and Banded. The luster of Gossan and Wehrlite is metallic. Gossan is available in brown, brown- black, gold, green, rust colors whereas Wehrlite is available in dark greenish - grey, green colors. The commercial uses of Gossan are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, gemstone and that of Wehrlite are cemetery markers, creating artwork, gemstone, jewelry.