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Gossan vs Limestone


Limestone vs Gossan


Definition

Definition
Gossan is intensely oxidized, weathered or decomposed rock, usually the upper and exposed part of an ore deposit or mineral vein.   
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate   

History
  
  

Origin
Indonesia   
New Zealand   

Discoverer
Cornish Gossen   
Belsazar Hacquet   

Etymology
From Cornish gossen from gos, blood from Old Cornish guit   
From lime and stone in late 14th Century   

Class
Metamorphic Rocks   
Sedimentary Rocks   

Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock   
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock   

Family
  
  

Group
Not Applicable   
Not Applicable   

Other Categories
Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock   
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock   

Texture

Texture
Rough, Sandy   
Clastic or Non-Clastic   

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

Maintenance
Less   
More   

Durability
Durable   
Durable   

Water Resistant
Yes   
No   

Scratch Resistant
Yes   
Yes   

Stain Resistant
Yes   
Yes   

Wind Resistant
No   
No   

Acid Resistant
No   
No   

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, Office Buildings   

Other Architectural Uses
Curbing   
Curbing   

Industry
  
  

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

Medical Industry
Not Yet Used   
In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics   

Antiquity Uses
Artifacts   
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines   

Other Uses
  
  

Commercial Uses
Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Gemstone   
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   

Types

Types
Translocated gossan and Leakage gossan   
Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa   

Features
Clasts are smooth to touch, Easily splits into thin plates   
Host Rock for Lead, Stalactites and stalagmites are formed from this rock, Zinc and Copper Deposits   

Archaeological Significance
  
  

Monuments
Not Yet Used   
Used   

Famous Monuments
Not Applicable   
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   

Sculpture
Not Yet Used   
Used   

Famous Sculptures
Not Applicable   
Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India   

Pictographs
Used   
Used   

Petroglyphs
Used   
Used   

Figurines
Not Yet Used   
Used   

Fossils
Absent   
Present   

Formation

Formation
Earth movements can cause rocks to be either deeply buried or squeezed and hence the rocks are heated and put under great pressure.   
Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is mainly made up of calcium carbonate.   

Composition
  
  

Mineral Content
Apatite, Augite, Biotite, Bronzite, Calcite, Chert, Epidote, Feldspar, Hornblende, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz, Sulfides, Zircon   
Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt   

Compound Content
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Fe, FeO, Silicon Dioxide, Sulphur   
Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO   

Transformation
  
  

Metamorphism
No   
No   

Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable   
Not Applicable   

Weathering
No   
Yes   

Types of Weathering
Not Applicable   
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering   

Erosion
Yes   
Yes   

Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Wind Erosion   
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion   

Properties

Physical Properties
  
  

Hardness
4-5   
3-4   

Grain Size
Fine to Medium Grained   
Fine Grained   

Fracture
Conchoidal   
Splintery   

Streak
White to Grey   
White   

Porosity
Highly Porous   
Less Porous   

Luster
Metallic   
Dull to Pearly   

Compressive Strength
Not Available   
115.00 N/mm2   
18

Cleavage
Not Available   
Non-Existent   

Toughness
Not Available   
1   

Specific Gravity
2.0   
2.3-2.7   

Transparency
Opaque   
Opaque   

Density
Not Available   
2.3-2.7 g/cm3   

Thermal Properties
  
  

Specific Heat Capacity
0.24 kJ/Kg K   
24
0.91 kJ/Kg K   
11

Resistance
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant   
Pressure Resistant   

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents
  
  

Asia
China, India, Indonesia, Russia, Singapore, South Korea   
Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam   

Africa
Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Western Africa   
Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe   

Europe
Albania, France, Germany, Great Britain, United Kingdom   
United Kingdom   

Others
Not Yet Found   
Not Yet Found   

Deposits in Western Continents
  
  

North America
Canada, USA   
USA   

South America
Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador   
Colombia   

Deposits in Oceania Continent
  
  

Australia
New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia   
Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Tonga, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula   

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Gossan 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 Gossan and Limestone Reserves. Gossan is intensely oxidized, weathered or decomposed rock, usually the upper and exposed part of an ore deposit or mineral vein.. 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 Gossan vs Limestone information and Gossan vs Limestone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Gossan 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. Gossan vs Limestone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Gossan and Properties of Limestone. Learn more about Gossan vs Limestone in the next section. The interior uses of Gossan include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Limestone include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Gossan and Limestone, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Gossan in construction industry include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate 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 Gossan and Limestone

Here you can know more about Gossan and Limestone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Gossan and Limestone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Gossan includes Apatite, Augite, Biotite, Bronzite, Calcite, Chert, Epidote, Feldspar, Hornblende, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz, Sulfides, Zircon and mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt. You can also check out the list of all Metamorphic Rocks. When we have to compare Gossan vs Limestone, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Gossan is available in brown, brown- black, gold, green, rust 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 Gossan is Dull and Banded and that of Limestone is Rough and Banded. Properties of rock is another aspect for Gossan vs Limestone. The hardness of Gossan is 4-5 and that of Limestone is 3-4. The types of Gossan are Translocated gossan and Leakage gossan 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 Gossan is white to grey while that of Limestone is white. The specific heat capacity of Gossan is 0.24 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.Gossan is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant whereas Limestone is pressure resistant.

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