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Granite
Granite

Diabase
Diabase



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Granite
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Granite vs Diabase

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Definition

Definition

Granite is a very hard, granular, crystalline igneous rock which consists mainly of quartz, mica, and feldspar and is often used as building stone
Diabase is a fine-grained igneous rock which is composed mostly of pyroxene and feldspar

History

Origin

-
Germany

Discoverer

Alexander von Humboldt
Christian Leopold von Buch

Etymology

From Italian granito, which means grained rock, from grano grain, and from Latin granum
From Greek di + base

Class

Igneous Rocks
Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Plutonic
Volcanic

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Granular, Phaneritic
Aphanitic, Granular

Color

Black, Grey, Orange, Pink, White
Dark Grey to Black

Maintenance

More
Less

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Veined or Pebbled
Vesicular

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration, Kitchens, Stair Treads
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration, Kitchens

Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Bridges, Paving Stone, Garden Decoration, Near Swimming Pools, Office Buildings, Resorts
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Paving Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing
Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

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

Medical Industry

-
-

Antiquity Uses

Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Curling, Gemstone, Laboratory bench tops, Tombstones, Used in aquariums
An Oil and Gas Reservoir, Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Laboratory bench tops, Jewelry, Sea Defence, Tombstones

Types

Types

Igneous Protolith Granite, Sedimentary Protolith Granite, Mantle Granite, Anorogenic Granite, Hybrid Granite, Granodiorite and Alkali Feldspar Granite
Dolerite

Features

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, It is One of the Oldest, Strongest and Hardest Rock
Smooth to touch

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

-
-

Famous Monuments

Agia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Blue Domed Church in Santorini, Greece, Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Charminar in Hyderabad, India, Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain in London, UK, Ephesus in Turkey, Georgia Guidestones in Georgia, US, Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, Khajuraho Temples, India, Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu, India, Mysore Palace in Karnataka, India, Signers Monument in Augusta, Georgia, Statue of Liberty in New York, USA, Taj Mahal in Agra, India, Tower Bridge in London, Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, US, Washington Monument, US
Stonehenge in English county of Wiltshire

Sculpture

-
-

Famous Sculptures

Avukana Buddha Statue in Sri Lanka, Lincoln Memorial in America, Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota, US, The Colossal Red Granite Statue of Amenhotep III in Karnak, Egypt
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Pictographs

-
-

Petroglyphs

-
-

Figurines

-
-

Fossils

Absent
Absent

Formation

Formation

Granite is an intrusive igneous rock which is very hard, crystalline and is visibly homogeneous in texture and forms by melting of continental rocks
Diabase forms when molten igneous rock is squeezed up into a vertical crack in other rocks, the crack is usually forced apart and the molten rock cools in the space to form a tabular igneous intrusion cutting across the surrounding rocks and is known as a dike.

Composition

Mineral Content

Amphibole, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz
Augite, Chlorite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Pyrrhotite, Serpentine

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

Weathering

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering

Erosion

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

6-77
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Large and Coarse Grained
Fine to Medium Grained

Fracture

-
Conchoidal

Streak

White
Black

Porosity

Less Porous
Highly Porous

Luster

Dull to Grainy with Sporadic parts Pearly and Vitreous
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Compressive Strength

175.00 N/mm2225.00 N/mm2
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

-
-

Toughness

-
1.6

Specific Gravity

2.6-2.72.86-2.87
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.65-2.75 g/cm32.7-3.3 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.79 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Wear Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

China, India, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam
India

Africa

Angola, Egypt, Madagascar, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa
South Africa, Tanzania

Europe

Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sardinia, Spain, Switzerland, The Czech Republic
Germany, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Turkey

Others

-
Antarctica, Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Canada, USA

South America

-
Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

-
Central Australia, New Zealand, Queensland, Western Australia

Granite vs Diabase 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 Granite and Diabase Reserves. Granite is a very hard, granular, crystalline igneous rock which consists mainly of quartz, mica, and feldspar and is often used as building stone. Diabase is a fine-grained igneous rock which is composed mostly of pyroxene and feldspar. 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 Granite vs Diabase information and Granite vs Diabase characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Granite vs Diabase 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. Granite vs Diabase characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Granite and Properties of Diabase. Learn more about Granite vs Diabase in the next section. The interior uses of Granite include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Entryways, Floor tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior decoration, Kitchens and Stair treads whereas the interior uses of Diabase include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Homes, Interior decoration and Kitchens. Due to some exceptional properties of Granite and Diabase, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Granite in construction industry include As dimension stone and that of Diabase include As dimension stone, Building houses or walls, Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate.

More about Granite and Diabase

Here you can know more about Granite and Diabase. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Granite and Diabase consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Granite includes Amphibole, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz and mineral content of Diabase includes Augite, Chlorite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Pyrrhotite, Serpentine. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Granite vs Diabase, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Granite is available in black, grey, orange, pink, white colors whereas, Diabase is available in dark grey to black colors. Appearance of Granite is Veined or Pebbled and that of Diabase is Vesicular. Properties of rock is another aspect for Granite vs Diabase. The hardness of Granite is 6-7 and that of Diabase is 7. The types of Granite are Igneous Protolith Granite, Sedimentary Protolith Granite, Mantle Granite, Anorogenic Granite, Hybrid Granite, Granodiorite and Alkali Feldspar Granite whereas types of Diabase are Dolerite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Granite is white while that of Diabase is black. The specific heat capacity of Granite is 0.79 kJ/Kg K and that of Diabase is 0.84 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Granite is heat resistant, wear resistant whereas Diabase is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.