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Granite
Granite

Quartzite
Quartzite



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Granite vs Quartzite

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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
Quartzite is a non-foliated metamorphic rock that forms by the metamorphism of pure quartz Sandstone

History

Origin

-
-

Discoverer

Alexander von Humboldt
Unknown

Etymology

From Italian granito, which means grained rock, from grano grain, and from Latin granum
From quartz + -ite

Class

Igneous Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Plutonic
-

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Granular, Phaneritic
Foliated, Granular

Color

Black, Grey, Orange, Pink, White
Black, Blue, Brown, Green, Light Grey, Purple, White, Yellow

Maintenance

More
Less

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Veined or Pebbled
Lustrous

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

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

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, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing
Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone
Arrowheads, As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, Cutting Tool, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone

Medical Industry

-
-

Antiquity Uses

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

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Curling, Gemstone, Laboratory bench tops, Tombstones, Used in aquariums
An Oil and Gas Reservoir, As armour rock for sea walls, Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, In aquifers, Laboratory bench tops, Petroleum reservoirs, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO), Tombstones, Used in aquariums

Types

Types

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

Features

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, It is One of the Oldest, Strongest and Hardest Rock
Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock

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
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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
-

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
Quartzite forms from sandstone and the mineral quartz being put under extreme heat and pressure.

Composition

Mineral Content

Amphibole, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz
Chlorite, Epidote, Hematite, Kyanite, Magnetite, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz

Compound Content

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

Transformation

Metamorphism

Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Weathering

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

Types of Erosion

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

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

6-76-7
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Large and Coarse Grained
Medium Grained

Fracture

-
Uneven, Splintery or Conchoidal

Streak

White
White

Porosity

Less Porous
Less Porous

Luster

Dull to Grainy with Sporadic parts Pearly and Vitreous
Vitreous

Compressive Strength

175.00 N/mm2115.00 N/mm2
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

-
Indiscernible

Toughness

-
1.9

Specific Gravity

2.6-2.72.6-2.8
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Transparent to Translucent

Density

2.65-2.75 g/cm32.32-2.42 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.79 kJ/Kg K0.75 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
China, India, Israel, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey

Africa

Angola, Egypt, Madagascar, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa
Ethiopia, Morocco, South Africa, Zimbabwe

Europe

Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sardinia, Spain, Switzerland, The Czech Republic
England, Italy, Norway, Scotland, Sweden, United Kingdom

Others

-
Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Bahamas, Canada, USA

South America

-
Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

-
New Zealand, Queensland, Western Australia

Granite vs Quartzite 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 Quartzite 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. Quartzite is a non-foliated metamorphic rock that forms by the metamorphism of pure quartz Sandstone. 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 Quartzite information and Granite vs Quartzite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Granite vs Quartzite 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 Quartzite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Granite and Properties of Quartzite. Learn more about Granite vs Quartzite 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 Quartzite include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Flooring and Homes. Due to some exceptional properties of Granite and Quartzite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Granite in construction industry include As dimension stone and that of Quartzite include Arrowheads, As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, Cutting tool, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Production of glass and ceramics, Rail track ballast, Roadstone.

More about Granite and Quartzite

Here you can know more about Granite and Quartzite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Granite and Quartzite 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 Quartzite includes Chlorite, Epidote, Hematite, Kyanite, Magnetite, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Granite vs Quartzite, 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, Quartzite is available in black, blue, brown, green, light grey, purple, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Granite is Veined or Pebbled and that of Quartzite is Lustrous. Properties of rock is another aspect for Granite vs Quartzite. Hardness of Granite and Quartzite is 6-7. 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 Quartzite are Orthoquartzite and Metaquartzite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Granite and Quartzite is white. The specific heat capacity of Granite is 0.79 kJ/Kg K and that of Quartzite is 0.75 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 Quartzite is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.