Granite

Syenite

Granite vs Syenite

Granite

Syenite

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1 Definition

1.1 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

Syenite is a coarse-grained igneous rock which is composed mainly of alkali feldspar and various ferromagnesian minerals

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Unknown

1.2.2 Discoverer

Unknown

1.3 Etymology

From Italian granito, which means grained rock, from grano grain, and from Latin granum

From French syénite, from Latin Syenites (lapis ) (stone) of Syene

1.4 Class

Igneous Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Plutonic

1.6 Other Categories

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

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

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Granular, Phaneritic

Earthy

2.2 Color

Black, Grey, Orange, Pink, White

Brown, Buff, Cream, Green, Grey, Pink, White

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

2.5 Appearance

Veined or Pebbled

Banded and Foilated

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

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

Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration

3.1.2 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

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone

As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Landscaping, Making natural cement, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Not Yet Used

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

Curling, Gemstone, Laboratory bench tops, Tombstones, Used in aquariums

Cemetery Markers, Creating Artwork

4 Types

4.1 Types

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

Shonkinite

4.2 Features

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

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Is one of the oldest rock, Matrix variable

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

4.3.2 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

Data Not Available

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

4.3.4 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

Data Not Available

4.3.5 Pictographs

Not Used

Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Not Used

Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

4.4 Fossils

Absent

5 Formation

5.1 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

Syenites are formed due to alkaline igneous activities and are generally formed in thick continental crustal areas or in Cordilleran subduction zones.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Amphibole, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz

5.2.2 Compound Content

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

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism

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

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion

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

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

6-75.5-6

1 7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Large and Coarse Grained

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Not Available

6.1.4 Streak

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull to Grainy with Sporadic parts Pearly and Vitreous

Subvitreous to Dull

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

175.00 N/mm²150.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

6.1.8 Cleavage

Not Available

Perfect

6.1.9 Toughness

Not Available

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.6-2.72.6-2.7

0 8.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.65-2.75 g/cm³2.6-2.8 g/cm³

0 1400

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

0.79 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Wear Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Wear Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

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

7.1.2 Africa

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

7.1.3 Europe

Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Sardinia, Spain, Switzerland, The Czech Republic, Venezuela

Bulgaria, England, Germany, Norway, Romania, Switzerland

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

Canada, USA

USA

7.2.2 South America

Not Yet Found

Brazil, Chile

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

Not Yet Found

New Zealand, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia

Granite vs Syenite 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 Syenite 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. Syenite is a coarse-grained igneous rock which is composed mainly of alkali feldspar and various ferromagnesian minerals. 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 Syenite information and Granite vs Syenite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Granite vs Syenite 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 Syenite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Granite and Properties of Syenite. Learn more about Granite vs Syenite 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 Syenite include Flooring, Homes, Hotels and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Granite and Syenite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Granite in construction industry include As dimension stone and that of Syenite include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Landscaping, Making natural cement, Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories.

More about Granite and Syenite

Here you can know more about Granite and Syenite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Granite and Syenite 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 Syenite includes Amphibole, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Granite vs Syenite, 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, Syenite is available in brown, buff, cream, green, grey, pink, white colors. Appearance of Granite is Veined or Pebbled and that of Syenite is Banded and Foilated. Properties of rock is another aspect for Granite vs Syenite. The hardness of Granite is 6-7 and that of Syenite is 5.5-6. 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 Syenite are Shonkinite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Granite and Syenite is white. The specific heat capacity of Granite is 0.79 kJ/Kg K and that of Syenite is 0.92 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 Syenite is heat resistant, impact resistant, wear resistant.