Granulite

Pyroxenite

Granulite and Pyroxenite

Granulite

Pyroxenite

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Definition

Granulite is fine to medium grained metamorphic rock with a granular of polygonal crystals.

Pyroxenite is a dark, greenish, granular intrusive igneous rock consisting mainly of pyroxenes and olivine

History

Origin

Central Europe

Discoverer

Unknown

Etymology

From Latin granulum, a little grain or fine grained

From pyro- fire + Greek xenos stranger as the mineral group was new to igneous rocks

Class

Metamorphic Rocks

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

Plutonic

Other Categories

Coarse Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Granoblastic

Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic

Color

Black, Brown

Black to Grey, Bluish - Grey, Dark Greenish - Grey, Green, Light Greenish Grey

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Veined or Pebbled

Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

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

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration, Kitchens

Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings, Paving Stone

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls

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

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Curling, Gemstone, Laboratory bench tops, Soil Conditioner, Tombstones

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Laboratory bench tops, Jewelry, Sea Defence, Tombstones

Types

Metamorphic rock

Clinopyroxenites, Orthopyroxenites and Websterites

Features

Clasts are smooth to touch

Generally rough to touch, Host rock for Diamond, Is one of the oldest rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Granulite is a fine-grained granular metamorphic rock in which the main component minerals are feldspars and quartz and forms at high temperature and pressure conditions.

Pyroxenites are ultramafic igneous rocks which are made up of minerals of the pyroxene group, such as augite and diopside, hypersthene, bronzite or enstatite.

Composition

Mineral Content

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

Amphibole, Augite, Bronzite, Chromite, Diopside, Enstatite, Garnet, Hornblende, Hypersthene, Magnetite, Pyroxene

Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Sulfur 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, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

6-77

1 7

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Grain Size

Medium to Coarse Grained

Coarse Grained

Fracture

Uneven

Streak

White

White, Greenish White or Grey

Porosity

Very Less Porous

Less Porous

Luster

Vitreous

Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic

Compressive Strength

175.00 N/mm²150.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Toughness

Specific Gravity

2.8-3.03.2-3.5

0 8.4

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Transparency

Opaque

Density

3.06-3.33 g/cm³3.1-3.6 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.14 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Wear 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, Russia

Africa

Angola, Egypt, Madagascar, Nigeria, South Africa

South Africa

Europe

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

Germany, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Turkey

Others

Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA

South America

Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New Zealand, Queensland

All about Granulite and Pyroxenite Properties

Know all about Granulite and Pyroxenite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Granulite belongs to Metamorphic Rocks while Pyroxenite belongs to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Granulite is Granoblastic whereas that of Pyroxenite is Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic. Granulite appears Veined or Pebbled and Pyroxenite appears Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny. The luster of Granulite is vitreous while that of Pyroxenite is dull to vitreous to submetallic. Granulite is available in black, brown colors whereas Pyroxenite is available in black to grey, bluish - grey, dark greenish - grey, green, light greenish grey colors. The commercial uses of Granulite are curling, gemstone, laboratory bench tops, soil conditioner, tombstones and that of Pyroxenite are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, laboratory bench tops, jewelry, sea defence, tombstones.