Definition
Gritstone or grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone
Diorite is a grey to dark-grey intermediate intrusive igneous rock composed principally of plagioclase feldspar,biotite, hornblende, and pyroxene
Origin
Pennines, England
Unknown
Discoverer
J.J. Ferber
Unknown
Etymology
From Grit + Stone
From early 19th century coined in French, formed irregularly from Greek diorizein distinguish
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Igneous Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Plutonic
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Coarse Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Earthy
Phaneritic
Color
Beige, Black, Brown, Colourless, Cream, Dark Brown, Green, Grey, Light Green, Light to Dark Grey, Pink, Red, White, Yellow
Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey, White
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Layered and Foliated
Shiny
Interior Uses
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration
Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
As Building Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings, Paving Stone
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration
Other Architectural Uses
Curbing
Curbing
Construction Industry
Construction Aggregate, Roadstone
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Cobblestones, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Commercial Uses
An Oil and Gas Reservoir, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Gemstone, Metallurgical Flux, Production of Lime, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO), Tombstones
Creating Artwork, Curling
Types
Not Available
Not Available
Features
Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Generally rough to touch, Very fine grained rock
Typically speckled black and white.
Archaeological Significance
Famous Monuments
Data Not Available
Data Not Available
Famous Sculptures
Data Not Available
Data Not Available
Pictographs
Not Used
Not Used
Petroglyphs
Not Used
Not Used
Formation
Gritstone is a type of sedimentary rock which was formed on the floors of wide river deltas where the grit deposits were laid down, with every tide or flood dumping another layer of sediment.
Diorite is a coarse-grained intrusive igneous rock which contains large interlocking and randomly oriented crystals and forms when molten lava does not reach the Earth’s surface and cools down in the Earth’s crust.
Mineral Content
Calcite, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz
Albite, Amphibole, Apatite, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Ilmenite, Magnetite, Muscovite or Illite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz, Sulfides, Titanite, Zircon
Compound Content
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide
Silicon Dioxide
Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion
Grain Size
Coarse Grained
Medium to Coarse Grained
Fracture
Conchoidal
Not Available
Streak
White
Bluish Black
Porosity
Highly Porous
Very Less Porous
Cleavage
Perfect
Not Available
Toughness
Not Available
2.1
Specific Gravity
2.250
2.8-3
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
2.2 g/cm3
2.8-3 g/cm3
Specific Heat Capacity
Not Available
Resistance
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant
Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Uzbekistan
Not Yet Found
Africa
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa
Egypt
Europe
Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Finland, Germany, Italy, Romania, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom
Others
Greenland
Not Yet Found
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, USA
USA
South America
Brazil
Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, New Zealand, Western Australia
New Zealand, Western Australia
Gritstone vs Diorite 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. Gritstone vs Diorite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Gritstone and Properties of Diorite. Learn more about Gritstone vs Diorite in the next section. The interior uses of Gritstone include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Diorite include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Gritstone and Diorite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Gritstone in construction industry include Construction aggregate, Roadstone and that of Diorite include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, Cobblestones, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate.
More about Gritstone and Diorite
Here you can know more about Gritstone and Diorite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Gritstone and Diorite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Gritstone includes Calcite, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz and mineral content of Diorite includes Albite, Amphibole, Apatite, Biotite, Feldspar, Hornblade, Ilmenite, Magnetite, Muscovite or Illite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz, Sulfides, Titanite, Zircon. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Gritstone vs Diorite, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Gritstone is available in beige, black, brown, colourless, cream, dark brown, green, grey, light green, light to dark grey, pink, red, white, yellow colors whereas, Diorite is available in black, brown, light to dark grey, white colors. Appearance of Gritstone is Layered and Foliated and that of Diorite is Shiny. Properties of rock is another aspect for Gritstone vs Diorite. Hardness of Gritstone and Diorite is 6-7. The types of Gritstone are Not Available whereas types of Diorite are Not Available. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Gritstone is white while that of Diorite is bluish black. The specific heat capacity of Gritstone is 0.92 kJ/Kg K and that of Diorite is Not Available. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Gritstone is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant whereas Diorite is heat resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.