Definition
Lignite is a soft brownish coal which shows traces of plants and is intermediate between bituminous coal and peat
Minette is a variety of Lamprophyre and is porphyritic alkaline igneous rock which is mainly dominated by biotite and potassic feldspar
Discoverer
Unknown
Unknown
Etymology
From French, Latin lignum wood + -ite1
From French mine ore, mine + ette
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Igneous Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Plutonic
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Amorphous, Glassy
Porphyritic
Color
Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey
Black, Bluish - Grey, Brown, Dark Greenish - Grey, Green, Grey
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Veined or Pebbled
Dull, Banded and Foilated
Interior Uses
Not Yet Used
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
Not Yet Used
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration
Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
Curbing
Construction Industry
for Road Aggregate, Steel Production
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium
Antiquity Uses
Not Yet Used
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Commercial Uses
Electricity Generation
An Oil and Gas Reservoir, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Gemstone, Metallurgical Flux, Production of Lime, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO)
Types
Xyloid Lignite or Fossil Wood and Compact Lignite or Perfect Lignite
Minette, Alnoite, Camptonite, Monchiquite, Fourchite, Vogesite, Appinite and Spessartite
Features
Generally rough to touch, Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel
Always found as volcanic pipes over deep continental crust, Host rock for Diamond, Is one of the oldest rock, Surfaces are often shiny
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
Not Yet Used
Used
Famous Monuments
Not Applicable
Data Not Available
Sculpture
Not Yet Used
Used
Famous Sculptures
Not Applicable
Data Not Available
Figurines
Not Yet Used
Used
Formation
Coal formation takes place due to accumulation of plant debris in a swamp environment. The Coal formation process continues, as peat turns into lignite brown or black coal at increasing heat and pressure.
Minette formation takes place deep beneath the Earth’s surface at around 150 to 450 kms, and are erupted rapidly and violently.
Mineral Content
Not Available
Amphibole, Carbonate, Garnet, Micas, Olivine, Phlogopite, Pyroxene
Compound Content
Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur
Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide
Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Sea Erosion, Wind Erosion
Grain Size
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Fine to Coarse Grained
Fracture
Conchoidal
Conchoidal
Porosity
Highly Porous
Very Less Porous
Luster
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
Subvitreous to Dull
Cleavage
Non-Existent
Conchoidal
Toughness
Not Available
Not Available
Specific Gravity
1.1-1.4
2.86-2.87
Transparency
Opaque
Translucent to Opaque
Density
800-801 g/cm3
2.95-2.96 g/cm3
Specific Heat Capacity
Not Available
Resistance
Heat Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam
Russia
Africa
Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania
Angola, Botswana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, South Africa
Europe
Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom
England, Hungary, Iceland, United Kingdom
Others
Not Yet Found
Antarctica, Greenland
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, Mexico, USA
Canada, Mexico, USA
South America
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela
Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria
New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia
Lignite vs Minette 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. Lignite vs Minette characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Lignite and Properties of Minette. Learn more about Lignite vs Minette in the next section. The interior uses of Lignite include Not yet used whereas the interior uses of Minette include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Lignite and Minette, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Lignite in construction industry include For road aggregate, Steel production and that of Minette include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories.
More about Lignite and Minette
Here you can know more about Lignite and Minette. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Lignite and Minette consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Lignite is not available and mineral content of Minette includes Amphibole, Carbonate, Garnet, Micas, Olivine, Phlogopite, Pyroxene. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Lignite vs Minette, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Lignite is available in black, brown, dark brown, grey, light to dark grey colors whereas, Minette is available in black, bluish - grey, brown, dark greenish - grey, green, grey colors. Appearance of Lignite is Veined or Pebbled and that of Minette is Dull, Banded and Foilated. Properties of rock is another aspect for Lignite vs Minette. The hardness of Lignite is 1 and that of Minette is 5-6. The types of Lignite are Xyloid Lignite or Fossil Wood and Compact Lignite or Perfect Lignite whereas types of Minette are Minette, Alnoite, Camptonite, Monchiquite, Fourchite, Vogesite, Appinite and Spessartite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Lignite is black while that of Minette is white. The specific heat capacity of Lignite is 1.26 kJ/Kg K and that of Minette is Not Available. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Lignite is heat resistant whereas Minette is heat resistant, impact resistant.