Definition
Lignite is a soft brownish coal which shows traces of plants and is intermediate between bituminous coal and peat
Nephelinite is a fine-grained or aphanitic igneous rock made up almost entirely of nepheline and clinopyroxene (variety augite).
Discoverer
Unknown
Unknown
Etymology
From French, Latin lignum wood + -ite1
from French néphéline, from Greek nephelē
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Igneous Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Group
Not Applicable
Plutonic
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Amorphous, Glassy
Aphanitic
Color
Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey
Black, Brown, Colourless, Green, Grey, White
Durability
Durable
Durable
Appearance
Veined or Pebbled
Skeletal
Interior Uses
Not Yet Used
Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
Not Yet Used
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings, Paving Stone
Other Architectural Uses
Not Yet Used
Curbing
Construction Industry
for Road Aggregate, Steel Production
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate
Medical Industry
Not Yet Used
Not Yet Used
Antiquity Uses
Not Yet Used
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Commercial Uses
Electricity Generation
Creating Artwork, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO)
Types
Xyloid Lignite or Fossil Wood and Compact Lignite or Perfect Lignite
Peralkaline Nephelinite
Features
Generally rough to touch, Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel
Host Rock for Lead
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
Pictographs
Used
Not Used
Petroglyphs
Used
Not Used
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.
Nephelinite is a fine-grained, hard rock which is a type of metasomatite, essentially altered basalt. It forms with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive rocks or on the surface as extrusive rocks.
Mineral Content
Not Available
Clinopyroxene, Nepheline, Plagioclase
Compound Content
Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur
Ca, CaO, Carbon, Cl, MgO
Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable
Contact Metamorphism
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Grain Size
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Fine Grained
Porosity
Highly Porous
Less Porous
Luster
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
Vitreous to Metallic
Compressive Strength
Not Available
Cleavage
Non-Existent
Imperfect
Toughness
Not Available
2.7
Specific Gravity
1.1-1.4
2.4-2.9
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
800-801 g/cm3
2.5-3 g/cm3
Resistance
Heat Resistant
Heat Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam
Japan
Africa
Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania
Rwanda, Tanzania
Europe
Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom
Not Yet Found
Others
Not Yet Found
Hawaii Islands
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, Mexico, USA
Canada, USA
South America
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela
Colombia
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria
Not Yet Found
Lignite vs Nephelinite 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 Nephelinite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Lignite and Properties of Nephelinite. Learn more about Lignite vs Nephelinite in the next section. The interior uses of Lignite include Not yet used whereas the interior uses of Nephelinite include Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Lignite and Nephelinite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Lignite in construction industry include For road aggregate, Steel production and that of Nephelinite include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate.
More about Lignite and Nephelinite
Here you can know more about Lignite and Nephelinite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Lignite and Nephelinite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Lignite is not available and mineral content of Nephelinite includes Clinopyroxene, Nepheline, Plagioclase. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Lignite vs Nephelinite, 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, Nephelinite is available in black, brown, colourless, green, grey, white colors. Appearance of Lignite is Veined or Pebbled and that of Nephelinite is Skeletal. Properties of rock is another aspect for Lignite vs Nephelinite. The hardness of Lignite is 1 and that of Nephelinite is 6.5. The types of Lignite are Xyloid Lignite or Fossil Wood and Compact Lignite or Perfect Lignite whereas types of Nephelinite are Peralkaline Nephelinite. 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 Nephelinite is white. The specific heat capacity of Lignite is 1.26 kJ/Kg K and that of Nephelinite is 0.88 kJ/Kg K. 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 Nephelinite is heat resistant.