Lignite

Soapstone

Lignite vs Soapstone

Lignite

Soapstone

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Definition

Lignite is a soft brownish coal which shows traces of plants and is intermediate between bituminous coal and peat

It is a metamorphic magnesium rich rock because it is composed of the mineral talc

History

Origin

France

USA

Discoverer

Unknown

Etymology

From French, Latin lignum wood + -ite1

From 17th century, because of its greasy feel and use like a soap

Class

Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphic Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Soft Rock

Family

Group

Other Categories

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

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Amorphous, Glassy

Polished

Color

Black, Brown, Dark Brown, Grey, Light to Dark Grey

Black, Black to Grey, Green, Grey

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Veined or Pebbled

Dull, Banded and Foilated

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Bathrooms, Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

for Road Aggregate, Steel Production

Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories

Medical Industry

Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Jewellery, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Electricity Generation

Cemetery Markers, Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Production of Lime, Source of Magnesia (MgO)

Types

Xyloid Lignite or Fossil Wood and Compact Lignite or Perfect Lignite

Metamorphic rock

Features

Generally rough to touch, Helps in production of Heat and Electricity, Used as fossil fuel

Host Rock for Lead

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Stonehenge in English county of Wiltshire

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Present

Absent

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.

Soapstone is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock and it is largely composed of the mineral talc and is thus rich inmagnesium.

Composition

Mineral Content

Albite, Apatite, Biotite, Calcite, Carbonate, Clay Minerals, Hornblende, Ilmenite, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz

Compound Content

Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Sulphur

CaO, Mg, MgO

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

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

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

Fine Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Streak

Black

Porosity

Highly Porous

Less Porous

Luster

Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic

Greasy

Compressive Strength

-225.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect

Toughness

Specific Gravity

1.1-1.42.86

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

800-801 g/cm³2.8-2.9 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

1.26 kJ/Kg K0.88 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam

China, India, Indonesia, Japan, North Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand

Africa

Botswana, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania

Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Western Africa

Europe

Belgium, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, The Czech Republic, Ukraine, United Kingdom

Austria, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Others

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

Central Australia, New Zealand, Queensland

Lignite vs Soapstone 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 Lignite and Soapstone Reserves. Lignite is a soft brownish coal which shows traces of plants and is intermediate between bituminous coal and peat. It is a metamorphic magnesium rich rock because it is composed of the mineral talc. 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 Lignite vs Soapstone information and Lignite vs Soapstone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Lignite vs Soapstone 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 Soapstone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Lignite and Properties of Soapstone. Learn more about Lignite vs Soapstone in the next section. The interior uses of Lignite include whereas the interior uses of Soapstone include Bathrooms, Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Lignite and Soapstone, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Lignite in construction industry include For road aggregate, Steel production and that of Soapstone include Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories.

More about Lignite and Soapstone

Here you can know more about Lignite and Soapstone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Lignite and Soapstone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Lignite includes and mineral content of Soapstone includes Albite, Apatite, Biotite, Calcite, Carbonate, Clay Minerals, Hornblende, Ilmenite, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Lignite vs Soapstone, 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, Soapstone is available in black, black to grey, green, grey colors. Appearance of Lignite is Veined or Pebbled and that of Soapstone is Dull, Banded and Foilated. Properties of rock is another aspect for Lignite vs Soapstone. Hardness of Lignite and Soapstone is 1. The types of Lignite are Xyloid Lignite or Fossil Wood and Compact Lignite or Perfect Lignite whereas types of Soapstone are Metamorphic rock. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Lignite and Soapstone is black. The specific heat capacity of Lignite is 1.26 kJ/Kg K and that of Soapstone 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 Soapstone is heat resistant, pressure resistant.