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Limestone vs Carbonatite


Carbonatite vs Limestone


Definition

Definition
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate   
Carbonatite is intrusive or extrusive igneous rock which is defined by mineralogic composition, consisting of greater than 50 percent carbonate minerals   

History
  
  

Origin
New Zealand   
Tanzania   

Discoverer
Belsazar Hacquet   
Unknown   

Etymology
From lime and stone in late 14th Century   
From any intrusive igneous rock, having a majority of carbonate minerals   

Class
Sedimentary Rocks   
Igneous Rocks   

Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock   
Durable Rock, Soft Rock   

Family
  
  

Group
Not Applicable   
Plutonic   

Other Categories
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock   
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock   

Texture

Texture
Clastic or Non-Clastic   
Granular, Poikiloblastic   

Color
Beige, Black, Blue, Brown, Cream, Gold, Green, Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Linen, Pink, Red, Rust, Silver, White, Yellow   
Black, Brown, Colourless, Green, Grey, Pink, White   

Maintenance
More   
Less   

Durability
Durable   
Durable   

Water Resistant
No   
Yes   

Scratch Resistant
Yes   
No   

Stain Resistant
Yes   
No   

Wind Resistant
No   
No   

Acid Resistant
No   
No   

Appearance
Rough and Banded   
Dull, Banded and Foilated   

Uses

Architecture
  
  

Interior Uses
Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration   
Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration   

Exterior Uses
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings   
As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration   

Other Architectural Uses
Curbing   
Curbing   

Industry
  
  

Construction Industry
Cement Manufacture, Cobblestones, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium   
As a Flux in the Production of Steel and Pig Iron, As a Sintering Agent in Steel Industry to process Iron Ore, As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories, Unknown, Unknown   

Medical Industry
In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics   
Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium   

Antiquity Uses
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines   
Artifacts   

Other Uses
  
  

Commercial Uses
Animal feed filler, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Paper Industry, Raw material for manufacture of quicklime, slaked lime, Soil Conditioner, Used in aquariums, Whiting material in toothpaste, paint and paper   
An Oil and Gas Reservoir, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Gemstone, Metallurgical Flux   

Types

Types
Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa   
Not Available   

Features
Host Rock for Lead, Stalactites and stalagmites are formed from this rock, Zinc and Copper Deposits   
Available in lots of colors, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock   

Archaeological Significance
  
  

Monuments
Used   
Not Yet Used   

Famous Monuments
Acropolis of Athens in Greece, Agia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Big Ben in London, Charminar in Hyderabad, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, India, Chichen Itza in Mexico, Empire State Building in New York, Khajuraho Temples, India, Kremlin in Moscow, Louvre in Paris, France, Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Potala Palace in Lahasa, Tibet, Wailing Wall in Jerusalem   
Not Applicable   

Sculpture
Used   
Not Yet Used   

Famous Sculptures
Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India   
Not Applicable   

Pictographs
Used   
Used   

Petroglyphs
Used   
Used   

Figurines
Used   
Not Yet Used   

Fossils
Present   
Absent   

Formation

Formation
Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is mainly made up of calcium carbonate.   
Carbonatites are intrusive or extrusive igneous rocks which are defined by mineralogic composition consisting of greater than 50 percent carbonate minerals and are formed due to low degrees of partial melting of rocks.   

Composition
  
  

Mineral Content
Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt   
Ancylite, Apatite, Barite, Fluorite, Magnetite, Natrolite, Sodalite   

Compound Content
Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO   
CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Sodium Oxide   

Transformation
  
  

Metamorphism
No   
Yes   

Types of Metamorphism
Not Applicable   
Burial Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism   

Weathering
Yes   
Yes   

Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering   
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering   

Erosion
Yes   
Yes   

Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion   
Chemical Erosion, Wind Erosion   

Properties

Physical Properties
  
  

Hardness
3-4   
3   

Grain Size
Fine Grained   
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained   

Fracture
Splintery   
Conchoidal   

Streak
White   
White   

Porosity
Less Porous   
Less Porous   

Luster
Dull to Pearly   
Subvitreous to Dull   

Compressive Strength
115.00 N/mm2   
18
Not Available   

Cleavage
Non-Existent   
Not Available   

Toughness
1   
1   

Specific Gravity
2.3-2.7   
2.86-2.87   

Transparency
Opaque   
Opaque   

Density
2.3-2.7 g/cm3   
2.84-2.86 g/cm3   

Thermal Properties
  
  

Specific Heat Capacity
0.91 kJ/Kg K   
11
Not Available   

Resistance
Pressure Resistant   
Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Water Resistant   

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents
  
  

Asia
Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam   
China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Uzbekistan   

Africa
Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe   
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa   

Europe
United Kingdom   
Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom   

Others
Not Yet Found   
Greenland   

Deposits in Western Continents
  
  

North America
USA   
Canada, USA   

South America
Colombia   
Brazil   

Deposits in Oceania Continent
  
  

Australia
Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Tonga, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula   
New South Wales, New Zealand   

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Limestone vs Carbonatite 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 Limestone and Carbonatite Reserves. Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. Carbonatite is intrusive or extrusive igneous rock which is defined by mineralogic composition, consisting of greater than 50 percent carbonate minerals. 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 Limestone vs Carbonatite information and Limestone vs Carbonatite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Limestone vs Carbonatite 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. Limestone vs Carbonatite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Limestone and Properties of Carbonatite. Learn more about Limestone vs Carbonatite in the next section. The interior uses of Limestone include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Carbonatite include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Limestone and Carbonatite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Limestone in construction industry include Cement manufacture, Cobblestones, For road aggregate, Production of glass and ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium and that of Carbonatite include As a flux in the production of steel and pig iron, As a sintering agent in steel industry to process iron ore, As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories, Unknown, Unknown.

More about Limestone and Carbonatite

Here you can know more about Limestone and Carbonatite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Limestone and Carbonatite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt and mineral content of Carbonatite includes Ancylite, Apatite, Barite, Fluorite, Magnetite, Natrolite, Sodalite. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Limestone vs Carbonatite, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Limestone is available in beige, black, blue, brown, cream, gold, green, grey, light green, light grey, linen, pink, red, rust, silver, white, yellow colors whereas, Carbonatite is available in black, brown, colourless, green, grey, pink, white colors. Appearance of Limestone is Rough and Banded and that of Carbonatite is Dull, Banded and Foilated. Properties of rock is another aspect for Limestone vs Carbonatite. The hardness of Limestone is 3-4 and that of Carbonatite is 3. The types of Limestone are Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa whereas types of Carbonatite are Not Available. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Limestone and Carbonatite is white. The specific heat capacity of Limestone is 0.91 kJ/Kg K and that of Carbonatite is Not Available. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Limestone is pressure resistant whereas Carbonatite is heat resistant, pressure resistant, water resistant.

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