Limestone

Dolomite

Limestone vs Dolomite

Limestone

Dolomite

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1 Definition

1.1 Definition

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate

Dolomite is a sedimentary rock containing more than 50 percent of the mineral dolomite by weight

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

New Zealand

Southern Alps, France

1.2.2 Discoverer

Belsazar Hacquet

Dolomieu

1.3 Etymology

From lime and stone in late 14th Century

From French, from the name of Dolomieu (1750–1801), the French geologist who discovered the rock

1.4 Class

Sedimentary Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

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

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Clastic or Non-Clastic

Earthy

2.2 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

2.3 Maintenance

Less

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

2.5 Appearance

Rough and Banded

Glassy or Pearly

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

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

Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Not Yet Used

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 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, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Serves as an Oil and Gas Reservoir rock

3.2.2 Medical Industry

In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Artifacts, Jewellery, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 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, Production of Lime, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO)

4 Types

4.1 Types

Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa

Boninite and Jasperoid

4.2 Features

Host Rock for Lead, Stalactites and stalagmites are formed from this rock, Zinc and Copper Deposits

Host Rock for Lead, Traps for subsurface fluids like Oil and Natural Gas., Zinc and Copper Deposits

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

4.3.2 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

Data Not Available

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India

Data Not Available

4.3.5 Pictographs

Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

4.4 Fossils

Present

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is mainly made up of calcium carbonate.

Dolomite rocks are originally deposited as calcite or aragonite rich limestone, but during diagenesis process, the calcite or aragonite is transformed into dolomite.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt

Clay Minerals, Pyrite, Quartz, Sulfides

5.2.2 Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO

NaCl, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Magnesium Carbonate, MgO

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Not Applicable

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Not Applicable

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion

Not Applicable

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

3-43.5-4

1 7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Fine Grained

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Splintery

Conchoidal

6.1.4 Streak

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull to Pearly

Vitreous and Pearly

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

115.00 N/mm²140.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

6.1.8 Cleavage

Non-Existent

Perfect

6.1.9 Toughness

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.3-2.72.8-3

0 8.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

Transparent to Translucent

6.1.12 Density

2.3-2.7 g/cm³2.8-2.9 g/cm³

0 1400

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

0.91 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

6.2.2 Resistance

Pressure Resistant

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam

China, India

7.1.2 Africa

Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Morocco, Namibia

7.1.3 Europe

United Kingdom

Austria, Italy, Romania, Spain, Switzerland

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

USA

Mexico, USA

7.2.2 South America

Colombia

Brazil, Colombia

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Tonga, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula

New South Wales, Queensland, Yorke Peninsula

Limestone vs Dolomite 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 Dolomite Reserves. Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. Dolomite is a sedimentary rock containing more than 50 percent of the mineral dolomite by weight. 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 Dolomite information and Limestone vs Dolomite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Limestone vs Dolomite 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 Dolomite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Limestone and Properties of Dolomite. Learn more about Limestone vs Dolomite in the next section. The interior uses of Limestone include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Dolomite include Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Limestone and Dolomite, 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 Dolomite 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, Production of glass and ceramics, Serves as an oil and gas reservoir rock.

More about Limestone and Dolomite

Here you can know more about Limestone and Dolomite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Limestone and Dolomite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt and mineral content of Dolomite includes Clay Minerals, Pyrite, Quartz, Sulfides. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Limestone vs Dolomite, 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, Dolomite is available in black, brown, colourless, green, grey, pink, white colors. Appearance of Limestone is Rough and Banded and that of Dolomite is Glassy or Pearly. Properties of rock is another aspect for Limestone vs Dolomite. The hardness of Limestone is 3-4 and that of Dolomite is 3.5-4. The types of Limestone are Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa whereas types of Dolomite are Boninite and Jasperoid. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Limestone and Dolomite is white. The specific heat capacity of Limestone is 0.91 kJ/Kg K and that of Dolomite is 0.92 kJ/Kg K. 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 Dolomite is heat resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.