Limestone

Slate

Limestone vs Slate

Limestone

Slate

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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

Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

New Zealand

England

1.2.2 Discoverer

Belsazar Hacquet

Unknown

1.3 Etymology

From lime and stone in late 14th Century

From Old French esclate, from esclat (French éclat)

1.4 Class

Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphic 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

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Clastic or Non-Clastic

Foliated

2.2 Color

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

Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Light to Dark Grey, Purple, Red, Shades of Blue

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

Dull

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Bathrooms, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration, Kitchens, Stair Treads

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

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

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

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 Dimension Stone

3.2.2 Medical Industry

In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

Not Yet Used

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, 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

Blackboards, Commemorative Tablets, Laboratory bench tops, Standard material for the bed of Billiard table, Standard material for the beds of Pool and Snooker table, Tombstones, Used in aquariums, Writing Slates

4 Types

4.1 Types

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

Not Available

4.2 Features

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

Easily splits into thin plates, Surfaces are often shiny, Very fine grained rock

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

Absent

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

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

Slate is a low grade metamorphic rock that is generally formed by metamorphosis of mudstone or shale, under relatively low pressure and temperature conditions.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

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

Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Graphite, Hematite, Kaolinite, Magnetite, Pyrite, Tourmaline, Zircon

5.2.2 Compound Content

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

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Not Applicable

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion

Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

3-43-4

1 7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Fine Grained

Very fine-grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Splintery

6.1.4 Streak

White

Light to dark brown

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull to Pearly

Dull

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

115.00 N/mm²30.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

6.1.8 Cleavage

Non-Existent

Slaty

6.1.9 Toughness

1.2

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.3-2.72.65-2.8

0 8.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.3-2.7 g/cm³2.6-2.8 g/cm³

0 1400

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

0.91 kJ/Kg K0.76 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

6.2.2 Resistance

Pressure Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact 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, Turkey

7.1.2 Africa

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

Not Yet Found

7.1.3 Europe

United Kingdom

Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

Arctic

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

USA

7.2.2 South America

Colombia

Brazil

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

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

Not Yet Found

Limestone vs Slate 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 Slate Reserves. Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. 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 Slate information and Limestone vs Slate characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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Limestone vs Slate 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 Slate characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Limestone and Properties of Slate. Learn more about Limestone vs Slate in the next section. The interior uses of Limestone include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Slate include Bathrooms, Decorative aggregates, Entryways, Floor tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior decoration, Kitchens and Stair treads. Due to some exceptional properties of Limestone and Slate, 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 Slate include As dimension stone.

More about Limestone and Slate

Here you can know more about Limestone and Slate. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Limestone and Slate consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt and mineral content of Slate includes Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Graphite, Hematite, Kaolinite, Magnetite, Pyrite, Tourmaline, Zircon. You can also check out the list of all . When we have to compare Limestone vs Slate, 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, Slate is available in black, brown, buff, green, light to dark grey, purple, red, shades of blue colors. Appearance of Limestone is Rough and Banded and that of Slate is Dull. Properties of rock is another aspect for Limestone vs Slate. Hardness of Limestone and Slate is 3-4. The types of Limestone are Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa whereas types of Slate are Not Available. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Limestone is white while that of Slate is light to dark brown. The specific heat capacity of Limestone is 0.91 kJ/Kg K and that of Slate is 0.76 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 Slate is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.