Obsidian vs Pumice

Obsidian vs Pumice 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 Obsidian and Pumice Reserves. Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock. It is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimum crystal growth. Pumice is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. 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 Obsidian vs Pumice information and Obsidian vs Pumice characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Obsidian vs Pumice 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. Obsidian vs Pumice characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Obsidian and Properties of Pumice. Learn more about Obsidian vs Pumice in the next section. The interior uses of Obsidian include Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Pumice include Decorative aggregates, Flooring, Homes and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Obsidian and Pumice, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Obsidian in construction industry include Arrowheads, Cutting tool, Knives, Scrapers, Spear points and that of Pumice include As dimension stone, Cement manufacture, For road aggregate, In landscaping and horticulture, Making natural cement, Production of lightweight concrete blocks.

More about Obsidian and Pumice

Here you can know more about Obsidian and Pumice. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Obsidian and Pumice consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Obsidian is not available and mineral content of Pumice includes Aluminum Oxides, Calcite, Carbonate, Iron Oxides, Silica. You can also check out the list of all Igneous Rocks. When we have to compare Obsidian vs Pumice, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Obsidian is available in black, blue, brown, green, orange, red, tan, yellow colors whereas, Pumice is available in beige, colourless, grey, light green, light grey, pink, white, yellow- grey colors. Appearance of Obsidian is Shiny and that of Pumice is Vesicular. Properties of rock is another aspect for Obsidian vs Pumice. The hardness of Obsidian is 5-5.5 and that of Pumice is 6. The types of Obsidian are Fireworks Obsidian, Mahogany, Sheen Obsidian, Snowflake obsidian and Velvet Peacock Obsidian whereas types of Pumice are Scoria. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Obsidian is white while that of Pumice is white, greenish white or grey. The specific heat capacity of Obsidian is 0.92 kJ/Kg K and that of Pumice is 0.87 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Obsidian is heat resistant, impact resistant whereas Pumice is impact resistant, pressure resistant.