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Oil shale
Oil shale

Sandstone
Sandstone



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Oil shale
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Oil shale vs Sandstone

Definition

Definition

Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted
Sandstone is defined as a rock which is composed of sand-sized grains of various minerals mostly of uniform size and often are smooth and rounded

History

Origin

-
-

Discoverer

Unknown
Unknown

Etymology

From Old English scealu in its base sense of thing that divides or separate
From its composition, sand and stone

Class

Sedimentary Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

-
-

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Splintery
Clastic, Granular, Rough

Color

Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Grey, Red, Yellow
Beige, Black, Brown, Cream, Dark Brown, Green, Grey, Light Green, Light to Dark Grey, Pink, Red, White, Yellow

Maintenance

Less
More

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Muddy
Rough

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

-
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

-
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

-
Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Serves as an Oil and Gas Reservoir rock
Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar

Medical Industry

-
-

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

An Oil and Gas Reservoir
An Oil and Gas Reservoir, In aquifers, Petroleum reservoirs, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO), Tombstones, Used in aquariums

Types

Types

Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale
Grey Sandstones, Crystallized Sandstones, Hard Sandstones , Carbonate Cemented Sandstones and Ganister

Features

Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Very fine grained rock
Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Generally rough to touch, Very fine grained rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

-
-

Famous Monuments

-
Abu Simbel in Egypt, Agia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Buland Darwaza in Agra, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, India, Dom in Berlin, Great Sphinx at Giza, Egypt, Hawa Mahal in Jaipur, India, Humayun's Tomb in Delhi, India, India Gate in Delhi, India, Jama Masjid in Delhi, India, Khajuraho Temples, India, Leh Palace in Leh, India, Lotus Temple in New Delhi, India, Luxor Temple in Egypt, Machu Picchu in Peru, Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Petra in Jordan, Qutb Minar in India, Red Fort in Delhi, India, Sanchi Stupa in India

Sculpture

-
-

Famous Sculptures

-
Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota, US

Pictographs

-
-

Petroglyphs

-
-

Figurines

-
-

Fossils

Present
Present

Formation

Formation

Oil Shale forms on the beds of seas and lakes and its formation starts with the organic debris settling and accumulating at the bottom of a lake or sea which are then transformed into rock with the help of high temperature and pressure.
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock which forms from cemented sand-sized clasts. It forms when sand layers are buried under sediments of sand.

Composition

Mineral Content

Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides
Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz

Compound Content

Ca, Fe, Mg, Silicon Dioxide, Sodium
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

Types of Metamorphism

-
-

Weathering

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

2-36-7
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Very fine-grained
Coarse or Fine

Fracture

-
Conchoidal

Streak

White
White

Porosity

Highly Porous
Highly Porous

Luster

Dull
Dull

Compressive Strength

-95.00 N/mm2
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

Slaty
Perfect

Toughness

2.6
2.6

Specific Gravity

2.2-2.82.2-2.8
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.4-2.8 g/cm32.2-2.8 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.39 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Bangladesh, China, India, Israel, Jordan, Russia, Syria, Thailand, Turkey
China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Thailand, Uzbekistan

Africa

Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania
Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa

Europe

Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Others

Greenland
Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Canada, USA

South America

Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia
New South Wales, New Zealand

Oil shale vs Sandstone 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 Oil shale and Sandstone Reserves. Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted. Sandstone is defined as a rock which is composed of sand-sized grains of various minerals mostly of uniform size and often are smooth and rounded. 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 Oil shale vs Sandstone information and Oil shale vs Sandstone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Oil shale vs Sandstone 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. Oil shale vs Sandstone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Oil shale and Properties of Sandstone. Learn more about Oil shale vs Sandstone in the next section. The interior uses of Oil shale include whereas the interior uses of Sandstone include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Oil shale and Sandstone, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Oil shale in construction industry include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Serves as an oil and gas reservoir rock and that of Sandstone include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Production of glass and ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar.

More about Oil shale and Sandstone

Here you can know more about Oil shale and Sandstone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Oil shale and Sandstone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Oil shale includes Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides and mineral content of Sandstone includes Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Oil shale vs Sandstone, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Oil shale is available in black, brown, buff, green, grey, red, yellow colors whereas, Sandstone is available in beige, black, brown, cream, dark brown, green, grey, light green, light to dark grey, pink, red, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Oil shale is Muddy and that of Sandstone is Rough. Properties of rock is another aspect for Oil shale vs Sandstone. The hardness of Oil shale is 2-3 and that of Sandstone is 6-7. The types of Oil shale are Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale whereas types of Sandstone are Grey Sandstones, Crystallized Sandstones, Hard Sandstones , Carbonate Cemented Sandstones and Ganister. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Oil shale and Sandstone is white. The specific heat capacity of Oil shale is 0.39 kJ/Kg K and that of Sandstone 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.Oil shale is heat resistant, impact resistant whereas Sandstone is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant.