Definition
Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted
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
History
Origin
-
England
Discoverer
Unknown
Abraham Gottlob Werner
Etymology
From Old English scealu in its base sense of thing that divides or separate
From Old French esclate, from esclat (French éclat)
Class
Sedimentary Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock
Family
Group
-
-
Other Categories
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Splintery
Foliated
Color
Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Grey, Red, Yellow
Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Light to Dark Grey, Purple, Red, Shades of Blue
Maintenance
Less
Less
Durability
Durable
Durable
Water Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Scratch Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Stain Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Wind Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Acid Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Appearance
Muddy
Dull
Architecture
Interior Uses
-
Bathrooms, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration, Kitchens, Stair Treads
Exterior Uses
-
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone
Other Architectural Uses
-
Curbing
Industry
Construction Industry
Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Serves as an Oil and Gas Reservoir rock
As Dimension Stone
Medical Industry
-
-
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines
Other Uses
Commercial Uses
An Oil and Gas Reservoir
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
Types
Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale
Phyllite, Schist, and Slate
Features
Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Very fine grained rock
Easily splits into thin plates, Surfaces are often shiny, Very fine grained rock
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
-
-
Famous Monuments
-
-
Sculpture
-
-
Famous Sculptures
-
-
Pictographs
-
-
Petroglyphs
-
-
Figurines
-
-
Fossils
Present
Absent
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.
Slate is a low grade metamorphic rock that is generally formed by metamorphosis of mudstone or shale, under relatively low pressure and temperature conditions.
Composition
Mineral Content
Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides
Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Graphite, Hematite, Kaolinite, Magnetite, Pyrite, Tourmaline, Zircon
Compound Content
Ca, Fe, Mg, Silicon Dioxide, Sodium
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide
Transformation
Metamorphism
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Metamorphism
-
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional 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
Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
Physical Properties
Hardness
2-33-4
1
7
👆🏻
Grain Size
Very fine-grained
Very fine-grained
Fracture
-
Splintery
Streak
White
Light to dark brown
Porosity
Highly Porous
Less Porous
Luster
Dull
Dull
Compressive Strength
-30.00 N/mm2
0.15
450
👆🏻
Cleavage
Slaty
Slaty
Toughness
2.6
1.2
Specific Gravity
2.2-2.82.65-2.8
0
8.4
👆🏻
Transparency
Opaque
Opaque
Density
2.4-2.8 g/cm32.6-2.8 g/cm3
0
1400
👆🏻
Thermal Properties
Specific Heat Capacity
0.39 kJ/Kg K0.76 kJ/Kg K
0.14
3.2
👆🏻
Resistance
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
Bangladesh, China, India, Israel, Jordan, Russia, Syria, Thailand, Turkey
China, India, Turkey
Africa
Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania
-
Europe
Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom
Others
Greenland
Arctic
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, USA
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
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