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Sandstone
Sandstone

Amphibolite
Amphibolite



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Amphibolite

Sandstone vs Amphibolite

Definition

Definition

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
Amphibolite can be defined as a granular metamorphic rock which mainly consist of hornblende and plagioclase

History

Origin

-
-

Discoverer

Unknown
Alexandre Brongniart

Etymology

From its composition, sand and stone
From Amphibole + -ite

Class

Sedimentary Rocks
Metamorphic Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Hard Rock

Family

Group

-
-

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Clastic, Granular, Rough
Banded, Foliated, Massive

Color

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

Maintenance

More
Less

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Rough
Foliated

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Office Buildings
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Paving Stone, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing
Curbing

Industry

Construction Industry

Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar
As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cobblestones, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Landscaping, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Roadstone

Medical Industry

-
-

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture
Artifacts, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

An Oil and Gas Reservoir, In aquifers, Petroleum reservoirs, Soil Conditioner, Source of Magnesia (MgO), Tombstones, Used in aquariums
Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork

Types

Types

Grey Sandstones, Crystallized Sandstones, Hard Sandstones , Carbonate Cemented Sandstones and Ganister
Hornblendite

Features

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Generally rough to touch, Very fine grained rock
Clasts are smooth to touch, Matrix variable, Surfaces are often shiny

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
Absent

Formation

Formation

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock which forms from cemented sand-sized clasts. It forms when sand layers are buried under sediments of sand.
Amphibolite is a coarse-grained metamorphic rock which forms by metamorphism of mafic igneous rocks like basalt and gabbro or from the metamorphism of clay-rich sedimentary rocks like marl or graywacke.

Composition

Mineral Content

Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz
Amphibole, Andalusite, Biotite, Calcite, Epidote, Garnet, Hornblade, Kyanite, Magnetite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Staurolite, Wollastonite

Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

Types of Metamorphism

-
-

Weathering

Types of Weathering

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

Erosion

Types of Erosion

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

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

6-76-7
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Coarse or Fine
Medium to Coarse Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal
Irregular to Conchoidal

Streak

White
White to Grey

Porosity

Highly Porous
Less Porous

Luster

Dull
Vitreous to Dull

Compressive Strength

95.00 N/mm290.00 N/mm2
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect
-

Toughness

2.6
2.3

Specific Gravity

2.2-2.82.5
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.2-2.8 g/cm32.85-3.07 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.92 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

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

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

China, India, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, Thailand, Uzbekistan
Russia, Turkey

Africa

Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa
Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda

Europe

Austria, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Germany, Greece, Iceland, Norway, Poland

Others

Greenland
-

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Canada, USA

South America

Brazil
Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand
South Australia, Western Australia

Sandstone vs Amphibolite 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 Sandstone and Amphibolite Reserves. 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. Amphibolite can be defined as a granular metamorphic rock which mainly consist of hornblende and plagioclase. 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 Sandstone vs Amphibolite information and Sandstone vs Amphibolite characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Sandstone vs Amphibolite 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. Sandstone vs Amphibolite characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Sandstone and Properties of Amphibolite. Learn more about Sandstone vs Amphibolite in the next section. The interior uses of Sandstone include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Amphibolite include Countertops, Decorative aggregates, Entryways, Floor tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels and Kitchens. Due to some exceptional properties of Sandstone and Amphibolite, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Sandstone in construction industry include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Production of glass and ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar and that of Amphibolite include As dimension stone, Building houses or walls, Cobblestones, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Landscaping, Production of glass and ceramics, Roadstone.

More about Sandstone and Amphibolite

Here you can know more about Sandstone and Amphibolite. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Sandstone and Amphibolite consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Sandstone includes Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz and mineral content of Amphibolite includes Amphibole, Andalusite, Biotite, Calcite, Epidote, Garnet, Hornblade, Kyanite, Magnetite, Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Staurolite, Wollastonite. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Sandstone vs Amphibolite, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Sandstone is available in beige, black, brown, cream, dark brown, green, grey, light green, light to dark grey, pink, red, white, yellow colors whereas, Amphibolite is available in black, brown, green, grey colors. Appearance of Sandstone is Rough and that of Amphibolite is Foliated. Properties of rock is another aspect for Sandstone vs Amphibolite. Hardness of Sandstone and Amphibolite is 6-7. The types of Sandstone are Grey Sandstones, Crystallized Sandstones, Hard Sandstones , Carbonate Cemented Sandstones and Ganister whereas types of Amphibolite are Hornblendite. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Sandstone is white while that of Amphibolite is white to grey. The specific heat capacity of Sandstone is 0.92 kJ/Kg K and that of Amphibolite is 0.84 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Sandstone is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant whereas Amphibolite is heat resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant.