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Sandstone
Sandstone

Oil shale
Oil shale



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Oil shale

Sandstone vs Oil shale

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
Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted

History

Origin

-
-

Discoverer

Unknown
Unknown

Etymology

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

Class

Sedimentary Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Soft Rock

Family

Group

-
-

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Clastic, Granular, Rough
Splintery

Color

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

Maintenance

More
Less

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Rough
Muddy

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

Medical Industry

-
-

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture
Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

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

Types

Types

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

Features

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

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock which forms from cemented sand-sized clasts. It forms when sand layers are buried under sediments of sand.
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.

Composition

Mineral Content

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

Compound Content

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

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

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

6-72-3
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Coarse or Fine
Very fine-grained

Fracture

Conchoidal
-

Streak

White
White

Porosity

Highly Porous
Highly Porous

Luster

Dull
Dull

Compressive Strength

95.00 N/mm2-
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect
Slaty

Toughness

2.6
2.6

Specific Gravity

2.2-2.82.2-2.8
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.2-2.8 g/cm32.4-2.8 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.92 kJ/Kg K0.39 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

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

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

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

Africa

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

Europe

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

Others

Greenland
Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Canada, USA

South America

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

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

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

Sandstone vs Oil shale 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 Oil shale 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. Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted. 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 Oil shale information and Sandstone vs Oil shale characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Sandstone vs Oil shale 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 Oil shale characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Sandstone and Properties of Oil shale. Learn more about Sandstone vs Oil shale in the next section. The interior uses of Sandstone include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Oil shale include . Due to some exceptional properties of Sandstone and Oil shale, 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 Oil shale include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Serves as an oil and gas reservoir rock.

More about Sandstone and Oil shale

Here you can know more about Sandstone and Oil shale. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Sandstone and Oil shale consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Sandstone includes Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz and mineral content of Oil shale includes Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides. You can also check out the list of all Sedimentary Rocks. When we have to compare Sandstone vs Oil shale, 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, Oil shale is available in black, brown, buff, green, grey, red, yellow colors. Appearance of Sandstone is Rough and that of Oil shale is Muddy. Properties of rock is another aspect for Sandstone vs Oil shale. The hardness of Sandstone is 6-7 and that of Oil shale is 2-3. The types of Sandstone are Grey Sandstones, Crystallized Sandstones, Hard Sandstones , Carbonate Cemented Sandstones and Ganister whereas types of Oil shale are Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Sandstone and Oil shale is white. The specific heat capacity of Sandstone is 0.92 kJ/Kg K and that of Oil shale is 0.39 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 Oil shale is heat resistant, impact resistant.