Schist

Blueschist

Schist and Blueschist

Schist

Blueschist

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Definition

Schist is a medium grade metamorphic rock with medium to large, flat, sheet like grains in a preferred orientation

Blueschist is a metamorphic rock which is generally blue in color and is formed under conditions of high pressure and low temperature

History

Origin

USA

Discoverer

Unknown

Edgar Bailey

Etymology

From French schiste, Greek skhistos i.e. split

Class

Metamorphic Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Family

Group

Other Categories

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

Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Foliated, Platy

Foliated

Color

Black, Blue, Brown, Dark Brown, Green, Grey, Silver

Blue, Bluish - Grey, Purple, Shades of Blue

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Layered and Shiny

Dull and Banded

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Floor Tiles, Interior Decoration

Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Exterior Uses

Garden Decoration, Paving Stone

Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Roadstone

As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Used in aquariums, Writing Slates

Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Curling, Tombstones

Types

Mica Schists, Calc-Silicate Schists, Graphite Schists, Blueschists, Whiteschists, Greenschists, Hornblende Schist, Talc Schist, Chlorite Schist, Garnet Schist, Glaucophane schist.

Metamorphic rock

Features

Easily splits into thin plates, Smooth to touch

Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate, Very fine grained rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Schist formed by dynamic metamorphism at high temperatures and pressures that aligns the grains of mica, hornblende and other elongated minerals into thin layers.

Blueschist forms due to the metamorphism of basalt and other rocks with similar composition at high pressures and low temperatures and approximately corresponding to a depth of 15 to 30 kilometers and 200 to 500 °C.

Composition

Mineral Content

Alusite, Amphibole, Biotite, Chlorite, Epidote, Feldspar, Garnet, Graphite, Hornblade, Kyanite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Porphyroblasts, Quartz, Sillimanite, Staurolite, Talc

Albite, Chlorite, Epidote, Garnet, Glaucophane, Lawsonite, Muscovite or Illite, Quartz

Compound Content

CaO, Carbon Dioxide, MgO

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

Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

3.5-43.5-4

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Medium to Fine Coarse Grained

Fine to Medium Grained

Fracture

Conchoidal

Streak

White

White to Grey

Porosity

Highly Porous

Luster

Shiny

Dull

Compressive Strength

150.00 N/mm²220.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Slaty

Toughness

1.5

Specific Gravity

2.5-2.93-3.2

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

2.8-2.9 g/cm³2.8-2.9 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.70 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Water Resistant

Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam

Japan, Turkey

Africa

Egypt, Ethiopia, Morocco, Nigeria, South Africa

Egypt, Ethiopia, South Africa

Europe

Austria, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

France, Greece, Iceland

Others

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, USA

USA

South America

Brazil, Colombia, Guyana

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland

New Zealand

All about Schist and Blueschist Properties

Know all about Schist and Blueschist properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Schist and Blueschist belong to Metamorphic Rocks.Texture of Schist is Foliated, Platy whereas that of Blueschist is Foliated. Schist appears Layered and Shiny and Blueschist appears Dull and Banded. The luster of Schist is shiny while that of Blueschist is dull. Schist is available in black, blue, brown, dark brown, green, grey, silver colors whereas Blueschist is available in blue, bluish - grey, purple, shades of blue colors. The commercial uses of Schist are used in aquariums, writing slates and that of Blueschist are cemetery markers, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, curling, tombstones.