Shale

Sandstone

Shale vs Sandstone

Shale

Sandstone

Add ⊕

1 Definition

1.1 Definition

Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock which is formed by the compaction of silt and clay-size mineral particles

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

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

Unknown

1.2.2 Discoverer

Unknown

1.3 Etymology

From German Schalstein laminated limestone, and Schalgebirge layer of stone in stratified rock. From Old English scealu in its base sense of- thing that divides or separate,

From its composition, sand and stone

1.4 Class

Sedimentary Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Hard Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Clastic, Splintery

Clastic, Granular, Rough

2.2 Color

Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Grey, Red, Yellow

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

2.3 Maintenance

2.4 Durability

Durable

2.4.1 Water Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.2 Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.3 Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.4 Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

2.4.5 Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

2.5 Appearance

Muddy

Rough

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Office Buildings

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar

Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Not Yet Used

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Sculpture

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

Creating Artwork, Pottery

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

4 Types

4.1 Types

Red Shale, Black Shale, Green Shale, Grey Shale and Yellow Shale

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

4.2 Features

Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Very fine grained rock

Available in Lots of Colors and Patterns, Generally rough to touch, Very fine grained rock

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

Jantar Mantar in India

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

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Data Not Available

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

4.3.5 Pictographs

Used

Not Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Used

Not Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

4.4 Fossils

Present

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Shale forms when very fine-grained clay particles are deposited in water which settle at the bottom of water bodies. They are later compacted hence forming shale.

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

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

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

Calcite, Clay, Clay Minerals, Feldspar, Micas, Quartz

5.2.2 Compound Content

Ca, Fe, Mg, Silicon Dioxide, Sodium

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

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Not Applicable

5.3.3 Weathering

✔ ✘

5.3.4 Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

5.3.5 Erosion

✔ ✘

5.3.6 Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion

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

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

36-7

1 7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Very fine-grained

Coarse or Fine

6.1.3 Fracture

Not Available

Conchoidal

6.1.4 Streak

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Highly Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

95.00 N/mm²95.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

6.1.8 Cleavage

Slaty

Perfect

6.1.9 Toughness

2.6

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.2-2.82.2-2.8

0 8.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.4-2.8 g/cm³2.2-2.8 g/cm³

0 1400

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

0.39 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

Bangladesh, China, India, Russia

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

7.1.2 Africa

Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania

Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa

7.1.3 Europe

Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland

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

7.1.4 Others

Not Yet Found

Greenland

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

USA

Canada, USA

7.2.2 South America

Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela

Brazil

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

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

New South Wales, New Zealand

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 Shale and Sandstone Reserves. Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock which is formed by the compaction of silt and clay-size mineral particles. 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 Shale vs Sandstone information and Shale vs Sandstone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Compare Sedimentary Rocks » More

Shale vs Breccia

Shale vs Lignite

Shale vs Oolite

» More

More Compare Sedimentary Rocks

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. Shale vs Sandstone characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Shale and Properties of Sandstone. Learn more about Shale vs Sandstone in the next section. The interior uses of Shale include Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Sandstone include Countertops, Decorative aggregates and Interior decoration. Due to some exceptional properties of Shale and Sandstone, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Shale in construction industry include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Making natural cement, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar 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 Shale and Sandstone

Here you can know more about Shale and Sandstone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Shale and Sandstone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of 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 Shale vs Sandstone, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Shale is available in black, brown, buff, green, grey, red, yellow colors whereas, Sandstone is available in beige, black, brown, colourless, cream, dark brown, green, grey, light green, light to dark grey, pink, red, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Shale is Muddy and that of Sandstone is Rough. Properties of rock is another aspect for Shale vs Sandstone. The hardness of Shale is 3 and that of Sandstone is 6-7. The types of Shale are Red Shale, Black Shale, Green Shale, Grey Shale and Yellow 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 Shale and Sandstone is white. The specific heat capacity of 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.Shale is heat resistant, impact resistant whereas Sandstone is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant.