Slate

Limestone

Slate vs Limestone

Slate

Limestone

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1 Definition

1.1 Definition

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

Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate

1.2 History

1.2.1 Origin

England

New Zealand

1.2.2 Discoverer

Unknown

Belsazar Hacquet

1.3 Etymology

From Old French esclate, from esclat (French éclat)

From lime and stone in late 14th Century

1.4 Class

Metamorphic Rocks

Sedimentary Rocks

1.4.1 Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

1.5 Family

1.5.1 Group

Not Applicable

1.6 Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

2 Texture

2.1 Texture

Foliated

Clastic or Non-Clastic

2.2 Color

Black, Brown, Buff, Green, Light to Dark Grey, Purple, Red, Shades of Blue

Beige, Black, Blue, Brown, Cream, Gold, Green, Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Linen, Pink, Red, Rust, Silver, White, Yellow

2.3 Maintenance

Less

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

Dull

Rough and Banded

3 Uses

3.1 Architecture

3.1.1 Interior Uses

Bathrooms, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Homes, Hotels, Interior Decoration, Kitchens, Stair Treads

Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

3.1.2 Exterior Uses

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone

As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

3.1.3 Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

3.2 Industry

3.2.1 Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone

Cement Manufacture, Cobblestones, for Road Aggregate, Production of Glass and Ceramics, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar, Roadstone, Source of calcium

3.2.2 Medical Industry

Not Yet Used

In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

3.3 Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

3.4 Other Uses

3.4.1 Commercial Uses

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

Animal feed filler, As a Feed Additive for Livestock, Paper Industry, Raw material for manufacture of quicklime, slaked lime, Soil Conditioner, Used in aquariums, Whiting material in toothpaste, paint and paper

4 Types

4.1 Types

Not Available

Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa

4.2 Features

Easily splits into thin plates, Surfaces are often shiny, Very fine grained rock

Host Rock for Lead, Stalactites and stalagmites are formed from this rock, Zinc and Copper Deposits

4.3 Archaeological Significance

4.3.1 Monuments

Used

4.3.2 Famous Monuments

Data Not Available

Acropolis of Athens in Greece, Agia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, Big Ben in London, Charminar in Hyderabad, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Maharashtra, India, Chichen Itza in Mexico, Empire State Building in New York, Khajuraho Temples, India, Kremlin in Moscow, Louvre in Paris, France, Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, Potala Palace in Lahasa, Tibet, Wailing Wall in Jerusalem

4.3.3 Sculpture

Used

4.3.4 Famous Sculptures

Data Not Available

Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India, Elephanta Caves in Maharashtra, India

4.3.5 Pictographs

Used

4.3.6 Petroglyphs

Used

4.3.7 Figurines

Used

4.4 Fossils

Absent

Present

5 Formation

5.1 Formation

Slate is a low grade metamorphic rock that is generally formed by metamorphosis of mudstone or shale, under relatively low pressure and temperature conditions.

Limestone is a sedimentary rock which is mainly made up of calcium carbonate.

5.2 Composition

5.2.1 Mineral Content

Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Graphite, Hematite, Kaolinite, Magnetite, Pyrite, Tourmaline, Zircon

Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt

5.2.2 Compound Content

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

Aluminium Oxide, NaCl, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, MgO

5.3 Transformation

5.3.1 Metamorphism

✔ ✘

5.3.2 Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Regional 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

Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion

6 Properties

6.1 Physical Properties

6.1.1 Hardness

3-43-4

1 7

6.1.2 Grain Size

Very fine-grained

Fine Grained

6.1.3 Fracture

Splintery

6.1.4 Streak

Light to dark brown

White

6.1.5 Porosity

Less Porous

6.1.6 Luster

Dull

Dull to Pearly

6.1.7 Compressive Strength

30.00 N/mm²115.00 N/mm²

0.15 450

6.1.8 Cleavage

Slaty

Non-Existent

6.1.9 Toughness

1.2

6.1.10 Specific Gravity

2.65-2.82.3-2.7

0 8.4

6.1.11 Transparency

Opaque

6.1.12 Density

2.6-2.8 g/cm³2.3-2.7 g/cm³

0 1400

6.2 Thermal Properties

6.2.1 Specific Heat Capacity

0.76 kJ/Kg K0.91 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

6.2.2 Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Pressure Resistant

7 Reserves

7.1 Deposits in Eastern Continents

7.1.1 Asia

China, India, Turkey

Brunei, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam

7.1.2 Africa

Not Yet Found

Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe

7.1.3 Europe

Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom

United Kingdom

7.1.4 Others

Arctic

Not Yet Found

7.2 Deposits in Western Continents

7.2.1 North America

USA

7.2.2 South America

Brazil

Colombia

7.3 Deposits in Oceania Continent

7.3.1 Australia

Not Yet Found

Adelaide, New Zealand, Queensland, Tonga, Victoria, Yorke Peninsula

Slate vs Limestone 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 Slate and Limestone Reserves. 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. Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed mostly of calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. 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 Slate vs Limestone information and Slate vs Limestone characteristics in the upcoming sections.

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

More about Slate and Limestone

Here you can know more about Slate and Limestone. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Slate and Limestone consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Slate includes Apatite, Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Graphite, Hematite, Kaolinite, Magnetite, Pyrite, Tourmaline, Zircon and mineral content of Limestone includes Calcite, Chert, Clay, Dolomite, Quartz, Sand, Silt. You can also check out the list of all Metamorphic Rocks. When we have to compare Slate vs Limestone, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Slate is available in black, brown, buff, green, light to dark grey, purple, red, shades of blue colors whereas, Limestone is available in beige, black, blue, brown, cream, gold, green, grey, light green, light grey, linen, pink, red, rust, silver, white, yellow colors. Appearance of Slate is Dull and that of Limestone is Rough and Banded. Properties of rock is another aspect for Slate vs Limestone. Hardness of Slate and Limestone is 3-4. The types of Slate are Not Available whereas types of Limestone are Chalk, Coquina, Fossiliferous Limestone, Lithographic Limestone, Oolitic Limestone, Travertine, Tufa. Streak of rock is the color of powder produced when it is dragged across an unweathered surface. The streak of Slate is light to dark brown while that of Limestone is white. The specific heat capacity of Slate is 0.76 kJ/Kg K and that of Limestone is 0.91 kJ/Kg K. Depending on the properties like hardness, toughness, specific heat capacity, porosity etc., rocks are resistant to heat, wear, impact, etc.Slate is heat resistant, impact resistant, pressure resistant, wear resistant whereas Limestone is pressure resistant.