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Soapstone
Soapstone

Oil shale
Oil shale



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Soapstone
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Oil shale

Soapstone vs Oil shale

Definition

Definition

It is a metamorphic magnesium rich rock because it is composed of the mineral talc
Oil Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock from which oil is extracted

History

Origin

USA
-

Discoverer

Unknown
Unknown

Etymology

From 17th century, because of its greasy feel and use like a soap
From Old English scealu in its base sense of thing that divides or separate

Class

Metamorphic Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Durable Rock, Soft Rock

Family

Group

-
-

Other Categories

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

Texture

Texture

Polished
Splintery

Color

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

Maintenance

Less
Less

Durability

Durable
Durable

Water Resistant

Scratch Resistant

Stain Resistant

Wind Resistant

Acid Resistant

Appearance

Dull, Banded and Foilated
Muddy

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Bathrooms, Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration
-

Exterior Uses

As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration
-

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing
-

Industry

Construction Industry

Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories
Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Serves as an Oil and Gas Reservoir rock

Medical Industry

Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium
-

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Jewellery, Monuments, Sculpture
Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Cemetery Markers, Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Production of Lime, Source of Magnesia (MgO)
An Oil and Gas Reservoir

Types

Types

Metamorphic rock
Carbonate-rich Shale, Siliceous Shale and Cannel Shale

Features

Host Rock for Lead
Easily splits into thin plates, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock, Very fine grained rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

-
-

Famous Monuments

Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Stonehenge in English county of Wiltshire
-

Sculpture

-
-

Famous Sculptures

-
-

Pictographs

-
-

Petroglyphs

-
-

Figurines

-
-

Fossils

Absent
Present

Formation

Formation

Soapstone is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock and it is largely composed of the mineral talc and is thus rich inmagnesium.
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

Albite, Apatite, Biotite, Calcite, Carbonate, Clay Minerals, Hornblende, Ilmenite, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, Quartz
Albite, Biotite, Calcite, Chert, Chlorite, Dolomite, Hematite, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Pyrite, Quartz, Silica, Sulfides

Compound Content

CaO, Mg, MgO
Ca, Fe, Mg, Silicon Dioxide, Sodium

Transformation

Metamorphism

Types of Metamorphism

Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
-

Weathering

Types of Weathering

-
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

Types of Erosion

-
Chemical Erosion, Sea Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

12-3
1 7
👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine Grained
Very fine-grained

Fracture

Conchoidal
-

Streak

Black
White

Porosity

Less Porous
Highly Porous

Luster

Greasy
Dull

Compressive Strength

225.00 N/mm2-
0.15 450
👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect
Slaty

Toughness

1
2.6

Specific Gravity

2.862.2-2.8
0 8.4
👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque
Opaque

Density

2.8-2.9 g/cm32.4-2.8 g/cm3
0 1400
👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.88 kJ/Kg K0.39 kJ/Kg K
0.14 3.2
👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

China, India, Indonesia, Japan, North Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand
Bangladesh, China, India, Israel, Jordan, Russia, Syria, Thailand, Turkey

Africa

Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Western Africa
Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania

Europe

Austria, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom
Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

Others

-
Greenland

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA
Canada, USA

South America

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

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

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

Soapstone 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 Soapstone and Oil shale Reserves. It is a metamorphic magnesium rich rock because it is composed of the mineral talc. 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 Soapstone vs Oil shale information and Soapstone vs Oil shale characteristics in the upcoming sections.

Soapstone 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. Soapstone vs Oil shale characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. Also you can check about Properties of Soapstone and Properties of Oil shale. Learn more about Soapstone vs Oil shale in the next section. The interior uses of Soapstone include Bathrooms, Decorative aggregates, Homes and Interior decoration whereas the interior uses of Oil shale include . Due to some exceptional properties of Soapstone and Oil shale, they have various applications in construction industry. The uses of Soapstone in construction industry include Manufacture of magnesium and dolomite refractories and that of Oil shale include Cement manufacture, Construction aggregate, For road aggregate, Serves as an oil and gas reservoir rock.

More about Soapstone and Oil shale

Here you can know more about Soapstone and Oil shale. The life cycle of a rock consists of formation of rock, composition of rock and transformation of rock. The composition of Soapstone and Oil shale consists of mineral content and compound content. The mineral content of Soapstone includes Albite, Apatite, Biotite, Calcite, Carbonate, Clay Minerals, Hornblende, Ilmenite, Micas, Plagioclase, Pyroxene, 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 Metamorphic Rocks. When we have to compare Soapstone vs Oil shale, the texture, color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Soapstone is available in black, black to grey, green, grey colors whereas, Oil shale is available in black, brown, buff, green, grey, red, yellow colors. Appearance of Soapstone is Dull, Banded and Foilated and that of Oil shale is Muddy. Properties of rock is another aspect for Soapstone vs Oil shale. The hardness of Soapstone is 1 and that of Oil shale is 2-3. The types of Soapstone are Metamorphic rock 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 Soapstone is black while that of Oil shale is white. The specific heat capacity of Soapstone is 0.88 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.Soapstone is heat resistant, pressure resistant whereas Oil shale is heat resistant, impact resistant.