Tuff

Argillite

Tuff and Argillite

Tuff

Argillite

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Definition

Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption

Argillites are highly compact sedimentary or slightly metamorphosed rocks that consist largely or wholly of particles of clay or silt but lack the fissility of shale or the cleavage characteristic of slate

History

Origin

Italy

Discoverer

Unknown

Etymology

From a Latin word tophous then in Italian tufo and finally tuff

From Latin Argilla (clay) and -ite in English which became agrilla+ -ite = Argillite

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sedimentary Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Durable Rock, Soft Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Clastic, Pyroclastic

Clastic, Polished

Color

Brown, Grey, Yellow

Dark Grey to Black, Pink, Red, White

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull, Vesicular and Foilated

Rough and Dull

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Flooring, Homes, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, Homes, Interior Decoration

Exterior Uses

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

As Building Stone, Garden Decoration, Office Buildings

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Curbing, Whetstones

Industry

Construction Industry

Building houses or walls, Construction Aggregate

Used for flooring, stair treads, borders and window sills.

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Creating Artwork

Fire resistant, Used to manufracture paperweights and bookends

Types

Welded tuff, Rhyolitic tuff, Basaltic tuff, Trachyte tuff, Andesitic tuff and Ignimbrite.

Metamorphic rock

Features

Always found as volcanic pipes over deep continental crust

Is one of the oldest rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Easter Island in the Polynesian Triangle, Pacific Ocean

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Present

Formation

Tuff is formed when large masses of ash and sand which are mixed with hot gases are ejected by a volcano and avalanche rapidly down its slopes.

An argillite is a fine-grained sedimentary rock mainly composed of clay particles which forms from lithified muds which contain variable amounts of silt-sized particles.

Composition

Mineral Content

Calcite, Chlorite

Biotite, Chlorite, Feldspar, Micas, Muscovite or Illite, Plagioclase, Pyrite, Quartz

Compound Content

Hydrogen Sulfide, Sulfur Dioxide

Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Silicon Dioxide

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

Biological Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

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

Chemical Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

4-62-3

1 7

👆🏻

Grain Size

Fine Grained

Fracture

Uneven

Conchoidal to Uneven

Streak

White

White to Grey

Porosity

Highly Porous

Luster

Vitreous to Dull

Waxy and Dull

Compressive Strength

243.80 N/mm²-

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Slaty

Toughness

2.6

Specific Gravity

2.732.56-2.68

0 8.4

👆🏻

Transparency

Opaque

Density

1-1.8 g/cm³2.54-2.66 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.20 kJ/Kg K0.87 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam, Yemen

Bangladesh, China, India, Russia

Africa

Cameroon, Cape Verde, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Uganda

Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, South Africa, Tanzania

Europe

France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom

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

Others

Antarctica, Hawaii Islands

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, Costa Rica, Panama, USA

USA

South America

Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay

Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

Central Australia, Western Australia

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

All about Tuff and Argillite Properties

Know all about Tuff and Argillite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Tuff belongs to Igneous Rocks while Argillite belongs to Sedimentary Rocks.Texture of Tuff is Clastic, Pyroclastic whereas that of Argillite is Clastic, Polished. Tuff appears Dull, Vesicular and Foilated and Argillite appears Rough and Dull. The luster of Tuff is vitreous to dull while that of Argillite is waxy and dull. Tuff is available in brown, grey, yellow colors whereas Argillite is available in dark grey to black, pink, red, white colors. The commercial uses of Tuff are creating artwork and that of Argillite are fire resistant, used to manufracture paperweights and bookends.