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Tuff and Dunite


Dunite and Tuff


Definition

Definition
Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption  
Dunite is a green to brownish coarse-grained igneous rock mainly consisting of olivine  

History
  
  

Origin
Italy  
New Zealand  

Discoverer
Unknown  
Ferdinand von Hochstetter  

Etymology
From a Latin word tophous then in Italian tufo and finally tuff  
From the name of Dun Mountain, New Zealand, + -ite1  

Class
Igneous Rocks  
Igneous Rocks  

Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock  
Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock  

Family
  
  

Group
Volcanic  
Plutonic  

Other Categories
Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock  
Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock  

Texture

Texture
Clastic, Pyroclastic  
Phaneritic  

Color
Brown, Grey, Yellow  
Dark Greenish - Grey  

Maintenance
More  
Less  

Durability
Durable  
Durable  

Water Resistant
Yes  
Yes  

Scratch Resistant
Yes  
Yes  

Stain Resistant
No  
Yes  

Wind Resistant
No  
No  

Acid Resistant
No  
No  

Appearance
Dull, Vesicular and Foilated  
Rough and Shiny  

Uses

Architecture
  
  

Interior Uses
Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Flooring, Homes, Interior Decoration  
Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration  

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

Other Architectural Uses
Curbing  
Curbing  

Industry
  
  

Construction Industry
Building houses or walls, Construction Aggregate  
As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Raw material for the manufacture of mortar  

Medical Industry
-  
-  

Antiquity Uses
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines  
Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines  

Other Uses
  
  

Commercial Uses
Creating Artwork  
Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry, Source of Chromite, Platinum, Nickel and Garnet, Source of Diamonds  

Types

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

Features
Always found as volcanic pipes over deep continental crust  
Constitutes upper part of the Earth's mantle, Generally rough to touch, Host rock for Diamond, 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  
Absent  

Formation

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.  
Dunite is a plutonic ultramafic igneous rock consisting almost m olivine. It can be formed in two ways.   

Composition
  
  

Mineral Content
Calcite, Chlorite  
Amphibole, Chromite, Garnet, Magnesium, Olivine, Phlogopite, Plagioclase, Pyroxene  

Compound Content
Hydrogen Sulfide, Sulfur Dioxide  
Ca, CaO, Fe, Potassium, Silicon Dioxide, Sodium, Titanium Dioxide  

Transformation
  
  

Metamorphism
Yes  
Yes  

Types of Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Hydrothermal Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism  
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism  

Weathering
Yes  
Yes  

Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering  
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering  

Erosion
Yes  
Yes  

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

Properties

Physical Properties
  
  

Hardness
4-6  
3.5-4  

Grain Size
Fine Grained  
Coarse Grained  

Fracture
Uneven  
Irregular  

Streak
White  
White  

Porosity
Highly Porous  
Less Porous  

Luster
Vitreous to Dull  
Shiny  

Compressive Strength
243.80 N/mm2  
6
107.55 N/mm2  
28

Cleavage
-  
-  

Toughness
-  
2.1  

Specific Gravity
2.73  
3-3.01  

Transparency
Opaque  
Translucent to Opaque  

Density
1-1.8 g/cm3  
2.84-2.85 g/cm3  

Thermal Properties
  
  

Specific Heat Capacity
0.20 kJ/Kg K  
32
1.25 kJ/Kg K  
6

Resistance
Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant  
Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear 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  
China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey  

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

Europe
France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom  
Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland  

Others
Antarctica, Hawaii Islands  
-  

Deposits in Western Continents
  
  

North America
Canada, Costa Rica, Panama, USA  
Canada, USA  

South America
Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay  
Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela  

Deposits in Oceania Continent
  
  

Australia
Central Australia, Western Australia  
New Zealand, Western Australia  

Summary >>
<< Reserves

All about Tuff and Dunite Properties

Know all about Tuff and Dunite properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Tuff and Dunite belong to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Tuff is Clastic, Pyroclastic whereas that of Dunite is Phaneritic. Tuff appears Dull, Vesicular and Foilated and Dunite appears Rough and Shiny. The luster of Tuff is vitreous to dull while that of Dunite is shiny. Tuff is available in brown, grey, yellow colors whereas Dunite is available in dark greenish - grey colors. The commercial uses of Tuff are creating artwork and that of Dunite are creating artwork, gemstone, jewelry, source of chromite, platinum, nickel and garnet, source of diamonds.

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