Tuff

Pumice

Tuff and Pumice

Tuff

Pumice

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Definition

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

Pumice is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals

History

Origin

Italy

Spain

Discoverer

Unknown

Etymology

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

From Old French pomis, from a Latin dialect variant of pumex

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Family

Group

Volcanic

Other Categories

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Clastic, Pyroclastic

Vesicular

Color

Brown, Grey, Yellow

Beige, Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Pink, White, Yellow- grey

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Dull, Vesicular and Foilated

Vesicular

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Flooring, Homes, Interior Decoration

Decorative Aggregates, Flooring, Homes, 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, Powder

Industry

Construction Industry

Building houses or walls, Construction Aggregate

As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, In landscaping and horticulture, Making natural cement, Production of lightweight concrete blocks

Medical Industry

As an abrasive in skin exfoliating products, In Chemical and Pharmaceutical Industry, Medicines and Cosmetics

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Artifacts

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Creating Artwork

As a traction material on snow-covered roads, As an abrasive in pencil erasers, Fine abrasive used for polishing, Manufacture of Soap, Solvents, Dyes, Plastics and Fibres, Used in aquariums

Types

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

Scoria

Features

Always found as volcanic pipes over deep continental crust

Host Rock for Lead

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Easter Island in the Polynesian Triangle, Pacific Ocean

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

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.

Pumice rock forms when the magma cools so quickly that atoms in the melt are not able to arrange themselves into a crystalline structure.

Composition

Mineral Content

Calcite, Chlorite

Aluminum Oxides, Calcite, Carbonate, Iron Oxides, Silica

Compound Content

Hydrogen Sulfide, Sulfur Dioxide

Al, Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, MgO, Silicon Dioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

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

Burial Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

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

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

4-66

1 7

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Grain Size

Fine Grained

Fracture

Uneven

Planar

Streak

White

White, Greenish White or Grey

Porosity

Highly Porous

Luster

Vitreous to Dull

Earthy

Compressive Strength

243.80 N/mm²51.20 N/mm²

0.15 450

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Cleavage

Perfect

Toughness

Specific Gravity

2.732.86

0 8.4

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Transparency

Opaque

Density

1-1.8 g/cm³0.25-0.3 g/cm³

0 1400

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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

Impact Resistant, Pressure 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

Afghanistan, Indonesia, Japan, Russia

Africa

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

Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania

Europe

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

Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Turkey

Others

Antarctica, Hawaii Islands

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, Costa Rica, Panama, USA

Bahamas, Barbados, Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico, USA

South America

Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Paraguay

Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

Central Australia, Western Australia

New Zealand, Western Australia

All about Tuff and Pumice Properties

Know all about Tuff and Pumice properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Tuff and Pumice belong to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Tuff is Clastic, Pyroclastic whereas that of Pumice is Vesicular. Tuff appears Dull, Vesicular and Foilated and Pumice appears Vesicular. The luster of Tuff is vitreous to dull while that of Pumice is earthy. Tuff is available in brown, grey, yellow colors whereas Pumice is available in beige, grey, light green, light grey, pink, white, yellow- grey colors. The commercial uses of Tuff are creating artwork and that of Pumice are as a traction material on snow-covered roads, as an abrasive in pencil erasers, fine abrasive used for polishing, manufacture of soap, solvents, dyes, plastics and fibres, used in aquariums.