Definition
Websterite is ultramafic and ultrabasic rock that consists of roughly equal proportions of orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene. It is a special type of pyroxenite.
A water-soluble mineral sediment resulting from concentration and crystallization by evaporation from an aqueous solution
History
Origin
Webster, North Carolina
USA
Discoverer
Unknown
Usiglio
Etymology
From the town of Webster located in North Carolina
From a sediment left after the evaporation
Class
Igneous Rocks
Sedimentary Rocks
Sub-Class
Durable Rock, Hard Rock
Durable Rock, Soft Rock
Family
Group
Plutonic
-
Other Categories
Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Coarse Grained Rock, Fine Grained Rock, Medium Grained Rock, Opaque Rock
Texture
Clastic, Granular, Phaneritic, Porphyritic
Earthy
Color
Black to Grey, Bluish - Grey, Dark Greenish - Grey, Green, Light Greenish Grey
Green, Grey, Silver, White
Maintenance
Less
Less
Durability
Durable
Durable
Water Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Scratch Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Stain Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Wind Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Acid Resistant
✔
✘
✔
✘
Appearance
Layered, Banded, Veined and Shiny
Glassy, Vesicular and Foilated
Architecture
Interior Uses
Countertops, Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Floor Tiles, Flooring, Interior Decoration
Decorative Aggregates, Entryways, Flooring, Homes, Interior Decoration
Exterior Uses
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone
As Building Stone, As Facing Stone, Garden Decoration, Paving Stone
Other Architectural Uses
Curbing
Curbing
Industry
Construction Industry
As Dimension Stone, Building houses or walls, Cement Manufacture, Construction Aggregate, for Road Aggregate
As a Flux in the Production of Steel and Pig Iron, As a Sintering Agent in Steel Industry to process Iron Ore, As Dimension Stone, Cement Manufacture, for Road Aggregate, Making natural cement, Manufacture of Magnesium and Dolomite Refractories
Medical Industry
-
Taken as a Supplement for Calcium or Magnesium
Antiquity Uses
Artifacts
Artifacts
Other Uses
Commercial Uses
Cemetery Markers, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Laboratory bench tops, Jewelry, Sea Defence, Tombstones
Used in the manufacture of Ceramic Powder, Used in the preparation of Sulfuric Acid and Silicon Diborite
Types
Ultramafic rock
Sedimentary rock
Features
Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock
Generally rough to touch, Splintery, Veined
Archaeological Significance
Monuments
-
-
Famous Monuments
-
-
Sculpture
-
-
Famous Sculptures
-
-
Pictographs
-
-
Petroglyphs
-
-
Figurines
-
-
Fossils
Absent
Present
Formation
Websterite can be formed as cumulates in ultramafic intrusions by accumulation of pyroxene crystals at the base of the lava chamber.
Evaporite is water-soluble mineral sediment which forms from concentration and crystallization by evaporation from an aqueous solution.
Composition
Mineral Content
Amphibole, Augite, Bronzite, Chromite, Diopside, Enstatite, Garnet, Hornblende, Hypersthene, Magnetite, Pyroxene
Calcite, Cancrinite, Gypsum, Kyanite, Magnetite
Compound Content
Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Chromium(III) Oxide, Iron(III) Oxide, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Silicon Dioxide, Sulfur Trioxide
CaMg(CO3)2, CaO, Calcium Sulfate, KCl, MgO, NaCl
Transformation
Metamorphism
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism
Burial Metamorphism, Cataclastic Metamorphism, Contact Metamorphism, Impact Metamorphism, Regional Metamorphism
Weathering
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Weathering
Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering
-
Erosion
✔
✘
✔
✘
Types of Erosion
Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Glacier Erosion, Water Erosion, Wind Erosion
-
Physical Properties
Hardness
72-3
1
7
👆🏻
Grain Size
Coarse Grained
Medium to Fine Coarse Grained
Fracture
Uneven
Conchoidal
Streak
White, Greenish White or Grey
White
Porosity
Less Porous
Less Porous
Luster
Dull to Vitreous to Submetallic
Subvitreous to Dull
Compressive Strength
95.00 N/mm2225.00 N/mm2
0.15
450
👆🏻
Cleavage
-
Perfect
Toughness
-
-
Specific Gravity
3.2-3.52.86-2.99
0
8.4
👆🏻
Transparency
Opaque
Translucent
Density
3.1-3.6 g/cm32.8-2.9 g/cm3
0
1400
👆🏻
Thermal Properties
Specific Heat Capacity
0.79 kJ/Kg K0.92 kJ/Kg K
0.14
3.2
👆🏻
Resistance
Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant
Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant
Deposits in Eastern Continents
Asia
India, Russia
-
Africa
South Africa
-
Europe
Germany, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Turkey
United Kingdom
Others
Greenland
-
Deposits in Western Continents
North America
Canada, USA
USA
South America
Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela
Colombia, Paraguay
Deposits in Oceania Continent
Australia
New Zealand, Queensland
Central Australia, Western Australia