Wehrlite

Basalt

Wehrlite and Basalt

Wehrlite

Basalt

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Definition

Wehrlite is an ultramafic and ultrabasic rock that is a mixture of olivine and clinopyroxene. It is a subdivision of the peridotites

Basalt is a common extrusive igneous rock formed by the rapid cooling of basaltic lava exposed at or very near the surface of Earth

History

Origin

Egypt

Discoverer

Alois Wehrle

Georgius Agricola

Etymology

From the name of a professor, Alois Wehrle

From Late Latin Basaltes (variant of basanites ), very hard stone, which was imported from Ancient Greek Basanites

Class

Igneous Rocks

Sub-Class

Durable Rock, Medium Hardness Rock

Family

Group

Plutonic

Volcanic

Other Categories

Coarse Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Fine Grained Rock, Opaque Rock

Texture

Banded

Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular

Color

Dark Greenish - Grey, Green

Black, Brown, Light to Dark Grey

Maintenance

Less

Durability

Durable

Water Resistant

✔ ✘

Scratch Resistant

✔ ✘

Stain Resistant

✔ ✘

Wind Resistant

✔ ✘

Acid Resistant

✔ ✘

Appearance

Rough and Banded

Dull and Soft

Uses

Architecture

Interior Uses

Decorative Aggregates, Interior Decoration

Floor Tiles, Homes, Hotels, Kitchens

Exterior Uses

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

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

Other Architectural Uses

Curbing

Curbing, Whetstones

Industry

Construction Industry

As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones

Arrowheads, As Dimension Stone, Cobblestones, Cutting Tool, Rail Track Ballast, Roadstone

Medical Industry

Antiquity Uses

Artifacts, Monuments, Sculpture, Small Figurines

Artifacts, Monuments

Other Uses

Commercial Uses

Cemetery Markers, Creating Artwork, Gemstone, Jewelry

An Oil and Gas Reservoir, Commemorative Tablets, Creating Artwork, Used in aquariums

Types

Ultramafic rock

Alkaline Basalt, Boninite, High Alumina Basalt, Mid Ocean Ridge Basalt (MORB), Tholeiitic Basalt, Basaltic trachyandesite, Mugearite and Shoshonite

Features

Constitutes upper part of the Earth's mantle, Generally rough to touch, Is one of the oldest rock

Has High structural resistance against erosion and climate, Very fine grained rock

Archaeological Significance

Monuments

Famous Monuments

Easter Island in the Polynesian Triangle, Pacific Ocean, Gateway of India in Mumbai, India, Gol Gumbaz in Karnataka, India

Sculpture

Famous Sculptures

Pictographs

Petroglyphs

Figurines

Fossils

Absent

Formation

Wehrlite is a fine-grained, hard rock which is a type of metasomatite, essentially altered basalt. It forms with or without crystallization, either below the surface as intrusive rocks or on the surface as extrusive rocks.

Basalt forms when lava reaches the Earth's surface near an active volcano. The temperature of lava is between 1100 to 1250° C when it gets to the surface.

Composition

Mineral Content

Pyroxene

Olivine, Plagioclase, Pyroxene

Compound Content

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Carbon Dioxide, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Aluminium Oxide, CaO, Iron(III) Oxide, FeO, Potassium Oxide, MgO, MnO, Sodium Oxide, Phosphorus Pentoxide, Silicon Dioxide, Titanium Dioxide

Transformation

Metamorphism

✔ ✘

Types of Metamorphism

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

Contact Metamorphism

Weathering

✔ ✘

Types of Weathering

Biological Weathering, Chemical Weathering, Mechanical Weathering

Biological Weathering

Erosion

✔ ✘

Types of Erosion

Chemical Erosion, Coastal Erosion, Water Erosion

Properties

Physical Properties

Hardness

5.5-66

1 7

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Grain Size

Coarse Grained

Fine Grained

Fracture

Irregular

Conchoidal

Streak

White

White to Grey

Porosity

Less Porous

Luster

Metallic

Compressive Strength

100.00 N/mm²37.40 N/mm²

0.15 450

👆🏻

Cleavage

Perfect

Toughness

2.1

2.3

Specific Gravity

8.42.8-3

0 8.4

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Transparency

Opaque

Density

2.6-3.7 g/cm³2.9-3.1 g/cm³

0 1400

👆🏻

Thermal Properties

Specific Heat Capacity

0.63 kJ/Kg K0.84 kJ/Kg K

0.14 3.2

👆🏻

Resistance

Heat Resistant, Impact Resistant, Pressure Resistant

Heat Resistant, Pressure Resistant, Wear Resistant

Reserves

Deposits in Eastern Continents

Asia

China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Russia, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey

India, Russia

Africa

Morocco, South Africa

South Africa

Europe

Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland

Iceland

Others

Deposits in Western Continents

North America

Canada, USA

South America

Brazil

Deposits in Oceania Continent

Australia

New Zealand, Western Australia

All about Wehrlite and Basalt Properties

Know all about Wehrlite and Basalt properties here. All properties of rocks are important as they define the type of rock and its application. Wehrlite and Basalt belong to Igneous Rocks.Texture of Wehrlite is Banded whereas that of Basalt is Glassy, Massive, Porphyritic, Scoriaceous, Vesicular. Wehrlite appears Rough and Banded and Basalt appears Dull and Soft. The luster of Wehrlite is metallic while that of Basalt is . Wehrlite is available in dark greenish - grey, green colors whereas Basalt is available in black, brown, light to dark grey colors. The commercial uses of Wehrlite are cemetery markers, creating artwork, gemstone, jewelry and that of Basalt are an oil and gas reservoir, commemorative tablets, creating artwork, used in aquariums.