Basalt Granite Density

Rock density is very sensitive to the minerals that compose a particular rock type.

Basalt granite density. Basalt is an igneous volcanic rock that forms commonly in oceanic crust and parts of continental crust. Since gabbro and basalt are made of the same minerals their densities are similar. As it turns out most of the ocean floor is basalt and most of the continents are granite. Granite is an igneous plutonic rock which is.

Its principle minerals include pyroxene feldspar and olivine. Some meteorites have low densities 3 0 g cm 3 but such meteorites are rare among meteorites. And if you know your igneous petrology you will see that the more mafic rich in magnesium and iron a rock is the greater its density. Earth contains three kinds of rocks namely igneous rocks sedimentary rocks and metamorphic rocks basalt and granite are two types of igneous rocks.

When we have to compare granite vs basalt the texture color and appearance plays an important role in determining the type of rock. Basalt is the dark heavy volcanic rock that makes up most of the world s oceanic crust. It is common both on earth and other planetary bodies. The density of basalt one of the most common kinds of terrestrial volcanic rocks can be as high as 3 0 g cm 3.

And not all granites basalts and gabbros contain exactly the same minerals. It forms from lava flows which extrude onto the surface and cool. Basaltic crust is dark and thin and heavy while granite is light and accumulates. All rocks of igneous origin consist of magma or molten earth that finds its way up to.

For example limestone 2 6 g cm 3 or less quartzite 2 7 g cm 3 and granite 2 7 2 8 g cm 3 are all common low density rocks. Some of it erupts on land too but to a first approximation basalt is an oceanic rock. Sedimentary rocks and granite which are rich in quartz and feldspar tend to be less dense than volcanic rocks. The key difference between basalt and granite is that basalt is mostly occurring on ocean floors while granite is in the crust of the earth in all continents.

It wants to be there and heat is the key which unlocks the door. Basalt is an aphanitic fine grained igneous rock that is relatively low in silica and alkali metals it has less than 10 feldspathoid by volume with at least 65 of the rock consisting of feldspar in the form of plagioclase this places basalt in the basalt andesite field of the qapf diagram basalt is further distinguished from andesite by its silica content of less than 52. Gabbro s density ranges from 2 7 3 3 g cm 3.