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Diorite and Basalt

Diorite is a coarse-grained igneous rock that forms deep within the Earth's crust. It consists mainly of plagioclase feldspar and mafic minerals like pyroxene, hornblende, or biotite which give it a salt and pepper appearance. Diorite typically forms near subducting plate boundaries and results from the mixing and crystallization of basaltic and granitic magmas. It is used as an aggregate in construction materials like roads, buildings and erosion control structures.

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231 views16 pages

Diorite and Basalt

Diorite is a coarse-grained igneous rock that forms deep within the Earth's crust. It consists mainly of plagioclase feldspar and mafic minerals like pyroxene, hornblende, or biotite which give it a salt and pepper appearance. Diorite typically forms near subducting plate boundaries and results from the mixing and crystallization of basaltic and granitic magmas. It is used as an aggregate in construction materials like roads, buildings and erosion control structures.

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Kyubi Nine
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DESCRIPTION:

• Diorite is a gray, coarse-grained plutonic rock.


• Diorite consists mainly of sodium-rich plagioclase and
one or more mafic minerals such as biotite, hornblende,
or pyroxene.
• It is the coarse-grained equivalent of andesite.
• "salt and pepper" appearance of diorite,
produced by white plagioclase contrasting with
black hornblende and biotite
• Diorite is usually composed of sodium-
rich plagioclase with lesser amounts
of hornblende and biotite.
• It usually contains little if any quartz. This makes
diorite a coarse-grained rock with a contrasting
mix of black and white mineral grains.
OCCURRENCE:
• It usually occurs as large intrusions, dikes, and sills
within continental crust. These often form above a
convergent plate boundary where an oceanic plate sub
ducts beneath a continental plate.
• Partial melting of the oceanic plate produces a basaltic
magma that rises and intrudes the granitic rock of the
continental plate. There, the basaltic magma mixes with
granitic magmas or melts granitic rock as it ascends
through the continental plate. This produces a melt that is
intermediate in composition between basalt and granite.
Diorite forms if this type of melt crystallizes below the
surface.
PROPERTIES:
USES OF DIORITE:
Diorite is used as a base material in the
construction of roads, buildings, and parking areas.
It is also used as a drainage stone and for erosion
control.
In the dimension stone industry, diorite is often cut into
facing stone, tile, ashlars, blocking, pavers, curbing,
and a variety of dimension stone products. These are
used as construction stone, or polished and used as
architectural stone.
DESCRIPTION:
 Basalt is a dark-colored, fine-
grained, igneous rock composed mainly
of plagioclase and pyroxene minerals.
OCCURRENCE:
 It most commonly forms as an extrusive rock,
such as a lava flow, but can also form in small
intrusive bodies, such as an igneous dike or a
thin sill. It has a composition similar to gabbro.
The difference between basalt and gabbro is
that basalt is a fine-grained rock while gabbro
is a coarse-grained rock.
 Most of the basalt found on Earth was
produced in just three rock-forming
environments: oceanic divergent boundaries,
oceanic hotspots and mantle plumes and
hotspots beneath continents.
PROPERTIES:
 The rock hardness of basalt is 6 on the
Mohs scale, and can be seen through a
combination of its compressive strength:
100-300 Mpa (Megapascal), its tensile
strength: 10-30 Mpa, and its shear
strength: 20-60 Mpa, which denotes that
depending on the mineral makeup, basalt
rocks fall in the strong - very strong
category. This property is common
amongst most dense, fine-grained textured
rocks, such as basalt.
USES OF BASALT:
 Basalt is used for a wide variety of
purposes. It is most commonly crushed for
use as an aggregate in construction
projects. Crushed basalt is used for road
base, concrete aggregate, asphalt
pavement aggregate, railroad ballast, filter
stone in drain fields, and may other
purposes. Basalt is also cut into dimension
stone. Thin slabs of basalt are cut and
sometimes polished for use as floor tiles,
building veneer, monuments, and other
stone objects.

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