Fabric (geology)

In geology, a rock's fabric describes the spatial and

geometric configuration of all the elements that make it
up.[1][2] In sedimentary rocks, the fabric developed depends
on the depositional environment and can provide information
on current directions at the time of deposition. In structural
geology, fabrics may provide information on both the
orientation and magnitude of the strains that have affected a
particular piece of deformed rock.

Types of fabric
Primary fabric in anorthosite intrusion,
Primary fabric — a fabric created during the Rogaland, Norway
original formation of the rock, e.g. a preferred
orientation of clast long axes in a conglomerate,
parallel to the flow direction, deposited by a fast waning
current.
Shape fabric — a fabric that is defined by the preferred
orientation of inequant elements within the rock, such as
platy- or needle-like mineral grains. It may also be
formed by the deformation of originally equant elements
such as mineral grains.[3]
Crystallographic preferred orientation — in plastically
deformed rocks, the constituent minerals commonly
display a preferred orientation of their crystal axes as a
result of dislocation processes.
S-fabric — a planar fabric such as cleavage or foliation;
when it forms the dominant fabric in a rock, it may be
called an S-tectonite.
L-fabric — a linear fabric such as mineral stretching
lineation where aggregates of recrystallised grains are
stretched out into the long axis of the finite strain Deformed waterlain volcanic
ellipsoid, where it forms the dominant fabric in a rock, it sediments. Primary fabric (bedding)
may be called an L-tectonite. shown by abrupt change in clast
Penetrative fabric — a fabric that is present throughout size, secondary fabric shown by
the rock, generally down to the grain scale, although this penetrative S-fabric, cleavage, in
does also depend on the scale at which the observations fine-grained rock, and by shape
take place. [4] fabric in deformed volcanic clasts.
Cape Forchu, Nova Scotia
Magnetic fabric — orientation of magnetic particles
within a rock sample or in soils to determine
paleomagnetic history[5] or to quantify tectonic strain.[6]

References
1. Hobbs BE, Means WD, & Williams PF. (1976). An outline of structural geology. John Wiley &
sons, p.73.
 2. Twiss RJ and Moores EM. (2007). Structural Geology, 2nd Edition, WH Freeman and Co.,
p.497.
3. Park, R.G. (2004). Foundation of Structural Geology (https://books.google.com/books?id=W-
uFh_954lEC&q=park+%22shape+fabric%22&pg=SA3-PA38) (3 ed.). Routledge. p. 52.
ISBN 978-0-7487-5802-9.
4. Passchier, CW; Trouw, RAJ (2005). Microtectonics (https://books.google.com/books?id=4jM
q3iw-XVUC&q=%22penetrative+fabric%22&pg=PA315) (2 ed.). Springer. p. 315. ISBN 978-
3-540-64003-5. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
5. Butler, Robert F. (1992). Paleomagnetism : magnetic domains to geologic terranes. Boston:
Blackwell Scientific Publications. ISBN 086542070X. OCLC 23254791 (https://www.worldca
t.org/oclc/23254791).
6. Borradaile, Graham John (December 1988). "Magnetic susceptibility, petrofabrics and
strain". Tectonophysics. 156 (1–2): 1–20. Bibcode:1988Tectp.156....1B (https://ui.adsabs.har
vard.edu/abs/1988Tectp.156....1B). doi:10.1016/0040-1951(88)90279-X (https://doi.org/10.1
016%2F0040-1951%2888%2990279-X).

See also
Rock microstructure
Texture (geology)
Orientation tensor

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