STONES

ROCK
• formative
•naturally occurring aggregate of specific
mineral/ chemical composition in one of three
forms igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary
• aggregates of minerals
STONE
fragment of rock classified by its shape and
size; larger than sand, silt, and clay
Rocks classified by:

• mineral and chemical composition

• texture of the constituent particles
• by the processes that formed them
• further classified according to particle size
Those indicators separate rocks into three types:
 • formed by crystallization from a melt (magma)

2 Main Categories

• Extrusive (volcanic) - produced when magma flows on the

earth's surface
Example: Diorite, Gabbro, Granite and Pegmatite

• Intrusive (plutonic) - produced when magma solidifies at

depth beneath the earth.
Example: Andesite, Basalt, Obsidian, Pumice, Rhyolite and
Scoria
• formed by the deposition of material at the Earth's surface
and within bodies of water
• formed by weathering and erosion in a source area

Mud rocks 65% (mudstone, shale and siltstone)

Sandstones 20 to 25%
Carbonate rocks 10 to 15% (limestone and dolostone)
3 Basic Types

• Clastic Sedimentary Rocks - formed from mechanical

weathering debris
Example: Breccia, Conglomerate, Sandstone and Shale

• Chemical Sedimentary Rocks - form when dissolved

materials precipitate from solution
Example: Limestone

• Organic Sedimentary Rocks - form from the accumulation

of plant or animal debris
Example: Coal
• transformation of existing rock types, in a process called
metamorphism, which means "change in form"
• modified by heat, pressure and chemical process usually
while buried deep below Earth's surface

• Protolith (original rock) is subjected to heat and pressure,

(temperatures greater than 150 to 200 °C and pressures of
1500 bars) causing profound physical and/or chemical
change; may be sedimentary rock, igneous rock or another
older metamorphic rock
2 Basic Types

• Foliated Metamorphic Rocks - a layered or banded

appearance that is produced by exposure to heat and
directed pressure
Example: Gneiss, Phyllite, Schist and Slate
• Non – Foliated Metamorphic Rocks - do not have a layered
or banded appearance
Example: Marble and Quartzite
 • natural stone or rock that has been selected and fabricated
(i.e., trimmed, cut, drilled, ground, or other) to specific sizes
or shapes
Normal Requirements:
• Color
• Texture and Pattern
• Surface finish of the stone
• Durability
• Hardness
• Strength
Additional criteria: resistance to moisture, decay and extreme
temperatures, ability of the stone to take on a polish or finish
 • used for extracting building materials, such as dimension
stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel

1. the stone shattered by heavy and indiscriminate blasting must

be removed
2. Dimension stone is separated by more precise and delicate
techniques, such as diamond wire saws, diamond belt saws,
burners (jet-piercers), or light and selective blasting with a
weak explosive.
Common rock types used as structural and decorative
dimension stone are:
• Granite
• Limestone
• Marble
• Travertine
• Quartz-based stone (sandstone, quartzite)
• Slate
Other dimension stone normally considered to be special
minor types include:
• Alabaster (massive gypsum)
• Soapstone (massive talc)
• Serpentine
• A block saw, or gang saw, cuts the massive stone blocks into
slabs

• Polishers grind down the naturally rough surface of the

stone to whatever finish the consumer desires

• Routers create edge profiles on a slab, and cut designs on

larger pieces like fireplace mantles and hearths
to achieve diverse architectural and aesthetic effects

• POLISHED FINISH – gives the surface a high luster and

strong reflection of incident light (almost mirror-like)
• HONED FINISH – provides
a smooth, satin-like
(eggshell), non-reflective
surface

• BUSH-HAMMERED –
creates a rough, but
uniformly patterned
surface with impact tools
varying in coarseness
• SAND BLASTED – provides
an irregular pitted surface
by impacting sand or
metal particles at high
velocity against a stone
surface

• THERMAL/FLAMED FINISH
– produces a textured, non
reflective surface with only
a few reflections from
cleavage faces, by applying
a high-temperature flame
• Most decay of porous building materials is caused by
wetting/drying cycles
• Sulfation: common form of decay in urban areas
• The calcium carbonate of limestone converts to calcium
sulfate by the action of acid rains
• Organic growth is not always destructive, but again it is
important to understand the plant and the building
FLOORING
Rock materials - popular flooring tile because of their durability,
patterns and colors
Countertops & Walls
durable minerals which makes it a logical choice for home
construction
Roofing
split and cut slate into shingles
 peridotite
a coarse-grained intrusive igneous rock that is composed almost
entirely of olivine; may contain small amounts of amphibole,
feldspar, quartz or pyroxene

Igneous – Rock Types

 tuff
composed mainly of volcanic ash and sometimes contains larger
size particles such as cinders
sometimes called tufa, particularly when used as construction
material

Igneous – Rock Types

 CHERT
COMPOSITION:
microcrystalline silicon dioxide
USES:
produces a spark when it is struck against steel; the heat
from this spark can be used to start fires

Sedimentary – Rock Types

 IRON ORE
• formed from chemical reactions that combined iron and
oxygen in marine and fresh waters
• The two most important minerals in these deposits are iron
oxides: hematite (Fe2O3) and magnetite (Fe3O4)

USES:
• used to make steel
• Steel is used to make automobiles, locomotives, ships, beams
used in buildings, furniture, paper clips, tools, reinforcing rods
for concrete, bicycles, and thousands of other items

Sedimentary – Rock Types

IRON ORE

Sedimentary – Rock Types

 rock salt
a chemical sedimentary rock that forms from the evaporation of
ocean or saline lake waters

Sedimentary – Rock Types

 siltstone
a clastic sedimentary rock defined by its grain size; forms from
silt-size weathering debris

Sedimentary – Rock Types

 amphibolite
• a non-foliated metamorphic rock that forms through
recrystallization under conditions of high viscosity and
directed pressure
• composed primarily of amphibole and plagioclase, usually
with very little quartz

Metamorphic – Rock Types

 hornfels
• a fine-grained non foliated metamorphic rock with no specific
composition
• produced by contact metamorphism
• a rock that was "baked" while near a heat source such as a
magma chamber, sill or dike

Metamorphic – Rock Types