If you ask the first available person, what rock is, in his opinion, the most durable, it is very likely to say that it is granite.The stone of this mineral is very solid and practical, as well as an attractive appearance, and so it is often used in construction.In addition, it is often used to create various decorative items including the landmarks.The name of this breed comes from the Latin word «granum», which means "grain."
What is granite
The main components of this widespread in the earth's surface rock is feldspar and quartz.What is granite stone?Photos and descriptions of different types of the breed say that this stone can vary significantly in color, do not be like the other species and take a variety of shades ranging from pale pink and ending with gray.Coating of granite, mainly depends on the mineral, which by its weight fraction predominates over the other components forming part of the rock.Feldspar is usually represented by different types of potassium feldspar and albite may be supplemented or oligoclase.A quartz inclusions in granite are of the form of small-sized vitreous kernels.The latter may be either slightly bluish and colorless.In addition, responding to a question about what is in granite, it is sure to note the inclusion of muscovite and biotite, as well as items such as zircon, magnetite, titanium, apatite and allanite.However, the content in this mineral is very, very slightly.By listing all the things from which it is granite, note that with the prevalence or lack of certain components of it are starting to refer to other varieties of rocks.So, if there is too little potassium feldspar and quartz, it falls into the group of quartz diorite or monzonite.And if the granite is too large mass fraction of plagioclase, this mineral will be considered granodiorite, while too low content of mafic minerals - leucogranite.
deposits, mining
After we examined in detail, what it consists of granite, tell a little bit about where this mineral is found and where it is mined.In nature, this occurs quite massive rock formations known as batholiths.Their thickness is 3-4 km long and often exceeds 100 square kilometers.Also, deposits of granite may take the form of stocks and dikes.Parts of the formation of this mineral are located one above the other, and act as a layer or sedimentary metamorphic rocks.The deposits of granite rocks, there are absolutely on every continent.Most often they are found in those places where the strong erosion and denudation processes, due to which was disrupted integrity of the sedimentary rocks.In the US, deposits of granite located close to the Ozark Plateau, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and the mountains of the Black Hills.In Russia, this mineral is mainly located in the Urals, in eastern Siberia and the Far East.
