Understanding Basics About Baltimore Granite

Tuesday, 25 October 2016

By Thomas Adams


Granites are felsic intrusive igneous rocks whose textures are phaneritic and granular. In Baltimore granite rocks vary a lot in their color depending on mineralogy. Some examples of colors include white, gray, and pink. The name granites derives from granum, which is the Latin word for grain. The name grain is inspired by the coarse-grained structure the rock has. Any intrusive igneous rock with a coarse-grained texture to granites and a slightly different origin or composition is described as granitic.

Granites are classified basing on QAPF diagram for plutonic rocks with coarse grains. The percentage of quartz, plagioclase feldspar, and alkali feldspar forms the basis for naming. Alkali feldspar granite are granitoids that lack or contain only trivial amounts of plagioclase.

Granitoids that are composed of less than ten percent orthoclase are called tonalites. Tonalite commonly contain amphibole and pyroxene. Granites that contain both biotite and muscovite micas are referred to as two-mica or binary granites. Binary granites contain large amounts of potassium and trivial amounts of plagioclase. Binary granites are also usually A-type or S-type granites.

Tors and rounded massifs are some of the outcrops in which granites commonly occur. They also occur commonly in circular depressions formed by hornfels in hill ranges. The bulk of the rock makes the crust in the form of continental plates. It is only proven to be present on earth, with its distribution being widely in the crust. It is during geological periods that the rock intruded into the crust of the earth.

Marble industries to which the granite industry belongs has a long history that stretches back to the Ancient Egypt. It is one of the oldest industries in the world. Today, some of the major exporters of the rock are China, Italy, Brazil, India, Spain, Sweden, Canada, and Germany. These countries make millions from exporting granites of various types to different importing countries. Granites find use in many industries, including making of sculptures and memorials, building and construction, and engineering.

The use of granites for gravestones and memorials is a common practice in many places worldwide. Carving granites requires great skill because they are very hard stones. The results achieved from carving the stone before the 18th century were very poor because only hand tools were available by then. Today, the carving process has been revolutionized by the presence of steam-powered cutting and dressing tools among other modern tools.

Today, there are many methods of carving stone that have been invented. Some of them include computer-controlled rotary bits and sandblasting. These methods can be used to create very complex artworks and epitaph with ease. In building, granites are used as flooring tiles and dimension stones. Flooring tiles in this case can be used in monuments, and public or commercial buildings.

Granites are held in high esteem by rock climbers because of their soundness, friction, crack systems, and steepness. There are many sites in the world that offer good granite climbing spots. They include Yosemite, Adamello-Presanella Alps, the Aiguille du Midi, the Cornish coast, and the Bugaboos. The design of artificial rock climbing walls installed in theme parks and gyms resembles granites.




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