Is Obsidian Harder Than Granite

Obsidian igneous rock occurring as a natural glass formed by the rapid cooling of viscous lava from volcanoes.

Is obsidian harder than granite.

Granite vs obsidian characteristics assist us to distinguish and recognize rocks. It is confined to areas of geologically recent volcanic activity. The mohs scale of mineral hardness m oʊ z is a qualitative ordinal scale characterizing scratch resistance of various minerals through the ability of harder material to scratch softer material. Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock.

Granite the most common rock on the continental crust is composed of visible crystals. Lonsdaleite is sometimes formed when meteorites containing graphite. Rocks are made up of one or more minerals. Obsidian is not a genuine mineral or rock it is a natural glass that contains microscopic mineral crystals.

According to the scale talc is the softest. Mohs scale of mineral hardness is named after friedrich mohs a mineralogist mohs scale is ordered by hardness determined by which minerals can scratch other minerals. Despite the fact that they ve been surpassed by. Appearance of obsidian is shiny and that of andesite is dull and soft.

Obsidian older than a few million years is rare because the glassy rock is rapidly destroyed or altered by weathering heat or other processes. Obsidian has a glassy lustre and is slightly harder than window glass. Created in 1812 by german geologist and mineralogist friedrich mohs it is one of several definitions of hardness in materials science some of which are more quantitative. Though some rocks look identical they have certain characteristics which distinguish them from others.

Diamonds of course are harder than all of these and still clock in at 7 on the all time list of hardest materials found or created on earth. If the results are confirmed with physical experiments both materials would be far harder than any substance ever measured. Beyond that their similarities end. Obsidian is found in many locations worldwide.

It can scratch talc but not calcite which is even harder. Properties of rock is another aspect for obsidian vs andesite. Characteristics of rocks include texture appearance color fracture streak hardness etc. Obsidian is available in black blue brown green orange red tan yellow colors whereas andesite is available in bluish grey grey pink yellow colors.

It can be scratched by all other materials. Obsidian is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth it is commonly found within the margins of rhyolitic lava flows known as obsidian flows where the chemical composition high silica content causes a high viscosity which upon rapid cooling results in.