Types of Rocks

Rocks are not all the same!

The three main types, or classes, of rock are sedimentary, metamorphic, andigneous and the
differences among them have to do with how they are formed.
Sedimentary
Sedimentary rocks are formed from particles of sand, shells, pebbles, and other fragments of material.
Together, all these particles are called sediment. Gradually, the sediment accumulates in layers and
over a long period of time hardens into rock. Generally, sedimentary rock is fairly soft and may break
apart or crumble easily. You can often see sand, pebbles, or stones in the rock, and it is usually the
only type that contains fossils.
Examples of this rock type include conglomerate and limestone.
Metamorphic
Metamorphic rocks are formed under the surface of the earth from the metamorphosis (change) that
occurs due to intense heat and pressure (squeezing). The rocks that result from these processes often
have ribbonlike layers and may have shiny crystals, formed by minerals growing slowly over time, on
their surface.
Examples of this rock type include gneiss and marble.
Igneous
Igneous rocks are formed when magma (molten rock deep within the earth) cools and hardens.
Sometimes the magma cools inside the earth, and other times it erupts onto the surface from
volcanoes (in this case, it is called lava). When lava cools very quickly, no crystals form and the rock
looks shiny and glasslike. Sometimes gas bubbles are trapped in the rock during the cooling process,
leaving tiny holes and spaces in the rock.
Examples of this rock type include basalt and obsidian.

What are the 3 basic types of rocks?

Just as any person can be put into one of two main categories of human being, all
rocks can be put into one of three fundamentally different types of rocks. They are as
follows:
Igneous Rocks
Igneous rocks are crystalline solids which form directly from the cooling of magma.
This is an exothermic process (it loses heat) and involves a phase change from the
liquid to the solid state. The earth is made of igneous rock - at least at the surface
where our planet is exposed to the coldness of space. Igneous rocks are given names
based upon two things: composition (what they are made of) and texture (how big the
crystals are).
How do composition and texture relate to igneous rocks?

Igneous rocks are crystalline solids which cool from magma: the liquid phase of solid
rock. Magmas occur at depth in the crust, and are said to exist in "magma chambers,"
a rather loose term indicating an area where the temperature is great enough to melt
the rock, and the pressure is low enough to allow the material to expand and exist in
the liquid state. Many different types of igneous rocks can be produced. The key
factors to use in determining which rock you have are the rock's texture and
composition.
Texture
Texture relates to how large the individual mineral grains are in the final, solid rock.
In most cases, the resulting grain size depends on how quickly the magma cooled. In
general, the slower the cooling, the larger the crystals in the final rock. Because of
this, we assume that coarse grained igneous rocks are "intrusive," in that they cooled
at depth in the crust where they were insulated by layers of rock and sediment. Fine
grained rocks are called "extrusive" and are generally produced through volcanic
eruptions.
Grain size can vary greatly, from extremely coarse grained rocks with crystals the size
of your fist, down to glassy material which cooled so quickly that there are no mineral
grains at all. Coarse grain varieties (with mineral grains large enough to see without a
magnifying glass) are called phaneritic. Granite and gabbro are examples of phaneritic
igneous rocks. Fine grained rocks, where the individual grains are too small to see, are

called aphanitic. Basalt is an example. The most common glassy rock is obsidian.
Obviously, there are innumerable intermediate stages to confuse the issue.
Composition
The other factor is composition: the elements in the magma directly affect which
minerals are formed when the magma cools. Again, we will describe the extremes, but
there are countless intermediate compositions. (Composition relates to the mafic and
felsic terms discussed in another question. If these terms are confusing, please refer to
that discussionbefore continuing.)
The composition of igneous magmas is directly related to where the magma is formed.
Magmas associated with crustal spreading are generally mafic, and produce basalt if
the magma erupts at the surface, or gabbro if the magma never makes it out of the
magma chamber. It is important to remember that basalt and gabbro are two different
rocks based purely on textural differences - they are compositionally the same.
Intermediate and felsic magmas are associated with crustal compression and
subduction. In these areas, mafic seafloor basalt and continental sediments are
subducted back into the crust, where they re-melt. This allows
the differentiation process to continue, and the resulting magma is enriched in the
lighter elements. Intermediate magmas produce diorite (intrusive) and andesite
(extrusive). Felsic magmas, the final purified result of the differentiation process, lead
to the formation of granite (intrusive) or rhyolite (extrusive).
Igneous Rock Classification

Texture vs. composition

Felsic

Intermediate

Mafic

Ultramafic

Aphanitic
fine grain

Rhyolite

Andesite

Basalt

Dacite

Diabase

Diorite

Gabbro

Intermediate
Phaneritic
coarse grain

Granite

Glassy

Obsidian

Frothy

Pumice

Elements & minerals common to various magmas

Ultramafic magmas

Olivine - Mg2SiO4 to Fe2SiO4

Pyroxene - Ca(Mg,Fe,Al)(Al,Si)2O6

Mafic (basaltic) magmas

Olivine - Mg2SiO4 to Fe2SiO4

Pyroxene - Ca(Mg,Fe,Al)(Al,Si)2O6
Plagioclase - CaAlSi3O8 to NaAlSi3O8

Intermediate magmas

Plagioclase - CaAlSi3O8 to NaAlSi3O8

Amphibole - NaCa2(Mg,Fe,Al)5(Si,Al)8O22(OH)2
Muscovite/Biotite - KAl2(Si3Al)O10(OH)2

Scoria

Conditions needed to
produce ultramafic flows
do not exist in nature at
this time.

Peridotite

Quartz - SiO2

Felsic (granitic) magmas

Potash Feldspar - KAlSi3O8

Quartz - SiO2
Muscovite/Biotite - KAl2(Si3Al)O10(OH)2
Amphibole - NaCa2(Mg,Fe,Al)5(Si,Al)8O22(OH)2

What are the most important types of rock in the crust?

Excluding the rocks between my ears, I'd have to say that basalt and granite have the
honor of being the most important rocks in the crust.
Basalt and granite actually have quite a bit in common. Both are igneous rocks, which
means that they cooled from a magma (the earth gets very hot just below the surface,
and there is lots ofliquid rock available). Both are made up of minerals from the
silicate group, so both have large amounts of silicon and oxygen. Both will hurt if you
drop a big piece on your toe. But there are several important differences, too. These
differences help define and explain how the earth works.
Granite is great stuff! Not only is it my personal favorite, it is without a doubt the
most common rock type on the continental land masses. Yosemite Valley in the Sierra
Nevada and Mt. Rushmore are two notable examples of granitic rocks. But granitic
"basement rock" can be found just about everywhere east of the Rockies if you're
willing to dig through the dirt and sedimentary rocks at the surface. Granite is
intrusive, which means that the magma was trapped deep in the crust, and probably
took a very long time to cool down enough to crystallize into solid rock. This allows
the minerals which form plenty of time to grow, and results in a coarse-textured
rock in which individual mineral grains are easily visible.
Granite is the ultimate silicate rock. As discussed elsewhere in greater detail, on
average oxygen and silicon account for 75% of the earth's crust. The remaining 25%
is split among several other elements, with aluminum and potassium contributing the
most to the formation of the continental granitic rocks. Relatively small amounts of
iron and magnesium occur, but since they have generally higher densities it's not

surprising that there isn't very much in the granite. Due to the process
of differentiation, most of the heavier elements are moving towards the core of the
earth, allowing the silicon and oxygen to accumulate on the surface. And accumulate
it has. Enough granitic "scum" has differentiated to the surface to cover 25% to 30%
of the earth with the good stuff. We call this purified material felsic because of the
relatively high percentage of silica and oxygen.
Basalt is extrusive. The magma from which it cools breaks through the crust of the
earth and erupts on the surface. We call these types of events volcanic eruptions, and
there are several main types. The volcanoes that make basalt are very common, and
tend to form long and persistent zones of rifting in nearly all of the ocean basins. We
now believe that these undersea volcanic areas represent huge spreading ridges where
the earth's crust is separating. It's a lot like a cut on your arm, which will bleed until a
scab forms. Basaltic magma is like the blood of the earth - it's what comes out when
the earth's skin is cut the whole way through. As an eruption ends, the basalt "scab"
heals the wound in the crust, and the earth adds some new seafloor crust. Because the
magma comes out of the earth (and often into water) it cools very quickly, and the
minerals have very little opportunity to grow. Basalt is commonly very fine grained,
and it is nearly impossible to see individual minerals without magnification.
Basalt is considered a mafic silicate rock. Among other characteristics, mafic minerals
and rocks are generally dark in color and high in specific gravity. This is in large part
due to the amount of iron, magnesium, and several other relatively heavy elements
which "contaminate" the silica and oxygen. But this heavy stuff really isn't happy near
the surface, and will take any opportunity it can to head for deeper levels. The trick is
to heat the basalt back up again so it can melt and give the iron another shot at the
core. It wants to be there, and heat is the key which unlocks the door.
As it turns out, most of the ocean floor is basalt, and most of the continents are
granite. Basaltic crust is dark and thin and heavy, while granite is light and
accumulates into continent-sized rafts which bob about like corks in this "sea of
basalt." When a continent runs into a piece of seafloor, it's much like a Mac truck
running into a Volkswagon. Not very pretty, but at least there's a clear winner. And the
seafloor basalt ends up in pretty much the same position as does the VW - under the
truck (or continent, as the case may be). This may seem like a drag for the basalt, but
remember that it isn't all that happy on the surface anyway, and this gives it the heat it
needs to re-melt and try to complete the differentiation process which was so rudely
interrupted at the spreading ridge. If successful and allowed to continue, what's left
behind is a "purified" magma with most of the iron, magnesium, and other heavy

elements removed. When it cools, guess what forms? And the continental land
mass just got a wee bit larger.

Sedimentary Rocks
In most places on the surface, the igneous rocks which make up the majority of
the crust are covered by a thin veneer of loose sediment, and the rock which is made
as layers of this debris get compacted and cemented together. Sedimentary rocks are
called secondary, because they are often the result of the accumulation of small pieces
broken off of pre-existing rocks. There are three main types of sedimentary rocks:
Clastic: your basic sedimentary rock. Clastic sedimentary rocks are accumulations of
clasts: little pieces of broken up rock which have piled up and been "lithified" by
compaction and cementation.
Chemical: many of these form when standing water evaporates, leaving dissolved
minerals behind. These are very common in arid lands, where seasonal "playa lakes"
occur in closed depressions. Thick deposits of salt and gypsum can form due to
repeated flooding and evaporation over long periods of time.
Organic: any accumulation of sedimentary debris caused by organic processes. Many
animals use calcium for shells, bones, and teeth. These bits of calcium can pile up on
the seafloor and accumulate into a thick enough layer to form an "organic"
sedimentary rock.

Metamorphic Rocks
The metamorphics get their name from "meta" (change) and "morph" (form). Any
rock can become a metamorphic rock. All that is required is for the rock to be moved
into an environment in which the minerals which make up the rock become unstable
and out of equilibrium with the new environmental conditions. In most cases, this
involves burial which leads to a rise in temperature and pressure. The metamorphic
changes in the minerals always move in a direction designed to restore equilibrium.
Common metamorphic rocks include slate, schist, gneiss, and marble.