Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

monzonite

 
Dictionary: mon·zo·nite
Home > Library > Literature & Language > Dictionary
(mŏn-zō'nīt', mŏn'zə-nīt') pronunciation
n.
An igneous rock composed chiefly of plagioclase and orthoclase, with small amounts of other minerals.

[French, after Mount Monzoni in northeast Italy.]

monzonitic mon'zo·nit'ic (mŏn'zə-nĭt'ĭk) adj.

Search unanswered questions...

Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: monzonite
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Britannica Concise Encyclopedia

Type of igneous rock that contains abundant and approximately equal amounts of plagioclase and potash feldspar, as well as other minerals. The type region is Monzoni, Italy, in the Italian Tirol; similar rocks have been described from Montana, Norway, Sakhalin Island, and other localities. Monzonite is not rare, but it generally occurs in rather small, heterogeneous masses mixed with diorites, pyroxenites, or gabbros.

For more information on monzonite, visit Britannica.com.

Wikipedia: Monzonite
Top
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Photomicrograph of thin section of monzonite (in cross polarised light)
The QAPF diagram, by which a monzonite is defined
Photomicrograph of thin section of monzonite (in plane polarised light)

Monzonite is an intermediate igneous intrusive rock composed of approximately equal amounts of sodic to intermediate plagioclase and orthoclase feldspars with minor amounts of hornblende, biotite and other minerals. Quartz a minor constituent or is absent; with greater than 10% quartz the rock is termed a quartz monzonite.

If the rock has more orthoclase or potassium feldspar it grades into a syenite. With an increase of calcic plagioclase and mafic minerals the rock type becomes a diorite. The volcanic equivalent is the latite.

See also

Stub icon This article related to petrology is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 
Learn More
rapakivi (petrology)
Leucite rock (mineralogy and petrology)
Syenite (mineralogy and petrology)

Help us answer these
How is monzonite formed?
What is monzonite made of?
Where is monzonite rock found?

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

 

Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Monzonite".  Read more