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What determines the size of the crystals that form in a sample of granite?
Wiki User
∙ 6y ago
Crystal size in igneous rock is predominately a factor of time spent in cooling from lava or magma.
Samples with relatively large crystals are the result of the magma having spent a longer amount of time at ideal crystal forming temperatures for each mineral present.
Wiki User
∙ 6y ago
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What is the size of crystals in granite?
The size of crystals that form granite are usually large and coarse-grained. Granite, which is mainly composed of feldspar, mica and quartz, is often used as a building material.
Why does Granite take much longer to form than Basalt?
hmmm, granite is intrusive, formed and cooled slowly at depth with larger individual crystals. Basalt is extrusive, fine grained (small crystals and cooled quickly. The intrusive equivalent of basalt is gabbro. For granite; rhylolite
What speed does granite cool down?
Granite, the rock, is formed as magma slowly cools and crystallizes (solidifies) over great lengths of time, deep underground. The result is that visible crystals form, as the minerals have plenty of time to grow.
Where did igneous rocks form that have mineral crystals easily seen with the ununaided eye?
Igneous rocks can form anywhere, but some, like granite and gabbro, have particularly large crystals (perhaps 5 or more mm across). These are intrusive rocks, and as they are insulated by a lot of rock around them, cool very slowly, forming large crystals. They form deep, often a few kilometres, below the surface of the earth.
Does pumice consist of interlocking visible crystals?
No and yes, technically. Pumice does form from cooling magma (cools extremely fast, in fact, almost instantly). Because of this rapid cooling the crystals are extremely small to the point of many geologists considering pumice to be microcrystalline or glassy, meaning there wasn't enough time for actual crystals to form.
What determines the size of crystals that form in granite?
The cooling rate of magma plays a significant role in determining the size of crystals.
What is the size of crystals in granite?
The size of crystals that form granite are usually large and coarse-grained. Granite, which is mainly composed of feldspar, mica and quartz, is often used as a building material.
Why would granite have larger crystals than igneous rocks formed from lava cooled above the earth's surface?
Because crystals in granite had more time to form
What determines the size of the crystal that form in a sample of granite?
Crystal size in igneous rock is predominately a factor of time spent in cooling from lava or magma. Samples with relatively large crystals are the result of the magma having spent a longer amount of time at ideal crystal forming temperatures for each mineral present.
Why would granite have larger crystals than rocks formed from lava cooled above earth surface?
Because crystals in granite had more time to form as the magma cooled slowly. Crystals that form on the surface are smaller because they cooled really quickly.
Why would granite rock have larger crystals than igneous rocks formed from lava cooled above the earth's surface?
Because crystals in granite had more time to form
What does granite form from?
In the volcano/magma chamber, different minerals that make up granite, (feldspar, quartz, etc.) mix to form grainy, large crystals of the different minerals. That is how granite is formed.
What is the extrusive form of granite with extremely small crystals and a red pink or gray color?
Rhyolite
Why does Granite take much longer to form than Basalt?
hmmm, granite is intrusive, formed and cooled slowly at depth with larger individual crystals. Basalt is extrusive, fine grained (small crystals and cooled quickly. The intrusive equivalent of basalt is gabbro. For granite; rhylolite
What is a type of igneous rock that forms visible crystals?
Granite, gabbro, and diorite are a few igneous rocks that forms crystals. Igneous rocks that form visible crystals are intrusive igneous rocks, rocks that form under the earth's surface.
Is granite a sedementary rock?
No, Granite is an igneous rock. It has a very mottled appearance because it cools very slowly allowing the different constituent minerals to form crystals.
Is granite made from crystals or grains?
Granite is composed of numbers of individual mineral crystals and these crystals of individual minerals can be referred to as grains. Due to the formative processes involving granite, individual mineral crystals may not have what is popularly thought of as a crystal form, although they truly are mineral crystals. Grains could also be crystals or particles of other rocks which make up some sedimentary rocks. The grain size is part of the determination of the rock's texture: fine-grained, coarse grained, etc..
