Definition
Rocks are naturally formed aggregations of mineral matter. A mineral is a solid, inorganic, crystalline substance with a definite chemical composition and atomic structure (Klein and Hurlbut 1998). Some rocks may also contain non-mineral materials, such as fossils and glass. Rocks are an essential part of the earth’s crust. They remain intact in water and cannot be excavated without blasting (West 2010). Rocks are important for design and stability of engineering structures, and classification of rocks provides an adequate means for predicting and communicating their properties. Several classifications of rocks are available, some based on texture and mineral composition and others on origin.
Introduction
Rocks are the natural building blocks of the earth. Rocks form by crystallization of magma and lava deposition of sediment carried by rivers into a body of water, precipitation of dissolved minerals (calcite, dolomite, salt), and alteration of existing rocks under the...
References
Klein C, Hurlbut C (1998) Manual of mineralogy (after James D. Dana), 21st edn (revised). Wiley, New York, USA, 681p
Raymond LA (2002) Petrology: the study of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. McGraw-Hill, Boston, 720p
Tucker ME (2001) Sedimentary petrology. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford, 262p
Tugrul A, Zarif IH (1999) Correlation of mineralogical and textural characteristics with engineering properties of selected granitic rocks from Turkey. Eng Geol 51:303–317
West T (2010) Geology applied to engineering. Waveland Press, Illinois, USA, 560p
Winter JD (2010) Principles of igneous and metamorphic petrology. Prentice Hall, New York, 687p
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Nandi, A. (2017). Classification of Rocks. In: Bobrowsky, P., Marker, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_51-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_51-2
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Latest
Classification of Rocks- Published:
- 02 February 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_51-2
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Classification of Rocks- Published:
- 01 December 2016
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_51-1