India
has exotic varieties of granite, marble, slate, sandstone etc.,
and quite a number of them are not found anywhere in the world.
This had drawn the attention of world nations, which wanted to
import them for use in their respective lands.
Granite is strong and durable which makes it lasting building
material for construction. The exclusivity of granite can
further be listed as below :
Being
more resistant to wear and tear as well as weathering, granite
is most suitable and everlasting stone.
Being
harder, granite requires more processing compared to other
stones. For instance, a final high gloss finish on granite
is generally achieved by using power driven polishing tools
and fine grit diamonds.
Ageless
- always contemporary.
Knowledgeable
architects, aware of its unique qualities, are using it more
extensively than ever before.
Texture of the rock also decides its suitability as an ornamental
stone or for ordinary construction purposes.
It is dimensional stone comprising of silica sands in comprised
form. Sandstones of India have good hardness. Quartz is the
main component of sand stone.
Features:-
Sandstones
appear natural, rustic and also robust and durable and also
strikingly, flexible.
As
Indian sandstones have very small size grains, their density
is very high, making them frost resistant and all-season-proof.
Medium-grained.
Usually well sorted, that is grains all about the same size;
grains sub angular to rounded.
Sandstone
is best suited for laying pavements as its surface has good
grip It is available in different shades and fits into every
surrounding. It can be arranged in traditional designs as
well as modern patterns. Sand Stone is available in many sizes.
Large
Size: Large size paving stones are the right ones for
terrace and vast areas. They are practical when laid as floor
covering to accommodate tables, chairs, sun beds, etc.
Small
Size: If small size paving stones are used for floor and
wall panelling, small areas look larger. Relation between
gap and paving stone is an important factor to be taken into
account as more gaps can be seen as a creative element when
the paving stones are smaller. Gaps and paving material are
therefore complementary to each other.
Slate is made of fine clay sediment It can be defined as a
fine grain rock derived from clays possessing a cleavage that
permits it to be split into thin sheets.
Features
Colour
& patterns - Greyish Black, Multicolour, Brown, Red etc.
Dazzling
varieties- Golden, Copper, Silver Shine, Green Mica, Speckle,
Deoli, Mahu, Silver Grey etc.
Classification
Designated
‘I’ or “interior” on specification sheets;
exterior is marked as either ‘E’ or “exterior.”
Limited
colour variation: Relatively uniform in background/field colours,
veining and or movement.
Moderate
colour variation: Background colour has some variation and
veining/movement may appear. Inspection/blending prior to
installation is suggested.
Extreme
colour variation: Background colour has significant variations
and contrasts. Veining variations and movement may be inconsistent.
Limestone contains a number of distinguishable natural characteristics,
including calcite streaks or spots, fossils or shell formations,
pit holes, reedy formations, open texture streaks, honeycomb
formations, iron spots, travertine-like formations and grain
formation changes.
Features
It
is ordinarily white but may be coloured by impurities, iron
oxide making it brown, yellow, or red and carbon making it
blue, black, or grey.
Texture
varies from coarse to fine.
Deposits
are frequently of great thickness.
Used
as a flux in the extraction of iron
Important
varieties of limestone - marl, chalk, iolite, travertine,
dolomite, and marble.
QUARTZITE
Quartzite can be easily distinguished from sandstone by the
fact that it fractures across its constituent grains of sand,
while sandstone fractures along the line of the cementing
material between the grains of sand.
Features
Most
often it is white, light grey, yellowish, or light brown,
but is sometimes coloured blue, green, purple, or black by
included minerals. It results from the metamorphism of pure
quartz sandstone.
Much
harder than the parent rock, sandstone.
When
broken, will break across the grains
The
best way to tell quartzite from sandstone is to break the
rocks. Sandstone will shatter into many individual grains
of sand while quartzite will break across the grains.
