quartzite

Also known as recrystallized sandstone

thumb|Quartzite can have a grainy, glassy, sandpaper-like surface

AI overview

Quartzite is a hard, non-foliated metamorphic rock that forms when sandstone is subjected to heat and pressure deep within the Earth. It's valued for construction and industrial uses because of its durability and resistance to weathering, and it often has a distinctive grainy or glassy surface texture.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Key facts

Rock.name: Quartzite
Rock.type: Metamorphic
Rock.caption: Quartzite, containing darker bands of phengite and chlorite, from Maurienne Valley in the French Alps
Rock.composition: Quartz
Rock.image: Quartzite Sollières.jpg
Rock.protolith: Quartz Sandstone
Rock.fabric: Non-foliated

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Image: Quartzite 2 jpg.jpg

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Commons category: Quartzite
Mohs' hardness: 7

Sources (5)

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~11 min read

Article

12 sections

Contents

Characteristics and origin
Occurrence
North America
Europe
Elsewhere
Uses
Safety
Etymology
Gallery
See also
References
External links

thumb|Quartzite can have a grainy, glassy, sandpaper-like surface

Quartzite is a hard, non-foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts, and hence quartzite is a metasandstone. Pure quartzite is usually white to grey, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink and red due to varying amounts of hematite. Other colors, such as yellow, green, blue and orange, are due to other minerals.