BUILDING STONES

“Every block of stone has a statue

inside it and it is the task of the
sculptor to discover it.” -
Michelangelo
BUILDING STONES
• Architects agree that building stone is a
really attractive material. But it is the
combination of attractiveness, strength,
and durability that set stone apart from
other building materials.
The earliest known use of stone was by
prehistoric humans for their flint weapons
and tools. Later, building stone was used to
construct structures for habitation,
recreation, and worship. Metamorphic,
igneous, and sedimentary rock have all
been used in buildings for centuries. Many
and various kinds of natural stone used in
building projects, including castles,
cathedrals, and barns.
• Because of its attractiveness,
strength, and durability, stone
is used in many forms on
architectural projects. Natural
dimension or block stone and
crushed stone are used on
interior and exterior building
components of walls,
foundations, stairs, chimneys
and for paving projects.
Typically, building stone is
selected based on its
appearance, availability, cost,
and durability. Transportation
is a major cost of obtaining
stone, so we usually specify
locally available stone.
 3 MAIN TYPES OF BUILDING
STONES USED FOR BUILDING
CONSTRUCTION

• IGNEOUS ROCKS (basalt, diorite, granite,

rhyolite)
• SEDIMENTARY ROCKS (lime stone,
sandstone, and dolomite)
• METAMORPHIC ROCKS (quartzite, marble,
slate, and gneiss)
Any of various crystalline or glassy
rocks formed by the cooling and
solidification of molten earth material.
IGNEOUS
Igneous rocks are formed from the
solidification of magma, which is a hot
ROCKS
(600 to 1,300 °C, or 1,100 to 2,400 °F)
molten or partially
molten rock material. Earth is
composed predominantly of a large
mass of igneous rock with a very thin
veneer of weathered material—
namely, sedimentary rock.
 SEDIMENTARY
ROCKS
• They are formed on or near the Earth’s
surface from the compression of ocean
sediments or other processes.
The most important geological processes that
lead to the creation of sedimentary rocks
are erosion, weathering, dissolution, precipita
tion, and lithification.
Sedimentary rocks can be organized into two
categories. The first is detrital rock, which
comes from the erosion and accumulation of
rock fragments, sediment, or other materials
—categorized in total as detritus, or debris.
The other is chemical rock, produced from
the dissolution and precipitation of minerals.
 Any of a class of rocks that result from the
alteration of preexisting rocks in response
to changing environmental conditions, such
as variations in temperature, pressure, and
mechanical stress, and the addition or
subtraction of chemical components.

The word metamorphism is taken from the

Greek for “change of form”; metamorphic
rocks are derived from igneous or
sedimentary rocks that have altered their
form (recrystallized) as a result of changes
in their physical environment.
Metamorphism comprises changes both
in mineralogy and in the fabric of the
original rock. In general, these alterations
are brought about either by the intrusion of
hot magma into cooler surrounding rocks
METAMORPHI
(contact metamorphism) or by large-
scale tectonic movements of Earth’s
lithospheric plates that alter the pressure-
C ROCKS
temperature conditions of the rocks
(regional metamorphism; see also plate
tectonics).
 BASALT
• Basalt and trap are also igneous rocks. These stones are also called as
green stones or white stones or blue basalt. They are hard and tough.
It is difficult to work with this kind of rocks. The specific gravity of
basalt and trap varies from 2.6 to 3.0. They are having a high
compressive strength of 150 to 190 MPa.

USES
Basalt and trap used as railway ballast, aggregate in concrete,
pavement material, etc. Yellow and red-colored basalt and trap are
used to construct decorative features in structures.
 GABBRO
• Gabbro is a coarse-grained, dark-colored, intrusive
igneous rock. It is usually black or dark green in color
and composed mainly of the minerals plagioclase and
augite. It is the most abundant rock in the deep
oceanic crust. Gabbro has a variety of uses in the
construction industry. It is used for everything from
crushed stone base materials at construction sites to
polished stone counter tops and floor tiles.
 GRANITE
• Granite is the best-known igneous rock. Many people
recognize granite because it is the most common
igneous rock found at Earth's surface and because
granite is used to make many objects that they
encounter in daily life. These include countertops,
floor tiles, paving stone, curbing, stair treads, building
veneer, and cemetery monuments. Granite is used all
around us - especially if you live in a large modern
city.
 OBSIDIAN
• Obsidian is an igneous rock that forms when molten rock material
cools so rapidly that atoms are unable to arrange themselves into a
crystalline structure. It is an amorphous material known as a
"mineraloid." The result is a volcanic glass with a smooth uniform
texture that breaks with a conchoidal fracture
• The first use of obsidian by people probably occurred when a sharp
piece of obsidian was used as a cutting tool. People then discovered
how to skillfully break the obsidian to produce cutting tools in a
variety of shapes. Obsidian was used to make knives, arrowheads,
spear points, scrapers, and many other weapons and tools.
 PUMICE
• Pumice is a light-colored, extremely porous igneous rock that forms
during explosive volcanic eruptions. It is used as aggregate in
lightweight concrete, as landscaping aggregate, and as an abrasive in
a variety of industrial and consumer products. Many specimens have
a high enough porosity that they can float on water until they slowly
become waterlogged.
• The pore spaces (known as vesicles) in pumice are a clue to how it
forms. The vesicles are actually gas bubbles that were trapped in the
rock during the rapid cooling of a gas-rich frothy magma. The material
cools so quickly that atoms in the melt are not able to arrange
themselves into a crystalline structure. Thus, pumice is an amorphous
volcanic glass known as a "mineraloid."
 BRECCIA
• Breccia is a term most often used for clastic sedimentary rocks that are composed of
large angular fragments (over two millimeters in diameter). The spaces between the
large angular fragments are filled with a matrix of smaller particles and a mineral
cement that binds the rock together.
• The rock, breccia, has very few uses. It can be used as fill or road base where the
technical requirements are minimal. It is rarely used in important projects because
its composition, degree of cementation and competence are highly variable.
• The word "breccia" is used as a trade name for a group of dimension stone products
with a broken, angular pattern. Names such as "Breccia Oniciata," "Breccia Pernice,"
and "Breccia Damascata" are cut and polished limestones and marbles that reveal a
broken, angular pattern. These breccias are used as architectural stones for interior
building veneers, tiles, window sills, and other decorative applications. These are
proprietary names applied to the rock from specific quarries.
 CONGLOMERATE
• Conglomerate is a clastic sedimentary rock made up of
rounded clasts that are greater than two millimeters in
diameter. The spaces between the clasts are generally filled
with sand- and clay-size particles. The rock is bound together
by a cement that is usually composed of calcite or quartz.
• Conglomerate can be crushed to make a fine aggregate that
can be used where a low-performance material is suitable.
Many conglomerates are colorful and attractive rocks, but
they are rarely used as an ornamental stone.
 LIMESTONE
• Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed primarily of calcite, a calcium
carbonate mineral with a chemical composition of CaCO3. It usually forms in
clear, calm, warm, shallow marine waters.

• Limestone is usually a biological sedimentary rock, forming from the

accumulation of shell, coral, algal, fecal, and other organic debris. It can also
form by chemical sedimentary processes, such as the precipitation of calcium
carbonate from lake or ocean water.
• Limestone is a rock with a diversity of uses. It could be the one rock that is
used in more ways than any other. Most limestone is made into crushed stone
that is used in road base, railroad ballast, foundation stone, drainfields,
concrete aggregate, and other construction uses. It is fired in a kiln with
crushed shale to make cement.
 SANDSTONE
• Sandstone is a sedimentary rock and one of the most common types of sedimentary rock and is found in
sedimentary basins throughout the world. It is composed of sand-size grains rock fragment, mineral and
organic material. Sand-size particles range in size from 1/16 millimeter to 2 millimeters in diameter. Also
it have cementing material binds the sand grains together and may contain a matrix of silt- or clay-size
particles that occupy the spaces between the sand grains.

• USES
• Sandstone was used domestic construction and housewares even in prehistoric times.
• Sandstone was a popular building material from ancient times. It is relatively soft, making it easy to
carve. It has been widely used around the world in constructing temples, homes, and other buildings.
• It has also been used for artistic purposes to create ornamental fountains and statues.
• Some sandstones are resistant to weathering, yet are easy to work. This makes sandstone a common
building and paving material including in asphalt concrete.
• Because of the hardness of individual grains, uniformity of grain size and friability of their structure,
some types of sandstone are excellent materials from which to make grindstones, for sharpening blades
and other implements.
 SHALE
• Shale is the most common sedimentary rock, accounting for about 70 percent of the rock
found in the Earth's crust. It is a fine-grained clastic sedimentary rock made of compacted
mud consisting of clay and tiny particles of quartz, calcite, mica, pyrite, other minerals,
and organic compounds. Shale occurs worldwide wherever water exists or once flowed.
• USES
• Shale has many commercial uses. It is a source material in the ceramics industry to make
brick, tile, and pottery. Shale used to make pottery and building materials requires little
processing besides crushing and mixing with water.
• Crushing shale and heating it with limestone makes cement for the construction industry.
Heat drives off water and breaks limestone into calcium oxide and carbon dioxide. Carbon
dioxide is lost as a gas, leaving calcium oxide and clay, which harden when mixed with
water and dried.
 GNEISS
• Gneiss is a foliated metamorphic rock that is a common
distribute type of rock high-grade regional metamorphic
approaches from pre-current formations that have been
initially both igneous or sedimentary rocks. It has a glorious
banding which is apparent on microscopic scale and hand
specimen. It usually is prominent from schist by its foliation
and schistosity; displays a properly-advanced foliation and a
poorly advanced schistosity and cleavage.
• Gneiss word first has been used English since at least 1757.
Probably origin is german word Gneis that mean “spark”
(rock glitters).
 MARBLE
• Marble is a metamorphic rock that forms when limestone is
subjected to the heat and pressure of metamorphism. It is
composed primarily of the mineral calcite (CaCO3) and usually
contains other minerals, such as clay minerals, micas, quartz,
pyrite, iron oxides, and graphite.
• The name "marble" is used in a different way in the dimension
stone trade. Any crystalline carbonate rock that has an ability to
accept a polish is called "marble." The name is sometimes used
for other soft rocks such as travertine, verd antique, serpentine,
and some limestones.
• Used in monuments, crushed stone, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals,
and more.
 QUARTZITE
• Quartzite is a nonfoliated metamorphic rock composed almost entirely of
quartz. It forms when a quartz-rich sandstone is altered by the heat,
pressure, and chemical activity of metamorphism.

• Metamorphism recrystallizes the sand grains and the silica cement that
binds them together. The result is a network of interlocking quartz grains
of incredible strength.
• Quartzite has a diversity of uses in construction, manufacturing,
architecture, and decorative arts. Although its properties are superior to
many currently used materials, its consumption has always been low for
various reasons. The uses of quartzite and some reasons that it is avoided
are summarized below.It stands up better to abrasion in stair treads, floor
tiles, and countertops.
 SCHIST
• Schist is a medium-grained foliated metamorphic rock
primarily made of platy minerals like biotite, muscovite, talc,
and chlorite, with smaller amounts of bulky minerals like
quartz and feldspar. The platy minerals are oriented parallel
to one another, making it easy to break the rock into thin
plates.
• Schist is most commonly used for applications where the
mechanical properties of a rock are not important. Rough
pieces of schist can sometimes be used for decorative
purposes, but these applications are limited because it does
not accept a polish well.
 SLATE
• Slate is a fine-grained, foliated metamorphic rock that is created by the
alteration of shale or mudstone by low-grade regional metamorphism.
It is popular for a wide variety of uses such as roofing, flooring, and
flagging because of its durability and attractive appearance.
• The tectonic environment for producing slate is usually a former
sedimentary basin that becomes involved in a convergent plate
boundary. Shales and mudstones in that basin are compressed by
horizontal forces with minor heating. These forces and heat modify the
clay minerals in the shale and mudstone. Foliation develops at right
angles to the compressive forces of the convergent plate boundary to
yield a vertical foliation that usually crosses the bedding planes that
existed in the shale.
 MASONRY
Masonry is a popular construction
technique that people use around the
world. You can use masonry to build a
wide range of internal and external
structures, from a single wall to an
entire home. Masonry-constructed
buildings are durable and reliable and
often produce beautiful, aesthetically
pleasing results.
You can use masonry methods in the
construction of many buildings,
including domestic homes, multi-storey
apartment blocks and public buildings
like universities, courthouses, schools
and libraries. You could use masonry
techniques to build a wall, pathway or
patio in your garden.
 TYPES OF
MASONRY
• VENEER MASONRY-involves pasting materials, such as
bricks or stones, to the outside of another structure. For
example, you could paste a variety of thin pieces of brick
onto an existing exterior wall to create a brick surface. This
looks like solid masonry but is cheaper to construct. You
usually use veneer masonry for aesthetic reasons. The
underlying structure provides the base support.

• SOLID MASONRY-is self-supporting and free-standing.

You don't require any kind of supportive structure beneath it.
If you build a wall entirely from stone or brick, it's an example
of solid masonry. This kind of masonry is usually stronger
and more durable than veneer masonry.