Dunite is an igneous rock largely distributed in the areas of intrusion with phaneritic texture and comprising of Ultramafic rock. Dunite also known as olivinite is the rock which is dominantly made of olive and has a granular appearance. In fact, dunite includes olivine predominantly and has small amounts of pyroxene, chromite, magnetite, and pyrope.
Dunite is an ultramafic rock and it contains low amounts of silica of below 45 percent. And thereby it lays down a compact mass of stones but the same is washed away by water and other parlays of climate at a pretty fast rate. Dunite it self could be a part of the mantle, ophiolites, kimberlites or any other structures.
Dunite is hence an igneous rock mainly classified under the mantle and the major mineral that constitutes this rock is olivine. Here’s an overview of its formation, composition, and properties:Here is the formation, composition and properties of this type of structures:
Formation:
Ser encounter dunites in the upper mantle since this is the sure region where the conditions are favorable for the formation of olivine as the primary mineral. It also forms in multiply intruded mafic intrusions and with ophiolite where these are slices of the oceanic crust and the upper mantle which has been shoved onto the continental crust. Also, dunite may be associated with alpine type peridotite owing masses or as xenolith in other igneous rocks or in Kimberlite pipes.
Composition:
Mineralogical Composition: Dunite is a rock which has more than 90 % of the olivine and the other remaining parts may contain pyroxene, chromite and at time amphibol or phlogopite.
Chemical Composition: The rock of which Tongphata peridotite is an example belongs to the ultramafic category, it contains a high percentage of both magnesium and iron and amounts of silica are low. This composition can only be said to paint a picture of how olivine; a mineral which forms part of the chemical group of (Mg, Fe)_2SiO_4 is an integral part of a rocky body.
Physical Properties:
Color: Usual, olive green to greenish yellow, because of the olivine mineral.
Texture: Course textured and phaneritic in texture that is, the grains of the minerals are large and easily distinguished without the use of a lens.
Density: This makes it to have high density due to iron and magnesium it contains.
Hardness: Olivine is rather soft, it has the Moh’s hardness of approximately 6. range of 5 to 7, thus it can be categorized as relatively hard rock.
Uses:
Crushed dunite is applied in construction of sound roads and construction of strong foundations.
Industry: It has the high melting point thus suitable for use in furnace linings; it also has high hardness required in hard activities like sand blasting and grinding.
Due to the given characteristics, Dunite is an efficient tool in combating climate change since it can collect carbon dioxide.
It contributes to the making of polished jewelry items depending on their demand, gets scrutinized by professionals, and can improve the quality of soils.
Dunite for scientists is similar to window to its bowels providing information about the formation and material of the Earth. Most astonishingly, crushed dunite is used in agricultur e to enhance drainage and aeration of the soil hence providing a good foundation on which plants can grow healthy.
Dunite Statistics
Dunite was named after the Dun mountain in Nelson New Zealand, where the exposure of this type of rock was realized with this particular composition.
Based on the amount of silica for Dunite, the rock weathers rather rapidly, thus forming red soils dominated by iron oxide.
Actually, dunite is not a common rock on the surface of the Earth while it is abundant in the mantle, and that makes it rather fascinating to study as a sample of the earth’s interior.
It is called olivinite more often though it has no relation to copper arsenate mineral olivenite.
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