Is Granite Or Sandstone More Resistant To Acid Rain

Limestone is a rock that is composed of calcium carbonate caco3.

Is granite or sandstone more resistant to acid rain.

Limestone id dominantly calcium carbonate and although also used for buildings and statues especially in its more highly crystalline form of marble is very soluble in acid rain. Granite is extremely hard and less affected by the freeze thaw cycle the forces of abrasion and the surface exfoliation processes that are all a part of physical weathering. Surprisingly the price of a headstone or memorial while definitely affected by the material used is more often a factor of style size engraving custom design and location. Granite is composed primarily of feldspars and quartz which are much higher on the hardness scale making it more resistant to abrasion weathering.

Granite is commonly used as a building stone and for ornamental pieces and is very resistant it is also very hard to work. Acid rain is rain that has an excess of protons h present usually as a result of pollutants in the air. Granite is primarily composed of silicate minerals like feldspar and quartz which are resistant to acid attack. Therefore it will not buffer acid rain like limestone will.

This is due to the wind and rain getting into the pores of the soft marble finish. Granite s lack of reaction with acid also means that gravestone made of granite are going to last longer than those. Additionally granite has an interlocking. Granite sandstone marble or limestone.

For severe environments granite is a more lasting material but one which is far more difficult to work and much less suitable for. Conversely granite will withstand even severe weather. Granite in the earth s structure when beds of freshwater lakes are made of soils and rocks containing calcium and magnesium the acid rain is neutralized and a healthy alkaline level is maintained. The longer the acid rain sits on the granite the more quickly it deteriorates the stone.

Granite is extremely resistant and sandstone a little less so due to the percentage of quartz that each rock type contains. While more resistant than limestone it is subject to attack by weak acids and so performs poorly in outdoor environments subject to acid rain. Sandstone is also primarily composed of silica and is thus resistant.