What is serpentine

This is where they are subjected to hydrothermal metamorphism. The source of water for this process is seawater entrained in the rocks and sediments of the oceanic slab. During hydrothermal metamorphism, olivine and pyroxene minerals are transformed into or are replaced by serpentine minerals.

Some of the metamorphic rocks produced here are composed almost entirely of serpentine minerals. These serpentine-rich rocks are known as "serpentinites. Extensive areas of Earth's surface are underlain by serpentinites. These areas occur near present or ancient convergent plate boundaries. They are locations where remnants of an oceanic plate is exposed at the surface. The remnant portion of the plate was either thrusted up onto land, accreted onto the edge of a land mass, or exposed by uplift and deep weathering.

These areas of exposed oceanic plate are known as ophiolites. They are often the source of valuable minerals that might include magnetite , chromite , chrysoprase , jade , and serpentine.

The most obvious physical properties of serpentine are its green color, patterned appearance, and slippery feel. These remind the observer of a snake and that is where the name "serpentine" was derived. Serpentine is also known for its translucent diaphaneity, waxy luster , ease of being cut into shapes, and its ability to accept a polish.

These properties make it a popular gemstone , architectural material, and ornamental stone. Last is serpentine's ability to resist the transfer of heat.

That makes it a valuable insulator. Fibrous varieties of serpentine, such as chrysotile, have been used to make asbestos, which has many industrial uses. Its use today is limited because the fibers have been associated with respiratory disease. Architectural Serpentine: Serpentine has a long history of use as an architectural stone.

It is usually green in color, cuts easily, polishes well, and has an attractive appearance. It was popular in the first half of the 20th century but is used less today, partly out of concern that it might contain asbestos. Enlarge image. The best way to learn about minerals is to study with a collection of small specimens that you can handle, examine, and observe their properties. Inexpensive mineral collections are available in the Geology.

Serpentine has been used as an architectural stone for thousands of years. It is available in a wide variety of green and greenish colors, often has an attractive pattern, works easily, and polishes to a nice luster. It has a Mohs hardness of 3 to 6 which is softer than granite , and usually harder than most marble. This low hardness limits its appropriate use to surfaces that will not receive abrasion or wear, such as facing stone, wall tiles, mantles, and window sills. Serpentine was popular in the United States during the first half of the 20th century and is less popular today.

The decline in popularity is partly related to concerns about worker safety and the possible asbestos content of the stone. In the dimension stone trade, serpentine is often sold as "marble.

This practice severely irritates some geologists. Chrysotile: A rock containing chrysotile, a serpentine group mineral, with a fibrous habit in fractures. Specimen is approximately five centimeters across. From Easton, Pennsylvania. Some varieties of serpentine have a fibrous habit.

These fibers resist the transfer of heat, do not burn, and serve as excellent insulators. The serpentine mineral chrysotile is common, found in many parts of the world, is easily mined, and can be processed to recover the heat-resistant fibers.

Serpentine minerals along with other green-colored alteration minerals talc and chlorite are still pretty widely distributed because olivine and pyroxenes are readily available in many places. Serpentinites has been important sources of asbestos, but nowadays the use of asbestos has diminished considerably because of health concerns. The danger associated with asbestos comes mostly form amphibole asbestos minerals, but it is hopeless to assume that the fearmongering media would take the trouble and educate themselves and their readers about the different types of asbestos minerals.

So, we continue to see dangers in harmless amounts of chrysotile asbestos in floor tiles while we neglect or happily tolerate far more important health risks like fast food and lack of physical exercise which kills millions every year. Serpentinite where the dominant serpentine mineral is fibrous chrysotile. The sample is from the Sayan Mountains in Siberia. Width of sample is 8 cm. Serpentinite green with white magnesite from Norway. Serpentine and magnesite may occur together if there were enough carbon dioxide available during the metamorphism to form magnesium carbonate magnesite.

Width of sample 24 cm. Serpentine-rich skarn sample with hedenbergite iron-rich Ca-clinopyroxene. Serpentine in skarn may form if the carbonate host rock is dolomite that provides lots of magnesium to form magnesium-rich silicates like serpentine minerals. Tapuli, Sweden. Width of sample 13 cm. And how does serpentinite relate to serpentine?

And now a third … might you do a post on fuchsite one of these days? I am not sure about the first one. Another way is to take a small sample of the material and send it to some mineralogy lab for X-ray testing. Discovering a new way that a snake moves could help engineers make better use of serpentine machines.

For nearly years, scientists have only known about four forms of serpentine locomotion. Discovering new, clever ways in which real snakes exploit their incredible flexibility could help engineers make better use of serpentine machines.

Most of the time, the three-hour, serpentine drive to Jalalabad is gorgeous and calm, though attacks can happen. But he tells their story in a voyeuristic way, to make this one of the most troubling and serpentine novel of the year. It's not just about the wild serpentine forms that Schiavone borrowed from Mannerist painters based further south. Lynch nods indulgently as Brand launches into an epic, serpentine definition of the benefits of TM. In the park you will also find the Serpentine , a lake in which people boat or swim depending on the time of year.

Indications of asbestos are found at most points throughout the whole serpentine formation. A band of limestone also occurs at Templeton containing masses of a light-coloured translucent serpentine. The outcrop of the serpentine here, I am told, is quite limited, with steep sides till round it.