What are three main differences between felsic and mafic rocks?

What are three main differences between felsic and mafic rocks?

Comparison Table Between Mafic and Felsic

Parameters of Comparison	Mafic	Felsic
Density	High density and heavy	Low density and lightweight
Colour	Dark shades of green, or black	Light-coloured
Mineral Content	Rich in magnesium and iron	Rich in aluminium and silica
Silica Level	45-55%	70-85%

What is the difference between mafic felsic and intermediate magma?

In a widely accepted silica-content classification scheme, rocks with more than 65 percent silica are called felsic; those with between 55 and 65 percent silica are intermediate; those with between 45 and 55 percent silica are mafic; and those with less than 45 percent are ultramafic.

Are felsic minerals harder than mafic?

Mafic vs Felsic Thus, rocks having more than 65% of silica are Felsic while those having 45-55% of silica are classified as Mafic rocks. Mafic rocks are rich in iron and magnesium, whereas Felsic rocks are rich in silica and aluminum. Mafic rocks are denser and heavier than Felsic rocks.

Is pumice felsic or mafic or intermediate?

Pumice is a low-density, light-colored felsic volcanic rock.

Why are mafic minerals dark?

Mafic rock, in geology, igneous rock that is dominated by the silicates pyroxene, amphibole, olivine, and mica. These minerals are high in magnesium and ferric oxides, and their presence gives mafic rock its characteristic dark colour.

Is potassium feldspar mafic or felsic?

Felsic minerals (quartz, K feldspar, etc) are light colored while mafic minerals (hornblende, pyroxenes) are normally dark colored.

Is pumice intermediate?

Pumice is a highly vesicular pyroclastic igneous rock of intermediate to siliceous magmas including rhyolite, trachyte and phonolite. Pumice is usually light in colour ranging from white, yellowish, gray, gray brown, and a dull red. Pumice has an average porosity of 90%.

How is mafic created?

Mafic rocks that constitute the igneous oceanic crust are created at mid-ocean ridge seafloor spreading centers as a byproduct of partial melt from upwelling mantle. Through various parts of the spreading process, permeability can be generated in both the intrusive gabbros and extrusive basalts.

Is quartz a mafic mineral?

Mafic minerals are usually dark in color and have relatively high specific gravities (greater than 3.0). Common rock-forming mafic minerals include olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, biotite mica, and the plagioclase feldspars. Common felsic minerals include quartz, muscovite mica, and the orthoclase feldspars.

Is felsic denser than mafic?

Chemically, mafic rocks are enriched in iron, magnesium and calcium and typically dark in color. In contrast, the felsic rocks are typically light in color and enriched in aluminium and silicon along with potassium and sodium. The mafic rocks also typically have a higher density than felsic rocks.

Is felsic lava hotter than mafic lava?

The tendency for felsic lava to be cooler than mafic lava increases the viscosity difference . Lava viscosity determines the kind of volcanic activity that takes place when the lava is erupted. The greater the viscosity, the greater the tendency for eruptions to be explosive rather than effusive.

Which are some of the characteristics of mafic magma?

Mafic magmas are low in silica and contain more dark, magnesium and iron rich mafic minerals, such as olivine and pyroxene. Dissolved gases become trapped by thick magma and the magma chamber begins to build pressure.

Do mafic or felsic rocks have more silica?

Mafic rocks have between 45 and 55% of silica , whereas felsic rocks have over 65% of silica , the highest of all types. Due to the color of the minerals forming them, the rocks are either light or dark. As iron-rich silicates are normally dark in color, mafic rocks are dark-colored.