- This article is about a type of sedimentary rock. For the work by Archimedes, Psammites, see The Sand Reckoner.
Psammite (Greek psammos, Sand) is a general term for sandstone. It is equivalent to the Latin-derived term arenite.[1][2] Also, it is commonly used in various publications to describe a metamorphosed sedimentary rock with a dominantly sandstone protolith.[3] In Europe, this term was formerly used for a fine-grained, fissile, clayey sandstone.[2] Pettijohn [4] gives the following descriptive terms based on grain size, avoiding the use of terms such as "clay" or "argillaceous" which carry an implication of chemical composition:
| Texture | Common | Greek | Latin |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coarse | gravel(ly) | psephite (psephitic) | rudite (rudaceous) |
| Medium | sand(y) | psammite (psammitic) | arenite (arenaceous) |
| Fine | clay(ey) | pelite (pelitic) | lutite (lutaceous) |
References
- ^ U.S. Bureau of Mines Staff (1996) Dictionary of Mining, Mineral, & Related Terms. Report SP-96-1, U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. Bureau of Mines, Washington, D.C.
- ^ a b Neuendorf, K.K.E., J.P. Mehl, Jr., and J.A. Jackson, J.A., eds. (2005) Glossary of Geology (5th ed.). Alexandria, Virginia, American Geological Institute, Washington, DC 779 pp.
- ^ Tyrell, G. W. (1921) Some points in petrographic nomenclature. Geological Magazine. v. 58, no. 11, pp. 494-502.
- ^ Pettijohn F. J. (1975), Sedimentary Rocks, Harper & Row, ISBN 0-06-045191-2
 | This article related to petrology is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |