Igneous Textures PDF
Igneous Textures PDF
Igneous Textures PDF
MINERAL GRAIN SIZE (absolute diameter of granular crystals or length of elongate crystals)
• Aphanitic- crystals visible only with magnification (<~0.3 mm)
Microlites - very small crystals in glassy matrix visible only in thin section
• Phaneritic - crystals visible with naked eye; Specific size ranges:
Fine-grained (<1 mm)
Medium-grained (1-5 mm)
Coarse-grained (5-30 mm)
Very coarse-grained or Pegmatitic (>30 mm)
TWINNING
• Primary - crystallographic reorientation across twin planes during crystallization; types
include:
Simple - one twin plane per crystal (e.g., Carlsbad twinning in feldspar)
Multiple (or polysynthetic) (e.g., Albite-twinning in plagioclase)
• Secondary - crystallographic reorientation induced by stress after crystallization (e.g., strain
twinning in calcite)
CAVITY TEXTURES
• Vesiculated - round, ovoid, or elongate holes (vesicles) formed by gas bubbles trapped in lava;
Scoriaceous - strongly vesiculated rock
• Amygdaloidal - vesicular rock wherein vesicles are partially or totally occupied by late
magmatic or post-magmatic minerals, such as quartz, calcite, zeolite, and chlorite.
• Miarolitic - Irregular cavity in plutonic rock; Crystals bounding cavity often show euhedral
habits.