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Plagioclase displaying cleavage. (unknown scale) In volcanic rocks, fine-grained plagioclase can display a "microlitic" texture of many small crystals. Plagioclase (/ ˈ p l æ dʒ (i) ə ˌ k l eɪ s, ˈ p l eɪ dʒ-,-ˌ k l eɪ z / PLAJ-(ee)-ə-klayss, PLAYJ-, -klayz) [4] is a series of tectosilicate (framework silicate) minerals within the feldspar group.
The most common mineral assemblage of granulite facies consists of antiperthitic plagioclase, alkali feldspar containing up to 50% albite and Al 2 O 3-rich pyroxenes. Transition between amphibolite and granulite facies is defined by these reaction isograds: amphibole → pyroxene + H 2 O biotite → K-feldspar + garnet + orthopyroxene + H 2 O.
Quartz (SiO 2) is present as more than 20% of the total quartz-alkali feldspar-plagioclase-feldspathoid content of the rock. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] Amphiboles and biotite are common in lesser quantities, while accessory minerals include apatite , magnetite and zircon .
Monzonite is defined as rock having less than 5% quartz in its QAPF fraction and in which alkali feldspar makes up between 35% and 65% of the total feldspar content. If quartz constitutes greater than 5% of the QAPF fraction, the rock is termed a quartz monzonite , while if feldspathoids are present as up to 10% of the QAPF fraction, the rock ...
Potassium feldspar is also noticeably more prevalent as the pluton gets thicker, suggesting that the pluton is zoned compositionally. [8] Overall, the granite is a porphyritic rock that is composed of plagioclase feldspar, quartz, and biotite, and contains large pink microcline chunks throughout the matrix. The microcline megacrysts appear as ...
Feldspar (/ ˈ f ɛ l (d) ˌ s p ɑːr / FEL(D)-spar; sometimes spelled felspar) is a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. [3] The most common members of the feldspar group are the plagioclase (sodium-calcium) feldspars and the alkali (potassium ...
Micrographic differs from graphic granite in being so much finer-grained that the texture can only be seen in a petrographic thin section with a microscope. The feldspar is usually orthoclase , but can also be albite , oligoclase or microcline .
Labradorite ((Ca, Na)(Al, Si) 4 O 8) is a calcium-enriched feldspar mineral first identified in Labrador, Canada, which can display an iridescent effect . Labradorite is an intermediate to calcic member of the plagioclase series. It has an anorthite percentage (%An) of between 50 and 70. The specific gravity ranges from 2.68 to 2.72.