Arkose

Arkose
Sedimentary rock
	Arkose with K-feldspar (pinkish-orangish) and quartz (gray) grains
Composition
	>25% feldspar

Arkose (/ˈɑːrkoʊs, -koʊz/) or arkosic sandstone^[1] is a detrital sedimentary rock, specifically a type of sandstone containing at least 25% feldspar.^[2]^[3] Arkosic sand is sand that is similarly rich in feldspar, and thus the potential precursor of arkose.

Components

Quartz is commonly the dominant mineral component, and some mica is often present. Apart from the mineral content, rock fragments may also be a significant component. Arkose usually contains small amounts of calcite cement, which causes it to effervesce (fizz) slightly in dilute hydrochloric acid; sometimes the cement also contains iron oxide.

Colouration and presence of fossils

Arkose is typically grey to reddish in colour. The sand grains making up an arkose may range from fine to very coarse, but tend toward the coarser end of the scale. Fossils are rare in arkose, due to the depositional processes that form it, although bedding is frequently visible.

Formation process

Arkose is generally formed from the weathering of feldspar-rich igneous or metamorphic, most commonly granitic, rocks, which are primarily composed of quartz and feldspar (called 'grus' as a sand). These sediments must be deposited rapidly and/or in a cold or arid environment such that the feldspar does not undergo significant chemical weathering and decomposition; therefore arkose is designated a texturally immature sedimentary rock. Arkose is often associated with conglomerate deposits sourced from granitic terrain and is often found above unconformities in the immediate vicinity of granite terrains.

Gallery

Arkosic sand in the Llano Uplift, Texas, with granite outcrops
Grus sand and the granitoid it's derived from

Uluru

The central Australian inselberg Uluru (Ayers Rock) is composed of late Neoproterozoic/Cambrian arkose, deposited in the Amadeus Basin.^[4]

References

^ Jackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "arkosic sandstone". Glossary of Geology (4th ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. ISBN 0922152349.
^ Folk, R. L. (1974). Petrology of Sedimentary Rocks. Hemphill. ISBN 0-914696-14-9. Archived from the original on 2006-02-14. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
^ Stow, D. A. V. (2005). Sedimentary Rocks in the Field. Manson. ISBN 1-874545-69-3.
^ Sweet, I. P.; Crick, I. H. (1991). Uluṟu & Kata Tjuṯa: A Geological History. Australian Geological Survey Organization. ISBN 0-644-25681-8.

[1] Jackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "arkosic sandstone". Glossary of Geology (4th ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. ISBN 0922152349.

[Folk1974-2] Folk, R. L. (1974). Petrology of Sedimentary Rocks. Hemphill. ISBN 0-914696-14-9. Archived from the original on 2006-02-14. Retrieved 2007-05-05.

[Stow2005-3] Stow, D. A. V. (2005). Sedimentary Rocks in the Field. Manson. ISBN 1-874545-69-3.

[Sweet1992-4] Sweet, I. P.; Crick, I. H. (1991). Uluṟu & Kata Tjuṯa: A Geological History. Australian Geological Survey Organization. ISBN 0-644-25681-8.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

v t e Types of rocks
Igneous rock	Adakite Andesite Alkali feldspar granite Anorthosite Aplite Basalt Alkali basalt Picrite basalt Basaltic trachyandesite Mugearite Shoshonite Basanite Blairmorite Boninite Carbonatite Charnockite Enderbite Dacite Diabase Diorite Napoleonite Dunite Essexite Foidolite Gabbro Granite Granodiorite Granophyre Harzburgite Hornblendite Hyaloclastite Icelandite Ignimbrite Ijolite Kimberlite Komatiite Lamproite Lamprophyre Latite Lherzolite Monzogranite Monzonite Nepheline syenite Nephelinite Norite Obsidian Pegmatite Peridotite Phonolite Phonotephrite Porphyry Pumice Pyroxenite Quartz diorite Quartz monzonite Quartzolite Rhyodacite Rhyolite Comendite Pantellerite Scoria Shonkinite Sovite Syenite Tachylyte Tephriphonolite Tephrite Tonalite Trachyandesite Benmoreite Trachybasalt Hawaiite Trachyte Troctolite Trondhjemite Tuff Websterite Wehrlite
Sedimentary rock	Argillite Arkose Banded iron formation Breccia Calcarenite Chalk Chert Claystone Coal Conglomerate Coquina Diamictite Diatomite Dolomite Evaporite Flint Geyserite Greywacke Gritstone Itacolumite Jaspillite Laterite Lignite Limestone Lumachelle Marl Mudstone Oil shale Oolite Phosphorite Sandstone Shale Siltstone Sylvinite Tillite Travertine Tufa Turbidite Varve Wackestone
Metamorphic rock	Anthracite Amphibolite Blueschist Cataclasite Eclogite Gneiss Granulite Greenschist Hornfels Calcflinta Itabirite Litchfieldite Marble Migmatite Mylonite Metapelite Metapsammite Phyllite Pseudotachylite Quartzite Schist Serpentinite Skarn Slate Suevite Talc carbonate Soapstone Tectonite Whiteschist
Specific varieties	Adamellite Appinite Aphanite Borolanite Blue Granite Epidosite Felsite Flint Ganister Gossan Hyaloclastite Ijolite Jadeitite Jasperoid Kenyte Lapis lazuli Larvikite Litchfieldite Llanite Luxullianite Mangerite Novaculite Pietersite Pyrolite Rapakivi granite Rhomb porphyry Rodingite Shonkinite Taconite Tachylite Teschenite Theralite Unakite Variolite Wad