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Shale is a fine-grained rock made from compacted mud and clay. The defining characteristic of shale is its ability to break into layers or fissility. Black and gray shale are common, but the rock can occur in any color. Shale is commercially important.

Shale consists of finely laminated (thinly layered) clay-sized particles. If this fine-grained material lacks layers, it is called mudstone or claystone. These rocks are smooth to the touch. Shales and mudstones commonly contain silt- size particles as well as clay.

Sandstone and minor shale: A coarse-grained clastic sedimentary rock composed of grains of sand (primarily quartz) in a matrix of silt or clay. More than 50 percent of the shale layers. Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock formed from the compaction of clay, silt, or mud.

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Shale

Shale forms in very deep ocean water, lagoons, lakes and swamps where the water is still enough to allow the extremely fine clay and silt particles to settle to the floor. Geologists estimate that shale represents almost ¾ of the sedimentary rock on the Earth’s crust.

Shale usually contains other clay-size mineral particles such as quartz, chert, and feldspar. Other constituents might include organic particles, carbonate minerals, iron oxide minerals, sulfide minerals, and heavy mineral grains.

Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock which is formed by the compaction of silt and clay-size mineral particles. Claystone is a fine-grained, dark gray to pink sedimentary rock which mainly consists of compacted and hardened clay. These rocks are composed of many distinct minerals.

conglomerate. Claystone and shale are examples of mudrock. Claystone and shale are examples of mudrock.

Siltstone vs Shale Information Siltstone can be defined as a fine-grained sedimentary rock which mainly consists of consolidated silt. Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock which is formed by the compaction of silt and clay-size mineral particles. These rocks are composed of many distinct minerals.

The material found in sediment grains also affects the rate of weathering. The mechanical weathering of rocks like shale and sandstone causes their grains to break up over time and become sand and clay particles.

The weathering of shales, which comprise roughly 20% of Earth’s terrestrial surface-exposed rocks, involves the oxidation of pyrite minerals and dissolution of calcium carbonate.

Different rocks will in general have different types of porosity and permeability. Sandstones generally have good porosity and permeability, making a good well. Shales have poorer permeability and well yields are poorer.

Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock that is formed by the compression of muds. This type of rock is composed primarily of quartz and minerals that are found in clay. Shales can be broken easily into thin, parallel layers. Shale is ground up for use in making bricks and cement.

What is another word for shale?

Bedrock (also termed Bed rock ) is a layer of undisturbed rock usually located beneath a surface layer of soil or other material. Natural exposures of shale and claystone, both soft, fine-grained rocks, are rare—especially in humid climates. …

Shale formations are ubiquitous in sedimentary basins and, as a result, the main organic-rich shale formations have already been identified in most regions of the world. The depths vary from near surface to several 1000 feet underground, whereas the thickness varies from tens of feet to several hundred feet.

Shale oil refers to hydrocarbons that are trapped in formations of shale rock. Oil shale is different than shale oil in that oil shale is essentially rock that contains a compound called kerogen, which is used to make oil.