A few months ago, I found this cool circular rock thing and brought it home. After I cleaned it up, it had a many large crystals on the outside of it. And many strange tunnel like crystal formations. It was also extremely heavy for what it was. My dad said that it was a geode. My sister said it was Quartz, and my mom said it was just a few crystals on a sandstone rock. Could this possible be a geode? Or just another Crystal?
Quartz and silica sand are essentially the same thing. The are both composed of SiO2 (quartz). Mining sand and river sand are distinguished merely by being different in their origins. Sand is actually a definition based on grain size, as composition and environmental setting can differ significantly.
A person is larger and has more mass than a grain of sand. A person is alive, while a grain of sand is not. Both exist, but sand just IS, and people just ARE.
Quartz and Silica Sand Silica sand is having a very high percentage of silicon dioxide; a source of silicon. Quartz sand is sand having a very high percentage of quartz. Because quartz is composed of silicon dioxide, silica sand and quartz sand are essentially the same type of sand. River and Mining Sand Sand obtained from the banks and beds of rivers. It is generally composed of rounded sand that may or may not contain clay or other impurities. The composition of the sand fraction, including the percentage of quartz present, will vary from river to river depending on the sediments, rocks, or combination of these sources present in the area drained by the river, its climatic history, tectonic history, and other factors. Mining sand is sand mined from any number of sources. including modern offshore bars shoals, and tidal deltas; modern and prehistoric river (bar) deposits; alluvial fans; prehistoric shallow marine deposits; and prehistoric eolian deposits. The composition, roundness, sorting, and amount of impurities present in mining sand will vary widely depending on the origin, location, age, and so forth of the specific sand deposit being mined. The quartz and silica sands definitely will not absorb water. Depending on the amount of impurities present, i.e. clays and organic matter mixed in with the sand and its composition, a few mining sands and fewer river sands might absorb relatively small amounts of water. Typically, any sand, which lacks any impurities such as clay and organic matter and is composed of framework silicates, will not absorb any water. If sheet silicates, zeolites, and so forth compose any of the sand, it might be able to absorb some water.
