Andesite

Andesite is an extrusive rock intermediate in composition between rhyolite and basalt.

Andesite lava is of moderate viscosity and forms thick lava flows and domes. The word
andesite is derived from the Andes Mountains in South America, where andesite is common.
Andesite is the volcanicequivalent of diorite.
Other
specimens
- Click the
thumbnails to
enlarge

andesite
Group - volcanic.
Colour - variable, but typically bluish-grey or grey (lighter coloured than
basalt).
Texture - porphyritic.
Mineral content - groundmass generally of pyroxene ( augite)
and plagioclase, possibly with minor amounts of amphibole ( hornblende)
and glass; phenocrysts of plagioclase and often pyroxene,
occasionally olivine or amphibole.
Silica (SiO 2) content - 52%-63%.
Uses - can be used as aggregate, fill etc. in the construction and roading
industries (often not ideal for concrete aggregate because of high silica
content).
New Zealand occurrences - West Auckland (Waitakere Range),
Coromandel Peninsula, Great and Little Barrier Islands, Western Bay of
Plenty (Kaimai Range), Raglan-Kawhia area (Karioi, Pirongia), Taranaki,
Central North Island