What Is Calcareous Stone?
In the world of natural stone, there are a number of types from which to choose. Some of these are very hard natural stones. For example natural granite and quartzite contain a lot of the mineral quartz. Quartz is a hard mineral. Therefore, these materials are hard. There are other minerals in much of the natural stone out there. On of these is the mineral calcium carbonate. Calcareous stone is a natural stone that is composed of calcium carbonate. There are several popular stone that fall into this group of natural materials. SOme calcareous stones include:
- Marble
- Travertine
- Limestone
- Onyx
Though these natural stones all contain calcium carbonate, they look very different from one another and are used for differing purposes. Yet, be cause they all are made of calcium carbonate, calcareous stone bridge saw blades work for cutting them.
Calcareous Stone Properties
Calcareous stone has some very distinct traits that make it what it is. One of these is its hardness. Calcium carbonate (also called calcite) is relatively soft compared with other natural stone materials. Therefore, calcareous stone is a softer natural stone than the ones mentioned in the opening word of this article.
Another characteristic of calcareous stone is that it is generally light in color. It often times has a hue to it although it is normally in the gray, yellow, or brown zone of color. You can learn more about calcareous stone by reading about the
material types for these stones.
Why Special Blades?
As we mentioned above, calcareous stone is softer than other natural stone. So why does it need a specific blade to cut it? After all, if a blade cuts a harder rock, won't it cut this? The answer to that question is, yes and no. Some diamond blades will cut hard and soft stone. But some blades that cut harder materials, do not work well at all on soft calcareous stone like marble, onyx, limestone, and travertine. And the reason has to do with the calcium carbonate in the stone.
The soft mineral called calcite, actually is not hard for diamond blades to cut. However, depending on the design of the blade and certain features of it, The soft stone can gum up the blade and hinder its performance. So, the safest way to make sure that you will be able to cut marble, travertine, limestone, and onyx is to stick with using a calcareous stone blade. These are often times labeled as
marble blades. This term makes it seem as though the blade is only designed for use on marble. The reality though is that it cuts stone that contains calcite.