Is Quartz Permeable? (ANSWERED)

No, Quartz is not permeable, at least not very permeable at all.

It is important to know about the permeability of various rocks and minerals to best understand the quality of these substances in the first place.

For those who have been curious about the permeability of Quartz, we have all the answers you have been curious about.

Is Quartz Permeable? (EXPLAINED)

What Is Quartz?

You have probably experienced Quartz in your day-to-day life as a result of the fact that it exists on countertops and other surfaces that we interact with on a regular basis.

That said, you may not fully know what this substance really is or what is so special about it.

Quartz is a very specific substance though, and it is important to understand a little more about its makeup to see why it is so commonly used.

Oxygen and silicon atoms make up Quartz.

When these atoms are combined together these atoms make what is known as silicon-oxygen tetrahedra.

A single oxygen atom will combine with two tetrahedra atoms to form the silicon-oxygen tetrahedral substance that makes up Quartz.

This substance is one of the most abundant on the face of the Earth, and that is a big reason why it is used in so many applications.

It is easy to find, and it can be formed into the shapes that humans want without losing its luster or shine.

Is Quartz Hard Or Soft?

For the most part, Quartz is on the hard side.

On the hardness scale, it ranks as a 7.

This is less than minerals such as:

Diamond

Topaz

Corundum

However, it does make it a harder substance than many other minerals that people are familiar with.

Talc, Gypsum, and Calcite are all softer on the scale than Quartz.

Thus, we should be extremely clear about saying that Quartz is a hard enough substance that it can be used on things like countertops as it frequently is.

What Exactly Does Permeable Mean?

Don’t feel bad if you don’t know the definition of permeable.

People throw this word around a lot when talking about things like Quartz, but they don’t always stop to explain what they mean.

What it means, in a nutshell, is how easily liquids and gases can pass through a given substance.

Quartz is not very permeable at all, so it is not easy to pass anything through this mineral.

The harder a mineral is, the less permeable it is in most instances, but only use this as a rule of thumb as there are some exceptions.

Various minerals have been tested for their permeability over the years, and a few stand out as being particularly permeable or as having almost no permeability to them at all.

When using one of these minerals for the construction of something that will be used in the home, it is obvious that one should want to use something that is less permeable than average.

Various Uses Of Quartz Across Industries

Quartz is an extremely common mineral as mentioned above, and this means that humans have had plenty of time to develop different ways to use this mineral.

Various industries have gotten in on the action as they need to use something strong in their processes.

Glassmaking

Glassmaking is a very common use of quartz.

In fact, in India nearly half of all of the glass that is produced in the country uses quartz in the process.

It is something that they are proud of, and it is something that helps bolster the industry.

People say that it makes the glasses look nicer and last longer than using other types of materials.

There is just something about the way that quartz looks when molded into something like a glass that stands out to a lot of people.

Watches And Clocks

We wouldn’t be anywhere as a civilization if we didn’t know how to tell time.

We rely on this aspect of life to know what to do and when to do it, and it would be completely impossible for the world to cooperate in the ways that it does if we were not all set up on a time system that could be agreed to.

It is very fortunate that we have clocks and watches to help this all in order, and many of those devices rely on quartz to work.

Sharpening Tools

Quartz is a hard mineral, and this means that it is great for using to sharpen other things.

Thus, the fact that sharpening tools are often made from quartz is reasonable.

It just means that people are looking at quartz as something that they can apply for use in bringing sharpness to other tools in their arsenal.

Using a mineral that is already harder than many others is the ideal way to do this.

Countertops

The kitchen is the place that most people are likely to encounter quartz in the first place.

A lot of people decide that kitchen countertops made from quartz are right for them.

This is often done because the quartz has a beautiful look to it, and because the countertops are built to last when build with quartz.

Thus, designers and anyone who works on kitchens know that quartz is something they will have to deal with on a regular basis.

You can start to expect to see quartz pop up in all kinds of areas of life now that you know where to look for it.

Given its ideal properties, it seems likely that quartz will be with us to stay long into the future.