E3S Web of Conferences 175, 12020 (2020) https://doi.org/10.

1051/e3sconf/202017512020
INTERAGROMASH 2020

The origin and bloating of the obsidian

Artsruni Safaryan¹, Tamara Sarkisyan¹, Tatevik Paytyan¹* and Armine Baghdagyulyan¹
¹ National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia, 105 Teryan Street, Yerevan,
Republic of Armenia

Abstract. Among the rocks used to produce heat-insulating and acoustic

building materials, volcanic water-containing glassy rocks are increasingly
being used. A feature of volcanic water-containing glasses is their ability to
expand during heat treatment. Besides perlite, other volcanic glasses
known by various names also have this special feature: obsidian,
pitchstone, vitrophire, and others. The common property of all these rocks,
which determines their expanding power, is the content of water in them,
being in various forms of linkage. The main role in the process of their
pore formation during bloating belongs to water and various gases located
in closed pores. Obsidian is expanded at temperatures of 1050...11500C.
The lowest average density of 200 ... 350 kg/m3 (in a piece) is obtained by
heat treatment of obsidian for 3 ... 10 minutes (depending on the size of the
sample).

1 Intduction
Rock formation is associated with the eruption of molten magma and rapid cooling. The
composition and temperature of the lava and the cooling rate are crucial for the occurrence
of volcanic glass. Stone is formed when molten rocks do not have time to crystallize due to
rapid cooling. Most of the known deposits originated in the Pliocene period 2-4 million
years ago. Obsidian finds are no older than the Cenozoic era (new life), which has been
going on for 65 million years [1-4].
Since obsidian is the result of volcanic activity and lava eruptions, it is formed in nature
where there are active volcanoes, dormant or extinct. Therefore, the scope of its distribution
is quite wide.
The mineral was first discovered 9,000 years ago in Mesopotamia.
Large deposits of this stone are found in countries with high volcano activity, such as
Mexico, Ecuador, Japan (Hokkaido island), Turkey, and Armenia.
Mexico has the largest deposits of obsidian, and there are rare species of it - red and
brown-red.
In Russia, the mineral is extracted in the regions of Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands,
the Caucasus, Karelia, and Siberia. Minor deposits of obsidian are present in the Trans-
Baikal and the Khabarovsk regions.
In addition, the stone is found in other countries and regions, too: in Peru and Iceland,
Hawaii and Indonesia. Large deposits are located in Iran and Georgia.

*
Coresponding author: [email protected]

© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution License 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
E3S Web of Conferences 175, 12020 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202017512020
INTERAGROMASH 2020

The oldest deposits of obsidian were discovered in ancient times in Anatolia: one - in
the valley of the Konya River, the other - near the Lake Van. In Armenian, obsidian is
called "vanakat" (Van's milk) [5].
There are many colours of obsidian: black, grey, brown, pearl, “Apache's tear", as well
as striped, obsidian and perlite (Fig. 1).
The name of this stone only increases its mystery. Obsidian is also called "devil's claw",
“Apache's tear", and bottle stone. There are different versions of the origin of this stone’s
name.
The adherents of the first version suggest that it comes from the word "obsis", which is
translated from Greek as "spectacle". Perhaps this name arose from the fact that in ancient
times mirrors were made of obsidian (Fig. 1).
According to the second version, the stone is named after the Roman Obsius or
Obsidius, who first brought this stone to Italy from Africa (Ethiopia) [6].

Fig. 1 a) Obsidian lava; varieties of obsidian: b) black, c) grey, d) brown, e) pearl, f) a chip of
obsidian g) “Apache's tear”, h) striped, i) obsidian and perlite, j) a mirror of obsidian

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E3S Web of Conferences 175, 12020 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202017512020
INTERAGROMASH 2020

The chemical composition of the mineral includes the following elements: SiO2 (silicon
oxide) is its base, the content of which ranges from 65% to 80%; water is contained in very
small amounts – up to 1%.
Obsidians of different deposits feature relatively close chemical compositions in
which the content of oxides varies within the following limits (% of the mass): SiO2 -
65,01…79,42; Al2O3 - 6,6…16,32; Fe2O3` -0,09…1,9; CaO traces - 2,63; MgO -
0,01…1,3; SO3 - 0…0,41; NaO+K2O - 2,02…9,81; the filament loss - 0,14…0,4. The
characteristics of their physical properties include the following parameters: hardness -
about 5 to 5,5 (on the Mohs scale); density - from 2,5 to 2,6 g / m3 [7, 8].
The black color of obsidian is often caused by powdery inclusions of magnetite, while
hematite gives the stone a reddish-brown tone. The location of the stripes indicates the
direction of the lava flow [1-4].
The structure of the stone is massive amorphous with a uniform texture, and the strength
is low. The mineral has no electrical conductivity, is not radioactive, and melts at a
temperature of 1200 to 1500 degrees Celsius. It can be opaque, translucent, or transparent.
It has a glass lustre, it is polishable and can be cut.
In industry, the mineral is used as a raw material for producing dark-colored glass. And
for construction, it is used to produce a heat-insulating material [7, 8].
A common property for bloated rocks is the ability to significantly increase the volume
of rock grains due to intensive withdrawal of bound water from them during high-
temperature processing. Swelling of pre-crushed rock occurs when it acquires a ductile-
viscous (pyroplastic) state when heated, and the main role in the process of pore formation
during bloating belongs to water and various gases located in closed pores [7, 8].

2 Methodology
The suitability of raw materials for expanding is determined by the degree of its bloating
during heat treatment and the average density (bulk and in a piece).
At ignition of the raw material, the mass loss should not exceed 3.0%, and the bloating
interval of the raw material should be at least 50° C. The bloating interval is the interval
between the temperature at which the expanded material with the lowest average density in
the piece is obtained, and the temperature at which the surface of the obsidian grains begins
to melt.
The locations of obsidian in Armenia are: Aragats, Artenis, Gyumush-Jraber, Jraber-
Fontan, Vorotan, Kecheldag (upper reaches of the Terter river, Kelbajar district, NKR). The
chemical composition of obsidians of different colors is shown in the table below.
Table 1. Chemical composition of obsidians of different colours from the Jraberd deposits, mas. %.
Color of Fe2O3,
SiO2 Al2O3 CaO MgO SO3 NaO+K2O LOI
the sample recalculated
Grey
73,60 14,53 0,69 1,20 0,25 0,31 8,92 0,41

Black
74,46 14,20 1,12 1,25 0,28 0,14 8,23 0,32

Brown
76,96 13,33 0,96 1,19 0,22 0,16 6,97 0,21

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E3S Web of Conferences 175, 12020 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202017512020
INTERAGROMASH 2020

3 Results
In Fig. 2, the results of mass loss of obsidian samples of different colours at different
temperatures are presented. From the results obtained, it follows that the greatest losses are
in the grey sample, i.e. its bloating power is higher.

Fig. 2. Loss of mass of the obsidian sample of different colours at different temperatures: 1 - black
obsidian, 2 – grey obsidian, 3 – brown obsidian.
The density of the grey samples is 2310 kg/m3, the black samples - 2400 kg/m3, and the
brown samples - 2550 kg/m3. The average densities are 2250 kg/m3, 2380 kg/m3, 2490
kg/m3 respectively. The average density of the boated grey sample was 200 kg/m3, black
sample - 350 kg/m3, and the brown sample - 950 kg/m3 (in pieces). Obsidian is expanded at
temperatures of 1050 ... 1150oC. The lowest average density of 200 ... 350 kg/m3 (in a
piece) is obtained by heat treatment of obsidian for 3 ... 10 minutes (depending on the size
of the sample).
Fig. 3 shows photos of the original non-bloated obsidian, the bloated obsidian, and the
porosity of the bloated obsidian.

Fig. 3. a) Original non-bloated obsidian, b) bloated obsidian, c) porosity of the bloated obsidian.

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E3S Web of Conferences 175, 12020 (2020) https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202017512020
INTERAGROMASH 2020

4 Conclusion
Gases that expand in the heated mass of glass (water vapor, CO2, etc.) cause high pressure,
thus overcoming the forces of adhesion of particles (depending on the viscosity of the
mass) and make the material swell.
The bloated obsidian will allow you to obtain an ultra-light large-porous material. On
the basis of expanded obsidian, it is possible to obtain new types of effective composite
thermal insulation and acoustic materials (light and cellular concrete, monolithic products
and acoustic plasters) with high performance properties and expand the range of effective
construction composite materials.

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