lithologia

Lithology, or lithology in geology, is the branch that studies the physical characteristics and composition of rocks. It focuses on features such as mineral content, grain size and texture, color, and overall rock properties. Lithology is descriptive and often qualitative, used to classify rocks into lithologies or lithotypes based on observable traits.

In practice, lithology describes the type of rock present in a given volume, including igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. It is a key component of geological mapping and stratigraphic descriptions, providing a basis for interpreting the geological history of an area. Lithology is frequently used together with stratigraphy to understand sedimentation history and rock relationships.

Analytical methods in lithology include field observation of outcrops and hand specimens, microscopic petrography in thin sections, and laboratory techniques such as X-ray diffraction and whole-rock geochemistry. Modern approaches also incorporate remote sensing, petrographic microscopy, and petrophysical data to characterize subsurface rock units.

Lithology has wide applications in mining, petroleum geology, hydrogeology, civil engineering, and environmental studies. It informs resource exploration, mechanical and hydraulic properties of rocks, groundwater flow, and contaminant transport by providing the basic rock type and its characteristics.

Limitations: lithology is inherently descriptive and concentrates on rock traits rather than age. To build a comprehensive geological model, lithology is integrated with stratigraphy, geochronology, and structural geology.