Lava Vesuvius between May 14 and June 4, 1737. Serao described "a flow of fiery lava" as an analogy to the flow of water and mud down the flanks of the volcano following heavy rain. The composition of almost all lava of the Earth's crust is dominated by silicate minerals, mostly feldspars, olivine, pyroxenes, amphiboles, micas and quartz. Igneous rocks, which form lava flows when erupted, can be classified into three chemical types: "felsic", "intermediate", and "mafic" (four if one includes the super-heated "ultramafic"). These classes are primarily chemical, however, the chemistry of lava also tends to correlate with the magma
Felsic Felsic In geology, felsic refers to igneous rocks that are relatively rich in elements that form feldspar and quartz. It is contrasted with mafic rocks, which are relatively richer in magnesium and iron. Felsic refers to those rocks rich in silicate minerals, magma, and rocks which are enriched in the lighter elements such as silicon, oxygen, aluminium, sodium, and potassium. They are usually light in color and have specific gravities less than 3. The most common felsic rock is granite. Common felsic minerals include quartz, muscovite, orthoclase, and the sodium-rich plagioclase feldspars (albite-rich). In modern usage, the term "acid rock",