Weathering,

Introduction denudation
to Geology and
sediments
Denudation = Weathering + Erosion + Mass
Wasting
Weathering
The in-place (in-situ) transformation of earth materials (parent material) into
regolith and the further transformation of regolith materials.

Erosion
The detachment and transportation of earth materials away from point of source
by the action of an agent (water, ice, wind).

Mass Wasting
The downslope movement of material under the influence of gravity without the
active aid of an agent in detatchment or transport.
 Weathering—The Breakdown of Rock

• At surface, rocks
exposed to air,
moisture, and organic
matter
• Lead to chemical
alteration and
mechanical
breakdown of rock
• Weathering integral
part of the rock cycle
• Converts rock to
regolith.
 Weathering—The Breakdown of Rock

• Chemical weathering
– removes the more soluble rock/mineral constituents
– bases are the most soluble, sesquioxides the least
– processes: hydrolysis, hydration, solution, oxidation/reduction,
carbonation

• Physical weathering
– Mechanically breaks rock and regolith into smaller fragments
– Most important = freeze-thaw, salt weathering and thermal
cracking

• Biological processes (biochemical and mechanical)

– Most important = root action and faunal digestion
Holden J 2005 An Introduction
to Physical Geography and the
Environment. p.253-254
 Physical Weathering: Joints
• Where rocks break at weak
spots when twisted,
squeezed, or stretched by
tectonic forces.
• Cooling of igneous rocks
forms columnar joints.
• Rocks adjust to removal of
overlying rock by
expanding upward, causes
joints to open slightly,
water, air, roots etc.

• Occur as set or sets of

parallel fractures which in
the main are horizontal and
vertical.
http://www.brimhamrocks.co.uk/images/stone5_large.jpg
Physical Weathering: Crystal Growth
• Water moving slowly through fractured rocks contains
ions, which may precipitate out of solution to form salts.
• The force exerted by salt crystals growing can be very
large and can result in the rupture or disaggregation of
rocks.
• Salt in groundwater can
affect buildings.

Cavernous weathering (Fig.6.5 Skinner et al. 2004)

Physical Weathering: Frost Wedging
Wherever temperatures
fluctuate about the
freezing point, water in
the ground periodically
freezes and thaws.
– Freezing = volume
increase by about 9 per
cent.
– Leads to a very effective
type of physical
weathering known as
frost wedging.
– Frost wedging most
effective at temperatures
of -5o to -15oC.
– Probably responsible for
most of rock debris on
slopes
 Physical Weathering: Diurnal Heating
and Cooling
• Daytime surface temperatures as high as 80oC have been measured on exposed
desert rocks (basalt).
• Daily temperature variations of more than 40o have been recorded.
• Experiments but no one has yet demonstrated that daily heating and cooling cycles
have noticeable physical effects on rocks.
• May need longer time but there is a recognised process:

Exfoliation – onion skin weathering.

Thermally induced, rock is a very poor
conductor of heat. The surface of the
rock gets very hot and expands, but
the temperature drops very rapidly
over a very short distance into the rock
away from the surface. The surface
expansion sets up stresses between
the surface few cms and the rock
below resulting in fracture and
exfoliation. Fire Can produce the same
effect.
Source: ougseurope.org/rockon/surface/exfoliation.asp
 Biological Weathering
Note: Many authors regard biological weathering as a form of chemical or
physical weathering.

Seeds germinate in cracks.

As plants grow roots

extend into cracks, growth
can force rock apart.

Root wedging – can

contribute to physical
weathering.

Ion exchange (nutrient

exchange) - can contribute
to chemical weathering.
Source: http://folk.uio.no/anjaroy/research.html
Chemical Weathering: Pathways

• Principal agents: water, oxygen, CO2

• Chemical reactions transform rocks and minerals into

new chemical combinations.

• Four main types of reaction (some may work together):

– Dissolution.
– Hydrolysis.
– Oxidation
– Hydration.
The relationship between volume, particle size and surface area. All of the above
cubes have exactly the same volume of material, but the one on the right has a
the greatest surface area. Specific Surface: surface area per unit volume.
Source: http://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/acolvil/weathering.html
Coarsely jointed granite – 2m square Finely jointed granite - <10cm blocks,
blocks Dartmoor Brittany

What is the significance with respect to weathering?

 Chemical Weathering
Dissolution
• Chemicals in rocks may dissolve in
water, for example Halite (NaCI) can
be removed completely from a rock
by dissolution.

• Other minerals need other reactions

e.g. CaCO3 requires the action of
weak acids such as carbonic acid
formed by water reacting with CO2,
or water reacting with soil acids.

http://www.ualberta.ca/~jwaldron/images/structCD384/41.jpg
 Chemical Weathering
Hydrolysis
• Reaction involving a chemical reaction with water leading
to the alteration of a compound into new material. e.g.
Potassium feldspar decomposes to clay mineral kaolinite.
• One of the chief processes in chemical breakdown of
common rocks (granite).
• Involves H+ ions (acids)

Oxidation
• Process by which a metallic ion loses an electron to an
oxygen ion.
• Usually iron minerals Fe3+ oxidised to Fe2+

Hydration
• Hydration is incorporation of water in mineral structure
Roman columns in Sevilla
– 2000 years old
Sandstone weathered by
solution/hydrolysis of the
cement and oxidation.
 Effects of Chemical Weathering
Decomposition of granite
• Combined effects of dissolution, hydrolysis, and oxidation.
– Feldspar, mica, and ferromagnesian minerals weather to clay
minerals and soluble Na+, K+, and Mg2+ ions.
– The quartz grains (silica), being relatively inactive chemically, remain
essentially unaltered, producing free grains which become sand.

Decomposition of basalt
• Plagioclase feldspar and ferromagnesian minerals form clay minerals and
soluble ions (Na+, Ca2+, and Mg2+)
• Iron from ferromagnesian minerals, together with iron from magnetite,
(plus water) forms goethite.

Study Figure 6.9 Skinner et al. 2004

Effects of Chemical Weathering
• Limestone, the most common sedimentary rock that
contains calcium carbonate, dissolved by dissolution
and hydrolysis. Leaves behind only the nearly insoluble
impurities (chiefly clay and quartz) that are always
present in small amounts in the rock.

• Minerals such as gold, platinum, and diamond persist

during weathering may result in valuable mineral
deposits.
 Exfoliation and Spheroidal Weathering
• During weathering, concentric shells of rock may spall from the outside
of an outcrop or a boulder, a process known as exfoliation. This has
already been met as a product of physical weathering via heat.
• Exfoliation can also be caused by differential stresses within a rock that
result from chemical weathering as a result of the new product
occupying a different volume to the original mineral.
• Such weathering is
common in engineered
materials if used
inappropriately. For
example in ground
saturated with salty
graoundwater.

Spheroidal weathering of granite (Fig.6.11 Skinner et al. 2004)

Factors Influencing Weathering
Most stable minerals The resistance of a silicate
• Quartz. mineral to weathering is a
• Clay minerals. function of three principal
• Ferric and aluminium things:
oxides and • The chemical
hydroxides. composition of the
• Muscovite. mineral.
• Potassium and • The extent to which the
• Biotite. silicate tetrahedra (the
• Sodium feldspar. silica-oxygen molecule)
• Amphibole. in the mineral are
• Calcium feldspar. polymerized.
• Calcite. • The acidity of the
• Pyroxene. waters with which the
• Olivine. mineral reacts.
Least stable minerals
 Factors Influencing Weathering
• Climate.
– Moisture and heat promote chemical reactions.
• Therefore, weathering is more intense and
generally extends to greater depths in a warm,
moist climate than in a cold, dry one.
• In a moist tropical climate the effects of chemical
weathering can be seen at depths of 100 m or
more.
• Cold climates – physical weathering dominant
Climate and
weathering

(Fig. 6.14 Skinner et al. 2004)

 Task:
Research the composition of:
1. Granite
2. Sandstone
3. Limestone
and identify the products of chemical
weathering.
Read Bell 2007 pages 77 to 88, and study the
table on page 89. Make detailed notes on
weathering processes and the engineering
classification of weathering. Address the
question: Why is the accurate engineering
classification of rocks important?
Denudation = Weathering + Erosion + Mass
Wasting
Weathering
The in-place (in-situ) transformation of earth materials (parent material) into
regolith and the further transformation of regolith materials.

Erosion
The detachment and transportation of earth materials away from point of source
by the action of an agent (water, ice, wind).

Mass Wasting
The downslope movement of material under the influence of gravity without the
active aid of an agent in detatchment or transport.
 Erosion
Agents:
• Rivers
• Sea
• Wind
• Ice

Erosion – deposition curve (Hjulstrom

Curve) for water erosion.
Source: http://earth.unh.edu/esci402/docs/docs.htm
Mass Wasting

Mass wasting is unlikely in this situation

as the vector of gravity acting down
slope is low and so shear stress is low.

Mass wasting is more likely in this

situation as the vector of gravity is high
and so shear stress is high.
Note: the shear stress has to be high
enough to overcome the shear strength
of the slope material – but water has a
big influence.

Source:
http://seis.natsci.csulb.edu/bperry/Mass%20Wasti
ng/Introduction_to_Mass_Wasting.htm
 Mass Wasting
Different forms of
mass wasting.
Most of the
movements
require the
presence of water
to set up a pore
water pressure
which lifts
individual
separates of
regolith apart
thereby reducing
shear strength and
increasing the risk
of gravity
movement.

Source: http://www.scienceclarified.com/landforms/Faults-to-Mountains/Landslide-and-Other-Gravity-
 Mass Wasting

Source: http://www.indiana.edu/~geol116/week10/wk10.htm