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Name: _________________ Grade & Section: _______________ Date: ___________

Topic: Endogenic Processes (Week 4)


Learning Competencies: Describe the physical and chemical changes in rocks due to changes in
pressure and temperature (metamorphism). (S11/12ES-Ic-17)
What you are expected to learn?
After going through this worksheet, you should be able to:
1. Understand the different index minerals used for metamorphic rocks.
2. Understand what causes the metamorphic texture
Concept:
Heat, pressure, and chemically active fluids are referred to as the "agents of metamorphism”.
Changes in the rock during metamorphism occur in the solid state (no melting involved).

The index minerals for metamorphic rocks are the following:


a. Minerals become unstable and change into another mineral without necessarily a compositional
change in response to heat, pressure, and chemically active fluids. Examples include diamond and coal
wherein only the mineral structure is affected.
b. The mineral composition of the resulting metamorphic rock is influence by: the mineral
composition of the original rock, the composition of fluid phase that was present and the attained pressure
and temperature during metamorphism.
c. Certain minerals identified as index minerals are good indicators of the metamorphic environment
or zone of regional metamorphism in which these minerals are formed.

The typical transition of mineral content resulting from the metamorphism of shale (source: Tarbuck, E.J. et
al, Essentials of Geology, 11thed, p192.)
a. Fine grained sedimentary rocks (e.g. shale or mudstone) can transform into different metamorphic
rocks depending on the degree of metamorphism. At relatively low grade of metamorphism (low
temperature and pressure conditions), shale can metamorphose into slate. At a still higher degree of
metamorphism, slate can transform into phyllite. (A definite sequence of metamorphic rocks can form with
increasing degree of metamorphism). The resulting metamorphic rock type is composed of minerals that are
stable at the attained temperature, pressure, and chemical condition of metamorphism.
b. Some rocks, however, such as pure quartz sandstone or pure limestone, provide no clue as to the
intensity of metamorphism (source: Monroe, J. S., et al, Physical Geology Exploring the Earth, 6th ed.,
2007, p249).

The textural changes in rocks that are subjected to metamorphism are the following:
a. In general, the grain size of metamorphic rocks tends to increase with the increasing metamorphic
grade. With the increasing metamorphic grade, the sheet silicates become unstable and mafic minerals like
hornblende and pyroxene start to grow. At the highest grades of metamorphism all of the hydrous minerals
and sheet silicates become unstable and thus there are few minerals present that would show a preferred
orientation.
b. Most metamorphic textures involve foliation which is caused by differential stress. Sheet silicates
such as clay minerals, mica and chlorite tend to have a preferred orientation when subjected to differential
stress. Slate, phyllite, schist and gneiss are foliated rocks, texturally distinguished from each other by the
degree of foliation.
c. Differential stress is formed when the pressure applied to a rock at depth is not equal in all
directions. Effects of differential stress in the rock’s texture if present during metamorphism include
(http://www.tulane.edu/~sanelson/eens212/metatexture.htm)
i. Rounded grains can become flattened in the direction of the maximum compressional
stress.
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ii. Minerals that crystallize or grow in the differential stress field may develop a preferred
orientation. Sheet silicates and minerals that have an elongated habit will grow with their
sheets or direction of elongation orientated perpendicular to the direction of maximum stress.

d. Non-foliated metamorphic rock is formed when heat is the main agent of metamorphism.
Generally, non-foliated rocks are composed of a mosaic of roughly equidimensional and equigranular
minerals.
i. Non-foliated metamorphic rocks are generally of two types: those made up of mainly on
mineral like quartzite (from medium- to high-grade metamorphism of quartz-rich sandstone) and
marble (from low- to high-grade metamorphism of limestone or dolostone), and those in which the
different mineral grains are too small for the naked eye, such as hornfels (hornfels if the grain size is
small and granulite if the grain size is large such that individual minerals are easily identified with a
hand lens).

In general, the chemical composition of metamorphic rocks does not drastically change during
metamorphism. Metamorphic grade pertains to the temperature and/or pressure condition(s) to which a rock
has been subjected during metamorphism.

Activity 1. Simple Report

Instruction. A simple report to be submitted after seven days (or over the weekend):
Explain the relationship of metamorphism and plate tectonics (i.e. expected metamorphic grade in a
specific tectonic setting).

Activity 2. Summary Questions


Instruction. Answer the following questions correctly. For those TRUE or FALSE, questions if your answer
is false change the statement to make it correct.

1. True or false. Chlorite is commonly found in high grade metamorphic rocks


2. Other than the attained temperature and pressure during metamorphism, what are the other two
factors that control the mineral composition of a metamorphic rock?
3. Define metamorphism.
4. Define metamorphic grade.
5. Define foliation.
6. Define the role of stress in the formation of foliation?
7. True or false: There is a direct correlation between the grain size of metamorphic rocks and the
metamorphic grade.
8. Is it possible to find fossils in metamorphic rocks?

Topic: Endogenic Processes


Learning Competencies: Compare and contrast the formation of the different types of igneous rocks.
(S11/12ES-Ic-18)
What you are expected to learn?
After going through this worksheet, you should be able to:
1. Explain how and why magma rises up.
2. Understand the concept of Bowen’s reaction series.
3. Identify, understand, and explain magmatic differentiation mechanisms operating beneath the
surface of the Earth.

Concept:
Why and how magma rises up?
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Density contrast: magma is less dense than the surrounding country rock. Magma rises faster when
the density contrast between the magma and the country rock is greater.
At deeper levels, magma passes through mineral grain boundaries and cracks in the surrounding
rock. When enough mass and buoyancy is attained, the overlying surrounding rock is pushed aside as the
magma rises. Depending on surrounding pressure and other factors, the magma can be ejected to the Earth’s
surface or rise at shallower levels underneath.
At shallower levels, magma may no longer rise because its density is almost the same as that of the
country rock. The magma starts to accumulate and slowly solidifies (Fig. 2). When the magma
solidifies at depth, it can form different types of plutonic bodies.
Viscosity: A measure of a fluid’s resistance to flow. Magmas with low viscosity flow more easily
than those with high viscosity. Temperature, silica content and volatile content control the viscosity of
magma.
Mafic magma is less viscous than silicic (felsic) magma because it is hotter and contains less silica.
The concept of the Bowen’s reaction series are the following:
a. Certain minerals are stable at higher melting temperature and crystallize before those stable at
lower temperatures.
b. This series explain how minerals are formed under different temperature conditions, given that all
the required elements for certain minerals are present.
c. There are two branches, the discontinuous and continuous branches which happen simultaneously.
The minerals in the discontinuous branch include olivine, pyroxene amphibole and biotite mica. In the
discontinuous branch, there is only plagioclase, but the Calcium and Sodium content changes from high
temperature to low temperature.
d. A single “parental magma” can produce various kinds of igneous rocks through magmatic
differentiation.

The different magmatic differentiation processes are the following:


Magmatic differentiation is the process of creating one or more secondary magmas from single
parent magma (Tarbuck, E. J. et al Earth An Introduction to Physical Geology, 2014, p138).
a. Crystal Fractionation –a chemical process by which the composition of a liquid, such as magma,
changes due to crystallization. Common mechanism for crystal fractionation is crystal settling. This means
that denser minerals crystallize first and settle down while the lighter minerals crystallize at the latter stages.
b. Partial Melting - as described in Bowen’s reaction series, quartz and muscovite are basically the
most stable minerals at the Earth’s surface, making them the first ones to melt from the parent rock once
exposed in higher temperature and/or pressure. Partial melting of an ultramafic rock in the mantle produces
a basaltic magma (Carlson, D. H., Plummer, C. C., Hammersley L., Physical Geology Earth Revealed 9th
ed, 2011, p292).
c. Magma mixing – this may occur when two different magma rises up, with the more buoyant mass
overtakes the more slowly rising body. Convective flow then mixes the two magmas, generating a single,
intermediate (between the two parent magmas) magma (Tarbuck, E. J. et al Earth An Introduction to
Physical Geology, 2014, p139).

The relationship of the different igneous rock types and the environment of formation:
a. Basalt and basaltic magma: form when hot rocks in the mantle slowly rise and encounter lower
pressures. This leads to decompression melting (melting due to reduced pressures). This commonly occurs
along places where plates are moving away from each other (i.e. extensional plate boundaries such as
continental rifts and hotspots. This type of magma has low viscosity, low silica, high iron and low volatile
(H2O) contents.
b. Rhyolite and rhyolitic magma: formed by either (1) melting of mantle fluxed by water and
sediments carried into the mantle in subduction zones; and /or (2) interaction of mantle derived basaltic
magmas with continental crust. The magma is highly viscous with relatively high silica, low iron and high
volatile (H2O) contents.
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c. Andesite and andesitic magma: Andesitic magmas maybe formed in a variety of ways: some are
formed when water and sediments on the ocean floor are pushed into the mantle along subduction zones,
leading to melting in the mantle. Others are formed when hot basaltic magma interact with continental crust
on the way to the Earth’s surface, which likewise leads to melting. The silica, iron and volatile (H2O)
contents and viscosity are intermediate between basalt and rhyolite.
Activity 1. Summary Questions
Instruction. Answer the following questions correctly. For those TRUE or FALSE, questions if your answer
is false change the statement to make it correct.

1. Define viscosity.
2. Identify the three major factors controlling the viscosity of magma/lava.
3. Describe how viscosity affects the movement of magma. Compare the viscosity of basaltic and granitic
magmas.
4. True or False: Magmatic differentiation is the process of creating one or more secondary magmas from
single parent magma.
5. How does magma change during crystallization?
6. What is the significance of the Bowen’s reaction series?
7. What is the Bowen’s reaction series?
8. Rising magma assimilates crustal rocks but does not result to any change in the composition of the
resulting magma. In what condition/s can this occur?
9. True or False: The different mechanisms through which crystal fractionation occurs are crystal settling,
filter pressing, inward crystallization and flow segregation.

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