Republic of the Philippines

CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE

F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

ENGEO 1: Geology for Engineers

Lesson 2:

Elementary Knowledge on
Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics

Earth Processes

Prepared by:
Albor, Renz
Depulco, Reynold
Totanes, Trixie Joy
 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

CONTINENTAL DRIFT

Continental Drift
-refers to the horizontal movement of the continents on a vast-scale

Our earth can be divided into two major units:

(i) the continental land masses, essentially composed of sial
(ii) the oceans which are floored by sima

Continental masses
-are floating above the viscous sima-layer
-it is well-known that there is a remarkable accumulation of land masses in the northern-hemisphere of the earth,
while there is appreciable concentration of water bodies in southern-hemisphere

The evidences in favour of the 'Continental-drift' hypothesis were collected from the physiographic, geological
and meteorological observations. The following evidences strengthen the idea of ‘Continental-drift’:

1. Geological Evidences
a. Continental boundaries on either side of the Atlantic-ocean are matching with each other.
b. Similarity in fossil contents i.e., faunal and floral similarity.
c. Lithological similarity.
d. Stratigraphic similarity, with relation to age.

2. Geo-Physical Evidences
- Palaeo-magnetic studies and geodetic survey gives evidences in support of the phenomenon of Continental
drift.

3. Tectonic Evidences
a. Geological structures
b. Development of mid-oceanic ridges
c. Development of fold-mountains
d. Development of island-arcs

4. Meteorological Evidences
- information obtained from palaeo-climatic and palaco-geographic analyses, indicate that drifting of
continents had taken place during the geological past.
 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

The idea of continental drift was develeped by F.B. Taylor in America, and Alfred Wegener in Germany. Their
theories are as follows:

I. Taylor's Hypothesis
-two great landmasses in the southern and northern hemisphere known as Gondwana land and Laurasia
-due course of time those land masses started spreading towards the equator, more or less radially from the
polar-regions

He cited certain evidences in support of his theories:

• East- coast of South America is similar in shape to the West coast of Africa and they fit like the parts of a
'Zig-saw'
• Location of most of the tertiary mountains are found more or less towards the equator \ side of the
continental masses
But his assumptions fail to justify the exact-happenings. Besides, the equatorial movement of continents as
assumed by Taylor fail to explain the drifting of South America from Africa.

II. Wegener's Hypothesis

-all the sialic layer was concentrated in a large continent called the 'Pangea' before the Silurian period

Panthalassa- block floated in a universal basaltic layer

Pangea- was surrounded by the world-ocean

Wegener and his followers, in favour of this theory, have put forwarded the following evidences:
• Similarities of the coast-lines once thought to be adjacent, especially South America and Africa.
• The similarity of pre-Cambrian (before 500 million years ago) rocks of Central Africa, Madagascar,
Southern India, Brazil and Australia.
• The continuity of tectonic trends of the blocks of countries across their present boundaries.
• There are wide-spread occurrences of carboniferous coal deposits implying a tropical humid-climate. The
coal bearing formations are now found in South America, South Africa, Madagascar, India, Australia and
Antarctica.
• Unmistakable evidence of wide-spread glaciation towards the end of the Palaeozoic era is found at the
southern extremity of South America, the southern-half of Africa, in the peninsular India; extending to the
Himalayan regions and in Australia.

III. Palaeo-Magnetism
-it is possible to find out the direction and dip of the earth's magnetic field during different geologic
periods
-it has been observed that the pole-positions of the present globe are different during the geologic past and
by joining these poles, a curve is obtained, which is known as 'polar-wandering curve'
 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

Palaeomagnetic -works on the Deccan plateau-basalt shows that the average rate of movement with reference to
India is about 7 cm/year

IV. Plate tectonics

-concept of the movement of lithospheric plates and the sea-floor spreading, along with their supporting
evidences prove that there was drifting of continents.

A general concept of continental drift may be obtained from the following stages:

Continental drifts and formation of present continents, (a) Joined mass pangaea (b) Laurasia and Gondwana land
(c) Formation of present continental rafts floating on the magma (d) The seven major plates (continental rafts)
 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

PLATE TECTONICS

It is known that the crust of the earth consists essentially of about 35 km thick layer of solid rock matter,
which varies in thickness from 5 km in the oceanic areas to even such thickness as 70 to 80 km in the
mountainous regions of the alps and the Himalayas. The crust is not fully rigid, but has been deformed in the
geologic past and subjected to movements even now is proved by earthquakes frequent on the ocean floors and
rarer in continents, volcanism, folding and faulting.
Plate tectonics provides a modern view of the rock cycle.

Important features of Plates-Tectonics

I. It is assumed that the earth is composed of 20 lithospheric plates.
II. They have a thickness from 0 to 10 km at the ridges to 100-150 kms elsewhere.
III. The plates may contain continental as well oceanic surfaces.
IV. These plates are continuously in motion both with respect to each other and to the Earth’s axis of
rotation.
V. Virtually all seismicity, volcanicity and tectonic activity is localized around plate margins and is
associated with differential motion between adjacent plates.

a) Plates boundary - It is the surface trace of the zone of motion between two plates.
b) Plates margin - The marginal part of a particular plate.
Two plate margins meet at the common plate boundary.

VI. These plates are small and large, separated by fault and thrusts, lying mostly across ridges of parallel to
the continental borders(trenches).
VII. They move with velocities ranging from 1 to 6 cm per year.
VIII. Where two plates diverge, we find extensional features, typically the oceanic ridges, symmetrical about
the vertical axis.
IX. Where two plates slide past each other, we find transcurrent faults i,e., the large strike-slip faults joining
segments of ocean ridges or arcs.
X. Where two plates converge, and one is thrust beneath the other we find the island arcs, the huge
asymmetric features that are sites of greatest earthquakes, explosive volcanism, great topographic relief,
and many other distinctive features.

Three types of plate margins.

A. CONSTRUCTIVE - In this case, a new crust is created by the upwelling of materials from the mantle.
Thus a ridge represents a zone along which two plates are in motion away from each other, yet they do not
separate since new material is continuously added to the rear of each. Boundaries at which the net effect of
motion is to generate surface area are termed as ‘Sources.’
The greatest principal stress is vertical and the plate boundary will consist of a set of
normal faults dipping about 60° from the horizontal.
B. DESTRUCTIVE - It represents the zone of convergent plate boundaries, along which two lithospheric
plates are coming together and one plate is forced to plunge down into the mantle. The plate boundary will
be a reverse fault dipping at an angle of 30° from the horizontal. Plate boundaries at which the
net effect of the motion is to destroy surface area are called ‘Sinks.’
C. CONSERVATIVE MARGINS - When the lithospheric plates can slide past one another and the plates
neither gain nor lose surface areas, there results in a transcurrent or transform fault, which marks the
 Republic of the Philippines
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F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

conservative plate boundaries.

Three types of plate boundaries

A. CONVERGENT BOUNDARY – where plates are moving towards each other. This forms trenches and
mountains
B. DIVERGENT BOUNDARY - where plates are moving away from each other. This forms ridges.
C. TRANSFORM-FAULT BOUNDARY – where plates are sliding past each other. This forms faults.

Euler’s Theorem. It is a geometrical theorem that shows that every displacement of a plate from one position
to another on a plate about a suitably chosen axis passes through the Centre of the sphere.

To understand the mechanism of the movement of the plates, it is necessary to know the physical
characteristics of the lithosphere:

a) Thermal property. The lithosphere strongly modifies the stress and temperature fields as it transmits
them from the asthenosphere to the earth’s surface. As the hot newly created, lithospheric plate moves
away from the accreting plate boundary, it progressively cools according to an exponential law through
flow of heat at its surface.
b) Elasticity. The lithosphere plate can be considered to be a thin elastic sheet that floats over a fluid
substratum and bends under a super-crustal load. Continent bearing plates are easier to deform that
ocean-bearing plates.
c) Mechanical properties. The newly created oceanic lithosphere neaer the mid-oceanic ridges is hot and
very thin and should be much weaker than normal ocean bearing or continent bearing lithospheric
plates.
d) Lithosphere as a stress-guide. The zone of deep and intermediate eartquakes often called Benioff
zones, correspond to stresses occuring within a lithospheric plates which sinks into the asthenosphere
and not to faulting between the asthenosphere and the lithospheric plates.
e) Kinematics of relative movements, According to wilson the lines of creation of surface produce
surface symmetrically,while lines of destruction of surface destroy surface asymmtrically. These lines
could end abruptly against what he called a transform fault.

Importance of plate-tectonics.
-The theory of plate tectonics is useful in explaining the phenomena like:
I. Continental-drift.
II. Mountain building (where two continental plates collide with each other).
III. Island arcs (where an oceanic plate undergoes subduction beneath a continental plate)
IV. Oceanic trenches.
V. Ocean floor spreading.
VI. Mid-oceanic ridges (where plates diverge).
 Republic of the Philippines
CAMARINES NORTE STATE COLLEGE
F. Pimentel Avenue, Brgy. 2, Daet, Camarines Norte – 4600, Philippines

EARTH PROCESSES COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

The term "geological/earth processes" describes the natural forces that shape the physical makeup of a planet.
Plate tectonics, erosion, chemical weathering and sedimentation are all examples of forces that significantly affect
the Earth’s surface and account for its major features.

2 Types of Geological Forces:

1) Internal Forces
- “Endogenous forces”
- agents and processes are driven by the heat that is stored in the Earth's interior
- usually occur far from the surface

o Folds- bend in rock due to compressional forces

o Faults- fracture or zone of fractures between two blocks of rock
o Earthquakes- when the force of movement finally overcomes the friction, sections of the crust suddenly
break or become displaced, releasing the pent-up pressure in the form of seismic waves
o Volcanoes- rupture in the Earth's crust (the earth's rocky outermost layer that lies on top of its hotter inner
layers)

2) External Forces
- “Exergonic forces”
- powered by solar energy
- they include all the changes that alter or wear down the rocks and deposit materials resulting from erosion

o Weathering- breaking down and changing of rocks as a result of exposure to the environment
o Erosion- transportation of the sediments that have been broken down by weathering processes
o Sediment Deposition- dropping off of the sediments that have been weathered and eroded

References:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/176BvlB6pm52uj1EhHKb7-xt_4eWw-
W_V/view?fbclid=IwAR2RxQuzx2y1hEcqOynV1QhJg-UHZPiS0D53WEDb2oQz0NqNB5TZMf3q05Q

https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=8Ys5brwYEj8C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&fbclid
=IwAR00FX-ynW6EQnte1eNIvKBVz-UZdG8DNY5ZOskNwyZZ57R4gO_U4SbZO_A#v=onepage&q&f=true