CE0041

(GEOLOGY FOR CIVIL ENGINEERS)

Module 3: Rocks and their Related
Activities
Geologic Cycle
1. Subduction of an oceanic plate
beneath a continental plate
uplifts a volcanic mountain
range

2. Magma rises from melting

plate and intrudes or extrudes
in the crust
3. Magmas cool to make igneous
rock Extrusive versus Intrusive
4 & 5. Weathering and erosion
creates sediments
6 & 7. Sediments are carried to
the oceans and lakes
8. Tectonic plates interact

9. Metamorphism of subducted
rock
IGNEOUS ROCKS
• Igneous rocks form as molten
rock cools and solidifies
• Two types of igneous rocks
• Extrusive igneous rocks (Volcanic
Rocks) form when magma erupts at
the surface (i.e., above ground) and
rapidly cools
• Intrusive igneous rocks (Plutonic
Rocks) form when magma intrudes
into bedrock and slowly cools (i.e.,
below ground)
• Texture refers to a rock’s appearance with respect to the
size, shape, and arrangement of its grains or other
constituents.
• • Most (but not all) igneous rocks are crystalline; that is,
they are made of interlocking crystals
Factors affecting crystal (grain) size:

1. Rate of cooling
• Slow rate = fewer but larger crystals
• Fast rate = many small crystals
• Very fast rate forms glass
2. % of silica (SiO2) present
3. Dissolved gases
• Extrusive rocks typically are fine-grained rocks, in which
most of the grains are smaller than 1 millimeter.
Ex. Basalt, andesite, and rhyolite

• Intrusive rocks (plutonic rocks) are coarse-grained,

reflecting the slow cooling and solidification of magma.
Ex. Granite, Diorite, Gabbro
Types of igneous textures:

• Aphanitic (fine-grained) texture

• Rapid rate of cooling
• Microscopic crystals
• May contain vesicles (holes from gas bubbles)

• Phaneritic (coarse-grained) texture

• Slow cooling
• Large, visible crystals
Types of igneous textures:

• Porphyritic texture
• Minerals form at different temperatures
• Large crystals (phenocrysts) are embedded in a matrix of smaller crystals
(groundmass)

• Glassy texture
• Very rapid cooling of lava
• Resulting rock is called obsidian
Types of igneous textures:

• Pegmatitic texture
• Exceptionally coarse grained
(grain-size is 2 to 3 cm)
• Form in late stages of
crystallization of granitic magmas
Igneous rocks are composed primarily of silicate minerals

• Dark (or ferromagnesian) silicates

• Olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, and biotite mica

• Light (or nonferromagnesian) silicates

• Quartz, muscovite mica, and feldspars
Granitic versus basaltic compositions

• Granitic composition
• Light-colored silicates
• Termed felsic (feldspar and silica) in composition
• High amounts of silica (SiO2)
• Major constituent of continental crust
Granitic versus basaltic compositions

• Basaltic composition
• Dark silicates and calcium-rich feldspar
• Termed mafic (magnesium and ferrum, for iron) in composition
• Higher dense than granitic rocks
• Comprise the ocean floor and many volcanic islands
Naming igneous rocks –
granitic rocks

• Granite
• Phaneritic
• Over 25% quartz, about 65% or
more feldspar
• Very abundant - often associated
with mountain building
• The term granite includes a wide
range of mineral compositions
Naming igneous rocks –
granitic rocks

• Rhyolite
• Extrusive equivalent of granite
• May contain glass fragments and
vesicles
• Aphanitic texture
• Less common and less voluminous
than granite
Naming igneous rocks –
basaltic rocks

• Basalt
• Volcanic origin (extrusive rock)
• Aphanitic texture
• Composed mainly of pyroxene and
calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar
• Most common extrusive igneous
rock
Naming igneous rocks –
mafic rocks

• Gabbro
• Intrusive equivalent of basalt
• Phaneritic texture consisting of
pyroxene and calcium-rich
plagioclase
• Significant % of the oceanic crust
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
Sediment is the collective name for loose, solid particles of
mineral that originate from:

1. Weathering and erosion of preexisting rocks (detrital

sediments).

2. Precipitation from solution, including secretion by

organisms in water (chemical sediments).
Many changes occur to sediment after it is deposited

• Diagenesis = chemical, physical, and biological changes

that take place after sediments are deposited
• Occurs within the upper few kilometers of Earth’s crust

• Recrystallization – development of more stable minerals from less stable

ones

• Lithification – sediments are transformed into solid rock by

Compaction and cementation
Natural cements include calcite, silica, and iron oxide
• Sediment originates from mechanical and/or chemical
weathering

• Rock types are based on the source of the material

• Detrital rocks – transported sediment as solid particles; fragments of

preexisting rocks

• Chemical rocks – sediment that was once in solution

• The chief constituents of detrital rocks include
• Clay minerals
• Quartz
• Feldspars
• Micas

• Particle size is used to distinguish among the various rock

types
Common detrital sedimentary
rocks

• Shale
• Mud-sized particles in thin
layers that are commonly
referred to as laminea
• Most common sedimentary
rock
• Fine-grained Shale tends to
split into very thin layers.
Common detrital sedimentary
rocks

• Sandstone
• Composed of sand-sized
particles
• Forms in a variety of
environments
• Quartz is the predominant
mineral
Common detrital sedimentary rocks

• Conglomerate and Breccia

• Both are composed of particles greater than 2mm in diameter
• Conglomerate consists largely of rounded gravels; often has a similar
appearance to “concrete”
• Breccia is composed mainly of large angular particles and fragments,
which have not been rounded
CONGLOMERATE BRECCIA
• Consist of precipitated material that was once in solution

• Precipitation of material occurs by

• Inorganic processes

• Organic processes (biochemical origin)

Common chemical sedimentary rocks

• Limestone
• Composed chiefly of the mineral calcite
• Marine biochemical limestones form as coral reefs, coquina (broken
shells), and chalk (microscopic organisms)
• Inorganic limestones include travertine and oolitic limestone
El Capitan Peak in the
Guadalupe Mountains of
Texas was part of a large coral
reef during the Permian
period, which has become
lithified into limestone
A variety of limestone called
coquina forms from the
cementation of shells and
shell fragments that
accumulated on the shallow
sea floor near shore
An oolithic limestone formed
by the cementation of oöids
(small spheres).
Common chemical sedimentary
rocks

• Dolostone
• Typically formed secondarily from
limestone
• forms from limestone as the calcium
in calcite is
• partially replaced by magnesium,
usually as water
• solutions move through the
limestone.
Common chemical sedimentary
rocks

• Chert
• A hard, compact, fine-grained
sedimentary rock formed almost
entirely of silica
• forms from the accumulation of
delicate, glass-like shells of
microscopic marine organisms on the
sea floor Agate is a form of banded chert
Common chemical sedimentary rocks

• Evaporites
• Evaporation triggers deposition of chemical precipitates
• Examples include rock salt; gypsum (used for drywall, aspirin, Vitamin C
tablets; and potash (used for fertilizer
• Bonneville salt flats in western
Utah is the remnant of the
enormous Pleistocene-age
Lake Bonneville which once
occupied the area, to a depth
of about 1150 feet.

• 30% of the world’s salt supply

is extracted from the ocean. It
takes 10,000 gallons of sea
water to produce 1 ton of salt
Common chemical sedimentary rocks

• Coal
• it is composed of organic material
• Stages in coal formation (in order)
»1. Plant material
»2. Peat
»3. Lignite
»4. Bituminous
Two major textures are used in the classification of sedimentary rocks

• Clastic
• Discrete fragments and particles
• All detrital rocks have a clastic texture

• Nonclastic
• Pattern of interlocking crystals
• May resemble an igneous rock
METAMORPHIC ROCKS
What happens to rocks that are deeply buried but are not hot
enough to melt?

• Rocks become metamorphosed.

• Metamorphism refers to changes to rocks that take place

in the Earth’s interior.
• The transition of one rock into another by temperatures
and/or pressures unlike those in which it formed.

• The changes may be new textures, new mineral

assemblages, or both.

• Transformations occur in the solid state (meaning the

rock does not melt).
• During metamorphism, the rock must remain essentially
solid
• Metamorphism progresses incrementally from low-grade
to high-grade.
• Low-grade rocks formed under relatively cool
temperatures and high-grade rocks at high
temperatures, whereas medium-grade rocks
recrystallized at around the middle of the range of
metamorphic temperatures.
1. Contact Metamorphism
• Also known as thermal metamorphism, is metamorphism in
which high temperature is the dominant factor.
• Occurs when a body of magma intrudes relatively cool country
rock.
• Confining pressure may influence which new minerals
crystallize; however, the confining pressure is usually relatively
low.
• Takes place not too far beneath Earth’s surface (less than 10
kilometers).
1. Contact Metamorphism
• The zone of contact metamorphism (also called an aureole) is
usually quite narrow—generally from 1 to 100 meters wide.
• The most common rocks found in an aureole are the non-
foliated rocks:
• marble when igneous rock intrudes limestone;
• quartzite when quartz sandstone is metamorphosed;
• hornfels when shale is scorched
2. Regional Metamorphism
• The great majority of the metamorphic rocks found on Earth’s
surface are products of regional metamorphism, which is
metamorphism that takes place at considerable depth
underground (generally greater than 5 kilometers)
• Regional metamorphic rocks are almost always foliated,
indicating differential stress during recrystallization (for this
reason, regional metamorphism is sometimes referred to as
dynamothermal metamorphism).
Typical
mineralogy
transitions that
result from
progressive
metamorphism
of shale
• The new rock is a metamorphic rock.
• Metamorphic rocks are produced from
• Igneous rocks
• Sedimentary rocks
• Other metamorphic rocks
• •The various elements of a parent rock react chemically
and crystallize into new minerals, thus making the
metamorphic rock distinct both mineralogically and
texturally from the parent rock.
• Factors controlling the characteristics of metamorphic
rocks:

1. composition of the parent rock before metamorphism

2. temperature and pressure during metamorphism
3. effects of tectonic forces, and
4. effects of fluids, such as water.
The importance of parent rock

• Most metamorphic rocks have the same overall chemical

composition as the parent rock from which they formed
HEAT
• Most important agent
• Two sources of heat
• Contact metamorphism – heat from magma
• An increase in temperature with depth due to the geothermal gradient
• Recrystallization results in new, stable minerals.

A mineral is said to be stable if, given enough time, it

does not react with another substance or convert to a
new mineral or substance.
Role of the
geothermal
gradient in
metamorphism.
Note impact on
gradient by a
subducting oceanic
plate, which is
much cooler.
• Confining pressure applied equally on all surfaces of a
substance as a result of burial or submergence
• Increases with depth
• Confining pressure applies forces equally in all directions

• An object buried deeply within Earth’s crust is compressed

by strong confining pressure, called lithostatic pressure,
which forces grains closer together and eliminates pore
space.
• For metamorphism, pressure is usually given in kilobars.
• A kilobar is 1,000 bars. A bar is very close (0.99
atmospheres) to standard atmospheric pressure,
• A kilobar is the pressure equivalent of a thousand times
the pressure of the atmosphere at sea level.
• The pressure gradient, the increase in lithostatic pressure
with depth, is approximately 1 kilobar per each 3.3
kilometers of burial in crustal rock.
What will happen to new mineral that has crystallized under
high pressure?

• The new mineral is denser than its low-pressure

counterparts because the pressure forces atoms closer
together into a more closely packed crystal structure.
What if pressure and temperature both increase, as is
commonly the case with increasing depth into the Earth?

• If the effect of higher temperature is greater than the effect

of higher pressure, the new mineral will likely be less
dense.

• A denser new mineral is likely to result if increasing

pressure effects are greater than increasing temperature
effects.
• If the forces on a body are stronger or weaker in different
directions, a body is subjected to differential stress.

• Rocks may also be subjected to differential stress which is

unequal in different directions.

• Differential stress tends to deform rocks into oblong or

flattened forms
Regional
metamorphism
caused by
differential stress
associated with
mountain building
• Differential stress is also caused by shearing, which
causes parts of a body to move or slide relative to one
another across a plane.
• Some rocks can be attributed exclusively to shearing
during faulting in a process sometimes called dynamic
metamorphism.
• Rocks in contact along the fault are broken and crushed
when movement takes place.
Mylonite – formed from
pulverized rock in a faults
zone by shearing
• Hot water (as vapor) is the most important fluid involved
in metamorphic processes.

• Chemically active fluid: mainly water with other volatile

components

• it trigger metamorphic chemical reactions.

• It enhances migration of ions
• Aids in recrystallization of existing minerals
Sources of fluids

• Pore spaces of sedimentary rocks

• Fractures in igneous rocks

• Hydrated minerals such as clays and micas

• Texture refers to the size,
shape, and arrangement
of mineral grains
• Foliation
• any planar arrangement of
mineral grains or structural
features within a rock
• a result of differential stress
• When a rock has a planar
texture, it is said to be
foliated.
1. If the rock splits easily
along nearly flat and
parallel planes, indicating
that pre-existing,
microscopic, platy minerals
were realigned during
metamorphism, we say the
rock is slaty, or that it Metamorphosed shale depicting slaty
cleavage. Note the grains of mica, quartz,
possesses slaty cleavage. and ilmenite aligned with a preferred
orientation.
Slaty cleavage in quarry near
Alta, Norway. Slate is used as
dimension stone for roofing
and billiard (pool) tables,
among many other industrial
and commercial applications
2. If visible minerals that are
platy or needle-shaped
have grown essentially
parallel to a plane due to
differential stress, the rock
is schistose

Rocks having this texture are referred

to as schist
3. If the rock became very ductile and the new minerals
separated into distinct (light and dark) layers or lenses, the
rock has a layered or gneissic texture

Gneissic rocks exhibit a distinctive banded appearance

Gneissic texture created by
banding of dark biotite flakes and
lighter colored silicate minerals,
giving the rock a banded, or layered
appearance.
Deformed and folded gneiss in
outcrop. Gneiss can be a very
resistant rock, with highly
undulatory structure.
Other metamorphic textures

• Those metamorphic rocks that lack foliation are referred to

as nonfoliated
• Develop in environments where deformation is minimal
• Typically composed of minerals that exhibit equidimensional crystals

• Porphyroblastic textures
• Large grains, called porphyroblasts, surrounded by a fine-grained matrix of
other minerals
The kind of metamorphic rock that forms is determined by the
metamorphic environment (primarily the particular
combination of pressure, stress, and temperature) and by
the chemical constituents of the parent rock.
Foliated rocks

• Slate
• Very fine-grained with earthly luster
• Excellent rock cleavage
• Most often generated from low-grade
metamorphism of shale, mudstone, or
siltstone
• Splits easily into thin, flat sheets
• Minerals: Clay and other sheet silicates
Foliated rocks

• Phyllite
• Gradation in the degree of
metamorphism between slate and schist
• Platy minerals not large enough to be
identified with the unaided eye
• Glossy sheen and wavy surfaces
• Exhibits rock cleavage
• Composed mainly of fine crystals of
muscovite and/or chlorite
• Minerals : Mica
Slate (left) and phyllite (right), which is more wavy and shiny
Foliated rocks

• Schist
• Medium- to coarse-grained
• Platy minerals or elongated
minerals that show planar
alignment
• The term schist describes the This sample of schist is comprised of
texture muscovite and biotite. Micaceous
• Minerals : Biotite and Muscovite materials exhibit low shear strength
• To indicate composition, mineral between the tiny plates, often fomenting
massive slope failures, such as landslides.
names are used (such as mica
schist)
Foliated rocks

• Gneiss
• Medium- to coarse-grained
• Banded appearance
• High-grade metamorphism
• Often composed of white or light-
colored feldspar-rich layers with bands
of dark ferromagnesian minerals
• Minerals: Feldspar, quartz
Non-Foliated rocks

• Marble
• Coarse, crystalline
• Parent rock was limestone or
dolostone
• Composed essentially of calcite or
dolomite crystals
• Used as a decorative and monument
stone Marble is a crystalline rock formed
• Exhibits a variety of colors by the metamorphosis of limestone
Non-Foliated rocks

• Quartzite
• Formed from a parent rock
of quartz-rich sandstone
• Quartz grains are fused
together
• Has sugary appearance and
vitreous luster
Quartzite is a nonfoliated metamorphic
rock formed from quartz sandstone. It is
very hard and resistant, and can be
taxing on construction equipment.
Non-Foliated rocks

• Hornfels
• Formed from a parent rock shale and basalt
• Composed of fine-grained micas or ferromagnesian minerals
• Fine-grained, dark rock that generally will scratch glass.