WHAT IS SEDIMENTS?

- Sediments are loose materials such as rock fragments, mineral grains, and bits of shell
that have been moved by wind, water, ice or gravity.
- SEDIMENTOLOGY – Those who are studying sediments.

WHAT IS SEDIMENTARY ROCKS?

- Formed when sediments are pressed and cemented together, or when mineral form from
the solutions.
- Sedimentary rocks are formed in places where there has been water at one time.
- IProducts of mechanical and chemical weathering,
- IAccount for about 5%of Earth’s crust,
- IContain evidence of past environments.

CLASSIFICATION OF SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

1. DETRITAL – which are popularly called clastic rocks; formed out of physically broken
and transported rock fragments.
2. NON-DETRITAL ROCKS – formed either precipitation, evaporation, or by
accumulation of hard parts of plants or animals.

CLASSIFICATIOB OF SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

1. CLASTIC – are made from the broken fragments of rocks that have been cemented
together. (Ex: conglomerate, breccia and shale)
2. CHEMICAL – form when dissolved minerals come out of solution. (Ex: limestone)
3. ORGANIC – rocks made of the remains of once living things (plants or animals)
 Plants (phytogenic)
 Animals (zoogenic)

COMMON STRUCTURE AND TEXTURES OF SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

STRATIFICATION
 Series of bed known as bedding.
  Layer of sedimentary rocks.
 The older layers are on the bottom because they were deposited first.
CEMENTATION
 Conglomerates, breccias and sandstone are formed mainly due to cementation.
 Hardening and welding of clastic sediments (those formed from preexisting rock
fragments) by the precipitation of mineral matter in the pore spaces.
FOSSIL OCCURENCE
 Relics and remnants of plants and animals preserved inside the rock by natural processes.
 It occurs only in sedimentary rocks.
RIPPLE MARKS
 Stagnant and shallow water bodies, the waves and current at the surface of water produce
sympathetic impressions in the form of minor undulations on the loose and soft sediments
which lie at the bottom.
MUD CRACKS OR SUN CRACKS
 When a wet surface is not covered, it dries up and develops vertical polygonal cracks
which are wedge shaped.
RAIN PRINTS OR RAIN MARKS
 It is a slight shallow depression encircled by a low ridge which is raised by the impacts of
rain drops.
 It occurs only in sedimentary rocks.
TRACKS AND TRAILS
 Marking indicating the paths of some animals or worms, over a soft sediment.
CONCHOIDAL FRACTURES
 This type of rock, when broken, develops conchoidal fractures on the surface. This is
because these rocks are very fine grained as well as non-crystalline.

TYPES OF ROCKS

SHALE – fine grained (Mud, Silt, Clay).

 It is the most abundant sedimentary rock.
ENGINEERING USE OF SHALE:
- When saturated with water, under pressure, they are likely to produce lubricating material
making a slippery base for overburden; therefore, they are unsuitable at the site of
foundation of important civil engineering structures.

LIMESTONE – third most abundant in sedimentary rocks.

 Typically, non-detrital rocks.
 Shows different colors like white, gray, buff, yellow and black.
ENGINEERING USE OF LIMESTONE:
- Reasonable competent to support civil engineering structures. They are suitable as road
metal, railway ballast and construction material.

SANDSTONE – composed of sand-sized particles.

 Well sorted: water or wind
 Forms in a variety of environments: beach, floodplain...
 Quartz is the predominant mineral.
ENGINEERING USE OF SANDSTONE:
- When sandstone is considerably porous and permeable and the degree of cementation is
less, it will not make up a good rock. If the sandstone is well cemented and if the grains
are angular and quartz in composition, the siliceous sandstone are the best and highly
satisfactory for all civil engineering purposes.

BRECCIAS – made up of pebbles, gravel and the fine-grained cementing material provide the
binding medium.

CONGLOMERATE – clastic, rutaceous sedimentary rocks, made up of rounded pebbles and

gravel.
ENGINEERING USE OF CONGLOMERATE:
- Does not allow firm grip for cementing material. They are undesirable at the site of
foundation of major civil engineering structures.