WEATHERING OF

ROCKS
Explain how the products of
weathering are carried away by
erosion and deposited elsewhere .
•Describe how rocks undergo weathering.

• Explain how the products of weathering are

carried away by erosion and deposited elsewhere.
Choose the best answer.
Select only the letter of
your choice and send it in
the chat box.
1. Which of the following statements best describes
the process of weathering?
a. Movement of rocks caused by gravity
b. Breaking of rocks into pieces
c. Solidification of magma
d. Melting of rocks
2. Physical weathering is the process of breaking
rocks apart without changing their chemical
composition. Which of the following changes is NOT a
physical weathering?
a. Hydrolysis
b. Ice wedging
c. Melting of rocks
d. Thermal expansion on rocks
3. In which of the following climates will chemical
weathering be most rapid?
a. Hot and dry
b. Cold and dry
c. Hot and humid
d. Cold and humid
4. Erosion is a geological process in which earthen
materials are worn away and transported by natural
forces. Which of these forces is NOT included?
a. Wind
b. Plants
c. Humans
d. Flowing water
5. Deposition occurs when the agents such as wind or
water, of erosion lay down sediments. Which of these
structures is the product of deposition?
a. Mountain
b. Trench
c. Ridge
d. Delta
Exogenous Land-forming Processes
Weathering
and
Erosion
Definition of Weathering

Weathering
• Weathering is simply the
chemical and/or physical
breakdown of a rock material.
• Weathering involves specific
processes acting on rock
materials at or near the surface
of the Earth.
Definition of Weathering

Weathering
•The breaking down of
the materials of
Earth’s crust into
smaller pieces.
Definition of Weathering

Weathering
•In other rocks, minerals may
slowly dissolve.
•Eventually the surface of ALL
rock crumbles, or weathers.
Types of Weathering

Types of Weathering
•Physical Weathering (Mechanical)
➢Takes place when rock is split or
broken into smaller pieces of the
same material without changing
its composition.
Example: Breaking of a rock cliff into
boulders and pebbles
Types of Weathering

Physical Weathering
Processes of Physical Weathering
•Frost heaving and Frost wedging
•Action of plant roots
•Friction and impact
•Burrowing of animals
•Temperature changes
Processes of Physical Weathering

• Frost action or Ice Wedging:

➢Water takes up about 10% more space when it
freezes.
➢This expansion puts great pressure on the walls
of a container.
Processes of Physical Weathering

• Frost action or Ice Wedging:

➢Water held in the cracks of rocks wedges the
rock apart when it freezes.
➢Often occurs in places where temperatures vary
from below the freezing point of water to above
the freezing point.
Processes of Physical Weathering

•Frost action or Ice Wedging

➢It occurs mostly in porous rocks and
rocks with cracks in them.
oBare mountaintops are especial
subjects to ice wedging.
Processes of Physical Weathering

•Frost action or Ice Wedging causes:

➢Vast fields of large, sharp-cornered boulders
➢Potholes on streets and highways
Processes of Physical Weathering

Frost Heaving
• Frost heaving (or a frost
heave) is an upward
swelling of soil during
freezing conditions caused
by an increasing presence
of ice as it grows towards
the surface.
Processes of Physical Weathering

• Action of plants and

animals:
–Lichens and mosses
grow on rocks
➢They wedge their tiny roots
into spores and crevices.
➢When the roots grow, the
rock splits.
Processes of Physical Weathering

•Action of plants and animals:

➢Larger trees and shrubs may grow in the cracks of
boulders.
➢Ants, earthworms, rabbits, woodchucks, and other
animals dig holes in the soil.
oThese holes allow air and water to reach the
bedrock and weather it.
Processes of Physical Weathering
Processes of Physical Weathering

Plant Roots &

Burrowing of Animals
Processes of Physical Weathering

•Loss of Overlying Rock Exfoliation Dome-layers of

rock peel off the main
and Soil
body of the rock.
➢Sheet on a granite
outcrop produces cracks
in the rock, thereby
exposing more of the
rock surface to
weathering.
Casper, Wyoming
Processes of Physical Weathering

Granite Exfoliation
It happens when granitic
rocks are moved to the
surface by tectonic processes,
the pressure is released and
the granite expands slightly,
resulting in exfoliation.
Processes of Physical Weathering

Rock Abrasion - The pieces of rock collide with each other due
to transportation by wind, ice, water and gravity.

water
Processes of Physical Weathering

Temperature Changes
Processes of Physical Weathering

True or False.
Increasing temperature
causes the rocks to
expand.
Processes of Physical Weathering

Temperature Changes – An alternating hot and cold

temperatures weaken the rock as it expands and
contracts.
Type of Weathering

Types of Weathering
• Chemical Weathering (Decomposition)
➢takes place when the rock’s minerals are
changed into different substances.
➢water and water vapor are important
agents of chemical weathering.
Example: Formation of clay minerals from
feldspar
Type of Weathering

Chemical Weathering
•The process that breaks down rock
through chemical changes.
•The agents of chemical weathering
➢Water
➢Oxygen
➢Carbon dioxide
➢Living organisms
➢Acid rain
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Water
•Water weathers rock
by dissolving it.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Hydrolysis-water combines with minerals such as

mica and feldspar found in granite, to form clay, the
rock weakens and crumbles apart.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Common materials undergoing hydrolysis:

Feldspar Hornblende Augite
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Oxygen
• Iron combines with
oxygen in the
presence of water in
a processes called
oxidation.
• The product of
oxidation is rust.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Oxidation occurs when

oxygen from the air
combines with iron-rich
minerals of the rock.

Oxidation = RUST
Agents of Chemical Weathering

•The chemical reaction of oxygen with other

substances is called oxidation.
➢Iron-bearing minerals are the ones most easily
attacked by oxygen.
Examples:
oMagnetite (Iron oxide)
oPyrite (Iron sulfide)
oDark-colored ferromagnesian silicates
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Oxidation of these minerals results in the

formation of rust or iron oxides.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Carbon Dioxide
•CO2 dissolves in rainwater
and creates carbonic acid.
•Carbonic acid easily
weathers limestone and
marble.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Carbonation occurs when water combines with carbon

dioxide in the air to form carbonic acid.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Acid Rain
•Compounds from burning
coal, oil and gas react
chemically with water
forming acids.
•Acid rain causes very rapid
chemical weathering.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

•Acid Rain hollows

out great caverns
in limestone
bedrock.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

Living Organisms
• Lichens that grow on rocks produce weak acids
that chemically weather rock.
Agents of Chemical Weathering

•Acids are formed from the decay of

plants and animals.
•These acids are dissolved by
rainwater and carried through the
ground to the bedrock.
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

Factors Affecting the

Rate of Weathering
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

1. EXPOSURE - The rate and type of weathering

are dependent on exposure to air,
water and living things.
• The greater the amount of rock exposed, the
greater the weathering.

This is a direct relationship.

Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

2. PARTICLE SIZE

An increase in surface
area increases the
rate of weathering.
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

Example: Granulated sugar dissolves faster

than a cube of sugar. More surfaces
Fast are exposed when cut.
Weathering
Rate of

Slow
Surface Area
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

3. MINERAL COMPOSITION - Rocks made of harder minerals

weather slower than rocks made of softer minerals.
Fast
Weathering
Rate of

Slow
Mineral Hardness
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

Which rock is most resistant

to weathering?
A
Siltstone

Shale B
Limestone C

D
Shale
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

4. CLIMATE - Physical and chemical weathering

are affected by climate.

a. In cold and moist climates, physical

weathering is dominant.

b. In hot and moist climates, chemical

weathering is dominant.
Cleopatra’s Needle
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

In both cases,
water is the major
ingredient that
promotes
weathering.
Factors Affecting the Rate of Weathering

5. TIME - As time goes on, more

weathering occurs.

6. HUMANS - Excavation of land,

mining, building, etc.
Product of Weathering – Soil Formation

Soil Formation – The end product of weathering

and biologic activity.

Time increases
Erosion

EROSION
• The process by which
water, ice, wind or gravity
moves fragments of rock
and soil.
Erosion

Water Erosion
•Rivers, streams, and runoff.
Erosion

Ice Erosion
• Glaciers
Erosion

Wind
Erosion
Erosion

Mass Movements
•Landslides, mudslides, slump and creep
Deposition

Deposition
•Deposition occurs when the agents (wind or
water) of erosion lay down sediment.
•Deposition changes the shape of the land.
Video Presentation & Analysis
Video Presentation & Analysis

GUIDE QUESTIONS:
1. How rocks undergo weathering?

2. What happens to the products of

weathering when carried away by
erosion?
Video Presentation & Analysis

VIDEO ANALYSIS:
1. How rocks undergo weathering?

2. What happens to the products of

weathering when carried away by
erosion?
Choose the best answer.
Select only the letter of
your choice and send it in
the chat box.
1. Which of the following statements best describes
the process of weathering?
a. Movement of rocks caused by gravity
b. Breaking of rocks into pieces
c. Solidification of magma
d. Melting of rocks
2. Physical weathering is the process of breaking
rocks apart without changing their chemical
composition. Which of the following changes is NOT a
physical weathering?
a. Hydrolysis
b. Ice wedging
c. Melting of rocks
d. Thermal expansion on rocks
3. In which of the following climates will chemical
weathering be most rapid?
a. Hot and dry
b. cold and dry
c. hot and humid
d. cold and humid
4. Erosion is a geological process in which earthen
materials are worn away and transported by natural
forces. Which of these forces is NOT included?
a. Wind
b. Plants
c. Humans
d. Flowing water
5. Deposition occurs when the agents such as wind or
water, of erosion lay down sediments. Which of these
structures is the product of deposition?
a. Mountain
b. Trench
c. Ridge
d. Delta
References:

Physical Geology, First University of Saskatchewan Edition is used under a CC BY-NC-SA

4.0 International License Read this book online at
http://openpress.usask.ca/physicalgeology/

http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/GG/FACULTY/smithkonter/GG_101/lectures/GG101_Lectur
e06.pdf

http://www.geo.hunter.cuny.edu/~fbuon/GEOL_231/Lectures/Weathering%20and%20M
ass%20Wasting%20Part%201.pdf

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