TOPIC 4: SEDIMENT

& SEDIMENTARY
ROCK
EG208 PHYSICAL GEOLOGY: PART 1 (WEATHERING)
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LEARNING OBJECTIVES
■ Why is weathering important to life on Earth?
■ Explain the differences between and the processes involved in
mechanical and chemical weathering.
■ Name and describe the types of features formed by weathering.
■ Discuss the role of acids in chemical weathering and list the weathering
products of the common rock-forming minerals.
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SEDIMENTARY ROCK
■ Rivers, oceans, winds, and rain runoff all can carry the particles washed
off eroding rocks. Such material  called as “detritus” (consists of
fragments of rocks and minerals).
■ When the energy of the transporting current is not strong enough to
carry these particles, the particles drop out in the process 
sedimentation
■ 4 types of sedimentation:
– 1. Clastic sedimentation
– 2. Chemical sedimentation
– 3. Biochemical sedimentation
– 4. Organic sedimentation

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SEDIMENTATION ACCUMULATION 4 MAJOR TYPES
PROSES
Occurs when the energy of the Clastic
transporting current is not strong
1. Clastic enough to carry these particles 
Sedimentary
Sedimentation particles drop out Rock

Occurs when material is dissolved Chemical

2. Chemical in water, and chemically Sedimentary
precipitates from the water. Rock
Occurs wherein living organisms Biochemical
extract ions dissolved in water to
3. Biochemical make such things as shells and
Sedimentary
bones. Rock

Occur when the accumulation of Organic

4. Organic plant matter, such as at the bottom Sedimentary
of a swamp. Rock
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CLASTIC SEDIMENTS &
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
 The formation of a clastic sediment and sedimentary rocks involves
five processes:
– 1. Weathering
– 2. Erosion
– 3. Transportation
– 4. Deposition
– 5. Lithification (Diagenesis)
 Each Step in the process of forming sediment and sedimentary rocks
leaves clues in the sediment.
 These clues can be interpreted to determine the history of the sediment
and thus the history of the Earth.
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1. WEATHERING - INTROUCTION
■ Weathering: a physical or chemical change that changes the
characteristic of the rocks on Earth
■ Weathering processes make the planet suitable for human habitation.
■ The weathering of rock affects the composition of Earth’s atmosphere,
helping to maintain a habitable climate.
■ Weathering also produces soils, upon which grow the forests, grasslands,
and agriculture of the world.

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 1. WEATHERING - INTROUCTION

Intrusive
Sediments are turned
igneous rocks
into sedimentary rocks
form at depths
only when they are
of several
buried by other
hundreds of
sediments to depths in
metres to
excess of several
several tens of
hundreds of metres.
kilometres.

Most metamorphic rocks are formed at

depths of kilometres to tens of kilometres. 8
1. WEATHERING – INTROUCTION
cont.
■ How does rock weather?
– Previously  the minerals making up igneous rocks crystallize at
high temperatures and high pressures as magma and lava cool.
– Although  they are stable when they form, most not stable during
prolonged exposure at the surface.
– Rocks undergo  mechanical weathering and chemical weathering
as they are attacked by  air, water, and microorganisms.
– Weathering cannot even begin until these rocks are uplifted through
various processes of mountain building and the overlying material
has be eroded away and the rock is exposed as an outcrop.

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1. WEATHERING - INTROUCTION
cont.
■ Geologists recognize two categories of weathering processes
– a. Physical/ Mechanical Weathering – disintegration or breakdown of
rocks and minerals by a physical or mechanical process.
– b. Chemical Weathering - chemical alteration or decomposition of rocks
and minerals.
■ Although separated, both work together to break down rocks and minerals to
smaller fragments or to minerals more stable near the Earth's surface.
■ Both types - response to the low pressure, low temperature, water and oxygen
rich nature of the earth’s surface.

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a) Physical Weathering - Intro
 The mechanical breakup or disintegration of rock doesn't change mineral
makeup.
 It creates broken fragments or “detritus” which are classified by size:
– Coarse-grained – Boulders, Cobbles, and Pebbles.
– Medium-grained – Sand
– Fine-grained – Silt and clay (mud).

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Physical Weathering Processes
■ Physical weathering takes place by a variety of
processes. Among them are:
1. Development of Joints
2. Crystal Growth
3. Thermal Expansion
4. Root Wedging
5. Animal Activity
6. Frost Wedging

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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
■ Physical weathering takes place by a variety of processes. Among them
are:
1. Development of Joints - Joints are regularly spaced fractures or
cracks in rocks that show no offset across the fracture (fractures
that show an offset are called faults).
a) Joints form as a result of expansion due to cooling or relief of pressure
as overlying rocks are removed by erosion.
b) Igneous plutons crack in onion like “exfoliation” layers. These layers
break off as sheets that slide off of a pluton. Over time, this process
creates domed remnants.
c) Joints form free space in rock by which other agents of chemical or
physical weathering can enter.

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Physical
Weathering
Processes cont.
 a) Joints form as a result
of expansion due to
cooling or relief of
pressure as overlying
rocks are removed by
erosion.

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Physical
Weathering
Processes cont.
 b) Igneous plutons crack
in onion like
“exfoliation” layers. Over
time, this process creates
domed remnants.

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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
1. Exfoliation fractures in granitic rock exposed on
the side of the Coquihalla Highway north of Hope,
B.C.

2. Exfoliation of slate at a road cut in the

Columbia Mountains west of Golden, B.C.

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Physical
Weathering
Processes cont.
 c) Joints form free space
in rock by which other
agents of chemical or
physical weathering can
enter.

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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
 2. Crystal Growth - As water percolates through fractures and pore spaces it may
contain ions that precipitate to form crystals. As these crystals grow, they may
exert an outward force that can expand or weaken rocks.

Honeycomb weathering of sandstone. When saltwater seeps into rocks and then evaporates
on a hot sunny day, salt crystals grow within cracks and pores in the rock.
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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
 3. Thermal Expansion -
Although daily heating and
cooling of rocks do not seem to
have an effect, sudden exposure
to high temperature, such as
heating of rocks by sunlight or
fires may cause expansion and
eventual breakage of rock.

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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
 4. Root Wedging - Plant roots can
extend into fractures and grow,
causing expansion of the fracture.
Growth of plants can break rock

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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
 5. Animal Activity - Animals burrowing or moving through cracks can break rock.

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Physical Weathering Processes cont.
 6. Frost Wedging - Upon freezing, there is an increase in the volume of the
water. As the water freezes it expands and exerts a force on its
surroundings. Frost wedging is more prevalent at high altitudes where
there may be many freeze-thaw cycles.

The process of frost

wedging on a steep slope.
Water gets into fractures
and then freezes, expanding
the fracture a little. When
the water thaws it seeps a
little
farther into the expanded
crack.

An area with very effective frost-wedging near Keremeos, B.C.

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b) Chemical Weathering
■ Many rocks and minerals are formed under conditions present deep within the
Earth.
■ When they arrive near the surface (uplift and erosion)  they encounter
conditions very different from which they originally formed.
■ Among the conditions present near the Earth's surface that are different from those
deep within the Earth are:
1) Lower Temperature, T (near the surface T= 0-50oC)
2) Lower Pressure, P (near the surface P= 1 to several hundred atmospheres)
3) Higher free water, H2O (a lot of liquid water near the surface, compared
with deep in the Earth)
4) Higher free oxygen, O2 (although O2 is the most abundant element in the
crust, most of it is tied up bonded into silicate and oxide minerals - at the
surface there is much more free oxygen, particularly in the atmosphere).
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b) Chemical Weathering cont.
■ Because of these differing conditions, minerals in rocks react with their new
environment to produce new minerals that are stable under conditions near the surface.
■ Minerals that are stable under P, T, H2O, and O2 conditions near the surface are (in
order of most stable to least stable):
– Iron oxides, Aluminum oxides - such as hematite (Fe2O3) & gibbsite (Al(OH3))
– Quartz*
– Clay Minerals
– Muscovite* Note:
– Alkali Feldspar* # Minerals* - are igneous minerals that crystallize from a liquid.
– Biotite* # Minerals at lower list - are the minerals that crystallize at high T
from magma.
– Amphiboles*
# The higher the T of crystallization, the less stable are these
– Pyroxenes* minerals at the low T found near the Earth's surface (see Bowen's
– Ca-rich plagioclase* reaction series).
– Olivine*
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b) Chemical Weathering cont.
■ The main agent responsible for chemical weathering reactions is water
and weak acids formed in water.
– An acid is solution that has abundant free H+ ions.
– The most common weak acid that occurs in surface waters is
carbonic acid.
– Carbonic acid is produced in rainwater by reaction of the water
with carbon dioxide (CO2) gas in the atmosphere.

H+ is a small ion and can easily enter crystal structures, releasing other ions into the water.
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Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions
■ 6 types of Chemical Weathering Reactions
1. Hydrolysis
2. Leaching
3. Oxidation
4. Dehydration
5. Complete dissolution
6. Living organism

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Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions
cont.
■ Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions
– 1. Hydrolysis - H+ (hydrogen) or OH- (hydroxide) replaces an ion in
the mineral  to form clay mineral.

– 2. Leaching - ions are removed by dissolution into water. In the same

ex.  we say that the K+ ion was leached.

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 Hydrolysi
 Def.: when water reactsswith a mineral to form a new mineral
with H20 as part of its crystal structure
 Ex.: Feldspar to clay

+ H2CO3
(carbonic acid) =

Feldspar, Clay,
most abundant CO2 most abundant
mineral on Earth sediment
H2O+ CO2 = H2CO3 + silicic
acid
Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions
cont.
■ Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions cont.
– 3. Oxidation - Since free oxygen (O) is more common near
the Earth's surface, it may react with minerals to change the
oxidation state of an ion  common in Fe2 (iron) bearing
minerals.

– 4. Dehydration - removal of H2O or OH- ion from a mineral.

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 Oxidation
 Def.: Occurs when a mineral reacts with O2
 Ex.: Iron + O2 = Rust

Fe2O3 -
Hematite

Mars’ rusty surface

 Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions
cont.
■ Types of Chemical Weathering Reactions cont.
– 5. Complete Dissolution - all of the mineral is completely
dissolved by the water.

Potassium feldspar dissolved rock

– 6. Living Organisms – Organisms  plants, fungi,

lichen, and bacteria can secrete organic acids that can
cause dissolution of minerals to extract nutrients.

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Weathering of Common Rocks
■ Weathering of Common Rocks
Rock Primary Minerals Residual Minerals Leached Ions
Feldspar Clay minerals Na+, K+
Micas Clay minerals K+
Granite Quartz Quartz ---
Fe-Mg Minerals Clay mineral + Hematite Mg+2
+ Geothite
Feldspar Clay minerals Na+, Ca+2
Basalt Fe-Mg minerals Clay minerals Mg-2
Magnetite Hematite, Geothite ---
Limestone Calcite None Ca+2, CO3 -2
*Residual mineral = mineral stable at the Earth’s surface and left in the rock after weathering

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Factors that Influence Weathering
■ There are few factors that influence the weathering:
1. Rock Type & Structure
a. Different rock and different susceptibility
b. Bedding planes, joints, and fractures
c. Contrast in susceptibility and resistant portions
2. Climate
3. Slope
4. Animals

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Factors that Influence Weathering
■ There are few factors that influence the weathering:
■ 1. Rock Type & Structure
a. Different rock and different susceptibility
 Different rocks are composed of different minerals, and each mineral
has a different susceptibility to weathering.
 For example, a granite consisting mostly of quartz is already composed
of a mineral that is very stable on the Earth's surface, and will not
weather much in comparison to limestone, composed entirely of calcite,
which will eventually dissolve completely in a wet climate.

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Factors that Influence Weathering cont.
■ There are few factors that influence the weathering:
■ 1. Rock Type & Structure cont.
b. Bedding planes, joints, and fractures
 Bedding planes, joints, and fractures, all provide pathways for
the entry of water.
 A rock with lots of these features will weather more rapidly than
a massive rock containing no bedding planes, joints, or fractures.

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Factors that Influence Weathering cont.
■ There are few factors that influence the
weathering:
■ 1. Rock Type & Structure cont.
c. Contrast in susceptibility and
resistant portions
 If there are large contrasts in the
susceptibility to weathering within a
large body of rock:
  the more susceptible parts of the
rock will weather faster
  the more resistant portions of the
rock will weather slower
  result in differential weathering.
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Factors that Influence Weathering cont.
■ There are few factors that influence the weathering:
■ 2. Climate
– High amounts of water and higher temperatures generally cause
chemical reactions to run faster.
– Thus warm humid climates generally have more highly weathered rock,
and rates of weathering are higher than in cold dry climates.
– Ex: limestones in a dry desert climate are very resistant to weathering,
but limestones in a tropical climate weather very rapidly.

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Factors that Influence Weathering cont.
■ There are few factors that influence the weathering:
■ 3. Slope
– On steep slopes weathering products may be quickly washed away by
rains  lower weathering rates.
– On gentle slopes the weathering products accumulate. Water may stay
in contact with rock for longer periods of time, and thus result in higher
weathering rates.

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Factors that Influence Weathering cont.
■ There are few factors that influence the
weathering:
■ 4. Animals
– Burrowing organisms like rodents,
earthworms, & ants, bring material
to the surface were it can be
exposed to the agents of weathering.

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Summary
Physical/ Mechanical weathering
Definition A change that breaks rocks into smaller
fragment cause by factors in the
environment
Chemical Weathering
A change that alters rocks by changing
them into different substances or new
minerals

Factor &  Development of Joints • Hydrolysis

Proses  Crystal Growth • Leaching
 Thermal Expansion • Oxidation
 Root Wedging • Dehydration
 Animal Activity • Complete dissolution
 Frost Wedging • Living organism

Factors  Rock Type & Structure

influence  Climate
weathering  Slope
 Animals

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