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Earth Science

Earth Science. Weathering, Soil, and Mass Wasting Chapter 4. Earth’s external processes. Weathering – the disintegration and decomposition of material at or near the surface Mass wasting – the transfer of rock material downslope under the influence of gravity

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Earth Science

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  1. Earth Science Weathering, Soil, and Mass WastingChapter 4

  2. Earth’s external processes • Weathering – the disintegration and decomposition of material at or near the surface • Mass wasting – the transfer of rock material downslope under the influence of gravity • Erosion – the incorporation and trans-portation of material by a mobile agent, usually water, wind, or ice

  3. Weathering • Two kinds of weathering • Mechanical weathering • Breaking of rocks into smaller pieces • Processes of mechanical weathering • Frost wedging • Unloading • Biological activity

  4. Frost wedging Figure 4.4

  5. Unloading and exfoliation of igneous rocks Figure 4.5 AB

  6. Weathering • Two kinds of weathering • Chemical weathering • Alters the internal structures of minerals by removing or adding elements • Most important agent is water • Oxygen dissolved in water oxidizes materials • Carbon dioxide (CO2) dissolved in water forms carbonic acid and alters the material

  7. Weathering • Two kinds of weathering • Chemical weathering • Weathering of granite • Weathering of potassium feldspar produces clay minerals, soluble salt (potassium bicarbonate), and silica in solution • Quartz remains substantially unaltered • Weathering of silicate minerals produces insoluble iron oxides and clay minerals

  8. Rates of weathering • Advanced mechanical weathering aids chemical weathering by increasing the surface area • Important factors • Rock characteristics • Mineral composition and solubility • Physical features such as joints

  9. Rates of weathering • Important factors • Climate • Temperature and moisture are the most crucial factors • Chemical weathering is most effective in areas of warm temperatures and abundant moisture

  10. Rates of weathering • Differential weathering • Caused by variations in composition • Creates unusual and spectacular rock formations and landforms

  11. Differential Weathering • Weathering that occurs at different rates, as a result of variations in composition and resistance of rocks or differences in intensity of weathering, and usually resulting in an uneven surface.

  12. Soil • An interface in the Earth system • Soil is a combination of mineral matter, water, and air – that portion of the regolith (rock and mineral fragments) that supports the growth of plants

  13. Typical components in a soil that yield good plant growth Figure 4.12

  14. Soil • Soil texture and structure • Texture refers to the proportions of different particle sizes • Sand (large size) • Silt • Clay (small size) • Loam (a mixture of all three sizes and organic matter) is best suited for plant life

  15. Soil • Soil texture and structure • Structure • Soil particles clump together to give a soil its structure • Four basic soil structures • Platy • Prismatic • Blocky • Spheroidal

  16. Soil Structural Types • Granular • Blocky • Angular Blocky • Subangular Blocky • Platy • Wedge • Prismatic • Columnar • Massive • Single Grain

  17. Granular Small Polyhedrons or SpheroidsBounded by Curved or Irregular Surfaces Symbol for Structure (gr) Photo – Thank you Dr. Lindo - NCSU

  18. BlockySubangular or Angular Subangular Blocky – the three dimensions are about the same size, but polyhedrons are subrounded. Symbol (sbk) Angular Blocky – the three dimensions are about the same size, but edges are shape and faces appear flattened. Symbol (abk)

  19. Platy – Flat and Tabular- Units Structure has a horizontal dimension that is longer or greater than the vertical dimension. The plates tend to parallel the surface. Typical Symbol (pl or PL) Photo on the Right – Thank you Dr. Lindo - NCSU

  20. Wedge Structures Elliptical Interlocking lenses that terminate in acute angles, bounded by slickensides. Soil: Has a High Clay Content- with Expanding clays. Photo – Thank you Dr. Lindo - NCSU

  21. Soil • Climate • Plants and animals • Organisms influence the soil’s physical and chemical properties • Furnish organic matter to soil • Slope • Angle • Steep slopes often have poorly developed soils • Orientation (direction the slope is facing) influences • Soil temperature • Moisture • Controls of soil formation • Parent material • Residual soil – parent material is the bedrock • Transported soil – parent material has been carried from elsewhere and deposited • Time • Important in all geologic processes • Amount of time to evolve varies for different soils

  22. Soil • Soil profile • Soil-forming processes operate from the surface downward • Horizons – zones or layers of soil • Horizons in temperate regions • O – organic matter • A – organic and mineral matter • E – little organic matter • B – zone of accumulation • C – partially altered parent material

  23. Humus • degraded organic material in soil, which causes some soil layers to be dark brown or black.

  24. Eluviation • In geology, eluvium or eluvial deposits are those geological deposits and soils that are derived by in situ weathering or weathering plus gravitational movement or accumulation. • The process of removal of materials from geological or soil horizons is called eluviation.

  25. Leaching • In general, leaching is the extraction of certain materials from a carrier into a liquid (usually, but not always a solvent). • Leaching (pedology – soil study), the loss of mineral and organic solutes due to percolation from soil.

  26. Soil • Classifying soils • System for classifying soils in the United States is called the Soil Taxonomy • Emphasizes physical and chemical properties of the soil profile • Names of the soil units are combinations of syllables of Latin and Greek origin

  27. Global soil regions Figure 4.18

  28. Soil • Soil erosion • Recycling of Earth materials • Natural rates of erosion depend on • Soil characteristics • Climate • Slope • Type of vegetation

  29. Soil • Soil erosion • Soil erosion and sedimentation can cause • Reservoirs to fill with sediment • Contamination by pesticides and fertilizers

  30. Weathering creates ore deposits • Process called secondary enrichment • Concentrates metals into economical deposits • Takes place in one of two ways • Removing undesired material from the decomposing rock, leaving the desired elements behind • Desired elements are carried to lower zones and deposited • Examples • Bauxite, the principal ore of aluminum • Many copper and silver deposits

  31. Mass Wasting S. C. Porter

  32. Mass wasting • The downslope movement of rock, regolith (a layer of loose, heterogeneous material covering solid rock. It includes dust, soil, broken rock, and other related materials and is present on Earth, the Moon, some asteroids, and other planets.), and soil under the direct influence of gravity • Gravity is the controlling force • The geologic process that follows weathering. • Slopes are always geologically unstable. • Down slope movement may be fast or slow. • Mass movements are a type of geologic hazard.

  33. Mass wasting • Important triggering factors • Saturation of the material with water • Destroys particle cohesion • Water adds weightOversteepening of slopes • Unconsolidated granular particles assume a stable slope called the angle of repose • Stable slope angle is different for various materials • Oversteepened slopes are unstable • Removal of anchoring vegetation • Ground vibrations from earthquakes

  34. Mass wasting • Types of mass-wasting processes • Generally each type is defined by • The material involved – debris, mud, Earth, or rock • The movement of the material • Fall (freefall of pieces) • Slide (material moves along a well-defined surface) • Flow (material moves as a viscous fluid) • The rate of the movement • Fast • Slow

  35. In geology, solifluction, also known as soil fluction, is a type of mass wasting where waterlogged sediment moves slowly downslope, over impermeable material. It occurs in periglacial environments where melting during the warm season leads to water saturation in the thawed surface material (active layer), causing a form of downslope "flow" to occur. This "flow" is due to frost heave that occurs normal to the slope, as well as to small-scale slippage.

  36. Mass wasting • Types of mass-wasting processes • Forms of mass wasting • Slump • Rapid movement along a curved surface • Occur along oversteepened slopes

  37. Mass wasting • Types of mass-wasting processes • Forms of mass wasting • Rockslide • Rapid • Blocks of bedrock move down a slope

  38. Mass wasting • Types of mass-wasting processes • Forms of mass wasting • Debris flow (mudflow) • Rapid flow of debris with water • Often confined to channels • Debris flows composed mostly of volcanic materials are called lahars Mount St. Helens Lahar (Mudflows)

  39. Damage from Mt. St. Helens lahar

  40. Mudflow – Watery viscous mud flowing rapidly downhill.Mudflows have the consistency of wet cement.Mudflows transport boulders, people and large buildings. Extremely deadly. In Armero, Colombia 20,000 people were buried in a mudflow from Nevada del Ruiz volcano.

  41. Mass wasting • Types of mass-wasting processes • Forms of mass wasting • Earthflow • Rapid • Typically occur on hillsides in humid regions • Water saturates the soil • Liquefaction – a special type of earthflow sometimes associated with earthquakes • Earthquakes can also cause liquefaction where loosely packed, water-logged sediments come loose from the intense shaking of the earthquake. In geology, it refers to the process by which saturated, unconsolidated sediments are transformed into a substance that acts like a liquid.

  42. An earthflow on a newly formed slope Figure 4.32

  43. Mass wasting • Types of mass-wasting processes • Forms of mass wasting • Creep • Slow movement of soil and regolith downhill • Causes fences and utility poles to tilt • Solifluction • Slow movement in areas underlain by permafrost • Upper (active) soil layer becomes saturated and slowly flows over a frozen surface below

  44. Creep Downhill creep, the slow progression of soil and rock down a low grade slope.

  45. Ground subsidence in Alaska due to solifluction

  46. End of Chapter 4

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