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WEATHERING EROSION AND TRANSPORTATION

Weathering
● is the process of decomposition and/or disintegration of rocks, soils, and their
minerals through natural, chemical, and biological processes.
● breaks down rocks that are either stationary or moving.
● The Tightly bound Crystals of any rock can be loosened and altered to new
materials when exposed to air and water during weathering.

Erosion
● the displacement of solids (soil, mud, rock, and other particles) because of
wind, water, ice, gravity, or living organisms.
● Bioerosion is erosion that is the result of humans or other living organisms.
● Deforestation, overgrazing, and road or trail building are human activities that
can lead to erosion.
● picking up or physical removal of rock particles by an agent such as ocean
waves, running water and glaciers.

Two types of Erosion:

1. Chemical Erosion - occurs when a rock's chemical composition changes, such
as when iron rusts or when limestone dissolves due to carbonation.
a. Landslide
b. Root going through a rock
2. Physical Erosion - the rock breaks down but its chemical composition remains
the same, like when plants take root and crack rocks.
a. Reaction with water
b. Reaction with oxygen
c. Reaction with acid
d. Reaction with organisms
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Transportation
● movement of eroded particles by agents such as rivers, waves, glaciers, or
wind. The weathering process continues during transportation.

Effects of Weathering

● Spheroidal weathering - occurs where a rock has been rounded by

weathering from an initial blocky shape. It is rounded because chemical
weathering acts more rapidly or intensely on the corners and edges of a rock
than on the smooth rock faces.
● Differential weathering - describes the tendency for different types of rock to
weather at different rates.

1. Mechanical weathering - includes several processes that break rock into

smaller pieces. The change in the rock is physical; having little or no chemical
change. For example, water is freezing and expanding in cracks can cause
rocks to disintegrate
a. Pressure Release
i. The reduction of pressure on a body of rock can cause it to
crack as it expands; pressure release is a significant type of
mechanical weathering
b. Frost Action
i. The mechanical effect of freezing water on rocks – commonly
occurs as frost wedging or frost heaving.
ii. In frost wedging, the expansion of freezing water pries the rock
apart.
c. Thermal Expansion and Contraction
i. Heating and cooling of rocks repeatedly result in the expansion
and contraction of the rock respectively.
ii. When rock is exposed to high temperatures, it expands and as
the temperatures cool, it contracts.
iii. Thermal expansion weathering is similar to Freeze-Thaw
weathering.
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d. Abrasion
i. When a rock collides with one another, grinding of rock
fragments takes place, and the rock is broken into pieces.
Abrasion cuts them into smaller particles.
ii. Gravity causes abrasion when the rocks tumble down a
mountainside and hit another rock, and break into the fragment.
iii. Moving water causes abrasion as particles in the water collide
and bump against one another. (Water Abrasion)
iv. High-speed winds which carry pieces of sand have the capacity
to break the rock when they sandblast on the surface of the
rock. (Wind Abrasion)
e. Salt Weathering or Haloclasty
i. is a type of physical weathering caused by the growth and
thermal expansion of salt crystals. The process starts when
saline water seeps into deep cracks and evaporates depositing
salt crystals.

2. Chemical Weathering - is the decomposition of rock from exposure to water

and atmospheric gases (principally carbon dioxide, oxygen, and water vapor).
As the rock is decomposed by these agents, new chemical compounds form.
a. Oxidation
i. occurs when oxygen reacts with metal elements in rock or on
other surfaces creating oxides. This process weakens the
structure of the materials, often producing a reddish-brown color.
b. Dissolution
i. water breaks down mineral grains into the elements that make
them up.
ii. Dissolution reactions produce ions, but no minerals, and are
reversible if the solvent is removed.
c. Hydration
i. a type of chemical weathering where water reacts chemically
with the rock, modifying its chemical structure.
d. Hydrolysis
i. a chemical reaction where water loosens the chemical bonds
within a mineral.
ii. might sound the same as dissolution but the difference is that
hydrolysis produces a different mineral in addition to ions.
e. Carbonation
i. is the chemical reaction of carbon dioxide to give carbonates,
bicarbonates, and carbonic acid.
ii. Carbonic acid is the culprit when it comes to the carbonation
type of chemical weathering. This weak acid reacts with the
calcium carbonate in stones when it seeps into the cracks.
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EARTHQUAKE

Earthquake - a trembling or shaking of the ground caused by sudden release of energy

stored in the rocks beneath the earth's surface.

Causes of an Earthquake:
● Sudden slip on a fault
● Tectonic plates (they get stuck at their edges due to friction.
● Stress (when this stress on the edge overcomes the friction, there is an earthquake
that releases energy in waves that travel through the earth's crust and cause the
shaking that we feel).

Local Faults and Volcanoes near CDO

Seismic Waves
● Radiate from the focus of an earthquake
● This happens when a rock breaks, waves of energy are release and sent out though
the earth
● Waves of energy produced by an earthquake
● Causes the ground to tremble and shake during an earthquake.

Focus or Hypocenter of the Earthquake

- point within the earth where seismic waves first originate
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- This is the center of the earthquake, the point of initial breakage and movement on a
fault. Rupture begins at the focus and then spreads rapidly along the fault plane. The
point on the earth’s surface directly above the focus is the epicenter.

Magnitude
- (the size of an earthquake) measures the energy released at the source of the
earthquake. The magnitude of an earthquake is a number that allows earthquakes to
be compared with each other in terms of their relative power.
- Magnitude is determined from measurements on seismographs.

Intensity
- a ranking based on the observed effects of an earthquake in each particular place.
Therefore, each earthquake produces a range of intensity values, ranging from
highest in the epicenter area to zero at a distance from the epicenter.
- Intensity measures the strength of shaking produced by the earthquake at a certain
location.
- Intensity is determined from effects on people, human structures, and the natural
environment.

Two Types of Seismic Waves

1. Body Waves (P and S) - seismic waves that travel through the earth’s interior,
spreading outward from the focus in all directions.
2. Surface waves - seismic waves that travel on the earth’s surface away from the
epicenter, like water waves spreading out from a pebble thrown into a pond. Rock
movement associated with seismic surface waves dies out with depth into the earth,
just as water movement in ocean waves die out with depth.

Seismic Waves
- generated by an earthquake source are commonly classified into three main types.
- P (Primary) waves, S (Secondary) waves, Love and Rayleigh waves
- The existence of these types of seismic waves was mathematically predicted during
the 19th century, and modern comparisons show that there is a close
correspondence between such theoretical calculations and actual measurements of
the seismic waves.
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● Primary Waves (P waves)

P waves are compressional (longitudinal) waves in which rocks vibrate back and
forth; parallel to the direction of the wave propagation. It’s a fast wave, travelling
through near-surface rocks at speeds of 4 to 7 kilometers per second.
The P wave is the first wave to arrive at a recording station following an
earthquake. The first P-wave onset starts from the spot where an earthquake
originates. This point, usually at some depth within the Earth, is called the focus, or
hypocenter. The point at the surface immediately above the focus is known as the
epicenter.

● Secondary Waves (S waves)

S waves (shear waves) are the second waves to hit the seismographs. They are
transverse waves, which means that the motion is perpendicular to the direction of
wave propagation.
S waves can only travel through solids, and scientists have successfully mapped
the earth’s interior by studying the routes of these waves.
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Difference between P and S waves

P waves S waves

P waves are the first wave to hit the S waves arrive after P waves
earth’s surface

These waves travel in the speed range These waves are almost 1.7 times
of 1.5 - 13 km/s slower than P waves

These waves travel in a linear direction These waves travel in a transversal

direction

These waves can travel through solid, These waves travel through only solids
liquid, and gas

● Love and Rayleigh Waves

Love and Rayleigh waves are guided by the free surface of the Earth. They follow
along after the P and S waves have passed through the body of the planet.

Both Love and Rayleigh waves involve horizontal particle motion, but only the latter
type has vertical ground displacements. As Love and Rayleigh waves travel, they
disperse into long wave trains, and, at substantial distances from the source in
alluvial basins, they cause much of the shaking felt during earthquakes.

Rayleigh waves behave like rolling ocean waves. Unlike ocean waves, rayleigh
waves cause the ground to move in an elliptical path opposite to the direction of the
wave. Rayleigh waves tend to be destructive to buildings due to the amount of
ground movement produced and takes longer to pass.
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Locating and Measuring Earthquakes

● The instrument used to measure seismic waves is a seismometer. The principle of a
seismometer is to keep a heavy suspended mass as motionless as possible;
suspending it by springs or hanging it as a pendulum from the frame of the
instrument when the ground moves, the frame of the instrument moves with it,
however, the inertia of the heavy mass suspended inside keeps the mass motionless
to act as a point of reference in determining the amount of ground motion.

● The instrument itself can’t record the motion that it measures. A seismograph is a
recording device that produces a permanent record of earth motion detected by a
seismometer, historically recorded as wiggly lines drawn on a moving strip of paper,
but nowadays, they’re digitally recorded.
Green Highlight - items ni gawas sa quiz and most likely mo gawas sa exam (important terms)

● The record of earth vibration is called a seismogram. The seismogram can be used
to measure the strength of the earthquake.

● A simple seismograph for detecting vertical rock motion. The pen records the ground
motion on the seismogram as the spring stretches and compresses with its up and
down movement. The frame and the recording drum move with the ground. Inertia of
the weight keeps it and the needle relatively motionless.

● P and S waves start out from the focus of an earthquake at essentially the same
time.
● Because the time interval between the first arrivals of P and S waves increases with
distance from the focus of an earthquake, this interval can be used to determine the
distance from the station to a quake.
● The increase in the P-S interval is regular with increasing distance for several
thousand kilometers and so can be graphed in a “travel time” curve, which plots the
seismic-wave arrival time against distance.
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● In practice, a station records the P and S waves from a quake, then a seismologist
matches the interval between the waves to a standard travel-time curve.
● A single station can determine only the distance to a quake, not the direction. A circle
is drawn on a globe with the center of the circle being the station and its radius, and
the distance to the quake. The scientists at the station know that the quake occurred
somewhere on that circle, but from the information recorded, they aren’t able to tell
where.
● With information from other stations. However, they can pinpoint the location of the
quake. If three or more stations have determined the distance to a single quake, a
circle is drawn for each station. If this is done on a map, the intersection of the circles
locates the epicenter.

● Analysis of seismograms can also indicate at what depth beneath the surface the
quake occurred. Most earthquakes occur relatively close to the earth’s surface,
although a few occur much deeper. The maximum depth of the focus, the distance
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between the focus and the epicenter, for earthquakes is about 670 km. Earthquakes
are classified into 3 groups according to their depth of focus.
➔ Shallow Focus 0-70 km deep
➔ Intermediate Focus 70-350 km deep
➔ Deep Focus 350 – 670 km deep
● Shallow-focus earthquakes are most common; they account for 85% of total quake
energy released. Intermediate (12%) and deep (3%) focus quakes are rare because
most deep rocks flow in a ductile manner when stressed or deformed; they are
unable to store and suddenly release energy as brittle surface rocks do.
● One method of measuring an earthquake is to find out how much and what kind of
damage the quake has caused. This determines the intensity, which is a measure of
the earthquake’s effect on people and buildings.
● The second method of measuring an earthquake is to calculate the amount of energy
released by the quake. This method is usually done by measuring the height
(amplitude) of one of the wiggles on a seismogram. The larger the quake, the more
the ground vibrates and the larger the wiggle. After measuring a specific wave on a
seismogram and correcting for the type of seismograph and the distance from the
quake, scientists can assign a number called the magnitude. It is a measure of the
energy released during the earthquake.
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Earthquake-Related Hazards
1. Ground motion/shaking - is the trembling and shaking of land that can cause
buildings to vibrate. Windows and walls may crack from such a vibration. It can be
strong enough to topple large structures such as apartment buildings and bridges.
Most people injured or killed in an earthquake are hit by falling debris from buildings.
2. Fire - is a particularly serious problem just after an earthquake. The earthquake
causes the ground to shake and move, which can crack gas pipes and damage
power lines, electrical wiring and household appliances. This damage can ignite fires.
3. Landslides - can be triggered by the shaking of the ground.
4. Liquefaction - is a special type of ground failure caused by earthquakes. It occurs
when a water-saturated soil or sediment turns from a solid to a liquid as a result of
earthquake shaking. It may occur several minutes after an earthquake, causing
buildings to sink. Permanent displacement of the land surface may be the result of
movement along a fault. Rocks can move vertically, those on one side of a fault rising
while those on the other side drop. The trace of a fault on the earth’s surface may
appear as a low cliff called a scarp.
5. Aftershocks - are small earthquakes that follow the main shock, although they are
smaller than the main quake, they can cause considerable damage, particularly to
structures weakened by the powerful main shock. A long period of aftershocks can
be extremely unsettling to people who have lived through the main shock.
6. Foreshocks are small quakes that precede a main shock. They are usually less
common and less damaging than aftershocks but can sometimes be used to help
predict large quakes
7. Tidal waves/Tsunami - the sudden movement of the sea floor upward or downward
during a submarine earthquake can generate very large sea waves. Because the
ocean tides have nothing to do with generating these huge waves, the Japanese
term “Tsunami” is preferred by geologists. Tsunamis are also called seismic sea
waves. They usually are caused by great earthquakes (magnitude 7+) that disturb
the sea floor, but they also result from submarine landslides or volcanic explosions.
Example: 1976 Moro Gulf Tsunami

TSUNAMI:
1. Before the earthquake: In this case, an oceanic plate subducts under a continental
plate. The continental plate bends as stresses between the two plates build over
time.
2. Earthquake: Releasing its built-up stress, the continental plate lurches forward over
the oceanic crust, lifting the ocean. The displaced water appears as a huge bulge on
the sea surface.
3. After the earthquake, gravity collapses the bulge to start a succession of waves, or
tsunami. The tsunami waves move away in both directions as the mass of water
“bobs” up and down over the source of the earthquake.
4. Each wave quickly advances over the land as a sediment-filled wall of water. It stops
briefly before retreating, carrying sediments and debris back to the sea. Over time,
the intensity of the tsunami subsides.

Information about earthquakes

International: https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/
Local: https://phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/’
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GROUNDWATER

Groundwater
● Groundwater contributes to the decomposition of rocks. This makes the
properties of rocks such as competence, durability, and appearance
deteriorates and renders them unsuitable for constructional purposes.
● lies beneath the ground surface, filling pores in sediments and sedimentary
rocks and fractures in other rock types
● Represents 0.6% of the hydrosphere (35x the water in all lakes and rivers
combined)
○ Resupplied by slow infiltration of precipitation
○ Generally cleaner than surface water
○ Accessed by wells
● It is stored in and moves slowly through geological formations of soil, sand
and rocks called aquifers.
● Geological role of groundwater:
○ Largest reservoir of fresh water
○ As an erosion agent
○ Helps to keep our rivers flowing
○ Acts like a cementing agent, helping sedimentary rocks form

Distribution of Groundwater
● Zone of Saturation
○ Formation
■ Water reaches a zone where all of the open spaces in sediment
and rock are completely filled with water
■ Water within the pores is called the groundwater
○ Water Table
■ the upper limit of the zone of saturation
○ Types of groundwater in zone of saturation:
■ Unconfined or free ground water
■ Confined water
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■ Fixed ground water

■ Connate Water
■ Internal Water
■ Juvenile Water

● Capillary Fringe
○ Extends upwards from the water table
○ Groundwater is held by surface tension in tiny passages between
grains of soil or sediment
○ like a straw, passageway/allows some to going up, resulting in springs,
rivers/etc

● Zone of Aeration (Vadose Zone)

○ Area above the water table
○ Includes the capillary fringe and the belt of soil moisture
○ Water cannot be pumped by wells
○ Types of groundwater in zone of aeration
■ Soil water
■ Pellicular water - different layers of soil/ground acting as a
medium for groundwater travel
■ Vadose water
■ Perched water
■ Capillary water

The Water Table

● Subsurface zone in which all rock openings are filled with water is the
phreatic, or saturated zone
● Top of the saturated zone is the water table
● Above the water table is an unsaturated region called the vadose zone
● A perched water table is above and separated from main water table by an
unsaturated zone
● Variations in the water table
○ Depth is highly variable
■ Varies seasonably and from year to year
○ Shape is usually a replica of the surface topography
■ Within an aquifer, the water table is rarely horizontal, but
reflects the surface relief due to the capillary effect (capillary
fringe) in soils, sediments and other porous media.
● Factors that contribute to the irregular surface of the water table
○ Water tends to “pile up” beneath high areas
○ Variations in rainfall
○ Variations in permeability from place to place
● Interaction between groundwater and streams
○ Three Types of Interaction
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■ Gaining streams – gain water from the inflow of groundwater

through the streambed
■ Losing Streams – lose water to the groundwater system by
outflow through the streambed (can be connected or
disconnected)

The Water Cycle

● Also Known as the Hydrologic Cycle or Hydrological Cycle, describes the
continuous movement of water on, above, or below the earth's surface.
● shows the continuous movement of water within the Earth and atmosphere.
● Water in different phases moves through the atmosphere (transportation).
Liquid water flows across land (runoff), into the ground (infiltration and
percolation), and through the ground (groundwater). Groundwater moves
into plants (plant uptake) and evaporates from plants into the atmosphere
(transpiration). Solid ice and snow can turn directly into gas (sublimation).
The opposite can also take place when water vapor becomes solid
(deposition).

The Water Cycle

1. Evaporation
a. The transformation of water from liquid to gas phase as it moves from
the ground into the overlying atmosphere.
b. Examples of evaporation include: Hot tea getting cold, Wet clothes
drying in the sun, drying of wet hair
2. Condensation
a. The process by which water vapor in the air is changed into liquid
water; it's the opposite of evaporation.
b. crucial to the water cycle because it is responsible for the formation of
clouds.
c. An example is a glass of cold water sitting outside on a hot day. The
glass will form water droplets on the outside of the glass.
3. Precipitation
a. any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls
from clouds due to gravitational pull to the Earth.

4. Infiltration
a. process of water being absorbed into the ground; the downward entry
of water into the soil or rock surface.
b. When precipitation hits the ground it must land in a porous area.
5. Transpiration
a. Water inside of plants is transferred from the plant to the atmosphere
as water vapor through numerous individual leave openings.
b. Plants transpire to move nutrients to the upper portion of the plants and
to cool the leaves exposed to the sun.
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6. Sublimation
a. is the conversion between the solid and the gaseous phases of matter,
with no intermediate liquid stage; the process of snow and ice changing
into water vapor (gas) in the air without first melting into water.
7. Deposition
a. occurs when water vapor (gas) changes into ice (solid) without going
through the liquid phase, such as when frost forms on the ground on
clear, cold nights.
8. Percolation
a. movement of water through the soil itself. Finally, as the water
percolates into the deeper layers of the soil, it reaches ground water,
which is water below the surface. Infiltration is defined as the
downward entry of water into the soil or rock surface and percolation is
the flow of water through soil and porous or fractured rock.

Factors Influencing the Storage and Movement of Groundwater

Porosity
- the percentage of the total volume of rock or sediment that consists of voids
or openings/pore spaces.
- described as the amount of openings present in a rock.
- defined as the “ratio of the volume of voids in a rock mass to the total volume
of the rock expressed in percentage”.
- determines how much groundwater can be stored.
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- variations can be considerable over short distances.

- measurement of a rock’s ability to hold water.
- loose sand has 30 - 50% porosity.
- compacted sandstone may have only 10 - 20% porosity.

Primary Porosity
- is that which is present in the rock right from its formation.
- It describes the pore spaces between grains that are formed during
depositional processes, such as sedimentation.

Secondary Porosity
- is the pore space created by subsequent processes.
- It is formed from post-depositional processes such as dissolution,
reprecipitation, and fracturing.

Permeability
- the ability of the rock to transmit water through it, i.e., permeable rocks allow
the water to pass through them.
- This property of rock is due to interconnected voids present in the rock.
- thus, dependent on the porosity character of the rock.

Factors Influencing Permeability

- size and shape of constituent grains.
- sorting of grains.
- continuity and nature of interstices.
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- Interconnectedness of pore spaces

- Most sandstones and conglomerates are porous and permeable.
- Granites, schists, and unfractured limestones are impermeable.

Aquifers and Aquitards

Aquitard
- an impermeable layer that hinders groundwater flow due to low porosity
and/or permeability such as shale, clay, and unfractured crystalline rocks.
Aquifers
- permeable body of saturated rock or sediment through which transmits
groundwater freely.
- examples are sandstones, conglomerates, well-jointed limestone, sand and
gravel, and highly fractured volcanic rock.
- a body of rock and/or sediment that holds groundwater. (groundwater is the
word used to describe precipitation that has infiltrated the soil beyond the
surface and collected in empty spaces underground)
- a common misconception about aquifers is that they are underground rivers
or lakes. While groundwater can seep into or out of aquifers due to their
porous nature, it cannot move fast enough to flow like a river. (rate of
groundwater movement through an aquifer varies on rock’s permeability)
- naturally filter groundwater by forcing it to pass through small pores and
between sediments, which helps to remove substances from the water. (this
natural filtration may not be enough to remove all contaminants)

Aquifers-Sierra Nevada Mountains and Foothills

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Aquifer
- Forms in fractured igneous rock (granitic)
- Porosity and permeability are low
- Wells are difficult to locate, yield is low
- Often limits development

Types of Aquifers

Confined/Artesian Aquifers
- have a layer of impenetrable rock or clay above them.
- completely filled with water under pressure (hydrostatic head)
- separated from the surface by an impermeable confining layer/aquitard
- very slowly recharged

Unconfined Aquifers
- lie below a permeable layer of soil.
- has a water table, and is only partly filled with water.
- rapidly recharged by precipitation infiltrating down to the saturated zone.
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Ground Water Movement

- movement of groundwater through pores and fractures is relatively slow (cms
or m^3/s to meters/day) compared to the flow of water in surface streams.
- flow velocities in cavernous limestones can be much higher (km/day)
- flow velocities depend upon;
- slope of the water table
- permeability of the rock or sediment

Darcy’s Law
- If permeability remains uniform, the velocity of groundwater will increase as
the slope of the water table increases.
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Hydraulic Gradient
- the water table slope, determined by dividing the vertical differences
between recharge and discharge points by the length of flow between
points.

Hydraulic Head
- vertical difference between the recharge and discharge points.

Problems Associated with Groundwater

Treating groundwater as a nonrenewable resource

- In many places, the water available to recharge the aquifer falls significantly
short of the amount being withdrawn.
Subsidence
- ground sinks when water is pumped from wells faster than natural recharge
processes can replace it.
Saltwater Contamination
- excessive groundwater withdrawal causes saltwater to be drawn into wells,
thus contaminating the freshwater supply.
- primarily a problem in coastal areas.

Balancing Withdrawal and Recharge

- If groundwater is withdrawn more rapidly than it is recharged, the water table

will drop.
- dropping water table can lead to ground subsidence
- the surface of the ground drops as buoyancy from groundwater is
removed, allowing rock or sediment to compact and sink.
- subsidence can crack foundations, roads, and pipelines.
- areas of extremely high groundwater pumping such as crop irrigation in dry
regions have subsided 7-9 meters.

Groundwater Contamination
- Contaminated groundwater can be extremely difficult and expensive to clean
up
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- Infiltrating water may bring contaminants down to the water table, including
(but not limited to):
- Pharmaceuticals
- Pesticides/herbicides
- Fertilizers
- Feed lots
- Mercury and gold mining
- Landfill pollutants
- Heavy metals
- Bacteria, viruses and parasites from sewage
- Industrial chemicals (PCBs, TCE)
- Acid mine drainage
- Radioactive waste
- Oil and gasoline

Sewage
- One common source of contamination
- Extremely permeable aquifers, such as coarse gravel, have such large
openings that groundwater may travel long distances without being cleaned
- Sewage often becomes purified as it passes through a few dozen meters of
an aquifer composed of sand or permeable sandstone

Sinking a well
- can lead to groundwater pollution problems

Other sources and types of contamination include substances such as Highway salt,
Fertilizers, Pesticides, Chemical and Industrial materials.
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Saltwater Contamination Due to Excessive Pumping

Features Associated with Groundwater

Wells
- a deep hole dug or drilled into the ground to obtain water from an aquifer
- for wells in unconfined aquifers, water level before pumping is the water table
- water table can be lowered by pumping, a process known as drawdown
- water may rise to a level above the top of a confined aquifer, producing an
artesian well
Springs
- a place where water flows naturally from rock or sediment onto the ground
surface
- occur where the water table intersects the Earth’s surface. Also due to
pressure changes or elevation
- natural outflow of groundwater
- can be caused by an aquitard creating a localized zone of saturation which is
called a perched water table.
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Caves, Sinkholes, and Karst

- caves are naturally-formed underground chambers
- acidic groundwater dissolves limestone along joints and bedding planes
- caves near the surface may collapse and produce sinkholes
- rolling hills, disappearing streams, and sinkholes are common in areas with
karst topography

Hot Water Underground

Hot springs
- springs in which the water is warmer than human body temperature
- groundwater heated by nearby magma bodies or circulation to unusually deep
(and warm) levels within the crust
- hot water is less dense than cool water and thus rises back to the surface on
its own
Geysers
- hot springs that periodically erupt hot water and steam
- minerals often precipitate around geysers as hot water cools rapidly in the air

Geothermal energy
- produced using natural steam or superheated water
- no CO2 or acid rain are produced (clean energy source)
- some toxic gases given off (e.g., sulfur compounds)
- can be used directly to heat buildings
- superheated water can be very corrosive to pipes and equipment
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Groundwater

Gaining streams
- receive water from the saturated zone
- gaining stream surface is local water table

Losing streams
- lose water to the saturated zone
- stream beds lie above the water table
- maximum infiltration occurs through streambed, producing permanent
“mound” in the water table beneath dry channel

Geological Work of Groundwater

Groundwater Dissolves Rock

- groundwater is often mildly acidic.
- contains weak carbonic acid.
- forms when rainwater dissolves carbon dioxide from the air and from
decaying plants.
- Carbonic acid reacts with calcite in limestone to form calcium bicarbonate, a
soluble material.

Karst Topography
- landscapes that to a large extent have been shaped by the dissolving power
of groundwater
- some common features include;
- irregular terrain
- sinkhole or sinks; formed by groundwater slowly dissolving the bedrock
often accompanied by collapse
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- striking lack of surface drainage (streams)

Karsts
- dissolving of bedrock or soluble rock types create sinkholes, caves, etc.
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MINERALOGY
Mineralogy
● deals with the study of minerals.
● deals with the detailed mode of formation, composition, occurrence, types,
association properties uses etc.

Minerals
● is a naturally-occuring, homogeneous, solid with a definite, but generally not fixed,
chemical composition and an ordered atomic arrangement. It is usually formed by
inorganic processes
● NATURAL - occurs naturally, not man made
● HOMOGENEOUS - cannot be broken into simpler components, same throughout
● SOLID - must maintain a set shape nearly indefinitely, liquids are not minerals
● CHEMICAL COMPOSITION - can be described by a chemical formula
○ Quartz: SiO2
○ Biotite: L(Mg, Fe)3 (AlSi3O10)(OH)2
○ Diamond: C
● ORDERLY ARRANGE OF ATOMS - a fixed atomic pattern that repeats itself over a
large region relative to the size of atoms
○ Crystal solid, or crystal lattice: organized structure
○ A glass is not a mineralL no organized structure
● GENERALLY INORGANIC
○ Organic: A substance composed of C bonded to H, with varying amounts of
O, N and other elements. C, alone, is not organic!
○ only a few organic substances are considered minerals, all others are
inorganic

Mineral Identification
● Physical Properties - visual and chemical properties
○ Forms and Habits - form represents the common mode of occurrence of a
mineral, also called habit or structure of minerals. It is the function of the
atomic structure of minerals
■ LAMELLAR FORM - appears as thin separable layer (Mica)
■ TABULAR FORM - appears as slab of uniform thickness (Feldspar)
■ FIBROUS FORM - appears to be made of thin thread (Asbestos)
■ PISOLITIC FORM - appears to be made of small spherical grain
(Bauxite)
■ OOLITIC FORM - appears to be made of still small spherical grain
(Limestone)
■ RHOMBIC FORM - appears to be made of rhombic shape (Calcite)
■ GRANULAR FORM - appears to be made of innumerable
equidimensional grain of coarse or medium of grain (Magnetite,
Chromite)
■ BLADED FORM - appears as cluster or independent lath shaped
grains (Kyanite)
■ BOTRYOIDAL FORM - appears as made up of smaller curved faces
like bunch of grapes (Hematite, Chalcedony)
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■ ACICULAR FORM - appears as made up of thin needles (Natrolite,

Actinolite)
■ COLUMNAR FORM - appears as long slender prism (Quartz, Apatite)
■ PRISMATIC FORM - appears as elongated independent crystals
(Quartz, Apatite)
■ SPONGY FORM - appears as porous (Pyrolusite, Bauxite, Pumice)
■ CRYSTAL FORM - appears as polyhedral geometrical shapes
(Quartz, Amethyst, Pyrite, Galena)
■ MASSIVE FORM - no definite shape (Graphite, Olivine, Jasper)
■ NODULAR FORM - irregular shaped compacted body with curved
surface (Flint, Limestone)
○ Colour - is due to the composition, imparted by the presence of trace
element, inclusions, and atomic structure. It is determined by the chemical
composition and atomic structure of the mineral. It is not particularly useful as
a diagnostic property since minerals show a wide variety of colours
■ IDIOCHROMATIC - are "self colored" due to their composition, great
consistency in ore forming minerals
■ ALLOCHROMATIC - are "other colored" due to trace impurities in
their composition or defects in their structure, less consistency in rock
forming minerals
■ PSEUDOCHROMATIC - are "false colored" due to tricks in light
diffraction.
■ LIGHT COLOURED - rich in Al, Ca,Na, Mg
■ DARK IN COLOUR - rich in Fe, Ti, Ni, Cr
■ Atomic structure controls which components of white light are
absorbed or reflected
■ WHITE - reflect all components of white light
■ BLACK - absorb all components of white light
■ GREEN - reflect green light and absorb the others

○ Streak - the colour of a mineral’s powder when rubbed on an unglazed white

porcelain tile. Useful for identifying metallic ore minerals. Silicates do not
mark the tile and have no streak. Minerals that are harder than the tile will
have no streak.

○ Lustre - the way in which a mineral reflects light and it is controlled by atomic
structure. It is the nature of the shining on the surface of minerals. Based on
quality of type of shining, grouped as metallic and non metallic.
■ METALLIC LUSTRE - type of shining appears on the surface of
metals (Gold, Pyrite, Gelena)
■ SUB METALLIC LUSTRE - amount of shining is less compared to
metallic lustre (Hematite, Chromite, Magnetite)
■ VITREOUS LUSTRE - non metallic shining like a glass sheet (Quartz,
Dolomite, Calcite)
■ PEARLY LUSTRE - non metallic shining like pearls (Talc, Muscovite
Mica, Gypsum)
■ SILKY LUSTRE - non metallic shining like a silk (Asbestos, Satinspar)
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■ RESINOUS LUSTRE - non metallic shining like a resin (Opal,

Chalcedony)
■ ADAMANTINE LUSTRE - non metallic shining like a diamond
■ EARTHY OR DULL LUSTRE - non metallic shining like a earth or
chalk (Kaolin, Bauxite, Magnesite)

○ Fracture - tendency of minerals to break along a flat surface or to break

unevenly along a curved/irregular surface. It is a mineral property where the
atomic bonding between atoms in crystal structure is perfect with no
weakness. It occurs where bond strength is generally the same in all
directions. Minerals that have fracture do not exhibit cleavage. It is the
uneven breakage of minerals.
■ Even Fracture - broken surface of the minerals is plain and smooth.
● Magnasite
● Chalk
■ Uneven Structure - the broken structure of the minerals is rough or
irregular.
● Sodalite
■ Hackly Fracture - the broken surface of the minerals is very irregular
like broken stick.
● Asbestos
● Kyanite
● Tremolite
■ Conchoidal Fracture - the broken surface of the minerals is smooth
and curved surface.
● Opal
● Volcanic Glass
■ Sub Conchoidal Fracture - the broken surface of the minerals is
smooth ad curved nature is less predominate.
● Agate
● Flint

○ Cleavage - the definite direction of the plane along which minerals tend to
break easily. It is related to crystallinity only crystalline minerals have
cleavage. It represents the plane of weakness ni atomic structure of minerals.
■ Basal-One direction - these minerals can be split into a very thin
sheet along horizontal plane
● Muscovite mica
■ Prismatic-Two direction - these minerals exhibits two mutually
perpendicular sets of cleavage
● Orthoclash
■ Cubic-Three direction - these minerals exhibits three mutually
perpendicular sets of cleavage
● Halite
■ Cubic-Three direction - these minerals exhibits three mutually
perpendicular sets of cleavage with some angles.
● Calcite
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○ Hardness - may be defined as the resistance offered by minerals to abrasion

or scratching. It is also related to Atomic structure of Minerals. The chemical
composition of mineral appear to have a less influence over hardness.
Hardness minerals is studied either as Absolute hardness and Relative
hardness. Absolute hardness means Total hardness. Relative hardness
means Comparative hardness. The relative hardness of unknown minerals is
determined by scratching it with the minerals of Mohs scale of hardness,
starting with the talc and followed by minerals.

Tenacity - how a mineral behaves toward a particular force which tends to break, bend, or
cut it.

Specific Gravity
- the ratio of the mass of a substance to the mass of a reference substance for the
same given volume.
- Specific gravity of minerals depends on their chemical composition and atomic
structure.
- Specific gravity of minerals is determined by using either Walker's steel yard or jolly's
spring.

● Quartz with silicon dioxide has higher specific gravity of 2.7.

● Opal with Amorphous variety has lesser specific gravity 2.2.
● Amber as specific gravity nearly equal to water 1.
● Platiniridium is the heaviest specific gravity of 22.84.
● Rock forming minerals have specific gravity of 2.5 - 3.5.
● Ore forming minerals have specific gravity of over 3.5.
● Most sulfides are 4.5 to 6.0
● Iron metal is ~8
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● Leadis ~13
● Gold and platinum are 19-22.

Degree of Transparency
- The resistant offered by materials to the passage of light through them.
- Transparency depends on chemical composition.
- Ore minerals exhibits opaque.
- Degree of transparency is mainly depends on thickness.
● Transparent
○ Muscovite Mica
○ Quartz
● Translucent
○ Calcite
○ Agate
● Opaque
○ Galena
○ Calcite

Special Properties
- Some minerals exhibits peculiar characters which enable them to identify easily.

● Very soft (h=1). It exhibits smooth touch or soapy feel.

○ Talc
● Low hardness (h=1). It exhibits black colour. Mark easily on paper.
○ Graphite
● Gives garlic smell. When struck or heated and freshly broken surface.
○ Realgar
○ Orpiment
● Gives a clayey smell, and adheres strongly to the Tongue.
○ Kaolin
● Has a saline taste. Strongly attracts by an ordinary magnet.
○ Halite

Importance of Mineral
★ The solid Earth consists of rocks. Rocks are made of minerals. Understanding
minerals helps in understanding rocks.
★ The civil engineers need to know the properties of rock precisely to enable them to
consider different rocks for various purposes such as foundation rocks, road metals,
building stone.
★ Study of minerals heavily used in manufacturing of plastics, cloths, pencil lead, glass,
chalkboard and the chalk, Salts. Minerals serve as the raw material for manufacturing
of chemicals, dimension stone, aggregate for road and concrete.

Rock Forming Minerals

● Based on the nature and economic importance all minerals are grouped into Rock
forming and Economic forming minerals. Some economic minerals serve as a source
of extraction of valuable metals and other become useful by virtue of their physical
properties.
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● 9% of the earth crust is made up of 20- 25 rock forming minerals.

● Earth crust consists of 1600 spices of minerals but are very rare.

● 99.2% of the earth crust is made of these 9 elements. Oxygen and silicate together
constitute 74.4%.
● The rock forming minerals are mainly silicates.
● All precious and useful minerals such as platinum, gold, silver, etc. together
represent only 0.436%. That is why economic minerals are scarce.
● The rock forming minerals are mainly composed of silicates, oxides and carbonates.
● Since silicates are the most common rock forming minerals.

Rock Forming Minerals

Structure of Silicates - Silicate Tetrahedron is the fundamental unit of all silicate minerals.
This unit has the nature of either occurring alone or in different combinations in mineral
structure.
● Nesosilicates Structure
○ In this group SiO4 tetrahedra occur as an independent unit in mineral
structure. Si:0 = 1:4 Olivine
● Sorosilicates Structure
○ In this group of minerals SiO4 tetrahedra occurs in pairs. Si:0 = 1:3.5 Melilite
● Inosilicates Structure
○ In this group of minerals SiO4 tetrahedra occurs in chains. Single Chain
Silicate Si: 0 = 1:3 Pyroxenes
○ In this Group of minerals SiO4 tetrahedra occurs in a double chain. Double
Chain Silicate Si:0 =2:3 Amphiboles
● Phyllosilicate Structure
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○ In this Group of minerals SiO4 tetrahedra occurs as Sheet Resulting in more

growth in. Two direction of minerals. Sheet silicate Silicate. Si:0 = 1:2.5
Amphiboles
● Tectosilicates Structure
○ In this Group of minerals SiO4 tetrahedra occurs in a three dimensional
framework. Resulting equidimensional growth. Si:0 = 1:3. Muscovite Mica

Rock Forming Mineral Groups

● Feldspar
○ Feldspar is not a single mineral.
○ Aluminium silicates of sodium, potassium and calcium rarely barium. Alkali
and lime feldspar.
○ Al feldspar are Tectosilicates.
○ Occurs more commonly in Metamorphic Rocks
● Quartz
○ Quartz is the most common rock forming minerals.
○ Silica composition
○ It occurs in crystalline nature
○ All Quartz are Tectosilicates.
○ Occurs more commonly in Igneous Rocks
● Pyroxene
○ Pyroxene are related to both feldspar and mafic minerals.
○ Silicates of calcium, magnesium and ferrous iron.
○ Pyroxene are Single Chain Silicate.
○ Occurs more commonly in Igneous Rocks
● Amphibole
○ Amphibole are related to Ferro magnesium minerals. Silicates of calcium,
magnesium, sodium and ferrous iron.
○ Amphibole are Inosilicates but have a double chain silicates. Occurs more
commonly in Igneous Rocks
● Olivine
○ Olivine are related to mafic minerals.
○ Silicates of magnesium and ferrous iron.
○ Olivine are Nesosilicates.
○ Occurs more commonly in Igneous Rocks
● Mica
○ Mica are related to Silicate minerals.
○ Silicates of aluminium, magnesium, and Potassium.
○ Mica are Phyllosilicates.
○ Occurs more commonly in Igneous Rocks.
● Kyanite
○ Kyanite are related to Metamorphic minerals.
○ Silicates of aluminium, magnesium, and potassium
○ Kyanite are Nesosilicates.
○ Occurs more commonly in Metamorphic Rocks.
● Talc
○ Talc is an extremely soft, non metallic economic mineral. Hydrous magnesium
silicates.
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○ Talc are Phyllosilicates.

○ Occurs more commonly in Metamorphic Rocks.
● Garnet
● Chlorite
● Calcite
● Olivine
● Bauxite