1. What happens if you sneeze into a pile of dust? What happens if you do it into rocks?

2. What happens with large sediments and what happens with the small ones?

3. What is weathering? What kinds of weathering exist?

4. Where do sedimentary rocks are transported to? 5. What are sedimentary rocks? What percentage

of the earth crust do they cover? 6. What is the importance of the sedimentary

rocks? 7. How are they classified? Make a mind map.

If you sneeze into a pile of dust, the little particles fly everywhere. But if you sneeze into a pile of rocks, they will stay put. It takes more force than a sneeze to move those rocks. Winds and water can have enough force to move rocks.

Larger pieces of sediment can be carried in a stronger current, like fast moving water. Very small particles like silt and clay can be carried by even slow current and settle very slowly. They only form layers at the bottom of quiet water areas like lakes, swamps, or lagoons.

Over time, rocks exposed at the Earth’s surface wear away. This is called weathering. There is two types of weathering that break rocks apart.

By chemical weathering, the minerals in rocks are dissolved into rainwater or changed from one type of mineral into another. Chemical weathering happens quickly in warm, moist environments because water is needed for the chemical changes and warmth speeds up the process.

By physical weathering, rocks are broken apart into smaller pieces. There are many ways that rocks are physically weathered. Water flowing in rivers and streams can break rock apart, as can ocean waves on a rocky coastline. Tree and plant roots often push rocks apart, especially when they grow in areas with little topsoil

Weathered rock fragments are either moved away by water or wind, or they become a part of the soil. Soil is formed as rocks are weathered at the surface and combined with plant and animal remains. There are many different types of soil depending on rock weathering and the amount of plants and animals in the environment.

Sedimentary Rocks

Transportation of sediments and formation of sedimentary rocks: River water- deposition on the continent and sea water on the ocean floor.

Marine deposits

Fluvial deposits

75% of land surface on the earth is covered by thin veneer of sediments or sedimentary rocks.

These sediments are transported and deposited by river water, wind or by movement of glacial ice. Transportation is either in suspension or in solution.

When settle down on the beds of ocean, river and lakes undergo compaction/cementation for millions of years to form SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

SEDIMENTARY ROCKS: are the secondary rocks which are formed from the loose fragments or detrital or clastic sediments produced by weathering of older rocks.

“Present is the key to the past” Helps in knowing depositional environment

viz. marine (ocean deposits), fluvial (river deposits), aeolian (wind deposits), glacial, estuarine, Lacustrine (lake deposits) etc.

Helps in knowing the provenance (i.e. source area of the sediments); change in climatic conditions i.e. in knowing and understanding old climate=paleoclimate.

Sandstones Conglomerat

es Breccia Shale/

mudstones

TYPES OF SEDIMENTARY ROCKS

Clastic rocks Chemical & Organic rocks

Evaporitic rocks

These rocks are formeddue to evaporation of saline water (sea water)eg. Gypsum, Halit (rock salt)

Carbonate rocks

Form basically from CaCO3 – both by chemical leaching and by organic source (biochemical) eg. Limestone; dolomite

Organic rocks

Form due to decomposition of organic remains under temperature and pressure eg. Coal/Lignite etc.

formed from broken rock fragments weathered and eroded by river, glacier, wind and sea waves. These clastic sediments are found deposited on floodplains, beaches, in desert and on the sea floors.

CLASTIC ROCKS

Clastic rockssolidify

• Clastic rocks are classified on the basis of the grain size: conglomerate, sandstone, shale etc.

Gravel>256-2 mm

Sand2- 0.062 mm

Clay<0.004 mm

Silt0.062-0.004 mm

Boulder: >256mm

Cobble: 64-256 mm

Pebble: 4-64 mm

Granule: 2-4mmFine gravel

Clastic rocks mainly comprise broken fragment of older rock – they are also know as Terrigenous rocks

Any rock fragment(size is > 4 mm=Pebble)

Fine-gravel/Granule(size <4mm)

Matrix: is the finer grains or material that surrounds the larger clasts. It consists of either clay, silt and sand.

Cement: dissolved substance that bounds the sediments.

1. Calcareous2. siliceous

Degree of roundness helps in knowing the distance of transportation

•Angular clasts- short distance transport from the source

•Rounded clasts- long distance transport

When clastic fragments are cemented or undergo consolidation they are called CONGLOMERATES

Similarly when angular clasts undergo consolidation they are called BRECCIA

Sorting of the sediments also suggest the mode of deposition and transportation.

Long distance transport= well-rounded and well-sorted sediments,

Short distance transport = poorly sorted angular grains.

Also helps in knowing the energy conditions of the river.

DIFFERENT CATERGORIES OF CLASTIC ROCKS

• RUDACEOUS ROCKS: made up of rounded or sub-rounded Pebbles and cobbles eg. conglomerate

• ARENACEOUS ROCKS: made up of mainly sand eg. Sandstone. These rocks are either accumulated by wind action or deposited under water action or marine or lake environment

• ARGILLACEOUS ROCKS: made up of clay size sediments eg. Shale, mudstones, siltstones.

CONGLOMERATE comprise clastic sediments like pebbles and cobbles (heterogeneous)

If the cementation is good (voids between the clasts) = then the conglomerate will be hard and competent hence act as strong foundation, but not good rock for ground water source.

However, if the cementation is poor = it makes the rock more porous with high porosity = act as good reserve for ground water (aquifer), but is undesirable at the site for foundation of major CE structures.

Due to heavy seepage along the conglomerate may result in failure by sliding. Eg. Failure of St. Francis dam, US.

Cementation:

• Cementing material is usually secondary Silica (Siliceous cement), Calcium carbonate (Carbonate cement), Iron rich (ferruginous cement)

• Cement itself to some extent is the source of weakness in the sedimentary rocks

• Because cementing material and the clastic sediments are usually of different composition, leading to heterogeneity in their physical characteristics.

• Hence such rock will not behave homogeneously under stress, resulting into development of cracks or fissures which develops in cementing material.

• If the cement is Calcium Carbonate- it is undesirable, because it is susceptible to dissolve in Carbon-dioxide in water

• However, if cementation process continuous for longer span of time= cementation will become more complete, which reduce the porosity and permeability in the rock mass and increase competence.

• Shape of grains: i.e. if coarser grains are rounded or subrounded=cement material will not have firm grip=such rocks behave as incompetent rocks

SANDSTONE: Made up of sand grains dominantly of

Quartz and Feldspars, where quartz is highly resistive to weathering

Cementation plays similar role in this rock as seen in conglomerate

However, Siliceous cement are best and highly desirable for CE purposes, also the ferruginous sst.

Different type of Sst. (based on their composition)

Quartz Sst. Arkose (Feldspar)

Graywacke/lithic arenite

Shales are clastic rocks, made up mainly fine silt/clay

They are most abundant sedimentary rocks, accounts for about 80% of them

Often contain fossils Mostly hydrous aluminum

silicate in composition = from weathered feldspars

Deposition takes place under low fluvial regime or under weak water current. Eg. Offshore or in LagoonShale-fissile

• Shales are made of fine well sorted silt and clayey sediments, where normally one can expect high porosity and permeability.

•But due to surface tension phenomenon of water and extremely fine intergranular space shales are impermeable, hence does not yield water when tapped

When shales are saturated with water – under pressure they are likely to produce slippery foundation for any structure- therefore not suitable for CE structures

eg. Lafayette dam of US constructed on argillaceous rocks sunk by 20 feet.

Srisailam Dam in Andhra Pradesh (One of the 12th largest Hydroelectric Projects in the India) faced similar problem, however, precautions were take by grouting to stop the seepage along the weak zones.

Because of its impermeable and porous nature it acts as cap rocks in the occurrence of Oil and Gas.

EVAPORITIC ROCKSThese rocks are formed within the a depositional basin from chemical substances dissolved in the seawater or lake water.

Gypsum Halite

(NaCl)CaSO4.2H20

Limestone: It is a non-clastic rock formed either chemically or due to precipitation of calcite (CaCO3) from organisms usually (shell).  These remains will result in formation of a limestone.

Limestones formed by chemical precipitation are usually fine grained, whereas, in case of organic limestone the grain size vary depending upon the type of organism responsible for the formation Chalk: which is made up of foraminefera is very

fine grained Fossiliferous Limestone: which medium to coarse

grained, as it is formed out of cementation of Shells.

• used as a building stone and in the manufacture of lime, carbon dioxide, and cement.

• Massive and compact lst. Are competent to support CE-structure

• However, if it occur in huge thickness then it is not advisable, because of its typical CAVING character.

Chalk