Sedimetary Petrology (Intro) Flashcards

1
Q

Pieces of broken down, pre-existing rocks at or near the Earth’s surface.

A

Sediments

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2
Q

Rocks that are made up of lithified sediments.

A

Sedimentary Rocks

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3
Q

A sub-branch of Petrology that focuses on the composition, characteristics, and origins of sedimentary rocks.

A

Sedimentary Petrology

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4
Q

A simple model of the processes responsible for the production of sedimentary rocks

A

Sedimentary Cycle

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5
Q

Area of uplifted rocks that will undergo weathering

A

Zone of Production

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6
Q

Area where sediments accumulate that will undergo diagenesis

A

Zone of Deposition

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7
Q

Enumerate the sequence of formation of Sedimentary Rocks.

A
  1. Weathering
  2. Erosion
  3. Transport
  4. Deposition
  5. Diagenesis
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8
Q

The process that breaks down rocks into sediments.

A

Weathering

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9
Q

The physical removal of material by mobile agents such as water, wind, ice, and gravity.

A

Erosion

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10
Q

The transfer of rock and soil downslope under the influence of gravity.

A

Mass Wasting

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11
Q

Factors, particularly temperature and moisture, are crucial to the rate of rock weathering.

A

Climate

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12
Q

Chemical traits of rocks, including mineral composition and solubility.

A

Rock Characteristics

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13
Q

Unequal weathering due to the rock’s composition.

A

Differential Weathering

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14
Q

A mixture of minerals, organic matter, water, and air.

A

Soil

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15
Q

The layer of rock fragments produced by weathering.

A

Regolith

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16
Q

The study of physical and chemical properties of soils and its formation.

A

Pedology

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17
Q

The source of the weathered mineral matter from which soils develop.

A

Parent Material

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18
Q

Strongly influences weathering by the length of the time that processes have been operating.

A

Time

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19
Q

Climactic elements, such as temperature and precipitation, that exert the strongest impact on soil formation

A

Climate

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20
Q

The types of abundance of organisms present have a strong influence on the physical and chemical properties of the soil.

A

Organisms

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21
Q

Variations in topography can lead to the development of a variety of localized soil types.

A

Topography

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22
Q

Zones of soil with varying composition, texture, and structure found at different depths.

A

Horizons

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23
Q

A vertical profile of all the soil horizons.

A

Soil Profile

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24
Q

Washing out of fine soil components.

A

Eluviation

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25
Q

Depletion of solube minerals from the upper horizons.

A

Leaching

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26
Q

Constitutes the O and A horizon.

A

Topsoil

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27
Q

Soil horizon that consists largely of organic material.

A

O Horizon

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28
Q

The zone beneath the O horizon that is largely mineral matter, with biological activity is high and humus generally present at up to 30% in some instances.

A

A Horizon

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29
Q

A light-colored layer, known as the Zone of Eluviation and leaching, that contains little organic material.

A

E Horizon

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30
Q

Also called as the subsoil, is the zone of accumulation where much of the material removed from the E horizon by eluviation is deposited.

A

B Horizon

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31
Q

Also called as the true soil, that constitutes the O, A, E, and B horizon.

A

Solum

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32
Q

The layer of partially altered parent material.

A

C Horizon

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33
Q

The unweathered parent material.

A

R Horizon

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34
Q

A system of soil classification based on the physical and chemical properties of the soil profile.

A

Soil Taxonomy

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35
Q

High-nutrient

A

Alfisol

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36
Q

Volcanic

A

Andisol

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37
Q

Desert

A

Aridosol

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38
Q

New

A

Entisol

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39
Q

Permafrost

A

Gelisol

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40
Q

Organic

A

Histosol

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41
Q

Young

A

Inceptisol

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42
Q

Prairie

A

Mollisol

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43
Q

Tropical Forest

A

Oxisol

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44
Q

Conifer Forest

A

Spodosol

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45
Q

Low-Nutrient

A

Ultisol

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46
Q

Swelling Clay

A

Vertisol

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47
Q

The physical breakdown (disintegration) and the chemical alteration (decomposition) of rocks at or near Earth’s surface.

A

Weathering

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48
Q

The physical breakdown or disintegration of rocks at or near the surface.

A

Mechanical Weathering

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49
Q

The chemical breakdown or decomposition of rocks at or near the Earth’s surface.

A

Chemical Weathering

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50
Q

The freeze-thaw action of water trapped within fractures of rocks that cause the expansion and contraction which would eventually disintegrate rocks.

A

Frost Wedging

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51
Q

A mode of weathering near coastlines where salt from seawater accumulate and grow through cracks and fracture them while growing.

A

Salt Crystal Growth

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52
Q

Rocks that are originally covered and are then exposed are relieved from pressure, causing an unloading action and expansion

A

Sheeting or Unloading

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53
Q

Organisms, such as plants, can burrow their roots through cracks which breaks down the rocks into pieces.

A

Biological Actions

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54
Q

The intrusions from beneath the surface induce pressure from below, fracturing the rock mass on the surface

A

Intrusions

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55
Q

A solution mixture of reactive components to specific rocks.

A

Solution

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56
Q

Chemical breakdown of minerals in rocks due to addition of water.

A

Hydrolysis

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57
Q

Chemical breakdown of rocks due to exposure to oxygen.

A

Oxidation

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58
Q

Enumerate the rock forming silicate minerals according to their resistance to chemical weathering. (From least resistant to most resistant)

A
  1. Olivine
  2. Ca-Feldspars
  3. Pyroxenes
  4. Amphiboles
  5. Na-Feldspars
  6. Biotite Mica
  7. K-Feldspars
  8. Muscovite Mica
  9. Quartz
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59
Q

Enumerate the weathering products from the rock forming silicates. (Clay Minerals)

A

Kaolinite, Illite, Montmorillonite, and Chlorite

60
Q

The removal of materials or sediments by mobile agents such as water, ice, wind, or humans.

A

Erosion

61
Q

Enumerate the 4 transport medias of sediments.

A

Air, Water, Ice, and Gravity

62
Q

Mode of Transport: (BEDLOAD)
Sediments rolling along the surface of the bed.

A

Rolling

63
Q

Mode of Transport: (BEDLOAD)
A series of jumping movement of sediments.

A

Saltation

64
Q

Mode of Transport: (SUSPENDED LOAD)
Sediments suspended in the transporting media.

A

Suspension

65
Q

The volume of void spaces in a sedimentary rock.

A

Porosity

66
Q

Porosity associated with the original depositional texture of the sediment.

A

Primary Porosity

67
Q

Porosity that developed after deposition and burial of the sediment in the sedimentary basin.

A

Secondary Porosity

68
Q

The measure of how much water can move through pore spaces which also describes how water easily flows.

A

Permeability

69
Q

A property of curve being tortous, or twisted, having many turns.

A

Tortuosity

70
Q

Occurs when transportation ceases and sediments accumulate on Earth’s surface by collective deposition processes.

A

Deposition

71
Q

Encompasses a variety of low-temperature processes that affect sediments after their accumulation, typically after burial.

A

Diagenesis

72
Q

Process of lithification that results from the expulsion of intergranular fluids caused by increases in confining pressure during progressively deeper burial.

A

Compaction

73
Q

Process of lithification that occurs when subsurface fluids precipitate minerals in the spaces between grains, binding or cementing grains together.

A

Cementation

74
Q

The minerals that commonly form cement include:
- The most abundant type is quartz, often occurs as syntaxial quartz overgrowths, where it precipitates from pore solutions and nucleates on a pre-existing detrital quartz grain.

A

Silica minerals

75
Q

The minerals that commonly form cement include:
- Its most abundant cements are sandstones and gravel stones. where calcite is the most common mineral cement.

A

Carbonate minerals

76
Q

The minerals that commonly form cement include:
- Third most common cementing agents in sedimentary rocks. hematite, goethite, and limonite being its chief cements.

A

Iron Oxides and Hydroxides

77
Q

The minerals that commonly form cement include:
- Occurs in feldspar-rich detrital sedimentary rocks like arkosic sandstones and gravel stones.

A

Feldspars

78
Q

The minerals that commonly form cement include:
- Found in some detrital sedimentary rocks. their stabilities are strongly controlled by temperature and pH. And can also act as a cementing agent, especially in shales.

A

Clay minerals

79
Q

The formation of new quartz crystals that grow on the surface of existing quartz grains during diagenesis. These overgrowths occur in sedimentary rocks and are part of the cementation process.

A

Syntaxial quartz overgrowths

80
Q

Stages in Diagenesis:
- Early, shallow diagenesis, occurs shortly after burial.

A

EODIAGENESIS

81
Q

Stages in Diagenesis:
- Later, deeper diagenesis.

A

MESODIAGENESIS

82
Q

Stages in Diagenesis:
- Still later, shallow diagenesis occurs as sedimentary rocks approach the surface due to erosion.

A

TELODIAGENESIS

83
Q

What are the two main categories of sedimentary rocks?

A

Clastic and non-clastic

84
Q

Formed from the accumulation and cementation of fragments of other rocks or minerals.

A

Clastic sedimentary rocks

85
Q

Rocks formed from volcanic debris.

A

Volcaniclastic

86
Q

Rocks formed from fragments of continental rocks.

A

Terrigenous clastic

87
Q

Three category of Terrigenous clastic includes:
- Fine-grained rocks made of clay minerals.

A

Mudrocks

88
Q

Three category of Terrigenous clastic includes:
- Medium-grained rocks made of sand-sized particles.

A

Sandstones

89
Q

Three category of Terrigenous clastic includes:
- Coarse-grained rocks made of gravel-sized particles.

A

Conglomerate or Breccia

90
Q

Formed by chemical precipitation or the accumulation of organic material.

A

Non-clastic sedimentary rocks

91
Q

Example of Volcaniclastic

A

Tuff and Ignimbrites

92
Q

Rocks composed primarily of carbonate minerals, such as limestone and dolomite.

A

Carbonates

93
Q

Rocks formed from the evaporation of mineral-rich waters, such as halite (salt) and gypsum.

A

Evaporites

94
Q

What other variety of non-clastic rocks includes?

A
  • coal
  • ironstones
  • phosphates
  • siliceous deposits
95
Q

What are the four main principal components of sedimentary rocks?

A

Mineral grains, lithic fragments, biogenic material, and chemical precipitates

96
Q

Give examples of mineral grains found in sedimentary rocks.

A

Quartz, mica, feldspar, calcite

97
Q

These are individual mineral crystals that make up the rock.

A

Mineral grains

98
Q

These are fragments of other rocks that have been eroded and transported to the depositional environment.

A

Lithic fragments

99
Q

These are organic materials derived from living organisms

A

Biogenic material

100
Q

These are minerals that have precipitated from solution in water

A

Chemical precipitates

101
Q

Examples of Chemical precipitates

A
  • carbonates
  • chlorides
  • sulfates
  • silica
102
Q

Examples of Biogenic material

A
  • shells
  • skeletal material
  • plant debris
  • algae
  • bacteria
  • bone
103
Q

Examples of Lithic fragments

A
  • limestone
  • mudrock
  • volcanic rock
  • metamorphic rock
104
Q

Examples of Mineral grains

A
  • quartz
  • mica
  • feldspar
  • calcite
105
Q

Refers to the size of the individual particles that make up the rock. It can be classified using a variety of scales, but one of the most common is the phi scale.

A

Grain size

106
Q

a logarithmic scale that expresses grain size in terms of its diameter (d)

A

Phi scale

107
Q

Formula of Phi scale?

A

Phi = -log₂(d)

108
Q

Coarse fraction, includes particles from sand to gravel

A

Clasts

109
Q

Fine fraction, includes mud-sized particles.

A

Matrix

110
Q

Used to represent the typical particle size in a population.

A

Central measure

111
Q

BAR graph showing the weight percentage of clasts at different phi values.

A

Histogram

112
Q

LINE graph showing the weight percentage of clasts at different phi values.

A

Frequency curve

113
Q

Line graph showing the cumulative weight percentage of all particles coarser than a given phi value.

A

Cumulative curve

114
Q

Most abundant particle size.

A

Mode

115
Q

Average size of the particles, calculated as the sum of all particle sizes divided by the number of particles.

A

Mean

116
Q

Average diameter of the particles, calculated using a formula involving the 16th, 50th, and 84th percentiles of the particle size distribution.

A

Graphic geometric mean (GM)

117
Q

Method of determining the grain size distribution of sediments by passing them through a series of stacked sieves with different mesh sizes.

A

Sieving

118
Q

Provides information about the nature and maturity of the grains.

A

Grain Shape

119
Q

Factors affecting shape?

A
  • Lithology (the type of rock the grains came from)
  • Hardness
120
Q

Spheroid particles with similar dimensions in all directions.

A

Equant

121
Q

Rod-shaped particles with an elongated cylindrical shape.

A

Prolate

122
Q

Disk-shaped particles with a flattened cylindrical or disk-like shape.

A

Oblate

123
Q

Particles that have a flattened shape where the three axes (length, width, and thickness) have significantly different lengths.

A

Bladed

124
Q

Distribution of grain sizes present within a sedimentary rock.

A

Sorting

125
Q

Quick method of determining the phi size value for any percentile.

A

Sorting coefficient

126
Q

More complicated measure of sorting that involves finding values that are one and two standard deviations above and below the mean.

A

Inclusive graphic standard deviation

127
Q

Volume of void space in a sedimentary rock, expressed as a percentage.

A

Porosity

128
Q

Arrangement of grains in a rock.

A

Packing density

129
Q

Loose arrangement with 48% porosity.

A

Cubic packing

130
Q

Denser arrangement with 26% porosity.

A

Rhombohedral packing

131
Q

Ability of a rock to allow fluids to pass through it. It is influenced by factors such as grain size, sorting, and porosity.

A

Permeability

132
Q

2 Ways to Measure Maturity:

A
  • Textural
  • Compositional
133
Q

Measures how much a sedimentary rock has been transported and eroded, based on its physical characteristics.

A

Textural maturity

134
Q

Degree of maturity that measures the amount of components present

A

Compositional maturity

135
Q

Soils that are derived from broken down ultramafic rock.

A

Laterites

136
Q

The sequence of formation of Soil Horizons.

A
  1. R
  2. C
  3. O
  4. A
  5. E
  6. B
137
Q

Frost action characterized by lateral movements.

A

Frost Wedging

138
Q

Frost action characterized by vertical movements.

A

Frost Heaving

139
Q

Description of the layers that formed when a surface is exposed through sheeting or unloading.

A

Onion Layers

140
Q

Occurs when glaciers pulverizes the rock beneath it.

A

Rock Flour

141
Q

The point before metamorphism.

A

Diagenesis

142
Q

During frost action, water expands by ____ %.

A

9%

143
Q

Term for the “Soil” from the moon.

A

Lunar Regolith

144
Q

The most effective transport media

A

Water

145
Q

The strongest transport media

A

Ice

146
Q

A process of cementation wherein the minerals precipitate surrounding the sediment particles, instead of the void spaces.

A

Syntaxion