Sedimentary Rocks

General Geology / Lec..5 Petroleum engineering Dr.
Luma
Sedimentary Rocks
Sediment is a name for loose materials such a rock fragment ,minerals and bit of
shell that have been created by the weathering and erosion of rocks, chemical
precipitation of dissolved salts/minerals in water, as well as formed from secretion
of organisms (biogenic activities) which can be transported by water, wind, gravity
or glaciers. separate, or unattached to one another. Most sedimentary rocks form
from loose grains of sediment.
Sedimentary Rocks : These rocks formed from the lithification of sediment

deposited at or near the Earth’s surface derived from pre-existing rocks through the
work of mechanical or chemical processes under normal conditions at the surface
of the earth they may be composed of accumulations of organic debris.
Sedimentary rocks are often deposited in layers, and frequently contain fossils,
and they are cover 75% of the Earth's surface.
The process of Sedimentary rocks

The processes of sedimentary rock formation takes millions of years to
complete sedimentary rock formation begins with igneous ,
metamorphic, or other sedimentary rocks to begin a new cycle of rock
formation. The process of Sedimentary rocks in general are:
1- Weathering : Weathering is a general term used for the physical and chemical
breakdown of rocks at the earth surface by rain ,wind, abrasion act. There are two
types of weathering :
A- Mechanical Weathering: Breaking larger pieces into smaller piece (clastic)
with no change of chemical composition

General Geology / Lec..5 Petroleum engineering Dr.Luma
B- Chemical Weathering : chemical weathering changes the composition of rocks,

often transforming them when water interacts with minerals to create various
chemical reactions
2- Erosion : Begins the transportation process by moving the weathered products

from their original location. This can take place by gravity ( like landslides or rock
flats) , by running water , by wind, or by moving ice.
3- Transportation : Sediment can be transported by sliding down slopes, being

picked up by the wind , or by being carried by running water in streams , rivers, or
ocean currents .
4- Sedimentation or deposition (mechanical, chemical and organic) : The

process by which sediment settles out of the medium. Sediment drops out of air or
moving water when these fluids slow, because as their velocity decreases, the
fluids no longer have the ability to carry sediment. Sediment carried by ice
accumulates when the ice melts.
5- Lithification (Burial and Diagenesis) : is the changing of sediments

into rock. There are two processes involved in this process:
- First stage of the process is compaction occurs as the weight of the overlying
material increases . once the sediment has been buried, pressure generated by the
weight of the overlying material squeezes out the water and air that had been
trapped between clasts and presses the clasts together tightly, this process called
compaction.
- Second stage is cementation during and/or after compaction, cementation binds

sediment in place to make coherent sedimentary rock. During cementation,
minerals (commonly quartzor calcite) precipitate from groundwater and fill spaces
between clastsstart to bind the individual grains together by precipitating minerals
from the solutions in the pore spaces.
Figure 1 show lithification of sedimentary rocks
Classification of sedimentary rocks

Because they have such diverse origins, sedimentary rocks are difficult to classify.
We divide them into three major types: Detrital, Chemical, and Organic
sedimentary rocks, but this classification does not do justice to the great variety of
sedimentary rock types. Furthermore, despite their great variety, only three
sedimentary rocks are very common—shale, sandstone, and limestone .The main
criterion for naming detrital rocks in particle size, whereas the main basis for
distinguishing among chemical rocks is their mineral composition.
Texture of Sedimentary Rocks
Sediment texture is concerned with the grain-size and its distribution and the fabric
of the sediment. Texture is an important aspect in the description of sedimentary
rocks and can be useful in interpreting the mechanisms and environments of
deposition. It is also a major control on the porosity and permeability of a
sediment. The texture of many sedimentary rocks can only be studied adequately
with a microscope and thin-sections.
Types of sedimentary rocks:

1- Detrital sedimentary rock (Clastic) : Rock composed of weathering products
that do not dissolved into water, have silica (Sio2) as one of their major
components and are transported either by rolling along the bottom ,or rock ( lithic)
fragments ,clay minerals and mica . Clastic sedimentary rocks , are subdivided
according to the to the size of individual fragments. For example :
Conglomerate: a detrital sedimentary rock composed of rounded, gravel-sized
particles.
Breccia: a detrital sedimentary rock composed of angular fragments that were
lithified.
Gravel includes all rounded particles coarser than 2 millimeters in diameter,
(Angular fragments of this size are called rubble). Pebbles range from 2 to 64
millimeters (about the size of a tennis ball). Cobbles range from 64 to 256
millimeters (about the size of a basketball), and boulders are coarser than 256
millimeters.
Sand grains are from 1/16 millimeter (about the thickness of a human hair) to 2
millimeters in diameter. Silt grains are from 1/256 to 1/16 millimeter. They are too
small to see without a magnifying device, such as a geologist’s hand lens. Clay is
the finest sediment, at less than 1/256 millimeter.
Mud is a term loosely used for a mixture of silt and clay. See table 1
2- Chemical sedimentary rock : sedimentary rocks are deposited by precipitation

of minerals from solution, i. e., Chemical sedimentary rocks occur when
components of water evaporate and previously dissolved minerals are left behind.
An example of inorganic precipitation is the formation of rock salt as seawater
evaporates. Chemical precipitation can also be caused by organisms. The
sedimentary rock limestone is often formed from the cementation of broken pieces
of seashell and fragments of calcite mineral produced by corals and algae. Such a
rock is called a bioclastic limestone.
Not all chemical sedimentary rocks accumulate as sediment. Rock salt may
crystallize directly as a solid mass or it may form from the crystallization of
individual salt crystals that behave as sedimentary particles until they grow large
enough to interlock into solid rock. Other example is Evaporate deposit which is a
sedimentary rock formed of material deposited from solution by evaporation of the
water.
3- Organic sedimentary rocks : are rocks that are composed of organic carbon
compounds. They form as a result of the accumulation of any form of animal or
plant remains like bones. E. g., Coal is an organic rock that forms from the
compression of plant remains, such as moss, leaves, twigs, roots, and tree trunks
Table 1: show

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General Geology / Lec..5 Petroleum engineering Dr.

Sedimentary Rocks : These rocks formed from the lithification of sediment

The process of Sedimentary rocks

with no change of chemical composition

B- Chemical Weathering : chemical weathering changes the composition of rocks,

2- Erosion : Begins the transportation process by moving the weathered products

3- Transportation : Sediment can be transported by sliding down slopes, being

4- Sedimentation or deposition (mechanical, chemical and organic) : The

5- Lithification (Burial and Diagenesis) : is the changing of sediments

- Second stage is cementation during and/or after compaction, cementation binds

Figure 1 show lithification of sedimentary rocks

Classification of sedimentary rocks

Types of sedimentary rocks:

2- Chemical sedimentary rock : sedimentary rocks are deposited by precipitation

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