Earth Science (1st)

Quarter 2

Physical changes- matter changes form but not its chemical identity/composition
Example:
Breaking glass Folding paper Cutting hair Breaking egg
Mixing candies Melting ice Dry ice sublimation
Shredding paper Chopping wood Boiling water

Chemical changes- a chemical reaction occurs and new products are formed.
Examples:
Iron rusting Cooking an egg Vinegar and baking soda mixture
Burning wood Baking a cake Fireworks
Metabolism Rotting banana Chemical battery

Exogenic Process- geological phenomena and processes that originate externally to the Earth’s surface

1. Weathering- is the process of breaking down rocks, soils and minerals together with other materials at or
near the Earth’s surface.

Types:
Physical weathering
- Also called mechanical weathering
- A process that causes the disintegration of rocks, mineral, and soils without chemical change
- Physically broken of rocks into smaller pieces due to any force without any alteration of its composition.
PROCESSES:
a. Frost wedging- when water gets inside the joints, alternate freezing and thawing episodes pry the rock
apart.
b. Salt crystal growth- force exerted by salt crystal that formed as water evaporates from pore spaces or
cracks in rocks can cause the rock to fall apart.
c. Abrasion- wearing away of rocks by constant collision of loose particles
d. Biological activity- the plants and animals are the agents of mechanical weathering
Chemical Weathering
- Rocks are broken down or changed by chemical reactions
- Weathering occurs through chemical reactions that change the chemical composition of rocks, soil and
minerals.
PROCESSES:
a. Dissolution- the process of rocks dissolving when acidic waters react with minerals.
b. Oxidation- reaction between minerals and oxygen dissolved in water
c. Hydrolysis- change in the composition of minerals when they react with water.
FACTORS AFFECTING WEATHERING
A. Climate
• Cold and dry- slow rate of chemical weathering
• High temperature and high rainfall- high rate of chemical weathering
B. Rock type
• The texture of the rock can impact how quickly it weathers, as can the mineral composition.
Igneous rocks, for example, are generally harder than sedimentary rocks, and so weather more
slowly.
C. Rock structure
• Rock structure- the presence of cracks where agents of weathering (water, plant roots, etc.) can
enter and enhances weathering
D. Topography
• Topography- physical weathering occurs more quickly on a steep slope than on a gentle one
 • Low temperatures at high elevations can cause frost wedging.
• Steep slopes can experience weathering when rocks fall and expose new surfaces.
• Rocks at higher elevations are exposed to more wind, rain, and ice than the rocks at lower elevations
are. This increase in wind, rain, and ice at higher elevations causes the peaks of mountains to weather
faster.
• The more surface area that is exposed to weathering, the faster the rock will be worn
E. Time
• longer time exposure to agents of weathering means higher rate of weathering.

2. Mass wasting- is the downslope movement of soil, rock, regolith (a region of loose unconsolidated rock
and dust that sits atop a layer of bedrock.) under the direct influence of gravity.
WHAT INFLUENCES MASS WATING?
a. Slope Angle –
On a steep slope, the slope-parallel component increases while the slope- perpendicular component
decreases. Thus the tendency to slide down the slope becomes greater. All forces resisting movement
downslope can be grouped under the term shear strength which is controlled by factors such as frictional
resistance and cohesion of particles in an object, pore pressure of water, anchoring effect of plant roots.
b. Water has the ability to change the angle of repose (the steepest slope at which a pile of
unconsolidated grains remain stable). Water can reduce the friction along a sliding surface
c. Presence of Troublesome Earth materials
Expansive and hydro compacting soils – contain a high proportion of smectite or montmorillonite
which expand when wet and shrink when they dry out,
Sensitive soils – clays in some soils rearrange themselves after dissolution of salts in the pore spaces.
Clay minerals line up with one another and the pore space is reduced.
Quick clays – water-saturated clays that spontaneously liquefies when disturbed
d. Weak materials and structures- Become slippage surfaces if weight is added or support is removed
(bedding planes, weak layers, joints and fractures, foliation planes
DIFFERENT PROCESSES OF MASS WASTING

1. SLOPE FAILURES-
the sudden failure of the slope resulting in transport of debris downhill by rolling, sliding, and
slumping
>Slump – type of slide wherein downward rotation of rock or regolith occurs along a curved surface
>Rock fall and debris fall– free falling of dislodged bodies of rocks or a mixture of rock, regolith, and soil
in the case of debris fall
>Rock slide and debris slide- involves the rapid displacement of masses of rock or debris along an
inclined surface
2. SEDIMENT FLOW-
materials flow downhill mixed with water or air; slurry and granular flows are further subdivided
based on velocity at which flow occurs

i. Slurry flow – water-saturated flow which contains 20-40% water; above 40% water content,
slurry flows grade into streams
(1) Solifluction – common wherever water cannot escape from the saturated surface layer by
infiltrating to deeper levels; creates distinctive features: lobes and sheets of debris
(2) Debris flow – results from heavy rains causing soil and regolith to be saturated with water;
Debris flows composed mostly of volcanic materials on the flanks of volcanoes are called
lahars.
(3) Mud flow – highly fluid, high velocity mixture of sediment and water; can start as a muddy
stream that becomes a moving dam of mud and rubble; differs with debris flow in that fine-
grained material is predominant
 ii. ii. Granular flow – contains low amounts of water, 0-20% water; fluid-like behavior is possible
by mixing with air
(1) Creep – slowest type of mass wasting requiring several years of gradual movement to have a
pronounced effect on the slope ; evidence often seen in bent trees, offset in roads and fences,
inclined utility poles. Creep occurs when regolith alternately expands and contracts in response
to freezing and thawing, wetting and drying, or warming and cooling
(2) Grain flow – forms in dry or nearly dry granular sediment with air filling the pore spaces such
as sand flowing down the dune face
(3) Debris avalanche – very high velocity flows involving huge masses of falling rocks and
debris that break up and pulverize on impact; often occurs in very steep mountain ranges.
Some studies suggest that high velocities result from air trapped under the rock mass creating a
cushion of air that reduces friction and allowing it to move as a buoyant sheet
EVENTS THAT TRIGGER MASS WASTING
a. Shocks and vibrations – earthquakes and minor shocks such as those produced by heavy trucks on the road,
man-made explosions
b. Slope modification – creating artificially steep slope so it is no longer at the angle of repose
c. Undercutting – due to streams eroding banks or surf action undercutting a slope
d. Changes in hydrologic characteristics – heavy rains lead to water-saturated regolith increasing its weight,
reducing grain to grain contact and angle of repose;
e. Changes in slope strength – weathering weakens the rock and leads to slope failure; vegetation holds soil in
place and slows the influx of water; tree roots strengthen slope by holding the ground together
f. Volcanic eruptions - produce shocks; may produce large volumes of water from melting of glaciers during
eruption, resulting to mudflows and debris flows

3. Erosion- the incorporation and transportation of material by a mobile agent such as wind, water or ice
TYPES OF EROSION:
1. FLUVIAL- WATER
2. AEOLIAN -WIND/AIR
3. GLACIAL- ICE
4. SOIL
AGENTS OF EROSION
1.RUNNING WATER
-OVERLAND FLOW-
flow of water on the surface
-STREAMFLOW-
flow of water in streams and other channels
Can be affected by:
• • Velocity – dictates the ability of stream to erode and transport; controlled by gradient, channel size
and shape, channel roughness, and the amount of water flowing in the channel
• • Discharge- volume of water passing through a cross-section of a stream during a given time; as the
discharge increases, the width of the channel, the depth of flow, or flow velocity increase individually
or simultaneously
2. OCEAN AND SEAWAVES -are classified based on generation force: wind-generated waves, tsunamis, tides
and seiche
3. GLACIERS -a moving body of ice on land that moves downslope or outward from an area of accumulation.
(Monroe et. al., 2007)
TYPES:
i. Valley (alpine) glaciers — bounded by valleys and tend to be long and narrow
ii. Ice sheets (continental glaciers) — cover large areas of the land surface; unconfined by topography.
Modern ice sheets cover Antarctica and Greenland
iii. Ice shelves — sheets of ice floating on water and attached to the land. They usually occupy coastal
embayment.
4. 4. WIND-
Wind erodes by: deflation (removal of loose, fine particles from the surface), and abrasion (grinding
action and sandblasting)
Wind, just like flowing water, can carry sediments such as: (1) bed load (consists of sand hopping and
bouncing through the process of saltation), and (2) suspended load (clay and silt-sized particles held
aloft)
5. GROUNDWATER -. The main erosional process associated with groundwater is solution. Slow-moving
groundwater cannot erode rocks by mechanical processes, as a stream does, but it can dissolve rocks
and carry these off in solution.
6. GRAVITY
Mass wasting — the downslope movement of soil, rock, and regolith under the direct influence of gravity
Deposition-
constructive process that place weathered and eroded materials in a location that is different from their
source.
Deposition is not specific to a single weathering, erosion, or mass wasting event.
Applies to any consolidated or unconsolidated materials that have accumulated as a result of some natural
process or agent.