Laboratory simulation of rock weathering by salt crystallization and hydration processes in hot,arid environments

The results of a series of experiments are reported in this paper which were designed to differentiate between the forces of crystal growth and hydration in salt weathering, using a single salt-hydrate system (sodium sulphate), five contrasting rock types, and several diurnal temperature-relative humidity cycles which permitted or inhibited these processes and simulated ground surface climates in hot, arid environments. It was shown that hydration of sodium sulphate is an effective mechanism of rock disintegration but that it is significantly less destructive than crystal growth pressure. Crystallization of thenardite (Na₂SO₄) is, in turn, more effective in rock weathering than the crystal growth of mirabilite (Na₂SO₄.10H₂O). In general, rates of disintegration were most rapid where the diurnal temperature range was extreme and relative humidity lowest.     

The pre-glacial evolution of Wales

The classical explanation of the development of the Welsh landscape by the effects of a pulsed ‘eustatic’ uplift during the Cenozoic times is challenged by new data on the geology and geomorphology of Wales and the adjacent regions. The post-Caledonian surface developed over most of Wales in the upper Westphalian plays a major role in landform development. Since its emergence before mid-Cretaceous times, the Welsh Massif has suffered a long subaerial evolution which favoured a powerful chemical weathering. In Anglesey and St. David's Land, residual hills were formed by a process of differential weathering, and downwearing in saprolites. The Millstone Grit quartzites have been deeply weathered and dolines or flat-bottomed basins have been developed. From Cretaceous to Miocene times, a morphotectonic equilibrium has existed between uplift and denudation, so that, in the major part of Wales, the original planation surface was constantly maintained by lowering on itself and in some places it is possible to prove that no more than a few dozen metres of rock thickness disappeared during that period. Several main escarpments were produced by the warping of the planation surface along sharp flexures, during Neogene times. The Cenozoic vertical movements were controlled by the Caledonian or pre-Caledonian tectonic pattern which has divided the continental crust into major structural units. Welsh tectonic development is related to the opening of the North Atlantic, associated stresses reactivating ancient lines of weakness in the heterogeneous lower crust or upper mantle.     

Blue-green algae and terrestrial limestone weathering on Aldabra Atoll: An S.E.M. and light microscope study

Blue-green algae have been observed to affect limestone weathering on Aldabra Atoll, Indian Ocean. Three different habitats can be identified on the rock surface, i.e. epilithic, chasmolithic, and endolithic. Algae in each habitat may affect weathering in various ways. Samples of blue-green algae and rock were taken from various terrestrial and coastal environments on Aldabra Atoll. Samples of limestone tablets and calcite crystals after one year in situ were also studied. Light and S.E.M. microscopy revealed that endolithic boreholes were present on many samples, especially those from frequently wetted sites, to a maximum depth of 800 μm. An ‘altered zone’ of micrite and algal filaments was also discovered in many samples. From morphological and petrographical evidence blue-green algal influences on weathering on Aldabra Atoll seem to be very complex and cannot easily be related to small scale landforms.     

Enhanced boulder weathering under late-lying snowpatches

A Schmidt test hammer was employed to assess the aggregate surface hardness of samples of boulders dug out from under late-lying snowpatches at sites in Switzerland, Scotland and Norway. The results were compared with an equivalent set of readings made on boulders at nearby snow-free control sites. The results in every case reveal that the aggregate surface hardness of boulders buried by late-lying snow is significantly less (at the 0·001 level) than that of boulders at the corresponding control sites. This result indicates that late-lying snow significantly enhances rock weathering, probably because boulder and rock surfaces are exposed to prolonged wetting by percolating meltwater under late-lying snowbeds.     

河南不同成因类型铝土矿的矿石特征

本文在对铝土矿石物质组成研究的基础上,运用电子显微镜(EM)对河南两类不同类型铝土矿床的矿石结构进行了观察研究。根据EM观察到的铝土矿石显微结构的不同形貌特征,划分出三种矿石结构类型:致密-隐晶结构、粒状镶嵌结构和粒屑结构。由此归结为两个成因类型:古风化壳异地堆积亚型和古风化壳原地堆积亚型的铝土矿床。     

An investigation into the relationship between salt weathering debris production and temperature

An investigation using laboratory simulation has been made using air temperature data for Tunisia, Antarctica, and southwest England. An experiment with a 50 cycle run produced results which showed significantly greater debris production in the Antarctica and Tunisian simulations than in the southwest England simulation. Using X-ray analysts to determine salt penetration, an inverse relationship between salt penetration and debris production was seen to exist. This could be the result of evaporation in the Tunisian simulation and rapid freezing in the Antarctic simulation, concentrating salts in the upper layers of the rock samples. In the southwest England simulation, no freezing, and relatively high humidities allowed greater penetration, thus distributing an equal input of salt over a greater area. The author tentatively suggests the possible existence of a parabolic relationship between salt weathering and temperature.     

Corroded cobbles in Southern Death Valley: Their relationship to honeycomb weathering and lake shorelines

In southern Death Valley, pits similar in morphology to honeycomb weathering (herein referred to as corrosion pits) occur on the surfaces of cobbles that are associated with wave-produced benches. The pitted cobbles include a variety of igneous, metamorphic, and siliciclastic rocks; corrosion pits are rare to absent in limestones or dolomites. Pit morphology is controlled by cobble lithology. In massive rocks the pits are arcuate, elongate, and gently tapering; corrosion of laminated or foliated rocks has produced irregular, more jagged pits. The presence of desert varnish has strongly inhibited the corrosion process. The corroded cobbles are inferred to reflect both chemical and physical weathering of rocks along Pleistocene lacustrine strandlines. Corrosion took place through salt-weathering and/or heat-moisture expansion processes and through chemical dissolution of selected minerals as a result of splash-zone wetting and drying. The ancient lake waters may have had high pH and high total dissolved solids contents. The recognition of corroded cobbles may be important in the reconstruction of the position of ancient shorelines for certain types of alkaline lakes and in the reconstruction of their ancient chemistries.     

Some observations on the chemical weathering of the Dartmoor granite

The majority of geomorphological papers about Dartmoor have been essentially speculative, particularly when discussing weathering processes and the evolution of the Dartmoor landscape. In contrast, this article presents a synthesis of several experimental investigations aimed at studying the chemical weathering of Dartmoor granite through the systematic analysis of soil and water samples. This involved the computation of a geochemical budget to determine the amount of erosion in the catchment, as well as more detailed mineralogical investigations within a soil profile. The annual output of solutes due to weathering was 116 kg ha^?1 a^?1 of which the majority was silica (93 kg ha^?1 a^?1). From an examination of the soil mineralogy, it was calculated that these solutes were derived from the dissolution of approximately 200 kg ha^?1 a^?1 plagioclase, 90 kg ha^?1 a^?1 biotite, and 40 kg ha^?1 a^?1 orthoclase. As well as the weathering of granite, there was also the production of kaolinite (150 kg ha^?1 a^?1) and gibbsite (0.02 kg ha^?1 a^?1). Analysis of the soil water chemistry confirmed that kaolinite was the stable mineral phase in the regolith, although in areas where interflow was the dominant mode of water movement, the solute composition was in equilibrium with both kaolinite and gibbsite. Examination of the clay mineralogy confirmed these results. The microtexture of quartz grains was examined by the scanning electron microscope as another means of investigating the hydrochemical environment in the soil. Silica was found precipitated on all the grains examined but the maximum amount occurred in the Bs horizon. This evidence showed that, firstly, the dissolution of aluminosilicate minerals is greater than that calculated by the chemical budget and, secondly, that models of granite weathering must take localized weathering in the soil profile into account. The final part of the paper highlights the limitations of calculating denudation rates for an entire catchment and stresses the need to consider weathering as a highly localized phenomenon, particularly where there are high volumes of interflow at hill crest sites. Observations on granite decomposition in the future should be quantitative in approach and be related to the local site conditions.     

Provenance of Middle Jurassic clastic rocks from the Bogda area of Eastern Tianshan and its implications

ABSTRACT

The siliciclastic rocks in the Xishanyao (XSY) and Toutunhe (TTH) formations recorded the Middle Jurassic palaeogeographic evolution processes of the Bogda Mountains. To explore their provenance, the geochronological, geochemical, and petrological characteristics of the Middle Jurassic sandstones from the west Bogda area are analyzed in this study. The detrital grains of sandstones are generally poorly to moderately sorted and subangular to subrounded. Low to moderate CIA* (chemical index of alteration), PIA (plagioclase index of alteration), CIW (chemical index of weathering) and relatively high ICV (index of compositional variability) values indicate the overall low to moderate weathering intensity, low sediment recycling, and abundant first-cycle siliciclastics supply. The abundant acid volcanic lithic fragments and element contents/ratios of the sandstones indicate source areas dominated by felsic rocks. The detrital zircon U-Pb age spectrum of the lower XSY Formation is dominated by a single Carboniferous age group. Multiple Palaeozoic zircon U-Pb age groups exist in the middle-upper XSY Formation. The TTH Formation has a typical age of late Middle Jurassic. Combined with the sedimentological characteristics, it reveals that (1) the Eastern Bogda Mountains (EBM) were the only provenance for the lower XSY Formation; (2) both the Yemaquan arc and the EBM provided detritus for the middle XSY Formation; (3) the Yemaquan arc became a minor provenance for the TTH and upper XSY formations. Middle Jurassic palaeogeographic evolution in the EBM is inferred as follows: (1) during the deposition of the lower XSY Formation, the EBM suffered a rapid uplift and became an obvious positive relief; (2) the palaeorelief became high in the Yemaquan arc area and low in the EBM during the deposition of the middle XSY Formation; (3) the Yemaquan arc was considerably eroded, which caused the palaeotopography to decline sharply during the deposition of the upper XSY Formation; (4) the EBM uplifted again during the TTH Formation period, accompanied by volcanic activities at ~165Ma.     

一个大型红土型金矿的成矿地质条件及形成机理分析

蛇屋山金矿床是我国首先在湖北省发现并探明的大型红土型金矿床。矿床经渗流热卤水成矿作用，形成原生金矿化（体）；再经表生同化成矿作用形成风化型金矿床。矿床成因类型属渗流热卤水－表生成因的残积粘土型金矿床，工业类型为红土型金矿床。