Slope process change and colluvium deposition in Swaziland: An SEM analysis

Electron microscope analysis of sixty samples taken from six colluvium sites in Swaziland has shown that the quartz grains exhibit marked edge abrasion in the uppermost beds of exposures. This edge abrasion is lacking in the lower beds in all sections examined and indicates slope process change during colluvium deposition. A model of slope evolution is provided, in which slope erosion progressively brings about more channelling and causes greater surface roughness because of the exhumation of more core stones and differentially weathered rock. This roughness causes increased edge abrasion.