CHAPTER 3

GEOLOGIC
PROCESSES ON THE
EARTH’S SURFACE
NATURE OF EXOGENIC
PROCESSES
⦿ - include geological phenomena
and processes that originate externally to
the Earth's surface.
⦿ They are genetically related to the
atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere,
and therefore to processes of weathering,
erosion, transportation, deposition,
denudation etc. Exogenic factors and
processes could also have sources outside
the Earth, for instance under the influence of
the Sun, Moon etc.
WEATHERING

⦿ Weathering is the action of elements

of weather and climate over earth material.
⦿ It can be defined mechanical disintegration and chemical
decomposition of rocks through the actions of various
elements of weather and climate.
⦿ When rocks undergo weathering, some minerals are removed
through chemical/ physical leaching by ground water and
thereby the concentration of remaining (valuable) minerals
increase.
⦿ Weathering can be classified as – physical, chemical and
biological:
PHYSICAL WEATHERING
⦿ Physical / Mechanical
weathering
⦿ Physical or mechanical
weathering processes depend
on some applied forces.
⦿ The applied forces could be: (i)
gravitational forces such as
overburden pressure, load, and
shearing stress; (ii) expansion
force due to temperature
changes, crystal growth or
animal activity; (iii) water
pressure controlled by wetting
and drying cycles.
⦿ Causes: Most of the physical
weathering are caused by
thermal expansion and
pressure.
 THERMAL
EXPANSION AND
CONTRACTION
THE DIFFERENCE OF THERMAL
EXPANSION & CONTRACTION
WEATHERING
CONTRACTION
THERMAL EXPANSION WEATHERING

As any As it cools, it

substance is contracts.
heated, it
expands.
 CONCLUSION;
Alternating heating and
cooling can lead to the
mechanical splitting of rocks.
 GRANULAR
DISINTEGRATION

Is the
breaking
free of
individual
mineral
grains from
a rock
 FREEZE-THAW
WEATHERING
Also known as ‘first weathering’ or
‘ice wedging’
 FREEZE-THAW
WEATHERING
 Cycles of freezing
and thawing
 When the water
freezes, it expands up
to 9%
 Rapid freezing of
water cause its
sudden expansion
and high pressure.
 The resulting
expansion affects
joints, cracks, and
intergranular fractures
to become wider and
wider till the rocks
breaks apart.
  With salt crystal growth,
water containing
dissolves salts
accumulates in these
SALT spaces.
 When the water evaporates,
CRYSTAL the salt stay behind growing
into crystals that are capable
GROWTH of wedging pieces of rock
apart.
 People also contribute to salt
weathering when they use
salt to melt ice from roads
and sidewalks in winter.
➢ Salt crystal growth
leads to granular
disintegration in
coarse crystalline
rocks or to the
removal of elastic
particles from
sedimentary rocks.
➢ Continued salt
weathering,
contributes to the
creation of the
numerous small
hollows that occur
along many
sandstones cliffs in
arid and coastal
locations.
 HYDRATION
 The water molecules are able to
join and leave the ‘host’ mineral
during hydration and dehydration
respectively.
 A mineral will expand when
hydrated and shrink when
dehydrated.
 When hydrating materials expand
in cracks or voids within rocks,
pieces of rock can wedge apart.
 Salts and clay minerals, which are
clay-sized materials formed
during chemical weathering,
commonly occupy cracks and
voids in rocks and are subject to
hydration and dehydration.
 CHEMICAL
WEATHERING
Chemical weathering is
the first stage in the
production of soils.
 CHEMICAL
WEATHERING
 In chemical weathering, ions
from a rock are either
released into water or
recombine with other
substance to form new
materials, such as clay
minerals.
 New materials made by
chemical weathering are more
stable at Earth’s surface than
the original rocks.
 The most important catalyst
are reactive agents • This is the decomposition of
performing chemical rocks due to chemical
weathering are water, oxygen, reactions occurring between
and carbon dioxide. the minerals in rocks and
the environment.
 WHERE DOES IT
OCCUR?
These chemical process
need water, and occur more
rapidly at higher temperature,
so warm, damp climates, are
best.
 HOW DOES IT
OCCUR?
There are different types of chemical
weathering, the most important are;

 OXIDATION
 SOLUTION
 HYDROLYSIS
 OXIDATION
In this process of
oxidation, rocks
breakdown occurs due to
disturbance caused by
addition of oxygen.
OXIDATION
Is the reaction of
substance with oxygen.
thus, changing the
mineral composition of
the rock
When, rocks
particularly those with
iron in them, are
exposed to air and
water, the iron under
goes oxidation, which
can weaken the rocks
and make them
crumble
 SOLUTION AND
CARBONATION
As nouns the difference between
carbonation and solution is that
carbonation is the state of having
carbon dioxide gas dissolved in a
liquid while solution is a
homogeneous mixture, which may be
liquid, gas or solid, formed by
dissolving one or more substances.
CARBONATION
 Carbon dioxide in the air
dissolves in rainwater and
becomes weakly acidic.
 This weak ‘carbonic acid’ is
able to dissolve limestone as
it seeps into cracks and
cavities.
 Carbonation is a common
type of solution that involves
carbon dioxide and water,
Stalagmites and stalactites form in
molecules reacting with and caves as water drips from the roof,
thereby decomposing rock depositing some of its dissolved
material. calcium carbonate, as carbon
dioxide is released into air
 SOLUTION
 When something is
dissolving in water or acids,
the water or acid with
dissolved content is called
SOLUTION.
 This process involves
removal of solids in solution
and depends upon the
stability of a mineral in water
Polluting gases, like sulfur dioxide
or weak acids. and nitrogen oxide dissolve in
 When coming contact with rainwater to make stronger acids.
When this rainwater falls, we get
water, many solids acid rain. This acid attacks many
disintegrate and mix up as a rock types, both by solution and
hydrolysis, seriously damaging
suspension in water. buildings and monuments.
 HYDROLYSIS
➢ The breakdown of rock by acidic
water to produce clay and soluble
salts.
➢ Chemical breakdown of a
substance when combined with
water.
➢ Hydrolysis is a chemical
decomposition process that uses
water to split chemical bonds of
substances.
➢ Hydrolysis takes place when acid One effect of chemical weathering
rain reacts with rock-forming is hydrolysis. ... For example,
minerals such as feldspar to hydrolysis changes feldspar into
produce clay and salts that are clay. Because water is a catalyst in
chemical reactions, chemical
removed in solution. weathering occurs mostly in areas
with plenty of water and high
temperatures.