cycle of the rocks

CICLO DE LAS ROCAS

Patron del ciclo de la roca
pattern of the rock cycle

www.geolsoc.org.uk
pattern of the rock cycle – weathering, erosion, transport

weathering
… the breakdown of rocks at the earth’s surface
 interaction of rainfall, temperature and
biological activities.
• physical (frost bursting)
• chemical (lime solution) processes
• biological (crushing by roots)

erosion
… processes  soil and rock particles are worn
away and moved
adapted from www.geolsoc.org.uk • by gravity or
• by a transport agent (wind, water or ice)

transport
… processes  sediments are moved along (e.g. pebbles in a river-bed, sand grains
by the wind, salts carried in solution)
pattern of the rock cycle – deposition, burial and compaction
 the genesis of sedimentary rocks

deposition

… the laying down of sediments

… in depositional environments (e.g. river-

valleys, lake-/desert-/ocean-basins)

• deposition of solid particles (e.g. gravel,

sand & mud)

• precipitation of solved ingredients (e.g salt,

calcium carbonate)

adapted from www.geolsoc.org.uk

pattern of the rock cycle – deposition, burial, compaction and cementaion
 the genesis of sedimentary rocks
adapted from www.geolsoc.org.uk
burial
… once deposited (= older) sediments get

• covered by/buried beneath

chronological
fresh (= younger ) sediments sequence of …

younger

compaction
… pressure of the overlying layers  older
dewaters and presses the grains of
the buried sediments together … sediments

cementation
… formation of new minerals (e.g. carbonate or clay minerals)  mineral crystals grow around
the sediment particles and stick them together  genesis of solid sedimentary rocks (e.g.
konglomerates, sandstone or siltstone)
pattern of the rock cycle – deformation and metamorphism
 the genesis of metamorphic rocks

moving-forces  stretch and squash parts

of the earth’s crust

 generating earthquakes
 building mountains
 fracturing and faulting rocks

at greater depth  increasing heat and

pressure  folding and/or metamorphism.

adapted from www.geolsoc.org.uk

deformation
… processes folding and faulting rocks
• compression (squashing)  tectonic
plates are pushed together  the crust
becomes shorter and thicker, building
mountain ranges, rocks
• tension (stretching)  tectonic plates
are pulled apart  the crust becomes
thinner, rocks become faulted  some-
times producing rift valleys

 are faulted nearer the surface

 are folded and metamorphosed at depth
pattern of the rock cycle – deformation and metamorphism
 the genesis of metamorphic rocks
metamorphism

… process of alteration of rocks due to

 pressure and/or
 heat

… changing entirely …
 the structure
 the inventory of minerals and
adapted from www.geolsoc.org.uk  the appearance of rocks

• regional metamorphism (normal case)

... genesis of metamorphic rocks beneath regions with mountain ranges  rocks are
deeply buried (> 10 km) and squashed by movements of the earth’s crust (tectonics)

• contact metamorphism (special case)

… rocks metamorphosed at shallower depths if they are heated up by nearby intrusions
of hot magma
pattern of the rock cycle – melting and crystallsation of magma
 the genesis of igneous rocks

melting
… under special conditions of volcanic activities
 rocks of the earth’s mantle layer begins to
melt in a few regions

melting processes influenced by

 high temperature (hotspots) deep down

beneath the earth’s surface
 local changes in pressure
 presence of water within the rocks
magma  subsurface melting product of
rocks  still contains dissolved gases 
huge pressures at depths of 20 to 100 km
 force the melted material to rise
adapted from www.geolsoc.org.uk
upwards

igneous intrusions  magma cools and igneous extrusions  magma reaches

solidifies before reaching the earth´s the earth’s surface  volcanic eruptions
surface  subsurface crystallisation   dissolved gases bubble out  crystal-
genesis of plutonites lisation as lava  genesis of volcanites