Study Notes # 1 Exogenic Processes: Weathering Factors that affect the type, extent, and rate at which

weathering takes place

Weathering is the outside breakdown of rock and its eventual
transformation/alternation into sediments
It is physically broken into smaller pieces due to any force (natural
or anthropogenic) without any alteration of its composition
Types of Weathering:
1) Physical or Mechanical Weathering,
2) Chemical Weathering,
 Physical or Mechanical Weathering
 Disintegration and decay of rocks via weather elements: high
temperatures, extreme cold and freeze-thaw cycles
 No change in chemical composition of rocks
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
a. Climate – areas that are cold and dry tend to have slow
rates of chemical weathering and weathering is mostly
physical; chemical weathering is most active in areas with
high temperature and rainfall.
b. Rock type – the minerals that constitute rocks have
different susceptibilities to weathering. The susceptibility of
minerals (from high to low) roughly follows the inverse of the
order of crystallization of minerals in the Bowen’s reaction
series. Thus, olivine which crystallizes first is the least
resistant whereas; quartz which crystallizes last is the most
resistant.
c. Rock structure- rate of weathering is affected by the
presence of joints, folds, faults, bedding planes through which
agents of weathering enter a rock mass. Highly-
jointed/fractured rocks disintegrate faster than a solid mass
of rock of the same dimension
d. Topography- physical weathering occurs more quickly on a
steep slope than on a gentle one. On a gentle slope, water
may stay longer in contact with the rocks, hence chemical
weathering is enhanced.

d. Biological activity – plants and animals (including humans) e. Time- length of exposure to agents of weather determines
as agents of mechanical weathering the degree of weathering of a rock

 Chemical Weathering
 decomposes rocks through a chemical change in its
minerals
a. Dissolution – dissociation of molecules into ions; common
example includes dissolution of calcite and salt

b. Oxidation- reaction between minerals and oxygen dissolved

in water

c. Hydrolysis- change in the composition of minerals when

they react with water
Study Notes # 1 Exogenic Processes: Mass
Wasting