Soil Formation

Dwayne

Mechanical and Chemical Weathering

 

Weathering – the breakdown and decomposition of rock at or close to the surface of the earth.  It affects the rocks in position and no moving is involved.  Hence this differentiates weathering from erosion.

Mechanical/physical weathering – physical breakdown of a rock into smaller remains, each with the same characteristics as the original.  This occurs primarily by temperature and pressure alterations.

Chemical weathering –this is the process by which the interior makeup of a mineral is changed by the adding up or taking away of elements. Chemical weathering is reliant on existing surface area for reaction temperature and presence of chemically energetic fluids.  Smaller unit sizes weather by chemical means more quickly than bigger units due to an enlarged surface area.

Erosion – the integration and moving of weathering products by a movable means such as wind, water, ice etc…

 

Types of Mechanical Weathering:

Frost Wedging

Thermal Expansion and Contraction

Mechanical Exfoliation

Abrasion

 

Types of Chemical Weathering:

Dissolution

Oxidation (rust)

Hydrolysis

 

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