Weathering

• Carbonation is the mixing of water with carbon dioxide to make carbonic acid, which is important in the formation of caves.
• Stalactites are mineral formations that have their base on the ceiling of a cave, usually forming a conical shape pointing downward.
• Stalagmites are mineral formations that have their base on the floor of a cave.
• Oxidation is another kind of chemical weathering that occurs when oxygen combines with another substance and creates compounds called oxides.
• Acidification is a type of chemical weathering that occurs when polluting gases, like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide dissolve in rainwater to make stronger acids.
• Biological weathering of rocks occurs when rocks are weakened by different biological agents like plants and animals.
• Biological weathering by physical means involves burrowing animals like shrews, moles and earthworms creating holes on the ground by excavation and moving the rock fragments to the surface.
• Biological weathering by chemical means involves chitons having a rasping tongue with teeth on it called a radula that scrapes algae off rocks, but also scrapes away some of the rock.
• Weathering describes the breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals on the surface of the Earth.
• Performance Task: Create a table showing two examples of each type of weathering (physical, chemical, and biological) and explain how the weathering occurs.
• Physical weathering is caused by the effects of changing temperatures on rocks, causing the rock to break apart.
• Abrasion is a type of physical weathering that happens when a rock or sediments bump into another rock causing its breakdown.
• Biological Weathering by Chemical Compounds involves the changes in rocks due to the activities of certain plants and animals.
• Chemical weathering by lichens involves the changes in rocks due to the activities of certain plants and animals.
• Thermal and pressure change is a type of physical weathering that occurs when rocks crumble and break into fragments because they are subjected to alternating hot and cold temperature many times during the day.
• Wind weathering is a type of physical weathering that occurs when wind erodes rocks and minerals.
• Wave weathering is a type of physical weathering that occurs when waves erode rocks and minerals.
• Freeze and thaw or frost wedging is a type of physical weathering that occurs when water expands when it freezes, creating cracks in rocks and causing them to break apart.
• Chemical weathering is the breaking down of rocks and minerals caused by chemicals in rain or moving water, leading to rock’s change in chemical composition or weakening of its structure.
• Hydration is a form of chemical weathering in which the chemical bonds of the mineral are changed as it interacts with water.
• Hydrolysis takes place when acid rain reacts with rock-forming minerals such as feldspar to produce clay and salts that are removed in solution.
• Hydration, on the other hand, is the linkage or mixing of molecules of water without cleavage the molecule of water in inorganic chemistry.
• Carbonation is the mixing of water with carbon dioxide to make carbonic acid, which is important in the formation of caves.
• Stalactites are mineral formations that have their base on the ceiling of a cave, usually forming a conical shape pointing downward.
• Stalagmites are mineral formations that have their base on the floor of a cave.
• Oxidation is another kind of chemical weathering that occurs when oxygen combines with another substance and creates compounds called oxides.
• Acidification is a type of chemical weathering that occurs when polluting gases, like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide dissolve in rainwater to make stronger acids.
• Biological weathering of rocks occurs when rocks are weakened by different biological agents like plants and animals.
• Biological weathering by physical means involves burrowing animals like shrews, moles and earthworms creating holes on the ground by excavation and moving the rock fragments to the surface.
• Biological weathering by chemical means involves chitons having a rasping tongue with teeth on it called a radula that scrapes algae off rocks, but also scrapes away some of the rock.