Vis a fundamental concept in

geology that describes the

dynamic transitions through
geological time among the three
main rock types: sedimentary,
metamorphic, and igneous
V Igneous rocks are made from
lava or magma. Lava and magma
are made of hot, melted
minerals.
V Lava is found on or near the
Earth's surface. Magma is found
far beneath the Earth's surface.
Vhe sediments can even be
made from seashells and
bodies of plants and
animals.
VFossils are found in
sedimentary rocks.
VMetamorphic rocks are made
from older rocks, either
igneous or sedimentary.
Vhese rocks are changed by
great heat and/or pressure
deep beneath the earth's
surface.
V he rock cycle was a part of
Hutton's §



 and his
famous quote: 

  


      
 , applied in particular to the
rock cycle and the envisioned
cyclical nature of geologic
processes.
V ransition to igneous
V Post-volcanic changes
V Secondary changes
V ransition to metamorphic
V ransition to sedimentary
V îhen rocks are pushed deep under the
Earth's surface, they may melt into
magma.
V If the conditions no longer exist for the
magma to stay in its liquid state, it will
cool and solidify into an igneous rock.
V mock masses of igneous origin have no
sooner cooled than they begin to
change.
V he solids with which the magma is
charged are slowly dissipated, lava
flows often remain hot and steaming
for many years.
V Epigenitic change (secondary
processes) may be arranged under a
number of headings
V Each of which is typical of a group of
rocks or rock-forming minerals, though
usually more than one of these
alterations will be found in progress in
the same rock.
V mocks exposed to high temperatures
and/or pressures can be changed
physically or chemically to form a
different rock, called metamorphic
V megional metamorphism refers to the
effects on large masses of rocks over a
wide area, typically associated with
mountain building events within
orogenic belts.
V mocks exposed to the atmosphere are
variably unstable and subject to the
processes of weathering and erosion.
V îeathering and erosion breaks the
original rock down into smaller
fragments and carries away dissolved
material.
V Plate tectonics
V Spreading ridges
V Subduction zones
V Continental collision
V Accelerated erosion
V An evolving process
V he role of water
V In 1967, J. uzo îilson published an article
in Nature describing the repeated opening
and closing of ocean basins, in particular
focusing on the current Atlantic Ocean area.
V his concept, a part of the plate tectonics
revolution, became known as the î

.
V he  of the cycle can be placed at
the mid-ocean divergent boundaries
where new magma is produced by
mantle upwelling and a shallow

  .
V his  or §

 basaltic magma is
the first phase of the igneous portion of
the cycle.
V he new basaltic oceanic crust eventually
meets a subduction zone as it moves away
from the spreading ridge.
V As this crust is pulled back into the mantle,
the increasing pressure and temperature
conditions cause a restructuring of the
mineralogy of the rock, this metamorphism
alters the rock to form eclogite.
V On the closing phase of the classic
îilson cycle, two continental or
smaller terranes meet at a convergent
zone.
V As the two masses of continental crust
meet, neither can be subducted as they
are both   
 silicic rock.
V he high mountain ranges produced by
continental collisions are immediately
subjected to the forces of erosion.
V Erosion wears down the mountains and
massive piles of sediment are
developed in adjacent ocean margins,
shallow seas, and as continental
deposits.
V he plate tectonics rock cycle is an
evolutionary process.
V Magma generation, both in the spreading
ridge environment and within the wedge
above a subduction zone, favors the
eruption of the more silicic and volatile rich
fraction of the crustal or upper mantle
material.
Vhe presence of abundant water
on Earth is of great importance
for the rock cycle.
VMost obvious perhaps are the
water driven processes of
weathering and erosion.
V ©ilicate minerals
________he most common mineral group on
Earth is the silicate minerals, which all have the
elements silica and oxygen as their main
ingredients.
V Non-silicate minerals
________©ome of these groups form when magma
cools, while others form when water evaporates
away leaving mineral crystals behind, or when
other minerals decompose.
V Olivine,(Mg, Fe)2©iO4 ,Ultramafic igneous rocks
V Pyroxene group,(Mg, Fe)©iO2,Basaltic igneous rocks
V Amphibole group,(Ca2Mg5)©i8O22(OH)2,Andesitic igneous
rocks
V Micas,Biotite: K(Mg, Fe)3©i3O10(OH)2Muscovite:
KAl3©i3O10(OH)2,Andesitic igneous rocks,Colonial
Americans used sheets of mica as window glass.
V Feldspars,Orthoclase: KAl©i3O8,Plagioclase: (Ca,
Na)Al©i3O8,Granitic igneous rocks,Important for making
ceramics and glass
V Quartz,©iO2,Granitic igneous rocks,is the raw material for
glass and helps clocks keep time.
V Oxides ,Hematite(Fe2O3) ,Ore of iron ,
V ©ulfides ,Pyrite(Fe©2) ,Known as foolǯs gold
V ©ulfates ,Gypsum (Ca©O4 (+2H2O)) ,Used to
make plaster
V Halides ,Halite (NaCl) ,able salt
V Carbonates ,Calcite (CaCO3),Used to make
cement
V Native Elements ,©ulfur (©) ,An ingredient
of drugs and chemicals