Geology 101

Class 4
Spring 2014

The Key to Buying Diamonds
REMEMBER GRAPHITE and
DIAMONDS ARE both CARBON
Color colorless to shades of yellow
Clarity no internal flaws to internal flaws
Carat the size of the diamond
Cut the way it reflects light back to the
observer. Shape can also vary based upon
personal preferences.
Shop for price but remember to compare exactly
the same characteristics from store to store.
Cut
The cut determines how well light will refract
through the diamond which enhances the
appearance of it.
Color
The scale goes from D (exceptional white color)
to S-Z which is yellow or some other color.
Clarity
Clarity refers to any impurities in the diamond
that detract from its brilliance.
Get Educated Before You Shop
Educate yourself by going to www.gia.edu

This is the Gemological Institute of America,
an organization that certifies the quality of
the gem that you buy.

Remember the old adage Let the buyer
beware.
The Fifth C in Diamonds
COST is the fifth C in my opinion.

At a web site, the following are available:
Round 1.01 carats D color and IF clarity at $16,397
Round 1.06 carats L color and SI1 clarity at $3,340.
The examples show how costs varies with the
characteristics of the stone.
Element Abundance in Crust
Oxygen 46.6% by weight in the crust
Silicon 27.7%
Aluminum 8.1%
Iron 5.0%
Calcium 3.6%
Sodium 2.8%
Potassium 2.6%
Magnesium 2.1%
All others 1.5%

O & Si = 75% of crustal rocks by weight

Mineral Groups
Oxide Group oxygen and iron (hematite)
Sulfide group a metal plus sulfur
(galena)
(chalcopyrite CuFeS
2
& pyrite)
Carbonate Minerals contain (CO
3
)
-2
Calcite is the principal mineral of
limestone and marble.
Silicates oxygen and silicon with or
without metallic elements.

The Value of Minerals
Appearance
Rarity
Quality
Use

Minerals: the building blocks
of rocks
Rock consolidated or poorly consolidated
aggregates of one or more minerals, glass, or
solidified organic matter (coal) that covers a
significant part of the crust.
Three classes or categories:
Igneous crystallized from molten or partially molten
material
Sedimentary fragments of pre-existing rock and
rocks that were formed from chemical or biological
action.
Metamorphic changed by heat, fluids, and pressure
These categories are based upon the
processes that form the rock.

IGNEOUS Rocks
Magma molten material within Earth
Large crystals result from slow cooling (phaneritic
texture); a large mass of such rock is a Batholith;
normally a granite.
Lava molten material on the surface
Fine-grained with restricted crystal growth
(aphanitic texture)
Igneous rock texture determined by where it cools
and solidifies and therefore how FAST
PHANERITIC - LARGE GRAIN CRYSTALS
A PHANERITIC NOT (A) LARGE GRAIN OR CRYSTALS
IGNEOUS ROCKS
Classification based on:
Texture
Mineral composition
Grain size is a function of how
fast or slowly a melted mass
cools.
Glassy obsidian VERY FAST
Very rapid cooling of viscous,
steamed-out magma
Baby rock that will slowly
mature
Glassy Buttes of Oregon
Native Americans traded it across
the continent
End of volcanic cycle
CONGEALED LIQUID
IGNEOUS Rocks
Pumice has the
composition of glass
but does not look
glassy.
Formed on the surface
cooled rapidly.
Steam driven out of
obsidian contributes to
bubbles will float
Dental hygienists use
it
to polish teeth

Hill of volcanic rock, NM
Volcanic Deposit
This deposit in NM
is being mined for a
variety of uses. The
color and texture of
the material
indicates the
igneous origin.
Volcanic Dike, New mexicoouthern Colorado
Basalt A Common Igneous Rock In the
San Luis Valley, CO
Rio Grande near Taos, NM
Gorge is 783 ft deep in Basalt
Basalt Southern Washington
Columbia River and Mt. Hood in the distance; hills are basalt!
Volcanic
Plutonic
Cinder Cones & Basalt Flows
Words can have hidden meaning
Is ice a rock?

Answer - Most scotch drinkers
(and their designated drivers)

No it is a solid form of water.

Answer: Geologists (even
sober ones)

Yes. Technically it is naturally
occurring chemical compound,
formed by inorganic
processes, with an ordered
internal arrangement or pattern
for its atoms, that possess a
definite, chemical composition
or range of composition.


Former Student
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
Sediment is a particulate derived from
physical or chemical weathering of
material on the crust or from certain
organic processes.
The sediment can be transported and re-
deposited by gravity, streams, glaciers,
wind and/or waves.
It may also be residual. (rubble left
behind)
Sediments are turned to stone by deep
burial (pressure) or cementation or both.
C- level of
understanding
of Geology 101,
D- in Theology 101
Clastic Sedimentary Rocks
The diagram
shows how
gravels, sand, silt
and clay go
through various
processes to
become rock.
Texture is a
definitive property
in identification.

Classical Bedding in Sedimentary
Rocks
Badlands of South Dakota
Shales are poorly
consolidated and
easily eroded by
running water.

Represent fine
material (clay and
silt) that was
deposited in
shallow seas or
lakes.
The Morrison Fm., Eastern Utah
These sedimentary
rocks, tilted in
response to geologic
stresses, contain the
bones of many types
of dinosaurs that
ruled the world when
water deposited
these sands, silts and
clays.
I-35 in Southern Oklahoma
Geologic forces
tilted these beds
from their original
horizontal position.
Sedimentary rocks
do occur in many
different positions
after they are
impacted by crustal
forces.
The Grand Canyon Classic Example of
Sedimentary Rocks
Sandstone
A common
sedimentary rock
can be formed from
a variety of deposits
of sand (aeolian
dunes or sand
deposited in water).
Sandstone, an old sand dune, deformed
under pressure
Wall of Sandstone, Sedona AZ
Sandstone deposit,
eroded by water and
wind, served as a
shelter for Native
Americans.

Site had a water
supply in the trees
(lower right) and had
only one access to the
site.
Massive Sandstone Cliffs, Sedona, AZ
Where are these sandstone monsters from?
As we will discuss in detail later:

Two ways rocks are broken down:
1) Dissolve chemically
2) Physical break-up

The products of the physical break-
down get compacted and
cemented clastic sedimentary
rocks :
Shales
Sandstones
Siltstones

The rock material dissolved in water
precipitates out to form chemical
sedimentary rock
Limestones
Salt formations
Gypsium
Conglomerate
Clasts (Rock
Pieces) are
rounded eroded
by running water
prior to deposition
in this formation.

Various types of
cement hold the
clasts together.
Coquina
This comglorate
rock is composed
entirely of shell
material.
Where do we find
such shells?
Coal
The composition
of coal is?
Do different
varieties of coal
exist?
Why isnt it a
mineral?
Metamorphic Rocks
Coarsely foliated
gneiss formed
under intense heat
and pressure.

Formed within the
Earths crust, never
on the surface.
Metamorphism
Sandstone is
converted into
Quartzite, one of
the hardest, most
durable rocks,
when subjected to
metamorphism.
The Value of Rocks
Building Materials

Durable
Cost effective
Variety of type and
color
Will last a long time
but NOT forever!
Rock Type Varies Leptis Magna
Basilica 300AD Leptis Magna
Trondheim, Norway 1000 AD
Trondheim Cathedral 1000AD
The Rock Cycle
Interrelated internal and external processes involving
the ocean, atmosphere, biosphere, crust, and upper
mantle.
Earth is a DYNAMIC system!
Historic scientific debate: Vulcanist versus Neptunist
Neptunist view
Cold early earth
Rocks form by chemical precipitation from
water
Leader A. Werner: (1740-1817)- German
mining academy
Volcanoes aberration coal fired
Succession of layers, order of layers
Goethe Poet & Neptunist
Geologist
Hutton Uniformatarism and
Vulcanist
Vulcanism
Also Stratified Formations above Primitive Rock
(basalt and granite)
Identified igneous and metamorphic rocks caused
by HOT earth
Even sedimentary rock fused by heat, not
chemically cemented
French volcanic origin basalt flows turned the day
Neptunist support Principle of Original
Horizontality Vulcanist cross cutting
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-
N05ECc8hSCc/Us0aAVJgUNI/AAAAAAAAG1
U/i-69UVq-
nO4/s1600/Auvergne+Volcano+Park,+France
+20140108.jpg
Scropes Volcanoes of Central France
Class Objectives - Chapter 3
Understand the definitions of rock and
minerals
Describe the three basic processes of rock
formation and the interrelationships of rock
types