Sedimentary Rocks

Sediments are the building blocks of sedimentary rocks

Three classes:
Clastic
Chemical
Biogenic
Biochemical
Organic
Clastic

Biochemical

Organic

Chemical

Types of Sedimentary Rocks

Clastic (detrital)

Formed from fragmented rock

debris produced by weathering and
erosion

Chemical

Formed by the inorganic

precipitation of minerals dissolved
in lake, river, or seawater

Biogenic

Composed of plant and animal

remains, or precipitates as a result of
biological processes

(Biochemical/Organic)

Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Product of several processes.
Weathering Generation of detritus via rock disintegration.
Erosion Removal of sediment grains from rock.
Transportation Dispersal by wind, water, and ice.
Deposition Settling out of the transporting fluid.
Lithification Transformation into solid rock.

The sedimentary stages of the rock cycle

Weathering
breaks down
rocks.
Glacier
Delta
Desert
Playa
lake

Sedimentary
rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Plutons

The sedimentary stages of the rock cycle

Weathering
breaks down
rocks.

Erosion carries
away particles.

Glacier
Delta
Desert
Playa
lake

Sedimentary
rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Plutons

The sedimentary stages of the rock cycle

Weathering
breaks down
rocks.

Erosion carries
away particles.

Transportation moves
particles downhill.

Glacier
Delta
Desert
Playa
lake

Sedimentary
rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Plutons

The sedimentary stages of the rock cycle

Weathering
breaks down
rocks.

Erosion carries
away particles.

Transportation moves
particles downhill.

Glacier
Delta
Desert
Playa
lake

Sedimentary
rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Plutons

Deposition occurs
when particles
settle out or
precipitate.

The sedimentary stages of the rock cycle

Weathering
breaks down
rocks.

Erosion carries
away particles.

Transportation moves
particles downhill.

Glacier
Delta
Desert
Playa
lake

Sedimentary
rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Plutons

Deposition occurs
when particles
settle out or
precipitate.

Burial occurs
as layers of
sediment
accumulate.

The sedimentary stages of the rock cycle

Weathering
breaks down
rocks.

Erosion carries
away particles.

Transportation moves
particles downhill.

Glacier
Delta
Desert
Playa
lake

Sedimentary
rocks
Metamorphic
rocks
Plutons

Deposition occurs
when particles
settle out or
precipitate.

Burial occurs
as layers of
sediment
accumulate.

Diagenesis lithifies
the sediment to make
sedimentary rocks.

 Clastic sedimentary rocks

Composed of small fragments of rocks and minerals
(e.g., sandstone)
Sometimes called terriginous or detrital sedimentary rocks
Siliciclastic sedimentary rocks (term used in Stanley, p. 39)

80-85% of the stratigraphic record

Chemical & biogenic sedimentary rocks

Precipitated from solution (e.g., limestone, banded
iron-formation, chert, evaporites)
Can be transported as solids within basin (e.g., ooids;
grains, intraclasts)
Carbonate rocks: 10-15% of stratigraphic record

Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Classification based on composition and texture

Clast (grain) size

Angularity and sphericity
Sorting
and many others

Clast composition
May be individual minerals or rock fragments
Mineral identities provide clues about
The source of the sediment
The environment of deposition

Clasts are surrounded by:

Matrix: finer-grained clastic material
Cement: new minerals that grow in spaces between clasts

Types of Clastic Sedimentary

Rocks
Conglomerate (rounded)

Breccia (angular)
Sandstone

Mudstone

Siltstone
Shale

From clasts to rocks--grain size

SEDIMENT

ROCK

Conglomerate

Sandstone

Siltstone

Shale or Mudstone

Grain
Size

Sphericity & angularity

Indicates amount of transport
Well-rounded Long transport distances
Angular Negligible transport

Sorting
Sorting measurement of grain size uniformity in a
clastic sedimentary rock

Well-sorted Uniform grain sizes

Poorly sorted Wide variety of grain size

Sorting becomes better with distance from source

Deposition of Clastics
Governed by gravity and energy of
environment
Gravity carries material downhill to base level
The energy of environment determines
whether a clast will be eroded, transported, or
deposited.

Larger particles
need more
energy (velocity)
to transport

Sediment Deposition
Sediment grains drop out as water velocity drops
Gravel settles in channels
Sands are removed from the gravels; muds from both
Sands drop out in near channel environments
Silts and clays are suspended, settle in calm water

With increasing sediment transport

average grain size decreases
roundness & sphericity of grain increases
sorting increases

composition becomes more quartz-rich

Clastic Sediment Maturity

Little Traveled:
Larger clast size, angular grains, poorly
sorted, quartz, feldspar, and lithic
fragments

Far Traveled:
Smaller clast size, rounded grains, well
sorted, quartz

These clasts are

Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Conglomerate/Breccia

A clastic sedimentary rock with a

larger fragments in a finer-grained
matrix.

Sandstone

A medium-grained clastic sedimentary

rock in which the clasts are typically,
but not necessarily, dominated by
quartz grains.

Mudstone

A very fine-grained sedimentary rock

of the same composition as shale but
without fissility.

Shale

A very fine-grained fissle or laminated

sedimentary rock, consisting primarily
of clay-sized particles.

Mudrocks

Mudrocks
Mudrock composed of
clay (< 4 um) and silt (4
to 64 um)
Most abundant
sedimentary rock at 75%
of the sedimentary record
(includes shale)
Claystone - composed of
clay (< 4 um)

 Siltstone - composed of
silt (4-64 um)
Shale a mudrock that
splits into thin sheets
Mudstone basically a
silty shale that does not
break along bedding
planes

Mudrocks are deposited in a wide variety of

low energy environments, such as flood plains, lakes,
low energy shorelines, outer marine shelf, and
deep-ocean basins

Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Sandstone Clastic rock made of sand-sized particles.
Forms in many depositional settings
Texture and composition permit detailed interpretation
Quartz is typically the dominant mineral.

Sandstone varieties:
Arkose Contains abundant feldspar
Lithic sandstone Contains rock fragments
Quartz arenite Almost pure quartz
Wacke Contains more than 15% mud

 Quartz arenites quartz.

High-energy, shallow
marine and aeolian
environments
Arkose feldspar grains.
Rapid erosion and
deposition under semiarid conditions. Fluvial
systems
Greywacke abundant
clay matrix, rock
fragments, feldspar
grains. Turbidity currents
in deep-water basins

Arkose:
feldspar-rich

1 mm

Alluvial fan

Lithic sandstone:
rock fragment-rich

1 mm

Delta

Quartz arenite:
pure quartz

Beach

Graywacke:
matrix-rich

1 mm

Deep-sea fan

1 mm

Conglomerates and Breccias

Clasts >2 mm in
diameter
Conglomerate,
rounded clasts
Breccia, angular
clasts

Usually deposited near source

Rapid deposition
Alluvial fans

Coarse Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Gravel- to boulder-sized clasts

Breccia angular fragments

Little transport
Deposited close to source

Coarse Clastic Sedimentary Rocks

Conglomerate rounded clasts
Indicates: water transport
deposition at some distance from the source

Santa Cruz Island:

conglomerate clasts derived
from San Diego area.

Chemical Sedimentary Rocks

(precipitated from water)

Evaporites
Created from evaporated sea or lake water
Evaporation triggers deposition of chemical precipitates

Generally composed of halite (NaCl), anyhydrite

(CaSO4), and gypsum (CaSO42H2O)
~80 different minerals identified in evaporite deposits

BIF
Banded ironformation (BIF)
alternating ironrich/iron-poor layers
Iron usually hematite
Iron-poor layers are
usually chert with
other minerals

Most are 2.7 to 2.3

Ga

Travertine Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) precipitated

from water where it reaches the surface
CO2 expelled into the air causes CaCO3 to precipitate.
Thermal (hot) springs
Caves
Waterfalls

Havasu Falls, AZ

Limestone
Limestone
CaCO3 - calcite and
aragonite
May alter to dolomite
(dolostone) CaMg(CO3)2
Some precipitated directly
from water
Aragonite needles
Ooids

Some precipitated
biologically
Algae
Forams
Animal skeletons

Chert
Fine-grained, dense rocks composed of the SiO2
minerals, quartz, chalcedony, and opal
Chert (jasper, flint, etc.)
Two types: bedded and nodular
Nodular chert
Lenses, layers, bodies lack internal structure
Commonly in shelfal carbonates form layers that are
parallel to bedding
Form by diagenetic processes

Bedded chert
Generally biogenic in origin remains of siliceous
organisms
Diatoms, radiolarians, sponge spicules
Commonly associated with submarine volcanoes, pelagic
limestones, turbidites

pre-Phanerozoic: non-biogenic origin (but, some/many

may be replaced carbonate

Chert

Biogenic Sedimentary Rocks

Sediments derived from living organisms. Two types:
Biochemical Hard mineral skeletons
Organic Cells of plants, algae, bacteria and plankton

Biochemical Rocks
Biochemical limestone CaCO3 skeletal (shell)
remains from once-living organisms
Many textural varieties:
Reefs
Shell debris (coquina)
Lime mud (micrite)

Calcareous oozes
Dominated by foraminifers (forams) and
nannofossils such as coccoliths
Widespread at depths <4500 m
(carbonate compensation depth)
Lithified: chalks

Chalk: limestone microorganism skeletons

Diatomite: siliceous microorganism skeletons

Organic Rocks
Made from organic carbon
Coal: altered remains of fossil vegetation
Accumulates in lush tropical wetland settings
Requires deposition in the absence of oxygen

Oil shale: shale with heat altered organic matter