Sedimentary Rocks

Sedimentary rock is one of the three main rock groups (the others being igneous and metamorphic rock). Rock formed from sediments covers 75-80% of the Earth's land area, and includes common types such as chalk, limestone, dolomite, sandstone, conglomerate and shale.

Sedimentary rocks are classified by the source of their sediments, and are produced by one or more of;

clastic rock formed from fragments broken off from parent rock, by weathering in situ or erosion by water, ice or wind, followed by transportation of sediments, often in suspension, to the place of deposition; biogenic activity; or precipitation from solution.

The sediments are then compacted and converted to rock by the process of lithification.

Formation

Sedimentary rocks are formed because of the overburden pressure as particles of sediment are deposited out of air, ice, wind, gravity, or water flows carrying the particles in suspension. As sediment deposition builds up, the overburden (or 'lithostatic') pressure squeezes the sediment into layered solids in a process known as lithification ('rock formation') and the original connate fluids are expelled. The term diagenesis is used to describe all the chemical, physical, and biological changes, including cementation, undergone by a sediment after its initial deposition and during and after its lithification, exclusive of surface weathering.

Sedimentary rocks are laid down in layers called beds or strata. That new rock layers are above older rock layers is stated in the principle of superposition.There are usually some gaps in the sequence called unconformities. These represent periods in which no new sediments were being laid down, or when earlier sedimentary layers were raised above sea level and eroded away.

Sedimentary rocks contain important information about the history of Earth. They contain fossils, the preserved remains of ancient plants and animals. Coal is considered a type of sedimentary rock. The composition of sediments provides us with clues as to the original rock. Differences between successive layers indicate changes to the environment which have occurred over time. Sedimentary rocks can contain fossils because, unlike most igneous and metamorphic rocks, they form at temperatures and pressures that do not destroy fossil remains.

The sedimentary rock cover of the continents of the Earth's crust is extensive, but the total contribution of sedimentary rocks is estimated to be only 5% of the total. As such, the sedimentary sequences we see represent only a thin veneer over a crust consisting mainly of igneous and metamorphic rocks.

Classification

Sedimentary rocks are classified into three groups. These groups are clastic, chemical precipitate and biochemical or biogenic.

Clastic

Clastic sedimentary rocks are composed of discrete fragments or clasts of materials derived from other rocks. They are composed largely of quartz with other common minerals including feldspar, amphiboles, clay minerals, and sometimes more exotic igneous and metamorphic minerals.

Clastic sedimentary rocks, such as breccia or sandstone, were formed from rocks that have been broken down into fragments by weathering, which then have been transported and deposited elsewhere.

Clastic sedimentary rocks may be regarded as falling along a scale of grain size, with shale being the finest with particles less than 0.002 mm, siltstone being a little bigger with particles between 0.002 to 0.063 mm, and sandstone being coarser still with grains 0.063 to 2 mm, and conglomerates and breccias being more coarse with grains 2 to 263 mm. Breccia has sharper particles, while conglomerate is categorized by its rounded particles. Particles bigger than 263 mm are termed blocks (angular) or boulders (rounded). Lutite, Arenite and Rudite are general terms for sedimentary rock with clay/silt-, sand- or conglomerate/breccia-sized particles.

Conglomerate

Chemical

The second type of sedimentary rocks are the result of chemical deposits. Halite is an example of a rock that formed when water evaporated and left behind minerals. Sedimentary rocks that result from chemical deposits are called chemical rocks.

The formations you see in caves are made when water drips from the top of the cave and leaves behind minerals. These formations are another example of chemical rocks. 

Halite

Organic

The third form of sedimentary rocks are known as organic rocks. Organic rocks are formed from the life processes of living organisms or the remains of the organisms. Limestone that is formed from the shells of clams and other organisms is organic. When you write with chalk on the chalkboard, you are actually using the shells of organisms that lived long ago.

Chalk

Uses:

1. Coal is mainly used in power plants to generate electricity.
2. Limestone is used mainly in the manufacture of Portland cement, the production of lime, manufacture of paper, petrochemicals, fiberglass.
3. Shale can be a component of bricks and cement.
4. Conglomerate is mainly used in the construction industry.
5. Halite is used in the food industry and as rock salt to melt snow on roads.