SEDIMENTARY

ROCKS
What are Sedimentary Rocks?
Sedimentary rocks are formed from pre-existing
rocks or pieces of once-living organisms.
They form from deposits that accumulate on
the Earth's surface.
How does sediments form?
This sediment is often formed when weathering and erosion
break down a rock into loose material in a source area.

How does sedimentary rocks form?

Sedimentary rocks are formed when sediment is deposited
out of air, ice, wind, gravity, or water flows carrying the
particles in suspension.
3 Basic Types of Sedimentary Rock

• Clastic
• Chemical
• Organic
1. Clastic - form from the accumulation
and lithification of mechanical
weathering debris.
Examples include: breccia,
conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone, and
shale.
 Breccia is composed of large angular fragments (over two
millimeters in diameter). The spaces between the large
angular fragments are filled with a matrix of smaller particles
and a mineral cement that binds the rock together.
The rock, breccia, has very few uses. It can be used as fill
or road base where the technical requirements are minimal. It
is rarely used in important projects because its composition,
degree of cementation and competence are highly variable.
Sometimes breccia has an interesting or attractive appearance
that makes it suitable for use as an architectural stone. It
might be cut into slabs and used as a facing stone, stair
treads, floor or wall tiles, window sills, or countertops.
 Conglomerate is  made up of rounded clasts that are greater
than two millimeters in diameter. The spaces between the
clasts are generally filled with sand- and clay-size particles.
The rock is bound together by a cement that is usually
composed of calcite or quartz. Conglomerate has very few
commercial uses. Its inability to break cleanly makes it a poor
candidate for dimension stone, and its variable composition
makes it a rock of unreliable physical strength and durability.
Conglomerate can be crushed to make a fine aggregate that
can be used where a low-performance material is suitable.
Many conglomerates are colorful and attractive rocks, but they
are rarely used as an ornamental stone.
 Sandstone is composed of sand-size grains of mineral, 
rock, or organic material. It also contains a cementing
material that binds the sand grains together and may
contain a matrix of silt- or clay-size particles that occupy the
spaces between the sand grains.
If the sandstone is durable, it might be used to make 
crushed stone for construction projects. If it has a very high 
quartz content, it might be crushed and used as a source of
silica for glass manufacturing. Layers of sandstone below
Earth's surface can serve as aquifers for groundwater or as a
reservoir for oil and natural gas.
 Siltstone is  composed mainly of silt-sized particles. It
forms where water, wind, or ice deposit silt, and the silt
is then compacted and cemented into a rock.
Siltstone has very few uses. It is rarely the target of
mining for use as a construction material or
manufacturing feedstock. The intergranular pore spaces
in siltstone are too small for it to serve as a good aquifer.
It is rarely porous enough or extensive enough to serve as
an oil or gas reservoir. Its main use is as a low-quality fill
when better materials are not locally available.
 Shale - is a fine-grained sedimentary rock that is formed by
the compression of muds or clay-size weathering debris.
Shale is the most abundant of the sedimentary rocks,
accounting for roughly 70 percent of this rock type in the crust
of the Earth.
Some shales have special properties that make them
important resources. Black shales contain organic material
that sometimes breaks down to form natural gas or oil. Other
shales can be crushed and mixed with water to produce clays
that can be made into a variety of useful objects.
2. Chemical - form by precipitation of
minerals from water. Precipitation is when
dissolved materials come out of water.

Examples include: chert, some dolomites, flint,

iron ore, limestones, and rock salt.
 Chert is composed of microcrystalline or cryptocrystalline
quartz, the mineral form of silicon dioxide (SiO2). It occurs as
nodules, concretionary masses, and as layered
deposits. Chert breaks with a conchoidal fracture, often
producing very sharp edges.
Chert has two properties that made it especially useful: 1) it
breaks with a conchoidal fracture to form very sharp edges,
and, 2) it is very hard (7 on the Mohs Scale). Thousands of
years ago people discovered these properties of chert and
learned how to intentionally break it to produce cutting tools
such as knife blades, arrowheads, scrapers, and ax heads.
 Dolomite, also known as "dolostone" and "dolomite rock," is
a sedimentary rock composed primarily of the mineral 
dolomite, CaMg(CO3)2. Dolomite is found in sedimentary basins
worldwide. It is thought to form by the post depositional
alteration of lime mud and limestone by magnesium-rich
groundwater.
Dolomite and limestone are used in similar ways. They are
crushed and used as an aggregate in construction projects.
They are kiln-fired in the manufacture of cement. They are cut
into blocks and slabs for use as a dimension stone. They are
calcined to produce lime. In some of these uses, dolomite is
preferred. Its greater hardness makes it a superior construction
material. Its lower solubility makes it more resistant to the
acid content of rain and soil.
 Flint is a hard, tough, chemical or biochemical sedimentary
rock that breaks with a conchoidal fracture. It is a form of
microcrystalline quartz that is typically called “chert” by
geologists. It often forms as nodules in sedimentary rocks such as 
chalk and marine limestones.
Flint is sometimes used as a construction material. It is very
durable and resists weathering better than almost any other
natural stone. It is common to see walls, homes, and larger
buildings that are built partially or entirely with flint as a facing
stone in southern England and many parts of Europe. Another
important property of flint is its ability to generate sparks of hot
material when it is struck against steel. This property allows flint
to be used as a fire-starter.
REFERENCES:

[Link]