Introduction
Geology is part science which deals with the study of the structure of the earth. Plate tectonic, climate and evolutionary history of humans’ shows the history of the universe and this is attributed to the large amount of geological information on the various processes. Geology also plays a significant role in explaining mineral and hydrocarbon exploitation and exploration, geotechnical engineering and also the natural hazards. Things like rocks and minerals, fossils and lithology encompass geology, and they are present in different parts of the world including Rolla city.
Rolla city is known for its many rocks, minerals, and fossils. Rocks and minerals are some of the most important things to people's lives. They are present everywhere on earth utilizable by the society either in construction or manufacturing. There are three main categories of rocks; Igneous rocks which include granite and rhyolite, Sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, dolomite and metamorphic rocks that include quartzite. Minerals are classified as metallic and nonmetallic. Metallic minerals include Galena, nonmetallic which comprises barite. Minerals can also exist as fuels which include things like coal.
Rocks and their formation
The Metamorphic rock is formed from the pre-existing rocks by extreme heat and pressure which leads to changes in the rock's mineralogical (Yardley, 2009, p.590). They do not exist in their original environment. Rolla area has different types of metamorphic rocks such as glacial erratic. Under Igneous rocks is the granite. Most the granites found in Rolla city are coarse grained. They include quartz, mica, and feldspar. Rhyolite is another example of igneous rocks found in Rolla area and was the oldest to be exposed. It varies in color that is from light grey through pink and red to dark purplish-red to almost black.
Galena is a type of mineral found in Rolla city. Galena is among core minerals in Rolla city. Another essential mineral is the Barite. It is a white, grey non-metallic mineral that is dense and brittle. Barite, one of the minerals, is found in Rolla area and it’s the leading mineral production of the region. The rock was used as a paint pigment and extender, and as filler in rubber, oilcloth, paper, textiles leather and linoleum. Barite is used in drilling mud in oil wells and medical field because of its weight.(Hoseine, Ataei, and Osanloo, 2009, p.1333). Barite is heavy, and drilling requires heavy minerals.
Limestone is also one of the important geological aspects in Rolla city. Limestone is a sedimentary rock and it consists of 50% calcite and dolomite elements. The other rocks component of this stone is relatively small compared to the percentage of its two main elements. Limestone is buried under tertiary and cretaceous strata across the Rolla city landscape and its uses range from production of gravel to creation of bricks used in construction sector. Research indicates that oldest limestone lie between the Ordovician and Cambrian rock structure in the region.
Sinkholes
Apart from the rocks and minerals, Rolla city has other important areas of studies such as the sinkhole. Sinkholes are collapsed areas formed by dissolution of carbonate bedrock (Salvati, Robert, and Ira, 2002, P.5). The sinkholes range in sizes; that is from several meters in a small region to a large and deep hole depending on the magnitude of the dissolved particles. Significant numbers of sinkholes are viewable when driving across Rolla city. Sink holes are mainly found along road cuts. The natural rocks filling the sink are weak and therefore it's necessary to scale them back to prevent falling into the hole which may damage the road. A good example of a sinkhole in Rolla area is located towards the western part of Rolla bordering Doolittle. Large numbers of filled sinks in road cuts areas may make one to believe that there are still more sinkholes to be identified. The people of Rolla area get information on causes and impacts of sinkholes to assist them in understanding the geological structure of the area. The information is essential as it is useful in the construction of buildings, homes, and even educational institutions.
Most of the filled sinks result from various formations throughout the Rolla city. A Large number of the sink structures are produced along fault line, which is as a result of the natural weakness in the rock structure. Groundwater easily dissolves carbonate and limestone resulting in the formation of sinkholes. Erosion has destroyed some of the rock formations, but the evidence of their existence have been preserved in the sinks and making the sinkholes one of the most important areas of study to the geologists. High quality fireclays and high temperature refractory brings about economic development. Coal and Metallic Minerals can also be found in sinkhole. Some of the early iron works of the people of Rolla area are visible in some of the Museum.
Fossils
Rolla city also has an excellent history of the fossils found in the area. The geological survey represents the age of the earth by using 12 hours on the face of the clock. According to the history of Rolla people, the life first appeared not far from half the earth's age and did not give a clear classification which ones appeared first whether it was plants or animals since it possesses the simple properties of both plants and animals. The survey also shows that few forms represented almost all of the groups of animals; they include phyla and some vertebrates which left no fossils. Most of the animals' remains were not able to be preserved. The forms that were able to be preserved were those hard parts or those animals with shells.
According to the face clock, the reptiles started ruling the earth and dominated until the mammals took over. The time refers to the period of dinosaurs. The reptiles present at that time included the turtles, crocodiles, ichthyosaurs, masseurs and pterodactyls. Some of the animals found in Rolla city that were present during the early age include the horses
Conclusion
Rolla city consists of many geological sites and areas of interest for geologists. Most of the information about the fossils is present to date. The rocks and minerals are seen to be playing a significant role for the people of Rolla city since they can extract useful material from the rocks and minerals in their area.
Sedimentation process and tectonic movements has resulted in creation of variety of rocks and minerals in Rolla city. Sink hole that are situated across the region represent the theory of carbonate dissolution that results in weakening of ground resulting in formation of such holes. The limestone and carbonate rocks located in this area result in formation of sink holes as they are easily dissolved by water as a result causing the ground to collapse forming a huge hole.
Work cited
Yardley, Bruce WD. "The role of water in the evolution of the continental crust." Journal of the Geological Society 166.4 (2009): 585-600.
Salvati, Roberto, and Ira D. Sasowsky. "Development of collapse sinkholes in areas of groundwater discharge." Journal of Hydrology 264.1 (2002): 1-11.
Hoseinie, S. H., M. Ataei, and M. Osanloo. "A new classification system for evaluating rock penetrability." International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences 46.8 (2009): 1329-1340.
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