A study carried out on Carboniferous limestone in the north and west of Ireland supports the idea that rock substrate is removed by the direct mechanical action of lichens. An experiment in which the lichen Collema auriforma was subjected to a number of wetting-drying cycles, showed, using scanning electron microscopy, that contraction of the lichen thallus during the drying phase plucked rock fragments from the substrate surface. This process could contribute to the formation of karstic features including solution basins.
Nanomorphological features (
c
. > 1 mm) produced by weathering processes can be observed with SEM and allied techniques. An experimental study using acidic water sprayed onto marble and calcite substrates reveals that weathering nanomorphologies can be produced and classified, and their occurrence quantified. Comparison with field samples shows that the experimentally produced nanomorphologies are smaller than, but morphologically similar to, naturally occurring features. Further experiments are needed to investigate and quantify nanomorphologies developed by a range of other weathering processes, and also to investigate their role in the development of larger-scale weathering features.
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