Lithological and environmental controls on large tafoni along conglomerate cliffs in subtropic humid Danxiashan UNESCO Global Geopark

Chen, Xin; Chen, Liuqin; Zhang, Yanhong; Du, Dingding; Hu, Hai-Ping; Liu, Dong-Xing; Li, Wenzhuo

doi:10.1007/s11629-020-6649-3

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Cavernous features of various dimensions are distributed along sandstone and conglomerate slopes in the coastal and inland zones of China, but they have received little attention beyond a few studies (Lü et al, 2017;Chen et al, 2019;Chen et al, 2021). The Yongningshan (YNS) hill in the middle of the Chinese Loess Plateau features cavern development on all slope faces and is representative of cliff dwellings with a history of more than one thousand years in Northwest China.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cavernous Weathering in Aeolian Sandstones: An Example from the Yongningshan Hill of the Loess Plateau, Northwest China

Chen

Migoń

Guo

et al. 2022

Acta Geologica Sinica (Eng)

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Cavernous weathering is commonly found on sandstone slopes in different environments. Either a single dominant process or polygenetic agents require to be invoked in order to interpret the development. The Yongningshan hill of the central Loess Plateau is representative of cliff dwellings in Northwest China, which is characterized by welldeveloped cavernous weathering features and provides a good opportunity for the better understanding of sandstone weathering in the Loess Plateau. Multiple methods, including field survey, in-situ rock strength measurement, along with experiments on samples for microscopic observation, element composition and salt chemistry, were employed to investigate the controlling factors of cavernous weathering. The results show that cavern development is different on the four slopes with the western slope hosting massive honeycombs, tafoni and hardened surfaces. The porous and permeable aeolian sandstones are fundamental, because they provide space and pathways for the transportation of water and salt, honeycombs dominantly aligning within the lamination of cross-beds. The environmental factors such as the seasonal wetting and drying cycle, aeolian salt, moisture and water vapor are key factors for the development of cavernous weathering forms. The northern and northwestern wind-blown dust storms have brought abundant salts, the lengthier dry periods of the wetting and drying cycle being beneficial for salt accumulation within caverns, favoring salt weathering.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%