ESCI 118 – Physical Geography
Citrus College
Chapter 17 – Solution Processes and Karst Topography

1. How does carbonic acid form? It forms when water and carbon dioxide combine and react.

2. What is meant by dissolution? Dissolution is the action of being dissolved.

3. What kinds of rock are most susceptible to solution processes? Why? Limestone and dolomite are most susceptible to solution processes because the water, which is slightly acidic, reacts with rock and dissolves the co2 gas carrying away or dissolving some of the sediment.

4. How does the underground structure of the bedrock influence the dissolution process? Bedrock that is made of carbonate is more …show more content…

7. What is the difference between a playa and a salina? A playa is different from a salina because a playa is a residual of a lake and a salina is a filled salt lake.

8. Why are playas so flat and level? Playas are flat and level due to it being the bed of a previous lake made of settled sediments.

9. Why is a desert lake in a basin of interior drainage likely to be a saline lake? This is because the water doesn’t drain to the ocean and instead, accumulates within the lake through ephemeral streams and exotic streams draining into it.

10. Explain the concept of differential weathering and erosion. Differential weathering and erosion is the measure of differences in degrees of the discoloration and disintegration of the different rocks exposed to the same environmental conditions.

11. Describe the formation of an inselberg. Volcanic or other processes may give rise to a body of rock resistant to erosion, inside a body of softer rock such as sandstone which is more susceptible to erosion. When the less resistant rock is eroded away to form a plain, the more resistant rock is left behind as an isolated mountain.

12. What is the difference between pediment and piedmont zone? A pediment has a gentle incline formed by erosion of a bedrock whereas a piedmont zone is simply formed by being under a mountain range.

13. Why are depositional features of alluvium so