Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Geology

Energy & Industrial Terminology Definitions

Fundamental Concepts

Biomass

The total mass of living material within a community or ecosystem. This often includes non-living organic material used as an energy source.

Fuel

A material burned or altered to produce energy, especially for power generation or heating. Examples include wood, coal, coke, oil, natural gas, etc.

Wetland

Land flooded or soaked in water, either permanently or seasonally.

Ecological Conscience

A positive attitude towards the responsible exploitation and management of natural resources. It implies recognizing the need for and promoting environmental protection policies.

Energy Sources & Types

Biogas

A mixture of gases produced by the fermentation or anaerobic digestion of biomass.

Palace of Catalan Music / Lluis Domenech i Montaner/1905-1908 / Barcelona / modernism / iron, brick, artificial stone, glass, ceramics, mosaic and other minors. / Arquitravat and lap / auditorium.

Casa Mila / Gaudi / 1906-1912/Modernisme/pedra, brick, ceramics and iron / civil / BCN

German Pavilion / Ludwig Mies van der Rohe / 1929/Barcelona/racionalisme/hacer, concrete, glass, travertine marble, onyx and granite. / Arquitravat.

Kaufmann House / Frank Lloyd Wright / 1935-1939 / reinforced concrete, based on the same rocky terrain and natural stone. LACER Also, wood, glass and aluminum / Arquitravat, with industrial materials / Bear Run, USA / organic / free family house .

Grief / Joseph Lemon / 1907 / marble carving / Exempt. Sedent/67 cm... Continue reading "Landmark Buildings and Artworks: A Comparative Study" »

Agrarian Peninsular Interior Landscape

1. Location

Agrarian peninsular interior landscape.

2. Environmental Analysis

• Relief: Flat relief, high average altitude on the plateau.
• Climate: Mediterranean climate, low summer rainfall.
• Vegetation: Predominantly scrub.
• Soil: Clay soil.

3. Analysis of Visible Human Elements

3.1 Plot Structure

Extensive crop quality, separated by segmentation or boundaries and roads.

3.2 Rural Land Uses

• Upland areas: Dominates the countryside of the plateau.
• Non-irrigated areas: Cropped areas.
• Irrigation: Intensive exploitation.
• Livestock: Important for cattle and sheep; dominant in Sierra Morena, Montes de Toledo, Sistema Ibérico, and the two Catalan coastal ranges.
• Land Use Balance: Balanced input between agriculture and livestock.

Concept of Material

Materials refer to all raw substances used in the production of useful objects for people. The manipulation of these raw materials produces objects that improve living standards.

Material Classification by Source

• Natural: Animal, vegetable, and mineral.
• Artificial.

Brief History of Material Use

Stone Age

• Paleolithic (2.5 million – 10,000 years ago): Stone, bones, horn, leather.
• Neolithic: Ceramics (clay heated over 450°C), bitumen, collagen glue.

Metal Age

• 4000 BC (Mesopotamia): Copper, gold, silver.
• 3000 BC – Bronze Age: An alloy of copper and tin; harder and with a lower melting point than copper. Used for weapons production.
• 1000 – 1500 BC: Iron, glass, and then timber.
• 20th Century: Concrete (cement + water + gravel).

Evolution

Economic Globalization and Major Institutions

International trade has grown significantly, leading to new production organization models, intensified international financial flows, and increased trade agreements between countries.

Key International Institutions

• World Bank: Aims to reduce poverty.
• IMF (International Monetary Fund): Advises governments on financial matters and provides loans to member countries.

Centers of the World Economy

Major Economic Powers

• United States: Represents over 20% of total world production. The US dollar remains the most important global currency.
• European Union: Stands as a leading economic power, though behind the United States in several aspects.
• East and Southeast Asia: Japan remains a wealthy nation. China has emerged

El Niño and La Niña Phenomena

Causes of El Niño

• Global warming, which reduces the thermal contrast between the two shores of the Pacific. This decreases the intensity of trade winds and ocean currents.
• Increased volcanic activity of oceanic ridges, which raises the temperature of the ocean.

When the trade wind subsides and does not blow westward, upwelling ceases. This leads to storms in the arid zones of Peru and Chile. The El Niño effect implies that fisheries production declines, and the global ocean temperature rises. Storms and rainfall increase in Peru, California, and East Africa, while droughts occur in Brazil and the Philippines.

La Niña

La Niña is characterized by an exaggeration of normal conditions. The trade winds blow harder,... Continue reading "Climate Dynamics: El Niño, Weather Risks, and Global Circulation" »

The landscape around us changes due to the action of external forces acting on its surface. The main energy source is solar energy.

Landscape Transformation by External Forces

The Role of Solar Energy

The amount of solar energy varies with latitude: the sun's rays do not strike all points of the Earth's surface in the same way. The energy received decreases as a function of latitude from the equatorial zones towards the poles, producing a thermal imbalance which is compensated by the flow of energy in the form of heat. This heat propagates through convective cells and is responsible for:

• Maintaining appropriate conditions for the development of life in the biosphere.
• Causing wind, clouds, rain, and snow, forming rivers, torrents, valleys, and glaciers.

Earth's Geological Foundations

Understanding Rocks

Igneous Rocks

Igneous rocks are formed when magma solidifies.

Magma Defined

Magma is a mixture of molten rock and gases.

Metamorphic Rock Classification

Metamorphic rocks are classified, often exhibiting laminar (layered) or crystalline structures.

The Rock Cycle Explained

The rock cycle is the set of processes experienced by rocks and sediments at the surface and inside the Earth's crust.

Uses of Rocks

• Building materials
• Ornamental purposes
• Containers
• Fuel
• Chemical industry

Minerals and Their Properties

Minerals: Definition and Features

Solid minerals are formed by the chemical combination of elements in the Earth's crust. Rocks are composed of minerals, which possess three key features:

• Being natural
• Having

Concrete Components

• Concrete Components

• Fine Aggregate Cement
• Coarse Aggregate
• Water
• Additives

These are substances or products incorporated into the concrete before or during mixing at a rate not exceeding 5% of the fresh concrete and/or to modify some of its characteristics, common properties, or behavior.

Common additives include water reducers, superplasticizers or plasticizers, retarders or accelerators for curing, air-entraining agents, dyes, and air occluders for frost resistance, etc.

• Additions

These are inorganic materials, pozzolanic or latent hydraulic, finely divided, that can be added to concrete to improve some of its properties or confer special properties.

An example includes the use of fly ash as an addenda. Fly ash is obtained by electrostatic... Continue reading "Concrete Composition: Materials, Dosage, and Properties" »

Environmental Impacts and Pollution

Atmospheric Pollution

Environmental contamination results from the introduction of foreign materials into the environment, or the presence of existing materials at concentrations exceeding normal values.

These foreign materials are often caused by contaminating agents and substances.

Atmospheric Contaminants and Control

The most common and widely dispersed air pollutants are described below. Their levels are usually expressed in terms of atmospheric concentration or, in the case of gases, in parts per million air molecules.

Among the air pollutants emitted by natural sources, there is radon, a radioactive gas harmful to human health.

Some contaminants are formed, for example, by the action of the sun on previously... Continue reading "Understanding Environmental Pollution and Resource Scarcity" »