Measuring erosion with the micro-erosion meter—Contributions to understanding landform evolution
Introduction
Since the original description of the micro-erosion meter (MEM) by Hanna (1966) and its more widely publicised introduction by High and Hanna (1970), a number of investigators have utilized the technique in order to understand rates of erosion in the landscape. The MEM has been used to measure erosion of terrestrial and cave limestone (Hanna, 1966, Trudgill, 1976a, Trudgill, 1979, Kunaver, 1979, Forti, 1984, Trudgill, 1986, Shakesby and Walsh, 1986, Cucchi et al., 1994, Moses et al., 1995, Smith et al., 1995, Cucchi et al., 1996, Drysdale and Gillieson, 1997, Muhammad and Beng, 2002), wind abrasion and weathering on granite in Antarctica (Spate et al., 1995); building stone decay (Sharp et al., 1982, Trudgill et al., 1989, Trudgill et al., 1990, Trudgill et al., 1991, Trudgill et al., 2001, Kamh and Hanna, 2002). Smith (1978) advocated its use in studies of rock weathering for the purposes of rock art preservation and Mottershead (1981) used it to assess the persistence of ocean spilt oil on rock shores. By far the most common application has been to the measurement of erosion on shore platforms (Trudgill, 1972, Trudgill, 1976b, Robinson, 1977a, Robinson, 1977b, Robinson, 1977c, Kirk, 1977, Trudgill, 1979, Torunski, 1979, Spencer, 1981, Ellis, 1983, Gill and Lang, 1983, Spencer, 1985a, Spencer, 1985b, Ellis, 1986, Shakesby and Walsh, 1986, Mottershead, 1989, Stephenson and Kirk, 1996, Stephenson, 1997a, Stephenson and Kirk, 1998, Neves et al., 2001, Andrade et al., 2002, Taylor, 2003, Inkpen et al., 2004, Stephenson and Thornton, 2005, Kanyaya and Trenhaile, 2005, Inkpen and Stephenson, 2006, Foote et al., 2006, Swantesson et al., 2006a, Swantesson et al., 2006b, Trenhaile et al., 2006, Cucchi et al., 2006, Blanco-Chao et al., 2007, Trenhaile and Porter, 2007). Most recently a number of studies have used the MEM to investigate weathering of inter-tidal and supra-tidal bedrock (Stephenson and Kirk, 2001, Taylor, 2003, Stephenson et al., 2004, Trenhaile, 2006, Gómez-Pujol et al., 2007, Porter and Trenhaile, 2007, Hemmingsen et al., 2007). This last category has investigated the phenomenon of rock swelling, where surfaces rise relative to the previous measurement, so that the MEM has revealed the dynamic nature of rock surfaces where surfaces rise and fall over various temporal scales. In the last 10 years there has been a dramatic increase in the number of published studies measuring erosion on shore platforms, reflecting the increased interest in rock coast geomorphology. This also reflects the applicability of the MEM in situations of relatively high rates of bedrock change where the real change is large in relation to error and useable results can be obtained within the life of a project (usually ~ 3 years). Perhaps the major attraction of the MEM, and certainly a stimulus for its original design, is its ability to produce results in a time frame relevant to most research projects.
In this paper we review the MEM technique and the resulting contributions made to understanding landscape evolution. For the sake of inclusiveness studies of building stone decay utilising the MEM are also reviewed since these studies also contribute to our understanding of weathering processes in landscape evolution. Finally we identify some of the limitations of the technique and suggest how further advances in understanding the role of micro-erosion in landscape evolution might be achieved.
Section snippets
The MEM and traversing MEM
The MEM consists of an equilateral triangular base, with legs located at each corner, and an engineering dial gauge located on a central pillar (Fig. 1). The spindle of the gauge extends through the base plate. Readings are taken by placing the base on three masonry bolts permanently fixed into a rock surface (Fig. 2). Bolts consist of marine grade stainless steel threaded rods with the top machined to a hemisphere, and a masonry expansion shell. Shakesby and Walsh (1986) provided details on
Terrestrial applications
The original intent for the MEM was to measure erosion in limestone caves (Hanna, 1966). It has also been used to measure erosion of limestone bedrock by solution in open environments under varying combinations of climate, vegetation and soil cover (Trudgill, 1986, Smith et al., 1995, Cucchi et al., 1996, Muhammad and Beng, 2002, Allred, 2004, Liu et al., 2006). In contrast Drysdale and Gillieson (1997) measured deposition of travertine occurring at a mean rate of 4.15 mm a− 1. Spate et al.
Building stone applications
Despite the advocacy of Winkler (1986), the MEM has only had limited application to issues of building stone decay. Perhaps this is because of the intrusive nature of the technique, installing bolts in building stones will not always be well received and the development of less intrusive techniques such as photogrammetry (Inkpen et al., 2000) and laser scanning (Birginie and Rivas, 2005). The instillation of MEM sites on St Paul's Cathedral in 1980 represents a unique long term experiment
Rock weathering studies
A number of MEM applications can be considered as contributions to understanding rock weathering, regardless of whether they occurred in coastal or terrestrial settings. A significant and recent finding has been the occurrence of rock swelling and contraction over various time scales from hours and days to months and years. A number of authors have reported swelling (Kirk, 1977, Mottershead, 1989, Stephenson and Kirk, 1998, Taylor, 2003, Foote et al., 2006, Swantesson et al., 2006a, Trenhaile
Rock coasts–shore platforms
Robinson (1976) adapted the MEM for use on shore platforms at a time when there was a lack of quantitative data to address fundamental questions about shore platform origin. The T/MEM has been used to measure rates of surface lowering on shore platforms and from those rates various authors have interpreted processes, contributing to the on going debate about the origin of shore platforms (waves versus weathering) and assessing the relative contribution of different processes (marine, subaerial
Conclusions
The MEM and TMEM has undoubtedly improved our knowledge of the rates of erosion in the landscape, particularly how rates vary over short time and spatial scales. The method has also allowed more understanding of how different processes contribute to erosion in the landscape when careful experimental design is followed. The most successful investigations have been those that combine the MEM with other techniques (laser scanner, photogrammetry, and process measurements). Our understanding of how
Acknowledgements
This paper is the result of Australian Research Council funded project “Erosion morphodynamics and evolution of shore platforms” Grant number DP0557205, awarded to WJS.
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