Distribution, character, and attitude of the duricrust in the northwest of New South Wales and the adjacent areas of Queensland

Abstract

The silcretic duricrust is associated with a weathering profile up to 180 feet in depth. Theories of subsurface formation of the silcrete during laterization and exposure at the surface by general stripping are refuted on the evidence of geomorphic relationships and the distributional pattern of the silcrete. Present evidence, though not yet fully conclusive, is at least not inconsistent with hypotheses of deep weathering during middle Tertiary time under climatic conditions resembling existing subtropical types.