Schmidt Hammers are tools designed to test how well concrete is set, but geomorphologists have used them for decades to quantify relative hardness and mechanical strength of rocks. The idea is that rocks with longer exposure duration to weathering conditions are weaker and return lower Schmidt Hammer rebound values (R-values) whereas rocks with shorter exposure to weathering are stronger and return higher R-values. The goal of this study was to quantify the effects of rock surface smoothing using a carborundum puck when making Schmidt Hammer measurements. We found that light use of a carborundum puck to smooth rock surfaces does not change resulting R-values when compared to no smoothing, but heavy use does. Check out the paper below to learn more!
Status: Complete
Participants & Collaborators:
Brianna (Anne) Shepherd (EMU, Professional Geology, BS, '24)
Lexy Peplinski (EMU, ENVI, BS, '20)
Funding Sources:Â
Eastern Michigan University Undergraduate Research Stimulus Program (Awarded to Brianna Shepherd): Improving our understanding of Schmidt Hammer data in the Great Lakes with a comparitive analysis of measurement methodologies (2023)
Publications
Shepherd, BS, Portenga, EW, and Peplinski, AJ, 2024. Quantifying the effects of carborundum rock surface smoothing for Schmidt hammer R-value metrics measured on glacial erratics in the North American Great Lakes region: Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 49(13), 4077-4087, doi:10.1002/esp.5973
Presentations
Shepherd, BS, Portenga, EW, Ceperley, EG, Ullman, DJ, 2023. Applications of Schmidt Hammer exposure-age dating in the North American Great Lakes Region: An elusive endeavor. Geological Society of America Annual Meeting: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Shepherd, BS, 2024. Importance of glacial transport distance and rock fractures in Schmidt hammer exposure-age dating?: Eastern Michigan University Undergraduate Research Symposium, Ypsilanti, Michigan, USA.