Duricrust

duricrust, surface or near-surface of the Earth consisting of a hardened accumulation of silica (SiO₂), alumina (Al₂O₃), and iron oxide (Fe₂O₃), in varying proportions. Admixtures of other substances commonly are present and duricrusts may be enriched with oxides of manganese or titanium within restricted areas. Thus, siliceous, ferruginous, and aluminous crusts constitute duricrusts proper. Encrusted layers of calcium carbonate, gypsum, and salt, however, are often considered forms of duricrust.

The term duricrust (Latin durus, “hard”) was first applied in Australia to layered materials at or near the Earth’s surface, such as laterites, bauxites, and quartzites. These crusts are not of themselves landforms but represent the chemical alteration of the upper parts of plains and other features of low relief. In this sense, they are soils of an extreme type.