Final answer:
An example of physical weathering is Rock breaking apart when it falls from a cliff. This type of weathering involves the mechanical breakdown of rocks without chemical composition changes.
Step-by-step explanation:
An example of physical weathering is D) Rock breaking apart when it falls from a cliff. This is a process where the physical structure of a rock is mechanically broken down without changes to its chemical composition. Weathering can be contrasted with chemical weathering, which involves chemical reactions that change the mineral composition of rocks, examples of which include acid rain breaking down compounds in statues or iron rusting.
Physical weathering occurs through processes such as temperature changes, freeze-thaw cycles, abrasion, and biological activity, all of which can physically break rocks apart. It is one of the key processes in the formation of sediment. Alternatively, chemical weathering might involve water reacting with minerals, as in the hydrolysis of feldspar to form clay or oxidation reactions where oxygen interacts with minerals, like the rust formation in iron (4 FeO + O₂ →→→→ 2 Fe₂O₃).