Acoustic Compressional Wave Velocity as a Predictor of Glacio-marine Sediment Grain Size

Abstract

We present relationships between the nondestructive measurement of acoustic compressional wave velocity and grain size and show that velocity can be used to assess some physical properties of glacio-marine sediments. For coarse-grained sediments, an increase in velocity is associated with an increase in the percentage of this size range. Within the fine-grained sediment size range, velocity is not an accurate predictor of grain-size. A median grain size of 4 μm and a sand content of 15 % are the limiting factors that distinguish this fine-grained behavior from coarse-grained behavior. However, in fine-grained glacio-marine sediment, the percent of sand (grain size >63 μm), can be predicted by compressional wave velocity. Therefore, with further refinement, acoustic velocity shows some potential as a predictor of grain size for marine sediments.

Constraints on the Pleistocene chronology of sediments from the Lomonosov Ridge

“…Here, density continues to vary in phase with the coarse fraction Table 1. content and is likely influenced by more subtle changes in the clay and silt contents of these sediments (Figure 3a). Similar variation is seen in the compressional wave velocity ( Figure 5), shown to be a sensitive grain size proxy in glaciomarine sediments [Moran et al, 2007].…”