LITHOSTRATIGRAPHY

Sediment Core Description Forms

The sediment core description forms, or barrel sheets, summarize data obtained during shipboard analysis of each core (see the "Core Descriptions" contents list). The Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) conventions used for the compilation of each part of the core description forms and the exceptions to these procedures adopted by the Leg 182 Shipboard Scientific Party are described below.

Graphic Lithology Column

A modified version of the lithologic classification of Mazzullo et al. (1988) was used during Leg 182. The classification adopted here is outlined in "Rock Classification and Principal Names". Sediment type is represented graphically on the core description forms using the symbols illustrated in Figure F1.

In the "Graphic Lithology" column a maximum of three different lithologies (for interbedded sediments) or three different components (for mixed sediments) can be represented within the same core interval. Percentages are rounded to the nearest 10%, and only lithologies that constitute at least 10% of each core are shown. Minor lithologies that are present as thin interbeds within the major lithology are shown by a dashed vertical line dividing the lithologies. Components that are present as minor fractions of the main lithology are shown by a continuous vertical line. Grain size of siliciclastic sediments or texture of neritic carbonates (see "Siliciclastic Sediments and Rocks" and "Neritic Calcareous Sediments and Rocks") is shown in the column to the left of the graphic lithology. However, note that only the mudstone and grainstone classes are displayed in Figure F1.

Bioturbation

Five degrees of bioturbation were differentiated (Fig. F1), similar to that of Droser and Bottjer (1986). The relative degrees of bioturbation are illustrated in the color-banded bioturbation column of the barrel sheets.

Sedimentary Structures

The location and nature of sedimentary structures are shown in the "Structure" column of the core description form. The symbols used to designate structures found in Leg 182 cores are shown in Figure F1.

Fossils and Ichnofossils

These columns indicate the occurrence of ichnofossil genera and major groups of macro- and microfossils. Bryozoans were classified using the growth-form scheme of Bone and James (1993). Symbols shown in this column are described in Figure F1.

Lithologic Accessories

This column indicates the position of secondary, diagenetic features such as ferruginous concretions or concretions in general. Symbols shown in this column are described in Figure F1.

Core Disturbance

Observations of drilling-related disturbance over an interval of 20 cm or more were recorded in the "Disturbance" column using the symbols shown in Figure F1. The degree of drilling disturbance in soft and firm sediments is as follows:

  1. Slightly disturbed: bedding contacts are slightly deformed;
  2. Moderately disturbed: bedding contacts have undergone extreme bowing;
  3. Very disturbed: bedding is completely deformed as flowing, coring/drilling slough, and other soft sediment stretching and/or compressional shearing structures attributed to the coring/drilling; and
  4. Soupy: intervals are water-saturated and have lost all aspects of original bedding.

The degree of fracturing in indurated sediments and rocks is described using the following categories:

  1. Slightly fractured: core pieces are in place and broken;
  2. Moderately fractured: core pieces are in place or partly displaced, and original orientation is preserved or recognizable (drilling slurry may surround fragments, i.e., drilling/coring "biscuits" are evident);
  3. Highly fragmented: core pieces are probably in correct stratigraphic sequence (although they may not represent the entire sequence), but original orientation is lost; and
  4. Drilling breccia: the core is crushed and broken into many small and angular pieces, with original orientation and stratigraphic position lost; often drilling breccia is completely mixed with drilling slurry.

Samples

The positions of samples taken from each core for analysis are indicated in the "Sample" column of the core description form as follows: SS (smear slide), THS (thin section), PAL (micropaleontology), and IW (interstitial water).

Color

After the core was split color was determined visually using the color chart of the Munsell Color Company (1994). In addition, color was measured with a Minolta CM-2002 spectrophotometer mounted on the archive multisensor track. These measurements were determined on the damp core surface, and Glad brand clear plastic film was used to cover the core. The Minolta CM-2002 measures reflected visible light in thirty-one 10-nm-wide bands ranging from 400 to 700 nm. Colors determined by this method correspond to those of the Munsell Color Company (1994). Routine measurements were made at evenly spaced intervals within each section, taking into account section length and the position of voids within the section.

Before and after obtaining measurements from each core, the spectrophotometer was calibrated for white color reflectance by attaching its white calibration cap. In addition, instrument calibration was checked using a white barium sulfate plate, which is the standard used for calibrating laboratory-grade spectrophotometers. These white color calibrations were made to avoid variation in color readings due to the laboratory environment (temperature, humidity, and background light) and instrument variations.

Note: After the cruise it was determined that a correction was applied erroneously to the color data by the recording software. The correction factors were not saved. Therefore, the absolute values of the raw data are incorrect. Calculation of color parameters such as L*, a*, and b* will contain large errors. However, relative variations with depth are probably consistent. Relative spectral analysis (e.g., reflectance ratios, first derivative) can probably be performed with insignificant errors.

Lithologic Description

Core description forms consist of a list of major lithologies followed by a more detailed description of the composition (as determined from smear slides), color, sedimentary structures, and other notable features. Descriptions and locations of thin, interbedded, or minor lithologies are also included in the text. The terminology for the thickness of sedimentary beds and laminae follows McKee and Weir (1953): very thick bedded (>100 cm), thick bedded (30-100 cm), medium bedded (10-30 cm), thin bedded (3-10 cm), thickly laminated (>0.3 cm), and thinly laminated (<0.3 cm). The term "wispy lamination" was used to describe laminae with undulatory and anastomosing shapes.

Smear Slides and Thin Sections

Tables summarizing data from smear-slide and thin-section analyses (see the "Core Descriptions" contents list) include information about the sample location, whether the sample represents a dominant (D) or a minor (M) lithology in the core, and an estimate of sand, silt, and clay, together with all identified components. The following categories were used: trace (<0.1%), rare (0.1%-1%), present (1%-5%), common (5%-20%), abundant (20%-50%), and dominant (>50%).

Sediment and Rock Classification

Grain Types and Classifications

Grain types in granular sediments and rocks were classified according to mineralogy: (1) pelagic calcareous and siliceous, (2) neritic calcareous and siliceous, and (3) siliciclastic particles. Their definitions are as follows:

  1. Pelagic grains are fine-grained skeletal debris produced within the upper part of the water column in open-marine environments by (a) calcareous microfauna and microflora (foraminifers, pteropods, nannofossils, and associated organisms) and (b) siliceous microfauna and microflora (radiolarians, diatoms, and associated organisms).
  2. Neritic grains are coarse- to fine-grained particles and consist of calcareous and siliceous skeletal and nonskeletal grains and fragments (e.g., bioclasts, peloids, and micrite). Note that the term micrite is used to define very fine calcareous particles (<4 µm) of indeterminate origin.
  3. Siliciclastic grains are (a) grains comprising minerals and rock fragments that were eroded from plutonic, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks; and (b) grains comprising glass shards, rock fragments, and mineral crystals that were produced by volcanic processes.

Pelagic carbonates contain more than 50% pelagic grains, whereas neritic carbonates contain more than 50% neritic grains. Siliciclastic sediments and rocks are composed of more than 50% siliciclastic grains.

Rock Classification and Principal Names

Sediments and rocks were named on the basis of composition and texture using a principal name together with major and minor modifiers (Table T1). Principal names define the degree of consolidation (firmness) and granular sediment class. Composition is the most important classifier for pelagic and siliciclastic sediments and rocks, whereas texture is significant for the classification of neritic calcareous sediments and rocks (Table T2). Composition and texture of cored sediments and rocks were determined aboard ship by visual observation and visual estimates in smear slides, thin sections, and coarse fractions. Calcium carbonate content was qualitatively estimated in smear slides and quantitatively estimated by coulometric analysis (see "Organic Geochemistry").

Firmness

Firmness of recovered materials was defined as in Gealy et al. (1971). Three classes of firmness were used to describe calcareous sediments and rocks:

  1. Unlithified: soft sediments that have little strength and are readily deformed under the pressure of a fingernail or the broad blade of a spatula. This corresponds to the term "ooze" for pelagic calcareous sediments. In neritic calcareous sediments the prefix "unlithified" is used (e.g., unlithified packstone).
  2. Partially lithified: firm but friable sediments that can be scratched with a fingernail or the edge of a spatula blade. The term "chalk" is used for firm or friable pelagic calcareous material. In neritic calcareous sediment the prefix "partially lithified" is used (e.g., partially lithified grainstone).
  3. Lithified: hard, nonfriable, cemented rock that is difficult or impossible to scratch with a fingernail or the edge of a spatula. The term "pelagic limestone" (lithified ooze) is used for pelagic calcareous material. In neritic calcareous material a modified Dunham (1962) classification scheme (see "Neritic Calcareous Sediments and Rocks") is used.

Two classes of firmness were used to describe siliceous sediments and rocks:

  1. Soft: sediment core can be split with a wire cutter. Soft terrigenous sediment, pelagic clay, and transitional calcareous sediments are termed sand, silt, or clay; and
  2. Hard: the core is hard (i.e., consolidated or well indurated) if it must be cut with a hand or diamond saw. For these materials the suffix "-stone" is added to the soft-sediment name (e.g., sandstone, siltstone, and claystone). Note that this varies from terms used to described neritic calcareous sediments for which the suffix -stone has no firmness implications.

For a better visualization of the different intensities of sediment lithification, degrees of firmness are also shown in the "Consolidation" column of the core descriptions (Fig. F1).

Pelagic Sediments and Rocks

Principal names used to describe pelagic sediments and rocks during Leg 182 are as follows:

  1. Pelagic clay: unconsolidated authigenic pelagic material (>15%) and siliceous pelagic sediment (lithified examples are termed pelagic claystone);
  2. Ooze: unconsolidated calcareous and/or siliceous pelagic sediment;
  3. Chalk: firm pelagic sediment composed predominantly of calcareous pelagic grains;
  4. Pelagic limestone: hard pelagic sediment composed predominantly of calcareous pelagic grains;
  5. Radiolarite, diatomite, and spiculite: firm pelagic sediment composed predominantly of siliceous radiolarians, diatoms, and sponge spicules, respectively;
  6. Porcellanite: a well-indurated rock with the texture, hardness, conchoidal fracture, and general appearance of unglazed porcelain (less hard, dense, and vitreous than chert); and
  7. Chert: vitreous or lustrous, conchoidally fractured, highly indurated rock composed predominantly of authigenic silica.

Neritic Calcareous Sediments and Rocks

Neritic calcareous sediments and rocks were classified using a modification of the original Dunham (1962) classification, in conjunction with depositional textures described by Embry and Klovan (1971; Figure F2):

  1. Mudstone: mud-supported fabric with less than 10% grains (grains <2 mm in size);
  2. Wackestone: mud-supported fabric with greater than 10% grains (grains <2 mm in size);
  3. Packstone: grain-supported fabric with intergranular mud (grains <2 mm in size);
  4. Grainstone: grain-supported fabric with no mud (grains <2 mm in size);
  5. Floatstone: matrix-supported fabric (grains >2 mm in size); and
  6. Rudstone: grain-supported fabric (grains >2 mm in size).

Siliciclastic Sediments and Rocks

Texture, structure, and composition are the main criteria for the selection of a principal name for siliciclastic sediments and rocks. The Udden-Wentworth grain-size scale (Fig. F3; Wentworth, 1922) defines the grain-size ranges and the names of the textural groups (gravel, sand, silt, and clay) and subgroups (fine sand, coarse silt, etc.). This grain-size scale was also used in carbonate rocks. When two or more textural groups or subgroups are present, the principal names appear in order of increasing abundance. Eight major textural categories can be defined on the basis of the relative proportions of sand, silt, and clay (Fig. F4). Distinguishing between some size categories is difficult (e.g., silty clay and clayey silt) without accurate measurements of weight percentages. The terms conglomerate and breccia are the principal names of gravels with well-rounded and angular clasts, respectively.

Major and Minor Modifiers

To describe the lithology of the granular sediments and rocks in greater detail, the principal name of a granular sediment class is preceded by major modifiers and followed by minor modifiers (Table T1). Minor modifiers are preceded by the term "with." The most common uses of major and minor modifiers are to describe the composition and textures of grain types that are present in major (25%-40%) and minor (10%-25%) proportions. In addition, major modifiers can be used to describe grain fabric, grain shape, and sediment color.

The composition of pelagic grains can be described in greater detail with the major and minor modifiers "nannofossil," "foraminifer," "calcareous," and "siliceous." The terms calcareous and siliceous are used to describe sediments that are composed of calcareous or siliceous pelagic grains of uncertain origin.

The compositional terms for neritic calcareous grains include the following major and minor modifiers as skeletal and nonskeletal grains:

  1. Bioclast: fragments of skeletal remains (specific names such as molluscan or algal are used where appropriate);
  2. Ooid: spherical or elliptical nonskeletal particles smaller than 2 mm in diameter, having a central nucleus surrounded by a rim with concentric or radial fabric;
  3. Pisoid: spherical or ellipsoidal nonskeletal particle, commonly greater than 2 mm in diameter, with or without a central nucleus but displaying multiple concentric layers of carbonate;
  4. Pellet: fecal particles from deposit-feeding organisms;
  5. Peloid: micritized carbonate particles of unknown origin;
  6. Intraclast: reworked carbonate sediment/rock fragments or rip-up clasts consisting of the same lithology as the host sediment;
  7. Lithoclast: a reworked carbonate rock fragment consisting of a different lithology than the host sediment; and
  8. Calcareous, dolomitic, aragonitic, and sideritic: the mineral composition of carbonate muds or mudstones (micrite) of neritic origin.

The textural designations for siliciclastic grains use standard major and minor modifiers such as gravel(-ly), sand(-y), silt(-y), and clay(-ey). The character of siliciclastic grains can be described further by mineralogy using modifiers such as "quartz," "feldspar," "glauconite," "mica," "lithic," or "calcareous." The fabric of a sediment can be described using major modifiers such as grain-supported, matrix-supported, and imbricated. Fabric terms are generally useful only when describing gravels, conglomerates, and breccias.

NEXT