Sedimentology Commons^™

The Dinoflagellate Flora Of The Late Oligocene - Early Miocene Old Church Formation Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain, Alan P. Hoffmeister

OES Theses and Dissertations

The Old Church Formation contains the only presently known exposed Oligocene sediments in the North American mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain. Some ambiguity concerning the exact age of the Old Church Formation exists because it may include both Oligocene and Miocene sediments. Two outcrops and four cores containing the Old Church Formation were examined for dinoflagellates to determine the composition of the dinoflagellate flora in the Old Church Formation, the age of the Old Church Formation as indicated by this flora, general depositional environment of the Old Church Formation and correlative relationships of the Old Church Formation with other Coastal Plain units. …

Paleobathymetric Interpretation Of Pleistocene Sediments In The South Padre Island Area, Northwestern Gulf Of Mexico, Using Benthic Foraminiferal Morphology, Karen Ianthe Kruebbe-Belwood

OES Theses and Dissertations

This study tested the validity of using intraspecific variation in benthic foraminifera as a means for determining Pleistocene paleobathymetry. Canonical variate analysis was used as a means for determining visually undetectable but statistically significant differences in the morphology of selected species. Two species, Cassidulina subglobosa and Uvigerina peregrina, were collected from Pleistocene well cuttings from the northwest Gulf of Mexico. The canonical analysis involved comparing the intraspecific variation of these Pleistocene species to their counterparts occurring in the modern Gulf of Mexico, where intraspecific variation was previously analyzed and found to be sufficient to allow detection of bathymetric differences …

Relation Of Groundwater Fluoride Concentrations To Sediment Mineralogy, Potomac Formation (Cretaceous), Southeastern Virginia, Paul Anthony Maciuika

OES Theses and Dissertations

Thirty-seven Early cretaceous sediment samples of the Potomac Formation were obtained from four cores to determine if fluoride bearing minerals are responsible for elevated fluoride concentrations in Potomac Formation groundwaters of southeastern Virginia. Investigative methods included total sediment fluoride and particle size analysis, semiquantitative mineralogical analysis (achieved by X-Ray Diffraction) and statistical methods (cluster, canonical and regression analysis). The sediments showed wide variation in textures, ranging from clean sands and gravels to silty clays. Sediment mineralogies were dependent on the prevailing size fraction, with quartz and feldspar dominating the sand and silt fractions, muscovite primarily being found in the silt …

The Geomorphology Of Alluvial Fan Deposits On The West Flank Of The Blue Ridge, Augusta County, Virginia, Debra Lynn Duffy

OES Theses and Dissertations

Large coalescing alluvial fans mantle the carbonate and shale formations west of the Blue Ridge mountains near Stuarts Draft, Virginia. Fan sediments are predominantly boulder and cobble gravels derived from the Antietam Quartzite, The fan complex consists of three alluvial units of significantly different ages. The surface of each fan unit was mapped using relative geomorphic position, soil color, clay content and thickness of Bt horizons, clast weathering, and degree of removal of depositional surfaces by stream incision. A five-category quartzite clast weathering scale developed for this study was very effective as a measure to distinguish map units. Stratigraphic data …

The Role Of Longshore Sediment Transport In The Loss Of Fill Material From An Estuarine Groin System, R. Neville Reynolds

OES Theses and Dissertations

The influence of shoreline structures on longshore sediment transport and the evolution of a stable beach planform was investigated at Willoughby Spit, Virginia following the placement of 410,590 cubic meters of beach fill within a groin system. Shoreline changes and wave conditions in a single groin compartment, and the growth rate of a downdrift terminal spit were monitored during 1985 and 1986. Short term fluctuations in the shoreline position within the groin compartment suggested an episodic westerly movement of sediment through the groin system. Primary sediment moving events were associated with northerly winds which produced waves up to 50 cm …

Metal Mobilization From A Near-Shore Lake Sediment Under Simulated Acidic Groundwater Inputs, Raveendra V. Ika

OES Theses and Dissertations

Simulation of acidic groundwater passing through lake sediments was conducted under controlled conditions in a laboratory. Three sediment cores collected intact from the near-shore region of an acidic lake were subjected to simulated groundwater inputs of initially identical chemistry for a seven day period. Following this period water being used in the simulation for two of the sediment cores was acidified by hydrochloric acid (HC1) addition to examine the ability of these sediments to neutralize acidic groundwater with varying H⁺ concentration.

Simulated acidic water passing through the sediment cores mobilized significant amounts of metals. The sediment acted as a …

Nutrient Cycling In Bordenstake Bay Sediments: A Backbarrier Lagoon, Mark J. Herrenkohl

OES Theses and Dissertations

Six sets of sediment cores were collected over a one year period (June 1986 to July 1987) to examine nutrient cycling in Bordenstake Bay, a back barrier lagoon on Virginia's Eastern Shore Peninsula. The sampling times were chosen to examine any seasonal effects (e.g., temperature changes) which may affect the rates of metabolism in these sediments.

The sedimentation rate in Bordenstake Bay is 0.76 ± 0.21 cm/yr, leading to the annual deposition of 7. 05 moles of carbon, 0.46 moles of nitrogen, and 0.15 moles of phosphorus, per square meter of the sediment surface. The remineralization of organic matter in …

Discrimination Of Subparallel Beach Ridges Using Detrital Ilmenite Composition And Fourier Shape Analysis, Allen E. Evans Jr.

OES Theses and Dissertations

Elemental composition (Fe, Ti, Mn, Mg, V, Cu, Ni, Zn, and Cr) and Fourier shape analysis of magnetically separated detrital ilmenite from seven Pleistocene and modern beach sand deposits of the Southeastern Virginia Coastal Plain were used to distinguish each deposit. Geomorphic expression, crosscutting relationships and proximity to the present shoreline differentiates the relative age of the seven sampled beach deposits. Analysis of ilmenite elemental composition, independent of geomorphic expression, distinguished beach sands of

different age and was successful in determining that each beach contained ilmenite similar in composition. Of the seven beach ridges tested, subtle yet significant differences in …

Relationship Of Stream Drainage And Airphoto-Derived Lineaments To Basement Structures In The North Central Virginia Coastal Plain, William F. Mullen

OES Theses and Dissertations

A lineament study was conducted in the north central coastal plain of Virginia using five different data sources; color infrared photo images, rectified stream segments, bouguer gravity anomaly maps, aeromagnetic anomaly maps, and residual magnetic anomaly maps to determine the potential of aerial photographic analysis in the delineation of basement structural features beneath the sedimentary cover of the Virginia Coastal Plain.

Statistical analysis of 1602 airphoto lineaments and 2337 rectified stream segments produced 15 airphoto lineaments and 18 rectified stream segment lineaments in the north central Coastal Plain Province of Virginia. Azimuthal coincidence of these 33 lineaments determined that there …

Depositional Model For The Auriferous Gravels In The Payan Mining District Department Of Narino, Columbia, South America, Jim R. Garrett

OES Theses and Dissertations

Unlike placer deposits in arid and semi-arid environments where gold concentration is closely tied to the position of the bedrock, Payan placer deposits have no association with bedrock. Gold concentration values show highest gold concentrations occur at the contact of a coarse sand unit and its underlying gravel unit. Comparisons of the size and shape distributions of gold grain populations with their associated black sand populations indicate the gold and black sand were not deposited in hydraulic equilibrium. The mean size of each gold population is consistently coarser than the mean size of its associated black sand population despite the …

A Method For Determining Creosote Contamination Of Sediment From The Elizabeth River, Norfolk, Va, Elizabeth G. Merrill

OES Theses and Dissertations

Hydrocarbon input sources to the Elizabeth River were investigated. Carbonized coal products (creosote, coal tar, and roof tar), petroleum products (Kuwait Crude Oil, No. 2 Fuel Oil, and a fuel oil spill sample) and soot (woodstove and diesel engine) have unique hydrocarbon distributions. Elizabeth River sediment hydrocarbon distributions indicate that they are contaminated with both carbonized coal and petroleum products. Using a simple two member mixing model, greater than 65 percent of Elizabeth River sediments' resolved aromatic compounds were determined to originate from carbonized coal products. These aromatic hydrocarbons include the EPA priority pollutant polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons which are known …

Input And Distribution Of Sewage Derived Sedimentary Material Adjacent To Chesapeake-Elizabeth Sewage Outfall, Virginia Beach, Virginia, Robert Carroll Brown

OES Theses and Dissertations

The concentrations of coprostanol and hydrocarbons were measured in the effluent from the Chesapeake-Elizabeth sewage treatment plant and surface sediments from the area surrounding the effluent discharge site. Most of the coprostanol (>84%) and hydrocarbons (>91%) were associated with particulates in the effluent. Some of these particles were incorporated into the sedimentary column within the study area, while some may have escaped from the area.

The study area is found to be a dynamic area where changes in the percentage and distribution of fine-grained sediments occur over periods of months. The movement of fine-grained sediments is an important …

Cluster Analysis Of Grain Size Parameters From A Beach Ridge Complex, Cape Henry, Virginia, Amy T. Robbins, G. Richard Whittecar

OES Faculty Publications

Cape Henry is a Holocene beach ridge complex at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. Analyses of cross-cutting relationships visible on aerial photographs divide the complex into five geomorphic zones. Low, arcuate beach ridges, ornamented in places with small dunes, characterize the four oldest zones. The youngest zone consists of large irregular-shaped dunes which bury the margins of all older zones. Locations of 102 samples taken from 1 m depths on ridge crests were based upon a random stratified sampling grid covering all of Cape Henry. The use of half-phi size data generated standard sediment parameters. Weighted-pair cluster analyses of …

Some Effects Of The Polychaete Nereis Succinea Frey And Leukart 1847 On The Distribution Of Copper Cadmium And Zinc In Sediments And Water, Gabriela Kitzig August

OES Theses and Dissertations

Two laboratory experiments, each lasting 216 hours, were conducted in order to determine the effects of a burrowing polychaete, Nereis succinea Frey and Leukart, 1847, on the distribution of copper, cadmium, and zinc in sediments and water in environmentally controlled microcosms. Dissolved metal concentrations in microcosms containing worms (experimental) decreased more rapidly than in microcosms without worms (controls). From 72 hours to 216 hours, suspended metal concentrations in experimental microcosms increased while concentrations in controls remained relatively constant. Sediment cadmium concentrations in experimental microcosms increased more over time than in controls. Polychaetes accumulated significant amounts of all three metals. These …

The Distribution Of Cesium-137, Copper, Lead And Zinc In Various Sedimentary Environments Of The James River Estuary, Virginia, Colin Stevenson Moy

OES Theses and Dissertations

Ten grab samples and eight cores were obtained within a short stretch of the James River estuary. The distribution of CU, Pb, Zn, Cs-137, organic carbon (TOC) and fine-grained sediments in various depositional environments were examined. Within the past quarter of a century, these measured parameters have been accumulating preferentially in the low energy environment (Burwell Bay). The inventory of Cs-137 in the cores was linearly related to the inventory of heavy metals and TOC. The concentrations of Cs-137 in the surface sediments vary linearly to those of the other parameters suggesting that Cs-137 may be used as a tracer …

The Distribution Of Several Metals And Cation Exchange Capacity In Sediment Fractions From An Artificial And Natural Marsh, James River, Virginia, William Nivens

OES Theses and Dissertations

In order to examine the mechanisms by which Fe, Mn, Ca, Zn, Cu, Ni and Pb are bound in sediments, a sequential selective extraction procedure was employed on sediment samples collected at an experimental dredge disposal marsh and a neighboring natural marsh located near Windmill Point, James River, Va. The metal concentrations were determined in six phases, interstitial water, exchangeable, easily reducible (oxides of Mn), organic, moderately, reducible (oxides of Fe), and residual fractions. In addition, the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of the sediments was determined as well as the actual role of organics and colloidal iron coatings as they …

The Effects Of Dredging On The Stability Of An Ebb-Tidal Delta, Lynnhaven Inlet, Virginia, Donald Keith Riggenbach

OES Theses and Dissertations

A channel was dredged in 1965 through the ebb-tidal delta of Lynnhaven Inlet, Virginia. The purpose of this study was to determine if this channel has affected the morphological configuration of the delta. It was proposed that the channel caused the dynamically stable delta to become unstable and change its morphology.

Bathymetric comparisons of seven surveys during the last 122 years, including one conducted during this investigation, show that prior to 1962 and the dredging operations, the delta had become dynamically stable. The present survey shows that the delta has changed its shape in response to the interaction of the …

Stability And Local Effects Of An Offshore Sand Storage Mound, Dam Neck Disposal Site, Virginia Inner Continental Shelf, William Joslyn Saumsiegle

OES Theses and Dissertations

From 1967 to 1974 medium to coarse sand dredged from the Chesapeake Bay was stockpiled approximately three miles offshore of Dam Neck, Virginia in hopes that the sand could be recovered for local beach renourishment projects. The resulting mound was surveyed over a two year period to determine if the sand is being removed by wave and current action and if the creation of a new feature on the ocean bottom changes the wave refraction patterns and perhaps creates local erosion.

Bathymetric profiles across the storage mound show some apparent morphological changes, but a detailed analysis of this data is …

Topography, Shallow Structure, And Sedimentary Processes Of The Atlantic Continental Slope Off The Carolina Coast, Robert Michael Fitchko

OES Theses and Dissertations

Analysis of 58 closely-spaced bathymetric and seismic profiles of the Carolina continental slope from the northern Blake Plateau to the vicinity of the North Carolina-Virginia state line (latitude 32• 30 'N to 36• 30 'N) indicates sharp contrasts in quantity of slumping and outcrop ledge continuity.

Terrestrial progradation and a relatively gentle slope characterize the area south of Cape Lookout, especially between Cape Romain and Cape Fear where sediment mantling is the greatest. Submarine canyons, slumps, and a steep slope are characteristic Between Cape Lookout and Cape Hatteras. North of Cape Hatteras, canyons and slumps are also common, though sediment …

Control Of Clay Mineral Distribution By Estuarine Circulation, James River Estuary, Virginia, Jean-Pierre Feuillet

OES Theses and Dissertations

A study was performed on the clay minerals of the James River estuary, Virginia, to determine the predominant factors that influence clay mineral distribution in the estuary. The factors of differential settling, flocculation, and diagenesis show minor or no effects on distribution, while estuarine circulation exerts the strongest influence upon the clay mineral distribution.

There are two clay suites in the James River estuary. The upper James River clay suite is a kaolinite, dioctahedral vermiculite, and mixed-layer suite, with kaolinite being the major mineral. The lower Chesapeake Bay clay suite is an illite, chlorite, and montmorillonite suite, with illite being …

Dynamics And Sedimentology Of Inner Middle Ground - Nine Foot Shoal, Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, Mitchell Alan Granat

OES Theses and Dissertations

The historical, hydrodynamic, and sedimentological development of Inner Middle Ground - Nine Foot Shoal indicates that it is presently in quasi-equilibrium with mutually evasive ebb and flood tidal currents. Bathymetric comparisons among six surveys taken during the past 122 years depict development of the shoal from two linear sand bodies to its present double parabolic morphology. Circulation paths are proposed for each survey.

Information from eight current meter stations on and adjacent to Inner Middle Ground - Nine Foot Shoal were used to determine near-surface and near-bottom tidal current asymmetries and directions. The concepts of bathymetrically diverted currents and mutual …

Processes Controlling The Distribution Of Methane In The Cariaco Tranch, Venezuela, Denis A. Wiesenburg

OES Theses and Dissertations

Abstract unavailable.

Heavy Mineral Distribution In The Lower Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, Frances Firek

OES Theses and Dissertations

Heavy minerals from 195 bottom sediment samples of the lower Chesapeake Bay, Virginia have been studied. In comparison with other areas such as the Gulf of Mexico, qualitative and qualitative mineralogical variations were subdued, because of the absence of widely divergent source areas. The effect of present-day drainage system on the mineralogical distribution patterns is not clear, largely because of the complex Pleistocene history of the study area.

Seven geographic provinces were defined and treated statistically. An analysis of variance was conducted on the seven provinces. The more significant mineral species from the study area are zircon, hornblende, pyroxene, and …

An Investigation Of Littoral Transport Between Virginia Beach And Sandbridge, Virginia, Richard C. Cunningham Jr.

OES Theses and Dissertations

A method for calculating littoral transport, direct determination of the sediment flux, has been proposed and evaluated. Three sampling stations, located between Virginia Beach and Sandbridge, Virginia, were occupied for a period of thirteen months (September, 1972 to September, 1973). Measurements include velocity of the littoral current, cross-sectional area of the surf zone, and in situ samples of suspended and bottom sediment load. Observations of sea and atmospheric conditions were obtained. Two ways of calculating littoral transport were derived from the same basic method, thus two sets of transport values were generated. Two annual littoral transport values were calculated by …

An Evaluation Of A Stable Isotope Of Dysprosium For Labeling And Tracing Sedimentary Particles, Charles Glenn Boone

OES Theses and Dissertations

An evaluation of the application of dysprosium oxide as a tracer coating to surface label sedimentary particles is made. Physical and chemical properties of the labeled sand are studied. Effective diameters and settling properties of the tracer sand are compared with unlabeled sand. A total of 8.51 kg of labeled sand was placed on the beach at Camp Pendleton. Dispersal patterns obtained 1 and 4 hours after tracer injection indicate a general down current mean tracer migration rate of 0.21 cm/sec (0.42ft/sec). An absolute detection limit of 4 or 5 parts per 100,000 and a real detection limit, after field …

Grain Size Reconnaissance Of The Virginia-North Carolina Inner Shelf Analysis By Settling Technique, Robert Bailey Sanford Jr.

OES Theses and Dissertations

The 2-fold purpose of this study is to calibrate a Rapid Sediment Analyzer and to use it to aid in the determination of the genesis of sediment on the inner continental shelf between Cape Henry and Cape Hatteras. Rapid Sediment Analyzer calibration was conducted by comparison of sieving and settling results of similar sands.

The study area was divided into sediment provinces by both a qualitative procedure (grain size and topography) and a quantitatively procedure (factor-vector analysis). Qualitative provinces are beach and surf, upper shore face, lower shore face, sea floor, and terminal shoals. The berm fines from each terminal …

Quaternary Sedimentation On The Inner Atlantic Shelf Between Cape Henry And Cape Hatteras: A Preliminary Report, Donald J. P. Swift, Gerald L. Shideler, Nicholas F. Avignone, Barry M. Holliday, Charles E. Dill Jr.

OES Faculty Publications

The coast of the Middle Atlantic Bight of North America's Atlantic shelf consists of a series of spit - barrier island systems attached on their northern ends to eroding headlands. It has been suggested that these barriers were generated as coastwise-prograding spits (Fisher, 1967) or alternatively as mainland beaches detached by the Holocene rise of sea level (Hoyt, 1967). The shore face before the barriers consists of fine, seaward-fining sand. Locally, it is corrugated by oblique-trending ridges with up to 8 metres of relief — see for instance CSGS Chart 1109. Beyond the shore face lies a vast submarine sand …

A Fluorescent Tracer Study At A Tidal Inlet (Rudee Inlet, Virginia), James W. Bunch

OES Theses and Dissertations

Patterns and approximate rates of littoral transport south of Rudee Inlet. Virginia were investigated with fluorescent tracers. Sand movement was traced under a variety of longshore current and wave conditions. Patterns of tracer dispersal reflected the importance of wave height, breaker angle, and longshore current velocity on modes of littoral transport. A direct relationship between angle of breaker incidence. generated longshore current. and direction of tracer sand movement was found. Onshore offshore paths were taken by tracer material during periods of weak longshore currents and small breaker angles while alongshore paths were followed by tracer material during strong longshore currents …