Clay mineral assemblages in the western Baltic Sea

DOI

Surface samples and nine cores from the western Baltic Sea and marginal water bodies were investigated for clay mineral composition. The clay mineral assemblages of recent sediments are rather homogeneous. Variations result mainly from the erosion of different glacial source deposits. High percentages of illite and low kaolinite/chlorite and quartz/feldspar ratios are characteristic for this glacial source. Advection of kaolinite-rich suspensions from the North Sea is believed to account for higher kaolinite/chlorite ratios in the Mecklenburg Bight. A contribution of the rivers Trave and Oder to the western Baltic Sea is indicated by increased smectite values in marginal water bodies. They correspond to increased kaolinite/chlorite and quartz/feldspar ratios. In the main basins the river signal is diluted beyond recognition. Cores from the Arkona, Bornholm and Gotland Basins penetrate through post-Littorina muds and sediments of the Ancylus Lake/Yoldia Sea into Late Glacial sediments of the Baltic Ice Lake. Clay mineral assemblages are characterized by an increase in kaolinite/chlorite ratios from Late Glacial to Holocene sediments, with a distinct shift at each facies change. This allows the distinction and core to core correlation of main lithological units with kaolinite/chlorite ratios. Kaolinite enrichment of Holocene muds corresponds to a brackish-marine facies and may reflect influx of kaolinite-rich suspensions from the North Sea. Cores from the lagoon of the Oderhaff show fluctuations in the contributions of the two main sediment sources: river suspension and glacial deposits during the Late Glacial and Postglacial sequence. Lacustrine sediments, which were deposited prior to 5500 years B.P. are characterized by smectite, kaolinite and quartz from the drainage area of the Oder river. Erosion of coastal and offshore glacial boulder clays with the Littorina transgression supplied a marine component rich in illite, chlorite and feldspars to the brackish muds of the Oderhaff.

Supplement to: Gingele, Franz; Leipe, Thomas (1997): Clay mineral assemblages of the western Baltic Sea: recent distribution and relation to sedimentary units. Marine Geology, 140(1-2), 97-115

Identifier
DOI https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.726643
Related Identifier https://doi.org/10.1016/S0025-3227(97)00023-6
Metadata Access https://ws.pangaea.de/oai/provider?verb=GetRecord&metadataPrefix=datacite4&identifier=oai:pangaea.de:doi:10.1594/PANGAEA.726643
Provenance
Creator Gingele, Franz; Leipe, Thomas
Publisher PANGAEA
Publication Year 1997
Rights Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
OpenAccess true
Representation
Language English
Resource Type Supplementary Publication Series of Datasets; Collection
Format application/zip
Size 11 datasets
Discipline Earth System Research
Spatial Coverage (10.993W, 53.428S, 19.907E, 57.298N); Arkona Becken; Pommersche Bucht; Oder Rinne; Oder Haff; Achterwasser; Greifswalder Bodden; Arkona Basin; Bornholm Basin, Baltic Sea; Gotland Basin, Baltic Sea; Mecklenburg Bight; Oder Trough; Oder Bank; Oder River
Temporal Coverage Begin 1992-01-01T00:00:00Z
Temporal Coverage End 1996-01-01T00:00:00Z