The use of X-ray radiographic methods in studying sedimentary properties and rates of sediment accumulation

Abstract

X-ray radiographs of unextruded sediment cores are used for the documentation and the interpretation of primary and secondary sedimentary structures, and for the correlation of synchronous laminations between different cores. The vertical variation in bulk density, water content and void ratio, and the increase of solids with increasing sediment depth are calculated from the recorded film density along the radiographs. The X-ray radiographic technique for the study of sedimentary properties is fast and non-destructive. The technique is especially valuable when studying the uppermost part of the sediment cover and the processes of sediment redistribution and sediment accumulation. Studies are being undertaken in several Swedish lakes and coastal bays, where mono- and stereoradiographs are being used to classify bottom and sediment types, to interpret changes in the depositional environment, and to calculate past and present rates of sediment accumulation.