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Chapter 4
Physical sedimentary
structures
Plane bedding
The simplest sedimentary structures is
Lamination
Bedforms generated by
unidirectional currents
Typically their
spacing is 10 to 20
cm or less, and their
height is less than a
few centimeters.
As flow velocity
increase the ripples
enlarge until they
form sand waves,
and finally dunes,
which have spacing
from 0.5 to 10m or
more and heights of
tens of cm to a meter
or more.
In deeper currents,
greater flow velocity is
required to produce
the large bedforms.
With increasing flow
velocity, dunes are
destroyed and the
turbulent flow which
was out of phase
turns into sheetlike
flow in phase with the
bedform. It forms
plane beds.
At higher velocities
plane beds are
replaced by
antidunes of up to
5m spacing. Low
dip angles of 10
degrees or less,
eventually chutes
and pool.
Flowpatternofsedimentmovementovermigratingripplesordune
Symetricalripplemarkswith
Adistinctivelenticularxsection
Troughcrossstrat.
Developsfrommigrating
Ripples&dunes
Tabularcrossstrat.
Isproducedbymigrating
sandwaves
Bedformgeneratedby
multidirectionalflow
Herringbonecross
stratificationfrom
alternatingtidal
currents.
Interferencepatternform
Insymmetricalripplesfrom
Twocoexistingwavesets
Inamoderntidalflat.
Intidalregionsthemostsignificantfeaturesarecausedbythe
mixingofsandandmudsizedfractionsfromtheasymetrical
currents.Lenticularbeddingoccurwhensandistrappedin
troughsinthemudassandwavesmigrateacrossamuddy
substrate.Ifmixingproducesminormudlayerinasandy
substratethepatterniscalledflaserbedding.