Journal of the Marine Biological Association of India

Granulometric study of Tharuvaikulam and Thirespuram, Gulf of Mannar,southeast coast of India

Volume 50 Issue 2

P. Ashok Kumar and Jamila Patterson

Abstract

A study was conducted to understand the texture and nature of transportation and deposition of sediments along the shoreline of Tharuvaikulam and Thirespuram, southeast coast of India. The mean grain size of samples in Tharuvaikulam varied between 1.80 and 2.88 φ and between 1.65 and 2.90φ in Thirespuram. The graphic kurtosis values for samples at Thirespuram ranged from 0.35 to 2.46φ falling in very platykurtic to very leptokurtic types. For samples at Tharuvaikulam, the values varied between 0.26 and 3.47φ (very

platykurtic to extremely leptokurtic). Grain size was plotted on the horizontal axis in arithmetic scale and cumulative weight percentage was plotted on vertical axis in probability scale running from 0 to 100%. It is concluded that the samples fall mainly in the field of medium sand to fine sand, which indicates a moderate wave action along the shoreline of the study areas.

Keywords

Granulometry, sedimentology, skewness, kurtosis, soil texture

Date : 05-06-2009