The Distinction between Grain Size and Mineral Composition in Sedimentary-Rock

Nomenclature
Author(s): Robert L. Folk
Source: The Journal of Geology, Vol. 62, No. 4 (Jul., 1954), pp. 344-359
Published by: The University of Chicago Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/30065016
Accessed: 23-04-2018 02:35 UTC

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THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN GRAIN SIZE AND MINERAL COMPO-
SITION IN SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE1

ROBERT L. FOLK
University of Texas

ABSTRACT

A system of grain-size nomenclature of terrigenous sediments and sedimentary rocks is introduced

wherein fifteen major textural groups are defined on the ratios of gravel, sand, silt, and clay. Further subdivi-
sion of each class is based on the median diameter of each size fraction present. Next, the mineral composition
of terrigenous sedimentary rocks is considered. A triangular diagram is used to define eight rock types
(orthoquartzite, arkose, graywacke, and five transitional types) based on the mineralogy of the silt-sand-
gravel fraction and ignoring clay content. The writer contends that the current practice of calling all clayey
sandstones "graywackes" is not valid, inasmuch as it represents a confusion of texture with composition. It is
suggested that sedimentary rocks may be best defined by the use of a tripartite name, based on the following
pattern-(grain size): (textural maturity) (mineral composition).

I. INTRODUCTION sediments pass sequentially through

Terrigenous sedimentary rocks are

four stages of textural maturity, depen
characterized by extreme variation in ing on the stability of the depositional
composition and in grain size; and, with- site and the input of modifying energy:
in certain limits, any mineral composi- (1) the immature stage, in which the
sediment contains a considerable amount
tion can occur with almost any grain
of clay and the sand grains are usually
size. It is consequently very difficult to
devise a nomenclature that will, in one poorly sorted and angular; (2) the sub-
mature stage, in which the clay has been
or a few words, define the essential prop-
erties of a given specimen and differen- winnowed out, but the silt-sand-gravel
tiate it from its neighbors. Furthermore, fraction remains poorly sorted and angu-
grain size must be described independ- lar; (3) the mature stage, in which the
ently of mineral composition if sedimen- grains are well sorted but still show low
tary petrography is ever to reach a foot- roundness; and, finally, (4) the super-
ing as secure as that of igneous petrog- mature stage, in which the grains are well
sorted and also well rounded.2
raphy. Confusion of grain size and min-
The present paper is concerned first
eral composition is especially pro-
with the grain size of sedimentary rocks;
nounced in the usage of the term "gray-
fifteen major textural groups are defined,
wacke," which has been applied indis-
criminately to all clayey sandstones (a depending upon the proportions of grav-
textural category), regardless of the min-
el, sand, and mud (defined here as the
eral composition of the sand portion. 2 Boundary lines between the four stages are now
(1954) defined as follows: immature sediments con-
In addition to mineral composition
tain over 5 per cent clay and very fine micaceous
and grain size, there is a third important
hash; the submature stage is attained when the
descriptive property, defined as the clay content drops below 5 per cent; the sediment
becomes mature when there is a range of less than
textural maturity of the rock, which has1.0 f unit between the 16th and 84th percentiles of
been discussed elsewhere in more detail the grain-size distribution (i.e., o< is under 0.5);
(Folk, 1951). According to this concept, and the sediment becomes supermature when the
average roundness of quartz grains of sand size
1 Manuscript received July 10, 1953. exceeds 0.35.

344

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 345

silt and clay portion) with each major
group capable of further subdivision.
The last section of the paper presents a istic (often the only one described be-
mineralogical basis for classifying sedi- sides color) is the grain size of a rock,
mentary rocks into eight types, based on whether it be a conglomerate, sand-
the composition of the silt-sand-gravel
fraction, independent of clay content.
The final rock name thus consists of
three separate parts, built on the follow-
ing pattern-(grain size): (textural ma-
turity) (mineral composition). As an
example of this system of nomenclature,
a rock might be described as "sandy con-
glomerate:submature arkose" or "silty
very fine sandstone:mature orthoquartz-
ite."
II. GRAIN-SIZE NOMENCLATURE FOR
TERRIGENOUS SEDIMENTS AND
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
NEED FOR A CLASSIFICATION
At the present time there is no gen-
erally accepted system of nomenclature
to describe the complete range of mix-
tures of gravel, sand, silt, and clay which
combine to form sediments and ulti-
mately sedimentary rocks. Ask ten peo-
ple to define a conglomerate, pebbly
sandstone, or sandy mudstone, and ten
different answers might be forthcoming.
Many schemes have been proposed from
time to time concerning the nomencla-
ture of aggregates of sedimentary par-
ticles (well summarized by Pettijohn,
1949, p. 26-30); but few of these have
been followed in field or even laboratory
descriptions except by the author of a
particular classification and perhaps a
few of his students. Such refinements are
looked upon as superfluous in many
quarters; but, if geology and especially
stratigraphy are ever to approach the
exactitude of some of the other sciences,
is desirable to have a fairly refined grain- ing because they have few boundaries
size terminology in consistent usage in
the description of geologic sections and
specimens. In sedimentary rocks perhaps
the most outstanding outcrop character-
stone, or shale; yet this is the very field
in which most ambiguity exists. We use
comparison charts for color and often
analyze carefully the mineral and fossil
content but leave one of the most im-
portant descriptive features of a rock-
the grain size-in a backwash of incon-
sistent and vague terminology.
The writer hesitates to add one more
classification scheme to the large num-
ber already in existence, but he has
found certain difficulties in trying to use
most of the earlier systems: either they
are incomplete (omitting the entire
range of possible mixtures between grav-
el, sand, and mud), or else the grain-size
name applied does not give a proper
picture of the rock or sediment. The pro-
posed scheme of textural nomenclature
has been tested in field and laboratory
descriptions over a period of some five
years and found to be fairly unambigu-
ous and, most important, practical to
use and easy to remember, without car-
rying any cumbersome charts or tables in
the field. Any new classification, of
course, draws heavily upon preceding
ones, and the scheme proposed here owes
its greatest debt to those of Wentworth
(1922) and Krynine (1948).
In all classifications of natural materi-
als, there are two extremes. The classi-
fication may be made simple, containing
few categories and with the limits of
each category ill defined and subject to
the interpretation of each person using
it. Simple classifications, unencumbered
by lengthy
it rules of procedure, are appeal-
to be learned; however, such classifica-
tions are often so simple that they are

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346 ROBERT L. FOLK

relatively valueless in exact work and,
lacking rigid definitions, they permit a
different usage by each geologist and
give rise to no end of disputes over the
category in which a certain specimen
belongs. The other extreme is a highly
complex classification with dozens of
pigeonholes, accompanied by pages of
detailed instructions on the limits of the
various classes and how they are to be
used. Here the divisions become so small
that they lose practical significance, and
the burden of learning the categories and
obeying the reams of instruction becomes
so great that the classification passes
into limbo.
Notwithstanding these difficulties, if
a classification is ever to become a preci-
sion tool, it must have some degree of
"complication"-i.e., a sufficient num-
ber of subdivisions to be precise, with
consistency in usage insured by a few
simple rules. In the classification of an
essentially continuous series (such as the
grain size of sediments), all divisions are
arbitrary; the boundaries used in the
proposed classification unavoidably re-
flect personal opinion, but it is hoped
that they coincide closely with prevalent
concepts.
DEFINITION OF TEXTURAL GROUPS
In brief, the basis of the proposedtriangle)
clas- and the ratio of sand to mud (shown on
the base). For expansion of the bottom, nongravelly
sification is a triangular diagram on tier into a sand-silt-clay triangle, see fig. lb.
which are plotted the proportions of
gravel (material coarser than 2 mm.),
sand (material between 0.0625 and 2
mm.), and mud (here defined as all ma-
terial finer than 0.0625 mm., i.e., silt
plus clay), as shown in figure la. De-
pending on the relative proportions of
these three constituents, fifteen major
textural groups are defined--for ex-
ample, sandy conglomerate, slightly
conglomeratic mudstone, or sandstone
(table 1).
To place a specimen in one of the fif-
teen major groups, only two properties
need be determined: (1) how much grav-
el (material coarser than 2 mm.) it con-
tains-boundaries at 80, 30, 5 per cent,
and a trace; and (2) the ratio of sand to
mud (silt plus clay), with boundaries at
9:1, 1:1, and 1:9.
The proportion of gravel is in part a
function of the highest current velocity
at the time of deposition, together with
the maximum grain size of the detritus
that is available; hence even a minute
GRAVEL
FIG. la.-The fifteen major textural groups as
defined by the relative percentages of gravel (ma-
terial coarser than 2 mm.), sand (material between
0.0625 and 2 mm.), and mud (silt plus clay material
finer than 0.0625 mm.). Letters refer to textural
names shown in table 1. Fields are defined by the
percentage of gravel (shown on the left "leg" of the
amount of gravel is highly significant.
For this reason the gravel content is
given major emphasis, and it is the first
thing to determine in describing the
specimen. This is best done on the out-
crop by naked-eye examination, perhaps
aided by a percentage comparison chart;
thin sections and hand specimens com-
monly give too small a sample to be rep-
resentative of the gravel content. Using
this scheme, a specimen containing more

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 347

than 80 per cent gravel is termed "con- mudstone, depending on the sand:mud
glomerate"; from 30 to 80 per cent grav- ratio.

el, "sandy conglomerate" or "muddy The proportion of sand to mud is the

conglomerate"; from 5 to 30 per cent next property to be determined, reflect-
gravel, "conglomeratic sandstone" or ing the amount of winnowing at the site
"conglomeratic mudstone"; from a trace of deposition. Four ranks are defined on
(say 0.01 per cent) up to 5 per cent grav-the basis of the sand:mud ratio; in the
el, "slightly conglomeratic sandstone" nonconglomeratic tier, these are sand-
or "slightly conglomeratic mudstone"; stone (ratio of sand to mud over 9:1),
and a specimen containing no gravel at muddy sandstone (ratio 1:1 to 9:1),
all may range from sandstone through sandy mudstone (ratio 1:9 to 1:1), and,

TABLE 1"*

TERMS APPLIED TO MIXTURES OF GRAVEL, SAND, AND MUD

DELIMITED IN FIGURE 1

Major Textural Class Examples of Usage

A. Gravel. Cobble gravel
Conglomerate Granule conglomerate
B. Sandy gravel Sandy pebble gravel
Sandy conglomerate Sandy boulder conglomerate
C. Muddy sandy gravel. Muddy sandy granule gravel
Muddy sandy conglomerate Clayey sandy pebble conglomerate
D. Muddy gravel Silty boulder gravel
Muddy conglomerate Muddy pebble conglomerate

E. Gravelly sand Pebbly coarse sand

Conglomeratic sandstone Granular very fine sandstone

F. Gravelly muddy sand Pebbly silty fine sand

Conglomeratic muddy sandstone Bouldery muddy coarse sandstone

G. Gravelly mud Cobbly clay

Conglomeratic mudstone. Pebbly siltstone

H. Slightly gravelly sand Slightly granular medium sand

Slightly conglomeratic sandstone Slightly pebbly coarse sandstone
I. Slightly gravelly muddy sand Slightly pebbly muddy medium sand
Slightly conglomeratic muddy sandstone Slightly cobbly silty fine sandstone
J. Slightly gravelly sandy mud Slightly granular fine sandy mud
Slightly conglomeratic sandy mudstone Slightly pebbly coarse sandy claystone
K. Slightly gravelly mud Slightly pebbly clay
Slightly conglomeratic mudstone
Slightly cobbly mudstone
L. Sand (specify sorting)
Well-sorted fine sand
Sandstone (specify sorting)
Poorly sorted medium sandstone
M. tMuddy sand. Well-sorted silty very fine sand
Muddy sandstone. Muddy coarse sandstone

N fSandy mud Fine sandy clay

Coarse sandy
Sandy mudstone siltstone (if fissile, coarse
(specify structure
sandy silt-shale)
O. Mud Silt
Mudstone (specify structure) Mudstone (if fissile, mud-shale)
* Both unconsolidated and consolidated equivalents are shown in this table. It is suggested that the italicized
terms be further specified as to their grain size, as shown in the examples.
t Textural classes M, N, and O are expanded, as shown in fig. lb. For classes N and O see also table 2.

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348 ROBERT L. FOLK

finally, mudstone (ratio under 1:9). The and very fine sand. This can
fine sand,
be done very easily by reference to a
ratio lines remain at the same value
throughout the triangle; e.g., sandy con- comparison set of sand grains of the sev-
glomerate is also divided from muddy eral sizes.

sandy conglomerate by a sand:mud ratio For muds a somewhat different pro-

of 9:1 (fig. la). This division is fairly cedure is used, the name depending on
easy to make with a hand lens, unless a the relative proportion of silt versus clay.
large amount of coarse silt and very fine This proportion is usually very difficult
sand is present. to determine with a hand lens, and the
These two simple determinations are only really satisfactory way is to make a
sufficient to place a specimen in one of thin-section (preferable) or a grain-size
the fifteen major textural groups shown analysis by pipette or hydrometer. In
in table 1. One might simply stop at thismany samples it might be best just to
point and say no more about the grain use the broad term "mud" and not at-
size; yet a great deal of information is tempt to split it any further. But the
gained by specifying, whenever practica- mud fraction of many sediments is ob-
ble, the median diameter of each of the viously composed dominantly of silt,
fractions present. Thus two specimens while the mud fraction of others is just
belonging to the conglomeratic sand- as certainly composed largely of clay;
stone group have quite different signifi- therefore, it is considered worth while to
cance if one is a bouldery fine sandstone make an attempt, if at all practicable,
and the other is a pebbly very coarse to estimate this ratio. A threefold divi-
sandstone. sion is suggested: if the mud fraction con-
tains more
These fine subdivisions are than 67 per cent silt (i.e.,
determined
by specifying the median diameter silt-to-clay ratio
ofgreater
eachthan 2:1), the
fraction considered independently of any
material should be called "silt" or
other fraction that may be present. For "silty"; if more than 67 per cent clay is
some specimens this is, of course, not present, it should be called "clay" or
possible; but in most it can be accom- "clayey"; and for intermediate mix-
plished sufficiently well for field pur- tures, the term "mud" or "muddy"
poses, especially if the material is bi- (used in a restricted sense) is proposed.
modal. The size terms of Wentworth Thus the major group of muddy sand-
(1922) are used for the various classes.
stone may be divided into clayey fine
Thus, if gravel is present, one deter- sandstone, silty very fine sandstone,
mines whether the median of the gravel muddy coarse sandstone, and so on,

fraction considered alone falls in the since both the grain size of the sand
granule, pebble, cobble, or boulder fraction and the mud composition are to
class; for example, the major group of be specified (fig. lb).
sandy conglomerate can be subdivided This necessity for dividing silt from
into sandy granule conglomerate, sandy clay brings up the subject of the pos-
pebble conglomerate, sandy cobble con- sible desirability of a slight upward re-
glomerate, and sandy boulder conglom- vision of the "silt" range of the Went-
erate. For the sand fraction, the medianworth scale (although one hesitates very
is also estimated separately, using the strongly to hint at such iconoclasm).
standard Wentworth grades of very For many purposes, a more prac-
coarse sand, coarse sand, medium sand, tical division between sand and silt

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 349

would be 0.125 mm. (34), instead of groups is presented in table 1. Both un-
0.0625 mm. (44). In field descriptions consolidated and consolidated equiva-
made without the aid of a size compari- lents are given for each group. At the
son set, many rocks are termed "silt- right of the group name is given an ex-
stones" that are actually very fine sand-
ample of how the terms are to be further
stones. Furthermore, a division betweenspecified, depending on the median grain
silt and clay at 0.016 mm.(64) instead of size of each fraction present. It is sug-
0.0039 mm.(80) has the advantage that gested that only the italicized terms need
most "sericite" and illite flakes would be be specified in this manner, but in many
included in the "clay" fraction, where it specimens this may not be practical.
seems they really should belong, instead
of falling into the silt range, as they now
frequently do. In addition, a division at
6q is an easy one to make in the field:
using an ordinary 5-10-power hand lens
in bright sunlight, it is just possible to
see particles as small as 64 if they are
smeared out into a thin wet smudge on
the finger; particles smaller than this
cannot be resolved individually under
these conditions and would be called
"clay."
These identical division points have
been used very successfully by Grif-
fiths (1952) in plotting the results of FIG. lb.-Expansion of the bottom tier of fig. la
mechanical analyses of Trinidad gray- (classes L, M, N, O) to show size terminology for
wackes on ternary diagrams, in termsspecimens
of lacking gravel and for which the silt: clay
ratio is determined. L, sand; Ml, silty sand; M2,
three end-members: (1) material coarser
muddy sand; M3, clayey sand; NI, sandy silt; N2,
than 30 (0.125 mm.); (2) material be- sandy mud; N3, sandy clay; 01, silt; 02, mud;
tween 3 and 64 (0.125-0.016 mm.); and 03, clay.

(3) material finer than 60 (0.016 mm.).

The writer has also found these same
three division points most practical in
plotting other sedimentary analyses on
triangular diagrams. However, such a
revision of the Wentworth scale would
probably not be feasible at the present
time (when the scale itself is just begin- Vo4[ ( 84 - 4 16)]: very well sorted, 0- less than
ning to have widespread acceptance),
and for this reason the writer has re-
tained the ordinary Wentworth scale,
with the one exception that for the pro- the sediment as a whole may be poorly sorted, with
posed system he would like to group the
hydromicas with the other clay minerals
in the "clay" size class.
The complete series of major textural
Sand, silty sand, and slightly conglom-
eratic sand may be further described by
mentioning the degree of sorting.3
The major textural groups of "mud-
stone" and "sandy mudstone" should be
3 The following limits are suggested, based on
0.35; well sorted, 0(1) 0.35-0.50; moderately sorted,
<r 0.50-1.00; poorly sorted, oa 1.00-2.00; and
very poorly sorted, oa over 2.00. Coarse sediments
often occupy a somewhat difficult position: although
a high o4 value, it may be made up of two modes
which are within themselves well sorted, e.g., a mix-
ture of well-sorted pebbles with well-sorted sand. It is
suggested that these be termed "well-sorted bimodal
sediments," despite their poor numerical sorting
values as measured by oa or QD1).

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350 ROBERT L. FOLK

modified according to their structure, in the distribution (bimodality) are very

specimens with a well-developed closely
spaced parting parallel with the beds
being termed "shale," regardless of
whether they are composed of clay, silt,
sandy clay, mud, or any other mixture
of materials. This additional modification
is presented in table 2.
SUGGESTED OUTLINE FOR DETAILED
STUDY OF TEXTURE
In routine field examination the deter-
important and should be described in
detail. Following this information ap-
pears a discussion of the relation of the
three textural end-members to one an-
other, including the following character-
istics: (1) homogeneity (Does the rock
have coarse and fine layers, or are the
size fractions thoroughly intermixed?);
(2) thickness and type of bedding (Is it
massive, random, or cyclic parallel, hum-
mocky, graded-bedded, or cross-bedded?

mination of a grain-size name is probably Is the bedding caused by a physical part-

sufficient; but for detailed work the fol- ing or a change in composition, texture,

TABLE 2

CLASSIFICATION OF FINE-GRAINED ROCKS BASED ON

GRAIN SIZE, INDURATION, AND STRUCTURE

Textural
Class Unindurated Indurated, Not Fissile Indurated and Fissile

01 Silt (>67 per cent silt) Siltstone Silt-shale

02 Mud (intermediate) Mudstone Mud-shale
03 Clay (> 67 per cent clay) Claystone Clay-shale
N1 Sandy silt Sandy siltstone Sandy silt-shale
N2 Sandy mud Sandy mudstone Sandy mud-shale
N3 Sandy clay Sandy claystone Sandy clay-shale

lowing model for textural description is or color?); (3) orientation of grains; and,
offered. Following the specimen number, finally, (4) particle shapes. Mention is
stratigraphic and geographic position, then made of the correlation of size with
and other pertinent information, the composition (for example, the gravel
method of study is recorded, whether it fraction might consist entirely of shell
be by hand-lens, binocular-microscope, fragments, whereas the sand fraction was
thin-section, or mechanical analysis. A
entirely quartz). An example of this
space is left for the grain-size name,
method follows:
which, of course, is filled in after the de-
scription has been made. Next, the size I. Sample number and location: (Give per-
tinent data)
characteristics of the sediment as a
II. Method of study: Hand lens, in outcrop
whole and then of each of the three size III. Grain-size name: Pebbly muddy fine sand-
fractions are reported. For the entire sed-stone
iment, the range between the sixteenth IV. Detailed size description
and eighty-fourth percentiles of the size A. Entire sediment
1. Median: 0.2-0.3 mm.
distribution should be given, as this gives
2. Sorting: Poor
a much truer picture of the nature of the
3. 16-84 per cent range: Clay size to
sediment than simply mentioning the about 5 mm.
extreme range. Possible discontinuities 4. Extreme range: Clay size to 20 mm.

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 351

B. Gravel fraction every classification but should not be

1. Per cent: 15
considered a serious handicap.
2. Median: About 6 mm.
It may be argued that by far the great-
3. Range: 3-20 mm., in itself poorly
sorted est bulk of sediments and sedimentary
C. Sand fraction rocks lies in the bottom, nongravelly tier
1. Per cent: 55-65 of the diagram, which includes only four
2. Median: Probably in fine-sand class, major classes; nevertheless, by virtue of
about 0.2 mm.
the fact that the grain size of the sand
3. Range: Up to 0.5 mm., rather well
sorted
fraction (five grades) and the silt: clay
D. Mud fraction ratio (three divisions) must be deter-
1. Per cent: About 20-30 mined, a very large number of sub-
2. Silt versus clay: About half clay(?) classes is available (fig. lb)--and this
3. Median of silt portion: Not deter-
does not even include the mention of
mined in the field
E. Chemical precipitates sorting within groups and fissility, which
1. Per cent: Probably under 5 should be a part of the rock name. Thus
2. Type: Mostly calcite, a little quartz the grain-size classification is capable of
V. Textural relations
considerable "lumping," if one wishes to
A. Gravel tending to be segregated in
confine himself to major group names, or
vague bands parallel with the bedding,
whereas sand and mud are intimately to a much more intricate subdivision, if
intermixed; bedding 3 feet thick, ran- one wishes to study a series of rocks that
dom parallel to hummocky, a response are closely related in grain-size distribu-
to grain-size variation; gravel shows
tion.
weak imbrication, dip southeast; peb-
bles subround, sand grains subangular III. THE MINERALOGICAL APPROACH TO
B. Distribution strongly bimodal, with
THE CLASSIFICATION OF TERRIGE-
little material between 0.5 and 3 mm.;
separate modes in pebble and fine sand NOUS SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
size
Classification of medium- and coarse-
C. Gravel fraction composed entirely of
grained terrigenous sedimentary rocks
chert, dull white; sand is chiefly quartz;
mud not identifiable in the field into several compositional types (ortho-
quartzites, arkoses, graywackes, and
Every terminology has its weak transitional classes) is a matter of con-
points, and this one is certainly no ex-
siderable importance in interpreting the
ception. For example, a unimodal speci- paleogeographic and tectonic back-
men consisting of a well-sorted mixture
ground of sedimentary rocks and their
of coarse silt and very fine sand should,
source areas. The only tenable basis for
according to the ternary diagram, be such a classification is the mineral com-
placed in one of the fifteen textural position, just as in igneous rocks min-
groups by determining the ratio of sand
eralogic criteria are used to distinguish
to mud (the latter in this case consisting
the granite clan from the syenite or the
entirely of silt, with no clay); yet this
gabbro clan. Igneous-rock texture is
proportion would be exceedingly diffi- clearly and explicitly differentiated from
cult to determine, and the rock might be igneous-rock composition in a well-
termed anything from a "well-sorted ordered binary system of nomenclature,
siltstone" to a "well-sorted silty very which, over a period of many years, has
fine sandstone." The difficulty in placingbeen proved both economically and
such boundary specimens is present in petrologically sound.

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352 ROBERT L. FOLK

Despite the good example set by the position; we do not say that, in order to
igneous petrographers, there has been a be a trachyte, the rock must be light
widespread tendency to confuse grain gray or show a trachitic structure.
size or texture with mineral composition There are now at least three schools of
in the nomenclature of sedimentary thought concerning the definition of
graywacke. Krynine (1948) considered
rocks. Especially is this true for the terms
"graywacke" and "subgraywacke," it be to a mixture of quartz, chert, meta-
which, by now, have become almost un- fragments, and mica, set
morphic-rock
usable because of the varying concepts in a matrix of clay-size material that is
of several schools of thought. The trend also dominantly micaceous (not kaolin-
has been to class all clay-bearing sand- itic); thus his classification adheres very
stones as "graywacke" or "subgray- closely to a mineralogical basis. He split
wacke," paying little or no heed to the graywackes into two types, the low-rank
composition and mineralogy of the silt, graywacke (by far the more common),
sand, and gravel fractions. It is as if the containing little or no feldspar, and the
igneous petrographers should decide to high-rank graywacke (relatively rare),
call all aphanite porphyries "rhyolite," containing considerable feldspar, mostly
without thought of the composition of plagioclase. Pettijohn (1949, p. 227), fol-
the phenocrysts. A procedure like this lowed by Krumbein and Sloss4 (1951,
would be catastrophic, and the writer p. 130), considered that any rock con-
holds that the practice of calling all taining more than 20 per cent clay and
clayey sandstones "graywackes" is just fine-grained mica was either a subgray-
as catastrophic in the nomenclature of wacke (if it contained less than 10 per
sedimentary rocks. Rock types, delineat- cent feldspar) or a graywacke (if it con-
ing sedimentary petrological provinces tained more than 10 per cent feldspar).
(Doeglas, 1940), must be set up on the The classification of Tallman (1949) re-
firm basis of mineral composition, not on lied on texture to an even greater extent,
the insecure basis of the clay content of inasmuch as all rocks containing more
the sediment, which is a reflection largely than 25 per cent clay were termed "gray-
of the vicissitudes of the local environ- wacke," regardless of feldspar content,
ment. Furthermore, a series of rock types 4 Dapples, Krumbein, and Sloss (1953), in the
cannot be systematically defined on the latest of a series of papers designed to organize the
entire field of sedimentary knowledge, have appar-
basis of several more or less unrelated
ently abandoned their earlier classification and
criteria; thus a graywacke should not be propose a new petrographic scheme which is based
defined as a rock having micas and meta- to a greater extent on mineral composition and
follows Krynine's system very closely as to end-
morphic rock fragments, and consider-
member grouping. All the classifications are agreed
able clayey matrix, and graded bedding, that there should be a quartz-plus-chert pole and a
and a dark-gray color. Possibly most feldspar pole; disagreement comes in deciding the
constituents to be grouped under the third pole of
graywackes do have these additional
the composition triangle. Krynine puts micas,
characteristics, but the only essential metamorphic-rock fragments, and micaceous clayey
defining property is the mineral composi- matrix there; Pettijohn restricts it to clay plus
sericite and chlorite; Dapples, Krumbein, and Sloss
tion of the silt-sand-gravel fraction; the
include "assorted rock fragments" (nature un-
other features are only satellitic, descrip- specified), together with a fine-grained matrix of
tive properties which have no place in sericite, biotite, chlorite, and clays; and Folk uses
strongly deformed polycrystalline quartz, meta-
the definition of the rock type. We tell
quartzite and other metamorphic-rock fragments,
rhyolites from trachytes by mineral com- and the coarser micas but does not include clays.

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 353

and rocks with between 10 and 25 per magma. The same principle holds true in
cent clay were classed as subgraywacke, sedimentary rocks: the lithologic ter-
provided that they contained less than rane of the source area provides an
10 per cent feldspar. Tallman did not tellunderlying unity, expressed in the min-
us what to do if his "subgraywacke," eralogy of the silt-sand-gravel fraction,
defined by clay content, contained more to a whole host of related rock types
than 10 per cent feldspar; his classifica- which may vary over a wide range of

tion has another conspicuous blank spot texture and textural maturity. Just as
near the quartz pole, which is discovered magmatic differentiation may cause
if his definitions are recast in the form of some variation in the different parts of
a triangular diagram. If one were to use one intrusive body, so selective sorting
either of the last two systems in describ-and selective abrasion ("transportive
ing a sedimentary sequence derived from differentiation") may cause considerable
a granitic source, one's terminology variations in mineral content; but these
would fluctuate back and forth between differences are only quantitative, not
"arkose" and "graywacke" merely at qualitative. Although the interaction
between source-area lithology, climate,
the whim of the depositional agent, since
a rock containing more than 25 percent and rate of erosion may produce clay

clay would automatically become a gray- minerals indicative of a particular com-

wacke, regardless of the fact that the bination (e.g., kaolinite from intense
silt-sand-gravel fraction consisted of weathering of granite, or illite from an
nothing but quartz, feldspar, and granite area of low-rank metamorphic rocks),
fragments! Surely, this cannot be the the later authigenic changes of the clay
path to a systematic, petrologically sig- minerals are so extensive as to cloud, in
nificant description of sediments. Why many cases, the character of their origi-
not simply call the clay-bearing sand- nal source terrane; therefore, they are
stones "clayey sandstone" (in the pre- not considered as entering into this min-
ceding example "clayey sandstone:ar- eralogical classification.

kose"), instead of confusing rock tex- For quantitative mineralogical defini-

tures with rock mineralogy and thereby tions of terrigenous sedimentary-rock

making it impossible to set up meaning-
ful sedimentary petrological provinces?
In igneous rocks the chemical com-
position of the magma in a batholith is
the chief factor controlling the lithologic
types that will develop in the chamber
itself or as border facies and satellitic
bodies. These border facies may have
different grain sizes; some portions of
the magma may be extruded and thereby
come to have an aphanitic groundmass;
magmatic differentiation may alter the
composition of the minor intrusive
types, the writer suggests the triangular
diagram in figure 2, inspired largely by
the published work and informal discus-
sions of Krynine (1948); but the writer
has made modifications in the mineral
assemblages represented by each pole,
in the divisions of the fields, and in some
of the rock names. The three poles of
this triangle are labeled for brevity Q,
F, and M. The Q (for quartz) pole rep-
resents minerals of the ultra-stable, silica
group (i.e., chert plus all types of quartz
except metamorphic strained polycrys-

bodies; but the whole assemblage has an talline quartz) and indicates that the
underlying unity which is the result of detritus has either been derived from a
the chemical composition of the mother- sedimentary source or else has under-

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354 ROBERT L. FOLK

gone a prolonged period of chemical stretching). These minerals indicate deri-

and/or physical modification (Krynine, vation from a metamorphic source area;
1943). The polar rock type here is the inasmuch as the graywacke is the arche-
orthoquartzite. The F (for feldspar) poletype of a sediment derived wholly from
represents the feldspathic constituents a metamorphic source, it deserves full
(single grains of K-feldspar and plagio- and not subordinate rank; therefore, it
clase, and igneous-rock fragments de- should be called "graywacke," not "sub-
rived from plutonic or extrusive rocks) graywacke." A large number of rocks do
and indicates an igneous source area. not have enough feldspar or metamor-
The polar rock type here is the arkose. phic-rock fragments to be classed as ar-
The third or M (for mica-or metamor- kose or graywacke, and these are fittingly
phic) pole represents micas and chlorite, classed as "subarkose" and "subgray-

FIG. 2.'-The eight types of terrigenous sedimentary rocks, as defined by the mineral composition of the
detrital silt-sand-gravel fraction, disregarding chemical cements and detrital clays. Not drawn to scale;
limits indicated by the percentages shown at the edges of the triangle.

including micaceous hash of coarse silt wacke" in figure 2. A few rocks show
size or larger; recognizable metamorphic- evidence of a complex source area, in
rock fragments, such as gneiss, schist, that they contain materials of both igne-
phyllite, slate, and stretched meta- ous and metamorphic derivation; these
quartzite; and composite grains of pres- less common rocks are the impure ar-
sure-metamorphic quartz (Krynine, kose, feldspathic graywacke, and feld-
1940), showing undulose extinction, often spathic subgraywacke. None of the three
accompanied by stretching or suturing, poles can be as ideal as one might hope,
and composed of two or more individuals inasmuch as feldspar and mica may both
with distinctly different crystallographic be derived from granite or gneiss, and
orientation (sand grains composed of such constituents as polycrystalline

single crystallographic units with undu- metamorphic quartz must, for practical
lose extinction are not included; neither reasons, be placed with the metamorphic
are composite grains which lack undulose constituents instead of with ordinary
extinction or pronounced suturing or quartz; but it is believed that this is the

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 355

most meaningful division that can be micas, fragments of slate, schist, phyl-
made if one wishes to base a quantitative lite, and metaquartzite, and containing
classification on the lithology of the very little feldspar. They have an abun-
source area. dant micaceous-clayey matrix and are
In using this system of nomenclature,
very poorly sorted and angular. Yet as
one determines the percentages of each one travels farther and farther westward
of the constituents of the Q, F, and M into western Pennsylvania and Ohio, one
poles and recomputes them to 100 per encounters rocks of the very same age
cent, in order to plot them on the com-
that consist of cleanly washed, well-
position triangle. The percentages of sorted white sandstones that appear to
chemical cements or of odd clastic con- the naked eye to consist of nothing but
stituents, like carbonate-rock fragments, quartz. According to Pettijohn, Tall-
fossils, glauconite, or heavy minerals, man, and Krumbein and Sloss, we should
are ignored. Most important, one ignores call these rocks "orthoquartzites," be-
the percentage of clay in determining the cause they contain no clay; but if one
mineralogical name, because the pres- examines thin sections of these nicely
ence or absence of a clay matrix is com- sorted rocks, one finds abundant evi-
pletely accounted for in the grain-size dence of a metamorphic provenance:
term for the .rock (see Sec. II). This factstretched metaquartzite, strongly de-
illustrates sharply the difference between formed polycrystalline quartz grains,
the proposed classification and those of even a few particles of schist or phyllite
Tallman (1949) and Pettijohn (1949);which a have somehow escaped destruc-
rock consisting of plutonic quartz mixed tion in their long travel from the east. It
with some clay is called an "immature certainly elucidates the stratigraphic
clayey orthoquartzite" in this system relations better to term these "mature
but is a graywacke according to the graywackes," indicating that they pass
earlier classifications. A rock consisting eastward into immature graywackes,
of metaquartzite fragments and stretched than to confuse the issue by calling
polycrystalline quartz, lacking in clay,themis "orthoquartzites" merely because
a submature to supermature graywacke the clay has been washed out. The
according to this writer, but is an ortho- writer needs to make no apology to the
quartzite according to the other systems. criticism that you cannot recognize
Inasmuch as the definition of gray- these cleanly washed sandstones as gray-
wacke is the chief point of difference be-wacke in the field; what igneous petrog-
tween the writer's classification and rapher assigns his final rock-classifica-
those of most other workers, it may be tion names in the field without resort to
well to explore this difference more fully thin sections?
with the aid of several geological exam- Another example is provided by the
ples. The mineralogical definition pro- Upper Ordovician Oswego and Juniata
posed leads to much more meaningful graywackes of central Pennyslvania.
and consistent results than if the gray- These rocks are fine examples of the
wackes are considered merely as sand- graywacke clan, containing well over

stones rich in clay. For example, the

25 per Up-
cent slate and schist fragments
per Mississippian and Pennsylvanian and micas; yet many beds contain little
rocks of eastern Pennsylvania are typical clay (in cleanly washed zones, often
immature graywackes, very rich in under 5 per cent) and are texturally sub-

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356 ROBERT L. FOLK

mature to mature. The only rocks in this were regarded as mature orthoquartzites

sequence that contain over 25 per cent and the lagoonal sands as immature
clay (the lower limit of the graywacke clayey orthoquartzites.

class of the cited writers) are the shales! Krynine has pointed out (personal
Is "graywacke" merely to become the communication, 1950) that the constitu-
synonym for a shale? ents of graywackes and subgraywackes

On the other side of the argument, let are divisible into two classes, depen
us consider the Recent sands of the east- on their durability. The less durable con-
ern Gulf Coast. Here the sands of the stituents are those rich in micaceous
beaches and barrier islands consist of material and include schist, phyllite, and
little else than quartz; and if the beaches
slate fragments, in addition to mica
became buried, they would be considered flakes themselves. The more durable
as typical mature orthoquartzites. Yet constituents include stretched meta-
in the lagoons behind the islands there quartzite and strongly deformed com-
is a very complex intermixture of these posite quartz. Graywackes and subgray-
same pure orthoquartzitic sands with wackes rich in the micaceous materials
varying quantities of clayey mud. If this (pl. 1, F) imply relative lack of abrasion
entire sequence of sediments became and reworking, because structurally weak
buried, should we call the beach sands fragments of schist and slate cannot
"orthoquartzites" and the lagoon de- stand much wear; hence they are most
posits "graywackes," simply because often texturally immature. As the gray-
they contain clay? This writer believes wacke-type sands become more mature,
that it would lead to better understand- they tend to lose their softer, more mica-
ing of this sequence if the beach sands ceous constituents and pass into sub-

PLATE 1

A, Crossed nicols, X 81. Well-sorted fine sandstone: siliceous supermature orthoquartzi

consist of quartz with straight or only slightly undulose extinction and are well sorted and r
are separated from the quartz cement by a thin hematite coating. Cambrian Potsdam san
County, New York.
B, Crossed nicols, X 35. Granular medium sandstone: calcitic submature chert-bearing orthoquartzite.
Detrital grains are poorly sorted, but clays have been winnowed out; therefore, the rock is texturally sub-
mature. Observe the large, dark grain of chert in the lower right corner. This rock is an orthoquartzite of the
chert-rich variety. Cretaceous Travis Peak conglomerate, Brown County, Texas.
C, Crossed nicols, X 80. Well-sorted medium sandstone: opal-cemented mature subarkose. This rock is a
subarkose of the plagioclase-rich variety, containing 5-10 per cent feldspar. Grains are well sorted but not
rounded (except for the softer feldspar particles); thus the rock is texturally mature. Pore spaces have been
filled with opal and chalcedonic quartz. Upper Eocene sandstone, Atascosa County, Texas.
D, Crossed nicols, X 39. Granular muddy very coarse sandstone: immature arkose. This rock is an ex-
treme member of the arkose group and represents the potash-feldspar variety of arkose. The specimen con-
tains considerable clayey matrix, the grains are poorly sorted and angular; hence the rock is texturally
immature. Triassic Newark series, New Haven County, Connecticut.
E, Crossed nicols, X 81. Well-sorted fine sandstone: calcitic mature subgraywacke. This specimen rep-
resents a texturally mature sandstone, in which the grains are well sorted but not well rounded. It belongs
to the subgraywacke group (nonmicaceous variety) because it contains 5-10 per cent of stretched poly-
crystalline quartz of ultimate metamorphic derivation (arrows). Pennsylvanian (Cisco) channel sandstone,
Brown County, Texas.
F, Crossed nicols, X 81. Muddy fine sandstone: immature micaceous graywacke. This is a polar-type
graywacke (micaceous variety) in a texturally immature state. It consists chiefly of fragments of fine-grained
metamorphic rocks, micas, and micaceous hash and contains only 1 or 2 per cent feldspar. Pennsylvanian
(Allegheny) sandstone, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania.

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JOURNAL OF GEOLOGY, VOLUME 62 FOLK, PLATE 1

A D

B E

C F
Photom

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 357

graywackes5 (pl. 1, E). In manySuch

mature
supermature arkoses and subarkoses
graywackes and subgraywackes the only typify the Cambro-Ordovician sands in
remaining evidences of a metamorphic the middle Appalachian area.
source area are the most resistant par- Orthoquartzites are also divisible
ticles of stretched metaquartzite and mineralogically into two subgroups: (1)
strongly deformed polycrystalline those that contain little or no chert
quartz; these graywackes can be con- (pl. 1, A) and (2) those that contain con-
sidered as belonging to a nonmicaceous siderable chert (pl. 1, B). The occurrence
subgroup. of chert-bearing orthoquartzites (the
Arkoses and subarkoses are divisible second-cycle orthoquartzites of Krynine)
into two mineralogic groups. In the most presupposes derivation from older sedi-
common type, most of the feldspar is mentary rocks; this type hence is often
microcline or orthoclase (pl. 1, D), in- characterized by inversions in textural
dicating derivation of the sediment from maturity (Folk, 1951), because, although
granites or granite-gneisses. Less com- the rock may be poorly sorted, it often
monly, plagioclase may be more abun- contains rounded grains inherited from
dant (pl. 1, C), indicating either that a earlier sandstones. Most orthoquartzites
less silicic pluton has been the source or are submature to supermature texturally,
that the feldspar is derived from ex- although, as pointed out earlier, certain

trusive rocks or is a direct volcanic prod-specialized environmental conditions

uct. If fragments of extrusive rocks are may result in immature clayey ortho-
present in significant amounts, the name quartzites.

of the rock may be qualified by the term
"volcanite-bearing"; if these volcanic
substances are true pyroclastics, the
rock may be qualified by calling it a
"tuffaceous arkose."
Classification is no substitute for de-
scription, and each of the proposed rock
types embraces a wide range of com-
positions. As Rodgers (1950) has sug-
gested, we might use a method such as

Although many arkoses are immature that of Alling (1945) to describe the
-that is, they contain a plentiful clayey composition quantitatively. For this
matrix, are poorly sorted and angular- classification, four polar members might
the mature and supermature arkoses and be used: quartz (Q) pole, feldspar (F)
subarkoses are of considerable strati- pole, mica and metamorphic (M) pole,
graphic importance. The latter rocks, and clay (C) pole. Thus an immature
made up of well-sorted or even well- arkose might range in composition from
rounded quartz with plentiful fresh
6 The name "orthoquartzite" (which refers to a
rounded feldspar, are believed to indicate rock composed of quartz-chert detritus, regardless
an arid climate in the source area be- of cementation) is somewhat undesirable, because it
is very commonly confused with the term "quartz-
cause, with the great length of time re- ite" (which refers to a sedimentary or metamorphic
quired to round the quartz and feldspar, rock which breaks through the grains and is highly
the fact that the feldspar remained fresh siliceous). To avoid this difficulty, it might be well
to substitute a new name, such as "quartzrock,"
and abundant indicates that the rate of for the sedimentary rock in which the detrital sand,
chemical decay must have been very low. silt, and gravel fraction consists almost entirely of
quartz and/or chert. Or one might follow Petti-
SKrynine (1951) uses the term "quartzose john's (1949) suggestion and use a locality term;
graywacke" for those graywackes that have lost perhaps "tuscarorite" (for the Lower Silurian
their micaceous constituents through abrasion and Tuscarora orthoquartzite of the northern Appa-
thus tend to approach the orthoquartzite pole. lachians) might prove acceptable.

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358 ROBERT L. FOLK

Q63F23M2C12 to Q22F42M5C31, the been derived from a metamorphic source

former
area; as it has undergone sufficient win-
analysis representing a rock close to the
subarkose boundary, the latter a more nowing to remove the clayey matrix
strongly arkosic specimen. but has not yet become well sorted, it
It is also desirable to add qualifiers to belongs in the second stage of textural
the rock name to indicate cementing maturity, which corresponds to only
material, clay-mineral composition, and moderate current action and stability

the presence of unusual clastic compo-
nents if conspicuous. Krynine (1948)
has suggested that where one mineral
may occur both as a detrital (or clastic)
made coarse material available. One
material and as an authigenic cement,
distinction between the two be made in
the name; e.g., a "chert-cemented ortho-
quartzite" is to be distinguished from a
"chert-bearing orthoquartzite," in which
the chert is detrital; and a calcarenitic
or calciruditic graywacke (graywacke-
type detritus with transported carbonate
grains such as fossils) is to be distin-
guished from calcitic graywacke, in
which the calcite is authigenic. The fol-
lowing adjectives are suggested to in-
dicate cementing material: siliceous or
quartz-cemented, chert-cemented, opal-
cemented, feldspar-cemented, calcitic,
dolomitic, hematitic, or phosphate-ce-
mented. Abundant or unusual clastic
constituents may be designated by the
following qualifiers: chert-bearing, shale-
bearing, calcarenitic, calciruditic, fos-
siliferous, glauconitic, phosphate-bear-
ing, micaceous, sericitic, kaolinitic, chlo-
ritic, volcanite-bearing, or tuffaceous.
Examples of the use of these modifiers
are shown in the rock terms accompany-
at the site of deposition; and its grain
size indicates that the source area is rela-
tively near or that strong currents have
would expect the sedimentary sequence
in adjoining beds to consist also of gray-
wacke or a closely related type, although
some of the beds of graywacke might be
texturally immature (i.e., contain con-
siderable clay), and other beds might
consist of mature graywacke (well sorted
but not yet well rounded). Texturally,
the rock might range between wide lim-
its, but the uniform mineralogic designa-
tion of graywacke, independent of clay
content and independent of grain size,
would show the over-all unity, indicating
derivation from one petrographic prov-
ince.
The writer would like to see quantita-
tive petrography applied seriously and
consistently to stratigraphy, in just as
intensive a manner as paleontology has
been applied to stratigraphy. One would
not think of mapping an igneous area
without cutting a few thin sections of
his granites and basalts; why is not a
similar attitude maintained toward the
sedimentary rocks, which are considera-

ing plate 1. bly more complex and difficult to study

The proposed use of a tripartite name,
including a grain-size term, a textural-
maturity adjective, and the mineral-
composition designation, gives a fairly
complete picture of the rock. For ex-
ample, if in describing a stratigraphic
section a certain bed is listed as "pebbly
fine sandstone: submature graywacke,"
one knows that the rock has probably
properly by cursory hand-lens examina-
tion? Every stratigraphic section in the
literature should be accompanied by a
petrographic description of at least the
major rock types, just as they are always
accompanied by lists of fossils. A great
many geologic problems might be an-
swered if such a procedure were common
practice.

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 SEDIMENTARY-ROCK NOMENCLATURE 359

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.-The writer wishes to Clabaugh, R. W. Rush, H. G. Damon, D. N.

thank the following persons for criticizing theMiller, Jr., and C. S. Wimberley, all of the Uni-
manuscript and offering many helpful sugges- versity of Texas, and P. D. Krynine of The
tions: R. K. DeFord, S. P. Ellison, Jr., S. E. Pennsylvania State College.

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