JOURNAl. OF SEDIMENTARYPETROLOGY,VOL. 28, No. 2, PP.

186-199
FtGS. 1 7, JUNE, I958

CLAY MINERAL COMPOSITION OF RECENT SEDIMENTS FROM

THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER DELTA 1

W. D. JOHNS AND R. E. GRIM

Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri and lTniversity of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois

ABSTRACT
The clay mineral composition of Recent sediments from the modern Mississippi River Delta and
offshore regions in the vicinity nf the Delta is reported. Montmorillonite is the donlinant clay mineral
being deposited in the Delta region. A small anlount of this component changes to illlte and chlorite.
It is suggested that this material represents degraded micaceous material undergoing regradation,
and thus represents the approxinlate contribution of the Ohio River drainage system to clay nlineral
assemblage. The bulk of the montmorillonlte, presumably bentonitic in character, undergoes no ap-
parent diagenesis. It is suggested that this material represents the approxinlate contribution of the
drainage basin of the Missouri River svstenl.

INTRODUCTION oceanography of the area, based on Scru-

For the past several )ears, under the
sponsorship of American Petroleum Insti-
tute Project 51, the a u t h o r s have been en-
gaged in a Sttldv of the cla\ mineral con-
stituents in Recent sediinents from the
southeastern part of the Mississippi River
1)elta. Samples were collected by the staff of
the Scripps I n s t i t u t i o n of Oceanography of
the University of California as a part of their
ntore extensive study of the sediments and
oceanography of the area. Particular ac-
knowlettgement is given to Francis P. Shep-
ard. Director of A.P.[. Project 51, who co-
operated with and assisted the authors in
many ways.
D E S C R I P T I O N OF AREA
Figure 1 shows the general location of the
area while tigures 2 and 3 show the locations
frunt which samples were obtained for clay
mineral anah'ses. The area sampled is in the
southeastern Mississippi River Delta region
and extends front apl)roximately 29 ° 30' N.
latitude tu 29 ° 00 r N. latitude and from ap-
proximately 88 ° 55' \V. hmgitude to 89 ° 31'
\V. hmgitulle, including the area from Pass u
l,outre on the south to Breton Sound on the
north. It is al)parent fmtn figure 2 t h a t most
of the sanlples were collected fronl the very
shallow shelf bordering the 3,lississipl+i Riv
er Delta on the east. Additional but fewer
samples were collected fttrther offshl>re in
deeper water (lig. 3).
:\ brief description of sonte of the more
inlportant aspects of sedimentation and
t Manuscript received l)ecenlber 24, 105,7.
ton's (1955) and Shepard's (1956) extensive
studies, are p e r t i n e n t to the i n t e r p r e t a t i o n
of the clay mineral distribution. Scruton and
Shepard have subdivided tile deposits of the
area into textural s e d i m e n t a r y units which
persist s o m e w h a t vertically and laterally
and illustrate the process of deltal growth.
Sediments to the east of the sub-aerial por-
tion of the delta can be compared to the top-
set, foreset, and b o t t o m s e t beds of the class-
ical delta, although their angular discord-
auce is slight. The sequence is especially
well developed off Pass a I.outre. The distri-
bution of these s e d i m e n t a r y units, following
Shepard (1956), is shown in figure 4.
Sub-aerial portions of the delta consist of
clayey-silt and silty marsh deposits contain-
ing a b u n d a n t plant material. Close inshore
and along the margins of the delta, particu-
larly off the m o u t h s of distributaries, land-
nated silts, sands, and clayey deposits oc-
cur. These delta platform marine sedintents,
ahmg with the continental sediments which
include deposits iif the distributaries and
swamp deposits, and depositsof interdistrib-
utary bays lying between deltal lobes con-
stitnte the equivalent of topset beds.
These sediments grade laterally into silty-
clays of the pro-delta slope which is volu-
metrically the most i m p o r t a n t unit of the
advancing delta. These silty-clays, analo-
gous to foreset beds, occur in a narrow band
east of the delta b u t to the south extend
down the continental slope of the Gulf of
Mexico. T h e i r high clay and low sand con-
tents distinguish the foreset from the topset
beds. Stratification is generally poor.
F a r t h e r east off Pass a Loutre similar silty
 SEDiMEA TS FROM
90 °
FJO. l. Map of the Mississippi River l)elta region showing the area studied (cross-hatched),
clays represent the most seaward deposited
sediments of strictly terrigenous origin, con-
stituting, lherefore, the most advanced unit
(ff the growing delta. These opeu shelf sedi-
ments of the recent delt~a c o n s t i t u t e the bot-
tomset beds. Sediments of bottomset, like
those of lhe foreset beds, are principally
silty-clays with sand increasing away from
the delta margin.
Slill farther offshore is an area of pre-
d o m i n a n t l y sandy sediment which repre-
sents the platform of older s e d i m e n t over
which the delta is advancing. The old shelf
deposits appear, according to Shepard
(1956). to date back to a time t)f lowered sea
level and display indications of having
formed in shallow marine water.
In Breton Sound, off the Baptiste Collette
sub-delta, the distribution of these textural
units is much leas regular and extremes of
sediment type are found.
Serulon's (1955) s t u d y of surface and
b o t t o m chlorinites reveal the distribution
and extent of mixing of Mississippi River
MISSISSIPPI D E L I'.1 187
3~
"~LABAMA
:)f MEXI GO
88 °
and Open-gulf water masses. Even during
periods of high river discharge, b o t t o m chlo-
rinites in the offshore area southeast of Bre-
ton Island are high (19-20 parts per thou-
sand), indicating the presence of only slight-
ly diluted open gulf water over the entire
bottom. Inshore as far as the one fathom
contour, b o t t o m chlorinites were found to
vary between 14 a n d 20 parts per thousand.
At the surface, during periods of high run-
off, chlorinites as low as 10 parts per thou-
sand were recorded as far as 10 miles off
Main Pass, showing t h a t a relatively thin
a n d well-defined layer of low ehlorinity river
water spreads seaward, overriding the dens-
er b o t t o m water. This surface layer is vis-
ually displayed by the observation of plumes
of turbid water extending many miles off-
shore (Scruton and Moore, 1953).
W a t e r within Breton Sound is a compos-
ite water mass resulting from more pro-
nounced mixing of river and open-gulf wa-
ters t h r o u g h o u t this shallow area. Thus,
b o t t o m chlorinites are i n t e r m e d i a t e in value
188
but sln,w a considerable range related
areally to the l)hysiography of the region
and tCmlmrally to ttuctuatitms in m o v e m e n t
of the main water masses. T h u s Breton
Sound is characterized by relatively great
\ a r i a t i o n in salinity as well us sediment
type.
ANAI,YTICAI.
l)etails of the sample preparation have
been described in a previous t)ublication
((;rim and Johns, 1988). Briefly the process
was as follows: samples, as received, were
suspended in distilled water, filtered, and
washed to remove soluble salts: the filtrate
was saved and am~lyzed fi~r sodium and 1m-
.,,+
~ ds~
~ ,,u .~o
, i~ ~
:: . -.J
i .........
Fro. 2. Near shore sample locations, Boundaries (from Shepard, 1956) of sedinlentary units
II:. D. JOH:VS . I N D R. E. G R I M
tassium by flame p h o t o m e t r y and for mag-
nesium by the versenate method described
by Cheng and Bray (1951); significant vari-
ations in cation ratios should give an indi-
cation of ions being s u b t r a c t e d from the
water by diagenetic processes; sediment
samples were then resuspended a n d the nil-
nus I micron fraction was collected by re-
I'R()CEDURE
peated sedimentation and d e c a n t a t i o n ; the
clay suspension was concentrated by evapo-
ration and then allowed to settle on glass
slides with the formation of oriented aggre-
gates: the clay mineral c o n s t i t u e n t s were
identified by X-ray diffraction analysis, uti-
lizing both recording X - r a y spectrometer
and conventional powder techniques.
,rlQ
,,+
1or
.15
]
:
.. '........ ,
indicated by" heavy lines.
 SEDIME.'VTS FROM MISSISSIPPI
\
Air
FI(;..t. Offshore sample h~';~tions. Boundaries (from Shepard, 1956) of sediinentary units
indicated by heavy lines.
The procedure used in the identification
and q u a n t i t a t i v e estimations of the clay
mineral c()mponents has been described in
detail in a previous publication, Johns,
Grim. and Bradley (1954).
Montmorillonite, present in all samples
and most a b u n d a n t in many. was identified
by its rational sequence of basal orders of
reflection related to 17 X following treat-
ment with ethylene glycol, lllite was identi-
fied as a c m n p o n e n t on the basis o f charac-
teristic reflections related to a 1(I ,~. periodic-
itv which remained unchanged following
glycol t r e a t m e n t . Chlorite was established
as a constituent of all samples by its diag-
nostic series of basal reflections related to
14 ,~. The 14 .~ reflection in the natural
samples xxas obscured by a low angle maxi-
mum for the poorly crystalline montmoril-
lonite c o m p o n e n t but was revealed follow-
ing heat t r e a t m e n t to 450 ° C, b)" which tem-
perature montmoril]onite has collapsed. T h e
chlorite c o m p o n e n t itself was unaffected by
heating to 450 ° C. It was necessary to heat
to 5500 (7 to observe the changes in diffrac-
tion maxima which are characteristic of
chlorite following heating, namely, an in-
DELT".t 189
/
/
I
ii
//
i j
"%
..__l
crease in the intensity of the 14 ~. reflection
and a decrease or extinction of higher or-
ders. It was, therefore, impossible to con-
firm with c e r t a i n t y the presence or absence
of small a m o u n t s of kaolinite in addition to
chlorite. Accordingly these components
are reported together as chlorite-kaolinite.
Chlorite was, however, confirmed in all
cases, and it is the a u t h o r s ' opinion t h a t
kaolinite, if present a t all, is a very minor
component.
CI,Ag MINERAL DISTRIBUTION
As a result ot the complexity in sediment
distribution p a t t e r n of the east Mississippi
River Delta area, it was found advisable
when considering the variations in clay min-
eral distribution to sub-divide the area.
Boundaries, corresponding to Shepard's
(1956) s e d i m e n t a r y units described earlier,
were utilized. His terminology with some
a p p a r e n t exceptions, will be followed in
characterizing these areas. Thus, samples
from each of the following areas were
grouped together and comprise a sequence
denoting conditions of progressively increas-
ing salinity: suspended sediment (Baton
19~) 1V. D. J O H X S
Rouge), river channel, Baptiste Collette
sub-delta and inner Blind Bay. interdistri-
b u t a r y bays, delta platform, pro-delta slope,
open lagoon (Breton F,onnd), open lagoonal
inlet, open shelf (recent delta), ¢~ld shelf, and
reworkcd Mississippi delta.
E s t i m a t e s of clay mineral c o n s t i t u e n t s ex-
pressed in most prol)al)le paris in ten are
tabulated in table 1 f¢w surface samples.
Average values for each c o m p o n e n t for
each sedimentary tulit are also shown in
lablc l and the data are plotted graphically"
in tigure 5. In addition, the range in clay
mineral composition within a given sedi-
mentary unit is shown in tigure 5.
The samples of river sediment and espe-
cially samples collected upstream (beyond
the influence of the salt wa~er wedge) at
Baton Rouge most closely represent source
material for the dellat area. The particularly
hiRh montmorilhnfite and low illite and
chlorite-kaolinite contents ~f these sedi-
nlenls is n o t e w o r t h \ , II is a p p a r e n t front
FI6.4. Sedimentary units of Delta area (from Shepard, 1956).
.tXD R. E. G R I M
figure 5 t h a t the average montnaoriIlonite
content decreases slightly but a b r u p t ] y
upon contact with saline water.
This initial decrease in montmorillonite is
accompanied by a c o m m e n s u r a t e increase in
chlorite-kaolinite and illite. Following these
initial changes in mineralogical composition
there is no significant variation further sea-
ward. The reciprocal relation between a b u n -
dance of illite and chlorite-kaolinite and the
a b u n d a n c e of nmntmorillonite is the most
noteworthy feature of the clay mineral dis-
tribution in this area.
A limited a m o u n t of additional mineral-
ogical d a t a is available with regard to verti-
cal changes in clay mineralogy. Clay mineral
d a t a for samples from a nu tuber of relatively
short cores front a n u m b e r of the areas stud-
led are given in table 2. There is no evidence
of any significant systematic variation in
mineralogy with depth in a n y of these indi-
vidual cores. _Moreover, if one compares, for
a given area, average compositions of all
 SEDIMENTS FROM M I S S I S S I P P I DELTA 191

TABLE l.--Bottom samples. Clay mineral composition and interstitial water analyses
. . . . :: : : _

Sample Depth Mont. Illite Chlor-

Kaol, Na/K Na/Mg

River Sediments
Baton Rouge Surface 7.5 1.0 1.0 5,0 1.2
822 Surface 6.5 1.5 1,5 5,0 11.2
823 Surface 6.5 1.5 1,5 10,0 7.5
M I16 Surface 5.0 2.5 1.5 -- -

Average 6,5 1.5 1,5 6,7 6.7

[~,;tl)fiste Collette Sub-delta and

Inner Blind Bay
BC 215 Surface 5.5 2.0 1.5 12.5 27.8
H e 217 Surface 4.0 3.0 2.0 30,0 33.3
BC 218 Surface 5,0 3.0 1.0 -- --
BC 224 Surface 5.5 2,0 2,0 18.8 35.7
l i e 236 Surface 5,0 2,5 2.0 20.0 15.9
IIB 269 Surface 6.0 1.5 2.0 1.5 2.5
BB 269a Surface 5,0 2,5 2.0 2.5 2.6
HB 270 £urface 5.5 2.0 1.5 3.0 1.7

Average 5.2 2,3 1.7 12.5 17.1

I nterdi,~tributarv Bav.~
BC 137 6 cm 5.5 2.0 1.5 20.0 30.9
BC 248 Surface 4,0 2,5 2.5 15.0 12,5
BC 250 Surface 6.0 2.0 1.5 20.0 66.6
HC 251 Surface 5,(1 1.5 2.5 -
HC 252 Surface 5,5 2.5 1.5 10.0 16.7
BC 253 Surface 5.5 2.0 1.5 6.0 10.0
BC 257 Surfa,'e 5.0 2.0 1.5 12.9 15.0
BC 258 Surface 5.5 3.0 0.5 30.0 7.1
t3C 260 Surface 5.5 2.0 1.5 14.0 14.(I
B(" 264 ~urface 6.0 1.5 1.5 6.0 3.3
Btt 271 Surface 4.5 2.0 2.5 6.0 10.0
BB 273 Y,ul'face 5.5 2.0 1.5 12.0 13.3

Average 5.3 2.1 1.7 13.8 18.8

l )elta Platforln
B.G 83 0 19 mn ,t .0 3.0 3.0 19.2 29.,5
MP 123 Surface 5.0 2.5 2.0 17.0 25.8
BN 165 5 10¢'m 4.5 2,5 2.(I 15.7 28.2
BY, 172 0 19cm 5.5 2.0 2.0 17.1 41.3
I l' 263 Nu rface 2.0 2.5 3.0 15.0 33.4
BC 265 Surfiwe 5.0 1.5 2.5 5.0 16.7
BH 274 Surf:we 5.11 2.0 2.0 18.0 15.[I
MP 287 Surface 3.0 3.5 3.0 30.0 37. ,5
MP 288 Surface 5.5 1.5 2.0 23.1 29.6
MP 296 Surface 4.0 2.5 2.5 10.0 38.8
MP 2q7 Surface 5.5 2.0 1.5 31.4 36.6
MP 298 Surface 4.5 2.0 2.0 22.8 37.9
M[' 209 'surface 4.5 2.0 2.5 21 .O 25.0
MP 302 Surface 2.0 4.0 3.0 27.6 57.5
332 .%urface 5.5 2.0 1.0 . . . .
825 Surface 6.0 1 .5 1.5 17.5 5.9

Average 4.5 2.3 2.2 19.4 29.9

102 IV. D. .IOIIXS .t.VD R. E. G R I M

TABLE 1. Continued

Samp[e l)epth Mont. Illite Chlof Xa/K Na/Mg

Kaol.

Pro-Delta Slope
BS 23 5-10cm 4.5 2.0 2.0 16.1 25.0
MP 124 0 4 cm 5.0 2.0 2.0 16.4 23.1
MP 128 Surface 4,5 2.5 2.0 18.0 41.6
B5 166 0 19cm 5.5 1.5 1.5 16.6 45.2
BS 171 Surface 5.0 2.0 1.5 13.4 19.0
PL 199 Surface 5.0 2.0 1.5 21.4 31.2
I'L 203 Surfitce 5.0 2.0 2.0 20.5 31.6
MP 213 Surface 6.0 2.0 2.0 19.3
MP 292 .%lrfa('e 5.0 1.5 2.0 15,0 15.8
MP 294 Surface 6.0 1.5 1 .,5 19.0 19. l
M P 300 .%lrface 5.0 2.5 1.5 12,2 26,2
324 lOcm 5.0 2.5 1.5 11,6 58,4
335 Surface 5.0 2.5 1.5 22,0 22.9
PL 557 Surface 4.0 3.0 2.0
875 Surface 6.5 1.5 1.0 8.3 50.0
876 Surface 6.5 1.5 1.0

Average 5.2 2.0 1.7 16.4 31.3

()pen Lagoon
I~S 30 5 lOcm 6.0 2.0 1.0 10.5 16.7
BS 107 Surface 4,5 3.0 1.5 15.7 48,6
BS 108 Surface 4.0 3.5 2.0 10.6 11.5
BS 110 Surface 6.5 1.5 1.0 11.8 10.3
BS 111 104 126cm 5.0 2.5 1.5 13.6 22,6
BS 112 Surface 3.0 2.5 4.0 10.6 12.8
BS 116 Surface 3.0 2.5 3.5 11.5 12.1
BS 151 Surface 5.5 1,5 1.5 13.9 21.4
BS 152 Surface 4.5 1.5 3.0 10.5 27.8
BS 159 Surface 6.0 2.0 1.0 12.2 22.9
BS 160 Surface 5.5 1.5 2.0 13.6 19.2
BS 161 Surface 6.0 1.5 1.5 18.6 28.2
BS 162 Surface 5,5 2.0 1.0 14.6 18.6
135 164 Surface 3.5 2.5 3.0 11.5 16.2
BS 185 Surfiwe 6.0 1.5 1.0 14.6 18,9

Averagc 5.0 2.0 1 .O 12.9 20.5

()pen Lagoonal lnle!

MP 126 Nirface 5.0 1.5 2.5 17.3 18.1
BS 163 ~tlrfaee 6.0 2.5 1.0 16.7 39.4
BS 167 0-.-19 cm 4.,5 2.5 2.5 12.1 20.3
BS 168 Y,tt rfa('e 5.5 1.5 2.0 . . . .
BS 170 Surface 4.5 2.5 2.0 13.4 21.1
BS 184 Surface 5.5 2.0 2.0 14.5 37.3
NIP 211 Surface 5.5 2.0 2.0 16.0 20.5
B[ 276 Surface 4,5 2.0 3,0 22,8 20.5
BI 278 Surface 5.0 2.0 2.0 20.0 15.8
BI 270 Surface 6.0 1.5 1.5 13.6 22.7
BI 280 Surface 4.0 3.0 2.0 18,8 35.7
131 281 Surface 5.0 2.5 1.0 25.6 27.1
3'I P 282 Surface 5.5 2.0 2.0 14.0 33.3
3.1P 283 Surface 5.5 1.5 1.5 26.4 22.0
MP 285 Surface 4.0 1.5 3.5 21.4 20.8
3'I P 2qo Surface 5.5 2.0 2.0 15.0 21.2

Average 5.1 2.0 2 .(1 18.2 2,3.7

 SEDIMENTS FROM MISSISSIPPI DELTA 103

TABLE l.--Conlinued

Sample Depth Mont. Illite Chlor-

Kaol. Na/K Na/Mg

Open Shelf Recent Delta

MP 125 Surface 5.0 2.0 2.0 15.0 21.4
PL 204 Surface 3.5 2.0 2.0 13.4 25.4
PL 205 Surface 5.0 2.0 1.5 8.8 21.8
PL 242 Surface 4.0 2.5 2.5 11.1 19.9
PL 243 Surface 4.0 2.5 2.0 9.1 15.2
PL 245 Surface 3.0 2.5 1.5 -- 18.0
3.1P 303 Surface 5.5 2.5 1.0 20.0 13.3
MP304 Surface 4.5 30 2.0 14.1 14.2
GM 311 Surface 4.5 2.5 2.0 11.6 16.0
369 Surface 6.0 2.0 1.5 12.6 39.9
PL 558 Surface 5.5 2.5 1.0 9.1 11.9
PL 559 Surface 4.0 3.5 1.5
877 Surface 5.0 2.0 2.0 8.7 --
Average 5.0 2.4 I .6 11.5 19.7
Reworked Mississippi Delta
BS 122 Surface 5.0 2.0 1.5
BS 182 Surface 6,0 1.5 2.0
BI 277 Surface 6.0 2.0 0.5
396 6-11 cm 4.5 2.5 2.5
397 Surface 5.5 2.0 1.5
879 Surface 7.0 1.0 1.0
880 Surface 6.0 1.0 2.0
Average 5.7 1.7 1.6
Old Shelf
395 Surface 5.5 2.0 1.5
PL 560 Surface 3.0 3.5 2.5

surface samples with average compositions
for all core samples, no significant difference
is apparent, and thus no diagenetic effects
are suggested within the short column of
sediment studied.
D[SCUSSION
The noted decrease in montmorillonite
with commensurate increase in illite and
chlorite upon contact with saline water is
certainly suggestive of diagenetic formation
of the latter two minerals from montmoril-
lonite, the potassium and magnesium re-
quired having been abstracted from the sea
water. Consideration of N a / K and N a / M g
ratios of interstitial water as averaged for
each sedimentary unit are revealing in this
respect. These data are tabulated in table 1
and are plotted graphically in figure 6.
These ratios express the relative proportions
of the cations present in the " s t a t i c " water
intimately associated with the sedimentary
inaterial. Variations in these ratios give an
indication of potassium and magnesium
being removed from the interstitial water
relative to sodium. The cation ratio curves
(fig. 6) exhibit maxima in the delta plat-
form and pro-delta slope regions where clay"
accumulation is volumetrically most im-
portant. As a result of simple mixing of
fresh and sea water, cation ratio curves
would show continuous increases seaward,
without maxima, Thus it is evident t h a t po-
tassium and magnesium are in fact being ab-
stracted preferentially from sea water and is
undoubtedly being made available in ex-
change positions for further fixation leading
to the formation of illite and chlorite. Conl-
parison of figures 5 and 6 show, however,
t h a t although illitization and chloritization
occur and reach their maximum almost im-
mediately upon contact with saline water,
removal of potassium and magnesium from
the sea water continues as the sediment is
swept farther seaward. U n d o u b t e d l y mont-
morillonite which has not changed notice-
ably to illite or chlorite does through cation
exchange take up potassium and magnesium
194 JV. D. J O H N S AND R. E. G R I M

U)

4)

~E ~0 ~0 ® co ~ 0.. c ®

8
• I
7
6
k..
4
5
i'-i i"
3
c
2
F-

a.
@ 4
D I ) I • --4
• • ,) i, ,
o
a~
3- • 6e o, )oo o q bo 0 •
- - 4

~.s . . " "

I

O. ZZ eO O,~O eerie eO~ )OOO oeeeo I ----..4

l-- i
0 I I~ITE

I,

2 I

FIt;. 5.--Clay lnilmral distributions within sedimentary units. © Average values for each
unit', • values for each sample.

from tile water. Chemical data (table 3) for
the clay fractions of a number of delta sam-
ples bear this out. The K20 contents, par-
ticularly for those samples from the strictly
marine environment, appear to be too high
for the illite contents encountered in this
stud?,. It seems likeh' that this can be a t
least partially accounted for by the pres-
ence in the montmorillonite of appreciable
potassium. A one-to-one correlation be
tween K~O content and illite content can
not be expected. In figure 7, A12Oa/K20
ratios are plotted as a function of illite and
montmorillonite content using the data
tabulated in table 3. AI=Oa/'K20 is used
rather than K~O to take into account small
 SEDI3IEXTS FROM MISSISSIPPI DELTA 195

'l',~l~Ll~ 2. Core samples. Clay mineral composition and interstitial water analyses

S~tmple l)epth Mont. lllite Chlor-Kaol.

Baptistt. Collette Sub-Delta

BC 215 0cm 5.5 2.0 1.5
25 5.5 1.5 1.5
75 6.0 1.5 1.5
125 6.5 1.5 1.0
P,C 217 Ocm 4.0 3.0 2.0
100 5.5 1.5 1.5
125 5.0 1.5 1.5
150 6.0 2.0 1.0
175 5.5 2.0 1.5
200 -- --

BC 218 Ocm 5.0 3.0 1.0

2,5 5.0 3.0 1.0
75 5.0 2.0 2.0
100 6.0 1.5 2.0
125 6.0 1.5 1.5
BC 224 ()cm 5.5 2.0 2.0
25 -- --
75 4.5 3.0 1.5
1013 5.5 2.5 1.5
125 . . . .
BC 236 0c m 5.0 2.5 2.0
25 7.0 1.5 1.0
50 6.5 1.5 1.0

Average 5.6 2.1 1.5

l)elta H a t f o n n
825 0 cm 6.0 1.5 1.5
30 6.5 1.0 1.0
50 7.0 1.0 1.0

Average 6.5 1.2 1.2

Pro-Delta Slope
M P 124 0 cm 5.0 2.0 2.0
160 5.0 2.5 1.0
MI' 128 Ocm 4.5 2.5 2.0
40 6.0 2,0 1.0
130 4.0 3.0 2.5
Pl, 324 10 cm 5.0 2.5 1.5
50 3.5 3.5 2.0
6,5 4.5 3.0 2.0
70 4.0 2.5 2.5
100 4.0 3.0 2.0
105 4.0 3.5 i .5
I'L 557 0 cm 4.0 3.0 2.0
1,5 3.5 2.5 2.5
30 5.0 2.5 1.5
60 5.0 2.5 1.5
120 4.5 3.0 1.5
160 5.0 2.0 1.5
875 Ocm 6.5 1.5 1.0
63 6.0 1.5 1.5
876 Ocm 6.5 1.5 1.0
106 7.0 1.0 1.0

Average 4.9 2.5 1.7

196 W, D. J O H N S A N D R. E. G R I M

TABLE L--Continued

Sample Depth Mont. lllite Chlor-Kaol.

Open Lagoonal Inlet

M P 126 0 cm 5.0 1.5 2.5
40 5.5 1,5 1.5
130 5.0 2.5 1,5

Average 5.2 1.8 1.8

Open Shelf Recent l)elta

MP 125 Ocm S.0 2.0 2.0
40 4.0 1.5 3.0

l'L 242 Ocm 4.0 2.5 2.5

40 4,0 2,5 2.5
130 4.0 2.5 2.5
240 4.5 3,0 1.5

PL 243 Ocm 4.0 2,5 2.0

40 5.0 2,5 1.5
130 5.0 2,5 2.0
280 5,0 2,0 2.0

PL 245 0cm 5.0 2.5 1.5

40 4.5 3,0 1.5
80 5.0 2.5 2.0
130 5.0 2.5 1.5
200 5.0 2.5 1.5
260 5.0 2.5 1.5

I'L 558 0cm 5.5 2.5 1.0

15 4.0 2.5 2.0
30 4.5 2.5 2.0
60 3.5 3.0 2.0
120 4.5 3.0 1.5
240 3.5 3,0 2.5

PL 559 0cm 4.0 3.5 1.5

15 4,0 3.0 2.0
30 4.0 3.0 2.0
60 3.0 3.5 2.0
120 4.5 2.5 2.5
150 3.5 3.0 2.5

877 Ocm 5.0 2.0 2.0

4-6 6.5 1.5 1.5

Average 4.5 2.6 1.9

Reworked Mississippi Delta

870 Ocm 7.0 1.0 1.0
10 7.0 1.0 1.0

880 Ocm 6.0 1.0 2.0

28 6.0 1.5 1.5

Average 6.5 1.1 1.4

Old Shelf
PL 560 Ocm 3.0 3.5 2.5
15 -- --
30 3.5 3,0 2.0
60 2.0 4.0 3.0
120 3.0 3.5 2.5
195 3.5 3.0 2.0

Average 3.0 3.4 2.4

 S t : D I M E A" T S F R O M M I S S I S S I P P I
i i
g • ®® i g ~.
15
No/R
/ and off the California coast ((;rim, Dietz,
'~'T
I0
5
30
\
25
/ Rockport the source material contains
20
f 0
MO/Mg
15
/ m~mtmorillonite transformed under marine
/ .ff the California coast. As noted for the
IF](;. 6 . Distribution of average values of
Xa/l{ alld N 1,13.17for interstitial waler for each
sedhnentary mill.
variations in ram-clay mineral content. ]n
spite of the scatter ~f" p~ints the correlation
between K=,O and illite and montmorillonite
conte(Its i s apparent.
,\l:()a Nae() ratios arc also ph)tted in
tlEnrc 7. The correlation between Na~O and
illite suggests that sodium along with po.:
tassium is being fixed by illite. It is possible
that the N a ' K ratio of a sediment may
prove indicative of its e n v i r o n m e n t of sedi-
mentation. Such chemical studies are cur-
rently being carried out in one of the writer's
(W.I).J .) lahoratories.
The chemical data are also interesting in
a n o t h e r respect. The Fe._,O~ c o n t e n t is uni-
formly higher, by a factor of a h o u t two, than
that generally found in ancient argillaceous
sediments. No explanation of this high iron
content is apparent.
It is impossible to consider in a similar
m a n n e r the 3,1g() analyses since, in addition
lo serving as exchange cations, magnesium
is a significant c o n s t i t u e n t of the silicate
layer structure. Thus it appears likely t h a t
the areal variations in clay mineral compo-
sition, though slight, are the result of early
diagenesis, as has been noted elsewhere
((;rim, I)ietz, and Bradley, 1949; (;rim and
D E L 7". 1 19 7
Johns, 1955; Powers, 1955),
Perhaps the most significant aspect of the
clay mineral distribution in the Mississippi
I)eita area is not so much the change noted,
8g:
but t h a t the diagenesis was of such a low
order of magnitude. In light of earlier
studies of recent sediments off the Texas
coast a t Rockport (Grim arid Johns, 1955)
\
and Bradley, 1949), it might be expected
t h a t montmorillonite would have experi-
enced considerably greater diagenetic
change t h a n observed in the Delta area. At
montmorillonite in a b o u t the same order of
a b u n d a n c e as sediment t r a n s p o r t e d by the
Mississippi River. In the Rockport area ap-
proximately two-thirds of the original
conditions to illite and chlorite. Changes of
the same order of magnitude were observed
Mississippi Delta area, only a h o u t 25 per-
cent of the original montmorillonite under
went change, as represented hy a reduction
of montmorillonite from an average of 65 to
50 percent. These differences can be inter-
preted in terms of a n u m b e r of factors. l a k -
log into consideration the exceptionall3
high rate of sedimentation in the Delta
area as compared to the Texas and Califor-
nia areas, it can be rationalized t h a t lack of
time for a d j u s t m e n t to prevailing chemical
e n v i r o n m e n t may account for the low order
of change noted, l,ikewise the higher salin-
ities which prevail in the Texas lagoons
might have accounted for the more pro-
nounced changes observed there.
U n d o u b t e d l y the foregoing factors have
played a role in d e t e r m i n i n g clay mineral
assemblages in Recent sediments from dif-
ferent areas. It appears likely t h a t still an-
other sometimes more i m p o r t a n t factor is
prevalent here, namely difference in the na-
ture of the source material.
Considering the source of sediment car-
ried hy the Mississippi River to the Gulf of
Mexico, there are two major areas con-
tributing sediment, the drainage basins of
the Missouri and the Ohio Rivers. T h e gen-
eral nature of the soils developed in each of
these two basins have been established with
some degree of certainty. Soils of the Mis
snuff drainage basin in the High Plains re-
gion have developed in large part from
Mesozoic and Cenezoic sediments which
 19S ll'. D. JOI1.YS . I . \ ' D R. E. G R I M

-- o
velol)ed are likewise largely illitic and chlo-
MOIIITMI~IIILLONIT E J ritic. Studies of the forest soils of this area
o o o o
have indicated t h a t weathering conditions
-- o o ~ c lead to degradation of these micaceous ma-
z ---""~ o
terials, resulting in the formation of ver-
mieulitic and montmorillonitlc (at least ex-
--u o
panding) minerals. Extensive t r a n s p o r t a -
tion of these materials would be expected to
--o
result in even further degradation by re-
moval of potassium and magnesium from
• ~ • ILLITE
between silicate layers.
From these two major drainage basins the
g Mississippi River carries to the Gulf mont-
t--
._= l [ morillonite and degraded illites and ehlor
I0 15 ires, both of which are expandable and
AlzOll/Kz o
would normally be identified as montmoril-
hmite. The degraded materials would be ex-
-- 0 0-- pected to readily pick up potassium and
g magnesium and regrade to illite and chlo-
0 0 0 0
rite. Reconstitution would probably b e a b o u t
-- MOII'TMORILLOIIIITE 0 0 0 © --
contemporaneous with deposition. Powers
0 C¢~ (1955), studying diagenesis in Chesapeake
-- 0 CO --
Bay sediments, noted t h a t reconstitution of
degraded illites and chlorites does occur in a
marine e n v i r o n m e n t as described above,
3-- • The marked changes in crystallinity of
ILLITE
marine sediments off the N o r t h Carolina
coast as studied by M u r r a y a n d Sayyab
(1955) are likewise a manifestation of the
• Og O~ same regenerative process.
It is suggested t h a t the slight but a b r u p t
change in montmorillonite to i[lite and
~lzO I / NazO
chlorite observed in this study is the result
Fro. 7. Correlation between montmorilhmite of reconstitution of degraded materials in
and illite content and AIoOa/K,_O and A1._,Oa/ the m a n n e r described above. It is also sug-
Na:O [or analyzed clay fractions. gested t h a t the montmorillonite which ex-
perienced change represents the approxi-
contain much muntmnrillonite and are in mate contribution of the Ohio drainage
places bentonitic. The vast loess deposits of basin to the total of clay mineral compo-
this region contribute in large measure to nents reaching the (;ulf. T h e montmorillo-
stream sediments and these have been nite c o n t r i b u t e d by the Missouri Basin
shown over wide areas to contain mont- d o m i n a t e s and under the conditions pre-
morillonite as the chief clay mineral. The vailing experiences essentially no change
arid and semi-arid climatic conditions, low other t h a n simple cation exchange. This is
rainfall, and relatively little leaching of the based on the assumption t h a t the expanda-
soil of the region results in the d e v e b ) p m e n t ble material from the Missouri River area is
of chernozems under conditions leading to a different type from t h a t of the Ohio River
the formation and preservation of mont- Basin. T h e former material is true mont-
mnrillonitic minerals. morillonite or " b e n t o n l t i c " montmorillonit-
The area drained by the Ohio River and ic, whereas the latter is degraded mica. It
its tributaries, on the other hand, is under- becomes a p p a r e n t then t h a t as far as the
lain in large measure I)y Paleozuie sediments argillaceous c o n s t i t u e n t s are concerned the
containing argillaceous constituents which ratio of the contribution from the Missouri
are dominanth" illitic and chloritic, and Ohio basins to the n o r t h e r n Gulf of
The Pleistocene glacial deposits from .Mexico is of the order of a b o u t four to one.
which many of the soils of this area have de- This is not a t all unreasonable in light of
 SEDIMENTS FROM MISSISSIPPI DELTA 199

TABLE 3: -Chemical analyses by spectrographic procedure on clay fraction of selected bottom

samples. Analyses made after heating to 500 ° C for 15 minutes. SiO~ obtained by difference

BB 269 B C 2 1 5 B C 2 1 5 BC257 BB 274 M P 2 9 9 PL242 PL557 1"L558

(Surf) (125c~)
AlzOa 24.6 23.6 25.7 25.0 23.8 25.9 22.7 22.8 23.l
Fe~()a 8.8 8.2 7.35 8.3 9.0 8.1 8.35 8.7 7.2
TiOe 0.67 0.72 0.76 0.75 0.74 0.74 0,69 0.76 0.63
MgO 2.45 2.50 2.85 3.05 2.45 2,55 2.50 2.90 2.45
CaO 5.1 1.80 0.70 0.95 3.35 1.70 1.10 2.25 4.65
Na~,O 0.37 1.05 0.41 1/.42 0.45 0.53 0.48 0.87 0.65
1<~O 1.35 1.05 2.35 1.65 2.15 2.50 2.85 3.10 2.55
Al~Oa/K20 18.3 12.1 10.9 15.1 11.1 10.4 7.9 7.3 9.1
,\leOa/Na20 66.6 22.5 62.6 59.6 52.4 48.9 47.2 26.2 35.5
GM 311 PL 205 369 13S 160 PL 244 BI 276 395 BI 281

AleO:~ 23.2 23.8 23.2 23.7 26.1 23.4 20.6 25.0

FeeOa 7.55 8.2 7.85 7.65 7.7 8.55 8,0 8.05
"l'iO._, 0.65 0.72 0.63 0.71 0.73 0.68 0.69 0.66
MgO 3.15 2.60 2.70 3.10 2.80 2.90 2.55 3.10
CaO 3.00 2.10 2.20 2.45 5.0 2.55 1.40 3.80
Na~O 1.25 0.38 0.85 (/.47 0.32 0.47 0.68 0.56
KeO 3.45 2.115 2.85 1.85 1.80 2.75 2.55 2.35
AlcOa / KeO 6.7 11.9 8.1 12.8 14.5 8.5 8.1 10.7
AleOa/NaeO 18.5 62.6 27.3 50.4 81.5 49.9 30.3 44.6

e x i s t i n g k n o w l e d g e ~lf t h e relative c o n t r i b u t h u s r e p r e s e n t a c o m p l e t e l y d i f f e r e n t source

lion of total s e d i m e n t f r o m e a c h of t h e s e
nlajor areas.
It is i n t e r e s t i n g t h a t t h e d e l t a s e d i m e n t s
clearly reflect c o n d i t i o n s in o n l y a p a r t of
t h e source a r e a a n d n o t in t h e a d j a c e n t a r e a
or e v e n in t h e m a j o r [)art of t h e s o u r c e area.
I n t e r p r e t a t i o n s of c o n d i t i o n s in t h e s o u r c e
a r e a f r o m clay m i n e r a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of
s e d i m e n t s o b v i o u s l y m u s t be m a d e w i t h
c a u t i o n a n d could be i n c o m p a t i b l e with
s i m i l a r i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s b a s e d on t h e c o a r s e r
c o n s t i t u e n t s of t h e s e d i m e n t w h i c h are
likely to h a v e much m~we local origin a n d
area.
It c a n be c o n c l u d e d , therefore, t h a t
n u m e r o u s f a c t o r s affect t h e clay m i n e r a l as-
s e m b l e g e w h i c h f o r m s or p e r s i s t s in argil-
l a c e o u s s e d i m e n t s . I t is difficult e v e n in Re-
c e n t s e d i m e n t s w h e r e p a r a m e t e r s c a n he
m o r e r e a d i l y defined to fully e v a l u a t e t h e
r e l a t i v e i m p o r t a n c e of s o u r c e a n d e n v i r o n -
m e n t a l factors. I t is a p p a r e n t t h a t for a n -
cient s e d i m e n t s m u c h m o r e careful a n d de-
tailed work is n e c e s s a r y before d i a g n o s t i c
criteria of p e t r o g e n e t i c significance can he
developed.

REFERENCES
CHF.>a;, K. C., AND BRAY, la,. H., 1951, Determination of calcium and magnesium in soil and plant
material: Soil Sci., v. 72, p. 440 458.
GRIM, R. E., I)EITZ, R. S., AND BRADLEY, \V. F., 1949, Clay mineral compositiou of some sediments
from the Pacific Ocean off the California coast and the Gulf of California: Geol, Soc. America,
Fhdl., v. 60, p. 1785--1818.
(;r~tM, R. E...aND JOHNS, W. 1)., 1955, Clay mineral investigation of sediments in the northern Gulf
of Mexico; Proc. Secolnl Xat. Clay M'ineral Conf., Pub..327, U. S. Nat. Acad. Sci., p. 81-103.
JoHxS, \V. 1)., G~M, R. E., AXD BRal)LEV, \V. F., 1954, Quantitative estimation of clay minerals by
dlf:fractiou methods: Jour. Sedimewtary Petrology, v. 24, p. 242~51.
MUr~R.~V, H. It., .aND SAYVAU, A. S., 1955, Clay mineral studies of some recent marine sediments off
the North Carolina coast: Proc. Third Nat. Clay Mineral Conf., Pub, 395, U. S. Nat. Acad. Sci.,
p. 430-441.
I'OWERS, 3.1. C., 1955, Clay diagenesis in the Chesapeake Bay area: I'roc. Second Nat. Clay Mineral
Conf., Pub. 327, U. S. Nat. Acad. Sci., p. 68 80.
SCRUTON, P. C., 1955, Sediments of the eastern Mississippi delta: in "Finding Ancient Shorelines,"
Soc. Econ. Paleont. Miu. Spec, Pub. 3, p. 21-50.
SCRUTOY, P. C., X~D MOORE, l). G., 105.3, Distribution of surface turbidity off" the Mississippi delta:
:\m. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists Bull., v. 37, p. 1067-1074.
SH~:PARD, F. 1'.. 1956, Marginal sediments ~*f Mississippi delta: Am. Assoc. Petroleum Geologists
Bull., v. 40, p. 2537-2623.