NOAA - Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
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Bottom samples were collected for particle size analysis at station 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, and 13 during the September and October buoy cruises. Samples were collected from the top 2 cm using either a box corer (stations 7, 8, and 13), a Ponar grab sampler (station 6) and tripods (stations 4, 5, and 12). At stations 7, 8, and 13, separate samples from the very uppermost part of the sediment (about 0.5 cm) were also collected for analysis. The samples were stored in plastic bags and sent to GeoSea consulting (located in Vancouver BC0 for analysis. GeoSea uses a Malvern Mastersizer 2000 laser diffraction counter to analyze the size distribution of particle less than 0.1 mm, and sieves to analyze the coarser material. Results are presented in phi units. A table is attached to convert from phi units to mm.
| U.S. Standard Sieve Mesh Number | Diameter (mm) | Diameter (microns) | Phi Value | Wentworth Size Class | Sediment Type |
| 5 | 4.00 | -2.00 | Granule | GRAVEL | |
| 6 | 3.36 | -1.75 | Granule | GRAVEL | |
| 7 | 2.83 | -1.50 | Granule | GRAVEL | |
| 8 | 2.38 | -1.25 | Granule | GRAVEL | |
| 10 | 2.00 | -1.00 | Granule | GRAVEL | |
| 12 | 1.68 | -.075 | Very Coarse Sand | SAND | |
| 14 | 1.68 | -0.50 | Very Coarse Sand | SAND | |
| 16 | 1.19 | -0.25 | Very Coarse Sand | SAND | |
| 18 | 1.00 | 0.00 | Very Coarse Sand | SAND | |
| 20 | 0.84 | 840 | 0.25 | Coarse Sand | SAND |
| 25 | 0.71 | 710 | 0.50 | Coarse Sand | SAND |
| 30 | 0.59 | 590 | 0.75 | Coarse Sand | SAND |
| 35 | 0.50 | 500 | 1.00 | Coarse Sand | SAND |
| 40 | 0.42 | 420 | 1.25 | Medium Sand | SAND |
| 45 | 0.35 | 350 | 1.50 | Medium Sand | SAND |
| 50 | 0.30 | 300 | 1.75 | Medium Sand | SAND |
| 60 | 0.25 | 250 | 2.00 | Medium Sand | SAND |
| 70 | 0.21 | 210 | 2.25 | Fine Sand | SAND |
| 80 | 0.177 | 177 | 2.50 | Fine Sand | SAND |
| 100 | 0.149 | 149 | 2.75 | Fine Sand | SAND |
| 120 | 0.125 | 125 | 3.00 | Fine Sand | SAND |
| 140 | 0.105 | 105 | 3.25 | Very Fine Sand | SAND |
| 170 | 0.088 | 88 | 3.50 | Very Fine Sand | SAND |
| 200 | 0.074 | 74 | 3.75 | Very Fine Sand | SAND |
| 230 | 0.0625 | 62.5 | 4.00 | Very Fine Sand | SAND |
| 270 | 0.053 | 53 | 4.25 | Coarse Silt | MUD |
| 325 | 0.044 | 44 | 4.50 | Coarse Silt | MUD |
| 0.037 | 37 | 4.75 | Coarse Silt | MUD | |
| 0.031 | 31 | 5.00 | Coarse Silt | MUD | |
| 0.0156 | 15.6 | 6.00 | Medium Silt Fine Silt Very Fine Silt |
MUD | |
| 0.0078 | 7.8 | 7.00 | Medium Silt Fine Silt Very Fine Silt |
MUD | |
| 0.0039 | 3.9 | 8.00 | Medium Silt Fine Silt Very Fine Silt |
MUD | |
| 0.002 | 2 | 9.00 | Clay* | MUD | |
| 0.00098 | 0.98 | 10.00 | Clay* | MUD | |
| 0.00049 | 0.49 | 11.00 | Clay* | MUD | |
| 0.00024 | 0.24 | 12.00 | Clay* | MUD | |
| 0.00012 | 0.12 | 13.00 | Clay* | MUD | |
| 0.00006 | 0.06 | 14.00 | Clay* | MUD |
Nathan Hawley
NOAA-GLERL
4840 S. State Rd.
Ann Arbor MI 48108-9719
(734)741-2273
For further information, contact:
Steve Pothoven
NOAA/GLERL
Lake Michigan Field Station
1431 Beach St., Muskegon, MI 49441-1098
(231) 759-9035
Tomas Hook
Purdue University
Department of Forestry and Natural Resources
195 Marstellar Street
West Lafayette, IN 47907M
(765) 496-6799
