Grain size

This parameter can be useful to account for the effects of transport sorting, degree of physical abrasion and chemical weathering, as well as for making assumptions about the possible paternal rocks and mineralogical composition of the sediments.

 

Major and trace element chemistry

These parameters can be used as proxies for the degree of weathering of sediments, by computing the relative abundance of water-soluble element to an insoluble element.

 

Heavy mineral assemblages

Despite the masking of sediment provenance due to various sedimentary processes and hydrodinamic sorting, heavy mineral assemblages serve as sesitive indicators for sedment sources identification.

 

Detrital magnetite grains

Magnetite is held in many igneous and metamorphic rocks. Its particular mineralogical compostion makes magnetite a good proxy for sediment provenance. 

 

εNd

Nd stands for the element neodymium which has 5 isotopes and is resistant to change due to alteration. εNd represents the ratio of 143Nd/144Nd of a given sample to that of the bulk-earth (which is known) in parts per 10,000. εNd values are controlled by the source rock type of sediments and monazite, a mineral in which Nd is abundant.

 

Chemical Index of Alteration (CIA)

CIA is a proxy for weathering. It takes into account Al, Ca, K and Na elements and was developed assuming that during chemical weathering the main process is the alteration of feldspars minerals in order to form new clay minerals (Goldberg and Humayun, 2010).