Red deep sea tone
Red deep-sea (engl. Pelagic red clay ) is a sediment type of seabed . It covers around 38 percent of the total benthos.
Red deep-sea clay forms at the bottom of oligotrophic seas when their depth exceeds 4,000 to 5,000 meters. Its accumulation is possible below the calcite compensation depth ( carbonate compensation depth ). In contrast to the silica sludge and lime sludge occurring at shallower depths , it is of mineral and non-biogenic origin. This is why it has the lowest organic matter content (<0.2 percent) of any sediment type on the sea floor.
Geological condition
The mean grain size of red deep-sea clay is 1 μm; its silt content (proportion of silt) is 17%.
Its clay mineral content consists mainly of minerals illite , parts of the smectite group, kaolinite and chlorite . The silt content is made up of quartz, feldspar, mica, volcanogenic components and authigenic minerals such as zeolites and manganite .
Occurrence
Deep-sea red clay is found in all seas, but it is most widespread in the Pacific Ocean .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ulrich Sommer : Biological Oceanography . Springer, Heidelberg 1998, p. 337 .
- ↑ Red deep-sea tone - GeoLexicon. In: www.geodz.com. Retrieved June 8, 2016 .