Characterization of marine near-surface sediments by electromagnetic profiling

Abstract

This thesis investigates the theory, develops the technology and demonstrates the applicabilities for synchronous in-situ mapping of the magnetic and electric signatures of marine near-surface sediments. A marine electromagnetic profiler has been developed for coastal and shelf operations in 5 to 500 m water depths. The system was designed to resolve subtle and gradual variations in silt and clay content, porosity and diagenesis state of marine sediments at a sub-meter scale. An electromagnetic (EM) induction sensor (Geophex GEM 3) was modified for submarine operations and mounted into a special bottom-towed sled. Seafloor magnetic susceptibility and electric conductivity were calculated from the in-phase and quadrature component of the secondary electromagnetic field using a half-space inversion algorithm. Seawater conductivity was measured synchronously by an integrated conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) probe. The electric conductivity depends on porosity, the grain-size distribution and conductivity of the pore fluid. Magnetic susceptibility was used in this study as a proxy for fine-grained terrigenous clay/silt content, diagenetically forced magnetite depletion, as well as anthropogenic contaminants.The three attached manuscripts address different applications of the modified EM profiler. The first manuscript develops the physical and technical principles of the method and presents first results regarding the facies, early diagenesis, transport, and deposition of near-surface sediments on the NW Iberian shelf. The second manuscript combines high-resolution acoustic, magnetometric, and electromagnetic profiling with sample-based rock magnetic and geochemical analyses related to submarine groundwater discharge in a Baltic Sea estuary. The third manuscript is an application of the EM profiler to study the contamination of coastal areas by ferrous objects, organic matter and heavy metal pollution for coastal zone management of the RÃ ­a de Vigo, a NW Iberian estuary.