Mineral composition of sediments from ODP Leg 190 sites and DSDP Hole 31-297

This data report documents the acquisition of two new sets of normalization factors for semiquantitative X-ray diffraction analyses. One set of factors is for bulk sediment powders, and the other applies to oriented aggregates of clay-sized fractions (<2 µm). We analyzed mixtures of standard minerals with known weight percentages of each component and solved for the normalization factors using matrix singular value decomposition. The components in bulk powders include total clay minerals (a mixture of smectite, illite, and chlorite), quartz, plagioclase, and calcite. For clay-sized fractions, the minerals are smectite, illite, chlorite, and quartz. We tested the utility of the method by analyzing natural mudstone specimens from Site 297 of the Deep Sea Drilling Project, which is located in the Shikoku Basin south of Site 1177 of the Ocean Drilling Program (Ashizuri transect).

Susupended particulate matter from the Franz Victoria Trough and its composition

In this paper authors present and discuss data on distribution and mineral composition of suspended particulate matter (SPM) in the Franz Victoria Trough, collected during Cruise 14 of scientific icebreaker Akademik Fedorov in the northern Barents Sea in October 1998. Higher total SPM concentrations (0.4-1.8 mg/l) were measured in the near-bottom layer of the Franz Victoria Strait and central part of the trough. Potential source of mineral particles in SPM is fine fractions of Barents Sea bottom sediments. They form the nepheloid layer, which spreads on the continental slope along the trough together with Barents Sea waters at 350-400 m depth.