Comparative Analysis of Geochemical Peculiarities of the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Pleistocene Sediments

Abstract

Based on the reports of DSDP, ODP, IODP phases of the International Deep-Sea Drilling Project and other references, the arithmetic mean chemical compositions of the main Pleistocene sediment types in the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific oceans are compared. The mean chemical composition of different sediment types was calculated as the arithmetic mean of the chemical component concentrations, as well as the average composition of Pleistocene sediments, on the whole, for three main ocean basins. It is shown that masses of the dry sedimentary material play the leading role in the comparative analysis of the weighted mean chemical composition. The mass accumulation rates are evaluated for the major oxides in Pleistocene sediments of all oceans. Data on modern factors influencing the oceanic sedimentation, ratios of the water catchment areas with accumulation basin areas, composition of provinces, continent climate, as well as areas of the sea floor above/under the critical depth surface, and primary production of the ocean are considered. These data are compared with our results concerning the values of major oxide concentrations in Pleistocene sediments of all oceans. It has been established that the mean chemical composition of oceanic sediments is governed mainly by the level of critical depth surface and degree of geochemical differentiation.