GRAIN-SIZE CHARACTERS AND MINERAL COMPONENTS OF SURFACE SEDIMENTS IN THE OFFSHORE AREA OF NORTHEASTERN SHANDONG PENINSULA

Analyses of grain size and mineral components of surface sediments in the offshore area of the northeastern Shandong Peninsula were carried out to reveal the sediment source and the relationship between the characteristics of grain size distribution and sedimentary dynamic conditions in the littoral zone off the northeastern Shandong Peninsula. The results indicate that the surface sediments are mostly derived from the Yellow River and can be divided into three types including clayey silt, sandy silt and silty sand. Among them, clayey silt covers more than 60% of the study area, spreading from northwest to southeast in the form of letter "Y", and the Yellow Sea coastal current is the main factor controlling the grain size characters in the study sea area, with the distribution of particle fractions and grain-size parameters being associated closely with the direction and intensity of the Yellow Sea coastal current.