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Sediment identification using free fall penetrometer acceleration-time histories

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An Erratum to this article was published on 11 May 2011

An Erratum to this article was published on 11 May 2011

Abstract

Knowledge of physical properties of near-surface sediments is an important requirement for many studies of the seafloor. Dynamic or Free Fall Penetrometers (FFP), instrumented with accelerometers, are widely used to assess the mechanical properties of the sediment by deriving penetration resistance from the deceleration response of the probe as it impacts and embeds the seabed. Other field investigations, a priori knowledge or a very basic description of the type of sediment (such as a description of the sediment as soft, medium or hard) derived from studying the deceleration response (accelerometer-time histories) are used for sediment identification prior to the application of an appropriate strength determination model. In many cases this information is site-specific and in others the penetration resistance is overestimated due to the dilatory effects observed in sediment with an undetected grain fraction. In this study variables affecting a dynamic penetrometer-sediment interaction system are identified. Using data from field investigations and literature we found a relationship among five variables: peak acceleration, embedment depth, total embedment time, velocity of impact and grain size. This is used to formulate a sediment identification model. The model accounts for variables that may vary widely within one deployment and it can be applied to other FFPs with different physical characteristics (such as a different mass or size). This may lead to the increased use of FFP as a deployment tool for rapid in situ characterization of the seafloor.

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Notes

  1. The terms Penetrometer, free fall probe, impact probe or dynamic penetrometer have been used in previous studies to refer to the same device. In this study this device will be referred to interchangeably as a free fall probe, penetrometer or probe.

  2. “Acceleration-time histories” is a term coined by researchers studying planetary bodies to describe the response of probes impacting the surfaces of planets even though it is strictly a time series of deceleration response of the probe as it impacts the surface (see, e.g., McCarty and Carden 1962).

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Acknowledgments

This work was performed at the Jere A. Chase Ocean Engineering Laboratory, University of New Hampshire. Support was provided by a grant from Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC), part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Special thanks to Dr. Robert McConnaughey at AFSC for coordinating the field investigation. Glenn McGillicuddy assisted Dr. Lloyd Huff with the deployment of the FFCPT. We gratefully acknowledge the comments received from three anonymous reviewers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Complex Systems Research Center, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 03824, USA

    Gopal K. Mulukutla

  2. Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 03824, USA

    Lloyd C. Huff & Larry A. Mayer

  3. Center for Ocean Engineering, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 03824, USA

    Kenneth C. Baldwin

  4. Department of Civil Engineering, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, 03824, USA

    Jeffrey S. Melton

Authors
  1. Gopal K. Mulukutla
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  2. Lloyd C. Huff
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  3. Jeffrey S. Melton
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  4. Kenneth C. Baldwin
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  5. Larry A. Mayer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gopal K. Mulukutla.

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An erratum to this article can be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11001-011-9124-2

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Mulukutla, G.K., Huff, L.C., Melton, J.S. et al. Sediment identification using free fall penetrometer acceleration-time histories. Mar Geophys Res 32, 397–411 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11001-011-9116-2

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