ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the principal unconsolidated sediments formed in the Earth's continental and oceanic environments. It discusses detrital sediments and their grain-size variations, the great diversity of biogenic sediments, and evaporite deposits formed by precipitation of salts from seawater. The chapter also discusses the creation and composition of sediments and the nature of sedimentary structures. It explains how the supply of continental material is used throughout the entire ocean. The chapter shows that Knowledge of marine sediments has increased in recent decades through the use of modern methods: remote sensing, high-resolution bathymetric methods, oceanic soundings, and reconnaissance by submarines. It explains chemical composition of the sea should logically reflect the average chemical composition of rocks that make up the continents. The chapter describes the most important sedimentary rocks, beginning with the original sediments and the mechanisms that transform them. It provides biogenic rocks in terms of their mineralogy rather than their depositional environment.
