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Sedimentary Origin and Geotechnical
    Properties of Subglacial Till
     Ottawa County, Michigan

   Patrick M. Colgan and Steve Zdan, Grand Valley
      State University, Department of Geology
Ottawa County

                      10 kilometers   N
Michigan




                                      Study
           Grand                      site
           Rapids
GVSU
Campus   end
         moraine
Oak
Creek   Saugatuck
Fm.     Fm.
1



    Administration
    Extension



      Lake Ontario
      Hall




                         N
                     2




     500 meters
North to South Cross Section across GVSU Campus


                               diamicton               Lake       New                      Ravine
                               (basal till)            Ontario    Administration           Apartments
                                                       Hall       Building
                      Section 2
                      South Ravine
elevation (ft)




                                                            fine silty sand (lacustrine)

                                              clay, silt and fine sand (lacustrine)


                                     diamicton (basal till)?                    Marshall Sandstone
                                                                                ~ 480-510 feet


                 S                              distance (meters)                                  N

                 vertical exaggeration ~16:1
Section 1: Silt-rich diamicton with oxidized vertical joints, striated clasts, high density.
Dm




                                 Dms




                                                            Sr-Sx



Section 1: Contact between diamicton and sand. Shear zone between.
clast of
   diamicton




                                                       ripples
                                                       In silty
                                                       sand

Section 1: Clast of reddish diamicton in silty sand.
Section 1 – Ravine Apartments
                                                                         GV-1-2 (diamicton - basal till)
          texture
meters   C Z S G D          sediment          sediment                                                                 100
                                                                                                                       90
                                              samples        clay     silt              sand               gr
                            facies                                                                                     80
                                                                                                                       70
                                                    D1




                                                                                                                             % coarser
                             Dm   erosional                                                                            60
                                  surface           D2                                                                 50

    0                                                                                                                  40
                                                                                                                       30
                    clast of Dm                      1                                                                 20
                                                                                                                       10
                            Sr                                                                                         0

                                                     2    0.0010    0.0100        0.1000         1.0000           10.0000
                                       S1                                     diameter (mm)


                             Sx                      3
                                                                    GV-2-1 (sandy silt - glaciolacustrine)
                                                     4
                        Fm-Fl                                                                                          100

                                                     5       clay     silt              sand                 gr        90
    1                        Sr
                                                                                                                       80
                                       S2                                                                              70




                                                                                                                             % coarser
                                                                                                                       60
                             Sx                                                                                        50
                                                                                                                       40
                                                                                                                       30
                        Fm-Fl                       6                                                                  20
                                       S3           7a                                                                 10
                        Sp-Sr                       7b                                                                 0

                                                    8     0.0010    0.0100        0.1000         1.0000           10.0000
                       Fm-Fl                                                  diameter (mm)
                        Sr             S4           9
    2                  Fm-Fl                         10             GV-2-13 (clayey silt - glaciolacustrine )
                         Sp            S5
                                                                                                                       100
                       Fm-Fl                         11                                                      gr
                                                             clay     silt              sand                           90

                            Sr         S6                                                                              80
                                                     12                                                                70




                                                                                                                             % coarser
                                                                                                                       60
                                                                                                                       50
                                                                                                                       40
                       covered                                                                                         30
                                                                                                                       20
                                                                                                                       10
    3               Fl-Fm
                                                     13   0.0010    0.0100        0.1000         1.0000
                                                                                                                       0
                                                                                                                  10.0000
                                                                              diameter (mm)
meters C Z S G D
                                                                         Section 2 – South Ravine
  0            Fm-Dm                             Samples
                   covered

                   St-Sr (A)
  1                Fl-Fm
                                                      7
                                                           9
                                                                                        SR2-10 (fine sand)
                   Sr (A)
                   St-Sr (A)                          6
                   Fl-Fm                                   8                                                                     100
                   St-Sr (A)                                                                                                     90
                                                      5
  2                                                   4           clay          silt                 sand             gr         80
                   Sl                                                                                                            70




                                                                                                                                          % coarser
                                                      3
                                                                                                                                 60
                   Sl                                 2                                                                          50
   3               St-Sr (A)                          1                                                                          40
                Dml-Fl                                18
                                                                                                                                 30
                St-Sr (A)                                                                                                        20
               Fl-Fm                                                                                                             10
  4             Sr
                St-Sr (A)                                                                                                        0
                   Sr                                 15        0.0010       0.0100         0.1000          1.0000          10.0000
               Fl-Fm                                       14
                                                      12                                diameter (mm)
  5                St-Sr


               Fl-Fm
                                                      11
                                                                                        SR2-16 (silty clay)
                   Sr
   6                                                  10
                   St
                                                                                                                               100.0
                                                                                                                               90.0
                   Sl
                                                                                                                               80.0
   7                                                                                                                           70.0




                                                                                                                                       % coarser
                                                                                                                               60.0
                                                                   clay        silt                sand              gr        50.0
                   St-Sr (A)                                                                                                   40.0
   8                                                                                                                           30.0
                                                                                                                               20.0
                   St
                               inclusions of clasts                                                                            10.0
                               of fines in sand                                                                                0.0
   9               Dmm
                   Fm-Fl
                                                           16   0.0010       0.0100       0.1000          1.0000          10.0000
                                                           17                          diameter (mm)
                   Sr (A)



 10                St
Morainal bank sedimentation model




                                                                    rain out of fine
                                                                    silt and clay




                                                                                       underflows
                                                                                       of sand
                                                                                       (Sx-Sp-Sr)


   deposition
                                        debris
   of subglacial till (Dm)                                          clay and silt
                                        flows (Dml)
                                                                    (Fm-Fl)


Adapted from Benn and Evans (1998) after Powell and Domack (1995)
Geotechnical Properties of the
     Saugatuck Formation at GVSU
• Moisture Content (ASTM D2216-98)
• Texture of matrix (hydrometer & sieve)
• Atterberg Limits (ASTM D4318-05)
  – Liquid Limit = % moisture
  – Plastic Limit = % moisture
  – Plasticity Index = LL - PL
• Shear Strength (Torvane Shear Device)
• Standard Penetration Test (ASTM D1586 - 08a)
Color & Field Moisture Content
• Color – Gray (10YR 5/1) to light yellowish
  brown (10YR 6/4)

• Field Moisture Content (n =33)
  Mean = 17.5 %
  Standard deviation = 2.1%
Matrix Texture
                           Clay


                  N = 24




           Sand                        Silt




• Sand   17.3 %            s.d. 5.6%
• Silt   46.1%             s.d. 3.5%
• Clay   36.6%             s.d. 4.2%
Atterberg Limits
                   60



                                                                    “U” - Line
                   50



                                                           CH or OH
                   40
Plasticity Index




                                       CL or OL
                                                                                                        “A” - Line
                   30




                   20                                      5

                            CL or ML                   4
                                                                                        MH or OH
                                                      6
                   10
                                                    97
                                               11

                                          10
                   0
                        0        10       20         30        40        50        60      70      80       90       100



                                                                    Liquid Limit
          Mean Liquid Limit = 27, s.d. 5.5
          Plasticity Index = 11.5, s.d. 6.5
Comparison to Oak Creek Fm. (Wisconsin)

• Data from Till Pro 1.0 (Wisconsin Natural
  History and Geologic Survey)
• Texture and Atterberg Limits
  – basal till of Oak Creek Formations (n=405)
  – All Oak Creek Formation facies (n = 937)
Clay                              Clay    GVSU
 A.           GVSU                 B.
              subglacial till                    lacustrine
              (n = 24)                           (n = 13)




Sand                       Silt   Sand                  Silt



       Clay                              Clay
 C.           Oak Creek            D.           Oak Creek
              subglacial till                   Formation
              (n = 405)                         (n = 937)




Sand                       Silt   Sand                  Silt
60



                                                               “U” - Line
                   50



                                                       CH or OH
                   40
Plasticity Index




                                       CL or OL
                                                                                                   “A” - Line
                   30




                   20

                            CL or ML                                               MH or OH

                   10




                   0
                        0        10       20      30      40        50        60      70      80       90       100



                                                               Liquid Limit
Shear Strength of Subglacial Till
• Pocket Penetrometer (n = 44)
   – 63 ± 25 kN/m2

• Shear strength of subglacial till (n = 7)
   – 59 ± 8 kN/m2


• Standard Penetration Test (n = 45)
   – N value = 21.9 ± 6.5 blows

   Note: all errors reported are one sigma uncertainty
Clay                                         Clay
                              Facies                                      Subglacial
                              Means                                       tills
                              (n = 4)                                     Means
                                                                          (n = 6)

                                                                    5
                   Dm                                               4 6
                         Fm
                                                     1   2     3

        Sr-Sp           Fl

 Sand                              Silt   Sand                                    Silt




Dm – massive diamicton (basal till)          1 - Ganges Till (MI)
Fm – massive fines (lacustrine)              2 - Glenn Shores Till (MI)
Fl – laminated silt (lacustrine)             3 - Saugatuck Till (Glen Shores MI)
Sr-Sp – sand riplled and planar bedded       4 - Saugatuck Till (GVSU, MI)
                                             5 - Oak Creek Till (WI)
                                             6 - Wadsworth Till (IL)
Conclusions
• There is both a genetic and textural connection
  between basal till and lacustrine sediments in the
  Saugatuck and Oak Creek Formations. This
  reflects the lacustrine depositional environment
  of these facies.
• The physical similarities of the Oak Creek and
  Saugatuck Formations over 100’s of kilometers
  reflects subglacial mixing processes of lacustrine
  sediments in the Lake Michigan Basin.
• Geotechnical properties also reflect this similarity
  of properties over large spatial scales.
Acknowledgements
• Thanks to the GVSU geology students in my
  GEO380 Special Topics: Engineering Geology
  class of Fall 2008.

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2010 Michigan Academy of Science - Sedimentary Origin and Geotechnical Properties of Subglacial Till Ottawa County, Michigan

  • 1. Sedimentary Origin and Geotechnical Properties of Subglacial Till Ottawa County, Michigan Patrick M. Colgan and Steve Zdan, Grand Valley State University, Department of Geology
  • 2. Ottawa County 10 kilometers N Michigan Study Grand site Rapids
  • 3. GVSU Campus end moraine
  • 4. Oak Creek Saugatuck Fm. Fm.
  • 5. 1 Administration Extension Lake Ontario Hall N 2 500 meters
  • 6. North to South Cross Section across GVSU Campus diamicton Lake New Ravine (basal till) Ontario Administration Apartments Hall Building Section 2 South Ravine elevation (ft) fine silty sand (lacustrine) clay, silt and fine sand (lacustrine) diamicton (basal till)? Marshall Sandstone ~ 480-510 feet S distance (meters) N vertical exaggeration ~16:1
  • 7. Section 1: Silt-rich diamicton with oxidized vertical joints, striated clasts, high density.
  • 8. Dm Dms Sr-Sx Section 1: Contact between diamicton and sand. Shear zone between.
  • 9. clast of diamicton ripples In silty sand Section 1: Clast of reddish diamicton in silty sand.
  • 10. Section 1 – Ravine Apartments GV-1-2 (diamicton - basal till) texture meters C Z S G D sediment sediment 100 90 samples clay silt sand gr facies 80 70 D1 % coarser Dm erosional 60 surface D2 50 0 40 30 clast of Dm 1 20 10 Sr 0 2 0.0010 0.0100 0.1000 1.0000 10.0000 S1 diameter (mm) Sx 3 GV-2-1 (sandy silt - glaciolacustrine) 4 Fm-Fl 100 5 clay silt sand gr 90 1 Sr 80 S2 70 % coarser 60 Sx 50 40 30 Fm-Fl 6 20 S3 7a 10 Sp-Sr 7b 0 8 0.0010 0.0100 0.1000 1.0000 10.0000 Fm-Fl diameter (mm) Sr S4 9 2 Fm-Fl 10 GV-2-13 (clayey silt - glaciolacustrine ) Sp S5 100 Fm-Fl 11 gr clay silt sand 90 Sr S6 80 12 70 % coarser 60 50 40 covered 30 20 10 3 Fl-Fm 13 0.0010 0.0100 0.1000 1.0000 0 10.0000 diameter (mm)
  • 11. meters C Z S G D Section 2 – South Ravine 0 Fm-Dm Samples covered St-Sr (A) 1 Fl-Fm 7 9 SR2-10 (fine sand) Sr (A) St-Sr (A) 6 Fl-Fm 8 100 St-Sr (A) 90 5 2 4 clay silt sand gr 80 Sl 70 % coarser 3 60 Sl 2 50 3 St-Sr (A) 1 40 Dml-Fl 18 30 St-Sr (A) 20 Fl-Fm 10 4 Sr St-Sr (A) 0 Sr 15 0.0010 0.0100 0.1000 1.0000 10.0000 Fl-Fm 14 12 diameter (mm) 5 St-Sr Fl-Fm 11 SR2-16 (silty clay) Sr 6 10 St 100.0 90.0 Sl 80.0 7 70.0 % coarser 60.0 clay silt sand gr 50.0 St-Sr (A) 40.0 8 30.0 20.0 St inclusions of clasts 10.0 of fines in sand 0.0 9 Dmm Fm-Fl 16 0.0010 0.0100 0.1000 1.0000 10.0000 17 diameter (mm) Sr (A) 10 St
  • 12. Morainal bank sedimentation model rain out of fine silt and clay underflows of sand (Sx-Sp-Sr) deposition debris of subglacial till (Dm) clay and silt flows (Dml) (Fm-Fl) Adapted from Benn and Evans (1998) after Powell and Domack (1995)
  • 13. Geotechnical Properties of the Saugatuck Formation at GVSU • Moisture Content (ASTM D2216-98) • Texture of matrix (hydrometer & sieve) • Atterberg Limits (ASTM D4318-05) – Liquid Limit = % moisture – Plastic Limit = % moisture – Plasticity Index = LL - PL • Shear Strength (Torvane Shear Device) • Standard Penetration Test (ASTM D1586 - 08a)
  • 14. Color & Field Moisture Content • Color – Gray (10YR 5/1) to light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) • Field Moisture Content (n =33) Mean = 17.5 % Standard deviation = 2.1%
  • 15. Matrix Texture Clay N = 24 Sand Silt • Sand 17.3 % s.d. 5.6% • Silt 46.1% s.d. 3.5% • Clay 36.6% s.d. 4.2%
  • 16. Atterberg Limits 60 “U” - Line 50 CH or OH 40 Plasticity Index CL or OL “A” - Line 30 20 5 CL or ML 4 MH or OH 6 10 97 11 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Liquid Limit Mean Liquid Limit = 27, s.d. 5.5 Plasticity Index = 11.5, s.d. 6.5
  • 17. Comparison to Oak Creek Fm. (Wisconsin) • Data from Till Pro 1.0 (Wisconsin Natural History and Geologic Survey) • Texture and Atterberg Limits – basal till of Oak Creek Formations (n=405) – All Oak Creek Formation facies (n = 937)
  • 18. Clay Clay GVSU A. GVSU B. subglacial till lacustrine (n = 24) (n = 13) Sand Silt Sand Silt Clay Clay C. Oak Creek D. Oak Creek subglacial till Formation (n = 405) (n = 937) Sand Silt Sand Silt
  • 19. 60 “U” - Line 50 CH or OH 40 Plasticity Index CL or OL “A” - Line 30 20 CL or ML MH or OH 10 0 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Liquid Limit
  • 20. Shear Strength of Subglacial Till • Pocket Penetrometer (n = 44) – 63 ± 25 kN/m2 • Shear strength of subglacial till (n = 7) – 59 ± 8 kN/m2 • Standard Penetration Test (n = 45) – N value = 21.9 ± 6.5 blows Note: all errors reported are one sigma uncertainty
  • 21. Clay Clay Facies Subglacial Means tills (n = 4) Means (n = 6) 5 Dm 4 6 Fm 1 2 3 Sr-Sp Fl Sand Silt Sand Silt Dm – massive diamicton (basal till) 1 - Ganges Till (MI) Fm – massive fines (lacustrine) 2 - Glenn Shores Till (MI) Fl – laminated silt (lacustrine) 3 - Saugatuck Till (Glen Shores MI) Sr-Sp – sand riplled and planar bedded 4 - Saugatuck Till (GVSU, MI) 5 - Oak Creek Till (WI) 6 - Wadsworth Till (IL)
  • 22. Conclusions • There is both a genetic and textural connection between basal till and lacustrine sediments in the Saugatuck and Oak Creek Formations. This reflects the lacustrine depositional environment of these facies. • The physical similarities of the Oak Creek and Saugatuck Formations over 100’s of kilometers reflects subglacial mixing processes of lacustrine sediments in the Lake Michigan Basin. • Geotechnical properties also reflect this similarity of properties over large spatial scales.
  • 23. Acknowledgements • Thanks to the GVSU geology students in my GEO380 Special Topics: Engineering Geology class of Fall 2008.