Delineation of Depositional Environment from Quaternary Sediments in Lendi River Sub-basin, Maharashtra, India

Authors

  • Chandrakant Gurav Department of Geology, Rajaram College, Kolhapur – 416004, Maharashtra, India
  • Md. Babar Shaikh Department of Geology, Dnyanopasak College, Parbhani - 431401, Maharashtra, India
  • Sanjay Pathare Department of Geology, Rajaram College, Kolhapur – 416004, Maharashtra, India
  • Bhagwan Ghute Department of Geology, Toshniwal Arts, Commerce and Science College, Sengaon Dist. Hingoli- 431542 (MS)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51710/jias.v43iI.460

Abstract

The grain size analysis of Quaternary sediments from the Lendi river sub-basin in Latur and Nanded districts of Maharashtra has been carried out to investigate the textural parameters and statistical measures to understand the depositional environment. A total thirty-three samples were collected during the fieldwork. These samples were meticulously analyzed using British Standard Sieve (BSS) method. The grain size analysis clearly shows that the differential sorting of grains reflects significant changes in environment throughout geological history. Coarse sediments are prominently deposited over the country rock, forming a solid foundational layer. Above the coarse sediment formation, there are well defined formations of sand and silty clay deposited. Similarly, the presence of cross bedding and graded bedding structures clearly indicate the fluctuation in climatic conditions that have occurred over time. The depositional environment of coarse gravel sediments in the bottom beds of Lendi river at Halni, Mukaramabad and Ravangaon indicates that the streams possess relatively high energy with prevalent bed load transport; whereas fine clay and silt at Hanuman, Hipperga, Gojegaon and other places in the upper layer reflect that the streams are of low gradient, influenced by seasonal variations in climate.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Ahmad, F., Quasim, M.A., Ghaznavi, A.A., Khan, Z., Ahmad, A.H.M. (2017). Depositional environment of the Fort Member of the Jurassic Jaisalmer Formation (western Rajasthan, India), as revealed from lithofacies and grain-size analysis. Geologica Acta, v. 15(3), pp. 153-167. DOI: 10.1344/GeologicaActa2017.15.3.1

Babar, Md., Kaplay, R.D., Mukherjee, S., Mahato, S., Gurav, C. (2019). NE-SW Strike-Slip Fault in the Granitoid from the Margin of the South East Dharwar Craton, Degloor, Nanded District, Maharashtra, India, in: Mukherjee, S. (Ed.), Tectonics and Structural Geology: Indian Context, Springer Geology. Springer International Publishing, Cham., pp. 115-134. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99341-6_5

Banerjee, R., Jain, S.K., Shivkumar, K. (2008). Geochemistry and Petrogenesis of Uraninite bearing Granitoid and Radioactive Phosphatic Cherty Cataclasite of Thadisaoli area, Nanded district, Maharashtra. Memoir of Geological. Societ of. India. v. 73, pp. 55-84.

Banerjee, R., Krishna, V., Pandey, B.K., Parthasarathy, T.N. (1993). Rb-Sr Geochronology of the Radioactive granites of Nanded area Maharashtra, India. Journal of Atomic Mineral Science, v. 1, pp. 111-117.

Bhat, M.S., Chavadi, V.C., Hegde, V.S. (2002). Morphological and textural characteristics of Kudle Beach, Karnataka, central west coast of India. Journal of the Geological Society of India, v. 59, pp.125-131.

Blott, S.J. and Pye, K. (2001), GRADISTAT: a grain size distribution and statistics package for the analysis of unconsolidated sediments. Earth Surface Process Landforms, v. 26, pp. 1237-1248. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.261

Boggs, S. (2006). Principles of sedimentology and stratigraphy, 4th ed. ed. Pearson Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, N.J.

Bui, E.N., Mazzullo, J.M., Wilding, L.P. (1989). Using quartz grain size and shape analysis to distinguish between aeolian and fluvial deposits in the Dallol Bosso of Niger (West Africa). Earth Surface Process Landforms, v. 14, pp. 157-166. https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.3290140206

Buscombe, D. (2008). Estimation of grain-size distributions and associated parameters from digital images of sediment. Sedimentary Geology, v. 210(1-2), pp. 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.SEDGEO.2008.06.007

Di Stefano, C. and Ferro, V. (2002), SW-Soil and Water: Linking Clay Enrichment and Sediment Delivery Processes. Biosystems Engineering, v. 81(4), pp. 465-479. https://doi.org/10.1006/bioe.2001.0034

Eisma, D. and Kalf, J. (1987), Dispersal, concentration and deposition of suspended matter in the North Sea. Journal of the Geological Society of India, v. 144, pp. 161-178. https://doi.org/10.1144/gsjgs.144.1.0161

Folk, R.L. (1966). A Review of Grain-Size Parameters. Sedimentology, v. 6, pp. 73-93. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3091.1966.tb01572.x

Folk, R.L. (1974). Petrology of Sedimentary Rocks. Austin, Tex: Hemphill Pub. Co.

Folk, R.L and Ward, W.C. (1957). Brazos River bar [Texas]; a study in the significance of grain size parameters. Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 27, pp. 3-26. https://doi.org/10.1306/74D70646-2B21-11D7-8648000102C1865D

Friedman, G.M. (1962). On Sorting, Sorting Coefficients, and the Lognormality of the Grain-Size Distribution of Sandstones. The Journal of Geology, v. 70, pp. 737-753. https://doi.org/10.1086/jg.70.6.30066373

Friedman, G.M. (1979). Differences in size distributions of populations of particles among sands of various origins: addendum to IAS Presidential Address. Sedimentology, v. 26, pp. 859-862. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3091.1979.tb00979.x

Friedman, G.M. and Sanders, J.E., (1978). Principles of Sedimentology. Wiley, New York.

Ge. J., Li, Q., Zhao, X., Pang, W., Fan, Q., Cheng, X., Zhang, X. (2024). Grain size of Quaternary sediments in the continental shelf-margin: implications for paleo-environment in the Northwestern South China Sea. Front Marine Science, v. 11, 1489786. doi:10.3389/fmars.2024.1489786

Gurav, C. (2019). Quaternary Stratigraphy and Geomorphology of Lendi River Sub-Basin in West-Central Maharashtra. Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University, Nanded.

Gurav, C. and Babar, Md. (2021), Morphometric Analysis of Lendi River Basin Using Geographical Information System (GIS) Techniques, in: Pawar, P.M., Balasubramaniam, R., Ronge, B.P., Salunkhe, S.B., Vibhute, A.S., and Melinamath, B. (Eds.), Techno-Societal 2020. Springer International Publishing, Cham, pp. 37-46. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-69925-3_4

Hanamgond, P.T. and Chavadi, V.C. (1998), Sedimentological Study of Kwada and Belekeri Bay Beaches, Uttara Kannada, West Coast, India. Journal of the Geological Society of India, v. 51, pp. 193-200.

Komar, P.D. (1998). Beach Processes and Sedimentation. 2nd Edition, Prentice-Hall, Englewood-Cliffs.

Martins, L.R. (1965). Significance of skewness and kurtosis in environmental interpretation. Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 35, pp. 768–770. https://doi.org/10.1306/74D7135C-2B21-11D7-8648000102C1865D

Mclaren, P. and Bowles, D. (1985), The Effects of Sediment Transport on Grain-Size Distributions. Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 55, pp. 457-470. https://doi.org/10.1306/212F86FC-2B24-11D7-8648000102C1865D.

Mir, R. A. and Jeelani, G. (2015). Textural Characteristics of Sediments and Weathering in the Jhelum River Basin Located in Kashmir Valley, Western Himalaya. Journal Geological Society of India, v. 86, pp. 445-458.

Moiola, R.J. and Weiser, D. (1968), Textural parameters; an evaluation. Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 38, pp. 45-53.

Mostafa, M.G., Rahman, M.A., Pownceby, M. I., Torpy, A., Alam, M.S., Hossen, M.N., Hayatullah, Rana, M. S., Hossain, M. I. S., Mustak, M. H., Rahman, M. S. (2025). Depositional Environment and Sediment Dynamics of the Northern Brahmaputra–Jamuna River, Bangladesh: A Combined Geochemical, Mineralogical, Grain Morphology, and Statistical Analysis. Minerals, v. 15(11), 1192. https://doi.org/10.3390/min15111192

Mycielska-Dowgia??o, E. and Ludwikowska-K?dzia, M. (2011), Alternative interpretations of grain-size data from Quaternary deposits. Geologos, v. 17(4), pp. 189-203. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10118-011-0010-9

Okeyode, I.C. and Jibiri, N.N. (2012), Grain Size Analysis of the Sediments from Ogun River, South Western Nigeria. Earth Science Research, v. 2(1), pp. 43-51. https://doi.org/10.5539/esr.v2n1p43

Oredein, O.S., Adewumi, A.J., Odunsi, O.M. (2014). Grain Size and Depositional Pattern of Sediment from Okeluse Area, Southwestern Nigeria. (2014). Global Journal of Science Frontier Research, v. 14(H5), pp. 57-68. https://journalofscience.org/index.php/GJSFR/article/view/1445

Panda, D.K., Kumar, A., Mohanty, S. (2011). Recent trends in sediment load of the tropical (Peninsular) river basins of India. Global and Planetary Change v.75, pp.108–118. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2010.10.012

Passega, R. and Byramjee, R. (1969), Grain-size image of clastic deposits. Sedimentology, v. 13(3?4), pp. 233-252. Doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.1969.tb00171.x

Poppe, L.J. and Eliason, A.H. (2008), A Visual Basic program to plot sediment grain-size data on ternary diagrams. Computers & Geosciences, v. 34, pp. 561-565. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cageo.2007.03.019

Rajganapathi, V.C., Jitheshkumar, N., Sundararajan, M., Bhat, K.H., Velusamy, S. (2013). Grain size analysis and characterization of sedimentary environment along Thiruchendur coast, Tamilnadu, India. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, v. 6, pp. 4717-4728. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-012-0709-0

Ramamohanarao, T., Sairam, K., Venkateswararao, Y., Nagamalleswararao, B., Viswanath, K. (2003). Sedimentological characteristics and depositional environment of Upper Gondwana rocks in the Chintalapudi sub-basin of the Godavari valley, Andhra Pradesh, India. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, v. 21, pp. 691-703. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1367-9120(02)00139-6

Rao, P.S., Ramaswamy, V., Thwin, S. (2005). Sediment texture, distribution and transport on the Ayeyarwady continental shelf, Andaman Sea. Marine Geology, v. 216, pp. 239-247. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2005.02.016

Ray, G., Blackley, M. W. L., Carr, A.P. (1975). Beach stability and particle size distribution, Start Bay. Journal of the Geological Society of India, v. 131(1), pp. 83-101. https://doi.org/10.1144/gsjgs.131.1.0083

Reineck, H. E. and Singh, I.B. (1980), Depositional Sedimentary Environments. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-81498-3

Sahu, B.K. (1964). Depositional Mechanisms from the Size Analysis of Clastic Sediments. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 34, pp.73–83.

Sahu, B.K. (1983). Multigroup discrimination of depositional environments using size distribution statistics. Indian Journal of Earth Sciences, v. 10, pp. 20–29.

Sharma, R., Dehiya, R., Sarkar, S., Duraiswami, R. (2025) Seismic characterization of lava flow facies in the critical zone of the deccan traps using shear wave velocity models. Science Reporter., v. 15, 28091. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-13638-4

Singh, C.K., Kumar, P., Kumar, A. (2015). Depositional environment in great Indian desert using grain size parameters and its chemical characterization. Journal of the Geological Society of India, v. 86, pp. 412-420. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-015-0329-x

Singh, M. and Chaudhri, A.R., (2013), Size Analysis of the Late Pliocene-Early Pleistocene Upper Siwalik Sediments, Northwestern Himalaya, India. International Journal of Geosciences, v. 4(8), pp. 1120-1130. https://doi.org/10.4236/ijg.2013.48106

Sperazza, M., Moore, J., Hendrix, M. (2004). High-Resolution Particle Size Analysis of Naturally Occurring Very Fine-Grained Sediment Through Laser Diffractometry. Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 74, pp. 736-743. https://doi.org/10.1306/031104740736.

Surian, N. (2002). Downstream variation in grain size along an Alpine river: analysis of controls and processes. Geomorphology, v. 43, pp. 137-149. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-555X(01)00127-1

Udden, J.A. (1898). The Mechanical Composition of Wind Deposits. Augustana Lihrary Publications, no 1.

Udden, J.A. (1914). Mechanical composition of clastic sediments. Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 25, pp. 655-744. https://doi.org/10.1130/GSAB-25-655

Umehara, A., Takashima, H., Yoshimori, Y., Sekito, S., Ohno, M., Nakai, S., Nishijima, W. (2023). Development of a grain-size determination method based on digital images of muddy sediments in coastal areas. Marine Geology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2023.107066.

Visher, G. S. (1969). Grain Size Distributions and Depositional Processes. SEPM Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 39. https://doi.org/10.1306/74D71D9D-2B21-11D7-8648000102C1865D

Wai, O.W.H., Wang, C.H., Li, Y.S., Li, X.D. (2004). The formation mechanisms of turbidity maximum in the Pearl River estuary, China. Marine Pollution Bulletin, v. 48, pp. 441-448. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2003.08.019

Wan Mohtar, W.H.M., Bassa, S.A., Porhemmat, M. (2017). Grain Size Analysis of Surface Fluvial Sediments in Rivers in Kelantan, Malaysia. Sains Malaysiana, v. 46, pp. 685–693. https://doi.org/10.17576/jsm-2017-4605-02

Watts, A.B. and Cox, K.G. (1989), The Deccan Traps: an interpretation in terms of progressive lithospheric flexure in response to a migrating load. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, v. 93, pp. 85-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/0012-821X(89)90186-6

Wentworth, C.K. (1922). A Scale of Grade and Class Terms for Clastic Sediments. The Journal of Geology, v. 30, pp. 377-392. https://doi.org/10.1086/622910

Wesanekar, P. and Patil, R.R. (2000), Rb-Sr dating of pink Granites of Deglur, Nanded district, Maharashtra, India. Presented at the In: Proc. Nat. Sem. "Tectonomagmatism, Geochemistry and Metamorphism of Precambrian Terrains”.

Wesanekar, P. and Patil, R.R. (2016), Fluid inclusion studies of Granites around Degloor, Nanded district, Maharashtra. Presented at the Hutton India Conference, pp. 81-100.

Williams, A. T. (I973). Some statistical parameters obtained from beach sediments. Proceedings of Geological Assessment, v. 84, pp. 9-26. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7878(73)80002-1

Downloads

Published

2026-06-30

How to Cite

Gurav , C., Shaikh, M. B., Pathare , S., & Ghute, B. (2026). Delineation of Depositional Environment from Quaternary Sediments in Lendi River Sub-basin, Maharashtra, India. Journal of The Indian Association of Sedimentologists (peer Reviewed), 43(I), 25–36. https://doi.org/10.51710/jias.v43iI.460
Share |