THE ATTENUATION OF COMPRESSIONAL WAVES IN MARINE SEDIMENTS

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Abstract
A number of mechanisms have been proposed to account for the attenuation of compressional waves in water‐saturated sediments. These include viscous losses between the particles and the fluid, and “solid friction” losses between the particles. The mechanisms are discussed and it is shown how the low values of attenuation observed in pure clays arise from the electrical interaction forces between the surface‐active particles. It is proposed that the attenuation in clay‐ and silt‐size sediments (up to 6 phi mean diameter) arises from viscous interaction between the clay‐water “fluid” and the non‐surface‐active particles. Both new and published experimental measurements indicate that the proposed mechanism is valid, at least in a frequency range 30 to 370 kHz. For sediments of mean particle diameter greater than 6 phi, both new and published experimental results are presented to show that, although under the circumstances of a very well sorted sediment under zero overburden pressure a viscous dissipation mechanism may be dominant, the “solid friction” mechanism is dominant for poorly sorted sediments buried to a depth of 2 m.

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