Diameter of a Grain of Sand
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| Bibliographic Entry | Result (w/surrounding text) |
Standardized Result |
|---|---|---|
| Earth Science: A Study of a Changing Planet. Newton, MA: CEBCO, 1990. | "as shown in table 14-1, particles that range from about 2 mm down to about 0.05 mm in diameter are called sand" | 0.05–2 mm |
| "Soil." Microsoft Encarta. CD-ROM. Redmond, WA: Microsoft, 1996. | "Particles of sand range in size from 2 to 0.05 mm in diameter; those of silt from 0.05 to 0.002 mm and those of clay smaller than 0.002 mm." | 0.05–2 mm |
| Glossary. Erosion and Sediment Control Management System. Lake Macquarie, Australia: 9 September 1999. | "Sand consists of particles consisting largely of quartz grains between 0.02 mm and 2.00 mm in diameter. Fine sand is defined as particles between 0.02 mm and 0.2 mm and course [sic] sand as those between 0.2 mm and 2.0 mm." | 0.02–2 mm |
| Bloom, Arthur. The Surface of the Earth. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1969. | "for sediment grains coarser than fine sand (average diameter 0.2 mm), the current velocity…." | 0.2 mm (average) |
| "Relationship of Transported Particle Size to Water Velocity." 1994 Earth Science Reference Tables. Albany, NY: University of the State of New York, 1994. | [table] | 0.06–2 mm |
Soil is made up of a mixture of mineral and organic particles produced by the interaction of wind, water, and organic decay. The physical structure of soil at any location is determined by many factors such as the kind of geologic material from which it originates, vegetation, the length of time that the soil has been weathered, topography, and artificial changes caused by human activities. However, the general texture of a soil depends on the proportions of particles of various sizes of which it is composed. Soil particles are divided into sand, silt, clay and colloids.
Sand is composed of loose, finely grained minerals that are the product of chemical and mechanical decomposition of rocks over long periods of time. These minerals include quartz (the most common mineral) with traces of mica, feldspar, and magnetite. Sand consists mostly of quartz because other common minerals weather away to sizes smaller than sand, and quartz does not
Sand is very important in the making of glass, certain types of moldings and sandblasting. Since sand is very abundant on the shore lines of lakes, seas and oceans, it serves a recreational purpose by providing the material to build sand castles, and to bury your friend, family member, or dog on a boring day.
Ilana Price -- 2000
External links to this page:
- A Simple Grain of Sand [pdf], Roger van Cleef, Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society Rockhound News, Vol. 48 No. 11 (2002)
- How to (Maybe) Find Your Own Little Amazing Meteorite. SciShow Space. Youtube (2020).