Detritaalisiin

Detritaalisiin is a Finnish term used in geology and sedimentology to refer to detrital or clastic materials and processes. It denotes sediments and sedimentary rocks that are composed primarily of mechanically produced fragments derived from weathering and erosion, as opposed to minerals that originate by chemical precipitation or biological activity.

Detrital materials typically include quartz and feldspar grains, lithic fragments, and clay minerals. They are commonly transported by water, wind, or gravity and deposited when transport energy decreases. Over time, detrital sediments may be buried and become compacted and cemented to form detrital sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, siltstone, shale, and conglomerate.

Analyses of detritaalisiin contexts often involve grain-size distribution, modal mineralogy, and detrital geochronology (for example detrital zircon dating) to assess provenance and depositional environment. The term is used in Finnish geology literature and in curricula to differentiate detrital from chemical or biogenic sediment components.

Within broader studies, detritaalisiin processes also cover weathering, transport, sorting, and diagenetic changes that affect grain shape, cementation, and porosity, influencing reservoir quality in hydrocarbon and groundwater systems.