On the grain size and roundness of wind-blown sands in Finland as compared with some Central European samples

Abstract

Ten aeolian sand samples from Finland and four samples from Central Europe were analysed by means of sifting and the mechanical graniformameter of Krygowski. The grain size and the sorting of the wind-blown sands both in Finland and in the other investigated countries are quite similar, but the quartz grains in Finland are usually angular and unworn, while the others are more rounded. The origin of the mother material, and the influence of the earlier geomorphological processes on the roundness can be seen clearly in a comparison of the characteristics of the sands.