Loamy Sand

an unconsolidated sandy-clayey sedimentary rock containing 3–10 percent by weight clay particles with diameters less than 0.005 mm. In soil science, loamy sands with clay percentages near the upper limit are called heavy, and those with clay percentages near the lower limit are called light. Loamy coarse sand, loamy fine sand, and loamy very fine sand are distinguished, depending on the grain size of the constituent sand or silt (aleurite). The mineralogical composition of loamy sand varies: all contain considerable quantities of quartz, and the more clayey types contain clay minerals, such as kaolinite and montmorillonite. The term “loamy sand” is usually applied to continental deposits; marine deposits of corresponding composition are classified in a group of sands that have different proportions of clay.