NOTE BRAZILIAN JOURNAL OF OCEANOGRAPHY, 56(2):149-152, 2008 HIGH-ENERGY EVENTS AND SHORT-TERM CHANGES IN SUPERFICIAL BEACH SEDIMENTS

The sediment distribution along modern beaches is the result of the complex interaction between the sediment source, the wave energy level and the general offshore slope upon which the beach is constructed (KOMAR, 1998). Sediments tend to be sorted according to the energy levels that the beach is exposed, so that beaches exposed to higher wave energy levels are expected to be composed by coarser sediments. In the composition of beach sediments, quantities of heavy minerals might be present. Since they are denser than quartz grains, they present a different hydraulic behaviour when compared to lighter grains. The behaviour of heavy minerals has been studied mainly related to erosional and/or accretional beach processes (e.g. SLINGERLAND