Haamer vibrocorer and its affect on the geotechnical properties of cohesive sediments in gothenburg harbor, Sweden

Abstract

The Haamer vibrocorer is a cheap and easily handled sampler for containing continuous cohesive or cohesionless sediment cores. This vibrocorer can be handled on board an ordinary trawler or small vessel. The penetration of the sampling barrel is actuated by two synchronized vibrators. Additional penetration force is provided by the buoyancy of a guiding buoy. To extend the maximum sampling length and to decrease the degree of disturbance, the vibrocorer is equipped with a plastic foil, which encases the core as it enters the liner and reduces inside friction. By providing the sampler with jetting water, the necessary penetration force is decreased. Testing a prototype is always difficult, but a working cycle of up to three cores an hour has been reached using a 6 m vibrocorer. A limited investigation has been conducted to determine the quality of the recovered cores; however, because of the poorly defined quality of the reference samples, no definitive answer to the question of sample disturbance can be given.