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Paleo-thermometers in sedimentary basins often drive to misleading thermal modelling when applied alone or only on potentially productive Paleozoic source rocks. Different paleo-thermal and thermo-chronological data have been used as constraints to model the Silurian to Cenozoic succession of a recently drilled well in the onshore portion of the Baltic Basin, in northern Poland. This dataset provides an integrated platform for thermal maturity assessment contributing to the highly debated reconstruction of the thermal history of the Baltic Basin in the last decade. The well stratigraphy consists of a Lower Paleozoic marine clayey and arenaceous/calcareous succession, about 1000 m thick that is unconformably overlain by a 2000 m thick Permian to Cenozoic sequence, developed in a continental to shallow marine environment. Optical microscopy, FT-IR and Raman spectroscopy analysis of organic matter have been coupled with (U–Th)/He data to produce a robust vitrinite reflectance profile and constrain the 1D thermal modelling of the well. In addition, such a thermal maturity profile was validated by an independent thermal modelling calibrated by the smectite illitization kinetics. Both models identify high heat flow conditions (up to 1.7 HFU) at the end of Mesozoic. The Lower Paleozoic succession entered the late oil window of HC generation during this last heating event.

Dolomitization of a carbonate platform can occur at different times and in different diagenetic environments, from synsedimentary to deep burial settings. Numerical simulations are valuable tools to test and select the model that, among different hypotheses compatible with field and geochemical data, best honour mass balance, kinetic and thermodynamic constraints. Moreover, the simulation can predict the distribution of the dolomitized bodies in the subsurface and evaluate porosity changes; valuable information for the oil industry. This study is the first attempt to reproduce and investigate the compaction dolomitization model. The diagenetic study of the Jurassic carbonate basin and palaeohigh system of the Po Plain indicates that the carbonates of the palaeohighs were dolomitized by basin compaction fluids. The main goal of the simulations is to evaluate the origin and evolution of the dolomitizing fluids and to provide insights regarding the distribution of the potential reservoir-dolomitized bodies in the Po Plain. The modelling process is subdivided into two steps: basin modelling and reactive transport modelling. The SEBE3 basin simulator (Eni proprietary) was used to create a three-dimensional model of the compacting system. The results include compaction fluid flow rate from the basin to the palaeohigh, compaction duration and a determination of the total amount of fluid introduced into the palaeohigh. These data are then used to perform reactive transport modelling with the TOUGHREACT code. Sensitivities on dolomite kinetic parameters suggest that dolomitization was an efficient process even at low temperatures, with differences mainly related to the dynamics of the process. Fluid composition is one of the main constraints, the sea water derived compaction fluid is proven to be efficient for dolomitization due to its relatively high Mg content. Simulations also confirmed that permeability is the most important factor influencing fluid flow and, consequentl

In this paper we reply to the criticisms advanced by Narkiewicz (2017) on the paper by Schito et al. (2017). We clarify the issues related to the stratigraphic and thermal maturity constraints used for reconstructing burial and thermal models of the two blocks of the Holy Cross Mountains. We also show how geological evidences brought by Narkiewicz (2017) as a proof of elevated Variscan heat flow are not conclusive or at least suggest the occurence of a localized thermal anomaly only along the area of the Holy Cross Fault. In the end, we performed new burial and thermal models in the Kielce region demonstrating that stratigraphic thickness variations between Schito et al. (2017) and Narkiewicz et al. (2010) produce only negligible differences in levels of thermal maturity of Paleozoic rocks. In addition, we outline that levels of thermal maturity for Silurian rocks can be matched only by using constant heat flow values through the Paleozoic and point to a decisive role for the absence of regional high Variscan heat flow in the area.