1,890 results on '"salt tectonics"'
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2. Volumetric carbon storage capacity estimation at Mississippi Canyon Block 118 in the Gulf of Mexico using Post-Stack Seismic Inversion
- Author
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Samuel, Silas Adeoluwa, Knapp, Camelia C., and Knapp, James H.
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- 2025
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3. Triassic Deposits in the Caspian Region: Structure, Tectonic Settings, Sedimentary Environments, and Oil-and-Gas Potential.
- Author
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Antipov, M. P., Bykadorov, V. A., Volozh, Yu. A., Patina, I. S., Fomina, V. V., and Bars, F. M.
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SALT tectonics , *SHEAR (Mechanics) , *PALEOGEOGRAPHY , *FACIES , *PETROLEUM industry - Abstract
Both tectonic settings and sedimentary environments of the oil- and gas-bearing Triassic sequences in the Caspian region are examined. It is shown that the Scythian and West Turanian plates were located at an active margin of the East European continent in Triassic. A unified thick (up to 3–5 km) cover of sedimentary and volcanosedimentary (mainly tuffaceous) rocks without the characteristic features of rifting was formed. In the northern and eastern parts of the region, the Triassic is composed of variegated continental terrigenous rocks. In many areas of the region (eastern and southern parts of the Pre-Caspian Basin, Eastern Ciscaucasia, Mangyshlak, and Middle Caspian), the Lower Triassic (Olenekian) and Middle Triassic are represented by marine terrigenous–carbonate rocks. The structural features of sequences in the Pre-Caspian Basin are associated with salt tectonics. The maximum thickness (up to 4.5–5 km) of Triassic rocks within the Scythian Plate is recorded in the southwestern part of the Middle Caspian and southeastern part of the Karpinsky Ridge, where they fill up a series of NW-extending graben-shaped troughs. Their absence in the northwestern part of the region is related to the latest shear deformations, as confirmed by their discrepancy with the facies zonation of Triassic deposits. Currently, the Permian and Triassic deposits represent a pre-platform geodynamic seismic sequence unconformably overlying the pre-Kungurian deposits. Triassic deposits of the Scythian and West Turanian plates are disturbed by faults (amplitude up to 2 km) and dislocated in some areas. Folding with faults and strike-slip faults is especially intense on the Karpinsky Ridge. Increased dislocation and Late Triassic magmatism on the Scythian and West Turanian plates are associated with the processes of collision during the closure of the Paleotethys Ocean. Oil and gas prospects of the region are assessed positively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
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4. Implications of Salt Tectonics on Hydrocarbon Ascent in the Eastern Persian Gulf: Insights into the Formation Mechanism of Salt Diapirs, Gas Chimneys, and Their Sedimentary Interactions.
- Author
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Xue, Yang, Luan, Xiwu, Raveendrasinghe, Thanuja D., Wei, Xinyuan, Jin, Long, Yin, Jian, and Qiao, Jianghao
- Abstract
Gas chimneys, salt domes, and faults are vital to the movement of hydrocarbons within geological systems. Accurate identification of these geological features is crucial to modeling hydrocarbon resources. This study explores the processes that have shaped the eastern Persian Gulf, focusing on salt diapir characteristics, origin, and fluid migration. Plate collisions between the Indian, Eurasian, and Arabian Plates have considerably impacted salt tectonics, developing key features such as the Hormuz salt, Qatar-South Fars Arch, and Zagros and Oman orogenic structures. Salt-related features were discerned through two-dimensional seismic data and drilling records, salt movement sequences were reconstructed, and fluid expulsion patterns were delineated using attribute preferences. The results of this study revealed that fractured substrates influenced by regional tectonic forces contribute to the creation of salt diapirs, which serve as conduits for guided fluid transport. Moreover, these results showed that gravity-driven downbuilding mainly controls salt flow, while the circular arrangement of salt structures results from regional stress and interactions between different salt sources. Distinct stress-induced basement incisions compounded by the hindrance of initial salt movement by the Qatar Arch further contribute to the complex salt structure geometry. Crucially, the uplift of the Qatar Arch and stresses from the Oman and Zagros orogenies profoundly affect the salt structure geometry and depositional patterns across diverse regions, resulting in circular salt structures and gas chimneys. This study offers valuable perspectives for oil and gas exploration and provides a comprehensive understanding of the regional dynamics governing salt tectonics and hydrocarbon ascent in the eastern Persian Gulf. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
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- 2024
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5. Coupling of X-ray fluorescence and strontium isotopes to track the influence of brine in continental deposits: study of Oligocene sediments in the Digne area (SE basin, France).
- Author
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Hamon, Alexandre, Huyghe, Damien, Mehl, Caroline, Pichat, Alexandre, Revillon, Sidonie, and Callot, Jean-Paul
- Subjects
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SALT tectonics , *STRONTIUM isotopes , *X-ray fluorescence , *GEOCHEMISTRY , *CENOZOIC Era - Abstract
It is often difficult to decipher past salt tectonics events in orogenic domains. The southwestern Alpine foreland in France presents a long and extensive salt tectonics history in the Mesozoic, which was later inverted during the Cenozoic Alpine Orogeny. Synorogenic Cenozoic salt-related deformations are difficult to identify due to the contemporaneous shortening experienced by the foreland. This study is based on sedimentological and geochemical (Sr concentrations and 87Sr/86Sr ratios) analyses of the Oligocene non-marine succession of St-Geniez (Digne region, France). Oligocene salt influences are highlighted by (1) high Sr concentrations (>1000 ppm) in most of the series, (2) the occurrence of halophytic gastropods and (3) the deposition of two gypsum beds. The 87Sr/86Sr ratios measured in the limestones and the gypsum beds confirm a Triassic origin for the Sr, originating from the Sorine diapir located to the SW, for the first part of the series and from the Authon thrust, located to the north, for the upper part of the series. The geochemistry also suggests the occurrence of two Triassic evaporite levels: one already known and attributed to the Carnian–Norian (Late Triassic) and one attributed to the Olenekian–Anisian (Early to Mid-Triassic). These results show that the combined use of field geology and geochemistry can provide information about previously erased salt tectonics events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
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- 2024
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6. Hydrogeochemical and microbial characterization of a Middle Triassic carbonate aquifer (Muschelkalk) in Berlin and geochemical simulation of its use as a high-temperature aquifer thermal energy storage.
- Author
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Virchow, Lioba, Siever-Wenzlaff, Christian, Blöcher, Guido, Alibrandi, Armando, Kallmeyer, Jens, Zimmer, Martin, Wiersberg, Thomas, Thielke, Christoph, Schleicher, Anja, and Regenspurg, Simona
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HEAT storage ,NATURAL gas storage ,GEOLOGICAL formations ,METHANOGENS ,SALT tectonics ,DOLOMITE ,CALCITE ,AQUIFERS - Abstract
The geological formation of the Muschelkalk is widespread in the center of the North German Basin (NGB) and is increasingly attracting interest for application of geothermal energy extraction or high-temperature aquifer thermal energy storage (HT-ATES). This study investigates the Middle Triassic "Rüdersdorfer Schaumkalk", which was the former injection horizon of the natural gas storage facility in Berlin, Germany. For the first time, detailed chemical and microbiological analyses of formation water of this Lower Muschelkalk limestone formation were conducted and hydrogeochemically characterized. In addition, a hydrogeochemical model was developed to quantify the potential reactions during HT-ATES focusing on calcite dissolution and precipitation. The main objectives of this study are: (1) to determine the origin of the water from the three wells targeting the Muschelkalk aquifer, (2) to understand changes in hydrochemistry after system operation, and (3) to evaluate the long-term sustainability of a potential HT-ATES system with increasing temperature. The target formation is encountered by several wells at about 525 m below the surface with an average thickness of 30 m. Two hydraulic lifting tests including physical, chemical, and microbial groundwater as well as gas monitoring were carried out. In addition, several downhole samples of formation fluid were collected from the aquifer at in situ pressure and temperature conditions. Fluid analysis of the saline formation water indicate a seawater origin within the Muschelkalk with subsequent evaporation and various water–rock interactions with anhydrite/gypsum, dolomite, and calcite. With a salinity of 130 g/L, dominated by Na–Cl, a slightly acidic pH between 6 and 7, and a low gas content of 3%, the formation water fits to other saline deep formation waters of the NGB. Gas concentrations and microbial communities like sulfate-reducing bacteria and methanogenic archaea in the produced water indicate several geochemical alterations and microbial processes like corrosion and the forming of biogenic methane. Geochemical simulations of calcite equilibrium over 10 HT-ATES cycles indicated a pronounced propensity for calcite precipitation up to 31 mg/kgw, within the heat exchanger. At the same time, these models predicted a significant potential for calcite dissolution, with rates up to 21 mg/kgw, in both the cold and hot reservoirs. The results from the carbonate aquifer characterized in this study can be transferred to other sites in the NGB affected by salt tectonics and have provided information on the microbiological-chemical processes to be expected during the initial use of old wells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
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7. A review of cold seeps in the Western Atlantic, focusing on Colombia and the Caribbean.
- Author
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Aguilar Pérez, Maria Isabel, Zapata-Ramírez, Paula A., and Micallef, Aaron
- Subjects
COLD seeps ,MUD volcanoes ,SALT tectonics ,SALT domes ,ENVIRONMENTAL research ,DIAPIRS ,MID-ocean ridges - Abstract
Areas of the seafloor enriched with seeping fluids host unique chemosynthetic communities, and their interactions not only linked to the presence of oil and gas resources, but directly impact global geochemical cycles. These ecosystems can be found in diverse geological settings, spanning from passive to active continental margins, and encompass environments such as mid-ocean ridges, seamounts, cold brine lakes, mud volcanoes, and carbonate pinnacles. This review aims to examine seep environments in the Western Atlantic, the Caribbean, and Colombia, with a focus on understanding: I) their nature and origin, Itheir associated seabed characteristics, III) the biological communities directly connected to them, and IV) the chemistry and flow of the emitted fluids. The review identifies the close relationship of cold seeps to various geomorphological features, including linear diapir systems, salt diapirs resulting from salt tectonics, regions of mud volcanism, and compact seafloor mounds likely associated with buried mud diapirs. However, existing data on the fauna within these environments predominantly focus on megafauna, such as vestimentiferan tubeworms (Annelida), mussels, and vesicomyid bivalves (Mollusca), overlooking the crucial role of communities of small organisms, including fungi or macrofauna. This review highlights the absence of a consistent consensus among researchers regarding the factors controlling fauna distribution and presence in seep environments. Various authors have put forth divergent factors that influence seep community structures, with some emphasizing water depth, others the geological environment, and some the relationship with geomorphological conditions and fluid emissions. These findings underscore the need for further research into environmental factors and their roles in the observed distribution, presenting a promising avenue for future investigations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
8. Lower Cretaceous to Eocene calciturbidites and calcidebrites of the Ionian Zone, western Greece: insights into the factors controlling deposition
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Vakalas, Ioannis, Kokkalas, Sotirios, Triantafyllidis, Stavros, Athanassas, Constantine D., Konstantopoulos, Panagiotis, Tzimeas, Constantinos, Tsiglifi, Helen, Kampolis, Isidoros, Bellas, Spyridon, Pérez-Martin, Rubén, Hernández-Jiménez, Pablo, and Pita-Gutiérrez, Juan Pablo more...
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- 2024
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9. Formation mechanism of the small-angle X-type strike-slip faults in deep basin and its controlling on hydrocarbon accumulation: a case study from the Tabei Uplift, Tarim Basin, NW China.
- Author
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Song, Xingguo, Chen, Shi, Zhang, Yintao, Xie, Zhou, Liang, Xinxin, Yang, Minghui, Zheng, Mingjun, Shi, Xukai, Qiu, Liang, and Li, Hu
- Subjects
STRIKE-slip faults (Geology) ,OROGENIC belts ,SALT tectonics ,HYDROCARBONS ,GAS migration ,SAPROPEL ,RIFTS (Geology) ,PALEOZOIC Era - Abstract
In the central Tarim Basin, numerous hydrocarbon deposits were found along ultra-deep strike-slip faults, and its evolving progress and formation mechanism are research hotspots. The Paleozoic small-angle X-type strike-slip fault in the Tabei Uplift is the research subject in this article. Based on high-precision three-dimensional seismic data, three structural deformation layers were revealed: the rift system, weak strike-slip deformation and salt tectonics in the deep structural layer (Sinian-Middle Cambrian), the strong strike-slip deformation and karst-dissolution structure in the middle structural layer (Upper Cambrian-Middle Ordovician), and echelon normal faults in the shallow structural layer (Upper Ordovician-Carboniferous). The formation and evolution of strike-slip faults is jointly controlled by the distribution pattern of basement rift and the activities of surrounding orogenic belts, which can be divided into three stages. In the Middle to Late Cambrian, the initial subduction of the Paleo-Asian and Proto-Tethyan oceans precipitated the emergence of two sets of small-angle X-type strike-slip faults, striking NW and NE above the grooves of Precambrian rifts, influenced by local weak compressive stress. Affected by the closure of peripheral paleo-ocean, strike-slip faults deformed considerably in the Middle-Late Ordovician and were reactivated in the Silurian-Carboniferous, forming en-echelon normal faults in the shallow layer. The layered deformation structure of the strike-slip faults significantly affects the accumulation of hydrocarbons. The differential hydrocarbon enrichment of faults in the Tabei Uplift is collectively influenced by the distribution of source rocks and the migration of oil and gas. The topographical features of the Tabei Uplift, along with the distribution of strike-slip faults across tectonic units, have rendered the NE direction the preferential pathway for hydrocarbon migration. Additionally, impacted by the development of en echelon faults, the NE-trending faults offer superior conditions for hydrocarbon preservation and charging condition, compared to the NW-trending faults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
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10. 塔里木盆地库车坳陷克拉苏构造带西部盐相关构造变形.
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刘恣君, 范坤宇, 涂国煜, 吴昌荣, 郭虹兵, 钟川楠, 苗如霖, and 邓宾
- Abstract
Copyright of Natural Gas Geoscience is the property of Natural Gas Geoscience and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) more...
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- 2024
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11. Present-day kinematics of the northwest Moroccan Atlantic Margin from GNSS data: west southwest extrusion at the western end of the High Atlas.
- Author
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Lakhouidsi, Khalid, Fadil, Abdelali, Tahayt, Abdelilah, and Soulaimani, Abderrahmane
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GLOBAL Positioning System , *SALT tectonics , *PETROLEUM prospecting , *NATURAL gas prospecting , *KINEMATICS - Abstract
The Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) has emerged as a practical and effective technique for studying slow and steady geodynamic movements, enabling continuous monitoring and precise quantification of deformation over different timescales. In Morocco, a network of GNSS stations has been established, offering valuable insights into tectonic processes. This paper focuses on investigating the geodynamic motion of the northwest Moroccan Atlantic Margin. By utilizing GNSS data, subsidence rates and horizontal velocity fields were determined for the first time, providing valuable information for oil and gas exploration activities. The study reveals an active uplift rate of 1 mm/year and a westward horizontal motion of 2.04 mm/year in the Essaouira segment. The paper presents a case study of the Essaouira–Agadir basin (EAB) onshore segment and investigates the anomalous displacement observed in this region compared to other coastal GNSS stations. Possible explanations for the observed movements include local processes such as salt tectonics and regional northwest–southeast compression related to Africa–Eurasia convergence. We suggest that the anomalous movement detected in this work is due to the regional northwest–southeast compression related to Africa–Eurasia convergence imparting an extrusion of the EAB to the west. This research contributes to a better understanding of the geodynamics in the northwest Moroccan Atlantic margin, thereby providing valuable insights for ongoing efforts in oil and gas exploration. Furthermore, it indicates the continued activity of the Agadir fault, which would exhibit a sinistral wrench movement, thus posing a threat to the city of Agadir and its inhabitants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
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12. Halokinetically Overprinted Tectonic Inversion of the Penobscot 3D Volume Offshore Nova Scotia, Canada.
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Peace, Alexander L., Phethean, Jordan J. J., Jess, Scott, and Schiffer, Christian
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SALT tectonics ,SEISMIC surveys - Abstract
Polyphase fault evolution through reactivation is a globally observed phenomenon on passive margins. These structures play a crucial role in petroleum systems, offer vital constraints on rift and passive margin kinematics, and, in certain instances, serve as global markers for far-field stresses. Despite the significance of reactivated faults, understanding their kinematic evolution, existence, extent, and interactions within fault populations is often limited. This underscores the need for comprehensive investigations, including considerations of halokinesis in this process. This study presents a structural interpretation of a relay ramp identified in the Penobscot 3D seismic reflection survey offshore Nova Scotia, Canada. The ramp is characterized by two major SSE-dipping faults accompanied by smaller antithetic and synthetic normal faults with a general ENE-WSW strike. The two major faults exhibit evidence of reverse deformation in their lower sections, transitioning to normal offsets in their upper portions. Smaller faults predominantly affect younger strata without evidence of reactivation. Fault throw analysis indicates coupled movement on the main faults during both reverse and normal deformation intervals. Structural analysis suggests that these structures initially formed as reverse faults due to halokinesis and were subsequently reactivated during oceanward salt migration. The timing of Atlantic margin halokinesis aligns broadly with previously documented large-scale kinematic reorganization periods, suggesting similar kinematic events triggered salt movements in the Penobscot area. The observed kinematic dichotomy at depth is crucial, highlighting the potential oversight of polyphase deformation in areas where seismic data only captures near-surface structures. Recognising salt's role in kinematic reactivation is vital, explaining inversion phenomena and generating economically important trapping structures globally. This study implies that reactivation of structures in passive margins may be more widespread than previously acknowledged, particularly if seismic data only captures upper portions of structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
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13. The influence of salt tectonics on the distribution of the Triassic Skagerrak Formation in the Ula Field, Norwegian North Sea.
- Author
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Di Lauro, Lorenzo, Hartley, Adrian J., Duncan, Jonathan, Rosseland Knutsen, Eirik, Howell, John, and Jolley, David
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SALT tectonics ,ALLUVIUM ,NORWEGIANS ,MUDSTONE ,SANDSTONE - Abstract
Distribution of the Triassic succession in the North Sea is poorly understood because of structural complexities associated with halokinesis and limited stratigraphic control. This study uses a seismic and well-based dataset to improve understanding of development of the Triassic succession in the Ula Field Area, in the Norwegian North Sea. Core interpretation revealed a fluvial-dominated depositional environment in the Ula Field Area. Palynological studies allowed dating of cored intervals, revealing Ladinian and Carnian sections, time-equivalent to the Julius and Joanne members of the Skagerrak Formation. Well-log interpretation provided insight into the intra-Triassic stratigraphy of the Ula Field Area. A section considered to be equivalent to and extending from the Smith Bank Formation to the Jonathan Member of the Skagerrak Formation was interpreted and correlated across the area. In the proposed correlation, the Julius Member thins towards the Ula Field Area and is replaced by a time equivalent sandstone unit. The Jonathan Member displays a sandier composition compared to the equivalent section in the UK sector. Seismic facies-based interpretation of Triassic stratigraphy within salt minibasins allowed recognition and mapping of intra-Triassic units and showed that mudstone members thin towards the NE. Interpreted internal geometries within minibasins allowed determination of the timing of halokinesis. Integration of different datasets allowed palaeogeographic reconstructions for the Anisian, early Ladinian, Carnian and Norian to be constructed. To conclude, the distribution of stacked fluvial channel deposits indicates that they occur both within minibasins and across salt highs such that ongoing halokinesis had no topographic expression and that channels were free to migrate across the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
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14. Salt Distribution in the South Pyrenean Central Salient: Insights From Gravity Anomalies.
- Author
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Santolaria, P., Ayala, C., Soto, R., Clariana, P., Rubio, F. M., Martín‐León, J., Pueyo, E. L., and Muñoz, J. A.
- Subjects
GRAVITY anomalies ,SALT ,GEOLOGY ,EVAPORITES ,SEDIMENTARY rocks - Abstract
Triassic evaporites represent the regional décollement of the Pyrenees and form two salt provinces north and south of the South Pyrenean Central Salient (SPCS). We present an updated Bouguer and residual Bouguer anomaly map built upon the homogenization of available gravity data of the SPCS together with four new and representative cross‐sections, constrained by geological data acquired in the field, seismic, well, and gravity data (gravity forward modeling). Gravity anomaly maps and cross‐sections are used to characterize the present‐day uneven distribution of Triassic evaporites. Outcropping Triassic evaporites is not necessarily associated with an underlying evaporite accumulation and the absence of it at surface does not involves its non‐existence at depth. Northwest of the salient, a major accumulation of Triassic evaporites floors a thick syn‐orogenic Upper Cretaceous basin. South of it, Triassic rocks core salt‐detached anticlines related to the Pyrenean orogeny. Along the southernmost (and youngest) thrust sheet of the salient, diapirs, and evaporite accumulations are associated with a salt‐inflated area. Plain Language Summary: Gravity depends on the density of the rocks under our feet. In the South Pyrenean Central Salient (SPCS), an accurate measurement of gravity allows us to recognize gravity anomalies related to low density rocks, such as the Middle‐Upper Triassic evaporites, and map their distribution. Among sedimentary rocks, evaporites have a particular behavior when deformed under geological forces: they flow. This characteristic determines a particular deformation style of the mountains. Characterize the present‐day distribution of Triassic evaporites helps to reconstruct the geological history of the SPCS. Despite the apparent asymmetry of the salient, Triassic evaporites are unevenly distributed and specially accumulated to the northwest and southwest conforming evaporite inflated areas. Key Points: Gravity anomalies help to assess the distribution of Triassic evaporites in the South Central Pyrenean SalientSeismically and gravity‐constrained sections permit a further interpretation of gravity anomaliesInflated salt occurs mainly to the northwest and southeast of the salient, along the northernmost and southernmost thrust sheets [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
15. A review of cold seeps in the Western Atlantic, focusing on Colombia and the Caribbean
- Author
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Maria Isabel Aguilar Pérez, Paula A. Zapata-Ramírez, and Aaron Micallef
- Subjects
cold seeps ,diapirs ,mud volcanoes ,salt tectonics ,and fauna ,Science ,General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution ,QH1-199.5 - Abstract
Areas of the seafloor enriched with seeping fluids host unique chemosynthetic communities, and their interactions not only linked to the presence of oil and gas resources, but directly impact global geochemical cycles. These ecosystems can be found in diverse geological settings, spanning from passive to active continental margins, and encompass environments such as mid-ocean ridges, seamounts, cold brine lakes, mud volcanoes, and carbonate pinnacles. This review aims to examine seep environments in the Western Atlantic, the Caribbean, and Colombia, with a focus on understanding: I) their nature and origin, Itheir associated seabed characteristics, III) the biological communities directly connected to them, and IV) the chemistry and flow of the emitted fluids. The review identifies the close relationship of cold seeps to various geomorphological features, including linear diapir systems, salt diapirs resulting from salt tectonics, regions of mud volcanism, and compact seafloor mounds likely associated with buried mud diapirs. However, existing data on the fauna within these environments predominantly focus on megafauna, such as vestimentiferan tubeworms (Annelida), mussels, and vesicomyid bivalves (Mollusca), overlooking the crucial role of communities of small organisms, including fungi or macrofauna. This review highlights the absence of a consistent consensus among researchers regarding the factors controlling fauna distribution and presence in seep environments. Various authors have put forth divergent factors that influence seep community structures, with some emphasizing water depth, others the geological environment, and some the relationship with geomorphological conditions and fluid emissions. These findings underscore the need for further research into environmental factors and their roles in the observed distribution, presenting a promising avenue for future investigations. more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
16. Les Avellanes Diapir, South-Central Pyrenees: Reconstructing the Kinematics of a Salt Diapir Inside a Fold-and-Thrust Belt: Preliminary Results
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Cofrade, Gabriel, Gratacós, Òscar, Cantarero, Irene, Ferrer, Oriol, Ramirez-Perez, Pedro, Roca, Eduard, Travé, Anna, Pisello, Anna Laura, Editorial Board Member, Hawkes, Dean, Editorial Board Member, Bougdah, Hocine, Editorial Board Member, Rosso, Federica, Editorial Board Member, Abdalla, Hassan, Editorial Board Member, Boemi, Sofia-Natalia, Editorial Board Member, Mohareb, Nabil, Editorial Board Member, Mesbah Elkaffas, Saleh, Editorial Board Member, Bozonnet, Emmanuel, Editorial Board Member, Pignatta, Gloria, Editorial Board Member, Mahgoub, Yasser, Editorial Board Member, De Bonis, Luciano, Editorial Board Member, Kostopoulou, Stella, Editorial Board Member, Pradhan, Biswajeet, Editorial Board Member, Abdul Mannan, Md., Editorial Board Member, Alalouch, Chaham, Editorial Board Member, Gawad, Iman O., Editorial Board Member, Nayyar, Anand, Editorial Board Member, Amer, Mourad, Series Editor, Çiner, Attila, editor, Naitza, Stefano, editor, Radwan, Ahmed E., editor, Hamimi, Zakaria, editor, Lucci, Federico, editor, Knight, Jasper, editor, Cucciniello, Ciro, editor, Banerjee, Santanu, editor, Chennaoui, Hasnaa, editor, Doronzo, Domenico M., editor, Candeias, Carla, editor, Rodrigo-Comino, Jesús, editor, Kalatehjari, Roohollah, editor, Shah, Afroz Ahmad, editor, Gentilucci, Matteo, editor, Panagoulia, Dionysia, editor, Chaminé, Helder I., editor, Barbieri, Maurizio, editor, and Ergüler, Zeynal Abiddin, editor more...
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- 2024
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17. Soft‐sediment deformation structures and Neptunian dykes across a carbonate system: Evidence for an earthquake‐related origin (Norian, Dolomia Principale, Southern Alps, Italy).
- Author
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Berra, Fabrizio
- Subjects
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DIKES (Geology) , *DEFORMATIONS (Mechanics) , *SALT tectonics , *METEORITES , *SEDIMENTATION & deposition , *CARBONATES , *SEISMITES , *PALEOSEISMOLOGY - Abstract
Identification of the processes producing soft‐sediment deformation structures, common in siliciclastic deposits and less abundant in carbonate successions, is complex, because different processes may produce similar structures. Thus, interpreting the origin of these structures may be challenging: it requires both a detailed sedimentological study, and the knowledge of the depositional environment and stratigraphic evolution, in order to provide hints to identify the processes affecting sediments after deposition. Among the potential causes of the formation of soft‐sediment deformation structures, seismic shock is one of the possibilities, but their origin could be also related to other triggering mechanisms, such as volcanic activity, sediment loading, salt tectonics, fluid expulsion, meteorite impacts and mass movements. Although it is a plausible option, the interpretation of these structures as 'seismites' is not obvious: it must be supported by different lines of evidence, considering that the correct interpretation of soft‐sediment deformation structures as a consequence of seismic shocks acquires important implications in palaeoseismology studies. The occurrence of diverse soft‐sediment deformation structures in a fault‐controlled basin (i.e. in a geological setting characterized by syndepositional tectonics) preserved in different subenvironments of a Norian carbonate system in the Southern Alps of Italy provides the chance to characterize different types of soft‐sediment deformation structures along a platform‐to‐basin depositional profile. Presence of pseudonodules in basinal resedimented limestone, sedimentary dykes and clinostratified breccias with unlithified clasts in slope settings and liquefaction of inner platform facies at the platform top testify to an origin compatible with multiple seismic shocks, repetitively affecting the same stratigraphic intervals. The diverse types of soft‐sediment deformation structures in the studied carbonate system provide a rich catalogue of structures related to seismic shocks, representing a possible reference for other similar settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
18. The Middle and Lower Cambrian salt tectonics in the central Tarim Basin, China: A case study based on strike-slip fault characterization.
- Author
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Qing Bian, Jibiao Zhang, and Cheng Huang
- Subjects
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SALT tectonics , *DRILLING & boring , *SEISMIC response , *CALIBRATION - Abstract
Due to the considerable depth of the salt layers and the lack of calibration by exploratory drilling, the interpretation of the Middle and Lower Cambrian salt formations in the central Tarim Basin poses a challenge. In this paper, we apply the coupling and decoupling deformation theory in salt tectonics to analyze the No.7 fault mapped in the seismic datasets by the response characteristics of the Middle and Lower Cambrian layers. By quantifying the stratigraphic framework of the Middle and Lower Cambrian strata, we define the position of the salt layer with the seismic data. Structural decoupling is observed in the Middle and Lower Cambrian sequences in the Shuntuoguole Low Uplift, while deformation coupling is observed in these two sequences in the Shaya Uplift. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
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19. Late Cretaceous–Early Paleogene tectonic events in the "North–South Axis" of Central Tunisia.
- Author
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Hajlaoui, Ikhlass, Khlifi, Mahmoud, Naouali, Benen Sarsar, Mahroug, Ali, Khalfi, Chaouki, Mosbahi, Mohamed, and Gasmi, Mohamed
- Abstract
In order to better constrain the structural evolution of the North–South Axis (NOSA) running through central Tunisia, a multidisciplinary approach based on geological mapping, field observations and paleostress analysis was used. The geological study of the middle part of the NOSA including the Gadoum, Akrouta, Sidi Khalif, Khechem El Kaleb and Faïd structures, showed the predominance of N–S and E–W fault sets. Movement on the faults of this fault network caused the formation of depositional areas and the collapsed and tilting of fault bounded blocks located in the Southern part of the Gadoum–Akrouta sector. The Gadoum and Akrouta Jebels formed as a result of slip and rotation on a single N–S trending listric fault in the Cenomanian during which time reactivation of both the N–S and E–W fault sets occurred. During Coniacian–Santonian times, when the Aleg Formation was being deposited, the study area was affected by a transtensive regime. This regime led to the division of the area into blocks (e.g. , the Gadoum–Akrouta block and the Wadi El Abiod Syncline) and this resulted in the Aleg Formation being deposited with variable thicknesses. During the Campanian–Early Maastrichtian, a N–S transpressive regime was established, and this regime, coupled with the salt tectonics, resulted in the formation of an angular unconformity, subsidence inversion and lateral thickness variations of the Abiod Formation. During the Early Eocene, an E–W fault network affected the sedimentary basin. These faults, arranged in steps, generated accommodation spaces for sediments which increase in thickness along the North–South Axis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
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- 2024
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20. Salt-rich versus salt-poor structural scenarios in the central Northern Calcareous Alps: implications for the Hallstatt facies and early Alpine tectonic evolution (Eastern Alps, Austria).
- Author
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Fernandez, Oscar, Ortner, Hugo, Sanders, Diethard, Grasemann, Bernhard, and Leitner, Thomas
- Subjects
- *
FACIES , *SALT tectonics , *PALEOGEOGRAPHY , *DIAPIRS , *EVAPORITES - Abstract
One of the most remarkable features of the central Northern Calcareous Alps (Eastern Alps, Austria) is the widespread presence of Upper Triassic deep-water carbonates (the Hallstatt facies) and Permo-Triassic evaporites resting on deep-water Middle Jurassic strata and their underlying Upper Triassic shallow-water carbonate platform successions. The Hallstatt facies and accompanying evaporites have been classically interpreted to originate either from a location south of the time-equivalent carbonate platforms, or to have been deposited in deeper water seaways within the broad platform domain. To date, this dispute has been addressed mostly through the analysis of Triassic and Jurassic facies distribution in map view, which, however, is subject to some degree of ambiguity and subjectivity. In this contribution we present, for the first time, sequentially restored regional cross-sections through the central Northern Calcareous Alps to understand the implications of the contrasting paleogeographic models. We present (a) an interpretation based on a highly allochthonous origin of the Triassic deep-water units and (b) an interpretation based on their relative autochthony in which we incorporate the potential influence of salt tectonics in the central NCA. The restored cross-sections provide a framework within which the alternative scenarios and their paleogeographic implications can be better understood. Through this analysis we propose that salt tectonics in the central NCA can provide a valid explanation for apparent inconsistencies in the relative autochthony scenario and thus constitutes a reasonable alternative to the currently accepted allochthony scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
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- 2024
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21. Discerning halokinetic from autocyclic sequences in deep-water sedimentary systems
- Author
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Cumberpatch, Zoe and Huuse, Mads
- Subjects
stratigraphy ,sedimentology ,halokinesis ,salt tectonics ,geology ,deep-water - Abstract
Halokinetic stratigraphy refers to sedimentary deposits affected by the growth or retreat of salt-cored topography. Deep-water sediment gravity flows can be influenced by seafloor topography associated with salt structures, and the interaction between the two ultimately controls the depositional architecture of their successive deposits. Where these deposits onlap salt diapirs they can form reservoirs with combined structural-stratigraphic traps. Typical-ly, these halokinetic sequences are poorly-imaged in seismic data due to steep dips, salt over-hangs and near-diapir deformation. In addition, they are not well represented in outcrop, largely due to dissolution of the associated halites. Therefore, the facies and architecture of these halokinetically-influenced deep-water successions are challenging to investigate, but are antici-pated to differ from those in unconfined basins, or those where topography is generated by non-halokinetic processes. This study aims to understand how and why halokinetically-influenced deep-water systems dif-fer from those in unconfined settings, using a multi-scalar and multi-method approach. Out-crop data from the Cretaceous Basque-Cantabrian Basin are compared with subsurface data from the Paleocene North Sea Central Graben. The results of these studies are compared to two-dimensional Discrete Element Models of different sedimentation patterns influenced by salt growth. Key insights derived from this approach include: 1) salt-related, active topography, and the de-gree of confinement are shown to be important modifiers of depositional systems, affecting the degree of flow confinement which results in predictable facies variability and remobilisation of deposits; 2) facies analysis reveals that channels and lobes are influenced (re-routed and con-fined) by salt growth at a range of scales, from centimetre-scale sedimentological characteristics identified in core and outcrop, to kilometre-scale geomorphological attributes visible in seis-mic; 3) axially-derived deep-water depositional systems are heavily modified by laterally im-pinging mass transport deposits formed in response to salt-controlled topographic growth of the sea bed; 4) recognition criteria for deep-water halokinetically-influenced settings include: mul-tiple directions of ripple lamination, injectites, fluidisation structures, presence of hybrid beds, range of MTD types, stratigraphic thickness variations, onlap of deposits against halokinetical-ly-deformed substrate, and abrupt juxtaposition of deep-water depositional facies and MTDs; 5) modelled thinning rates are up to six times greater within 350 metres of a salt diapir, com-pared to further afield, and typically decrease upwards (with time) and laterally (with distance) from the diapir; and 6) in both subsurface and modelled scenarios, stratigraphy deposited be-tween closely-spaced diapirs (3 km), a flat, plateau-like zone is developed between the deformation zones, where halokinetic-modulation is reduced. Salt basins are complex, due to: the presence and variability of the top and base salt; early diapiric stratigraphy; non-piercing diapirs; and salt-related faults, therefore, even these 'minimal modulation' zones are unlikely to contain stratigraphy which is completely undeformed by halokinesis. The integration of these diverse techniques allows for the spatial and temporal distribution of deep-water facies and architectures in salt-influenced basins to be recognised. These character-istics are compared to their halokinetically-influenced counterparts from different depositional environments, and unconfined, or non-halokinetic topographically-confined deep-water basins. In most deep-water successions the dominant controls are allocyclic (external), but these suc-cessions are heavily influenced by halokinesis (salt growth) which drives autocyclic (internal) modulation of the primary depositional signal. Supplementing subsurface data with modelled stratal architectures and global outcrop observations from exhumed halokinetically-influenced settings aids the prediction of sedimentary unit thickness, facies, architectures, deformation, halokinetic alteration and thinning rates. This combined approach can be used to test interpre-tations arising from incomplete or low-resolution subsurface and outcrop data when building geological models. When applied to petroleum exploration and development, geothermal ener-gy extraction, and to carbon and hydrogen storage industries in salt basins globally, this ap-proach enables better prediction of trap geometry, and reservoir quality and distribution. more...
- Published
- 2022
22. A salty snapshot: extreme variations in basal erosion patterns preserved in a submarine channel.
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Casagrande, Junia, Hodgson, David M., and Peakall, Jeff
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- *
SUBMARINES (Ships) , *SALT tectonics , *LONG-Term Evolution (Telecommunications) , *IMMIGRATION enforcement , *EROSION - Abstract
The bases of active submarine channels are marked by large erosional features, such as knickpoints and plunge pools. However, their presence in ancient channel-fills has rarely been documented, so their importance in submarine channel morphodynamics requires investigation. Using seismic reflection data calibrated by wells from a buried submarine channel-fill, we document erosional features hundreds of metres long and tens of metres deep, here interpreted as knickpoints and a plunge pool, and provide a mechanistic process for their transfer into the stratigraphic record. Channel incision patterns are interpreted to record a transient uplift in an otherwise subsiding depocentre. Local structural complexities in the channel slope formed zones of preferential scouring. A switch to a depositional regime preserved the irregular channel base, inhibiting both the upstream migration of scours and smoothing of the channel base. The formation and preservation of these scours record the responses to salt tectonics and provide a unique snapshot of the formative processes of an ancient submarine channel. The presence of these exceptional basal scours indicates that headward erosion processes did not operate rapidly, challenging the paradigm that knickpoint migration controls channel evolution. Our results show that the primary erosion of the main channel surface and long-term channel evolution are both dominated by far more gradual processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
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- 2024
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23. Translation, collision and vertical-axis rotation in the Organyà and Montsec minibasins (South-Central Pyrenees, Spain).
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Gartfa-Senz, Jesús, López-Mir, Berta, Robador, Alejandro, Dinarès-Turell, Jaume, and Pedrera, Antonio
- Subjects
- *
SALT tectonics , *ROTATIONAL motion , *GEOLOGICAL mapping , *GEOLOGICAL maps , *DATABASES - Abstract
This paper presents a sequentially restored cross-section of the Organyà and Montsec minibasins based on geological mapping, new field observations and available borehole data. The main objective was to describe the geometry and evolution of both basins in terms of salt tectonics and minibasin mobility. To this end, a comprehensive palaeomagnetic database has been used to constrain vertical-axis rotations potentially related to minibasin translation and pivoting. The Organyà minibasin constitutes an asymmetric depocentre formed during the Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous by translation above a southerly inclined salt layer. Salt evacuation and minibasin touchdown induced salt accumulation on the northern side of the basin that culminated in the development of the major Santa Fe unconformity during the late Albian--early Cenomanian. Indicative of salt quiescence is the following isopachous Cenomanian to lower Santonian sequence Salt tectonics resumed during the late Santonian--Palaeocene, with the Montsec minibasin downbuilding coinciding with the onset of Pyrenean convergence. Changes of the base-salt topography reflects regional-scale geodynamic processes. The acceleration of crustal thinning in the North Pyrenean zone during the late Albian-early Cenomanian favoured uplift in the Axial Zone, increasing slope and triggering salt mobilization in the Southern Pyrenees. Likewise, the onset of contraction renewed the downslope gliding of the Organyà and Montsec minbasins, and supports the idea that the early stages of basin inversion were governed by gravity tectonics. The kinematic reconstruction suggests that the more that 30° counterclockwise vertical axis rotation records pivoting during the suprasalt translation of the Organyà minibasin rather than solely the Iberian microplate rotation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
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- 2024
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24. Upper Cretaceous contourites from northwestern Poland in the vicinity of the Szamotuly salt diapir.
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STACHOWSKA, ALEKSANDRA and KRZYWIEC, PIOTR
- Subjects
- *
DIAPIRS , *SEISMIC reflection method , *SEDIMENTARY basins , *SALT , *SALT tectonics , *GEODYNAMICS - Abstract
This paper presents the results of seismostratigraphic interpretation of the Upper Cretaceous sedimentary succession preserved within two synclines flanking the Szamotuły diapir in northwestern Poland. This succession is characterized by a complex Santonian--Campanian internal geometry characteristic of contourites -- that is, deposits formed by contour (bottom) currents. The aim of the present paper is to document these contourites using 2D seismic reflection profiles calibrated by the Obrzycko 1 well. The contourite drifts in the immediate vicinity of the Szamotuły structure exhibit elongated mounded shapes, with adjacent concave moats. At greater distances from the diapir, gradual aggradational patterns are observed. The formation of these Santonian--Campanian contourites was associated with growth of the Szamotuły diapir during regional compression and Polish Basin inversion. These contour currents and associated contourites formed an integral part of a regional axial depositional system developed within the flanks of the Mid-Polish Anticlinorium. Furthermore, this paper discusses the potential role of contourites as palaeomorphological indicators of palaeoslopes in varied geodynamics settings, such as inverting sedimentary basins, as opposed to the passive margins upon which they have been most commonly documented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
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25. The Geotectonic Peculiarities of the North Caspian Permian Salt-Bearing Basins (Kazakhstan).
- Author
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Zhemchuzhnikov, Vyacheslav, Akhmetzhanov, Aitbek, Ibrashev, Kenzhebek, and Akhmetzhanova, Gauhar
- Subjects
MESOZOIC Era ,PERMIAN Period ,PALEOZOIC Era ,SALT tectonics ,MARINE sediments ,DIAPIRS ,DEVONIAN Period - Abstract
This article examines the geotectonic and sedimentary features of the Upper Devonian–Carboniferous–Permian deposits of the North Caspian basin, represented by deposits of marine Paleozoic-isolated carbonate platforms formed during the subsidence of the basement on the passive continental margin. The top is covered by thick salt-bearing Kungurian deposits from the end of the Early Permian epoch. The formation of carbonate platforms is associated with a major tectonic restructuring of the basin at the turn of the Caledonian and Hercynian eras, when the Paleo-Tethys Ocean was formed and isolated carbonate islands began to grow in an open marine environment. The central part of the depression experienced a long and gradual subsidence that spanned the entire Paleozoic era and the beginning of the Mesozoic era. In the south and east, from the Devonian to the Permian periods, barriers were formed in the form of island carbonate massifs that separated the North Caspian basin from the Paleo-Tethys Ocean. During the formation of the salt-bearing basin, these barriers limited water exchange and ensured a one-way influx of sea water from the open ocean. As a result, at the end of the Permian period, thicker salts accumulated; however, during the collision of the continental massifs, an invasion of many kilometers of redbeds occurred. They initially stopped salt accumulation; however, gradually, in the north of the Caspian Sea during Roadian times, the salt accumulation continued. The post-Roadian time is associated with the influx of large quantities of redbed sediments, which caused gravitational instability in the underlying salt, and salt tectonics began with the formation of domal structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
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26. Structural Restorations of the Complete Conjugate US‐Mexico Eastern Gulf of Mexico Margin.
- Author
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Curry, Magdalena Ellis, Hudec, Michael R., Peel, Frank J., Fernandez, Naiara, Apps, Gillian, and Snedden, John W.
- Abstract
We present the first sequential structural restoration with flexural backstripping of the Gulf of Mexico US‐Mexico conjugate margin salt basin. We construct four large‐scale (100s of km) balanced, sequential structural restorations to investigate spatio‐temporal patterns of subsidence, geometry of the original salt basin, feedbacks between post‐salt structural and stratigraphic evolution, paleo‐bathymetry, and crustal configurations. The restorations are based on interpretations of 2D and 3D seismic data, and include sequential sedimentary decompaction, flexural isostatic backstripping, and thermal isostatic corrections. The spatially variable crustal thinning factor is directly measured from seismic data, and lithologic parameters are determined by well penetrations. We present a model for the original salt basin and discuss evidence for and implications of a deep water salt basin setting for the GoM. Our analysis suggests a salt basin that contained ∼1–2 km thick salt in a basin 175–390 km across with ∼1 km of bathymetry after salt deposition. The base of salt is mostly smooth with <1 km of local relief in the form of normal faults that disrupt a pre‐salt sedimentary section. We find that supra‐salt extension and shortening are not balanced, with measurable extension exceeding shortening by 18–30 km on each cross‐section. Our subsidence analysis reveals anomalous subsidence totaling 1–2 km during Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous times that may reflect dynamic topography or depth‐dependent thinning. We offer an interpretation of crustal breakup invoking pre‐salt clastic sedimentation, salt deposition in a deep water syn‐thinning basin, and post‐salt lower‐crustal exhumation. Plain Language Summary: The Gulf of Mexico is a large basin that formed over 200 million years ago due to tectonically driven extension of a supercontinent. Early in its formation it accumulated thick salt deposits. Due to that salt and the later deposition of several kilometers of sedimentary rock that conceal the deep geology, it is difficult to know exactly how extension started and progressed. This study uses new 2D and 3D seismic data that images the deep geology corresponding to that early extension. We sequentially remove each rock layer to reconstruct what the margin looked like in the Mesozoic. By systematically moving back in time we are able to reconstruct the changing geometry, deformation, and bathymetry of the Gulf of Mexico. Our results reveal periods of time when the bathymetry was influenced by unknown factors, which we posit reflects mantle forces. Key Points: We present sequential structural restorations with flexural backstripping of the post‐rift eastern GoM conjugate US‐MX margin from Mesozoic to presentWe interpret the geometry and bathymetry of the restored Mesozoic salt basinOur analysis indicates significant and widespread Mesozoic anomalous subsidence [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
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27. Contrasting Styles of Salt‐Tectonic Processes in the Ionian Zone (Greece and Albania): Integrating Surface Geology, Subsurface Data, and Experimental Models.
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Soto, J. I., Tranos, M. D., Bega, Z., Dooley, T. P., Hernández, P., Hudec, M. R., Konstantopoulos, P. A., Lula, E., Nikolaou, K., Pérez, R., Pita, J. P., Titos, J. A., Tzimeas, C., and Herra Sánchez de Movellán, A. more...
- Abstract
The Ionian Zone (IZ) is one of the key elements of the fold and thrust belt (FTB) of the Albanian and Hellenides orogen and contains large outcrops of Triassic evaporites. The IZ consists of various thrust sheets with a general westward vergence, stacking over the Apulian and Pre‐Apulian zones, and repeating a thick carbonate sequence of Upper Triassic to Eocene age. Thrusting becomes younger toward the west with a piggyback sequence, starting during the latest Oligocene Epoch in the Internal Ionian and ending in the Pliocene in the External Ionian. We have studied the IZ in southern Albania and northwestern Greece using field observations and borehole data and by fully interpreting a recently acquired 2D seismic data set. Our objectives are to establish the geometry and nature of the contacts associated with the major Triassic outcrops, to unravel precursor salt diapirs, and to assess their role during the Alpine contraction. Salt structures include gentle salt pillows, isolated salt plugs and diapirs, thrust welds, and salt walls. Combining these observations with experimental modeling results, we show how these structures control the geometry and kinematics of the Alpine thrusts or the location and kinematics of recent strike‐slip faults. Salt minibasins have also been identified, demonstrating salt mobility conditioned Mesozoic sedimentation in the Ionian Basin. The use of salt‐tectonics principles to evaluate the structural style and evolution of the IZ FTB also opens new directions for interpreting the subsurface structure and evolution of the region. Key Points: The Ionian Zone in Greece and Albania is studied with surface geology, borehole data, and the interpretation of new seismic profilesTriassic salt pillows, isolated thick diapirs, and elongated salt walls condition the style of this Alpine fold and thrust beltThe role of pre‐existing diapirs is compared with experimental models [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
28. How post‐salt sediment flux and progradation rate influence salt tectonics on rifted margins: Insights from geodynamic modelling.
- Author
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Pichel, Leonardo M., Huismans, Ritske S., Gawthorpe, Robert, and Faleide, Jan Inge
- Subjects
- *
SALT tectonics , *SEDIMENTS , *CONTINENTAL margins , *DIAPIRS , *SALT deposits , *COMPLEX variables - Abstract
Continental rifted margins can be associated with widespread and thick salt deposits, which are often formed during the final stages of rifting, prior to breakup. These salt‐bearing margins are typically characterized by pronounced post‐rift salt tectonics with variable and complex structural styles and evolution. We use a lithosphere‐scale geodynamic numerical model to investigate the role of varying post‐rift sediment fluxes and progradation rates on rifted margin salt tectonics. We focus on a single, intermediate, rifted margin type and salt basin geometry to explore scenarios with different: (i) constant and (ii) time‐varying post‐salt sediment fluxes. We demonstrate that these promote significant contrasts in the style and magnitude of salt tectonics in the proximal, transitional and distal margin domains. The differences are primarily controlled by the relationship between the rates of sediment progradation (Vprog) and salt flow (Vs). When Vprog > Vs, the salt is rapidly buried and both vertical and lateral salt flow are suppressed across the entire margin. When Vprog < Vs, the salt flows vertically and seaward faster than sediments prograde producing major diapirism in the proximal domain and major distal nappe advance, but only moderate overburden extension and distal diapirism. When Vprog ~ Vs, there is moderate proximal diapirism and distal nappe advance, but major updip extension and downdip shortening, which produces major distal diapirism. Modelling results are comparable to various natural systems and help improve our understanding of the controls and dynamics of salt tectonics along salt‐bearing rifted margins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
29. The West African salt‐bearing rifted margin—Regional structural variability and salt tectonics between Gabon and Namibe.
- Author
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Pichel, Leonardo M., Legeay, Etienne, Ringenbach, Jean‐Claude, and Callot, Jean‐Paul
- Subjects
- *
SALT tectonics , *SEDIMENTARY basins , *RIFTS (Geology) , *DIAPIRS - Abstract
Salt‐bearing rifted margins comprise some of the most structurally complex and economically important sedimentary basin settings such as the South Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico salt basins. They are also involved with some of the largest uncertainties regarding the crustal and syn‐rift basin architecture and supra‐salt tectonic evolution, as well as the link between rifted margin architecture with salt deposition and post‐rift gravity‐driven salt tectonics. We thus conduct a margin‐scale study along nearly the entire West African salt basin, from South Gabon to Namibe, combining a vast data set of 2D and 3D seismic and well data with gravimetric and magnetic data to analyse its along‐strike rift and salt tectonic structural variability. We construct regional structural and thickness maps of key salt and post‐salt intervals to depict the history of individual margin segments and to investigate (1) how rifting and rifted margin architecture influences post‐rift salt tectonics evolution, (2) how these vary through time and space and (3) what are the controls between their different salt tectonic styles. We show that rifting and rift structures controlled the salt basin geometry, thickness and base‐salt relief in different ways for the different margin segments, and drastically influenced their post‐rift salt tectonic evolution. Differences in post‐salt sediment supply and continental uplift also had a role in their salt tectonic evolution. The results also have general implications to understand the interplay between rifted margin architecture with post‐rift salt tectonics for salt‐bearing rifted margins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
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30. Extent and variability of Mesozoic‐Cenozoic multi‐stage salt diapirs in the Southern Permian Basin, Southern North Sea.
- Author
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Gaitan, G. and Adam, J.
- Subjects
- *
DIAPIRS , *SALT domes , *CARBON sequestration , *SEA salt , *ENERGY industries - Abstract
Salt structures can be used as an archive for tectonic and depositional processes as all salt structures respond distinctively. Few salt tectonic studies have investigated the evolution of multi‐stage salt structures, nevertheless, no previous study had systematically identified, mapped, nor classified, the evolution of multi‐stage salt structures in a regional study. Decades of hydrocarbon exploration and the heavily dense 3D seismic data available, make the Southern North Sea one of the best natural laboratories to investigate the evolution of salt structures. The Southern North Sea salt basin is a Late Permian Zechstein salt mega‐basin containing a myriad of salt structures. The complex tectonic evolution of the Southern North Sea created diverse Mesozoic structural sub‐basins with different tectonostratigraphic evolutions. We defined a nomenclature, linked to the mega‐stratigraphic sequences, for the classification of salt structures. We used a Two‐Way‐Travel‐Time 3D seismic reflection dataset and time‐thickness variations around salt structures to systematically analyse the evolution of salt structures across the diverse structural sub‐basins of the Southern North Sea. Multi‐stage salt diapirs were triggered halokinetically in the Early Triassic and are linked to regional palaeo‐depocentres controlled by the sub‐Zechstein structural configuration. Multi‐stage salt diapirs in the different sub‐basins evolved through three different regional phases and up to five distinctive local stages. The most complex salt diapirs developed in the Central Graben, Sole Pit High and Silver Pit Basin, where multi‐stage salt diapirs showed 4–5 local stages of salt diapirism. The multi‐stage evolution of salt structures should be thoroughly investigated to reduce risks and uncertainties in the energy sector and net zero projects, such as in carbon capturing and storage projects, and energy storage in man‐made salt caverns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
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31. Cold-Water Corals of the World: Gulf of Mexico
- Author
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Brooke, Sandra, Demopoulos, Amanda, Roberts, Harry, Lunden, Jay, Sutton, Tracey, Davies, Andrew, Riegl, Bernhard M., Series Editor, Dodge, Richard E., Series Editor, Cordes, Erik, editor, and Mienis, Furu, editor more...
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- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
32. Thin-skinned and thick-skinned tear faults in central Tarim Basin
- Author
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Qing Bian, Zhendong Wang, Bo Zhou, and Fei Ning
- Subjects
Salt tectonics ,Strike-slip faults ,Tarim Basin ,Tear faults ,Geology ,QE1-996.5 - Abstract
Currently, the interpretation scheme for strike slip faults in the central Tarim Basin does not typically take into account the depth of tear faults. This paper specifically explores this aspect, focusing on two tear faults (Nos. 4 and 7) to examine the thick-skinned and thin-skinned systems in the area. By utilizing high-resolution seismic data, we discovered that No. 4 Fault is a thick-skinned tear fault whereas No. 7 Fault is a thin-skinned tear fault. Additionally, we have calculated the strata shortening data for both Nos. 4 and 7 Faults to further our understanding of these systems. For No. 4 Fault, we observed shortening differences between the western and eastern sections in both the supra- and sub-salt strata, whereas for No. 7 Fault, we observed shortening differences only in the supra-salt strata. We demonstrated that under the action of thrusting, a tear fault could penetrate the salt layer if there is a shortening difference in the different positions of the sub-salt strata. A lack of shortening difference in the sub-salt strata implies that a tear fault should be thin-skinned which cannot penetrate the salt layer, even though the sub-salt strata may be deformed during thrusting. more...
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
33. Structure of the Earth's Crust of the Persian Gulf According to Deep Seismic Sounding Results.
- Author
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Kovachev, S. A. and Ganzha, O. Yu.
- Subjects
- *
CRUST of the earth , *SALT domes , *SALT tectonics , *SEISMIC surveys , *SEISMOMETERS , *FOLDS (Geology) - Abstract
The article presents the results of DSS seismic surveys in the Persian Gulf. Bottom analog-type seismographs and seismic airgun sources were used in the studies. The bottom seismographs were moored and shooting was carried out according to three regional profiles with a length from 100 to 250 km. The main result of these studies was a velocity–depth model of the sedimentary cover and Earth's crust up to the Moho boundary, which was revealed at a depth of about 43 km in the water area. Given that the thickness of the upper crust is only 4–5 km and based on the velocity characteristics of the remaining layers, the type of crust can be attributed to the subcontinental Archean type. This situation (complete absence or drowning of the upper layer of the Earth's crust) is typical of the waters closest to the Persian Gulf: the Black, Caspian, Mediterranean, and Red seas. A structure was found in the Earth's crust of the studied area, which may be a brachyanticline with an isometric dome-shaped shape, which corresponds to the platform-type folding in the areas of salt dome tectonics. No faults have been found in the crust of the water area of the Persian Gulf adjacent to the Bushehr Peninsula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
34. A large regional structure from puzzle pieces -- the hidden Triassic rift on the western flank of the Eichsfeld-Altmark Swell (EAS) -- Part 1: History of investigation of the EAS and its stratigraphic development during Palaeozoic and Mesozoic times.
- Author
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Röhling, Heinz-Gerd, Malz, Alexander, and Kley, Jonas
- Subjects
- *
RIFTS (Geology) , *MESOZOIC Era , *SALT tectonics , *FAULT zones , *EVAPORITES , *FACIES - Abstract
Identifying regional structures in areas of limited exposure and sparse subsurface information can be challenging. Small-scale observations must be collected and combined to develop a stratigraphic-structural concept and eventually a sound regional geologic model. In this contribution, we review the local stratigraphic evidence for the Eichsfeld-Altmark Swell (EAS) in Central Germany and how it adds up to a regional picture. The EAS is commonly interpreted to be an approximately NNE--SSW-trending Permo-Triassic intrabasinal high, expressed by reduced thickness, facies changes and unconformities in Late Carboniferous to Late Triassic strata. In fact, an area of hiatuses or reduced thickness, often accompanied by facies changes, can be identified from Rotliegend to Keuper times. The uplifting or less subsiding EAS is accompanied by varying depocentres trending parallel to it, particularly in the west. One of these depocentres, the Jurassic Gifhorn Trough, suggests that also activity of the EAS may have continued into Jurassic time. Especially in Buntsandstein and Keuper time, the EAS appears as a 50 km wide, very gently eastward tilted block or rift shoulder bordered in the west by the Braunschweig-Gifhorn Fault Zone (BGFZ). However, the exact links between basement faulting, regional upwarping/tilting and cover structures detached along Zechstein evaporites remain elusive. Regional thickness reductions associated with the large EAS contrast with local, in part stronger thickness reductions associated with structures of the BGFZ and accompanying salt tectonics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
35. Modelamiento análogo de la tectónica salina asociada a ambientes compresivos y zonas transversales en la zona axial de la Cordillera Oriental, Colombia.
- Author
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Escalante Cárdenas, Carlos Andrés, Arturo Martinez-Sánchez, Dilan, and Jiménez, Giovanny
- Subjects
- *
SALT tectonics , *NON-Newtonian fluids , *SAND , *ZONE melting , *GLACIERS - Abstract
Sedimentary sequences containing evaporitic levels exhibit complex three-dimensional structures due to halokinetic movements known as salt tectonics. In the Anticlinal de Zipaquirá, located in the Cordillera Oriental of Colombia, saline levels are reported within the Lower Cretaceous units. This study conducted a structural analysis of the evolution of the Anticlinal de Zipaquirá, based on analogue models that simulate the relationship between salt tectonics and the transverse zones that bound and segment this structure. The models were constructed on a sandbox-type deformation table, maintaining a constant displacement velocity. The models simulate basement anisotropies using a rigid wooden block consisting of two frontal ramps inclined at 30° connected by a lateral ramp. Adjacent to this block, a layer of non-newtonian fluid and variable-colored fine quartz sand layers were arranged. Three configurations were implemented with different distributions of the non-newtonian fluid layer: A) thin continuous, B) discontinuous, and C) thick continuous. At least 15 experiments were conducted for each configuration. The results of the analogue modeling showed that the salt body in the core of the anticline is cut by reverse faults, forming a parallel salt sheet structure to the stratification. The observed structures, such as salt pillows, salt glaciers, salt sheets, and salt tongues, indicate compressive structural styles of intermediate to high maturity. The discontinuous model proved to be the most coherent since the lateral ramp did not exhibit evaporitic levels, aligning with observations in nature. The Neusa transverse Fault was represented by the lateral ramp in the model, explaining the localization of saline levels in the southern zone of the Anticlinal de Zipaquirá. Finally, the evolution of the models revealed clockwise rotations near the lateral ramp, consistent with the reported patterns of clockwise rotations in the axial zone of the Cordillera Oriental. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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36. Salt tectonics in intracontinental sedimentary basins: Triassic–Jurassic salt movement in the Baltic sector of the North German Basin and its relation to post‐Permian regional tectonics.
- Author
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Ahlrichs, Niklas, Noack, Vera, Seidel, Elisabeth, and Hübscher, Christian
- Subjects
- *
SALT tectonics , *SEDIMENTARY basins , *DIAPIRS , *FAULT zones , *SALT , *SPATIAL resolution - Abstract
The formation and structural evolution of complex intracontinental basins, like the North German Basin, mark fundamental earth processes. Understanding these is not only essential to basic research but also of socioeconomic importance because of the multitude of resources, potential hazards, and subsurface use capability in such basins. As part of the Central European Basin System, major subsidence and structural differentiation affected the Baltic sector of the North German Basin in Permian‐to‐Jurassic times. A dense network of high‐resolution 2D seismic data together with nearby wells allow the creation of regional maps with refined stratigraphic subdivision of unprecedented spatial resolution covering the bays of Kiel and Mecklenburg (Baltic Sea). Cross sections along the basin margin allow reconstruction of the structural evolution of the Zechstein salt and its overburden. At the northern basin margin, near the Kegnaes Diapir, thinning of the Buntsandstein and divergent reflectors indicate Early Triassic faulting and salt movement. In the Late Triassic, tectonic activity increased as expressed by the onset of salt movement in the north‐eastern Glückstadt Graben, major growth of the Kegnaes Diapir and faulting at the north‐eastern basin margin during deposition of the Keuper (Erfurt, Grabfeld, Stuttgart and Weser formations). At the north‐eastern basin margin, we interpret the accumulation of Keuper and Jurassic deposits as an infill of a local sub‐basin bordered by the Werre Fault Zone and Agricola Fault System. Between the Glückstadt Graben and the north‐eastern basin margin, the Eastholstein–Mecklenburg Block formed a more stable area, where salt movement first began during the latest Triassic. In the peripheral part of the basin, salt movement was triggered by thin‐skinned extension associated with thick‐skinned faulting within the axial parts of major graben systems. Indications for gravity gliding are absent. Reactive diapirism is restricted to the basin margin, where reduced overburden thickness and Late Triassic erosion allowed diapiric breakthrough. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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37. Salt Tectonics Versus Shortening: Recognizing Pre‐Orogenic Evaporite Deformation in Salt‐Bearing Fold‐And‐Thrust Belts on the Example of the Silica Nappe (Inner Western Carpathians).
- Author
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Oravecz, Éva, Héja, Gábor, and Fodor, László
- Abstract
Recognizing salt‐related structures and differentiating them from tectonic shortening‐related anticlines and synclines can be a very challenging task in salt‐bearing fold‐and‐thrust belts, especially in poor outcrop conditions. In this study, we explain several diagnostic structural and sedimentary features that may be used to distinguish pre‐orogenic halokinetic structures from shortening‐related structures on the example of the Silica Nappe (Inner Western Carpathians, Central Europe). Detailed structural mapping in this area resulted in the recognition of several pre‐orogenic salt‐related structures, including linear salt walls and minibasins. Initial evaporite movement started as early as the late Early Triassic, and widespread diapirism occurred during the Middle to Late Triassic, ultimately leading to facies differentiation, with carbonate platform growth in the subsiding minibasins and reduced basinal deposition on top of the diapirs. Later, the inherited salt structures localized the deformation during the Cretaceous Alpine orogeny, and exerted a strong control on the geometry and kinematics of the subsequent deformations. Our new interpretation explains previously unsolved structural problems in the Silica Nappe, like pre‐orogenic thickness variations during the post‐rift phase, frequent young‐on‐older type thrust contacts and multiple folding directions with variable vergencies. The results point out that the Silica Nappe is a fold‐and‐thrust belt, where pre‐orogenic salt tectonics and its effects on the fold‐and‐thrust belt evolution can be studied in detail. Key Points: Structural mapping resulted in the first recognition of pre‐orogenic salt structures in the Western CarpathiansTriassic syn‐sedimentary evaporite deformation led to minibasin formation, variations in formation thickness and facies differentiationThe results provide guidelines on how to distinguish inherited salt structures from shortening‐related structures in fold‐and‐thrust belts [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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38. Three-dimensional seismic reflection data and core information from the Dutch North Sea : the geometry and topography of salt deformation features
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Hernandez, Karina, Mitchell, Neil, and Huuse, Mads
- Subjects
551.8 ,Basins ,North Sea ,3D seismic ,salt tectonics - Abstract
Evaporites after burial by denser sediments tend to form pillows and diapirs (salt structures). The topographic and internal structural characteristics of those deformed evaporites are important contributions to understanding of how those bodies formed by deformation and are the focus of this thesis. Models of salt deformation differ in their approach towards explaining how salt structures form. In some models, salt structures develop with a characteristic wavelength related to the pre-deformation salt thickness. Other models predict that the wavelength is not uniform but varies because of plastic behaviour of the burden, which may inhibit diapirism during its early stages. These models were constructed assuming that salt displacement results purely from instability of a less dense salt layer overlain by denser overburden, but salt deformation is also affected by extension and compression, and by internal properties of the salt layer (composition, trace water, grain size and temperature). Using 3D seismic and well data from 6 quadrants of the Dutch sector of the Southern North Sea, we have developed the following three analyses of salt structure topography and internal structure that can be used to help assess the suitability of the different models. First, an attempt was made simply to establish relationships between original salt thickness and wavelength of salt structures. Original salt thicknesses were estimated by spatially filtering the present thicknesses, values that are minima as loss by erosion and dissolution cannot be ruled out. Salt thickens towards the Central Graben in the north and thins over the Texel-Ijsselmeer High. After estimating spacing between salt structures in two dimensions, ratios of 12-20 between wavelength and original thickness were derived. These values exceed previous values reported for a UK North Sea pillow province, as expected from how pillows evolve into diapirs with progressive halokinetic deformation. The findings favour models in which overburden thickness and mechanic behaviour affect diapirism. Second, spectral analysis of salt topography derived from various published seismic data of pillows revealed fractal-like geometries. Fractal surfaces have no single dominant wavelength, rather a range of wavelengths is present. Seismic and well data in the Cleaverbank Platform allowed us to explore explanations for the fractal geometry, including varied loading by overburden, viscosity and density of overburden, and diapirism over basement faults and dykes. The fractal-like topography appears to have arisen from some of these factors combined. Third, the internal composition of evaporites was characterised from lithological data from wells located in different parts of pillow structures. Transition probability tables representing changes in lithology up well sequences were constructed. They reveal the original depositional sequence better preserved within areas between pillow crests and rim synclines. Layers of less mobile anhydrite and carbonates occur more commonly above the more mobile halite in rim syncline than in crest wells. These studies illustrate how numerical analysis of salt topographic and categorical data may support interpretation. more...
- Published
- 2020
39. Reconstructing the Iberian Salt‐Bearing Rifted Margin of the Southern Pyrenees: Insights From the Organyà Basin.
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Casini, Giulio, Vergés, Jaume, Drzewiecki, Peter, Ford, Mary, Cruset, David, Wright, Wayne, and Hunt, David
- Abstract
Reinterpretation of the Organyà Basin, based on new detailed field observations and subsurface data, emphasizes the key contribution of Upper Triassic evaporites in the tectono‐sedimentary evolution of the South‐Central Pyrenees. Results are integrated in a 65‐km long restored cross‐section through the Serres Marginals, Montsec and eastern Organyà salt‐related depocenters. The reconstructed part of the Jurassic–Cretaceous northern Iberian salt‐rich rifted margin shows a template characterized by inherited Permo‐Triassic basement normal faults and an initial salt thickness of 0.7 km to the south and 1.5 km to the north. The Organyà Basin is part of the South Pyrenean Diapiric Province, a large system of salt related depocenters and minibasins, that is limited to the north by the more than 120‐km long Senterada salt wall complex separating the supra‐salt and sub‐salt domains in the Southern Pyrenees. Three main stages of diapiric activity are recognized along the northern Iberian margin from Asturias to the Eastern Pyrenees: a Jurassic early salt mobilization; a latest Jurassic–middle Albian main diapiric evolution associated with rifting; and a Campanian–Miocene diapiric reactivation during basin inversion that produced salt welds and thrust welds and translated the salt province some 60 km to the south. Key Points: Reinterpretation of the Organyà Basin indicates occurrence of a large and continuous salt tectonics province in the South‐Central PyreneesLate Jurassic early salt mobilization followed by Early Cretaceous passive diapirism and diapir reactivation from late CampanianThe restored 65 km wide salt‐bearing passive margin indicates asymmetrical Iberia‐Eurasia conjugate margins [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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40. Implications of Salt Diapirism in Syn-Depositional Architecture of a Carbonate Margin-to-Edge Transition: An Example from Plataria Syncline, Ionian Zone, NW Greece.
- Author
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Vakalas, Ioannis, Kokkalas, Sotirios, Konstantopoulos, Panagiotis, Tzimeas, Constantinos, Kampolis, Isidoros, Tsiglifi, Helen, Pérez-Martin, Ruben, Hernandez-Jiménez, Pablo, and Pita-Gutierrez, Juan Pablo more...
- Subjects
ROCK texture ,SALT tectonics ,CARBONATES ,TURBIDITY currents ,SEQUENCE stratigraphy ,CARBONATE minerals ,DIAPIRS ,WATER depth - Abstract
The present study examines the imprint of salt tectonics on carbonate depositional patterns of the Ionian zone platform edge to slope transition. The study area is part of an overturned rim syncline adjacent to a salt diapir. The Ionian zone is made up of three distinct stratigraphic sequences (pre-, syn- and post-rift sequences) represented by evaporites and shallow water carbonates at the base that pass gradually to a sequence consisting of pelagic limestones with shale intervals. In the study area, six cross sections were constructed, mainly covering the edge-to-slope overturned succession of Early Cretaceous to Eocene carbonates (post-rift stage) in the northern limb of the syncline. In the measured sections, abrupt changes in sediment texture resulted in the formation of distinct, thick-bedded carbonate layers, identified as packstones to grainstones–floatstones, with abundant fossil fragments, indicating deposition by debrites in a platform slope or slope-toe environment. Planar and ripple cross-lamination also suggest the involvement of turbidity currents in the depositional process. In the upper levels of the Lower Cretaceous carbonates, chert bodies with irregular shapes indicate soft sediment deformation due to instability of the slope triggered by salt intrusion. Internal unconformities identified in the field and in the available seismic data combined with the vertical to overturned dipping of the strata correspond to a basal megaflap configuration. Syn-sedimentary deformation resulted in the accumulation of debritic and turbiditic layers, while the compressional regime established in the area from the Late Cretaceous to Early Eocene enhanced the fracture porosity of carbonates, which could eventually affect the reservoir properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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41. Salt Diapir‐Driven Recycling of Gas Hydrate.
- Author
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Burton, Zachary F. M. and Dafov, Laura N.
- Subjects
DIAPIRS ,METHANE hydrates ,GAS hydrates ,NATURAL gas prospecting ,CARBON cycle ,SALT domes ,SALT - Abstract
By harnessing both hypothetical, synthetic basin and gas hydrate (GH) system models and real‐world models of well‐studied salt diapir‐associated GH sites at Green Canyon (Gulf of Mexico) and Blake Ridge (U.S. Atlantic coast), we propose and demonstrate salt movement (and in particular, diapirism) to be a new mechanism for the recycling of marine GH. At Green Canyon, for example, we show that by considering this newly proposed diapir‐driven recycling mechanism in conjunction with previously proposed lithological control on sandy‐reservoir‐hosted hydrate at the base of the GH stability zone (BGHSZ; ∼bottom‐simulating reflector, BSR), modeled GH saturations match drilling data. Overall, salt diapir movement‐induced GH recycling provides a temperature‐driven mechanism by which GH saturations at the BGHSZ may reach >90 vol. % and by which GH volumes near and free gas volumes beneath the BGHSZ may be increased significantly through time. Interestingly, comparison of salt diapir‐driven recycling and sediment burial‐driven recycling scenarios suggests notably higher rates of recycling via diapir‐driven versus burial‐driven processes. Our results suggest that GH and associated free gas accumulations above salt diapir crests represent particularly attractive targets for unconventional and conventional hydrocarbon resource exploration and for scientific and academic drilling expeditions aimed at exploiting GH systems. Salt basins containing GH systems—including passive margin basins of the Gulf of Mexico, southeastern Brazil, and southwestern Africa—are therefore compelling localities for studying salt‐driven GH recycling and for salt diapir‐associated natural gas exploration. Plain Language Summary: Gas hydrates (GHs) are ice‐like solids widely distributed in permafrost settings and marine sediments of continental margins. Hydrate deposits contain vast amounts of carbon, mostly in the form of entrapped methane, and are therefore critical components of the global carbon cycle. High‐saturation GH accumulations are attractive as potentially extractable energy resources, and the processes resulting in concentrated hydrate deposits are therefore of particular scientific and economic interest. Here, we explore GH recycling, a process by which hydrates pushed below their pressure‐ and temperature‐defined stability zone destabilizes and releases buoyant gas that may be reincorporated into the upward‐shifted zone of hydrate stability, leading to increasingly elevated hydrate saturations. Using computational basin modeling and two‐dimensional forward modeling of both theoretical and real‐world GH systems, we present a new mechanism for GH recycling: the ascent of salt diapirs. Key Points: We demonstrate salt diapir movement and associated thermal changes to be a mechanism for gas hydrate recyclingHydrate at the base of hydrate stability can reach saturations >90 vol. % and trap large free gas accumulations via diapir‐driven recyclingDiapir‐driven recycling helps explain Green Canyon hydrate saturations and implies that salt basins with hydrate are attractive for exploration [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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42. Geo-Investigations on the Qarat Kibrit Salt Dome Faulting System South of Adam, Oman—In Search of Anomalies Favorable for Uranium and Associated Minerals
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Narasimman, Sundararajan, Alaeddin, Ebrahimy, Pracejus, Bernhard, Al-Hosni, Talal, Pisello, Anna Laura, Editorial Board Member, Hawkes, Dean, Editorial Board Member, Bougdah, Hocine, Editorial Board Member, Rosso, Federica, Editorial Board Member, Abdalla, Hassan, Editorial Board Member, Boemi, Sofia-Natalia, Editorial Board Member, Mohareb, Nabil, Editorial Board Member, Mesbah Elkaffas, Saleh, Editorial Board Member, Bozonnet, Emmanuel, Editorial Board Member, Pignatta, Gloria, Editorial Board Member, Mahgoub, Yasser, Editorial Board Member, De Bonis, Luciano, Editorial Board Member, Kostopoulou, Stella, Editorial Board Member, Pradhan, Biswajeet, Editorial Board Member, Abdul Mannan, Md., Editorial Board Member, Alalouch, Chaham, Editorial Board Member, O. Gawad, Iman, Editorial Board Member, Nayyar, Anand, Editorial Board Member, Amer, Mourad, Series Editor, Meghraoui, Mustapha, editor, Sundararajan, Narasimman, editor, Banerjee, Santanu, editor, Hinzen, Klaus-G., editor, Eshagh, Mehdi, editor, Roure, François, editor, Chaminé, Helder I., editor, Maouche, Said, editor, and Michard, André, editor more...
- Published
- 2022
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43. New Insight on the Hydrocarbon Prospectivity of the Aptian-Albian Play in Central Tunisia
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Harzali, Makrem, Troudi, Habib, Pisello, Anna Laura, Editorial Board Member, Hawkes, Dean, Editorial Board Member, Bougdah, Hocine, Editorial Board Member, Rosso, Federica, Editorial Board Member, Abdalla, Hassan, Editorial Board Member, Boemi, Sofia-Natalia, Editorial Board Member, Mohareb, Nabil, Editorial Board Member, Mesbah Elkaffas, Saleh, Editorial Board Member, Bozonnet, Emmanuel, Editorial Board Member, Pignatta, Gloria, Editorial Board Member, Mahgoub, Yasser, Editorial Board Member, De Bonis, Luciano, Editorial Board Member, Kostopoulou, Stella, Editorial Board Member, Pradhan, Biswajeet, Editorial Board Member, Abdul Mannan, Md., Editorial Board Member, Alalouch, Chaham, Editorial Board Member, O. Gawad, Iman, Editorial Board Member, Nayyar, Anand, Editorial Board Member, Amer, Mourad, Series Editor, Meghraoui, Mustapha, editor, Sundararajan, Narasimman, editor, Banerjee, Santanu, editor, Hinzen, Klaus-G., editor, Eshagh, Mehdi, editor, Roure, François, editor, Chaminé, Helder I., editor, Maouche, Said, editor, and Michard, André, editor more...
- Published
- 2022
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44. Syn‐depositional halokinesis in the Zechstein Supergroup (Lopingian) controls Triassic minibasin genesis and location.
- Author
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Joffe, Amir, Jackson, Christopher A.‐L., and Pichel, Leonardo M.
- Subjects
- *
DIAPIRS , *SALT tectonics , *CLASTIC rocks , *CARBONATE rocks , *SALT , *ANHYDRITE - Abstract
Salt tectonics is typically caused by the flow of mobile evaporites in response to post‐depositional gravity gliding and/or differential loading by overburden sediments. This situation is considerably more complex near the margins of salt basins, where carbonate and clastic rocks may be deposited at the same time as and be interbedded with more mobile, evaporitic strata. In these cases, syn‐depositional salt flow may occur due to density differences in the deposited lithologies, although our understanding of this and related processes is relatively poor. We here use 3D seismic reflection and borehole data from the Devil's Hole Horst, West Central Shelf, offshore UK to understand the genesis, geometry, and kinematic evolution of intra‐Zechstein Supergroup (Lopingian) minibasins and their effect on post‐depositional salt deformation. We show that immobile, pinnacle‐to‐barrier‐like, carbonate build‐ups and anhydrite are largely restricted to intra‐basin highs, whereas mobile halite, which flowed to form large diapirs, dominates in the deep basin. At the transition between the intra‐basin highs and the deep basin, a belt of intra‐Zechstein minibasins occurs, forming due to the subsidence of relatively dense anhydrite into underlying halite. Depending on primary halite thickness, these intra‐Zechstein minibasins created topographic lows, dictating where Triassic minibasins subsequently nucleated and down‐built. Our study refines the original depositional model for the Zechstein Supergroup in the Central North Sea, with the results also helping us better understand the style and distribution of syn‐depositional salt flow within other layered evaporitic sequences and the role intra‐salt heterogeneity and related deformation may have in the associated petroleum plays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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45. Fragmentation, rafting, and drowning of a carbonate platform margin in a rift-basin setting.
- Author
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Petrovic, Alexander, Lüdmann, Thomas, Afifi, Abdulkader M., Saitz, Yannick, Betzler, Christian, and Vahrenkamp, Volker
- Subjects
- *
DIAPIRS , *RIFTS (Geology) , *SALT tectonics , *ABSOLUTE sea level change , *DROWNING , *CARBONATES - Abstract
High-resolution bathymetric and shallow seismic data along the northeast Red Sea margin reveal a previously disregarded mechanism for carbonate platform drowning at a steepflanked rift basin. At the seafloor, salt extrusions highlight the influence of extensional salt tectonics, with a salt flow from the southern flank of the Al Wajh carbonate platform that likely originates from below. Salt-flow direction, morphology, and kilometer-sized slumps and rotated blocks indicate platform-margin disintegration and rafting of platform blocks toward the southwest. The outlines of several smaller detached or semi-detached carbonate platforms to the south of the main platform can be refitted to the larger platform margin by counter-moving the direction of mass wasting. Several platforms, reaching heights above the seafloor of up to 650 m, are partially or fully submerged in the mesophotic zone and appear to be in danger of drowning. We conclude that the southern outer rim of the Al Wajh platform is breaking apart owing to salt withdrawal, which indicates that carbonate platforms on top of salt sequences grow on mobile ground, leading to platform disintegration, basinward rafts, and the demise of broken-off, smaller pieces of platform. Salt displacement also controls the growth geometries of individual platform rafts, with keep-up reef growth (growth rate equal to sea-level rise) and drowning occurring in close spatial proximity. Therefore, the interplay between salt diapirism and platform growth is not limited to platforms growing on the apexes of diapirs and is more complex than previously thought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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46. Salt tectonics vs. inversion tectonics: The anticlines of the western Maestrazgo revisited (eastern Iberian Chain, Spain).
- Author
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Liesa, Carlos L., Casas‐Sainz, Antonio M., Aurell, Marcos, Simón, José L., and Soria, Ana R.
- Subjects
- *
SALT tectonics , *ANTICLINES , *SEDIMENTARY structures , *FAULT zones , *FOLDS (Geology) , *EVAPORITES , *SEDIMENTARY basins - Abstract
Many works in the last decades underline the role of evaporites, not just as a conditioning factor but as the engine for subsidence and eventually basin inversion. The western Mediterranean alpine ranges are being investigated in this regard because of the presence of discontinuous units of Permian to Triassic evaporites, deposited in the western Tethys basins. This work presents a thorough analysis of two particular structures (Cañada Vellida and Miravete anticlines) in the intraplate Maestrazgo basin (eastern Iberian Chain, Spain) in which evidence to support their reinterpretation as salt‐driven structures have been recently reported. Our analysis includes (i) a comprehensive stratigraphic and structural study of the folds along their entire trace, (ii) the compilation of thickness and distribution of evaporite–bearing and supraevaporite units, paying special attention to changes in the thickness of units in relation to anticlines, and (iii) the study of fault patterns, sometimes in relation to the mechanical stratigraphy. All three aspects are also documented and discussed on a regional scale. The new data and interpretations reported here reinforce the extensional origin of the Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous basins, and the role of regional extensional tectonics as the responsible for the development of first‐order syn‐sedimentary normal fault zones driving the formation and evolution of sub‐basins. These basins were subsequently inverted and deformed, including the formation of complex, box‐geometry anticlines that, in their turn, controlled deposition in Cenozoic basins. The review of the arguments that support the alternative of salt tectonics for the origin of such anticlines has allowed us to delve into the sedimentary and tectonic evolution of the inverted extensional basins and to propose a specific model for the development of these faulted anticlines. The role of salt levels and other interlayered detachments in the structuring of sedimentary basins and their inversion is also pondered. The observations in the eastern Iberian Chain reported here have implications to assess ongoing reinterpretations in terms of salt tectonics in other alpine basins and ranges of the western Mediterranean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2023
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47. Structural evolution of the Handun salt diapir, Zagros fold and thrust belt, southern Iran.
- Author
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Snidero, Marco, Muñoz, Josep Anton, Santolaria, Pablo, Carrera, Nuria, and Butille, Mireia
- Subjects
- *
THRUST belts (Geology) , *DIAPIRS , *SALT tectonics , *SEQUENCE stratigraphy , *FIELD research , *SEDIMENTATION & deposition - Abstract
The Fars region, in the Zagros fold and thrust belt, hosts a wide range of diapirs piercing over 10 km of stratigraphic sequence. Comprising Precambrian to Early-Cambrian Hormuz Salt, these diapirs exhibit a prolonged history of evolution. Outcrop evidence for understanding the diapir deformation history is mostly limited to the Cenozoic contractive phase, and the seismic data lacks the necessary quality for an exhaustive understanding of the deepest structure's geometries. Through regional and field evidence we unravel the Handun salt structure evolution and propose a sequential restoration to describe the key deformational events. Our study presents a field-based novel regional balanced cross-section and a 3D-geological model, and addresses the role of structural inheritances and the position of the Handun diapir with respect to the decupled basement. The performed field studies describe folds and unconformities related to Cenozoic halokinetic sequences with exceptional clarity. It was possible to observe changes of the diapir activity along the structure and provide field evidence for the relative timing and kinematics of primary and secondary welding. Finally, our data suggest that the Handun diapir formed in the early Paleozoic above the shoulder of a basement extensional fault, and was partially translated above its southern hanging-wall during the shortening. In the Paleocene a sustained ratio of salt rise rate was enhanced by the Zagros/Oman contraction. In response to the Oligocene continental collision, the diapir was profusely supplied with salt, which flared upward to form overhangs. Since the middle Miocene the salt supply slowly depleted, with the diapiric walls remaining near the surface but tapering upward, probably due to primary welding or increased sedimentation. Secondary welding occurred post-Pliocene in the last stages of the diapir evolution with consequent development of a secondary minibasin. [Display omitted] • We estimate a total shortening of 12%, accommodated by thin-skin deformation. • Diapir formed on a basement fault shoulder and experienced prolonged passive growth. • Diapir flares upward and forms overhangs during Oligocene to early Miocene. • Salt supply depleted since middle Miocene with the diapiric walls tapering upward. • A secondary minibasin and secondary welding formed synchronously post-Pliocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2025
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48. Alpine tectonic movements and salt tectonics of Eastern Ukraine
- Author
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Sergey Goryainov
- Subjects
neotectonics ,cenozoic ,salt tectonics ,attic orogeny ,hercynian orogeny ,eastern ukraine ,Physical geography ,GB3-5030 ,Geology ,QE1-996.5 - Abstract
Within Eastern Ukraine, in the course of previous studies, neotectonic movements were established, caused by both salt tectonics and Attic (post-Miocene - pre-Pliocene) thrust dislocations of northeastern vergence. They are partially displayed in modern relief. The aim of the study was to reveal the structural results of the interaction of post-Pliocene fold-thrust deformations and modern salt tectonics of Eastern Ukraine. Research methodology. The base of the Cenozoic deposits of Eastern Ukraine was chosen as an indicator surface reflecting both those and other movements. Its initial orientation is horizontal. Deviations from the horizontal reflect the direction and amplitude of deformations. The morphology of this surface was depicted by isolines with a vertical step of 20 m. To build a map of the supporting surface, state geological maps and data from more than 2,100 wells drilled in this area were used. Research results. A map of the shape of the Cenozoic base in tectonic blocks between the Attic thrusts and beyond their development has been constructed. Uplifts of this surface, which are not associated with thrust movements, have been revealed. The dimensions of such uplifts are 8÷30 × 6÷15 km with vertical amplitude of 40 - 100 m or more. The uplifts are usually contoured by ring or arc compensation troughs a few kilometers wide and 20-100 m deep. Some of these uplifts are associated with the known salt domes of the area. Other uplifts do not contain such domes. It is possible that they formed over salt "pillows", which did not have enough salt reserves to form salt diapirs. The area of distribution of such uplifts approximately corresponds to the area of distribution of Devonian salt deposits at a depth of 5-10 km or more. Scientific novelty. Neotectonic uplifts were discovered, similar in shape and size to those caused by salt tectonics, but located outside the areas of distribution of known salt-bearing strata. It is hypothesized that this is related to the older Hercynian overthrusts. The uplifts are located above the hanging blocks of the Hercynian overthrusts in the north and south of the study area. These thrusts were formed on the northern and southern sides of the former Dnieper-Donetsk depression during its destruction by the Hercynian folding. It is possible that the nappes over thrusts the Devonian salt-bearing deposits with metamorphic rocks of the crystalline basement. The decrease in the level of the World Ocean in the Quaternary period further increased the lithostatic load on the salt-bearing strata. This activated the isostatic upwelling of salt and the formation of gently sloping neotectonic uplifts. Practical significance. These results clarify the geological structure of the territory and make it possible to expand the area of hydrocarbon prospecting. more...
- Published
- 2022
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49. Chronology, structures and salt tectonics in the northern Kuqa Depression, NW China: Implications for the Cenozoic uplift of Tian Shan and foreland deformation.
- Author
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Zhang, Zhiliang, Tang, Pengcheng, Sun, Jimin, and Ren, Zhikun
- Subjects
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SALT tectonics , *THRUST belts (Geology) , *OROGENY , *RHEOLOGY , *FIELD research - Abstract
Foreland fold-and-thrust belts (FTBs) are shaped by the coupled influence of surface processes (e.g., erosion, sedimentation) and deep geological processes (e.g., plate rheology, flexure and kinematics) across various timescales. These processes record multiple phases of orogenic evolution and are crucial for understanding the interplay between mountain building and the sedimentary basin filling. In this paper, we conducted an integrated study including magnetostratigraphy of exposed strata, detailed field investigations and interpretations of subsurface seismic profiles in the northern Kuqa Depression. This study aims to elucidate the tectonic uplift of the Tian Shan by examining salt-related structures. The present findings reveal that diapirism in the study area commenced in the early Eocene and continued at least into the late Miocene. Notably, the Tuzimaza diapir has been significantly squeezed due to regional contraction since ∼5.3 Ma. The exposed growth strata were primarily compressional, rather than halokinetic, suggesting the lateral expansion of the Tuzimaza anticline since the latest Miocene (∼5.3 Ma). This expansion was a response to the far-field effects of the Indian-Eurasian collision. We propose that the local activation of the Tian Shan likely initiated in the early Oligocene (∼34 Ma), with three subsequent episodes of deformation occurring ∼24 Ma, ∼10 Ma and ∼ 5.3 Ma. The earlier episodes can be attributed to basement uplift in the northern Kuqa Depression, whereas the later episode starting at ∼5.3 Ma reflects more intensive deformation across the entire foreland, indicative of the steady outward growth of the Tian Shan. Collectively, all these tectonic events have contributed to the formation of the modern Tian Shan. • The basal age of growth strata is ∼5.3 Ma • Dispirism in the northern Kuqa Depression initiated in the Eocene. • Uplift of Tian Shan maybe occurred in the early Miocene. • Two events of deformation occurred at ∼10 Ma and ∼ 5.3 Ma, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
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50. Tectonic evolution and structural geology of the Jurassic succession in the Zubair oil field, southern Iraq.
- Author
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Lazim, Aymen Adil, Handhal, Amna M., and Rashid, Fraidoon Najm
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STRUCTURAL geology , *OIL fields , *JURASSIC Period , *PETROLEUM reservoirs , *SALT tectonics , *FOLDS (Geology) - Abstract
This study investigates the structural style and tectonic evolution of Jurassic succession in southern Iraq, within the Zubair oil field, which are crucial for charging oil to the Cretaceous reservoirs, utilized 3-D seismic reflection data to explore its complex geological history. The field is located in the Mesopotamian plain on the northeast Arabian Plate in southern Iraq. Four folds recognized: Hammar, Shuaiba, Rafdyia, and Safwan, each shaped by specific geodynamic processes. Hammar, Shuaiba, and Safwan are characterized as salt-related folds, influenced by salt tectonics. Rafdyia is identified as a compression-related fold formed due to the convergence of the Arabian and Eurasian plates. Forty-seven faults were identified, with diversity patterns and spatial distributions suggesting a tectonic history marked by three distinct phases: extensional tectonics, extensional with concurrent salt activity, and plate convergence. These phases have created a series of graben structures that, along with the identified folds, highlight the role of three primary tectonic processes: basement tectonics, salt dynamics, and plate interactions in shaping the structural style of the Zubair oil field during the Jurassic time. • The first tectonic and structural analysis of the Jurassic period was conducted in the Zubair oil field in southern Iraq. • This analysis utilized 3D seismic data to delineate folds and faults within the Jurassic formations. • The seismic interpretation identified 47 faults exhibiting diverse patterns, influencing the structural configuration. • Four folds were analyzed structurally, revealing two types of folding salt-related fold, and compression-related fold. • Basement structure, salt activity, and convergence movements govern the folding mechanisms and faulting patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
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