Coals of Canada: Distribution and compositional characteristics

Canada's coal resources occur in 16 sedimentary basins or groups of basins and range in age from Devonian to Tertiary. The Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB), which contains the vast majority (about 90%) of the nation's coal resources of immediate interest, underlies a large area in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, extending northward to about the 62nd Parallel in Yukon and Northwest Territories. Coal deposits in the WCSB range in age from Early Carboniferous (Mississippian) to Paleocene. Rank ranges from lignite to semianthracite. About 36% of the total estimated 71,000 megatonnes of resources of immediate interest in the WCSB is bituminous coal, including a high proportion in the medium to low volatile range. Their low sulphur contents and acceptable ash levels make these medium and low volatile bituminous coals attractive 3s coking feedstocks and large quantities are mined for that purpose. The lower rank western Canadian coals are used mainly for electricity generation.Significant resources of bituminous coal occur in the coalfields of Atlantic Canada where they have been mined since 1720. Most of these coals are classed as high volatile A bituminous and most are used for power generation. Large resources of coal (lignite to anthracite) also occur in more remote regions of Canada, such as the Bowser Basin in northwestern British Columbia, and Sverdrup Basin/ Franklinian Geosyncline in the Arctic Islands. Information on distribution and compositional attributes of these frontier region coals is commonly scarce.     

Post-Acadian sediment recycling in the Devonian Old Red Sandstone of Southern Ireland

The Upper Devonian Munster Basin of southern Ireland has traditionally been viewed as a post-orogenic molasse deposit that was sourced from the Caledonides of central Ireland and subsequently deformed by the end Carboniferous Variscan orogenic event. The basin fill is composed of super-mature quartz arenite sandstone that clearly represents a second cycle of deposition. The source of this detritus is now recognized as Lower Devonian Dingle Basin red bed sequences to the north. This genetic link is based on the degree of similarity in the detrital mica chemistry in both of these units; micas plot in identical fields and define the same trends. In addition, the two sequences show increased textural and chemical maturity up-sequence and define indistinguishable ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age ranges for the detrital mica grains. Partial resetting of the Ar ages can be attributed to elevated heat flow in the region caused by Munster Basin extension and subsequent Variscan deformation. The combined evidence from southwest Ireland therefore points to a Caledonian or possibly Taconian primary source area that initially shed detritus into the Lower Devonian Dingle Basin which was subsequently recycled into the Upper Devonian Munster Basin following mid-Devonian Acadian basin inversion.     

Platform margins, reef facies, and microbial carbonates; a comparison of Devonian reef complexes in the Canning Basin, Western Australia, and the Guilin region, South China

Devonian reef complexes were well developed in Western Australia and South China, but no detailed direct comparison has been made between reef building in the two regions. The regions differ in several respects, including tectonic, stratigraphic and palaeoceanographic–palaeogeographic settings, and the reef building styles reflect minor differences in reef builders and reef facies. Similarities and differences between the two reef complexes provide insights into the characteristics of platform margins, reef facies and microbial carbonates of both regions. Here we present a comparison of platform margin types from different stratigraphic positions in the Late Devonian reef complex of the Canning Basin, Western Australia and Middle and Late Devonian margin to marginal slope successions in Guilin, South China. Comparisons are integrated into a review of the reefal stratigraphy of both regions. Reef facies, reef complex architecture, temporal reef builder associations, 2nd order stratigraphy and platform cyclicity in the two regions were generally similar where the successions overlap temporally. However, carbonate deposition began earlier in South China. Carbonate complexes were also more widespread in South China and represent a thicker succession overall. Platforms in the Canning Basin grew directly on Precambrian crystalline basement or early Palaeozoic sedimentary rocks, but in South China, carbonate complexes developed conformably on older Devonian siliciclastic strata. Pre-Frasnian reef facies in South China had more abundant skeletal frameworks than in Canning Basin reefs of equivalent age, and Famennian shoaling margins containing various microbial reefs may have been more common and probably more diverse in South China. However, Late Devonian platform margin types have been documented more completely in the Canning Basin. Deep intra-platform troughs (deep depressions containing non-carbonate pelagic sediments — Nandan-type successions) that developed along syndepositional faults characterize Devonian carbonate platforms in South China, but have no equivalent on the Lennard Shelf, Canning Basin where inter-reef areas were more shallow. The South China platform-to-depression pattern was generally continuous from the Lower to Upper Devonian, indicating that many pre-Devonian tectonic features continued to exercise considerable effect through deposition. Localized, fault-controlled subsidence was an important factor in both regions, but similarities in 2nd order aggradation–progradation cycles suggest that eustasy was also an important control on the larger scale stratigraphic development of both regions.     

Comparison of Michigan Basin crude oils

Michigan Basin oils from the Ordovician Trenton, Silurian Niagaran, and Devonian Dundee formations have been geochemically compared by GC, GC-MS, and carbon isotope mass spectrometry. One oil from each formation was selected for detailed analysis which included measurement of individual n-alkane δ¹³C values. The Ordovician and Devonian oils are strikingly similar to one another, yet clearly different from the Silurian oil. This pattern is unexpected because Ordovician and Devonian reservoirs are physically separated by the Silurian strata. From time-temperature considerations, the Devonian oil probably was formed in older strata and has migrated to its present location. Our analyses suggest a common source for the Devonian and Ordovician oils.     

Rare Earth Elements in Coal-Bearing Deposits: Distribution Features and Geochemical Significance

The examination of Lower Cretaceous coals and clayey fractions of terrigenous host rocks of the Zyryanka Basin has revealed a generally negative type of the relative REE distribution (with a predominance of LREE over HREE) and a similar behavior of Th and U. Analogous characteristics are typical for metamorphic and igneous rocks of intermediate composition dominating in the provenance. In terms of the concentration and distribution of REE, Th, and U coal-bearing terrigenous rocks of the Zyryanka Basin are close to Phanerozoic clays and silty sandstones of the Russian Platform, while coals of the Zyryanka Basin are similar to metal-free coals of various basins (Kizel, Pennsylvanian, and others). Average REE and Th contents in the studied coals are five times lower than those in host terrigenous rocks. The coals differ from these rocks by relatively elevated HREE concentrations largely due to adsorption mechanism of the HREE accumulation. Data obtained on the REE, Th, and U distribution in coals and clayey fractions of host rocks are of fundamental significance for the comparitive analysis of the behavior of these elements in metal-bearing coals of various basins.     

滇黔桂盆地及邻区泥盆纪层序地层格架及其古地理背景

滇黔桂盆地及其邻区的泥盆系包括下部的海侵碎屑岩系、中部的混合沉积地层和上部的碳酸盐岩地层,其中又可以进一步划分为13个三级沉积层序和两个二级构造层序.不同阶段三级层序的相序组构特征及其空间变化代表了不同的岩相古地理背景,形成了一个受海平面变化和区域构造运动共同控制的沉积盆地充填序列;同时也反映出研究区域三级海平面变化与欧美地区相对比存在较大的差异.     

南盘江盆地古油藏沥青地球化学特征及成因

南盘江地区生物礁古油藏的储层沥青主要分布在上二叠统和中上泥盆统。古油藏的储集层均为生物礁滩灰岩,沥青的主要储集空间以洞、缝为主,其次为基质孔隙和生物体腔内。南盘江古油藏沥青的成熟度很高, H／C原子比小于0．4,主要由残碳构成,这是沥青的非极性和极性抽提无抽提物的直接原因。在古油藏沥青地球化学特征研究的基础上,综合分析认为南盘江古油藏沥青主要源自泥盆系烃源岩,其次可能与下二叠统烃源岩有关。南盘江古油藏沥青与生物降解沥青和沉淀沥青质有很大的区别,其成因是油藏深埋时在高温、高压的作用下原油裂解成气后的焦沥青。     

Diversities in biomarker compositions of Carboniferous–Permian humic coals in the Ordos Basin,China

The molecular composition of Carboniferous–Permian coals in the maturity range from 0.66 to 1.63% vitrinite reflectance has been analysed using organic geochemistry to investigate the factors influencing the biomarker compositions of humic coals. The Carboniferous–Permian coal has a variable organofacies and is mainly humic-prone. There is a significant difference in the distribution of saturated and aromatic hydrocarbons in these coals, which can be divided into three types. The Group A coals have biomarker compositions typical of humic coal, characterised by high Pr/Ph ratios, a lower abundance of tricyclic terpanes with a decreasing distribution from C₁₉ tricyclic terpane to C₂₄ tricyclic terpane and a high number of terrigenous-related biomarkers, such as C₂₄ tetracyclic terpane and C₂₉ steranes. The biomarker composition of Group B coals, which were deposited in a suboxic environment, have a higher abundance of rearranged hopanes than observed in Group A coals. In contrast, in Group C coals, the Pr/Ph ratio is less than 1.0, and the sterane and terpane distributions are very different from those in groups A and B. Group C coals generally have abnormally abundant tricyclic terpanes with a normal distribution maximising at the C₂₃ peak; C₂₇ steranes predominates in the m/z 217 mass fragmentograms. The relationships between biomarker compositions, thermal maturity, Pr/Ph ratios and depositional environments, indicate that the biomarker compositions of Carboniferous–Permian coals in Ordos Basin are mainly related to their depositional environment. This leads to the conclusion that the biomarker compositions of groups A and B coals collected from Shanxi and Taiyuan formations in the northern Ordos Basin are mainly related to their marine–terrigenous transitional environment, whereas the biomarker compositions for the Group C coals from Carboniferous strata and Shanxi Formation in the eastern Ordos Basin are associated with marine incursions.     

The application of FAMM (Fluorescence Alteration of Multiple Macerals) analyses for evaluating rank of Paraná Basin coals, Brazil

Combining vitrinite reflectance (VR) and fluorescence alteration of multiple macerals (FAMM) analyses provide insights into the chemical nature of vitrinites (i.e., perhydrous vs. orthohydrous vs. subhydrous compositions) in Permian Gondwana coals of the Paraná Basin, Brazil. The FAMM-derived equivalent VR (EqVR) values and relationships with VR can be determined according to calibration curves based largely on Permian Gondwana coals of eastern Australia.The analytical results indicate that vitrinites in the Paraná Basin coals studied generally range from orthohydrous to perhydrous, with interpreted VR suppression ranging up to 0.2% absolute for the most perhydrous case. The EqVR values of the Santa Catarina coals, which range from about 0.85% to 0.95% differ from VR values by about 0.10–0.15% absolute, potentially having significant implications on coal utilization.The causes of vitrinite reflectance suppression in the Paraná Basin coals are as yet poorly understood, but are likely to be related to a combination of factors.     

Mineral matter and trace elements in coals of the Gunnedah Basin, New South Wales, Australia

The concentrations of major and trace inorganic elements in a succession of Permian coals from the Gunnedah Basin, New South Wales, have been determined by X-ray fluorescence techniques applied to both whole-coal and high-temperature ash samples. The results have been evaluated in the light of quantitative data on the minerals in the same coals, determined from X-ray diffraction study of whole-coal samples using a Rietveld-based interpretation program ( ™), to determine relationships of the trace elements in the coals to the mineral species present. Comparison of the chemical composition of the coal ash interpreted from the quantitative mineralogical study to the actual ash composition determined by XRF analysis shows a high degree of consistency, confirming the validity of the XRD interpretations for the Gunnedah Basin materials. Quartz, illite and other minerals of detrital origin dominate the coals in the upper part of the sequence, whereas authigenic kaolinite is abundant in coals from the lower part of the Permian succession. These minerals are all reduced in abundance, however, and pyrite is a dominant constituent, in coals formed under marine influence at several stratigraphic levels. Calcite and dolomite occur as cleat and fracture infillings, mostly in seams near the top and bottom of the sequence. The potassium-bearing minerals in the detrital fraction are associated with significant concentrations of rubidium, and the authigenic kaolinite with relatively high proportions of titanium. Zirconium is also abundant, with associated P and Hf, in the Gunnedah Basin coal seams. Relationships exhibited by Ti, Zr, Nd and Y are consistent with derivation of the original sediment admixed with the seams from an acid volcanic source. Pyrite in the coals is associated with high concentrations of arsenic and minor proportions of thallium; no other element commonly associated with sulphides in coals, however, appears to occur in significant proportions with the pyrite in the sample suite. Small concentrations of Cl present in the coal are inversely related to the pyrite content, and appear to represent ion-exchange components associated with the organic matter. Strontium and barium are strongly associated with the cleat-filling carbonate minerals. Ge and Ga appear to be related to each other and to the coal's organic matter. Cr and V are also related to each other, as are Ce, La, Nd and Pr, but none of these show any relationship to the organic matter or a particular mineral component.     

柴北缘牦牛山组火山岩锆石U Pb年龄及其地质意义

柴北缘牦牛山组磨拉石建造不整合覆盖在前泥盆系之上,记录了该地区早古生代洋盆关闭的时间。对柴北缘牦牛山一带牦牛山组上部火山岩段两个流纹质熔结凝灰岩样品进行锆石U Pb同位素测定,两个样品的岩浆锆石206Pb/238U年龄加权平均值分别为(3965±24) Ma(n=17,MSWD=33)和(3958±12) Ma(n=20,MSWD=11),均被解释为火山岩喷发年龄。结合东昆仑造山带牦牛山组测年结果,认为柴达木盆地周缘牦牛山组火山岩形成时代为晚志留世—晚泥盆世,且东昆仑与柴北缘加里东造山作用结束的时间均为早泥盆世之前,而非传统认为的晚泥盆世。     

川滇黔桂地区泥盆系层序地层分析

根据层序关键界面、体系域叠置关系及内部构型特征,结合生物地层资料,右江盆地泥盆系可划分为17个三级层序,其中下统 7个、中统 5个、上统 5个,包括 9个Ⅰ型层序、8个Ⅱ型层序,代表17次三级相对海平面变化产物。在此基础上,对不同沉积背景的层序进行了对比,建立了相应的层序格架模型。结果表明,不同沉积相带的层序内部构型和成因格架存在一定的差异,但由于海平面变化这一共同因素的影响,它们仍可进行对比和追踪。     

Tectonic evolution of the western Ordos Basin during the Palaeozoic-Mesozoic time as constrained by detrital zircon ages

ABSTRACT

The Ordos Basin has experienced a complicated tectonic evolution since the Palaeozoic. Its multi-stage evolution was closely related to the tectonic events that occurred along plate boundaries. The detrital zircon ages and crystallization age (CA)-deposition age (DA)/cumulative proportion curves obtained from Palaeozoic-Mesozoic strata from different tectonic units in and around the western Ordos Basin demonstrate that during the early Palaeozoic, the so-called Helan Aulacogen did not develop along the western Ordos Basin, the Alxa Block was an independent unit from the North China Craton, and the southern Ordos Basin was a foreland basin of the North Qinling Orogenic Belt. During the early Palaeozoic, the western Ordos Basin and its vicinity belonged to three different tectonic units (i.e. the North China Craton, the Alxa Block, and the North Qilian Orogenic Belt). At the end of the early Palaeozoic, the Alxa Block amalgamated with the Ordos Basin. From the Silurian to the Middle Devonian, the southern Alxa Block was a foreland basin of the North Qilian Orogenic Belt and underwent regional extension during the Late Devonian. During the late Palaeozoic, the western Ordos Basin and its vicinities were located in a back-arc extensional setting of the western Qinling Orogenic Belt. The southern part of the western Ordos Basin may have been a retro-arc foreland basin of the western Qinling Orogenic Belt during the Late Triassic, and the northern part of the western Ordos Basin experienced large-scale left-lateral strike-slip at the same time. The CA-DA/cumulative proportion curves can adequately explain the evolution of the western Ordos Basin during the Palaeozoic; however, the settings indicated by the CA-DA/cumulative proportion curves in intraplate evolutions are different from those proposed in other studies, which may be due to the number and distribution of samples and rapid lateral changes in sedimentary facies.     

The Devonian history of northeastern Australia

Devonian rocks occur in northeastern Australia within the ‘Tasman Geosyncline’ in three major tectonic divisions—(a) a very broad mobile platform related to the last stages of stabilisation of the Lachlan Geosyncline, marginal to which is found, (b) the volcanic‐rich New England Geosyncline, and (c) a contrasting region in northern Queensland where complex marine to continental sedimentation occurred on cratonic blocks while non‐volcanic flysch‐like sedimentation occurred in the marginal Hodgkinson Basin.

The tectonic setting was governed by differences in the nature of the continental margin, so that the New England Geosyncline and Hodgkinson Basin, which developed along the eastern margin of the continent from the earliest Devonian to the late Palaeozoic, show correspondingly different sedimentation and deformation histories.

An integrated account of the Devonian geology of these regions is given, leading to.an interpretation of the environments of the Devonian in terms of plate‐tectonic movements, generally from the east.

Postulated tectonic zones within the New England Geosyncline region include pre‐Devonian deep ocean deposits with mild high‐pressure low‐temperature meta‐morphism, and Devonian volcanic arc and marginal sea volcanic‐derived deposits. Within the mobile platform to the west, variable marine and continental deposits are associated with volcanicity in the zone transitional to the New England Geosyncline. In the northern region, rifting of the craton and development of an Atlantic‐type margin was followed by subduction with folding and metamorphism at the end of the Devonian.

The Devonian rocks are strongly affected by intense late Palaeozoic tectonic and igneous activity in the eastern marginal regions, but only minor effects are seen to the west.     

The role of coal petrographic characteristics in evaluating the non-coking nature of the coals of ramagundam and Kothagudem coalfields,Godavari Valley Basin,Andhra Pradesh,India

The maceral and microlithotype compositions of coals representative of the different coal seams of the Ramagundam and Kothagudem coalfields, Godavari Valley Basin, are compared with those of the Ib River, Talcher, South Karanpura, Hura, and Brahmani coalfields. The vitrite + clarite—“Intermidiates”—durite + fusite + shale (<20%) triangular diagram places these coals in the area of non-coking coals, clearly distinct from the coking and semi-coking coals. The vitrinite reflectance is low (R_ormoil^aver: 0.38–0.71%), far below the coking-coal range. Thus, based on petrographic composition and rank, these coals are of non-coking nature. A triangular diagram is proposed delineating the coking, semi-coking and non-coking coal areas for the Gondwana coals of India.     

Petrography and geochemistry of early-stage, fine- and medium-crystalline dolomites in the Middle Devonian Presqu'ile Barrier at Pine Point, Canada

The petrography and geochemistry of fine- and medium-crystalline dolomites of the Middle Devonian Presqu’ile barrier at Pine Point (Western Canada Sedimentary Basin) are different from those of previously published coarse-crystalline and saddle dolomites that are associated with late-stage hydrothermal fluids. Fine-crystalline dolomite consists of subhedral to euhedral crystals, ranging from 5 to 25 μm (mean 8 μm). The dolomite interbedded with evaporitic anhydrites that occur in the back-barrier facies in the Elk Point Basin. Fine-crystalline dolomite has δ¹⁸Ο values between ?1·6 to –3·8‰ PDB and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios from 0·7079–0·7081, consistent with derivation from Middle Devonian seawater. Its Sr concentrations (55–225 p.p.m., mean 105 p.p.m.) follow a similar trend to modern Little Bahama seawater dolomites. Its rare earth element (REE) patterns are similar to those of the limestone precursors. These data suggest that this fine-crystalline dolomite formed from Middle Devonian seawater at or just below the sea floor. Medium-crystalline dolomite in the Presqu’ile barrier is composed of anhedral to subhedral crystals (150–250 μm, mean 200 μm), some of which have clear rims toward the pore centres. This dolomite occurs mostly in the southern lower part of the barrier. Medium-crystalline dolomite has δ¹⁸O values between ?3·7 to ?9·4‰ PDB (mean ?5·9‰ PDB) and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios from 0·7081–0·7087 (mean 0·7084); Sr concentrations from 30 to 79 p.p.m. (mean 50 p.p.m.) and Mn content from 50 to 253 p.p.m. (mean 161 p.p.m.); and negative Ce anomalies compared with those of marine limestones. The medium-crystalline dolomite may have formed either (1) during shallow burial at slightly elevated temperatures (35–40 °C) from fluids derived from burial compaction, or, more likely (2) soon after deposition of the precursor sediments by Middle Devonian seawater derived from the Elk Point Basin. These results indicate that dolomitization in the Middle Devonian Presqu’ile barrier occurred in at least two stages during evolution of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin. The geochemistry of earlier formed dolomites may have been modified if the earlier formed dolomites were porous and permeable and water/rock ratios were large during neomorphism.     

Lower Palaeozoic unconformities in an intracratonic platform setting: glacial erosion versus tectonics in the eastern Murzuq Basin (southern Libya)

The stratigraphic record of the eastern Murzuq Basin has been importantly influenced by deformation resulting in angular and/or deeply erosional unconformities, though the overall context is intracratonic. Major transgressive events and the Ordovician glaciation are nevertheless documented, allowing the delineation of tectonic-, eustasy- or climate-driven unconformities. Lower Palaeozoic key events and related unconformities that characterize the North Gondwana platform have therefore a signature in the eastern Murzuq Basin. The basement/cover unconformity, also known as the infra-Tassilian surface, truncates all the deformed and metamorphosed Lower Cambrian and older rocks. Above is a ?Middle Cambrian to Lower Ordovician megasequence (Murizidié and Hasawnah Fms.), which is in turn truncated by an intra-Ordovician, angular unconformity. This megasequence is unconformably overlain by a Middle Ordovician (Hawaz Fm.) to Silurian (Tanzzuft and Akakus Fms) megasequence, which includes the Upper Ordovician glaciogenic unit (Mamuniyat Fm.), bounded at the base by a polygenic glacial erosion surface showing corrugated glacial lineations, tillites, and glaciotectonic structures. The Middle Ordovician to Silurian megasequence is finally truncated by a base-Devonian, angular unconformity overlain by fluvial sandstones. Regarding the possibility that those fluvial deposits may be as younger as Late Devonian in the eastern Murzuq Basin based on palaeoflora, the so-called Caledonian unconformity might be here a much younger (mid-Eifelian?) surface, and the occurrence of the Lower Devonian “Tadrart Fm.” is questioned. The Upper Ordovician glacial erosion surface, which is sometimes referred to as the Taconic unconformity, usually truncates Middle Ordovician strata in the Murzuq Basin but reaches significantly deeper stratigraphic levels in places that have been previously involved in the intra-Ordovician deformation event. In the Murizidié (southeastern Murzuq Basin), the infra-Tassilian surface, the intra-Ordovician unconformity, and the Upper Ordovician glacial erosion surface amalgamate together. Here, an estimate of the glacial erosion depth cannot be derived from the stratigraphic hiatus beneath the glacial incision, the main part of which relate to the intra-Ordovician tectonic event. The Upper Ordovician climate-related glacial erosion surface is not a valid unconformity for a sequence hierarchy framework of the Lower Palaeozoic, although it presents most of the physical attributes of tectonic-driven unconformities.     

从牙形刺动物群论依木干他乌组的时代

从牙形刺动物群论依木干他乌组的时代张师本，王成源（江汉石油管理局勘探开发研究院，湖北潜江，４３３１２４）（中国科学院南京地质古生物研究所，南京，２１０００８）关键词依木干他乌组，志留系，牙形刺，塔里木盆地，新疆依木干他乌组由地矿部１３大队（１９５６年...     

鄂尔多斯盆地煤的灰分和硫、磷、氯含量研究

详细阐述了鄂尔多斯盆地煤的灰分产率和硫、磷及氯含量的空间及垂向分布规律,并探讨了煤中硫。磷及氯含量的影响因素。研究结果表明,石炭-二叠纪煤以中灰煤为主,部分为高灰煤;低灰煤仅分布在局部地区,且灰分产率与全流呈负相关;延安组以特低灰—低灰煤为主,中灰煤次之,空间上灰分北高南低、东高西低;太原组以中高硫煤为主,山西组则以低硫煤为特征,空间上呈南高北低、西高车低之趋势;延安组亦以低硫煤为主。煤中形态硫以黄铁矿硫为主,有机硫次之,硫酸盐硫极少。从太原组到山西组再到延安组,煤中硫呈递减趋势,这与聚煤环境的变化密切相关。该盆地煤含磷低,少部分为特低磷煤。煤中氯的质量分数值平均为425．8×10-6,空间上中南部高、北西部低;垂向上,下部煤层中氯的含量高于中上部煤层,这可能与煤中氯的成因有关。     

Palaeozoic synorogenic sedimentation in central and northern Australia: A review of distribution and timing with implications for the evolution of intracontinental orogens

The Palaeozoic Alice Springs Orogeny was a major intraplate tectonic event in central and northern Australia. The sedimentological, structural and isotopic effects of the Alice Springs Orogeny have been well documented in the northern Amadeus Basin and adjacent exhumed Arunta Inlier, although the full regional extent of the event, as well as lateral variations in timing and intensity are less well known. Because of the lack of regional isotopic data, we take a sedimentological approach towards constraining these parameters, compiling the location and age constraints of inferred synorogenic sedimentation across a number of central and northern Australian basins. Such deposits are recorded from the Amadeus, Ngalia, Georgina, Wiso, eastern Officer and, possibly, Warburton Basins. Deposits are commonly located adjacent to areas of significant basement uplift related to north‐south shortening. In addition, similar aged orogenic deposits occur in association with strike‐slip tectonism in the Ord and southern Bonaparte Basins of northwest Australia. From a combination of sedimentological and isotopic evidence it appears that localised convergent deformation started in the Late Ordovician in the eastern Arunta Inlier and adjacent Amadeus Basin. Synorogenic style sedimentation becomes synchronously widespread in the late Early Devonian and in most areas the record terminates abruptly close to the end of the Devonian. A notable exception is the Ngalia Basin in which such sedimentation continued until the mid‐Carboniferous. In the Ord and Bonaparte Basins there is evidence of two discrete pulses of transcurrent activity in the Late Devonian and Carboniferous. The sedimentological story contrasts with the isotopic record from the southern Arunta Inlier, which has generally been interpreted in terms of continuous convergent orogenic activity spanning most of the Devonian and Carboniferous, with a suggestion that rates of deformation increased in the mid‐Carboniferous. Either Carboniferous sediments have been stripped off by subsequent erosion, or sedimentation outpaced accommodation space and detritus was transported elsewhere.