The deep-lake deposit in the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in Ordos Basin,China and its significance for oil-gas accumulation

The deep-lake facies of the Yanchang Formation represents a large outflowing lake basin in the Ordos area. Its deposition can be divided into four stages: lake genetic and expanding stage, peak stage, inversion stage and dying stage. All the stages are obviously consistent with the evolution of depositional environment and the paleoclimate in the region. The study indicates that the lake basin has evolution fluctuations from highstand to lowstand for four times in its evolution history, and the deposition center of the lake has not obviously moved, staying along the Huachi-Yijun belt. The deep lake sedimentary system mainly consists of deep water deltas and turbidite fans during the entire evolution course of the lake basin in the Late Triassic. The former mainly developed on the slope of steep shore of the delta in the early period of the deep-water expansion and gradually experienced a big shift from deep-water deltas to shallow-water platform delta. And the latter appeared almost in all the above stages and had two types of turbidite fans, slope-moving turbidite fans and slump turbidite fans. The slope-moving turbidite fans have relatively complete facies belts overlapping one another vertically and consist of the slope channel of inter fans, the turbidite channel, inter turbidite channel and turbidite channel front of middle fans and outer fans (or lakebottom plain). However, the slide-moving turbidity fans are formed in the deep lake with their microfacies difficult to be distinguished, and only the center microfacies and edge microfacies can be determined. The two types of the turbidity fans are similarly distributing in the near-root-slope and far-root-slope regions. The deep-lake deposition governs the distribution of the hydrocarbon and reservoir, while the slope-moving turbidite fans are excellent reservoirs for oil-gas exploration due to their great thickness, widespread distribution and accumulation properties.

     

The deep-lake deposit in the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in Ordos Basin,China and its significance for oil-gas accumulation

The deep-lake facies of the Yanchang Formation represents a large outflowing lake basin in the Ordos area. Its deposition can be divided into four stages: lake genetic and expanding stage, peak stage, inversion stage and dying stage. All the stages are obviously consistent with the evolution of depositional environment and the paleoclimate in the region. The study indicates that the lake basin has evolution fluctuations from highstand to lowstand for four times in its evolution history, and the deposition center of the lake has not obviously moved, staying along the Huachi-Yijun belt. The deep lake sedimentary system mainly consists of deep water deltas and turbidite fans during the entire evolution course of the lake basin in the Late Triassic. The former mainly developed on the slope of steep shore of the delta in the early period of the deep-water expansion and gradually experienced a big shift from deep-water deltas to shallow-water platform delta. And the latter appeared almost in all the above stages and had two types of turbidite fans, slope-moving turbidite fans and slump turbidite fans. The slope-moving turbidite fans have relatively complete facies belts overlapping one another vertically and consist of the slope channel of inter fans, the turbidite channel, inter turbidite channel and turbidite channel front of middle fans and outer fans (or lakebottom plain). However, the slide-moving turbidity fans are formed in the deep lake with their microfacies difficult to be distinguished, and only the center microfacies and edge microfacies can be determined. The two types of the turbidity fans are similarly distributing in the near-root-slope and far-root-slope regions. The deep-lake deposition governs the distribution of the hydrocarbon and reservoir, while the slope-moving turbidite fans are excellent reservoirs for oil-gas exploration due to their great thickness, widespread distribution and accumulation properties.     

The deep-lake deposit in the Upper Triassic Yanchang Formation in Ordos Basin, China and its significance for oil-gas accumulation

The deep-lake facies of the Yanchang Formation represents a large outflowing lake basin in the Ordos area. Its deposition can be divided into four stages lake genetic and expanding stage, peak stage, inversion stage and dying stage. All the stages are obviously consistent with the evolution of depositional environment and the paleoclimate in the region. The study indicates that the lake basin has evolution fluctuations from highstand to lowstand for four times in its evolution history, and the deposition center of the lake has not obviously moved, staying along the Huachi-Yijun belt. The deep lake sedimentary system mainly consists of deep water deltas and turbidite fans during the entire evolution course of the lake basin in the Late Triassic. The former mainly developed on the slope of steep shore of the delta in the early period of the deep-water expansion and gradually experienced a big shift from deep-water deltas to shallow-water platform delta. And the latter appeared almost in all the above stages and had two types of turbidite fans, slope-moving turbidite fans and slump turbidite fans. The slope-moving turbidite fans have relatively complete facies belts overlapping one another vertically and consist of the slope channel of inter fans, the turbidite channel, inter turbidite channel and turbidite channel front of middle fans and outer fans (or lakebottom plain). However, the slide-moving turbidity fans are formed in the deep lake with their microfacies difficult to be distinguished, and only the center microfacies and edge microfacies can be determined. The two types of the turbidity fans are similarly distributing in the near-root-slope and far-root-slope regions. The deep-lake deposition governs the distribution of the hydrocarbon and reservoir, while the slope-moving turbidite fans are excellent reservoirs for oil-gas exploration due to their great thickness, widespread distribution and accumulation properties.     

Sedimentary history with biotic reaction in the Middle Permian shelly sequence of the Southern Kitakami Massif,Japan

The transition of sedimentary environments and their organism‐related responses is exemplified in the active margin setting of the Middle Permian in the Southern Kitakami Massif. The transition in the sedimentary environment began with a shallowing‐upward sequence at an upper slope to an outer shelf depositional setting that was associated with a delta system which transported abundant botanic remains in the Hoso‐o Formation. By contrast, the sediments of the overlying Kamiyasse Formation, the base of which is roughly equivalent to the lowermost Capitanian, were deposited at a lower shoreface to the outer shelf setting, which originated from complex depositional sources, including beach, near shore reef mounds and a nearby independent area of shallow and hard substratum with a considerable difference of depth. This unique depositional setting resulted in the seemingly ‘mixed’ fauna associated with this formation. The depositional environment of the overlying Kurosawa Formation is similar to that of the Hoso‐o Formation, but with far fewer monotonous biotic remains. A comparison of lithological characteristics and fossil remains with those of neighboring regions suggests that the independent mounds were generated as if the talus formed elsewhere so as to provide a large amount of skeletal elements to a deeper basin in the earliest Capitanian. Accordingly, the complex sedimentary setting observed in the Kamiyasse Formation occurs widely throughout the South Kitakami Massif, making possible the ‘mixed’ and seemingly diverse fauna from a mixture of multiple allochthonous origins.     

Depositional sequence architecture and filling response model of the Cretaceous in the Kuqa depression, the Tarim basin

The Cretaceous system of the Kuqa depression is a regional scale (second order) depositional sequence defined by parallel unconformities or minor angular unconformities. It can be divided into four third-order sequence sets, eleven third-order sequences and tens of fourth- and fifth-order sequences. It consists generally of a regional depositional cycle from transgression to regression and is composed of three sets of facies associations: alluvial-fluvial, braided river-deltaic and lacustrine-deltaic facies associations. They represent the lowstand, transgressive and highstand facies tracts within the second-order sequence. The tectonic subsidence curve reconstructed by backstripping technique revealed that the Cretaceous Kuqa depression underwent a subsidence history from early accelerated subsidence, middle rapid subsidence and final slower subsidence phases during the Cretaceous time, with the correspondent tectonic subsidence rates being 30-35 m/Ma, 40-45 m/Ma and 5-10 m/Ma obtained from northern foredeep. This is likely attributed to the foreland dynamic process from early thrust flexural subsidence to late stress relaxation and erosion rebound uplift. The entire sedimentary history and the development of the three facies tracts are a response to the basin subsidence process. The slower subsidence foreland gentle slope was a favorable setting for the formation of braided fluvial deltaic systems during the late period of the Cretaceous, which comprise the important sandstone reservoirs in the depression. Sediment records of impermanent marine transgression were discovered in the Cretaceous and the major marine horizons are correctable to the highstands of the global sea level during the period.     

Late Cretaceous paleoenvironment and lake level fluctuation in the Songliao Basin,northeastern China

Study of Late Cretaceous lacustrine sedimentary strata in the eastern Songliao Basin, China revealed that the paleoclimate was relatively arid and hot during sedimentation of the upper Santonian of the Yaojia Formation, but became relatively humid and warm during deposition of the lower Campanian Nenjiang Formation. The upper Yaojia Formation was deposited in a freshwater lake environment, while the lower Nenjiang Formation was deposited in a slightly brackish to brackish environment. The average total organic carbon content in the upper Yaojia Formation is 0.15%, while the hydrogen index is 36 mg_HC/g_TOC, implying poor source rock for oil generation and the organic matter comprised of a mixture of woody and herbaceous organic matter. In contrast, the hydrogen index of oil shale and black shale of the lower Nenjiang Formation is 619 mg_HC/g_TOC, and total organic carbon content on average is 3.37%, indicating a mixed algae and herbaceous source of kerogen and an increase in aquatic bioproductivity. The black shale and oil shale have low Pristane/Phytane and C₂₉ 5α,14α,17α(H) ? stigmastane 20R/(20R + 20S) ratios, with maximum concentration of n‐alkanes at n‐C₂₃, implying an anoxic depositional environment with algae, bacteria and higher plants providing most of the organic matter. Relatively abundant gammacerane and a higher Sr/Ba ratio in the oil shales suggest the presence of brackish water and development of salinity stratification in the lake. During sedimentation of the upper Yaojia through the lower Nenjiang Formations, the level of Songliao lake increased and a deep‐lake environment was formed with bottom waters being oxygen depleted. Concomitantly, as the lake deepened bottom conditions were changing from oxic to anoxic, and the input of organic matter changed from predominantly higher plants to a mixture of bacteria, algae and higher plants providing favorable conditions for oil source rock accumulation.     

沿雅鲁藏布江（东段）地区推覆与反向冲断构造的地质特征及其形成机制

沿雅鲁藏布江（东段）两岸至少发育着两套断裂系统。其一是断面北倾,由北向南远距离的推覆断裂系,发育着构造窗和飞来峰。该断裂系形成在洋－陆俯冲和陆－陆碰撞两个造山阶段（１００～２６Ｍａ）;其二是断面向南陡倾,由南向北逆冲,切割了早期的由北向南的推覆断裂系的反向冲断层系。该断裂系形成于碰撞造山阶段晚期（＜２６Ｍａ）的局部反向道冲作用或造山期后的重力伸展作用。上述两套断裂系的叠加造成沿江地区构造的复杂     

南黄海Heuksan盆地的地震地层学研究

南黄海中的南HEUKSAN盆地是一个介于矩形到菱形之间、大小大致为32 km×13 km的盆地.这个盆地有两个最厚的沉积中心;一个在盆地西部中央,地震双程到时2.2 s的部位;另一个在盆地东部中央位置.二者之间以中央隆起相隔.盆地的地震剖面可以进一步划分为古生代到三叠纪时期的前地堑相沉积,新生代的地堑充填沉积及中新世到上新世时期的的内凹沉积.地堑充填时期的沉积可以分为两个地震层序A和B.层序A和B又可以进一步划分为3到4个亚层序.在南HEUKSAN盆地利用地震层序学的方法对上始新统地震剖面进行了较为详细的分析.认为古水流大部分是从盆地的西部流入的.因此推断其沉积物源主要来自西北部地区,其次来自于盆地的北部.顶积层为三角洲相.根据反射地震剖面的连续性、振幅和反射频率等在上始新统的地震剖面上划分出4个地震相带.地震相A区主要位于两大沉积中心部位.为三角洲前缘泥砂.相带B位于沉积区的西北边缘为平坦三角洲的沙砾.相带C2沿着南部的盆地边缘断裂带分布,为冲积扇.结论认为:始新统的地震解释剖面表明当时主要为三角洲沉积.主要沉积物来自西北的陆源区和南HEUKSAN盆地的西北部.在盆地的南部边缘,沿着盆地的边界断层发育有冲积扇的沉积环境.     

Deep-water sediments and evolution of the Lower Triassic Xikou Formation in southwestern Fujian, China

The Lower Triassic Xikou Formation in southwestern Fujian, China is a set of complex deep-water sediments which includes turbidites, sandy contourites and isolated olistoliths. Five facies and seven subfacies are recognized in the deep-water turbidites, which are considered to belong to five facies associations of upper, middle and lower fans, respectively. The sandy contourites, which occur within turbidites as isolated thin layers with structures of traction current, are formed by reworking turbidites. They occur in discrete units, not as a part of a vertical sequence of structures, such as Bouma sequence. Paleocurrent directions derived from sandy contourites are perpendicular to or at a large angle of those derived from turbidites. In some areas, within the Formation there exist large oolitic limestone blocks slided from shallow sea. The temporal-spatial distribution of three types of sediments mentioned above and the related evidences could indicate that a passive continental margin from shallow sea to bathyal-abyssal region, dipping toward southeast, once occurred in study area during the early Triassic. The early Triassic represents a period of sealevel uprising. The uprising of sea level and the development of isolated olistoliths probably imply gradual shrinking of an ocean basin at that time. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 49490011, 49702036).     

Clay mineralogy of the first and second members of the Nenjiang Formation,Songliao Basin: Implications for paleoenvironment in the Late Cretaceous

The first and second members of the Nenjiang Formation (K₂n¹⁺²) in the Songliao Basin, northeast China, are an interval of dark-colored mudstone. Paleoenvironmental studies of these strata are useful for understanding the terrestrial environment under a greenhouse climate and hydrocarbon accumulation in lake basins. In this study, clay mineralogy of the K₂n¹⁺² from four borehole or outcrop sections is investigated to understand terrestrial paleoenvironment during the depositional period in the Late Cretaceous. In the mudstone samples, smectite and illite are the predominant clay minerals, and were derived from weathering of parent rocks in a temperate, sub-humid to sub-arid climate; kaolinite and chlorite are minor clay species. The difference in the clay-mineral assemblages between the eastern and western margins of the basin was primarily controlled by provenance lithology, and the high smectite content in the western basin resulted from alteration of volcanic rocks exposed in the Greater Xing’an Range area. The increasing illite content and ratio of illite/smectite percentages in the upper part of the first member of the Nenjiang Formation indicate paleoenvironmental change. This temporal change in the clay-mineral composition was primarily caused by a regionally cooler and drier paleoclimate, consistent with previous paleoenvironmental reconstructions.     

Catchment lithology as a major control on alluvial megafan development,Kohrud Mountain range,central Iran

The relative importance of tectonics, climate, base level and source lithology as primary factors on alluvial‐fan evolution, fan morphology and sedimentary style remain in question. This study examines the role of catchment lithology on development and evolution of alluvial megafans (>30 km in length), along the flanks of the Kohrud Mountain range, NE Esfahan, central Iran. These fans toe out at axial basin river and playa‐fringe sediments towards the centre of basin and tectonics, climatic change and base‐level fluctuations, were consistent for their development. They formed in a tectonically active basin, under arid to semiarid climate and a long term (Plio‐Pleistocene to Recent) change from wetter to drier conditions. The key differences between two of these fans, Soh and Zefreh fans, along the west and south flanks of this mountain range, is that their catchments are underlain by dissimilar bedrock types. The source‐area lithologies of the Soh and Zefreh fans are in sedimentary and igneous terrains, respectively, and these fans developed their geometry mainly in response to different weathering intensities of their catchment bedrock lithologies. Fan surface mapping (based on 1/50000 topographic maps, satellite images, and fieldwork), reveals that the geomorphic evolution of these fans differs in that the relatively large‐scale incision and through trenching of the Soh fan is absent in the Zefreh fan. Whereas the limited sediment supply of the Soh fan has resulted in a deep incised channel, the Zefreh fan has remained aggradational with little or no trenching into proximal to medial fan surface due to its catchment bedrock geology, composed mainly by physically weathered volcaniclastic lithology and characterized by high sediment supply for delivery during episodic flash floods. Sediment supply, which is mainly a function of climate and source lithology, is a dominant driver behind the development of fan sequences in alluvial megafans. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Paleoenvironments of the evolving Pliocene to early Pleistocene foreland basin in northwestern Taiwan: An example from the Dahan River section

The overriding of the Luzon volcanic arc atop the underlying Chinese rifted‐continental margin has caused the formation of the Taiwan mountain belts and a peripheral foreland basin west of the orogen since the late Miocene. In this study, lithofacies analysis and calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphic investigations of the Dahan River section in northwestern (NW) Taiwan were performed. Our results offer insights into the temporal evolution of the sedimentary environments and the competing effects of the sedimentation and basin tectonics of the NW Taiwan foreland basin from the Pliocene to early Pleistocene. Nannofossil biostratigraphic studies showed that the upper Kueichulin Formation and the overlying Chinshui Shale can be assigned to the NN15 biozone of the Pliocene age, and the Cholan Formation pertains to NN16–NN18 of the early Pleistocene. The NN15–NN16 boundary coincides roughly with the boundary of the Chinshui Shale and Cholan Formation. We recognized three major sedimentary environments in the studied foreland succession comprising the upper Kueichulin Formation, Chinshui Shale, Cholan Formation and Yangmei Formation, in ascending order. During the deposition of the upper Kueichulin Formation in the early Pliocene, the dominant environment was a wave‐ and tide‐influenced open marine setting. During the late Pliocene, the environment deepened to an outer‐offshore setting when the sediments of Chinshui Shale were accumulated. In the Pleistocene, the environment then shallowed to wave‐dominated estuaries during the deposition of the lower Cholan Formation, and the basin was rapidly filled, generating a meandering and sandy braided river environment during the deposition of the upper Cholan to the Yangmei Formation. In summary, the evolution of sedimentary environments in the studied succession shows a deepening then a shallowing and coarsening upward trend during the period from the Pliocene to the Pleistocene, spanning the age from approximately 4 to 1 Ma.     

Earthquake event deposits in Mesoproterozoic Kunyang Group in central Yunnan Province and its geological implications

Earthquake and its resultant tsunami, as a kind of disaster events in geological history, may be recorded as event deposits of seismite and tsunamite. Typical characteristics of seismite and tsunamite, including seismo-fracture bed, synsedimentary microfracture, micro-corrugated lamination, molar tooth structure, hummocky bedding, occurs in Mesoproterozoic Dalongkou Formation of Kunyang Group in central Yunnan Province. Three types of sedimentary units have been recognized: seismite (unit-A, including limestone with molar tooth structure, seismic shattering rock, seismic corrugated rock, autoclastic breccia and intraclastic parabreccia), tsunamite (unit-B, intraclastic limestone with hummocky or parallel beddings) and background deposits (unit-C). Various stackings of these units construct three distinct sedimentary sequences: A-B-C, A-C and B-C. A-B-C represents an event sedimentary sequence of earthquake-tsunami-background deposits, A-C represents the sequence of earthquake and background deposits (no tsunami occurring), and B-C represents the sequence of tsunami and background deposits (far from the center of earthquake). As the central Yunnan Province was located in a tectonic setting of rift basin in Mesoproterozoic Era, the earthquake event deposits of the Dalongkou Formation are sedimentary response to tectonic activity of the rift basin.     

地震火山地层学及其在我国火山岩盆地中的应用

火山地层,物源来自于地下,搬运和分散方式有岩浆流、碎屑流、空落堆积及它们的再搬运,是不同于所有沉积地层的"异化地层".与层序地层学研究沉积地层类似,火山地层学着重研究火山岩系的层序界面和内部充填样式,通过地震层序分析刻画成因地层单元和地层对比关系.应用地震火山地层学在南海北部陆缘带识别出向海倾斜反射(SDR)、向陆流、...     

Base level change and depositional filling response of Jurassic in the Qiangtang Basin of Tibet

The base level during the deposition of Jurassic in the Qiangtang Basin shows a complete cycle from rising to falling. The base level change is closely connected with tectonic evolution of the basin, especially connected with Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean evolution process in the formation and evolution of the basin. It is also affected by climate. The Jurassic strata correspond to a long-term base level cycle sequence. The sequence is in fact a non-complete symmetrical cycle, consisting of rising hemicycle and falling hemicycle. It can be divided into 6 intermediate-term base level cycle sequences, including 2 carbonate sequences, 3 mixture sedimentary sequences of carbonate and clastic rocks and one clastic sedimentary sequence. Depositional filling characteristics during base level change show that Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean spreads in Toarcian-Bajocian ages, and is at the height of spreading of Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean in Bathonian-Oxfordian ages. In that process, sea area became smaller because of the dry climate. Eventually, marine depositional filling is ended with the subduction and collision of Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean.

     

Comprehensive constraint on the tectono-sedimentary setting of Late Paleozoic turbidites of the Kamuste area, eastern Junggar, Xinjiang

Petrography and geochemistry, combined with sedimentation analyses allow for a thorough evaluation of the tectono-sedimentary setting of late Paleozoic turbidites of the Kamuste area, eastern Junggar. Sandstones of the Alabiye¹⁾ Formation are composed mostly of volcanic and sedimentary detritus with lesser amounts of plagioclase and quartz. They were derived from an undissected magmatic-arc provenance. The geochemistry of sandstone-mudrock suites indicates a fesic-intermediate igneous provenance, and constrains the Alabiye Formation to have derived from a differentiated oceanic-continental margin island-arc tectonic setting. Likewise, geochemistry and sandstone petrography of the Kamuste Formation reflect a mixed provenance signature dominated by magmatic arc, basement uplift, and subduction-complex sources of a differentiated continental-island arc. Sedimentation analysis indicates that the Alabiye and Kamuste formations are two sets of turbidite sequences deposited on a submarine slope and a submarine fan and basin plain respectively. In conclusion, submarine slope turbidite deposition of the Alabiye Formation records the main sedimentary response to the development of early Devonian back-arc basins of the northern Junggar tectonic belt. Submarine fan and basin plain turbidite and background hemipelagic deposition of the Kamuste Formation record the main sedimentary response to the late Early Carboniferous development of an inter-arc relict ocean basin of the eastern Junggar composite terrane.     

Timing and development of sedimentation of the Cleaverville Formation and a post‐accretion pull‐apart system in the Cleaverville area,coastal Pilbara Terrane,Pilbara, Western Australia

In the Cleaverville area of Western Australia, the Regal, Dixon Island, and Cleaverville Formations preserve a Mesoarchean lower‐greenschist‐facies volcano‐sedimentary succession in the coastal Pilbara Terrane. These formations are distributed in a rhomboidal‐shaped area and are unconformably overlain by two narrowly distributed shallow‐marine sedimentary sequences: the Sixty‐Six Hill and Forty‐Four Hill Members of the Lizard Hills Formation. The former member is preserved within the core of the Cleaverville Syncline and the latter formed along the northeast‐trending Eighty‐Seven Fault. Based on the metamorphic grade and structures, two deformation events are recognized: D₁ resulted in folding caused by a collisional event, and D₂ resulted in regional sinistral strike‐slip deformation. A previous study reported that the Cleaverville Formation was deposited at 3020 Ma, after the Prinsep Orogeny (3070–3050 Ma). Our SHRIMP U–Pb zircon ages show that: (i) graded volcaniclastic–felsic tuff within the black shale sequence below the banded iron formation in the Cleaverville Formation yields an age of (3 114 ±14) Ma; (ii) the youngest zircons in sandstones of the Sixty‐Six Hill Member, which unconformably overlies pillow basalt of the Regal Formation, yield ages of 3090–3060 Ma; and (iii) zircons in sandstones of the Forty‐Four Hill Member show two age peaks at 3270 Ma and 3020 Ma. In this way, the Cleaverville Formation was deposited at 3114–3060 Ma and was deformed at 3070–3050 Ma (D₁). Depositional age of the Cleaverville Formation is at least 40–90 Myr older than that proposed in previous studies and pre‐dates the Prinsep Orogeny (3070–3050 Ma). After 3020 Ma, D₂ resulted in the formation of a regional strike‐slip pull‐apart basin in the Cleaverville area. The lower‐greenschist‐facies volcano‐sedimentary rocks are distributed only within this basin structure. This strike‐slip deformation was synchronous with crustal‐scale sinistral shear deformation (3000–2930 Ma) in the Pilbara region.     

Gross Brukkaros (Namibia)—an enigmatic crater-fill reinterpreted as due to Cretaceous caldera evolution

At Gross Brukkaros a central depression has developed within domed Nama Group sediments and has functioned as a local depocenter, with a primary fill deposited during the Cretaceous and a small secondary fill by alluvial fans during the Tertiary and Quaternary. The diameter of the entire structure is about 10 km and that of the central depression is about 3 km. Within this depocenter the sedimentary sequence consists mainly of debris-flow and mudflow deposits, with minor intercalations of fluviatile (braided channel) sediments and fossiliferous lacustrine deposits. The sedimentary system represents a set of coalesced subaerial fans which formed a fringing sedimentary apron along the margin of the depocenter. This sedimentary apron passed distally and centrally into a permanent lake, which was characterized by a fluctuating water level. Facies transitions observed are typical of those described from modern and ancient fan delta systems. Contact relationships show the Gross Brukkaros sediments to be about the same age (Upper Cretaceous) as the surrounding carbonatitic volcanism. An Upper Cretaceous age is also consistent with the plant fossil association recently recognized within the lacustrine beds of Gross Brukkaros. We attribute the genesis of the dome structure to the shallow intrusion of a laccolith-shaped, strongly alkaline to carbonatitic magma body. Subsequent depletion of the reservoir due to volcanic activity around and in(?) Gross Brukkaros led to subsidence resulting in the development of the Gross Brukkaros depocenter. Differences between Gross Brukkaros and the general caldera model consist of a radially oriented dike pattern and the formation of the caldera by downsagging rather than cauldron subsidence, as derived from the absence of ring faults and ring dikes. The first (radial dikes) may be attributed to comparatively strong initial doming; the latter (lack of ring faults) to the small size of the caldera, its incremental subsidence, and finally the sedimentary wall rocks instead of a rigid crystalline crust.     

Base level change and depositional filling response of Jurassic in the Qiangtang Basin of Tibet

The base level during the deposition of Jurassic in the Qiangtang Basin shows a complete cycle from rising to falling. The base level change is closely connected with tectonic evolution of the basin, especially connected with Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean evolution process in the formation and evolution of the basin. It is also affected by climate. The Jurassic strata correspond to a long-term base level cycle sequence. The sequence is in fact a non-complete symmetrical cycle, consisting of rising hemicycle and falling hemicycle. It can be divided into 6 intermediate-term base level cycle sequences, including 2 carbonate sequences, 3 mixture sedimentary sequences of carbonate and clastic rocks and one clastic sedimentary sequence. Depositional filling characteristics during base level change show that Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean spreads in Toarcian-Bajocian ages, and is at the height of spreading of Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean in Bathonian-Oxfordian ages. In that process, sea area became smaller because of the dry climate. Eventually, marine depositional filling is ended with the subduction and collision of Bangonghu-Nujiang ocean.     

A preliminary study of NW Zhejiang foreland fold and thrust belt in Southeast China

The Upper Permian Dalong Formation (P₂d) and Changxing Formation (P₂C), and the Lower Triassic Zhengtang Formation (Tlz) are of deep-water turbidites. The sedimentary features of the NW Zhejiang are of SE-dipping passive continental margin from the Paleozoic to the early Triassic. Together with the foreland molasse basin during the late Triassic (T₃w), the tectonics of the NW Zhejiang is characterised by a tectogenesis which took place in the middle Triassic. From SE to NW, the structural style varies from multi-duplex, antiformal stack to imbricate fans, and then to Jura Mountain-type fold zone with fold-style varying gradually from large-scale tight fold to midscale chevron fold, then to cylindrical fold, reviewing a preliminary scenario of foreland fold and thrust belt. The space-distributed structures and the tectonic vergence indicate the significance of deformation in (T1-T₃). Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and Chinese Academy of Sciences.