Aliphatic biomarker signatures of early Oligocene-early Miocene source rocks in the central Qiongdongnan Basin: Source analyses of organic matter

The geochemical signatures of fifty-four rock samples and three supplementary drill stem test(DST) oils from the Yacheng-Sanya formations in the central Qiongdongnan Basin(CQB) were analysed. Reconstruction of the early Oligocene-early Miocene(36–16 Ma) palaeovegetation and source analyses of organic matter(OM) were conducted using aliphatic biomarkers in ancient sediments and DST oils. Both the interpreted aquatic and terrigenous OM contributed to the CQB source rocks(SRs) but had varying relat...     

Contemporary versus long‐term denudation along a passive plate margin: the role of extreme events

Short‐term (contemporary) and long‐term denudation rates were determined for the Blue Mountains Plateau in the western Sydney Basin, Australia, to explore the role of extreme events (wildfires and catastrophic floods) in landscape denudation along a passive plate margin. Contemporary denudation rates were reconstructed using 40 years of river sediment load data from the Nattai catchment in the south‐west of the basin, combined with an analysis of hillslope erosion following recent wildfires. Long‐term denudation rates (10 kyr–10 Myr) were determined from terrestrial cosmogenic nuclides, apatite fission track thermochronology and post‐basalt flow valley incision. Contemporary denudation rates average several times lower than the long‐term average (5·5 ± 4 mm kyr^?1 versus 21·5 ± 7 mm kyr^?1). Erosion of sediment following wildfires accounts for only a small proportion (5%) of the contemporary rate. Most post‐fire sediment is stored on the lower slopes and valley floor, with the amount transported to the river network dependent on rainfall–run‐off conditions within the first few years following the fire. Historical catastrophic floods account for a much larger proportion (35%) of the contemporary erosion rate, and highlight the importance of these events in reworking stored material. Evidence for palaeofloods much larger than those experienced over the past 200 years suggests even greater sediment export potential. Mass movement on hillslopes along valleys incised into softer lithology appears to be a dominant erosion process that supplies substantial volumes of material to the valley floor. It is possible that a combination of infrequent mass movement events and high fluvial discharge could account for a significant proportion of the discrepancy between the contemporary and long‐term denudation rates. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structure and tectonic evolution of the Southern Eurasia Basin, Arctic Ocean

Multichannel seismic reflection data acquired by Marine Arctic Geological Expedition (MAGE) of Murmansk, Russia in 1990 provide the first view of the geological structure of the Arctic region between 77–80°N and 115–133°E, where the Eurasia Basin of the Arctic Ocean adjoins the passive-transform continental margin of the Laptev Sea. South of 80°N, the oceanic basement of the Eurasia Basin and continental basement of the Laptev Sea outer margin are covered by 1.5 to 8 km of sediments. Two structural sequences are distinguished in the sedimentary cover within the Laptev Sea outer margin and at the continent/ocean crust transition: the lower rift sequence, including mostly Upper Cretaceous to Lower Paleocene deposits, and the upper post-rift sequence, consisting of Cenozoic sediments. In the adjoining Eurasia Basin of the Arctic Ocean, the Cenozoic post-rift sequence consists of a few sedimentary successions deposited by several submarine fans. Based on the multichannel seismic reflection data, the structural pattern was determined and an isopach map of the sedimentary cover and tectonic zoning map were constructed. A location of the continent/ocean crust transition is tentatively defined. A buried continuation of the mid-ocean Gakkel Ridge is also detected. This study suggests that south of 78.5°N there was the cessation in the tectonic activity of the Gakkel Ridge Rift from 33–30 until 3–1 Ma and there was no sea-floor spreading in the southernmost part of the Eurasia Basin during the last 30–33 m.y. South of 78.5°N all oceanic crust of the Eurasia Basin near the continental margin of the Laptev Sea was formed from 56 to 33–30 Ma.     

Nutrient maximums related to low oxygen concentrations in the southern Canada Basin

The phenomenon of nutrient maximums at 70～200 m occurred only in the region of the Canada Basin among the world oceans. The prevailing hypothesis was that the direct injection of the low-temperature high-nutrient brines from the Chukchi Sea shelf (＜50 m) in winter provided the nutrient maximums. However, we found that there are five problems in the direct injection process. Formerly Jin et al. considered that the formation of nutrient maximums can be a process of locally long-term regeneration. Here we propose a regeneration-mixture process. Data of temperature, salinity, oxygen and nutrients were collected at three stations in the southern Canada Basin during the summer 1999 cruise. We identified the cores of the surface, near-surface, potential temperature maximum waters and Arctic Bottom Water by the diagrams and vertical profiles of salinity, potential temperature, oxygen and nutrients. The historical 129Ⅰ data indicated that the surface and near-surface waters were Pacific-origin, but the waters below the potential temperature maximum core depth was Atlantic-origin. Along with the correlation of nutrient maximums and very low oxygen contents in the near-surface water, we hypothesize that, the putative organic matter was decomposed to inorganic nutrients; and the Pacific water was mixed with the Atlantic water in the transition zone. The idea of the regeneration-mixture process agrees with the historical observations of no apparent seasonal changes, the smooth nutrient profiles, the lowest saturation of CaCO3 above 400 m, low rate of CFC-11 ventilation and 3H-3He ages of 8～18 a around the nutrient maximum depths.     

南海中央海盆之东部次海盆后扩张期地层特征与影响因素

海底扩张形成的边缘海盆构造演化可划分为前扩张期、同扩张期与后扩张期等阶段。南海中央海盆巨厚的沉积地层大部分是扩张结束之后形成的,尤以东部次海盆地层厚度为最大。因受到不同因素的影响,在该次海盆不同的区域后扩张期发育的地层特征差别较大。这些现象反映海底扩张结束之后所发育的厚层地层中蕴含了大量南海构造演化的信息,因此深入分析该次海盆后扩张期的地层特征与影响因素是南海构造演化研究中不容忽略的环节。利用若干大洋钻孔年代地层资料,在过井剖面上进行合成地震记录标定、划分层序地层并确定其年代属性,并以此为依据分析讨论了本区的地层特征和相关的影响因素。结果表明,东部次海盆北部持续均衡的基底沉降和充足的陆缘物质形成厚度稳定的地层沉积;东部以微板块向马尼拉海沟俯冲为主要影响因素,使不同年代的地层各具特征;中部和西部岩浆活动是主要的影响因素,形成以火山碎屑物质为主的地层沉积;南部因当时的陆坡沉积环境和浊流活动的影响形成具有沉积物波特征的地层沉积。     

鄂尔多斯盆地延长组深水重力流岩相发育特征及其储集性

鄂尔多斯盆地陇东地区长7、长6油层组广泛发育深水重力流,基于对长7-长6段共计852.7 m岩心的精细分析并结合测井、录井等数据,总结分析了湖盆重力流沉积岩相的类型、成因、特征和发育规律。综合岩石类型、沉积构造和发育规模,共识别出8种岩相类型,分别是：滑动砂岩相(Sl)、滑塌砂岩相(Ss)、滑塌泥岩相(Sm)、中-薄层块状含砾砂岩相(Sc)、中-薄层块状纯净砂岩相(Sp)、厚层块状含砾砂岩相(St)、块状含砾泥岩相(Mc)、中-薄层具层理砂岩夹泥岩相(Tb)。按照Shanmugam基于重力流沉积过程的分类方法,Sl是滑动成因,Ss、Sm是滑塌成因,St、Sp、Sc、Mc是碎屑流成因,Tb是浊流成因。不同岩相发育规模差别较大,从累计厚度和发育频次上看,St、Sp规模最大。砂岩岩相可构成良好储层,St储层质量最好,其次为Sp、Sc,但Sp、Sc的发育规模远大于St,综合认为在实际勘探中Sp、Sc是重力流储层最有利的勘探目标。     

Sources and hydrothermal alteration of organic matter in Quaternary sediments: A synthesis of studies from the Central Gulf of California

Deep sea drilling in the Central Gulf of California, a young and active spreading centre, shows that the high heat flow typical of these regions causes extensive alteration of sediment organic matter, especially near sills and above magma chambers where hydrothermal activity is concentrated. Even on the nearby passive margin, where there are no sills, heat flow is moderately high and hydrocarbon generation has begun in immature sequences. Migrating light hydrocarbons are detected especially where hydrothermal activity is concentrated. Thermogenic methane is more widespread, though not in the passive margin bordering the spreading centre. Despite the incidence of hydrocarbon generation and migration, the amounts of hydrocarbons involved are relatively small and apparently do not lead to commercially significant accumulations of petroleum.The organic matter in these sediments is mostly marine because the Gulf of California generally has low runoff from land and highly productive surface waters. Turbidites rich in terrigenous organic material are locally abundant in the mainly pelagic section in the Guaymas Basin. The highest concentrations of organic matter are found in laminated diatomites deposited on the Guaymas passive margin within the oxygen minimum zone.     

Gravity Anomaly and Tectonics in the Northern Part of the North Fiji Basin - Preliminary Result of the 1994 NOFI Cruise under the NEW STARMER Programme

A surface ship gravity survey was carried out in the northern part of the North Fiji Basin during the NOFI cruise by the R/V l'Atalante in August-September, 1994. The two ridges inside the study area, the South Pandora Ridge and the Tripartite Ridge, present different structures and states of isostatic equilibrium in terms of gravity anomaly and its tectonic implications. The former is supported by a restoring force of an imaginary elastic plate in the crust and the latter by the Airy type isostasy. These characteristics can be derived from the difference in magmatic activity, as influenced by the difference in lithospheric structure. The latter is characterised by greater active magmatism and hydrothermalism underneath the ridge than the former. Such a difference in the magmatic activity and the horizontal scale of the shallow subsurface structure is derived from the difference in the stiffness or viscosity of the lithosphere beneath the two ridges.     

辽河盆地东部凹陷热历史及构造—热演化特征

根据辽河盆地东部凹陷大地热流测量和镜质体反射率数据,恢复了该区的热历史,结果表明:东部凹陷热流呈现古热流高现今热流低的变化特征,沙河街组三段沉积期到东营组沉积期(距今43～25Ma)盆地热流为66～82mWm2,现今热流值为47～70mWm2。构造沉降史分析显示,盆地经历了早期的裂谷阶段(距今43～25Ma)和后期的热沉降阶段,裂谷阶段包含了两个裂谷亚旋回。盆地现今较低的大地热流和较高的古热流及典型的裂谷型构造沉降样式为东部凹陷的构造—热演化提供了重要认识。     

A geophysical view of the Southeastern Brazilian margin at Santos Basin: Insights into rifting evolution

This study investigates the rifting structures of Santos Basin at the Southeastern Brazilian margin, based on an integrated geophysical approach. Our aim is to constrain the crustal basement topography of central and northern Santos basin, the presence of magmatism and the role of inherited structures in space and time through the rifting processes. We present a new high resolution aeromagnetic dataset, which in correlation with gravity anomalies enables us to interpret the tectonic trends and crustal basement structures. We calculated the magnetic basement depth for the central and northern Santos Basin using power spectrum analysis. The obtained depths range between 2 and 9 kms, and are comparable with results from previous works. From our integrated study, three margin domains could be identified, which display distinct rifting structures and are characterized by important lateral variation along the margin. The proximal domain displays trends and magnetic basement blocks NE–SW oriented, i.e., parallel to inherited onshore crustal basement with an inflexion to E–W oriented trends; the necking domain is characterized by oblique magnetic basement highs and lows (E–W and NW–SE) and a structural trend change. The trends and magnetic basement highs are bounded by NW–SE negative anomalies, interpreted as transfer zones. Oceanwards at the distal domain, the lineaments and transfer zones show a progressive structural inflexion to ENE and E–W, sub-parallel to adjacent South Atlantic Fracture Zones. The observed crustal basement architecture and segmentation suggest the reactivation of pre-rift structures at the proximal margin and the obliquity of rifting relative to them. From the proximal domain oceanwards the structural pattern may reflect the passage from a “continental type” domain, where lithospheric inheritance controls the deformation, to a distal margin where this influence diminishes and “new” structural trends are formed. We propose that northern Santos Basin show evidences of an intensely deformed zone, where rift evolved under oblique extension, similar to that observed at transform margin segments.