The Precambrian-Cambrian transition is a period with enormous geological and biological changes. There is a wide distribution of black shale sequence in the Late Sinian and Early Cambrian strata along the passive southern margin of the Yangtze Platform in South China. The remarkable polymetallic sulfide extremely enriched ore layer is embedded at the bottom of the Lower Cambrian Niutitang Formation, but its genesis remains highly disputable. Known mechanisms can hardly explain the extreme enrichment and paragenesis of multimetal sulfides with regard to their highly variant properties. Here, a case study is performed about the polymetallic sulfide enriched ore layer and related strata from the black shale-dominated Niutitang Formation in Zunyi, Guizhou Province and Zhangjiajie, Hunan Province. A phosphorite-rich layer is situated near the bottom of the Niutitang Formation. A few meters above the phosphorite is the polymetallic sulfide enriched ore layer embedded in the carbonaceous black shale wall-rock. A Combination of different methodologies were used to examine the polymetallic enriched ore, the black shale wall-rock and the adjacent phosphorite samples, including optical microscopy, electron microscopy, Mössbauer spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, electron microprobe analysis, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, etc. Submicron-scale organic vesicles resembling green algae were noted in the polymetal sulfide enriched layer, indicating the key role of microbial activities during the mineralization of the polymetallic sulfide ores. Larger biogenic structures with possible hydrozoan and anthozoan (or algal) affinities were discovered from the polymetal sulfide ores and phosphorites, respectively, suggesting the participation of metazoan during the mineralization process. The ability of biomineralized molybdenite and apatite to preserve pseudomorphs is attributed to their fine crystal sizes, even if they were precipitated under drastically different geological conditions. The geochemical cycling of phosphorus and other nutrients probably involves multiple marine life-forms. Nickel and iron sulfides, on the contrary, were suggested to be incapable of preserving fine fossil structures because of high-degree recrystallization. In the polymetallic ores, pyrite was proved to be the predominant form of iron, and the uranium minerals were recognized as mainly coffinite and a small portion of uraninite. The uranium radioactive decay-caused carbonization effects were scrutinized in the micro-environment, suggesting the authigenecity of these uranium minerals. With these novel mineralogical, paleontological and geochemical evidence at the Precambrian-Cambrian boundary, new perspectives on the geobiology of the polymetallic sulfide ores are presented as follows. Both benthic and planktonic organisms might have actively participated in the early Cambrian metallogenesis. Polymetal biosorption by live and dead biomass, especially those from algal blooms, is hypothesized to be a major cause of the unusual polymetallic sulfide ore layer, followed by microbial reduction and immobilization in a stratified water column. This unique ore formation reflects the complicated mutual relationships between Cambrian biota and its paleoenvironment. These results may provide a better understanding of the role of biological activities in the problematic metallogenesis of the polymetal sulfide enriched ores and open a new window to the cognition of the hypothetic Cambrian Explosion. / published_or_final_version / Earth Sciences / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

No description available.

High-resolution lithostratigraphic data from rock sequences known as the Indidura Formation near Parras de La Fuente, Coahuila, NE Mexico, led to achieve a significant improvement of our knowledge of that Formation. The results of this study indicate for the first time that the sequence at Parras de La Fuente developed from the deposition of calcareous cyanobacterial microspheroids that accumulated under perennial blooms during the Late Cenomanian through the Middle Turonian. Multi-proxy analyses included sedimentological, petrographical, scanning electron microscopy, stable isotope, trace element geochemistry, and paleontological data. The combined results allowed the correlation of δ13C and anomalies in Mo, V, and Cr with the abundance and predominance of calcareous cyanobacterial microspheroids, which were the main suppliers of the carbonate components and the organic matter throughout deposition of the Indidura Formation in the Parras de la Fuente area, under dysoxic/anoxic conditions. Conspicuous interbeds of dark and light-gray laminated marly calcilutites, and dark-gray marlstones that characterize the stratigraphic sequence formed in response to external forcing climatic factors of millennial-scale Milankovitch cycles (ca. 20 ka precession). At the microscopic level, the prominent dark and light-gray laminae were formed during cycles similar to the 10 to 15 years solar irradiance maximum, and represent alternating periods of high and low calcareous cyanobacterial microspheroids productivity.

Dans de nombreux gisements métalliques, notamment en contexte sédimentaire et en particulier dans le cas des shales noirs, des relations spatiales voire génétiques sont décrites entre la matière organique et les métaux. Une série de shales/schistes noirs affectés par des conditions thermo barométriques croissantes a été sélectionnée afin d'étudier le comportement et le devenir de l'uranium de la sédimentation au métamorphisme. Dans les Alum Shales cambro ordoviciens (Suède) faiblement enfouis, l'uranium reste dispersé et n'apparaît sous aucune forme minéralogique identifiable. Le passage des Alum Shales dans la fenêtre pétrolière et la génération d'hydrocarbures n'a pas provoqué de remobilisation identifiable de la concentration primaire, les hydrocarbures migrés ne transportant pas l'uranium. En revanche, le métamorphisme de faciès schiste vert associé à l'orogénèse calédonienne a entraîné une réexpression de la minéralisation uranifère sous la forme d'uraninite, d'urano titanates et/ou de phospho silicates à U, Ti, Zr, Y. Dans le cas des schistes noirs paléoprotérozoïques de Talvivaara (Finlande), le métamorphisme de faciès amphibolite a provoqué la remobilisation de l'uranium synsédimentaire et la cristallisation synmétamorphique, pendant l'orogénèse svécofennienne à 1880 1870 Ma, de cristaux d'uraninite fréquemment inclus dans des nodules carbonés. Cette étude montre que l'uranium, préconcentré au moment de la sédimentation, reste immobile pendant les premiers stades d'enfouissement mais est remobilisé dans les conditions P T croissantes et cristallise sous forme d'oxydes d'uranium pouvant évoluer vers des (phospho-)silicates d'uranium / In many metallic deposits, especially in sedimentary context and particularly in black shales, spatial or genetic relationships are described between organic matter and metals. Several black shales/schists affected by increasing thermo barometric conditions were selected to study the behavior and fate of uranium from sedimentation to high grade metamorphism. In shallow buried cambro ordovician Alum Shales (Sweden), uranium is dispersed and is not detectable as a particular mineralogical expression. Thermal maturation of the Alum Shales and hydrocarbon generation did not cause any identifiable remobilization of primary concentration, since migrated hydrocarbons did not carry uranium. In contrast, greenschist facies metamorphism associated with the Caledonian orogeny resulted in a re expression of uranium mineralization as uraninite or urano titanate crystals, which may evolve into U Ti Zr Y phospho silicates. In the case of Talvivaara, amphibolite facies metamorphism caused remobilization of synsedimentary uranium and synmetamorphic crystallization, during Svecofennian orogeny at 1880 1870 Ma, of uraninite crystals that are frequently included in carbonaceous nodules. This study shows that uranium, which is preconcentrated during sedimentation, remains immobile in the early stages of burial but is remobilized with increasing PT conditions and crystallizes as uranium oxides and/or uranium (phospho-)silicates

Les niveaux gargasiens et albiens du Bassin vocontien (Sud-Est de la France) sont constitués par des marnes sombres dénomées "Marnes Bleues". Elles renferment en de nombreux points, des nodules barytiques qui ont été étudiés par PAILLERET (1983) . Une étude minéralogique, granulométrique et géochimique est effectuée sur dix coupes, de situations géographiques et d 'âges différents. La minéralogie des argiles est dominée par l'héritage, et elle permet de différencier trois périodes : - Gargasien - Albien inférieur: l'illite est dominante; - Albien moyen: les smectites prennent le pas sur l'illite; - Albien supérieur: les smectites dominent toujours, mais il apparait une proportion importante de kaolinite. Ces observations sont comparées avec celles de BROSSE (1982) sur les black shales gargaso-albiens de l'Atlantique Central. Un certain nombre d'indices minéralogiques et de relations entre la minéralogie et la géochimie des marnes nous font envisager une origine diagénétique pour certains minéraux: la chlorite, le quartz et certains minéraux entourés d'une auréole de lattes. Il n'existe pas de variations minéralogiques et/ou géochimiques importantes dans les horizons à nodules barytiques. Cependant dans les niveaux à nodules de l'Albien moyen et supérieur. la teneur en Ba est anormalement élevée et se traduit systématiquement par la présence de cristaux de barite (de l'ordre de 1 micron) * dans l'encaissant. L'étude granulométrique couplée aux résultats de l'analyse minéralogique permet de construire un modèle pour expliquer les différents types de croissance des nodules barytiques . Les teneurs anormales en Ba ne sont pas d ' origine détritique : il n'existe aucune relation entre la teneur en Ba dans la roche totale ou la fraction argileuse et la proportion en smectites ou en illites des marnes. Tant que les teneurs en Ba restent faibles, une corrélation avec les quantités de silice biogénique permet de retenir une origine diagénétique pour cet élément. Mais cette relation disparait lorsque les teneurs sont très élevées. Seule l'hypothèse d'une origine hydrothermale peut alors être avancée. Des déc0uvertes récentes (PAULL et al. , 1984) sur un hydrothermalisme "froid" donnent un nouvel éclairage à ce problème.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Riverside, 2009. / Includes abstract. Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Title from first page of PDF file (viewed March 16, 2010). Includes bibliographical references. Also issued in print.

Carbon/phosphorus ratios for late Devonian-early Mississippian marine black shales along a transect from the Illinois Basin, across the Cumberland Saddle, and into the Appalachian Basin were evaluated to assess the role of productivity in organic carbon accumulation. Phosphorus is a key limiting nutrient for biological productivity in marine environments and may be regenerated preferentially relative to organic carbon, the amount of regeneration possibly being related to bottom-water anoxia. A positive feed-back mechanism (more specifically, productivity-anoxia feedback or PAF) has been proposed between water-column anoxia, high benthic regeneration of phosphorus, and marine productivity. This regeneration of phosphorus under anoxic conditions and overturn of surface waters has been proposed as an explanation for enhanced organic matter accumulation in the Appalachian Devonian Basin. The Cumberland Saddle is a structurally low segment of the Cincinnati Arch that lies at the crest of the arch between the Jessamine and Nashville domes that connects the Illinois and Appalachian basins. C/P data for two cores in the Illinois Basin, four cores across the Cumberland Saddle, and two cores in the Appalachian Basin are discussed in light of the productivity-anoxia feedback model.

<p>The Long Rapids Formation in the Moose River Basin of northern Ontario is Upper Devonian in age and can be correlated with similar shale deposits in the Michigan, Appalachian, and Illinois Basins . The southern Ontario equivalent to the Long Rapids Formation is the Kettle Point Formation. </p> <p> The Long Rapids Formation is a marine black shale deposited predominantly under depleted oxygen conditions. Large amounts of marine organic matter from the water column and from terrestrial sources accumulated in reducing bottom waters with little recycling to produce brown to black, organic-rich sediments . The depositional basin was stratified, and anoxic bottom waters and oxic surface waters were separated by a pycnocline. The position of the pycnocline (or the absence of it) dictated the type of sediment deposited, and the relative depth of the pycnocline to the sediment-water interface was more important than the absolute depth of the water column. The Moose River Basin in Late Devonian times was located on the Laurasian Continent in an area experiencing tropical conditions and was affected by a period of transgression following the Acadian Orogeny. The black shales in the Long Rapids Formation represent a period of transgression of the large epicontinental Catskill Sea, whereas the green-grey mudstones and carbonates represent periods of minor eustatic changes. </p> <p> Dark-coloured facies with abundant bioturbation are overlain by lighter-coloured facies. Bioturbation is variable in the less abundant green-grey mudstone and carbonate facies, and were also low in organic matter. The ichnofauna suite Chondrites-Planolites-Zoophycos-Alcyonidiopsis-(?Teichichnus) represents an oxygen-minimum ichnofacies found predominantly in dark shale facies. As more oxygen was introduced to the sediment-water interface, more permanent burrow structures were constructed such as Teichichnus, Terebellina, ?Cylindrichnus, Skolithos, and Ichnogenus "A" in the green-grey mudstones and carbonates. As well, body fossils were more commonly found in those facies. The Leiorhynchus brachiopod fauna in the dark-coloured shales probably represents a sparse epifauna living in poorly oxygenated or temporarily oxic conditions in a basinal or open-shelf environment. </p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

No description available.

O presente trabalho consistiu na realização de um estudo geológico na porção norte da Bacia intracratônica do Paraná. O estudo buscou avaliar o potencial gerador e de exploração de shale gas e shale oil dos folhelhos negros da Formação Irati na região de Goiás e Mato Grosso, Centro-Oeste do Brasil, através da caracterização de geoquímica orgânica dos folhelhos, determinação do potencial gerador e grau de maturação da matéria orgânica dos folhelhos, caracterização das relações geológicas da formação, espessuras, áreas de ocorrência, alternância de camadas com carbonatos, profundidade de ocorrência, padrões de fraturamento, composição mineralógica e estimativa de reservas de shale gas tecnicamente recuperáveis. O trabalho contribui com uma metodologia que permite avaliar o potencial de geração e exploração de recursos de shale gas e shale oil. O estudo na temática de recursos energéticos não convencionais, com destaque para o shale gas, principal fonte de gás natural não convencional explorada no mundo, é de extrema importância, pois o gás natural é considerado um combustível de transição de uma matriz energética baseada em energias fósseis para uma matriz com predominância de energias renováveis, considerando-se os seus benefícios, tanto ambientais quanto em aspectos estratégicos e econômicos. Os valores de COT variam de 0,04 a 3,52% com média de 1,31%, o que lhes confere um bom potencial gerador de hidrocarbonetos na área de estudo. Foram encontrados valores no pico S2 que variam de 5,13 a 63,13 mg HC/g de rocha para a maioria das amostras estudadas pela pirólise Rock-Eval, conferindo-lhes um bom a excelente potencial petrolífero. Os folhelhos apresentam querogênio do tipo I, II e IV, com predomínio do querogênio do tipo II e IV. Estudos de maturidade térmica da matéria orgânica (querogênio) com base nos valores de Tmax, IH, IP e Ro, indicam seu grau como imaturo (com baixo nível de conversão em hidrocarbonetos) a supermaturo (zona de gás seco). Amostras que alcançaram a janela de geração de gás seco não possuem potencial para geração de hidrocarbonetos, uma vez que apresentam querogênio do tipo IV, que evidencia baixo poder de preservação da matéria orgânica durante o intenso magmatismo ocorrido no Mesozóico (Jurássico/Cretáceo). A maioria das amostras analisadas apresentam bom potencial para shale gas e/ou shale oil, porém as condições de temperatura e pressão durante a diagênese não foram suficientes para a maturação da matéria orgânica nos folhelhos. Os folhelhos possuem altos teores de quartzo e quantidades significativas de outros minerais tais como, o feldspato plagioclásio (albita), mica e carbonatos (calcita e dolomita), podendo responder favoravelmente à fraturamento hidráulico. A estimativa de reservas indica que a área de estudo poderia ter um potencial para cerca de 23 Trilhões de Pés Cúbicos de reservas de gás natural não comprovadas tecnicamente recuperáveis. / The present work consisted in the accomplishment of a geological study in the northern portion of the Intracratonic Basin of Paraná. The study aimed to evaluate the potential for shale gas and shale oil exploitation of the Irati Formation black shales in the region of Goiás and Mato Grosso, Mid-West of Brazil, through the characterization of organic geochemistry of shales, determination of the generating potential and degree of maturation of the organic matter of the shales, characterization of the geological relations of the formation, thicknesses, areas of occurrence, alternation of layers with carbonates, depth of occurrence, fracturing patterns, mineralogical composition and estimation of technically recoverable shale gas reserves. The work contributes with a methodology that allows to evaluate the potential of generation and exploitation of shale gas and shale oil resources. The study on the subject of unconventional energy resources, especially shale gas, the main source of unconventional natural gas explored in the world, is extremely important because natural gas is considered a transition fuel of a energy matrix based on energies fossils for a matrix with predominance of renewable energies, considering its benefits, both environmental and strategic and economic aspects. The TOC values vary from 0.04 to 3.52% with an average of 1.31%, which gives them a good hydrocarbon potential in the study area. S2 peak values ranging from 5.13 to 63.13 mg HC / g of rock were found for most of the samples studied by Rock-Eval pyrolysis, giving them a good excellent oil potential.The shales present type I, II and IV kerogen, with predominance of type II and IV kerogen. Thermal maturity studies of organic matter (kerogen) based on the values of Tmax, HI, PI and Ro, indicate their degree as immature (with low conversion level in hydrocarbons) to supermature (dry gas zone). Samples that reached the window of dry gas generation do not have potential for hydrocarbon generation, since they present type IV kerogen, which evidences low preservation power of organic matter during the intense magmatism occurring in the Mesozoic (Jurassic / Cretaceous). Most of the analyzed samples present good potential for shale gas and / or shale oil, but the conditions of temperature and pressure during diagenesis were not sufficient for the maturation of the organic matter in the shales. The shales have high quartz contents and significant amounts of other minerals such as plagioclase feldspar (albite), mica and carbonates (calcite and dolomite), and can respond favorably to hydraulic fracturing. The reserve estimate indicates that the study area could have a potential for about 23 trillion cubic feet of unproved technically recoverable natural gas reserves.