A study of the distribution of diagenetic alterations and their impact on reservoir-quality evolution in four deep-water turbidite successions (Cretaceous to Eocene) from basins in active (foreland) and passive margins revealed the impact of tectonic setting, depositional facies, and changes in the relative sea level. Diagenetic modifications encountered in the turbiditic sandstones from the passive margin basins include dissolution and kaolinitization (kaolin has δ18OV-SMOW = +13.3‰ to +15.2‰; δDV-SMOW = -96.6‰ to -79.6‰) of framework silicates, formation of grain coating chloritic and illitic clays, cementation by carbonates and quartz, as well as the mechanical and chemical compaction of detrital quartz. Kaolinitization, which is most extensive in the lowstand systems tracts, is attributed to meteoric-water flux during major fall in the relative sea level. Preservation of porosity and permeability in sandstones from the passive margin basins (up to 30% and 1 Darcy, respectively) is attributed to the presence of abundant rigid quartz and feldspar grains and to dissolution of carbonate cement as well as mica and feldspars. Diagenetic modifications in turbidites from the foreland basins include carbonate cementation and mechanical compaction of the abundant ductile rock fragments, which were derived from fold-thrust belts. These diagenetic alterations resulted in nearly total elimination of depositional porosity and permeability. The wide range of δ13CV−PDB values of these cements (about -18‰ to +22‰) in passive margin basins is attributed to input of dissolved carbon from various processes of organic matter alterations, including microbial methanogenesis and thermal decarboxylation of kerogen. The narrower range of δ13CV−PDB values of these cements (about -2‰ to +7‰) in the foreland basins suggests the importance of carbon derivation from the dissolution of carbonate grains. The generally wide range of δ18O values (about -17‰ to -1‰) of the carbonate cements reflect the impact of oxygen isotopic composition of the various fluid involved (including marine depositional waters, fluxed meteoric waters, evolved formation waters) and the wide ranges of precipitation temperatures. Results of this study are anticipated to have important implication for hydrocarbon exploration in deep-water turbidites from passive and active margin basins and for pre-drilling assessment of the spatial and temporal distribution of reservoir quality in such deposits.

The well-known clinoformal geometry of a basin-fill, with an alluvial to shelf segment, deep-water slope segment, and a basin floor segment, arises from the development of a wedge-shaped body of sediment at the basin-margin that has been termed a basin-margin wedge or a shelf-slope sedimentary prism. The basin-margin wedge characteristically has atopset-foreset clinoformal geometry, with its topset dominated by alluvial, coastal and shelfal processes, while its foreset is dominated by turbidite sedimentation. Tectonic configuration of the basin, sediment supply, and relative sea level variation are some of the major factors that control the development and growth of the basin-margin wedge. This dissertation documents two distinct stages of development of the basin-margin wedge at an Eocene active margin, and relates the observed variability in the nature of the shelf-margin, deep-water slope, and basin-floor deposits with these stages. The Tyee Basin in western Oregon was a forearc basin that was filled during late early Eocene and Middle Eocene under greenhouse climatic condition. The sedimentary succession of the Tyee Basin include continental, shallow-marine and deep-water sandstones that are well exposed in Coast Range area of Oregon. The variability observed within the thick and laterally extensive turbidite sandstones of the Tyee Basin led to contrasting depositional models for the Tyee basin in the past. Notably, the submarine ramp model, which provides an alternative model for deepwater coarse clastic deposition, was proposed based on the sedimentary succession of the Tyee Basin. Reconstruction of the clinoformal geometry of the Tyee Basin succession from detailed field data (more than 1000 outcrop locations) and subsurface data reveals two distinct stages of development of this active basin-margin. Each stage has a distinct style of clinoform development and a distinct character of associated sandy deepwater deposits. At the initial stage the basin-margin clinoforms appear to be small (< 250m clinoform height) and strongly progradational, with clinoform topset dominated by the feeder fluvial deposits. At this stage, sandy unconfined (not channelized) turbidite deposits accumulated on the Tyee deepwater slope and extended to the Tyee basin-floor. Large scale sediment conduits on the deepwater slope, in the form of slope channels or canyons, are notably absent in this stage. The second stage is characterized by larger clinoform height (> 500m), higher degree of topset aggradation with repeated fluvio-deltaic cycles on the shelf, and spectacular, sand-rich, well-organized turbidite channels and canyons on the slope. The slope channels active at this stage supplied coarse sediments to the basin-floor to form unusually thick basin-floor fans. The first infill stage represents the embryonic development of a basin-margin wedge on the Tyee continental margin, and could have some similarity with the previously mentioned submarine ramp model. But this was followed by a much longer period of basin-filling when repeated fluvial and shallow-marine cycles formed on the shelf and well-organized turbidite channels were active on the slope supplying sands to the Tyee Basin floor fans. It was concluded that the two stages of development of the basin-margin wedge in the Tyee Basin is controlled largely by the configuration of the basin, that is a result of the prominent topographic/bathymetric features in oceanic basement underlying the sedimentary succession of the Tyee Basin. Tectonically active hinterland and greenhouse climate may have contributed to a relatively high sediment supply to the basin. The relatively small-amplitude sea level variations expected under greenhouse climatic condition of the Early to Middle Eocene are likely to have relatively minor effect on the architecture of the basin-fill. The present work on Tyee Basin builds on earlier research on this basin, but now establishes a ground trothed clinoformal growth model, revises the existing interpretation of sediment transport direction during a major part of the basin-filling history, and demonstrates a two-stage evolution of margin accretion. The observations from the active Tyee Basin was compared and contrasted with a latest Pleistocene sediment wedge on the New Jersey outer shelf. This sediment wedge, developed under icehouse climatic condition, and on a passive margin, was studied using high resolution seismic data (CHIRP). In contrast to the sedimentary succession of the Tyee Basin, the depositional architecture of the sediment wedge on outer New Jersey shelf, which was interpreted as a set of falling stage deltaic clinothems, appears to be strongly controlled by eustatic sea level variation of latest Pleistocene. / text

La marge d’Équateur est caractérisée par un bassin avant-arc formé par un socle crétacé et une couverture de sédiments marins d’âge Crétacé à Quaternaire. Le relief de cette zone comprend d’une part la cordillère Côtière proprement dite et la plaine Côtière, située entre la cordillère Côtière et les Andes. Ce travail porte sur l’évolution et le soulèvement de la cordillère Côtière durant le Néogène. Dans un premier temps, nous avons réalisé une étude géologique régionale de la cordillère côtière. À partir de l’analyse stratigraphique et structurale des formations géologiques, nous avons réalisé une carte géologique de la cordillère côtière au 1/500 000 qui nous a permis d’effectuer pour la première fois des corrélations stratigraphique et un schéma structural à l’échelle complète de la cordillère. Dans un deuxième temps nous avons réalisé une étude géomorphologique de la zone. À partir de l’analyse de MNT, d’images satellites et aériennes nous avons défini les principales caractéristiques morphologiques de la zone d’étude. En particulier, le travail a porté principalement sur l’analyse de la géométrie du réseau hydrographique, la mesure de la géométrie des vallées et du profil en long des rivières à l’échelle de la cordillère Côtière. En complément nous avons mesuré le profil longitudinal des terrasses alluviales le long du rio Jama et analysé la morphologie des cônes alluviaux qui se déposent au pied des Andes sur la plaine Côtière. Les résultats ont permis de proposer une évolution du soulèvement de la cordillère Côtière. Les mesures des incisions relatives des rivières suggèrent que le soulèvement de la cordillère Côtière n’est pas homogène et que la cordillère est segmentée en plusieurs blocs dont les taux de soulèvement relatif sont variables: les blocs du Nord présentant les incisions les plus importantes. L’analyse des profils longitudinaux des terrasses alluviales du rio Jama montre une activité néotectonique le long des failles du système de Jama. Le taux de soulèvement estimé à partir de cette analyse est de 0.9 à 1.2 mm/ an pour le segment central de la cordillère Côtière. L’analyse du cône de Santo Domingo, situé aux pieds des Andes, révèle une importante interaction entre le soulèvement de la cordillère Côtière et le remplissage sédimentaire de la plaine côtière dont le résultat est la réorganisation du réseau hydrographique en deux grands bassins hydrographiques: Guayas au Sud et Esmeraldas au Nord. A plus long termes, la géologie et la stratigraphie montrent que la partie du Sud a subis une plus forte érosion (soulèvement ?) qu'au Nord. La mise en évidence de plusieurs discordances à l’échelle régionale montre que la cordillère Côtière s’est soulevée de façon hétérogène depuis le Plio-Pléistocène formant un grand antiforme segmenté et contrôlé par des failles régionales qui présentent une direction proche de la direction du mouvement vers le NE-NNE du bloc Nord-Andin. / The Ecuadorian margin is characterized by a forearc basin composed of a Cretaceous basement covered by marine sediments of the Cretaceous to Quaternary age. The topography of this area displays two main morphological domains: the Coastal cordillera in the west and the Coastal plain in the east at the foothills of Andes cordillera. This work focuses on the genesis of the Coastal cordillera during the Neogene. Firstly, we carried out a geological fieldwork throughout the Coastal cordillera. From stratigraphy and structural studies, we produced a regional geological map of the Coastal cordillera at 1:500000 scale, which have allowed for the first time to realize a regional stratigraphy correlation and determine the structural pattern across the Coastal cordillera. In a second step, we carried out a geomorphologic study of the area. From DEM analysis and satellite and aerial imagery processing, we characterized the main landforms features of the study area. In particular, we focused on the geometry of the drainage network and on the river profiles crossing the Coastal cordillera. In addition, we measured the longitudinal profile of the alluvial terrace treads along the Jama River and analyzed the morphology of alluvial fans that are deposited on the Coastal Plain at the foothills of the Andes cordillera. From the different results obtained, we proposed an evolution scheme of the uplift of the coastal cordillera. The measurements of incisions along river valleys suggest that the uplift of the Costal cordillera is heterogeneous: the cordillera is segmented into several blocks with own uplift rates. The incisions of the northern blocks are the highest. The analysis of the longitudinal profiles along the alluvial terrace treads of the Jama River indicates a recent activity along the faults of the system Jama. The uplift rates estimated from this analysis ranges from 0.9 to 1.2 mm/yr for the central segment of the Coastal cordillera. The analysis of Santo Domingo alluvial fan situated at the foothills of the Andes cordillera reveals a large interaction between the sedimentary filling of the Coastal plain and the contemporaneous uplift of the Andes and the Coastal cordilleras. This interaction results into the reorganization of two major drainage basins: Guayas in the south and Esmeraldas in the north. At long timescales, the geology and stratigraphy of the Neogene formations shows that domains in the southern Coastal cordillera were subject to intense erosion (rising?) with respect to the northern domains. The analysis of the several unconformities evidences that the Coastal cordillera was raised in a heterogeneous way since the Plio-Pleistocene as a large and elongated antiform segmented and controlled by regional faults which have a trend between NE and NNE, which is close to that of the movement to the North Andean block.

Temporal variations in gas hydrate related geochemical signatures under different deposition conditions are the primary purposes of this study. Accreted wedge located offshore Southwestern Taiwan receives high terrigenous river materials, 100 MT/yr, at present time. It is not clear how seep environment varied during the past glacial. A 25 meters long piston core was taken offshore Southwestern Taiwan on r/v Marion DuFresne. Short piston cores and box cores were also taken on r/v OR-1. Samples were analyzed for pore water dissolved sulfide, sulfate, methane, chloride, del O18, calcium, magnesium, alkalinity, pH, and sediment AVS, pyrite, inorganic carbon, del O- 18, C13. Changes in deposition environment play a major role in the study area. Three stages of geochemical processes are identified in the 25 meters long core, interchange between reduce and oxic depositional environments, with reducing condition in the top 10 m, oxic in between 10-20 meter and reducing below the 20 meter. High concentrations of dissolved sulfide, rapid sulfate depletion, increase of methane, decrease of calcium were found in pore water in the top 10 m of sediments together with high concentrations of pyrite, relatively higher proportion of coarsegrained sediment. Concentrations of pyrite were very low in sediments between 15 to 20 meters but increased rapidly from 20 to 25 meters with a maximum concentration at 400 umol/g. Chloride concentrations also increased to a maximum concentration of 630 mM at 20 m. The rapid increase of chloride indicated gas hydrate formation at this depth. Authigenic carbonate nodules were found in sediments below 20 m. The carbonate content also increased rapidly beneath this depth. Stable isotopic carbon composition of the carbonate varied rapidly beneath 20 m with a low at -28 per mil. The existence of oxic/reducing alterations indicates that methane seep may vary in the past in the study area.

L’objectif de cette étude est de contraindre les déformations au cours du Pléistocène d'une marge active à partir de l’analyse sismo-stratigraphique des sédiments conservés sur la plate-forme et la pente supérieure, le long de la marge centrale d’Equateur. A partir les données de sismique haute résolution et de carottage collectées pendant l'expédition Atacames (2012), plusieurs bassins ont été identifiés. La répartition latérale et de la succession des séquences T-R dans ces bassins montrent une distribution complexe des sédiments dans le temps et l'espace. Ce travail montre que, le long des marges actives, l’analyse sismo-stratigraphique de l’enregistrement des séquences liées aux cycles eustatiques du Pléistocène est un outil très puissant. A l'échelle locale, la subduction de seamounts perturbe et renforce l'effet de déformation régionale de la ride de Carnegie. / The aim of this study is to constrain recent deformation and stratigraphic evolution of an active margin, using sismo-stratigraphic analysis of Pleistocene sediment preserved on the margin shelf and upper slope along of the Central Ecuadorian margin. From the extensive geophysical and sedimentological investigations carried out during the ATACAMES expedition (2012), we are identified serveral basins in the Ecuadorian margin. A detailed analysis of the thickness, the lateral distribution and stacking patterns in these basins show a complex distribution of sediments in time and space. The seismic-sequence stratigraphy analysis related to eustatic cycles of the Pleistocene shows a regional regional unconformity at the base (1782-Ka as minimum age), which can correspond to the signature of the beginning of the Carnegie ridge collision.