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In contrast to early work establishing the importance of earthquake-induced liquefaction in producing soft-sediment deformation (SSD) of the Navajo Sandstone, this report advances the use of SSD analysis to: characterize wet climatic conditions and flood events during the depositional history of ancient eolianites; discriminate the signatures of multiple deformation events from those of complex deformation features formed in a single event; and to document the occurrence of liquefaction features unrepresented in modern Earth analogues. The diversity of deformation styles, presented here, is very unusual in a report from a single formation; yet the high resolution of interpreted time relationships between various processes of deposition, erosion, water table fluctuation, and deformation is even more notable. These exceptional features derive from the extraordinary outcrops of the Colorado Plateau, which expose many large-scale (tens of meters) features throughout their entire extent and reveal an extended history of episodic deformation through thick (hundreds of meters) sections of cross-bedded units, which frequently continue along several kilometers of cliff face. Prior studies of fluid escape from unconsolidated sand that support the present work are outlined in Chapter II. These include laboratory simulations of liquefaction and fluidization as well as analyses of analogous deposits, both ancient and modern. Chapter III provides an overview of outcrop evidence, gathered during the course of this study, for dramatic alterations in the topography and sedimentation patterns of the Navajo erg. Interpreted perturbations include: the foundering of active dunes; sediment eruptions; and the subsidence of interdune surfaces. Chapter IV constitutes an example of the detailed analyses that support the overview of Chapter III. Outcrop features from a site in West Canyon, Arizona provide the basis for interpreting the subsidence of a dry interdune surface to a position several meters below the contemporary water table, followed by the filling of this depression with a succession of mass flow, lacustrine, and eolian deposits. Chapter V outlines the implications of various outcrop features for the prevailing model of soft-sediment deformation in the Navajo Sandstone. Proposed modifications of this model accommodate a broader range of deformation dynamics and specifically incorporate the impact of wet climates.

In contrast to early work establishing the importance of earthquake-induced liquefaction in producing soft-sediment deformation (SSD) of the Navajo Sandstone, this report advances the use of SSD analysis to: characterize wet climatic conditions and flood events during the depositional history of ancient eolianites; discriminate the signatures of multiple deformation events from those of complex deformation features formed in a single event; and to document the occurrence of liquefaction features unrepresented in modern Earth analogues. The diversity of deformation styles, presented here, is very unusual in a report from a single formation; yet the high resolution of interpreted time relationships between various processes of deposition, erosion, water table fluctuation, and deformation is even more notable. These exceptional features derive from the extraordinary outcrops of the Colorado Plateau, which expose many large-scale (tens of meters) features throughout their entire extent and reveal an extended history of episodic deformation through thick (hundreds of meters) sections of cross-bedded units, which frequently continue along several kilometers of cliff face. Prior studies of fluid escape from unconsolidated sand that support the present work are outlined in Chapter II. These include laboratory simulations of liquefaction and fluidization as well as analyses of analogous deposits, both ancient and modern. Chapter III provides an overview of outcrop evidence, gathered during the course of this study, for dramatic alterations in the topography and sedimentation patterns of the Navajo erg. Interpreted perturbations include: the foundering of active dunes; sediment eruptions; and the subsidence of interdune surfaces. Chapter IV constitutes an example of the detailed analyses that support the overview of Chapter III. Outcrop features from a site in West Canyon, Arizona provide the basis for interpreting the subsidence of a dry interdune surface to a position several meters below the contemporary water table, followed by the filling of this depression with a succession of mass flow, lacustrine, and eolian deposits. Chapter V outlines the implications of various outcrop features for the prevailing model of soft-sediment deformation in the Navajo Sandstone. Proposed modifications of this model accommodate a broader range of deformation dynamics and specifically incorporate the impact of wet climates.

Le but de cette thèse est d'étudier les structures sédimentaires de déformations produites par liquéfaction en subsurface des sédiments marins (soft sediment deformations) lors d'événements sismiques. Une caractérisation de différents niveaux de séismites est menée afin de mettre en relation la formation des SSDs et la tectonique régionale au moment de la déstabilisation à l'aide des directions de structures, et de discuter de l'impact de la lithologie sur la forme et la localisation des SSDs dans la pile sédimentaire. Ce travail est réalisé à partir d'observations de terrain et de mesures statistiques de la direction des structures sur des objets de dimensions variables. Le premier exemple s'est portée sur les SSDs qui affectent les dépôts du Penarth group (limite Trias-Jurassique) dans les îles Britanniques au début de la phase de dislocation de la Pangée. Le second exemple s'est appliqué à la caractérisation des parties amont de quatre grands mass transport deposits présents dans le bassin néogène de Tabernas, (cordillères Bétiques, Espagne). Cette étude a mis en évidence le lien très fort entre la déformation de surface et la tectonique et l'intérêt d'étudier ces objets pour mieux définir le contexte du bassin au moment de la déstabilisation. La lithologie du sédiment et son taux d'induration ont un impact fort sur le type de SSDs observées. Les paramètres favorisant le déclenchement de la déstabilisation gravitaire au-dessus d'un niveau liquéfié sont 1) un faible taux d'induration sédimentaire 2) un temps de liquéfaction important et des fortes magnitudes de séisme 3) l'absence de failles qui traversent le niveau liquéfié susceptibles d'ancrer la déformation. / The aim is to study the sedimentary structures of deformation produced by liquefaction in subsurface of marine sediments (soft sediment deformations) during seismic events. A characterization of different levels of seismites is carried out in order to (1) establish links between the formation of SSDs and the regional tectonics with the time of destabilization using structural directions of deformation; (2) to discuss the impact of lithology on the shape and location of deformation structures in the sedimentary pile. The characterization of SSDs is realized from: (1) field observations and (2) statistical measurements of the direction of structures on objects of variable dimensions. The first studied case concerns the characterization of the SSDs that affect the Penarth group (Triassic-Jurassic boundary) deposits in the British Isles at the beginning of the break-up phase of the Pangea. The second example present the characterization of upstream areas of four major mass transport deposits, located in the intramontane basin of Tabernas, in the Betic Cordilleras (Spain). Sediment lithology and induration rates with depth, have a strong impact on the type of observed deformation structures. The parameters that encourage the triggering of the gravity destabilization above a liquefied level are (1) a low sedimentary induration rate which does not limit the liquefaction process (2) a high liquefaction duration which requires a high magnitude of the seismic event (3) the absence of faults which cross the liquefied level and can anchor the deformation in the underlying bed by forming relief.

Orientador: Lucas Veríssimo Warren / Resumo: O evento de ruptura do Gondwana no Cretáceo foi responsável pela reativação de estruturas do Pré-Cambriano e geração de diversas bacias interiores do tipo rifte no Nordeste do Brasil. Nesse contexto, a sucessão sedimentar da Bacia do Araripe registra as sequências pré-, sin- e pós-rifte formadas durante os distintos estágios tectono-sedimentares envolvidos na formação do Oceano Atlântico Sul. A Formação Araripina do Albiano Médio faz parte da sequência pós-rifte, é limitada na base por discordância litológica com rochas do embasamento ou por discordância angular com a Formação Romualdo, marinha. No topo, é limitada por discordância erosiva ou angular com os depósitos fluviais da Formação Exu. A Formação Araripina é composta principalmente de intercalações rítmicas de arenitos e lamitos, e a sucessão sedimentar é dividida em duas sequências deposicionais, SD1 e SD2, por uma superfície de truncamento regional. Sob essa superfície tectônica, em SD1, a associação de fácies mostra que a sedimentação foi em planícies intermediárias a distais de sistemas fluviais distributivos sujeitas a inundações episódicas associadas a canais efêmeros e à fluxos laminares, com evidências de complexos de splays terminais e laterais, pequenos lagos efêmeros e tectônica ativa. Acima da superfície, a SD2 apresenta menor evidência de tectonismo e de aporte sedimentar. O ambiente deposicional imediatamente após a superfície é compatível com depósitos de playa lake em diversos afloramentos estudados, pr... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The Cretaceous Gondwana breakup event was responsible for the reactivation of Precambrian structures producing several interior rift basins in the Northeast Brazil. In this context, the sedimentary succession of the Araripe Basin record the pre, syn and post-rift sequences formed during the distinct tectono-sedimentary stages involved in the formation of the South Atlantic Ocean. The Middle Albian Araripina Formation is part of the post-rift sequence, bounded at base by basement rocks (nonconformity) or by the marine Romualdo Formation (angular unconformity). It is bounded at the top by a disconformity/angular unconformity with the fluvial deposits of the Exu Formation. The Araripina Formation is mainly composed of rhythmically interbedded sandstones and mudstones, and the succession is divided in two (DS1 and DS2) by a major truncating surface. Under this tectonic surface, in DS1, facies association shows that sedimentation was likely in a plain with medial to distal distributive fluvial systems. This plain was subjected to episodic inundations associated with ephemeral channels and sheetfloods, with evidences of terminal splays complexes, lateral splays, small playa lakes and active tectonics. Above the surface, the DS2 presents a more lenient tectonic setting and less sediment suppy. The depositional environment immediately after the surface is compatible with playa lake deposits in several studied places, probably in response to the previous tectonic activity. Overall, it... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

O Lineamento Transbrasiliano é uma das principais estruturas da Plataforma Sul-Americana, estendendose em território brasileiro por cerca de 2700km. Desde sua instalação, no Neoproterozóico, o lineamento sofreu diversas reativações, e evidências geofísicas mostram que este se constitui numa importante descontinuidade litosférica. O Lineamento Transbrasiliano e outras estruturas do embasamento exerceram grande influência na instalação e história deposicional das bacias sedimentares da Província Parnaíba. Zonas de fraqueza litosférica importantes, como o Lineamento Transbrasiliano, tendem a concentrar esforços remotos gerados na borda das placas, e dessa forma a ser foco de atividade tectônica e sismicidade intraplaca. Sismos intraplaca, embora pouco comuns, podem atingir magnitudes consideráveis e afetar grandes áreas, como o atestam os sismos ocorridos no início do século XIX em New Madrid, EUA. Tectônica e sismicidade intraplaca podem gerar diversos tipos de registro em bacias intracratônicas. Entre eles, se destacam os sismitos: estruturas de liquidificação produzidas em sedimentos inconsolidados submetidos a choque sísmico. Sismitos são ferramentas particularmente úteis para a reconstrução da história tectônica de bacias sedimentares; no entanto, sua caracterização e interpretação podem ser problemáticas, visto que processos não sísmicos podem induzir a formação de estruturas similares às produzidas por terremotos. Foram identificados horizontes com estruturas de deformação sinsedimentares em cinco unidades litoestratigráficas na área estudada, no sudoeste da Província Parnaíba: as formações Pimenteiras, Cabeças, Longá e Piauí (Bacia do Parnaíba) e o Grupo Areado (Bacia do Espigão-Mestre). Foi aplicada a estas feições uma metodologia para a caracterização de estruturas de deformação sinsedimentar geradas por abalos sísmicos, desenvolvida a partir de uma ampla revisão da literatura sobre o tema. A partir de sua caracterização como possíveis sismitos, as estruturas foram analisadas, visando determinar intervalos de atividade tectônica sinsedimentar, possíveis campos de paleotensões à época de sua formação e que estruturas do embasamento foram reativadas. Os resultados obtidos, embora ainda preliminares, sugerem atividade tectônica sinsedimentar em quatro episódios: no Neodevoniano (formações Pimenteiras e Cabeças), com o esforço horizontal máximo (\'Sh IND.máx\') do campo de paleotensões associado orientado segundo N-S; no Neodevoniano - Eocarbonífero (Formação Longá), com \'Sh IND.máx\' orientado segundo N60-65E; no Neocarbonífero (Formação Piauí), com \'Sh IND.máx\' orientado segundo N40E; e no Eocretáceo (Grupo Areado). Reativações do Lineamento Transbrasiliano parecem ser responsáveis pela atividade tectônica sinsedimentar, embora os lineamentos de Senador Pompeu e do Rio das Balsas possam ter sido responsáveis por parte desta atividade. / The Transbrasiliano Lineament is one of the main structures in the South American Platform, with a lenght of ca. 2700km in brazilian territory. Since its formation, in the Neoproterozoic, the lineament was reactivated several times, and geophysical evidence shows that it is a major lithospheric discontinuity. The Transbrasiliano Lineament and other basement structures played a major role on the formation and depositional history of the sedimentary basins of the Parnaíba Province. Major zones of lithospheric weakness, such as the Transbrasiliano Lineament, may concentrate remote stresses originated on the edges of tectonic plates, and so may be focus of intraplate tectonics and seismicity. Intraplate earthquakes, although uncommon, can reach large magnitudes and affect large areas, as shown by the New Madrid (USA) earthquakes, in the beginning of the XIXth century. Intraplate tectonics and seismicity may leave several types of records in intracratonic basins. Of great significance among them are seismites: liquidization structures produced in soft-sediments under seismical shock. Seismites are particularly useful in the reconstruction of the tectonic history of sedimentary basins. However, identifying and interpreting seismites can be troublesome, since non-seismical processes can generate structures similar to those produced by earthquakes. Horizons with soft-sediment deformation structures were identified in five lithostratigraphic units in the study area, on the southwest of Parnaíba Province: the Pimenteiras, Cabeças, Longá and Piauí formations (Parnaíba Basin) and the Areado Group (Espigão-Mestre Basin). A methodology for distinguishing soft-sediment deformation structures generated by seismical shock was developed from a review of the literature concerning seismites, and applied to the described strutures. Structures interpreted as seismites were analised in order to identify intervals of sinsedimentary tectonic activity, possible paleostress fields at the time of their formation and which basement strutures were reactivated. The results obtained, although still preliminary, suggests four intervals of sinsedimentary tectonic activity: during the Neodevonian (Cabeças and Pimenteiras formations), with maximum horizontal stress (\'Sh IND.max\' ) of the associated paleostress field oriented N-S; Neodevonian-Eocarboniferous (Longá Formation), with an N60-65Eoriented \'Sh IND.max\' ; Neocarboniferous (Piauí Formation), with an N40E-oriented \'Sh IND.max\'; and on Eocretaceous (Areado Group). Transbrasiliano Lineament reactivations seem to be responsible for the sinsedimentary tectonic activity, although the Senadour Pompeu and Rio das Balsas lineaments may also have played some role on these deformations.

O Lineamento Transbrasiliano é uma das principais estruturas da Plataforma Sul-Americana, estendendose em território brasileiro por cerca de 2700km. Desde sua instalação, no Neoproterozóico, o lineamento sofreu diversas reativações, e evidências geofísicas mostram que este se constitui numa importante descontinuidade litosférica. O Lineamento Transbrasiliano e outras estruturas do embasamento exerceram grande influência na instalação e história deposicional das bacias sedimentares da Província Parnaíba. Zonas de fraqueza litosférica importantes, como o Lineamento Transbrasiliano, tendem a concentrar esforços remotos gerados na borda das placas, e dessa forma a ser foco de atividade tectônica e sismicidade intraplaca. Sismos intraplaca, embora pouco comuns, podem atingir magnitudes consideráveis e afetar grandes áreas, como o atestam os sismos ocorridos no início do século XIX em New Madrid, EUA. Tectônica e sismicidade intraplaca podem gerar diversos tipos de registro em bacias intracratônicas. Entre eles, se destacam os sismitos: estruturas de liquidificação produzidas em sedimentos inconsolidados submetidos a choque sísmico. Sismitos são ferramentas particularmente úteis para a reconstrução da história tectônica de bacias sedimentares; no entanto, sua caracterização e interpretação podem ser problemáticas, visto que processos não sísmicos podem induzir a formação de estruturas similares às produzidas por terremotos. Foram identificados horizontes com estruturas de deformação sinsedimentares em cinco unidades litoestratigráficas na área estudada, no sudoeste da Província Parnaíba: as formações Pimenteiras, Cabeças, Longá e Piauí (Bacia do Parnaíba) e o Grupo Areado (Bacia do Espigão-Mestre). Foi aplicada a estas feições uma metodologia para a caracterização de estruturas de deformação sinsedimentar geradas por abalos sísmicos, desenvolvida a partir de uma ampla revisão da literatura sobre o tema. A partir de sua caracterização como possíveis sismitos, as estruturas foram analisadas, visando determinar intervalos de atividade tectônica sinsedimentar, possíveis campos de paleotensões à época de sua formação e que estruturas do embasamento foram reativadas. Os resultados obtidos, embora ainda preliminares, sugerem atividade tectônica sinsedimentar em quatro episódios: no Neodevoniano (formações Pimenteiras e Cabeças), com o esforço horizontal máximo (\'Sh IND.máx\') do campo de paleotensões associado orientado segundo N-S; no Neodevoniano - Eocarbonífero (Formação Longá), com \'Sh IND.máx\' orientado segundo N60-65E; no Neocarbonífero (Formação Piauí), com \'Sh IND.máx\' orientado segundo N40E; e no Eocretáceo (Grupo Areado). Reativações do Lineamento Transbrasiliano parecem ser responsáveis pela atividade tectônica sinsedimentar, embora os lineamentos de Senador Pompeu e do Rio das Balsas possam ter sido responsáveis por parte desta atividade. / The Transbrasiliano Lineament is one of the main structures in the South American Platform, with a lenght of ca. 2700km in brazilian territory. Since its formation, in the Neoproterozoic, the lineament was reactivated several times, and geophysical evidence shows that it is a major lithospheric discontinuity. The Transbrasiliano Lineament and other basement structures played a major role on the formation and depositional history of the sedimentary basins of the Parnaíba Province. Major zones of lithospheric weakness, such as the Transbrasiliano Lineament, may concentrate remote stresses originated on the edges of tectonic plates, and so may be focus of intraplate tectonics and seismicity. Intraplate earthquakes, although uncommon, can reach large magnitudes and affect large areas, as shown by the New Madrid (USA) earthquakes, in the beginning of the XIXth century. Intraplate tectonics and seismicity may leave several types of records in intracratonic basins. Of great significance among them are seismites: liquidization structures produced in soft-sediments under seismical shock. Seismites are particularly useful in the reconstruction of the tectonic history of sedimentary basins. However, identifying and interpreting seismites can be troublesome, since non-seismical processes can generate structures similar to those produced by earthquakes. Horizons with soft-sediment deformation structures were identified in five lithostratigraphic units in the study area, on the southwest of Parnaíba Province: the Pimenteiras, Cabeças, Longá and Piauí formations (Parnaíba Basin) and the Areado Group (Espigão-Mestre Basin). A methodology for distinguishing soft-sediment deformation structures generated by seismical shock was developed from a review of the literature concerning seismites, and applied to the described strutures. Structures interpreted as seismites were analised in order to identify intervals of sinsedimentary tectonic activity, possible paleostress fields at the time of their formation and which basement strutures were reactivated. The results obtained, although still preliminary, suggests four intervals of sinsedimentary tectonic activity: during the Neodevonian (Cabeças and Pimenteiras formations), with maximum horizontal stress (\'Sh IND.max\' ) of the associated paleostress field oriented N-S; Neodevonian-Eocarboniferous (Longá Formation), with an N60-65Eoriented \'Sh IND.max\' ; Neocarboniferous (Piauí Formation), with an N40E-oriented \'Sh IND.max\'; and on Eocretaceous (Areado Group). Transbrasiliano Lineament reactivations seem to be responsible for the sinsedimentary tectonic activity, although the Senadour Pompeu and Rio das Balsas lineaments may also have played some role on these deformations.

The upper Tanglewood Member is the final member of the Lexington Limestone and is well-known for its soft-sediment deformation. This study has confirmed the carbonate-shoal-complex origin of the unit, and detailed study shows that its development took place during five small-scale, sequence-like, fining-upward cycles related to eustasy and tectonics. Four lithofacies are represented in the unit. Facies analysis of each cycle shows that the thickest and coarsest part of each cycle corresponds to previously uplifted basement-fault blocks; the occurrence of thick, coarse facies on the same fault blocks suggests that the blocks continued to experience uplift due to Taconian far-field forces generated on the eastern margin of Laurentia. The upper Tanglewood Member includes six deformed horizons that can be traced into equivalent parts of the Clays Ferry and Point Pleasant formations. Concurrence of four lines of evidence, suggested by Ettensohn et al. (2002d) for interpretation of seismites, indicates that the widespread horizons of deformation are seismogenic in origin. Reactivation of basement structures due to Taconian far-field forces probably induced seismicity on the intra-platform carbonate complex so as to produce soft-sediment deformation. Petrographic investigation indicates that most of the cements in the upper Tanglewood limestones appear to be late diagenetic, fresh-water phreatic cements. Comparing the petrography of deformed and undeformed portions of the same horizon showed no significant differences in terms of cementation, indicating that cementation occurred primarily after deformation. The primary impact of deformation on the microstructure of the unit was the randomization of grain fabric and the increased presence of broken intraclasts.

Precambrian metamorphic rocks in the Beaver Dam Mountains display asymmetric, isoclinal folds with consistent fold axes plunging to the NW. These folds are parasitic and have a recursive nature that occurs on wavelengths from centimeters to perhaps kilometers as part of a NW-SE striking shear zone. The vergence of the folds indicates oblique shearing with a transport direction plunging 29° to the south. This shear zone may be associated with the collision of Yavapai Province island arcs with Laurentia. Structurally overlying, and adjacent to the metamorphic rocks are allochthonous and attenuated Mississippian limestone blocks and other strata debated to be either the result of mega-landsliding or fragments of the hanging wall rocks above a low-angle normal fault. We document previously unreported cataclastic damage zones tens of meters thick, an anastomosing zone of greenschist facies alteration hundreds of meters thick, and polished low-angle fault surfaces beneath these blocks. Other observations previously used to support a mega-landslide hypothesis are blocks of Redwall Limestone structurally overlying what was interpreted as Tertiary conglomerate. However, this contact is depositional, and the conglomerate is likely a sedimentary breccia facies of the Mississippian Redwall Limestone which is documented in several locations within the region. Additionally, some of the deformation and attenuation that was wrongly attributed to mega-landsliding or low-angle normal faulting is due to previously undocumented soft-sediment deformation. This deformation was gravity driven and accommodated by ductile granular flow, resulting in recumbent folds within the Mississippian Redwall Limestone and a prominent non-brittle detachment surface between the Redwall Limestone and the Cambrian Bonanza King Formation at Castle Cliff. This detachment was previously interpreted as the Castle Cliff Detachment, a low-angle normal fault, or as the slip surface of a landslide.

Uma série de pesquisas realizadas em depósitos de sistemas fluviais, desenvolvidos anterior e concomitantemente à colonização dos continentes por vegetação, são aqui apresentadas com o intuito de investigar as principais características deposicionais destes sistemas, particularmente suas assembléias de fácies e elementos arquitetônicos preservados. Esta pesquisa busca, desta maneira, propor modelos deposicionais para sucessões fluviais pré-vegetação e contribuir para o avanço do conhecimento sobre as mudanças seculares em padrões de sedimentação, principalmente em relação à evolução dos rios através do tempo geológico. Estudos sedimentológicos foram realizados em depósitos fluviais da Formação Applecross do Grupo Torridon (Toniano, Escócia), Formação Guarda Velha do Grupo Guaritas (Cambriano, Brasil) e no Old Red Sandstone do Midland Valley (Siluriano-Carbonífero, Escócia). Foram empregadas análises de associações de fácies e arquitetura deposicional por meio de estudos de alto detalhe em afloramentos, combinadas a análises de paleocorrentes, de proveniência, e de estruturas de deformação sinsedimentar. Depósitos de canais fluviais meandrantes pré-vegetação com espessos depósitos de planícies de inundação ricos em sedimentos de granulação fina são pela primeira vez descritos em detalhe nos estudos aqui apresentados sobre depósitos da Formação Applecross. Diversas estruturas de deformação sinsedimentar encontradas na unidade acima referida são analisadas, revelando que seus estilos podem ser relacionados a diferentes regiões de uma planície fluvial. Nos depósitos da Formação Guarda Velha, é registrada a inter-relação entre dois sistemas fluviais coevos, cuja arquitetura deposicional contrastante resultou da diferente localização destes sistemas em relação à estrutura da bacia, assim como de diferentes áreas de captação. São relatados os efeitos de distintos controles deposicionais, como ambiente tectônico e regimes hidráulicos, sobre a arquitetura deposicional preservada em sistemas fluviais pré-vegetação. Esses dados demonstram que o estilo entrelaçado-em-lençol, apontado como o estilo pré-vegetação predominante, engloba na verdade uma variedade de diferentes estilos fluviais. Estudos em depósitos do Siluriano ao Carbonífero do Old Red Sandstone revelam o crescente impacto da vegetação sobre depósitos fluviais, particularmente o aumento exponencial de formação de paleosolos, além de mostrar semelhanças entre alguns destes sistemas com os sistemas pré-silurianos. A integração desses estudos revela que sistemas fluviais pré-vegetação são relativamente mais complexos do que previsto pelos modelos atualmente disponíveis. Importantemente, sugere que a escassez de sedimentos de granulção fina, preservados em depósitos fluviais pré-silurianos, está mais relacionada à baixa competência destes sistemas em preservar tais sedimentos do que à sua suposta ausência em ambientes pré-vegetação. Foi também desenvolvida uma metodologia específica para o uso de estruturas de deformação em sedimentos inconsolidados como ferramentas na reconstrução de paleoambientes, através das relações entre diferentes estilos deformacionais e ambientes deposicionais, possibilitando a indicação de regimes hidráulicos em depósitos fluviais e a informação indireta de taxas de atividades tectônicas em bacias. A integração de dados de sedimentologia com estudos específicos de deformação sinsedimentar é uma ferramenta útil na reconstrução paleoambiental de sistemas fluviais. / A series of studies were undertaken on fluvial systems deposits which developed prior to land-plant colonization, in order to investigate the main depositional characteristics of those systems, particularly their main facies assemblages and preserved depositional architecture. Main objectives are the proposal of depositional models for pre-vegetation fluvial systems, and the understanding of main secular changes in sedimentation processes and its influence on the evolution of rivers through geological times. Sedimentologic studies were undertaken in fluvial deposits from the Applecoss Formation of the Torridon Group (Tonian, NW Scotland), the Guarda Velha Formation (Cambrian, southern Brazil), and the Old Red Sandstone in the Midland Valley (Silurian-Carboniferous, NE Scotland). Highly-detailed sedimentary facies and depositional architecture analyses in outcrop scale were integrated with palaeocurrent and provenance studies, and soft-sediment deformation analysis. Pre-vegetation meandering channel deposits with relatively thick, fine-grained floodplain deposits from the Applecross Formation and here described for the first time. Analyses on sinsedimentary deformation structures preserved in the Applecross Formation reveal different styles which can be related to different parts of the fluvial plain. Studies on the Guarda Velha Formation revealed the inter-relationship between two coeval fluvial systems with markedly contrasting preserved depositional architecture, which developed as a result of the different location of the systems in relation to basin structure and different caption areas. The effects of different depositional controls on preserved pre-vegetation fluvial system architecture, such as tectonic environment and hydraulic regime, are recorded and interpreted. The present data demonstrate that the sheet-braided style, which is regarded as the prevailing fluvial style before the Silurian, in fact encompasses a varied number of different pre-vegetation fluvial styles. Studies on the Silurian to Early Carboniferous Old Red Sandstones in the Midland Valley of Scotland reveal the progressive impact of land plants on fluvial sedimentation, particularly the exponential increasing rates of soil production. Integration of the here presented data reveal that pre-vegetation fluvial styles. Studies on the Silurian to Early Carboniferous Old Red Sandstone in the Midland Valley of Scotland reveal the progressive impact of land plants on fluvial sedimentation, particularly the exponential increasing rates of soil production. Integration of the here presented data reveal that pre-vegetation fluvial systems are relatively more complex than previously described in the literature. Importantly, it suggests that the paucity of fine-grained sediments in pre-Silurian fluvial deposits is most likely related to various preservation issues than to the lack of such sediments. A particular methodology for the use of soft-sediment deformation structures as palaeoenvironmental tool was developed, allowing the interpretation of hydraulic regimes in fluvial deposits, indication of the basin\'s tectonic activity, and the relationship between different deformation styles and distinct depositional environments. The combined analyses of soft-sediment deformation structures and sedimentologic data is a powerful tool with which fluvial systems palaeoenvironmental can be reconstructed.