Beruflich Dokumente
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Key drivers and features of the weathered crystalline crust
development: Case study for the Ukrainian Crystalline Shield
Alexander Kitchka1, Galina Kuzmanenko2, Anatoliy Solmyanyi3, Kateryna Shnyukova5 & Roman Kutas6
1
SE Naukanaftogaz, NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine, kitchka@nng.com.ua; 2Inst. of Geological Sciences, NAS Ukraine; 3PE
SouthUkrGeologia, Ministry of Ecology & Natural Resources, 4Inst. of Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Ore Formation,
NAS Ukraine; 5Inst. of Geophysics, NAS Ukraine
Weathered crystalline crust studies are associated with tures, namely upon different acid, basic and ultrabasic
broad range of fundamental disciplines and practical igneous as well as metamorphic rocks like ferrugineous
issues such as exploration for useful minerals and hydro‐ quartzites making the area an unique field laboratory for
carbons, including reservoir rocks provenance and seal analog studies thanks to abundance of natural outcrops,
rocks composition studies, clay petrology and geochem‐ many deep quarries and exploration boreholes.
istry, carstification processes development, hydrogeol‐ Powerful tropical weathering has impacted the UCS
ogy and water supply in arid and semi‐arid regions, pa‐ many times (Dodatko, 2004) during its geological history.
leogeographical and geomorphological restorations, It was geologically evidenced 16 paleo‐weathering ep‐
various engineering geology and agricultural applica‐ ochs development (8 Precambrian, and 4 both for Meso‐
tions, etc. The weathered crystalline crust (WCC) is a zoic and Cenozoic times) within the UCS. Two Mesozoic
transitional geobody or so‐called critical zone (Pope, WCCs, the pre‐Jurassic and pre‐Albian ones, were the
2015) occurring between the monolithic crystalline base‐ most preserved and powerful stages responsible for oc‐
ment and sedimentary cover and representing the result currences of commercial primary kaolin deposits in the
of complex in situ geological processes called weathering UCS (Kuzmanenko, 2014). Contrary to the Baltic Shield,
that impacted topmost part of the crystalline bedrock. where the full profile of Mesozoic WCCs (Olesen et al.,
Formation of WCC is a result of geological and geo‐ 2012) was apparently subjected by deep erosion and/or
chemical phenomena combining physical destruction exaration during last glaciation the kaolinite zone is gen‐
and chemical alteration of the bedrock, its fracturing erally well preserved over the UCS, being absent in the
expanding into the intact solid basement, leaching and present‐day river valleys and erosion gulleys, and the
bleaching of the primary mineral constituents driving most elevated and eroded Peri‐Azov geo‐block in the
finally to its transformation into totally different matter east. The penelpaination levels (etchplains with sepa‐
of the regolith/saprolite like residual kaolinites and later‐ rated inselbergs) studied in the NW part of UCS and evi‐
ites in weathering complete profile. Long‐term geologi‐ dences of so‐called basal platform of paleo‐weathering
cal epochs of basement peneplainisation by weathering (groundwater ultimate bottom) resemble those similar
agents: solar radiation, temperature, rock‐water interac‐ features of Mesozoic weathering developed in the Gond‐
tion, as well as biotic impact can led to formation of wanaland (Rabasso, 2010) proving that Mesozoic tropi‐
thick composite WCCs several times through geological cal WCC development was a remarkable global phe‐
time, as areal as linear ones, like that one which can be nomenon in the Earth’s geological history.
observed in numerous basement outcrops in the Ukrain‐ The thickness of WCCs depends on composition of the
ian Crystalline Shield (UCS) stretching across the whole parent rocks, degree of their permeability (being a func‐
Ukraine’s territory from WNW to ESE. tion of their composition, structural and textural fea‐
The UCS is one of the best outcropped and studied Pre‐ tures) and relief of the crystalline basement. Within the
cambrian terrains in the world, aged from Archean to UCS an areal WCC has a thickness varying from 1 to 60 m
Vendian consolidation, representing wide variety of the with its maximum values characteristic of watersheds.
igneous and extrusive rock types, metasedimentary, The maximal depth of linear WCC penetration exceeds
metavolcanic, dynamometamorphic, metasomatic, peg‐ 150 m. A zonal structure is typical as for areal as for lin‐
matite and migmatite bedrocks, ore bodies and placers ear WCC though the boundaries between the zones of
of different origin and type. This, therefore, substanti‐ the latter are not distinct so their recognition is a condi‐
ates development of different types of multistage tional to some extent. WCC zonation is stipulated by dif‐
weathered crust profiles as of areal type as linear one ferent degree of original minerals transformations and
along deep fault zones. Quite different WCC profiles de‐ their substitution with hypergene products. Upon this
pending on petrological composition of the bedrock are feature one can recognize four mineral‐geochemical
developed within its geoblocks and separating geosu‐ zones in a complete WCC profile (going upward), with
NGF Abstracts and Proceedings, No 1, 2016 Page 38
mineral different mineral assemblages depending on the All four zones are not always presented in the WCC pro‐
petrology of intact parent rocks: file; sometimes the second or third zone are absent in
the particular profile column. Development of the
1. Zone of disintegration and leaching fourth, lateritic zone is developed very sporadically. The
2. Zone of decomposition and transitive products of variation of WCC zones thickness in the central‐eastern
weathering part of the UCS is shown in the table below.
3. Zone of hypergene (stable) products of weather‐
ing
4. Zone of lateritization (end products of weather‐
ing)
The whole territory of the Ukrainian Shield has been aluminium, kaolin and refractory clays).The primary and
studied and mapped by the State Geological Survey of secondary re-deposited WCCs control occur-rences
Ukraine to feature areal development of WCC and of other mineral deposits like phosphorus, rare and
particular zones of its profile, see an example on Fig. 1. rare-earth metals, gold, titanium and zirco-nium as
A significant part of Ukraine’s subsoil min-eral wealth well.
is related to WCCs formation and includ-ing the most
important ore deposits of nickel, cobalt,
NGF Abstracts and Proceedings, No 1, 2016 Page 39
Geochemical studies of the UCS have demonstrated the ing Univ. Publ., 106 pp.
tendency of reducing concentration of U and Th in the Gerasimov, Yu.G. & Kutas, R.I. 1981: Vertical distribution
topsoil and upper part of WCC while some peak of their of radioactive elements in Earth’s crust of the Ukrain‐
content is observed at the WCC bottom (Gerasimov & ian Shield. Preprint Inst. Mineral Geochem. & Phys.
Kutas, 1981) caused by leaching of RE from the top of NAS Ukraine. Kiev, 34 pp. (in Russian)
WCC and then re‐deposition at the basal platform . This Kuzmanenko, G.O. 2014: Primary kaolins of the north‐
feature can help exploration for oil and gas in the western part of Ukrainian Shield. PhD Thesis, Inst. of
Dnieper‐Donets basin flanks (buried slopes of the UCS Geological Sci. NAS Ukraine, 152 pp. (in Ukrainian)
and Voronezh Crystalline Massif) where most of discov‐ Olesen, O., Bering, D., Brönner, M., Dalsegg, E., Fabian,
ered commercial hydrocarbon accumulations in the top‐ K., Fredin, O., Gellein, J., Husteli, B., Magnus, C.,
most part of the crystalline basement are controlled by Rønning, S., Solbakk, T., Tønnesen, J. & Øverland, J.,
development of the pre‐Visean WCC reservoirs well de‐ 2012: Tropical Weathering in Norway, TWIN Final
tectable by gamma‐ray well‐logging. Report, 188 pp.
Pope, G. 2015: Regolith and Weathering (Rock Decay) in
This study was carried out within the framework of the Critical Zone. In Giardiano, J.R. & Houser, C.
Phase III of “Crustal Onshore‐Offshore Correlation Pro‐ (eds.): Developments in Earth Surface Processes, 19.
ject” that was funded by the Geological Survey of Amsterdam : Elsevier, 113‐144.
Norway (NGU) under the contract #20150901. Rabasso, J. 2010: Gondwana Paleolandscapes: Long‐
Term Landscape Evolution, Genesis, Distribution and
Dodatko, A.D. 2004: Ancient weathered crust and meth‐ Age. UNESP, Geociências 29, 4, 541‐570.
ods of their investigation. Dnipropetrovsk, Nat’l Min‐