What are the controlling factors of

the sedimentary rocks recording ?

AP Dr. David MENIER
Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS

QAB 3033: Basin Analysis
12th of June 2014


Factors controlling the stratigraphy
recording
Homewood et al., 2000
The concept of Accommodation,
Jervey, 1988
The accommodation space is controlling largely by external processes such as changes
In sea level, climate, tectonic movements, volcanic activity, compaction and longer term
Subsidence rates which together define a depositional base level
1. Sediment supply (volume, composition, grain size)
Controlling factors
Siliclastic sediments
Others: evaporites, carbonates, diatomites, cherts,
ironstones, phosphorites
and carbonaceous sediments
CLIMATE / TECTONIC / BEDROCK GEOLOGY / BASINAL WATER CHEMISTRY
Terrigenous extrabasinal particles
Biochemical intrabasinal particles
2. Terrigenous systems
Deep-water system are supplied from an adjacent shelf or delta
Shelves are supplied from coasts and coastal plains, may be deltaic
Deltas are supplied from alluvial systems
The rate of sediment is controlled more by the volume of sediment available
in a given time interval than by transport capacities
Coarse-grained or gravel-rich alluvial, delatic, deep-sea systems
Medium-grained or sand-rich systems
Fine-grained mud-rich systems
- Small and steep
- High competence required, sediment transport and deposition are short-time
- Frequent and related to catastrophic events (floods, slumping caused by seismic shocks, etc.)
- To be intermediate in size and moderate gradients
- The range of grain sizes means: physical processes of transport and deposition operate a wide large of energy level
- Frequent and related to catastrophic events (floods, slumping caused by seismic shocks, etc.)
- Can be small in size, but the majority are large, with low gradients (delta plains, submarine fans,...)
- Where sediment supply are high, the rapid deposition of muds and silts caused frequent slumping
on delta slopes and submarine fans in depsite of the low gradient
- Single point source
- Multiple sources
The pattern of sediment supply delivery to the basin is also important.
3. Biochemical and chemical systems
- Temperature
- Water chemistry
- Penetration of the light into the water
- Hermatypic corals and larger foraminifera are light dependent
- Molluscs, bryozoans, crinoids and brachiopods depend on phytoplancton
- Planktonic foraminifera and coccoliths
- Radiolaria, diatoms, siliciflagellates and some sponges
- Nutrient-rich waters in zones of oceanic producing
- Dissolution of the particles throught the water column (CCD; ACD)
Production of biochemical sediment (lakes and Sea) is controlled by the nature and productivity of the biota
In deep basins only surface waters penetrated by light produce significant sediment
Evaporites are precipitated directly from sea or lake waters and have become concentrated to form brines
4. Climate
- Temperature, Precipitation and locally, winds regimes
- Mean annual temperature and precipitation
- Fluctuations (seasons, magnitude and frequency of extreme events)
- Long term, medium term, short term
- The sun's radiation
- The rotation of the earth (deflecting effect as the coriolis force)
- In the northern hemisphere: anticlockwise rotation
- In the southern hemisphere: clockwise rotation
- The distribution of continents and oceans
- Periglacial*; Humid temperate*; Dry continental*, Tropical arid, Tropical semi-arid*;
Tropical wet-dry*; Humid tropical; Glacial
-* season
- Temperature: evaporites, glacail tills, some oolites, palaesols, vegetation and many faunas
- Climate also governs sediment yield (Devonian time, carboneferous time)
Two main aspects of climate
The meteorological patterns of the Earth are primarily a consequence of the interactionof
Eight morphoclimatic regions are defined
Climate is a prime control on many sedimentary facies and they can be excellent palaeoclimatic indicators
Climate zonation
Global Heat Balance: Introduction to
Heat Fluxes
Climate
Three cell circulation model
Motion of oceanic currents
5. Tectonic movements and subsidence
- Isostatic movements: vertical adjustments in the lithosphere arising
from its loading or unloading by Water, sediment or ice
- or by thermal or dynamic changes in the mantle
- sediment loading may enhance crustal subsidence by a factor of 3
- Himalayas produce the largest volumes of sediment
- Many moutain belts : american cordillera, the Pyrenees, the Alps and Zagros moutains of Iran
have a foreland basin, formed as a result crustal loading by the nearby mountain belt
- Subduction zones: accretionary wedge, forearc, volcanic arc and backarc basin
- Strike-slip basin, and extensonational rifts
- Fault blocks
- Broad passive continental margins
- Large stable cratons of NAmerica, Russian, Australian shield
Tectonic movements affect sedimentation in a number of different ways and on many different scales
Global scale and source of sediment
Mod. from Scotese and PALEOMAP (2005)
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
60 ma
Paleocene
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
50 ma
Early Eocene
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
40 ma
Late Eocene
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
30 ma
Oligocene
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
20 ma
Early Miocene
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
10 ma
Late Miocene
Southeast Asia Cenozoic Paleogeographic Evolution
0 ma
Present day
Gas and Oil fields

1000 km 0
-10
-5
0
5
10
15
20
95 100 105 110 115 120 125 130 135
Phitsanulok
Yinggehai
Hue
Pearl River Mouth
Luconia
Sarawak
Baram
Sabah
Qui Nohn
East Vietnam
West Natuna
Malay
Pattani
Western Kra
Grabens
Chumphon
North Sumatra
Central Sumatra
South Sumatra
Sunda/ Asri
Billiton
Pembuang
NW Java NE Java
Kutei
Tarakan
Muara
Sandakan
Penyu
Lombok
East Natuna
Con Son
Cuu Long
Balabac
Ketungau
Melawi
AUSTRALIA
SE ASIA
Eastern
Indonesia
Philippine
Arc
Mesozoic Basins
Beibuwan
6. Sea-level changes
- Eustatic sea-level change
- Relative sea-level change
- Shorter-term variations include those due to : waves, tides, (diurnal, semi-diurnal)
, Tsunamis, volcanic phenomena
- Longer-term variations: the interplay of changes in global sea level and basin floor subsidence anf uplift
- Glacioisostasy or glacioisostatic oscillations
- Changes in the total volume of mid-ocean ridges
- Continental collision
- Influx of terrigenous sediment
- Mid-plate (hotspot)
- Owing the thermal cooling and densification of the oceanic lithosphere
Sea-level changes are of two types
Sea-level changes occur on a variety of scales
Changes in the volume of the ocean basins may have many causes
WHAT IS SEA LEVEL ?
(Homewood et al., 1999)
(Bertram et al., 1996)
7. Milankovitch processes and orbital forcing
The Milankovitch theory has become accepted as an important
control on climatic variations outside the ice ages and on the nature
of sedimentary sequences not only on pelagic and lacustrine sediments,
but also on terrigenous clastic sediments