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1.
Microbialites (benthic microbial carbonate deposits) were discovered in a hypersaline alkaline lake on Eleuthera Island (Bahamas). From the edge towards the centre of the lake, four main zones of precipitation could be distinguished: (1) millimetre‐sized clumps of Mg‐calcite on a thin microbial mat; (2) thicker and continuous carbonate crusts with columnar morphologies; (3) isolated patches of carbonate crust separated by a dark non‐calcified gelatinous mat; and (4) a dark microbial mat without precipitation. In thin section, the precipitate displayed a micropeloidal structure characterized by micritic micropeloids (strong autofluorescence) surrounded by microspar and spar cement (no fluorescence). Observations using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with a cryotransfer system indicate that micrite nucleation is initiated within a polymer biofilm that embeds microbial communities. These extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) are progressively replaced with high‐Mg calcite. Discontinuous EPS calcification generates a micropeloidal structure of the micrite, possibly resulting from the presence of clusters of coccoid or remnants of filamentous bacteria. At high magnification, the microstructure of the initial precipitate consists of 200–500 nm spheres. No precipitation is observed in or on the sheaths of cyanobacteria, and only a negligible amount of precipitation is directly associated with the well‐organized and active filamentous cyanobacteria (in deeper layers of the mat), indicating that carbonate precipitation is not associated with CO2 uptake during photosynthesis. Instead, the precipitation occurs at the uppermost layer of the mat, which is composed of EPS, empty filamentous bacteria and coccoids (Gloeocapsa spp.). Two‐dimensional mapping of sulphate reduction shows high activity in close association with the carbonate precipitate at the top of the microbial mat. In combination, these findings suggest that net precipitation of calcium carbonate results from a temporal and spatial decoupling of the various microbial metabolic processes responsible for CaCO3 precipitation and dissolution. Theoretically, partial degradation of EPS by aerobic heterotrophs or UV fuels sulphate‐reducing activity, which increases alkalinity in microdomains, inducing CaCO3 precipitation. This degradation could also be responsible for EPS decarboxylation, which eliminates Ca2+‐binding capacity of the EPS and releases Ca2+ ions that were originally bound by carboxyl groups. At the end of these processes, the EPS biofilm is calcified and exhibits a micritic micropeloidal structure. The EPS‐free precipitate subsequently serves as a substrate for physico‐chemical precipitation of spar cement from the alkaline water of the lake. The micropeloidal structure has an intimate mixture of micrite and microspar comparable to microstructures of some fossil microbialites.  相似文献   

2.
Modern Ca:Mg carbonate stromatolites form in association with the microbial mat in the hypersaline coastal lagoon, Lagoa Vermelha (Brazil). The stromatolites, although showing diversified fabrics characterized by thin or crude lamination and/or thrombolitic clotting, exhibit a pervasive peloidal microfabric. The peloidal texture consists of dark, micritic aggregates of very high‐Mg calcite and/or Ca dolomite formed by an iso‐oriented assemblage of sub‐micron trigonal polyhedrons and organic matter. Limpid acicular crystals of aragonite arranged in spherulites surround these aggregates. Unlike the aragonite crystals, organic matter is present consistently in the dark, micritic carbonate comprising the peloids. This organic matter is observed as sub‐micron flat and filamentous mucus‐like structures inside the interspaces of the high‐Mg calcite and Ca dolomite crystals and is interpreted as the remains of degraded extracellular polymeric substances. Moreover, many fossilized bacterial cells are associated strictly with both carbonate phases. These cells consist mainly of 0·2 to 4 μm in diameter, sub‐spherical, rod‐like and filamentous forms, isolated or in colony‐like clusters. The co‐existence of fossil extracellular polymeric substances and bacterial bodies, associated with the polyhedrons of Ca:Mg carbonate, implies that the organic matter and microbial metabolism played a fundamental role in the precipitation of the minerals that form the peloids. By contrast, the lack of extracellular polymeric substances in the aragonitic phase indicates an additional precipitation mechanism. The complex processes that induce mineral precipitation in the modern Lagoa Vermelha microbial mat appear to be recorded in the studied lithified stromatolites. Sub‐micron polyhedral crystal formation of high‐Mg calcite and/or Ca dolomite results from the coalescence of carbonate nanoglobules around degraded organic matter nuclei. Sub‐micron polyhedral crystals aggregate to form larger ovoidal crystals that constitute peloids. Subsequent precipitation of aragonitic spherulites around peloids occurs as micro‐environmental water conditions around the peloids change.  相似文献   

3.
《Sedimentology》2018,65(4):1213-1245
In a modern peritidal microbial mat from Qatar, both biomediated carbonates and Mg‐rich clay minerals (palygorskite) were identified. The mat, ca 5 cm thick, shows a clear lamination reflecting different microbial communities. The initial precipitates within the top millimetres of the mat are composed of Ca–Mg–Si–Al–S amorphous nanoparticles (few tens of nanometres) that replace the ultrastructure of extracellular polymeric substances. The extracellular polymeric substances are enriched in the same cations and act as a substrate for mineral nucleation. Successively, crystallites of palygorskite fibres associated with carbonate nanocrystals develop, commonly surrounding bacterial bodies. Micron‐sized crystals of low‐Mg calcite are the most common precipitates, together with subordinate aragonite, very high‐Mg calcite/dolomite and ankerite. Pyrite nanocrystals and framboids are present in the deeper layers of the mat. Calcite crystallites form conical structures, circular to triangular/hexagonal in cross‐section, evolving to crystals with rhombohedral terminations; some crystallite bundles develop into dumb‐bell and stellate forms. Spheroidal organo‐mineral structures are also common within the mat. Nanospheres, a few tens of nanometres in diameter, occur attached to coccoid bacteria and within their cells; these are interpreted as permineralized viruses and could be significant as nuclei for crystallite‐crystal precipitation. Microspheres, 1 to 10 μm in diameter, result from intracellular permineralization within bacteria or the mineralization of the bacteria themselves. Carbonates and clay minerals are commonly aggregated to form peloids, tens of microns in size, surrounded by residual organic matter. Magnesium silicate and carbonate precipitation are likely to have been driven by pH – saturation index – redox changes within the mat, related to microenvironmental chemical changes induced by the microbes – extracellular polymeric substances – viruses and their degradation.  相似文献   

4.
Interactions of the microbial mat community with the sedimentary environment were evaluated in two shallow, ephemeral lakes with markedly different hydrochemistry and mineralogy. The characterization of growing and decaying microbial mats by light microscopy observations and fluorescence in situ hybridization was complemented with biogeochemical and mineralogical measurements. The lakes studied were Eras and Altillo Chica, both located in Central Spain and representing poly-extreme environments. Lake Eras is a highly alkaline, brackish to saline lake containing a high concentration of chloride, and in which the carbonate concentration exceeds the sulfate concentration. The presence of magnesium is crucial for the precipitation of hydromagnesite in microbialites of this lake. Altillo Chica is a mesosaline to hypersaline playa lake with high concentrations of sulfate and chloride, favoring the formation of gypsum microbialites. Differences in the microbial community composition and mineralogy of the microbialites between the two lakes were primarily controlled by alkalinity and salinity. Lake Eras was dominated by the cyanobacterial genus Oscillatoria, as well as Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria and Firmicutes. When the mat decayed, Alphaproteobacteria and Deltaproteobacteria increased and became the dominant heterotrophs, as opposed to Firmicutes. In contrast, Deltaproteobacteria was the most abundant group in Lake Altillo Chica, where desiccation led to mats decay during evaporite formation. In addition to Deltaproteobacteria, Cyanobacteria, Actinobacteria, Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria were found in Altillo Chica, mostly during microbial mats growth. At both sites, microbial mats favored the precipitation of sulfate and carbonate minerals. The precipitation of carbonate is higher in the soda lake due to a stronger alkalinity engine and probably a higher degradation rate of exopolymeric substances. Our findings clarify the distribution patterns of microbial community composition in ephemeral lakes at the levels of whole communities, which were subjected to environmental conditions similar to those that may have existed during early Earth.  相似文献   

5.
Studies of modern cyanobacterial mats and biofilms show that they can precipitate minerals as a consequence of metabolic and degradational activities paired with ambient hydrochemical conditions. This study looked at modern microbial mats forming giant, tower‐like, groundwater‐fed, calcareous microbialites in the world's largest, highly alkaline lake; Van Gölü (Lake Van), East Turkey. Results show that microbial systems play a role not only in carbonate precipitation but also in the formation of siliceous mineral phases. Transmitted light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and spectral observations revealed that, within the extracellular polymeric substances excreted by the mats abundant minute aragonite grains precipitated first in vivo. These minute grains were quickly succeeded and/or supplemented in the dead biomass of the cyanobacterial mat by authigenic Al–Mg–Fe siliceous phases. Silicon dioxide is available in large concentrations in the highly alkaline water of Lake Van. Divalent cations (Ca and Mg) are delivered to the microbialites mostly by groundwater springs. The precipitation of the fine‐grained siliceous phases is probably mediated by bacteria degrading the cyanobacterial biomass and complexing the excessive cations with their extracellular polymeric envelopes. The bacteria serve as nucleation centres for the subsequent precipitation of siliceous mineral phases. Generally, the biphasic (calcareous and siliceous) mineralization – characterizing Lake Van microbialites – is controlled by their interior highly dynamic hydrogeochemical situation. There, the dramatically different alkaline lake water and the Ca–Mg‐charged groundwater mix at various rates. The early diagenetic replacement of the in vivo aragonite by authigenic siliceous phases significantly increases the fossilization potential of the mat‐forming cyanobacteria. Lake Van and its giant microbialite tufa towers act as a model explaining the transformation of early diagenetic mineral phases observed in many modern and ancient carbonate marine deposits, particularly those influenced by diffusion of silica‐enriched and metal‐enriched pore waters from below the water–sediment interface.  相似文献   

6.
Processes of carbonate precipitation in modern microbial mats   总被引：20，自引：0，他引：20  
Microbial mats are ecosystems that arguably greatly affected the conditions of the biosphere on Earth through geological time. These laminated organosedimentary systems, which date back to > 3.4 Ga bp, are characterized by high metabolic rates, and coupled to this, rapid cycling of major elements on very small (mm-µm) scales. The activity of the mat communities has changed Earth's redox conditions (i.e. oxidation state) through oxygen and hydrogen production. Interpretation of fossil microbial mats and their potential role in alteration of the Earth's geochemical environment is challenging because these mats are generally not well preserved.Preservation of microbial mats in the fossil record can be enhanced through carbonate precipitation, resulting in the formation of lithified mats, or microbialites. Several types of microbially-mediated mineralization can be distinguished, including biologically-induced and biologically influenced mineralization. Biologically-induced mineralization results from the interaction between biological activity and the environment. Biologically-influenced mineralization is defined as passive mineralization of organic matter (biogenic or abiogenic in origin), whose properties influence crystal morphology and composition. We propose to use the term organomineralization sensu lato as an umbrella term encompassing biologically influenced and biologically induced mineralization. Key components of organomineralization sensu lato are the “alkalinity” engine (microbial metabolism and environmental conditions impacting the calcium carbonate saturation index) and an organic matrix comprised of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), which may provide a template for carbonate nucleation. Here we review the specific role of microbes and the EPS matrix in various mineralization processes and discuss examples of modern aquatic (freshwater, marine and hypersaline) and terrestrial microbialites.  相似文献   

7.
Dolomite was successfully precipitated in culture experiments that simulated microbiogeochemical conditions prevailing during late stages of evaporation in ephemeral, hypersaline dolomitic lakes of the Coorong region, South Australia. Analyses of lake- and pore-water samples document rapid geochemical changes with time and depth in both dolomitic and non-dolomitic lakes. Extremely high sulphate and magnesium ion concentrations in lake waters decline rapidly with depth in pore waters throughout the sulphate-reduction zone, whereas carbonate concentrations in pore waters reach levels up to 100 times those of normal sea water. Ultimately, sulphate is totally consumed and no solid sulphate is recorded in the dolomitic lake sediments. ‘Most probable number’ calculations of lake sediment samples record the presence of large populations of sulphate-reducing bacteria, whereas sulphur-isotope analyses of lake-water samples indicate microbial fractionation in all the lakes studied. Viable populations of microbes from the lake sediments were cultured in anoxic conditions in the laboratory. Samples were then injected into vials containing sterilized clastic or carbonate grains, or glass beads, immersed in a solution that simulated the lake water. Falls in the levels of sulphate and rising pH in positive vials were interpreted as indicating active bacterial sulphate reduction accompanied by increased concentrations of carbonate. Within 2 months, sub-spherical, sub-micron-size crystals of dolomite identical to those of lake sediments were precipitated. It is concluded that bacterial sulphate reduction overcomes kinetic constraints on dolomite formation by removing sulphate and releasing magnesium and calcium ions from neutral ion pairs, and by generating elevated carbonate concentrations, in a hypersaline, strongly electrolytic solution. The results demonstrate that bacterial sulphate reduction controls dolomite precipitation in both the laboratory experiments and lake sediments. It is proposed that dolomite formation, through bacterial sulphate reduction, provides a process analogue applicable to thick platformal dolostones of the past, where benthic microbial communities were the sole or dominant colonizers of shallow marine environments.  相似文献   

8.
微生物碳酸盐岩是微生物与环境相互作用的产物,它的发育对古环境与微生物群落有着重要的指示意义。河北省平泉县地区中元古代高于庄组四段发育有凝块石、纹理石、叠层石多种微生物碳酸盐岩。凝块石以其内部独特的凝块组构而显著区别于具纹层构造的叠层石等其它微生物岩类型。根据尺寸大小与排列特点可将高于庄组凝块石中的凝块组构分为3种类型：厘米级别、致密的中凝块,毫米级别、似层状的小凝块与微米级别、层状分布的微凝块。显微与超显微观察显示,所有的凝块组构均由内核与外壳两个结构单元组成。内核主要为丝状细菌、球状细菌等微生物或有机质残留,围绕内核的是呈放射状、扇状分布的方解石外壳,方解石颗粒之间可见有薄片状胞外聚合物（EPS）残留。凝块中微生物残余及EPS的大量发现,表明了凝块组构的形成与微生物密切相关。环境中海水碳酸盐初始饱和度的高低可能是形成不同类型的凝块组构的原因。  相似文献   

9.
Authigenic calcite and dolomite and biogenic aragonite occur in Holocene pan sediments in a Mediterranean‐type climate on the western coastal plain of South Africa. Sediment was analysed from a Late Pleistocene coastal pan at Yzerfontein and four Holocene inland pans ranging from brackish to hypersaline. The pans are between 0·08 and 0·14 km2 in size. The δ18OPDB values of carbonate minerals in the pan sediments range from ?2·41 to 5·56‰ and indicate precipitation from evaporative waters. Covariance of total organic content and percentage carbonate minerals, and the δ13CPDB values of pan carbonate minerals (?8·85 to ?1·54‰) suggest that organic matter degradation is a significant source of carbonate ions. The precipitation of the carbonate minerals, especially dolomite, appears to be mediated by sulphate‐reducing bacteria in the black sulphidic mud zone found in the brine‐type hypersaline pans. The knobbly, sub‐spherical texture of the carbonate minerals suggests that the precipitation of the carbonate minerals, particularly dolomite, is related to microbial processes. The 87Sr/86Sr ratios of pan carbonate minerals (0·7108 to 0·7116) are slightly higher than modern sea water and indicate a predominantly sea water (marine aerosol) source for calcium (Ca2+) ions with relatively minor amounts of Ca2+ derived from the chemical weathering of bedrock.  相似文献   

10.
Microbial mat communities host complex biogeochemical processes and play a role in the formation of most carbonate rocks by influencing both carbonate precipitation and dissolution. In this study, the biogeochemistry of microbial mats from the hypersaline Salt Pond, San Salvador, Bahamas are described using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, microelectrode profiling, fatty acid methyl esters, and carbon and nitrogen analyses. These microbial mats are distinctly layered both chemically and with regard to composition of microbial community, where significant (?? < 0.05) differences are noted between layers and cores. Furthermore, an oxic upper zone and an H2S-rich lower zone dominate the Salt Pond microbial mats, where H2S concentrations were measured approaching 8 mM. The high H2S concentrations along with the lacking evidence of mineral precipitation in SEM images point to the prevalence of carbonate dissolution. Moreover, the high concentrations of organics (3?C9%) reveal that the mats are self-sourcing and can provide ample fuel to sustain the highly active heterotrophic (both aerobic and anaerobic) metabolism. Seasonal differences in sulfide and oxygen concentrations in Salt Pond mats indicate that the carbonate dissolution and precipitation reactions are dynamic in this hypersaline lake.  相似文献   

11.
微生物岩的原始定义指底栖微生物主导形成的沉积体或岩石体。笔者对该概念进行了扩充,认为微生物岩除了包括叠层石、凝块石、纹层石、核形石、均一石之外,还应该包括微生物骨架岩、微生物粘结岩、非钙化浮游或漂浮微生物形成的模铸岩、矿化浮游或漂浮微生物形成的颗粒岩和泥粒岩。P-T界线地层微生物岩的特征是具有由较粗矿物晶体(主要是方解石,其次是白云石)组成的斑点状、树枝状、网状结构的灰岩。这3种结构分别称为斑点状体、树枝状体、网状体,在露头上呈暗色,在薄片中呈浅色,一般由无定形的亮晶充填体和其间的微亮晶组成。亮晶充填体是指无定形的孔洞被不同成岩期形成的矿物充填形成的结构体,因成岩作用各异,造成不同层位、不同地点的亮晶充填体内部的矿物类型和充填顺序存在差异;所有的亮晶充填体都不具有壁,故不是钙化化石。通过形态、大小和生态比较,以及形成演化分析,认为亮晶充填体的前身是漂浮蓝细菌微囊菌,胶鞘是微囊菌形成模铸化石的关键因素。亮晶充填体是表层水漂浮生活的微囊菌沉入海底后,被泥晶沉积物掩埋或者被早期海底胶结物胶结,在泥晶沉积物半固结或固结之后腐烂留下的孔洞被后期成岩作用形成的矿物充填形成的。P-T界线地层微生物岩段顶部遭受成岩作用程度高,树枝状体和网状体中的亮晶充填体的轮廓基本都被破坏,变成微亮晶和亮晶,以前被学者解释为凝块石;但斑点状体、树枝状体、网状体是成岩流体沿着亮晶充填体或其他化石丰富的地方运移形成较粗的晶体而造成的,并不符合凝块石的定义。同时,少数学者把树枝状体本身当成底栖生物,也是没有充分认识树枝状体的矿物组成而做的解释。该微生物岩段含有钙化的小球状化石和同心层状化石,但它们不是组成微生物岩的主体。  相似文献   

12.
Hydrochemical studies of the Plitvice Lakes and their tributaries (Croatia/Yugoslavia) were coupled with micromorphological investigations on carbonate lake sediments and recent travertines. Karst springs discharge water from aquifers in Triassic and Jurassic dolomites and limestones and collect in lakes, which are ponded behind accreting travertine dams. Waters at springs have a high CO2 partial-pressure (greater than 7000 ppm) and are slightly undersaturated with respect to calcite (saturation index less than —0·03). CO2 partial pressure is quickly reduced in swift running streams, leading to very high supersaturation with carbonate minerals (saturation indices between 0·74 and 0·53). Calcite deposition, however, is restricted to the lake bottoms (formation of lake marl) and to the tufa dams. The annual carbonate precipitating capacity of the system based on water balance and downstream loss of dissolved ions is estimated to be on the order of 10 000 t CaCO3 as cascade deposits (tufa dams) or as micrite in lakes behind the travertine dams. The initial stages of travertine formation as a result of morphological, biological, and chemical factors are (i) moss settling on small ridges in the creek courses, (ii) epiphytes (diatoms and cyanobacteria) settling on the moss surface, (iii) micrite particles resuspending from lake bottoms and being trapped on mucous excretions from bacteria and diatoms, and (iv) inorganic calcite precipitating as sparite at nucleation sites provided by these crystal seeds. Geochemical studies of the lake marl and tufa dams show that amino acids are dominated by aspartic acid. Carbohydrates come from structural polysaccharides of diatoms. The sticky excretions, rich in aspartic acid, are necessary for the initiation of calcite precipitation. They may be a response of algal and bacterial metabolism to environmental stress by either nutrient depletion or high calcium concentrations in ambient waters. The formation of tufa and micrite (lake marl) appears to be initiated by localized biological factors and is not governed by mere calcite supersaturation of the water. Oligotrophy may be an essential precondition for the formation of fresh water carbonate deposits.  相似文献   

13.
Field, petrographic and stable isotopic evidence indicate the former presence of widespread evaporites in the Neoarchaean Campbellrand Subgroup of South Africa. Calcitization of the vanished but once laterally-extensive evaporites was apparently driven by bacterial sulphate reduction of solid sulphate in association with organic diagenesis and pyrite precipitation within platform-wide microbialites and sapropels. This counters current interpretations that much of the calcite was precipitated directly on the seafloor or in primary voids in open marine conditions controlled by regional seawater chemistry. Rather, large-scale microbial mediation of ambient waters across a shallow to emergent platform raised carbonate alkalinity and removed kinetic inhibitors to carbonate formation.The low preservation potential of Precambrian solid sulphate is related in part to bacterial sulphate reduction within the microbially-dominated ecosystems of which cyanobacteria were a major component. Evidence for the former presence of solid sulphate in shallow Neoarchaean seas includes pseudomorphs after selenite, also recorded from the contemporaneous Carawine Dolomite of Australia, together with rock fabrics and textures typical of evaporite dissolution. Importantly, sulphur isotopes of pyrite samples from the Cambellrand carbonates show a wide range of values indicating biogenic fractionation of sulphate, a signature also seen in the Neoarchaean Belingwe Greenstone Belt of Zimbabwe, and the Mt McRae and Jeerinah shales of Western Australia.Mass microbial colonization across extensive Neoarchaean epeiric seas witnessed the microbiogeochemical transformation of the Earth’s hydrosphere, atmosphere and biosphere. The consequences for a reducing ocean would be the progressive oxidation of the major dissolved species in surface seawater, most notably of reduced sulphur and iron. Cyanobacterial photosynthetic oxidation of surface seawater drove formation of aqueous sulphate and permitted the precipitation of extensive evaporites in restricted basins, perhaps beginning the process of ridding the oceans of reduced sulphur. The first dramatic explosion of carbonate precipitation can be related to intense bacterial sulphate reduction in association with anoxic organic diagenesis and pyrite formation within the decaying interiors of microbialites and in sapropels.  相似文献   

14.
With more than 10 km of total length, Holocene microbialites in Laguna Bacalar, Mexico, belong to the largest freshwater microbialite occurrences. Microbialites include domes, ledges and oncolites. Domal forms can grow to diameters and heights of 3 m. Microbialites are composed of low magnesium calcite which is, to a large extent, precipitated due to the metabolic activity of the cyanobacteria Homeothrix and Leptolyngbya, and associated diatoms. Photosynthesis removes carbon dioxide and triggers carbonate precipitation. Also, an elevated carbonate concentration in lagoon waters, derived from dissolution of Cenozoic limestone in a karst system, supports carbonate precipitation. Trapping and binding of detrital grains is also observed, but is not as common as precipitation. Bacalar microbialites are largely thrombolitic, however, stromatolitic sections occur as well. The bulk of Bacalar microbialites probably formed in the Late Holocene (ca 1 kyr BP until present). According to 14C dating, microbialites accreted 9 to 8 cal kyr BP; however, these ages may be too old as a result of a strong hard water effect. This effect is seen in 14C ages of living bivalve and gastropod mollusc shells from Bacalar Lagoon, which are 8 to 7 cal kyr BP. The modern associated fauna of microbialites is characterized by low diversity and high abundance of the bivalve mollusc Dreissena sp. and the gastropod Pomacea sp. The abundant grazing gastropods presumably hamper modern microbialite formation. A comparison of Bacalar microbialites with other modern microbialite occurrences worldwide shows only a few patterns: sizes, shapes, microbial taxa, mineralogy, type of accretion and settings including water properties of microbialite occurrences exhibit high variability. A trend may be seen in the grazing metazoa, which are rare to absent in the marine and brackish examples, but apparently present in all the freshwater occurrences of microbialites. Also, freshwater examples are usually characterized by elevated concentrations of carbonate and/or calcium ions in the surrounding waters.  相似文献   

15.
Alkaline lakes like the hydrothermally affected lake Specchio di Venere (Pantelleria Island, Central Mediterranean) are typical geological settings harbouring calcified microbial mats. The present work is focused on the discrimination between biotic and abiotic processes driving carbonate precipitation in this lake, using hydrochemical, mineralogical and isotopic data. Hydrochemical analyses demonstrate that the lake is nearly 10−fold supersaturated with regard to aragonite and seasonally reaches hydromagnesite supersaturation. Microscopic observations depict organosedimentary laminated structures consisting of microbial communities and aragonitic precipitates, which are rather disseminated in pores than directly linked to microorganisms. Oxygen isotopic data indicate that authigenic carbonate crystallisation from evaporating water is the dominant precipitation process, further suggested by the absence of textural evidence of diagenetic processes. Conversely, the observed δ13C values reflect an influence of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) on carbon fractionation during the precipitation process, due to the selective sequestration of 12C in the biomass. The above considerations suggest that at lake Specchio di Venere the carbonate precipitation is mainly of inorganic nature, but a minor role played by biologically influenced processes in microbial mats is not excluded.  相似文献   

16.
In the hypersaline Techirghiol Lake adjacent to the Black Sea, sporadically formed lithified blocks and grapestone are found which are the result of cementation of carbonate sediments with aragonite and possibly kutnahorite (manganesian calcite). The lithified blocks are characterized by a central cavity bordered by a lithified envelope. The formation of the carbonate cement is due to subaquatic bacterial processes of calcium sulfate reduction and the synthesis of calcium carbonate at the expense of gypsum concretions derived from Pleistocene red clays cropping out along the shore of the lake. These lithified blocks have geological significance as they may be usable as criteria for the recognition of sediments deposited in the past near to the shores of hypersaline lakes.  相似文献   

17.
Environmentally friendly options for restoring limestone using microorganisms have attracted recent attention. The governing principle of this technique is to use the metabolism of microorganisms to precipitate carbonate in the gaps of mineral particles; this process is known as microbial carbonate precipitation (MCP). Here, an outcrop associated with MCP under natural conditions at the Giza cliff in Okinawa, Japan was investigated. Colonies of photoautotrophic microorganisms containing chlorophyll were found inhabiting a layer of limestone 2–4 mm below the surface of the outcrop. These microorganisms survived and photosynthesised within the limestone under favorable conditions that include an effective photon flux density of 15–75 µmol/m2/s, and some fresh calcium carbonates (i.e., calcite) were precipitated around the cell walls and extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) of the microorganisms. Furthermore, the results of powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) suggest that the synthetic calcite within the limestone may improve the mechanical strength of the outcrop. These in situ and laboratory findings indicate that these microbial functions may be applicable to some weathered rock surfaces as a self-organizing surface protection and conservation technology.  相似文献   

18.
A combination of both water chemistry and sedimentological information was used to investigate the carbonate-producing mechanism in Littlefield Lake, a small lake located in Isabella County, central Michigan. Data on temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, calcium carbonate (CaCO3) saturation, alkalinity, calcium, and magnesium were obtained on a monthly basis over a 13-month period, with each parameter determined at 1m intervals over a depth range of 20m. The loss of dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) from warm surface waters during direct degassing, and to a lesser extent during photosynthetic uptake by lacustrine macrophytes and phytoplankton during the summer, results in massive precipitation of the low-magnesium calcite which predominates in all Littlefield Lake sedimentary facies However, despite the fact that carbonate precipitation in this rather typical temperate-region marl lake is directly related to, and may be driven by, seasonal variation in these physiochemical parameters, most calcite forms as encrustations around cyanophytic and chlorophytic macrophytes. Such relationships demonstrate that carbonate precipitation in marl lakes may result from complex interactions between both biochemical and physiochemical processes. As such, marl formation in this, and probably many other calcareous lake systems, can not be simply ascribed to one or the other of these two general mechanisms.  相似文献   

19.
Bosten Lake is a mid-latitude lake with water mainly supplied by melting ice and snow in the Tianshan Mountains. The depositional environment of the lake is spatially not uniform due to the proximity of the major inlet and the single outlet in the western part of the lake. The analytical results show that the carbon and oxygen isotopic composition of recent lake sediments is related to this specific lacustrine depositional environment and to the resulting carbonate mineralogy. In the southwestern lake region between the Kaidu River inlet and the Kongqi River outlet, carbon isotope composition (δ13C) values of the carbonate sediment (?1‰ to ?2‰) have no relation to the oxygen isotope composition of the carbonate (δ18O) values (?7‰ to ?8‰), with both isotopes showing a low variability. The carbonate content is low (<20%). Carbonate minerals analyzed by X-ray diffraction are mainly composed of calcite, while aragonite was not recorded. The salinity of the lake water is low in the estuary region as a result of the Kaidu River inflow. In comparison, the carbon and oxygen isotope values are higher in the middle and eastern parts of the lake, with δ13C values between approximately +0.5‰ and +3‰, and δ18O values between ?1‰ and ?5‰. There is a moderate correlation between the stable oxygen and carbon isotopes, with a coefficient of correlation r of approximately 0.63. This implies that the lake water has a relatively short residence time. Carbonate minerals constitute calcite and aragonite in the middle and eastern region of the lake. Aragonite and Mg–calcite are formed at higher lake water salinity and temperatures, and larger evaporation effects. More saline lake water in the middle and eastern region of the lake and the enhanced isotopic equilibrium between water and atmospheric CO2 cause the correlating carbon and oxygen isotope values determined for aragonite and Mg–calcite. Evaporation and biological processes are the main reasons for the salinity and carbonate mineralogy influence of the surface-sediment carbonate in Bosten Lake. The lake water residence time and the CO2 exchange between the atmosphere and the water body control the carbon and oxygen isotope composition of the carbonate sediment. In addition, organic matter pollution and decomposition result in the abnormally low carbon isotope values of the lake surface-sediment carbonate.  相似文献   

20.
微生物碳酸盐岩是近年来地学界研究的一个热点,其时空分布非常广泛,并可形成重要的油气储集层。在鄂尔多斯盆地北部苏里格气田的中奥陶统马家沟组马五1+2段和马五4段,笔者分别发现了非钙化微生物成因的凝块石微生物岩。依据显微结构,将凝块石划分为蠕虫状凝块石、网状凝块石和房室孔洞状凝块石3种类型。通过与基里巴斯现代超盐湖微生物碳酸盐形成环境的对比,推测在华北地台云坪广布、坪中有湖的大背景下,凝块石是在相对海平面上升、盐度大约在60‰~149‰之间的条件下形成的,而含石膏结核碳酸盐岩是在相对海平面下降、盐度达到149‰以上的条件下形成的。进一步研究发现,蠕虫状凝块石泥粉晶白云岩的白云石晶间孔和溶蚀孔非常发育,网状凝块石和房室孔洞状凝块石的溶蚀残余孔较发育,推测凝块石微生物岩具有较好的物性,是未来油气勘探的重要目标岩性之一。  相似文献   

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