Late Pleistocene to Holocene sedimentation and hydrocarbon seeps on the continental shelf of a steep,tectonically active margin,southern California,USA   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Amy E. Draut  Patrick E. Hart  Thomas D. Lorenson  Holly F. Ryan  Florence L. Wong  Ray W. Sliter  James E. Conrad 《Marine Geophysical Researches》2009,30(3):193-206

Small, steep, uplifting coastal watersheds are prolific sediment producers that contribute significantly to the global marine sediment budget. This study illustrates how sedimentation evolves in one such system where the continental shelf is largely sediment-starved, with most terrestrial sediment bypassing the shelf in favor of deposition in deeper basins. The Santa Barbara–Ventura coast of southern California, USA, is considered a classic area for the study of active tectonics and of Tertiary and Quaternary climatic evolution, interpretations of which depend upon an understanding of sedimentation patterns. High-resolution seismic-reflection data over >570 km² of this shelf show that sediment production is concentrated in a few drainage basins, with the Ventura and Santa Clara River deltas containing most of the upper Pleistocene to Holocene sediment on the shelf. Away from those deltas, the major factor controlling shelf sedimentation is the interaction of wave energy with coastline geometry. Depocenters containing sediment 5–20 m thick exist opposite broad coastal embayments, whereas relict material (bedrock below a regional unconformity) is exposed at the sea floor in areas of the shelf opposite coastal headlands. Locally, natural hydrocarbon seeps interact with sediment deposition either to produce elevated tar-and-sediment mounds or as gas plumes that hinder sediment settling. As much as 80% of fluvial sediment delivered by the Ventura and Santa Clara Rivers is transported off the shelf (some into the Santa Barbara Basin and some into the Santa Monica Basin via Hueneme Canyon), leaving a shelf with relatively little recent sediment accumulation. Understanding factors that control large-scale sediment dispersal along a rapidly uplifting coast that produces substantial quantities of sediment has implications for interpreting the ancient stratigraphic record of active and transform continental margins, and for inferring the distribution of hydrocarbon resources in relict shelf deposits.  相似文献   

Gas hydrates from the continental slope,offshore Sakhalin Island,Okhotsk Sea   总被引：3，自引：5，他引：3  

G. D. Ginsburg  V. A. Soloviev  R. E. Cranston  T. D. Lorenson  K. A. Kvenvolden 《Geo-Marine Letters》1993,13(1):41-48

Ten gas-vent fields were discovered in the Okhotsk Sea on the northeast continental slope offshore from Sakhalin Island in water depths of 620—1040 m. At one vent field, estimated to be more than 250 m across, gas hydrates, containing mainly microbial methane (¹³C = –64.3), were recovered from subbottom depths of 0.3–1.2 m. The sediment, having lenses and bedded layers of gas hydrate, contained 30–40% hydrate per volume of wet sediment. Although gas hydrates were not recovered at other fields, geochemical and thermal measurements suggest that gas hydrates are present.  相似文献   

Understanding shallow gas occurrences in the Gulf of Lions     

A. García-García  T. Tesi  D. Orange  T. Lorenson  S. Miserocchi  L. Langone  I. Herbert  J. Dougherty 《Geo-Marine Letters》2007,27(2-4):143-154

New coring data have been acquired along the western Gulf of Lions showing anomalous concentrations of methane (up to 95,700 ppm) off the Rhône prodelta and the head of the southern canyons Lacaze-Duthiers and Cap de Creus. Sediment cores were acquired with box and kasten cores during 2004–2005 on several EuroSTRATAFORM cruises. Anomalous methane concentrations are discussed and integrated with organic carbon data. Sampled sites include locations where previous surveys identified acoustic anomalies in high-resolution seismic profiles, which may be related to the presence of gas. Interpretation of the collected data has enabled us to discuss the nature of shallow gas along the Gulf of Lions, and its association with recent sedimentary dynamics. The Rhône prodelta flood deposits deliver significant amounts of terrigenous organic matter that can be rapidly buried, effectively removing this organic matter from aerobic oxidation and biological uptake, and leading to the potential for methanogenesis with burial. Away from the flood-related sediments off the Rhône delta, the organic matter is being reworked and remineralized on its way along the western coast of the Gulf of Lions, with the result that the recent deposits in the canyon contain little reactive carbon. In the southernmost canyons, Lacaze-Duthiers and Cap de Creus, the gas analyses show relatively little shallow gas in the core samples. Samples with anomalous gas (up to 5,000 ppm methane) are limited to local areas where the samples also show higher amounts of organic matter. The anomalous samples at the head of the southern canyons may be related to methanogenesis of recent drape or of older sidewall canyon infills.  相似文献   

Geochemical constraints on the distribution of gas hydrates in the Gulf of Mexico     

C. K. Paull  W. Ussler III  T. Lorenson  W. Winters  J. Dougherty 《Geo-Marine Letters》2005,25(5):273-280

Gas hydrates are common within near-seafloor sediments immediately surrounding fluid and gas venting sites on the continental slope of the northern Gulf of Mexico. However, the distribution of gas hydrates within sediments away from the vents is poorly documented, yet critical for gas hydrate assessments. Porewater chloride and sulfate concentrations, hydrocarbon gas compositions, and geothermal gradients obtained during a porewater geochemical survey of the northern Gulf of Mexico suggest that the lack of bottom simulating reflectors in gas-rich areas of the gulf may be the consequence of elevated porewater salinity, geothermal gradients, and microbial gas compositions in sediments away from fault conduits.  相似文献   

Greenhouse gases generated from the anaerobic biodegradation of natural offshore asphalt seepages in southern California     

Thomas D. Lorenson  Florence L. Wong  Peter Dartnell  Ray W. Sliter 《Geo-Marine Letters》2014,34(2-3):281-295

Significant offshore asphaltic deposits with active seepage occur in the Santa Barbara Channel offshore southern California. The composition and isotopic signatures of gases sampled from the oil and gas seeps reveal that the coexisting oil in the shallow subsurface is anaerobically biodegraded, generating CO₂ with secondary CH₄ production. Biomineralization can result in the consumption of as much as 60% by weight of the original oil, with ¹³C enrichment of CO₂. Analyses of gas emitted from asphaltic accumulations or seeps on the seafloor indicate up to 11% CO₂ with ¹³C enrichment reaching +24.8‰. Methane concentrations range from less than 30% up to 98% with isotopic compositions of –34.9 to –66.1‰. Higher molecular weight hydrocarbon gases are present in strongly varying concentrations reflecting both oil-associated gas and biodegradation; propane is preferentially biodegraded, resulting in an enriched ¹³C isotopic composition as enriched as –19.5‰. Assuming the 132 million barrels of asphaltic residues on the seafloor represent ~40% of the original oil volume and mass, the estimated gas generated is 5.0×10¹⁰ kg (~76×10⁹ m³) CH₄ and/or 1.4×10¹¹ kg CO₂ over the lifetime of seepage needed to produce the volume of these deposits. Geologic relationships and oil weathering inferences suggest the deposits are of early Holocene age or even younger. Assuming an age of ~1,000 years, annual fluxes are on the order of 5.0×10⁷ kg (~76×10⁶ m³) and/or 1.4×10⁸ kg for CH₄ and CO₂, respectively. The daily volumetric emission rate (2.1×10⁵ m³) is comparable to current CH₄ emission from Coal Oil Point seeps (1.5×10⁵ m³/day), and may be a significant source of both CH₄ and CO₂ to the atmosphere provided that the gas can be transported through the water column.  相似文献   

Gas hydrate accumulation at the Håkon Mosby Mud Volcano   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

G. D. Ginsburg  A. V. Milkov  V. A. Soloviev  A. V. Egorov  G. A. Cherkashev  P. R. Vogt  K. Crane  T. D. Lorenson  M. D. Khutorskoy 《Geo-Marine Letters》1999,19(1-2):57-67

Gas hydrate (GH) accumulation is characterized and modeled for the Håkon Mosby mud volcano, ca. 1.5?km across, located on the Norway–Barents–Svalbard margin. Pore water chemical and isotopic results based on shallow sediment cores as well as geothermal and geomorphological data suggest that the GH accumulation is of a concentric pattern controlled by and formed essentially from the ascending mud volcano fluid. The gas hydrate content of sediment peaks at 25% by volume, averaging about 1.2% throughout the accumulation. The amount of hydrate methane is estimated at ca. 10⁸?m³ STP, which could account for about 1–10% of the gas that has escaped from the volcano since its origin.  相似文献   

Gas geochemistry of the Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, Alaska North Slope: Implications for gas hydrate exploration in the Arctic   总被引：2，自引：0，他引：2  

Thomas D. Lorenson  Timothy S. CollettRobert B. Hunter 《Marine and Petroleum Geology》2011,28(2):343-360

Gases were analyzed from well cuttings, core, gas hydrate, and formation tests at the BPXA-DOE-USGS Mount Elbert Gas Hydrate Stratigraphic Test Well, drilled within the Milne Point Unit, Alaska North Slope. The well penetrated a portion of the Eileen gas hydrate deposit, which overlies the more deeply buried Prudhoe Bay, Milne Point, West Sak, and Kuparuk River oil fields. Gas sources in the upper 200 m are predominantly from microbial sources (C₁ isotopic compositions ranging from −86.4 to −80.6‰). The C₁ isotopic composition becomes progressively enriched from 200 m to the top of the gas hydrate-bearing sands at 600 m. The tested gas hydrates occur in two primary intervals, units D and C, between 614.0 m and 664.7 m, containing a total of 29.3 m of gas hydrate-bearing sands. The hydrocarbon gases in cuttings and core samples from 604 to 914 m are composed of methane with very little ethane. The isotopic composition of the methane carbon ranges from −50.1 to −43.9‰ with several outliers, generally decreasing with depth. Gas samples collected by the Modular Formation Dynamics Testing (MDT) tool in the hydrate-bearing units were similarly composed mainly of methane, with up to 284 ppm ethane. The methane isotopic composition ranged from −48.2 to −48.0‰ in the C sand and from −48.4 to −46.6‰ in the D sand. Methane hydrogen isotopic composition ranged from −238 to −230‰, with slightly more depleted values in the deeper C sand. These results are consistent with the concept that the Eileen gas hydrates contain a mixture of deep-sourced, microbially biodegraded thermogenic gas, with lesser amounts of thermogenic oil-associated gas, and coal gas. Thermal gases are likely sourced from existing oil and gas accumulations that have migrated up-dip and/or up-fault and formed gas hydrate in response to climate cooling with permafrost formation.  相似文献   

新疆博格达造山带晚古生代构造-岩浆演化过程:火山岩组合及地球化学证据   总被引：9，自引：3，他引：6  

王金荣  李泰德  田黎萍  于漫  王怀涛  赵志雄  汤中立 《岩石学报》2010,26(4):1103-1115

最近,笔者在博格达山东段北部的西地-伊齐-小红柳峡一带的地质调查中发现,该区发育有大量晚石炭世柳树沟组双峰式火山岩及早二叠世卡拉岗组酸性火山岩建造,但双峰式火山岩性质及成因有别于其南侧七角井早石炭世双峰式火山岩。玄武岩富钠贫钾(K_2O=0.18%～0.45%,Na_2O=2.24%～3.63%),属拉斑系列;TiO_2=1.6%～1.7%,略高于MORB,较高的Al(Al_2O_3=16.2%～16.7%)、高Mg(MgO=8.12%～9.54%,Mg~#=61～64),以及低K_2O/TiO_2和K_2O/P_2O_5比值(分别为0.1～0.27、0.63～1.68),反映了在岩浆演化过程中分离结晶作用不明显;Rb/Sr比值0.01～0.02,Zr/Nb=21.6～39.7,Zr/Y=5.38～7.47,以及不相容元素Ba、Zr、Hf相对略富集、Nb-Ta和Th相对亏损,显示岩石具有板内玄武岩的特点;稀土元素球粒陨石标准化配分图上整体接近于平坦型,(La/Yb)_N=1.8～1.9,Eu无异常至轻微正异常(δEu=1.07～1.12),正ε_(Nd)(t)值(+5.63～+5.89),(~(143)Nd/~(144)Nd)_I=0.512927～0.512944,Th/Yb0.2,Ta/Yb=0.1,表明玄武岩浆源于亏损软流圈地幔,且在演化过程中不曾发生过斜长石的分离结晶作用,并暗示当时的大陆地壳可能由于拉张而变得较薄,玄武岩浆形成后快速上升至地表喷发。双峰式火山岩中的流纹岩Rb-Sr等时线年龄为296±2Ma(1σ),具高Si(SiO_2=76%～80%),富钾贫钠(K_2O=5.1%～5.7%,Na_2O=0.94%～2.03%);低Al(Al_2O_3=7.9%～10.4%);低Ti、Ca和P含量,属高钾钙碱性系列;微量元素Rb、Th、Zr、Hf、K相对富集,Ba、Sr、P、Ti、Nb、Ta为显著亏损;轻稀土元素适度富集且轻、重稀土分馏程度低,(La/Yb)_N=5.1～7.1,(La/Sm)_N=2、(Gd/Yb)_N=1.6～2.2,以及强烈的负Eu异常(δEu=0.17～0.2),(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)_I=0.7051～0.7052,δ~(18)O=11.6‰,指示岩石源于地壳物质的部分熔融,源区存在有斜长石残留,形成于大陆裂谷环境。早二叠世末流纹岩(Rb-sr等时线年龄为278±2Ma)具高Si(SiO_2=74%),富钾贫钠(K_2O/Na_2O2),低Al(Al_2O_3=11.0%)以及较低的Ti和P含量的特征,岩石为高钾钙碱性系列;微量元素PM标准化图解上表现为Rb、Ba、Th、U、K、La、Ce不相容元素相对富集,高场强元素Nb、Ta、P、Ti以及Sr为明显的负异常;轻稀土轻度富集,(La/Yb)_N=5～6,(La/Sm)_N=3,(Gd/Yb)_N=1.3～1.4,以及强烈的负Eu异常(δEu=0.31～0.39),(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)_I为0.7069,δ~(18)O=11.97‰,指示源于地壳物质部分熔融的产物,形成于伸展垮塌的构造环境。综合研究结果表明,博格达山前身裂谷岩浆作用始于早石炭世,结束于晚石炭世末期,早二叠世末进入后造山伸展的演化阶段。  相似文献   

Microbial and hydrothermal aspects of ferric oxyhydroxides and ferrosic hydroxides: the example of Franklin Seamount, Western Woodlark Basin, Papua New Guinea   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

TD Boyd  SD Scott 《Geochemical transactions》2001,2(1):45-12

Deposits of Fe-Si-Mn oxyhydroxides are commonly found on the seafloor on seamounts and mid-ocean spreading centers. At Franklin Seamount located near the western extremity of Woodlark Basin, Papua New Guinea, Fe-Si-Mn oxyhydroxides are being precipitated as chimneys and mounds upon a substrate of mafic lava. Previous studies have shown that the vent fluids have a low temperature (20–30°C) and are characterized by a total dissolved iron concentration of 0.038 mM kg^-1, neutral pH (6.26) and no measurable H₂S. The chimneys have a yellowish appearance with mottled red–orange patches when observed in situ from a submersible, but collected samples become redder within a few hours of being removed from the sea. The amorphous iron oxyhydroxides, obtained from active and inactive vents, commonly possess filamentous textures similar in appearance to sheaths and stalks excreted by the iron-oxidizing bacteria Leptothrix and Gallionella; however, formless agglomerates are also common. Textural relationships between apparent bacterial and non-bacterial iron suggest that the filaments are coeval with and/or growing outwards from the agglomerates. The amorphous iron oxyhydroxides are suggested to precipitate hydrothermally as ferrosic hydroxide, a mixed-valence (Fe²⁺-Fe³⁺) green–yellow iron hydroxide compound. Consideration of the thermodynamics and kinetics of iron in the vent fluid, suggest that the precipitation is largely pH controlled and that large amounts of amorphous iron oxyhydroxides are capable of being precipitated by a combination of abiotic hydrothermal processes. Some biologically induced precipitation of primary ferric oxyhydroxides (two-XRD-line ferrihydrite) may have occurred directly from the fluid, but most of the filamentous iron micro-textures in the samples appear to have a diagenetic origin. They may have formed as a result of the interaction between the iron-oxidizing bacteria and the initially precipitated ferrosic hydroxide that provided a source of ferrous iron needed for their growth. The processes described at Franklin Seamount provide insight into the formation of other seafloor oxyhydroxide deposits and ancient oxide-facies iron formation.  相似文献   

Origin of pockmarks and chimney structures on the flanks of the Storegga Slide,offshore Norway   总被引：2，自引：1，他引：2  

Charles?K.?PaullEmail author  William?UsslerIII  W.?Steven?Holbrook  Tessa?M.?Hill  Rendy?Keaten  Jurgen?Mienert  Haflidi?Haflidason  Joel?E.?Johnson  William?J.?Winters  Thomas?D.?Lorenson 《Geo-Marine Letters》2008,28(1):43-51

Seafloor pockmarks and subsurface chimney structures are common on the Norwegian continental margin north of the Storegga Slide scar. Such features are generally inferred to be associated with fluid expulsion, and imply overpressures in the subsurface. Six long gravity and piston cores taken from the interior of three pockmarks were compared with four other cores taken from the same area but outside the pockmarks, in order to elucidate the origins and stratigraphy of these features and their possible association with the Storegga Slide event. Sulfate gradients in cores from within pockmarks are less steep than those in cores from outside the pockmarks, which indicates that the flux of methane to the seafloor is presently smaller within the pockmarks than in the adjacent undisturbed sediments. This suggests that these subsurface chimneys are not fluid flow conduits lined with gas hydrate. Methane-derived authigenic carbonates and Bathymodiolus shells obtained from a pockmark at >6.3 m below the seafloor indicate that methane was previously available to support a chemosynthetic community within the pockmark. AMS ¹⁴C measurements of planktonic Foraminifera overlying and interlayered with the shell-bearing sediment indicate that methane was present on the seafloor within the pockmark prior to 14 ka ¹⁴C years b.p., i.e., well before the last major Storegga Slide event (7.2 ka ¹⁴C years b.p., or 8.2 ka calendar years b.p.). These observations provide evidence that overpressured fluids existed within the continental margin sediments off Norway during the last major advance of Pleistocene glaciation.  相似文献