Controls on Sr isotopic evolution in lacustrine systems: Eocene green river formation, Wyoming

Abstract

Strontium isotopes from lacustrine carbonates record detailed weathering histories of exposed bedrocks, and thus are potentially useful for understanding interactions between tectonics and climate that may be driven by local or regional factors in basin-scale hydrologic systems. We combine extensive 87Sr/86Sr and δ18O datasets from the Green River Formation in order to identify environmental factors driving the evolution of Sr concentration and isotopic composition in lacustrine systems through the use of Sr mass balance modeling. Two models are developed. The first tests the effect of drainage capture that drove a constant-volume lake from balance-filled to overfilled conditions, and is applied to the Laney Member of the Green River Formation. The second model focuses on lacustrine evolution in response to changing the concentration, composition, and mass of water influx in a variable-size Sr reservoir (lake). This model is applied to the Wilkins Peak Member of the Green River Formation.87Sr/86Sr ratios are correlated with δ18O values only during the Laney Member, when both are readily explained by a common forcing mechanism (drainage capture). Modeling of Sr isotope compositions and concentrations indicates a short residence time for Sr (~103–104years or less) in both balance-overfilled and underfilled phases of the Green River Formation lacustrine system. This in turn suggests that paleo-lacustrine sediments in most lakes can preserve Sr isotope records with high-resolution (~102years) timescales. Rates of Sr sequestration in carbonate are shown to have a strong influence on lacustrine Sr concentration, and high Sr concentrations of lacustrine carbonate consistent with high salinity are observed in the underfilled Wilkins Peak Member and the balance-filled Tipton and lower Laney Members. In the Laney Member, 87Sr/86Sr mass-balance modeling results provide additional support for previous interpretations that the introduction of a large drainage system produced an isotopic shift across the lower LaClede/upper LaClede boundary. Major drainage reorganization is not required to drive high variability in 87Sr/86Sr ratios, however. Modeling shows that variability in 87Sr/86Sr ratios of ~0.004 observed in the Wilkins Peak Member can be explained by change in the characteristics of intrabasinal water sources during highstand vs. lowstand conditions.