Mineralogical characteristics of upper Jurassic Mikulov Marls, the Czech Republic, in relation to their thermal maturity

Abstract

The Upper Jurassic Marls of Mikulov present a formation that is considered to be the most promising strata to produce hydrocarbons in the Vienna basin. The marls are composed of dark pelagic marlstones that frequently contain layers of limestone with thickness reaching several hundreds of meters. Twenty-seven core samples from selected wells located in the south-eastern portion of the Czech Republic representing depths ranging from 2300 to 4500m were analyzed by x-ray diffraction to assess bulk mineralogy and the progress of smectite illitization.Bulk mineralogy of the Mikulov Marls comprises carbonates (mean value=54.4 mass%), clay minerals (26.6 mass%), quartz (15.0 mass%), and feldspar (1.6 mean%). In the decreasing order, the clay mineral fraction is composed of illite/mica, kaolinite, illite-smectite, and chlorite. The amount of smectite in illite-smectite decreases with depth from 70% to 28%. There is a change from random to ordered interstratification at the depth of 3300m. The transition from short-range ordering (R1) to long-range ordering (R3) occurs at depths greater than 4,500m.There was a good correspondence between thermal maturity parameters: the percentage of smectite in illite-smectite structures and vitrinite reflectance as a parameter of organic matter. The increase of the metamorphic grade was compared in respect to the geothermal gradient with adjacent basins.