Origin of ooids in ooidal‐muddy laminites: A case study of the lower Cambrian Qingxudong Formation in the Sichuan Basin, South China

Abstract

Ooids have been considered the most intriguing component of carbonate rocks, but the formation mechanism of carbonate ooids remains a matter of intense discussion. The lower Cambrian Qingxudong Formation in the southeastern Sichuan Basin contains abundant ooidal‐muddy laminites. Petrographic and sedimentological analyses revealed that these laminites formed in a shallow‐marine environment (preferably along the windward side of the reef‐shoal). Changing energy conditions caused variable supplies of grainy and muddy accumulation. A wide variety of ooids developed in grainy intervals. The normal ooids (<2 mm in diameter) in the lower portion of the laminites developed under high‐energy shallow‐water conditions, whereas the giant ooids (>2 mm in diameter) in the upper portion of the laminites developed in a deepening and moderate‐energy subtidal environment but were influenced by episodic hydrodynamic events. Petrographic and geochemical analyses suggest that microbes played an important role in ooid formation. High carbonate‐supersaturated and alkaline conditions that were mediated by microbial activity (e.g., bacterial sulfate reduction and photosynthesis) and agitated seawater conditions were the most important factors that mediated the formation of the Qingxudong ooids. This study provides new insights into paleooceanographic conditions during the Early Cambrian and offers a perspective on the formation of ancient normal and giant ooids.