Sedimentary environment and organic matter accumulation of Neoproterozoic black shale in the North China Craton: A case study of the Tonian Baishugou Formation in the Luonan area

Abstract

With acceleration of “oil exploration near the source” in the petroleum industry, black shales (BS) play an increasingly important role in oil and gas exploration. Meso-Neoproterozoic BS are well developed in the North China Craton (NCC), China, many of which are identified as potential hydrocarbon source rocks. Although BS from the Mesoproterozoic Era has been widely investigated, few studies were focused on the Neoproterozoic BS so far. Based on petrology and geochemistry analysis, the sedimentary environment, provenance and organic matter accumulation of two BS layers in the Tonian Baishugou Formation from Sujiacun section, Luonan Area, southern NCC were investigated. It suggests that the lower BS (LB) was deposited in a shallow and non-stratified cratonic-interior sea environment with unstable dysoxic or suboxic conditions. The seawater salinity increased from brackish to marine facies conditions due to the decrease of runoff caused by climate cooling. The Upper BS (UB) was deposited in an open paleomarine environment with stable suboxic conditions and brackish salinity in continuously humid and hot paleoclimate. Both BS were derived from granitoids formed by the ca.2.5 Ga collisional-thermal events in the NCC. The OM accumulation rate of UB is higher than that of UB while LB records lower OM loss rate. On these bases, two developmental modes for the BS from the Baishugou Formation were established.