GROWTH FAULTS

Figure 1

Growth faults are syndepositional or syn-sedimentary extensional faults that

initiate and evolve at the margins of continental plates. They extend parallel to
passive margins that have high sediment supply. Their fault plane dips mostly
toward the basin and has long-term continuous displacement. Figure one shows a
growth fault with concave upward fault plane that has high updip angle and
flattened at its base into zone of detachment. This angle is continuously changing
from nearly vertical in the updip area to nearly horizontal in the downdip area.
Sedimentary layers have different geometry and thickness across the fault. The
footwall-landward of the fault plane has undisturbed sedimentary strata that dip
gently toward the basin while the hanging wall on the basin side of the fault plane
has folded and faulted sedimentary strata that dip landward close to the fault and
basinward away from it. This layers perch on a low density evaporate or overpressured shale bed that easily flows away from higher pressure into lower pressure
zones. Most studies since the 1990s concentrate on the growth faults, driving
forces, kinematics and accompanied structures since they are helpful in fossil fuel
explorations as they form structural traps for oil.

Figure 2

Growth faults maturation is a long term process that takes millions of years with slip
rate ranges between 0.2 1.2 millimeters per year. It starts when sedimentary
sequences are deposited on top of each other above a thick evaporate layer (Fig. 2).
A growth faults is initiated when the evaporite layer can no longer support the
overlying sequences. The thicker and denser portion applies much more pressure on
the evaporite layer than the thin portion. As a result, a flow within the evaporite
layer is initiated from high pressure areas toward low pressure area causing growth
ridges to form below the thin portion. Also sinking zones are noticed among these
ridges at areas where thicker and denser layers form.

Figure 3. Sketch showing evolution stages of three growth faults. The black arrow shows the direction
of evolution.

Consequently, the passive margin experience unequal subsidence across the

continental shelf. Both the new-created accommodation spaces and the thickness of
the new-deposited sedimentary layers are greater above the sinking zones than
above the growth ridges. The new added layers are thicker within the footwall than
within the hanging wall (Fig. 2). These variations result in an increasing of
differential load intensities unequal distribution of sediments load across the
shelf with time as more sediment layer are added (Fig. 2). Therefore, the rate by
which the pressure increases upon the evaporite layer below the sinking zone are
much more than the rate of pressure increases upon the same evaporite layer at
the growth ridges. So, the flow rate within the evaporite layer is progressively
increasing as deferential load intensifies (Fig. 2). The growth ridges end up with salt
diaper. When the sinking zone sequences weld to the base of the evaporite layer.