Challenge the future

Delft
University of
Technology
M.E. Donselaar
Shelf deposits

2
Sedimentary environments
Continental: fluvial (braided, meandering)
aeolian
lacustrine
Coastal: deltas
linear (clastic, carbonate)
Marine: shelf
deep marine sands
pelagic
3
Outline
Introduction
Ocean circulation patterns
Shelf sedimentation
Examples tide-dominated shelf
Reservoir analogue
4
Definition shelf
The part of the sea bordered by:
The wave base
The shelf break (usually at 100-200 m water depth)
http://faculty.gg.uwyo.edu/heller/Sed%20Strat%20Class/SedStrat%207/SedStrat7.html
5
Shelf types
Marginal (= peri-continental):
Shelf bordered by land on one
side, and the deep sea on the
other side

Epiric (= epi-continental):
Shelf bordered by land on
several sides


epiric
marginal
http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~feegi/coastal.html
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Factors that influence shelf sedimentation
Shape of the shelf
Type and intensity of the hydraulic regime
Amount and type of sediment supply
Sea level fluctuations
Climate
Interaction sediment - fauna
Chemical factors
7
Shape of the shelf
Wide shelf: large sediment storage capacity (large
accommodation space). Trailing (passive) margins

Narrow shelf: low sediment storage capacity (small
accommodation space). Active margins
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Plate margins
http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/academic/phy_sci/Geology/hernlund/
Active margin
passive
margins
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Active and passive plate margins
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Active margins narrow shelf
http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=4953&rendTypeId=4
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Passive margin wide shelf
http://www.utexas.edu/tmm/npl/mineralogy/Mineral_Genesis/PassiveMargin.jpg
12
Hydraulic regime - 1
World wide circulation patterns caused by temperature and
salinity (=density) gradients
Tidal forces caused by gravity fields sun and moon
Meteorological currents
13
14
Ocean circulation - 2
http://www.dkrz.de/dkrz/gallery/vis/ocean
15
Ocean circulation - 3
Ocean currents (spiral eddies)
expand onto shelf

More spiral eddies:
http://www.navis.gr/meteo/ed
dies.htm

http://www.lpi.usra.edu/public
ations/slidesets/oceans/oceanvi
ews/slide_01.html
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Meteorological currents
Air pressure gradients -> wind shear stress -> waves and
currents

Animation
http://www.weather.com/maps/maptype/satelliteworld/atla
nticoceansatellite_large.html
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Hydraulic regime - 2
Wave dominated shelf: seasonal fluctuation of wave height
and current strength - sediment transport only during
storms
Tide dominated shelf: strong bi-directional bottom currents
- active sand transport, large bedforms
Ocean current dominated shelf: strong uni-directional
currents
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Amount and type of sediment supply
Relict sediment: Non-reworked sediment that was deposited
on the shelf as fluvial or coastal sediment in a previous sea
level lowstand phase

Palimpsest sediment: Reworked fluvial or coastal sediment
from a previous sea level lowstand phase

Modern sediment: Sediment that was recently added to the
shelf:
clay and silt (suspension from rivers, etc.)
sand (coastal source, seaward transport during storms)
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Sea level fluctuations
Influence the shelf accommodation space
Influence the type of sediment supply:
Low sea level: coarser sediment
High sea level : finer sediment
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Sediment supply
Sea level highstand: coarse
sediment trapped in estuaries,
only fine-grained suspended
sediment on shelf


Sea level lowstand: shelf is
(partly) exposed, coarse
sediment is transported onto
the shelf by rivers
Jervey (1988)
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Example tide-dominated shelf - 1
Strait of Dover: Convergence of
tidal currents, hence deep erosion
of sea bottom
North and south of Strait of Dover:
Flow expansion, hence gradual
decrease of current speed
Deposition of eroded sea bottom
sediment


Reading (1986)
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Example tide-dominated shelf - 2
Sedimentation succession at decreasing
current speed:

> 150 cm/s: furrows and gravel waves.
Scour hollows up to 150 km long, 5 km
wide, 150 m deep
~ 100 cm/s: sand ribbons. Longitudinal
ridges parallel to flow. Up to 15 km
long, 200 m wide, 1 m high
~ 90 cm/s: barchan-like bedforms
~ 75-65 cm/s: sand waves. Straight-
crested large bedforms, crest
perpendicular to flow. 3-15 m high,
wave length 150-500 m
Reading (1986)
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Sandwave - example
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Tidal sand ridges - 1
Elongate ridges oriented
obliquely to tidal currents
Distribution related to
transgressive history of area
Do not follow sedimentation
succession (previous slides)
Up to 50 km long, 1-3 km wide
and 10-50 m high, spacing up
to 12 km
Well-sorted, medium-fine sand

Reading (1986)
25
Tidal sand ridges - 2
Are formed between mutually
evasive ebb and flood currents
(stage a)
Secondary cross shoal currents
deform straight crest line
(stages b and c)
Ebb and flood channels develop
in double curve (stage d)
Original tidal sand ridge breaks
up into three parallel ridges
(stages e and f )
From: Caston (1972)
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Tidal sand ridges - 3
Active sand ridges:
Current speed > 50 cm/s
Sand waves superimposed on ridge
Asymmetrical in cross section, steep side up to 6
o

Crest sharp to flattened (near sea surface)

Moribund sand ridges:
Current speed < 50 cm/s
Slope < 1
o

Do not actively move
Develop over sandy to muddy sea floor

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Eocene Brussels Sands
Fossil example of shallow-marine linear sand body deposits



28
Brussels sand-
ridges
E
10 km
Y
Y
X
X
Modified from Houthuys (1990)
29
Brussels Sands cross-sections
White : background
shale
Grey : homogenous fine
sand-mud
Yellow : linear sand
ridges
X X
Next slide
Y Y
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Bierbeek sand pit
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Tabular cross-bedded facies
(Houthuys, 1990)
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Sedimentary structures
33
Transverse bar characteristics
Tabular cross bedding
Well-developed bottomsets
Set heights ~ 1m
Well-sorted fine to medium sand
Glauconite coating
Iron oxide forms permeability baffles
Bioturbation restricted to low-energy parts bar
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Reservoir analogue
Shannon and Sussex Sandstones : producing linear sand
ridges
Additional reading:
http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/1997/dds-
033/USGS_3D/ssx_txt/3dstart.htm




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Stratigraphy Shannon and Sussex
Sandstones
From: http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/dds-033/USGS_3D/ssx_txt/geology.htm
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Powder River Basin - Shannon Sst
Reservoir potential:
Sand ridges develop on muddy
sea floor (source)
After formation of sand ridge:
covered with fine-grained marine
suspension sediment
Hence, permeable sand ridge
enveloped in impermeable mud
(Tillman & Martinsen, 1985)
37
Shannon Sandstone - palaeogeography
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Shannon Sst at Hartzog Draw
(Tillman & Martinsen, 1985)
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Shannon Sst - Salt Creek area
Lower and upper unit separated by thin continuous shale
interval
Total thickness ~ 50 m; length 45 km; width 1-4 km
(Tillman & Martinsen, 1985)
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Shannon lithofacies
Coarsening-upward sequence from:
Bioturbated marine shaley
sandstone at base, to
Large-scale trough cross-bedded
medium-grained sandstone at top
Porosity: 14.8% ave.
Permeability: 0.01-143 mD; ave.
16.3 mD
From: Ranganathan & Tye (1986)
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Sussex Sandstone
Elongate sand ridge
Sediment is transported by
smaller transverse bars
migrating obliquely over the
sand ridge surface
42
Stacking of Sussex-B tidal sand ridges
http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/dds-033/USGS_3D/ssx_txt/depomod.htm
43
Sussex Sandstone
http://pubs.usgs.gov/dds/1997/dds-033/USGS_3D/ssx_txt/3dstart.htm
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Links
http://msx4.pha.jhu.edu/ssip/asat_int/ocean.html
http://topex-www.jpl.nasa.gov/overview/why-study.html
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Compulsory reading
Chapter 11:
Section 11.4 Thermo-haline and geostrophic currents