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Three Zones for Illite Formation During Burial Diagenesis and Metamorphism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 February 2024

D. D. Eberl
D. D. Eberl*
Affiliation:
U.S. Geological Survey, 3215 Marine Street, Boulder, Colorado 80303
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Abstract

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Reinterpretation of published data for shale cuttings from the Gulf of Mexico sedimentary basin identifies three reaction zones for illite formation with increasing depth for well CWRU6. In a shallow zone (1.85 to 3 km), non-expanding illite-like layers formed primarily by the coalescence of smectite 2:1 layers around interlayer K+. In a middle zone (3 to 4 km), illite crystals neoformed from solution as coarser K-bearing phases and smectite were dissolved by organic acids. In the deepest zone (>4 km), illite recrystallized as less stable illite crystals dissolved, and more stable illite crystals grew during mineral ripening. The progressive loss of radiogenic argon in the deepest zone yielded a constant apparent age for the clays with depth, an effect previously attributed to “punctuated diagenesis.” The above hypothesis for illite formation emphasizes the need to establish the zone (i.e., the reaction mechanism) from which shales were derived before making detailed geologic interpretations based on illite mineralogy.

Keywords

Age datingBurial diagenesisGulf Coast basinIlliteIllite/smectiteOstwald ripeningPotassium/argonPunctuated diagenesisSedimentary basinsShaleSmectites
Type
Research Article
Information
Clays and Clay Minerals , Volume 41 , Issue 1 , February 1993 , pp. 26 - 37
Copyright
Copyright © 1993, The Clay Minerals Society

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