Nature and tectonic implications of uneven sedimentary filling of the South China Sea oceanic basin
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This paper makes a comparative analysis on the structural characteristics of the main Cenozoic sedimentary basins of the South China Sea,based on the regional jointed survey data and combined with geotectonic setting research.The study shows the structural features of the sedimentary basins crossed by the regional tieline are very different,and the disparities are concretely displayed in such aspects as geotectonic setting,gravity and magnetic field,basin basement,fault property,tectonic line trend and igneous rock,etc..There are close relations between fault development and basin formation of the South China Sea.The northern South China Sea mainly displays N-E direction tension fractures and sedimentary basins under the control of the fractures;the western South China Sea mainly develops N-W direction and near S-N direction strike-slip faults and sedimentary basins under the control of the faults;the southern South China Sea is rather complicated,where tension,compression and shear faults exist but the N-E direction Nansha trough thrust fault and the Nansha Trough basin under the control of the thrust are the most representative;the eastern South China Sea refers to the central sea basin of the South China Sea here,in which fractures and submarine volcanoes control the Pliocene-Quaternary deposit.
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The South China Sea was formed in Cenozoic.Basins in the South China Sea could be divided into different types,such as continental shelf basins,continental slope basins and deep sea basins,which are closely related with the rifting and transition of the continental margins,and thus could be grouped into strike-slip-related pull-apart and extensional basins,extrusion-escape-related rifting basins,extension-and subduction-related buckling basins.They developed further into some ridge-spreading-related oceanic sub-basins in different stages.These basins were formed not under a single dynamics but under a very complex and changeable dynamics.These basins have suffered from a series of Cenozoic tectonic movements,such as the Shenhu,the South China Sea,the Dongsha,resulting in the formation and spatial-temperal migration of complex angular unconformities in these basins.Accompanying with the tectonic migrations and evolutions in these basins,faulting,magmatism,shifting of sedimentary subsidence centers and depocenters,oil accumulation and geohazards show a significant feature of jumping.The complex dynamic settings of the South China Sea have caused many controversies on their origin.The plate dynamic factors include the Pacific Plate subduction and the indentation of the Philippine Sea Plate along the Taiwan Orogen to the east side of the South China Sea,and the Indian Plate oblique subduction and mid-ocean ridge subduction to the west side.They may also be responsible for the uplifting of the Tibetan Plateau and the related extrusions of continental blocks to the north side.At the same time,the mantle dynamics of deep-seated magma underplating,delamination,mantle plume and mantle-hydrated process should not be ignored.At last,this paper proposes one strike-slipping pull-apart model to explain the onset of the South China Sea Basin which is closely related to the tectonic evolution of the Pacific Tectonic Domain.
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Abstract This paper focuses on the Cenozoic evolution of the northern North Sea and surrounding areas, with emphasis on sediment distribution, composition and provenance, as well as on timing, amplitude and wavelength of differential vertical movements. Quantitative information about palaeo-water depth and tectonic vertical movements has been integrated with a seismic stratigraphic framework to better constrain the Cenozoic evolution. The data and modelling results support a probable tectonic control on sediment supply and on the formation of regional unconformities. The sedimentary architecture and breaks are related to tectonic uplift of surrounding clastic source areas, thus the offshore sedimentary record provides the best age constraints on Cenozoic exhumation of the adjacent onshore areas. Tectonic subsidence accelerated in Paleocene time throughout the basin, with uplifted areas to the east and west sourcing prograding wedges, which resulted in large depocentres close to the basin margins. Subsidence rates outpaced sedimentation rates along the basin axis, and water depths in excess of 600 m are indicated. In Eocene times progradation from the East Shetland Platform was dominant and major depocentres were constructed in the Viking Graben area, with deep water along the basin axis. At the Eocene-Oligocene transition, southern Norway and the eastern basin flank became uplifted. The uplift, in combination with prograding units from both the east and west, gave rise to a shallow threshold in the northern North Sea, separating deeper waters to the south and north. The uplift and shallowing continued into Miocene time when a widespread hiatus formed in the northern North Sea, as indicated by biostratigraphic data. The Pliocene basin configuration was dominated by outbuilding of thick clastic wedges from the east and south. Considerable late Cenozoic uplift of the eastern basin flank is documented by the strong angular relationship and tilting of the complete Tertiary package below the Pleistocene unconformity. Cenozoic exhumation is documented on both sides of the North Sea, but the timing is not well constrained. Two major uplift phases in early Paleogene and late Neogene times are related to rifting, magmatism and break-up in the NE Atlantic and isostatic response to glacial erosion, respectively. Additional uplift events may be related to mantle processes and the episodic behaviour of the Iceland plume.
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In the China sea areas and its adjacent area, there are almost 50 sedimentary basins of different periods, different sizes, and different shapes, most of which distribute on the margin of continent while the main petroliferous basins distribute on the continental shelf. The origin, occurrence and development of the basins are determined by the structural evolution and reconstruction of the continental margin in different periods. Sedimentary basin forming dynamics system is the macroevolution and correlation of the sedimentary basin, the mantle, the asthenosphere, the lithosphere, and Moho discontinuity. The paper discusses the basin forming history of Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea, East China Sea and South China Sea, and their diastrophism is related to the plate collision, transform fault, orogene fold, the separation of continent and lithosphere, and expansion of seabed, thereby the different sedimentary basins are formed. Especially in the Mesozoic and Cenozoic Era, the structural evolution and long-term subsidence of the basins are of advantage to the generation and accumulation of hydrocarbon and reservoir. So far, 10 large-scale oilfield were found in the China sea areas.
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According to the discussion of the dynamic mechanism of the formation of the East China Sea shelf basin,the paper has further clarified the dynamic mechanisms of basin formation.By analyzing the characteristics of basin evolution under the control of dynamic mechanism,four control functions of tectonic evolution on hydrocarbon accumulation have been proposed in the paper:(1) the tectonic movements control the basin evolution and depression structure;(2)the tectonic movements control the basin subsidence and stratigraphic distribution center migration;(3) tectonic movements determine critical period of accumulation of hydrocarbon and the differences between hydrocarbon sub-zones;(4) the hydrocarbon accumulation and distribution is under the control of tectonic movement.Basin evolution and tectonic movements are the dominant factors in hydrocarbon accumulation,and the petroleum geology study combining with tectonic movement is the focal for hydrocarbon exploration in the southern East China Sea Shelf Basin.
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We selected the Pearl River Mouth Basin,the Qiongdongnan Basin and the Zhongjiannan Basin as the three targets for study of the Cenozoic tectonic migration in the Northern South China Sea. Interpretation was carried out for the seismic profiles across the above basins.Integrated methods, such as seismostratigraphy,structural geology and others,were adopted to reveal the Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the northern South China Sea and the tectonic evolutionary pattern of each basin in order to find out the history of tectonic migration and regional differences on the northern margin of the South China Sea.The results proved that Cenozoic tectonic migration did happen in this region following N-S direction.Tectonic events became gradually younger from the Pearl River Mouth Basin to the Qiongdongnan Basin and from the Pearl River Mouth Basin to the Zhongjiannan Basin.The rifting apart of the South China Sea started from the north,and gradually moved southward.In spite of the influence of the Red River fault zone,the intensity of the rifting process became weaker from north to south as well.The tectonic migration would certainly make the tectonic pattern of subsidence as well as depositional centers more complicated.
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The East China Sea shelf basin, which is a fault subsidence during the Cenozoic Era, locates in the East China Sea continental shelf. In this paper, balanced section technique has been applied to analyzing the differential evolution in the East China Sea shelf basin south of Cenozoic tectonic and summarizing the control factors of tectonic activities on the petroleum accumulation. Our study results will provide essential data and basis for the distribution of the Cenozoic oil and gas and promote the development of the petroleum exploration in the East China Sea shelf basin.
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Basin formation and its structure record basin tectonic evolution,which reflects the different periods of tectonic settings.As the development of the exploration in oil and gas,lots of seismic sections have been accumulated.This provides a large number of basic data for comparison of the characteristics of basins.Materials from hundreds of important sedimentary basins were collected to study the basin tectonic evolution and evolutionary background systematically based on the global structure theory.Two large scale profiles(thousands of km length) were drawn:India-Siberia-North America-South America large scale profile and Africa-Mediterranean-Europe-Arctic-Siberia-Australian large scale profile,the structures and evolution characteristics of the global sedimentary basins show that structure and evolution characteristics of different types of basins are controlled by plate tectonic evolution;Different types of sedimentary basins are orderly parallel to different continents such as ocean basins,trench,forearc basin,back-arc foreland basin,cratonic basin,cratonic basins,rift basins,and passive continental margin basins.The basins in Europe-Asia plate were affected by Alpine orogeny(Himalayan movement).The evolution and structure of basin groups in Asia were controlled by the ancient Asian continent,Tethys,and west Pacific tectonic zone.By the effection of plate boundary,different basin groups in the same continent have close relationship in structure,sedimentation,and tectonic events.Basins containing the richest oil and gas are mainly located within the plate,away from the extrusion plate boundary.These basins generally have a huge cumulative deposition thickness,weak interior faulting,and stable sedimentary and tectonic subsidence.
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