Orbital cyclicity in sedimentary sequence and climatic indications of C-O isotopes from Lower Cretaceous in Qingxi Sag, Jiuquan Basin, NW China

Sedimentary deposits of the Lower Cretaceous Xiagou Formation form the most significant potential hydrocarbon reservoirs in the Qingxi Sag, Jiuquan Basin(NW China). Zircon U-Pb ages of the dated basalts at the top of the Xiagou Formation give an isochron age of 115.6 Ma, and the sedimentation interval of the Xiagou Formation was speculated to range from about 125/124 Ma to 115 Ma based on paleontological research and stratigraphic correlation analysis. Here we use GR logging data as a palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic proxy to conduct a detailed cyclostratigraphic study of five selected wells. Power spectra, evolutionary fast Fourier transformation and wavelet analysis all reveal significant sedimentary cycles in the Xiagou Formation. The ratios of cycle wavelengths in these stratigraphic units are 33.82 m : 7.91 m : 3.06 m : 1.79 m, which is similar to the ratio of orbital targets of 20 : 5 : 2 : 1. The ratio of 20 : 5 : 2 : 1 is interpreted as Milankovitch cycles of 405 kyr long eccentricity,100 kyr short eccentricity, 37 kyr obliquity, and 22 kyr precession cycles respectively. A high-resolution astronomical time scale is constructed by tuning the stratigraphy into target curves of orbital cycles respectively. Based on the astronomical time scale, the absolute ages of 55 samples were estimated,which are used for subsequent stable carbon and oxygen isotope stratigraphy analysis. The analysis results of the five studied wells in the Qingxi Sag indicate:(1) a negative trend of δ^(13)C values upwards in the Xiagou Formation, and(2) negative δ^(18)O values with a positive trend upwards. Both relatively heavy values and pronounced covariances of δ^(13)C values and δ^(18)O values indicate an arid-evaporationcontrolled climate during the sedimentary period of the Lower Cretaceous Xiagou Formation, Qingxi Sag, Jiuquan Basin. Moreover, positive covariances of SQK_1g_(2+3) indicate extremely high temperature, and negative covariances of SQK_1g_1 indicate a relatively low temperature.

Effects of igneous bodies on modification of modern slope morphology: Insights from the continental slope offshore Dongsha Islands, South China Sea

A statistical analysis for the morphological parameters extracted from numerous seismic profiles, and a highresolution seismic study of the southeastern slope of the Dongsha Islands(South China Sea) with water depth between approximately 500 and 3 100 m, has revealed the variation of morphological features due to the intrusion of igneous bodies and associated sedimentary processes. Three types of the continental slope are distinguished:(1) a rough and steep slope with multiple igneous bodies(Type 1),(2) a relatively smooth and gentle slope with the single igneous body(Type 2), and(3) a smooth and gentle slope without igneous bodies(Type 3). These igneous bodies, formed in the post-seafloor spreading of the South China Sea, are often characterized by high positive seismic amplitudes, and chaotic reflections with complex shapes. The igneous bodies in Type 1 separated the slope into two or more upper sub-sags and a lower main-sag, in which the sub-sags and main-sag could be filled with sediments transported by alongslope bottom currents at the same time. Whereas, the igneous body in Type 2 just separated the slope into an upper sub-sag and a lower main-sag, in which the sediments could be transported into the lower main-sag only after the upper sub-sag has been filled up. Type 3 represents a normal slope with common clinoform progradation. The modern slope morphologies in the study area are the results of adjustments of the continental slope due to the intrusion of igneous bodies and associated sedimentary processes. The distinctions among three types of modern slope morphologies indicate different depositional conditions and adjustments of slope morphologies.