Basin Evolution and Classification

$ Basin-Forming Tectonics
$ Basin
B i Modifying
M dif i Tectonics
T t i
$ Basin Classification

BASIN
S N EVOLUTION
VO U ON

Key factors for basin evolution include,

Basin configuration,

Nature of sedimentary fill in space and

time,

Type
yp of structural features,,

Position in the geotectonic framework

SEDIMENTARY BASINS: EVOLUTION

AND
CATEGORISATION
A
A basin is born from the meting of a sedimentary deposit and a
more or less pronounced concavity in the basement.
The Earth
Earthss surface exhibits a wide variety of sedimentary
basins, in different stages of evolution, at distinct ages and in
varied geodynamic contexts.
The spatio-temporal distribution of basins and their
characteristics follow a two fold logic:
Geodynamical situational logic- organised in accordance with
their situation in relation to lithospheric
p
p
plates- historical logic.
g

B i Classification
Basin
Cl ifi ti
Beginning roughly around the mid-1960s,
mid 1960s, several
attempts were made to develop a global basin
classification system that would incorporate all the
data then available.
One purpose of these attempts was simply to sort
through the data and form an orderly geologic system.
However,
H
petroleum
t l
explorationists
l ti i t had
h d a secondd
purpose in mind: if certain types of basins were found
t be
to
b consistently
i t tl more productive
d ti than
th others,
th
a
company could gain a competitive advantage by
t
targeting
ti these
th
sites
it in
i its
it exploration
l ti ventures.
t

B i Classification
Basin
Cl ifi ti
A number of these classification schemes are published
includingg those of Bally,
y, Blois,, Klemme and Kingston.
g
Bally's work is based on the tectonic history of basins.
Blois and Klemme's work also used p
plate tectonic
historical terms, and added productivity data.
Kingston's system added a systematic nomenclature,
designed to allow finer detail in describing the tectonic
history of individual basins.

Basin Classification I
Interior basins - large, ovate downwarps within stable cratonic
shields
hi ld (Michigan
(Mi hi
Basin)
B i )
Rift basins - narrow, fault-bounded valleys of various
dimensions (East African Rift System)
Aulacogens - failed rift arm at triple-point junction (Reelfoot
Rift)
Passive Continental Margin - Atlantic-type margins with
sedimentary prism on shelf, slope, and rise

CONTINENTAL EXTENSION AND FORMATION OF SEDIMENTARY BASINS

Modern Ideas
Many (if not the majority) of steeply dipping normal faults are actually curved (concave-upward) and
become shallow-dipping and sub-horizontal at depth. These are now known as listric faults. As the
lithosphere is stretched during continental extension, the ductile deeper crust thins by pure shear, while
the upper crust is broken up and pulled apart by listric faults which 'bottom out' in the ductile layer. At the
surface of course these have the appearance of graben. This is the essence of McKenzie-type and other
recent models of basin formation. As the sub-continental (i.e. mantle) lithosphere is thinned by stretching
it is of course p
partly
y replaced
p
by
y hotter asthenosphere.
p
This will gradually
g
y cool on a time scale of the
order of 50 - 100 m.y., and as it cools it becomes denser and the shallow basin above gradually subsides
and is progressively filled with shallow-water sediment. The amount of subsidence will depend on the
initial amount of stretching. This can usually be estimated and is known as the stretching factor, or "beta
factor". The p
parameter b is defined q
quite simpy
py as b/a where a was the initial width and b is the stretched
width. A b factor of 1.2 will give ca. 3 km subsidence. With complete rifting (to form ocean crust and an
ocean basin) then b approaches infinity.

The important difference is in the recognition of low-angle detachments (superficially like thrusts,
but with movement sense as in normal fault), first proposed for the Basin & Range province in the
western USA.
These may bottom out in the lower crust or the upper mantle. The main effect is to introduce
asymmetry compared with the pure shear uniform-stretching McKenzie-type model, so that basins
associated with the thermal subsidence phase may be offset from the thin-skinned basins
associated with the initial rifting.
Magmatic effects (melting resulting from the uprising asthenosphere) may be offset from the main
sedimentary basins. Because of the asymmetry, the continental margins on the two sides of an
opening ocean may have very different profiles.

Stages in the evolution of a rift basin. (a) Early rifting

associated
i t d with
ith severall minor,
i
relatively
l ti l isolated
i l t d normall
faults. (b) Mature rifting with through-going boundary
fault zone, widespread deposition, and footwall uplift
and erosion.

Idealized rift basin showing unconformity-bounded

tectonostratigraphic packages. Thin black lines represent
stratal truncation beneath unconformities; red halfarrows represent onlaps.

Geometry of a simple half graben.

(a) Map-view geometry.
(b) Geometry along a cross section oriented perpendicular to the
boundary fault, showing wedge-shaped basin in which synrift
strata exhibit a fanning geometry, thicken toward the boundary
fault, and onlap prerift rocks.
(c) Geometry along a cross section oriented parallel to the boundary
fault, showing syncline-shaped basin in which synrift strata thin
away from the center of the basin and onlap prerift rocks.

Simple filling model for a growing half-graben basin shown in map view (stages 1-4), longitudinal cross section (stages
1-5), and transverse cross section (stages 1-4). Dashed line represents lake level. The relationship between capacity
and sediment supply determines whether sedimentation is fluvial or lacustrine.

This block model shows the subsurface configuration

g
found at an axial
margin delta system in a tropical rift valley lake. Such settings are
typically major entry points for clastic material introduced into rift
b i Principal
basins.
P i i l elements
l
t in
i the
th model
d l include
i l d stacked
t k d progradational
d ti l
deltas, subaqueous fault controlled channels, and deep-water, organicrich hemipelagic sediments.
rich,
sediments Most subsidence in this part of the rift
valley is accommodated by displacement on the main basin border fault.

Rift Basin Inversion

Inversion resulted from ridge push

and/or continental resistance to drift
d i the
during
th initial
i iti l stages
t
off seafloor
fl
spreading

Top section: model with extension and no

shortening; a half graben containing very
gently dipping synrift units is present.

Middle section: model with extension followed

b minor
by
i
shortening;
h t i
a subtle
btl anticline
ti li has
h
formed in the half graben, and is associated
with minor steepening of the dip of synrift
layers.

Bottom section: model with extension

followed by major shortening. The anticline in
the half graben is more prominent, and is
associated with significant steepening of the
dip of synrift strata. New reverse faults have
formed in the prerift layers. Although the
inversion is obvious in this model, erosion of
material down to the level of the red line would
remove the most obvious evidence of
inversion in the half graben. Furthermore, the
prominent reverse faults cutting the prerift
units could be interpreted to indicate prerift
contractional deformation

Experimental models of inversion structures.

structures Cross sections through three clay models showing
development of inversion structures (after Eisenstadt and Withjack, 1995). In each model, a clay layer (with
colored sub-layers) covered two overlapping metal plates. Movement of the lower plate created extension
or shortening. Thin clay layers are prerift; thick clay layers are synrift; top-most layer is postrift and preinversion.

.
Examples of positive inversion structures. a) Cross section across part of Sunda arc. During
inversion, normal faults became reverse faults, p
producing
g synclines
y
and anticlines with harpoon
p
geometries (after Letouzey, 1990). b) Interpreted line drawings (with 3:1 and 1:1 vertical
exaggeration) of AGSO Line 110-12 from Exmouth sub-basin, NW Shelf Australia (after
Withjack & Eisenstadt, 1999). During Miocene inversion, deep-seated normal faults became
reverse faults. In response, gentle monoclines formed in the shallow, postrift strata.

Schematic NW-SE cross sections showing

g development,
p
, chronologically
g
y from bottom
to top, of the southwestern intraplate Palmyride fold belt, with a list of related major
Arabian plate boundary tectonic events.

Red sea
East African
rift

G lf off Aden
Gulf
Ad

Thermal hypothesis of Sleep. This was the first to recognise that

heating up the mantle (by a plume or whatever) could produce
substantial crustal uplift (and erosion), followed by thermal
subsidence. Compare the models by McKenzie and Wernicke later . .

The area looked like just before 760 m.y.

At 760 m.y. ago, rifting

ifti off th
the crustt resulted
lt d iin
the creation of a rift valley.

At 570 m.y., the Blue Ridge was caught up in the rifting that opened
Iapetus ocean.

P i (Atlantic-Type)
Passive
(Atl ti T ) Margins:
M i
found on continent-bearing plates
continental margin moving away from the mid-ocean spreading center
not characterized by mountain building
zone of low seismicity and no volcanism essentially stable
characterized by thick sediment deposits and old oceanic crust
comprised of shelf, slope, and rise
examples include the eastern coasts of North and South America

Simplified relationships at a continental margin. There can be

more than 10 km of shallow-water sediments at the margin
p y g slow subsidence. How?
implying

Sedimentation during rifting and on a passive margin

As a continent rifts apart, the nature of the sediments deposited in the
divergent zone will vary over time as the rifting progresses through
different stages (e
(e.g.,
g initial rift valley to linear sea to fully developed
ocean).
Early lava flows and coarse (immature) sediments deposited during the
rift valley stage
Evaporites (like halite) that precipitated in a shallow linear sea during
arid conditions;
Normal"
Normal sequence of mature sediments derived from the prolonged
weathering and erosion of the continental margin at the edge of a fully
developed ocean (e.g., sandstone [quartz arenite], limestone, shale...).
Carbonate reefs (made of limestone) will only develop if the sea water is
Carbonate
warm enough.
If the continent moves (by tectonic activity) into a colder climate, the reefs
will die and be overlain byy clastic sediments.

B i Classification
Basin
Cl ifi ti II
Ocean basins
b i - createdd by
b rifting,
if i resulting
l i in
i deep
d
ocean floor
fl
Subduction-related
Subduction
related settings - seismically active continental
margins with deep-sea trenches, active volcanic arc, and arctrench separating
p
g (Aleutian
(
Arc-Trench System)
y
)
Strike-Slip basins - small pull-apart basins in response to
l
lateral
l fault
f l movement (Los
(L Angeles
A l Basin;
B i transform
f
marginal
i l
setting)
Collision-related basins - foreland basin development in
response to thrust-loading of continent (Appalachian Basin)

Active (Pacific-Type) Margins

continental margin moving toward a subduction zone
characterized by volcanism, many earthquakes, and active mountain building
friction
f i i off subducting
bd i plate
l
causes earthquake
h
k activity
i i and
d heat
h
generation
i
ocean crust is heated to melting point
molten rock (magma) rises to the surface to create island arcs and volcanoes
dense oceanic crust is subducted beneath thicker, less dense continental crust
Chilean (e.g., Peru, Chile) - shallow trench, accretionary prism, volcanic mountains
Marianas (e.g., Japan, Marianas) - deep trench, volcanic island arc, back-arc basin
considered 'destructive'

A ti (P
Active
(Pacific-Type)
ifi T ) M
Margins:
i
continental margin moving toward a subduction zone
characterized by volcanism, many earthquakes, and active mountain building
friction of subducting plate causes earthquake activity and heat generation
ocean crust is heated to melting point
molten rock (magma) rises to the surface to create island arcs and volcanoes
dense oceanic crust is subducted beneath thicker, less dense continental crust
Chilean (e.g., Peru, Chile) - shallow trench, accretionary prism, volcanic mountains
Marianas (e.g., Japan, Marianas) - deep trench, volcanic island arc, back-arc basin
considered 'destructive'

SUBDUCTION ZONES and ISLAND ARCS

Subduction Zones are where cool lithospheric
plates sink back into the mantle.

FRAMEWORK OF AN ISLAND ARC SYSTEM

The commonly held model of an arc - back-arc system has the following components:

(1) Subduction Zone

(2) Fore-arc region with accretionary sedimentary prism
(3) Frontal
F t l Arc
A
(4) Active Arc
(5) Marginal Basin with spreading centre
(6) Remnant Arc
(7) Inactive
I
ti Marginal
M i lB
Basin
i
Although the extensive fore-arc region of many island arcs was thought to be composed of
off-scraped sediments, drilling has not substantiated this. It appears that - at least at
intraoceanic arcs - abyssal sediments on the downgoing plate are largely subducted.
Th t the
That
th back-arc
b k
region
i iis a zone off asthenospheric
th
h i upwelling
lli iis supported
t db
by seismic
i i
evidence which suggests a low-Q (seismic attenuation) zone behind the arc, compatible
with a small amount of melt in the back-arc region:

MARGINAL BASINS & BACK ARC SPREADING

Marginal basins are small oceanic basins, usually adjacent or "marginal" to a
continent,, which are separated
p
from larger
g oceans by
y an island arc. Some
marginal basins at continental margins may be imperfectly developed and
represented by thinned crust, often associated with basic volcanism. Karig
(1971, 1974) divided marginal basins into:
(1) Active marginal basins with high heat flow.
(2) Inactive marginal basins with high heat flow.
(3) Inactive marginal basins with normal heat flow.
The first two are thought to have formed by back-arc spreading, either still
active
ti (1),
(1) or recently
tl active
ti (2)
(2). Th
The thi
third
d may representt b
basins
i fformed
db
by
even older back-arc spreading, or normal ocean crust that has been "trapped"
behind a recently developed oceanic island arc.
Marginal basins are a common feature of the Western Pacific.
Pacific Examples
(north to south) are the Sea of Japan, the West Philippine Basin, the Parace
Vela & Shikoku Basins, the Mariana Trough, the Woodlark Basin, the Fiji and
Lau Basins
Basins. By contrast marginal basins are rarer in the Eastern Pacific
Pacific. The
two examples in the Atlantic are the Caribbean and the Scotia Sea.

Uprising Harzburgite Diapir:

This model (Oxburgh & Parmentier 1978) depends on the fact that refractory lithosphere
(which has lost its basalt component at mid
mid-ocean
ocean ridges) is less dense and inherently more
buoyant than normal fertile mantle. Thus it would rise if heated to same temperature as
surrounding mantle. Such diapirs could in theory be derived from subducting lithosphere,
although it is doubtful that subducting lithosphere could be heated within 10 my; more likely it
takes 1000 - 2000 my according to megalith concepts of Ringwood (1982):

C
Convection-driven:
ti
di
This model
Thi
d l proposed
d by
b Toksoz
T k
& Bird
Bi d (1978),
(1978) and
d requires
i
that subsidiary convection cells are driven by the downward
drag of the downgoing slab. Calculations suggest that
spreading would
o ld occur
occ r about
abo t 10 my
m after the start of
subduction. This might explain why back-arc spreading is
more common in oceanic regions, the lithosphere is thinner
and thus more easily disrupted than under continents:

Passive Diapirism:
This results from regional extensional stresses in the the
lithosphere across the arc system. In effect the downgoing
slab,
l b although
lth
h acting
ti like
lik a conveyor b
belt,
lt also
l h
has a
vertical component that causes "roll-back". The arc and
forearc then stays with the subduction zone, as a result of a
supposed trench suction force
force.

Active Diapirism:
One off the
O
th earliest
li t models,
d l based
b
d on the
th Mariana
M i
Arc
A
System, is that of an uprising diapir splitting the arc. The
diapir is initiated either as a result of frictional heating at
the s
subduction
bd ction zone,
one or more likely
likel through
thro gh fluids
fl ids
released from the dehydrating subducting slab. The
rising diapir then splits the arc in two and the two halves
are progressively
i l separated
t d by
b seafloor
fl
spreading:
di

St
Stepwise
i Migration:
Mi
ti
Here it is assumed that the subducting slab is
snapped off near the hinge, presumably because
something on the downgoing slab is too light to
go down, and so a new subduction zone is
initiated oceanwards. The arc stays near the hinge
and the asthenosphere wells up behind it:

Sedimentation in active tectonic margins

Active tectonic margins are characterized by rapid erosion
from volcanic island arcs (like Japan), volcanic mountain chains
(like the Andes),
Andes) or continental collision zones (like the
Himalayas).
Rapidly
R idl eroded
d d volcanic
l
i material
t i l will
ill result
lt in
i a muddy
dd sand
d
with chunks of dark volcanic rock which later gets turned into
"greywacke".
Rapidly eroded non-volcanic mountains generate an
abundance of p
pink K-feldspar
p and q
quartz ggrains from the erosion
of granites, which later gets transformed into "arkose".

Mountains form when two masses of continental crust collide. A. Subducting oceanic
lithosphere compresses and deforms sediments at the edge of continental crust on overriding
plate (left). Sediments at the edge of continental crust on subducting plate (right) are
undeformed. B. Collision. Sediment at the edge
g of continental crust on subductingg plate
p
is
deformed and welded onto already deformed continental crust on overriding plate. C. After
collision. The leading edge of the subducting plate breaks off and continues to sink. The two
continental masses are welded together, and a mountain range stands where once there was
ocean.

Foreland Basin
Foreland basins subside as a result of the load. The crust
beneath the thrust load is depressed as a result of isostacy and
the adjacent crust is depressed via flexure since it is attached.

Schematic diagrams comparing patterns of uplift and

subsidence in foreland and extensional basins during times
of active deformation (A) and quiescence (B).

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EXAMPLES OF BASIN TYPES

Cratonic Basins (e.g. Illinois basin; Michigan basin)
Rift Basins and Passive Margins (e
(e.g.
g Viking Graben &
North Sea; Atlantic Margin)
Flexure Basins ((e.g.
g Baltimore Canyon
y Trough
g
Fore-Arc Basins (e.g. Great Valley Basin)
Intra-Arc and Backarc Basins (e.g. Nigata basin,
Hokkaido basin)
Pull-Apart Basins (e.g. Los Angeles basin; Ridge basin;
Ventura basin,
basin St.
St Georges basin
Foreland Basins (e.g. Arkoma basin, Wyoming-Idaho
basin;; Appalachian
pp
basin))

Tranaspression and transtension

Restraining bends result in compression. Releasing
bends result in extension and deep basins (pull-apart
basins)
form.

The bend lead to push against each other,

preventing easy sliding, so this particular
bend is known as a "restraining" or
"
"convergent"
t" bend
b d resulting
lti
uplift
lift off the
th
Transverse Ranges by the action of reverse
and thrust faults
If the plate motion were the opposite, and
the slip along the San Andreas fault became
left lateral in nature,
left-lateral
nature the existing bend
would cause extension in the area near the
bend and this bend would be called a
"releasing"
releasing or "divergent"
divergent bend (bottom
left). This action would likely cause a basin
to form around the bend

Basin Classification

Basin Classification

Basin Classification
One of the most recent studies of basinforming processes (Mohriak, Hobbs and
y, 1990)) was done in Brazil.
Dewey,
Deep wells, gravity and deep seismic data
provided a basis for this analysis.
analysis

Basin Classification
A. basins formed along active
master faults.
B. basins formed along inactive
faults.
C. basins with no fault control.
D. basins formed by low-angle
detachment faults
faults.
E. basins containing crustal
thinning and Moho uplift.
F. basins formed by pervasive
pure shear, or an approximately
pure shear,, where the lower crust
p
has been locally extended by a
different amount than the upper
crust.

Basin Classification

Basin classification scheme comparison: plate tectonics scheme vs. Mohriak, Hobbs
and Dewey (1990).

Plate Tectonic Basins

1990 Descriptive Basin Class

Intracratonic sag basin

C No major fault control

Rift basin

A Basins associated with active, deep penetrating master faults

B Basins associated with major faults that do not control subsidence

D Basins associated with low-angle detachment

E Basins associated with crustal thinning and Moho uplift

F Basins of almost unstretched crust carrying a thin veneer of sediments

Divergent margin basins

A, D or E

Oceanic basins flanking

oceanic ridges
g

Not foreseen or C

Convergent margin basins

A and D