Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T11:42:55.688Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Serpentine-nontronite-vermiculite mixed-layer clay from the Weches Formation, Claiborne Group, middle Eocene, northeast Texas

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2024

J. M. Huggett ,
D. K. McCarty ,
C. C. Calvert ,
A. S. Gale  and
C. Kirk
J. M. Huggett*
Affiliation:
Department of Mineralogy, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
D. K. McCarty
Affiliation:
ChevronTexaco, 3901 Briarpark, Houston, Texas, 77042, USA
C. C. Calvert
Affiliation:
Department of Engineering Materials, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, L1 3JD, UK
A. S. Gale
Affiliation:
Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences, The University of Greenwich, Chatham Maritime, Kent ME4 4TB, UK Department of Palaeontology, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD, UK
C. Kirk
Affiliation:
Department of Mineralogy, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK
*
*E-mail address of corresponding author: [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The Weches Formation of the Claiborne Group (Eocene) in northeast Texas consists of clayey sandstones and mudrocks, both with variable proportions of dark green to brown clay peloids deposited in a marginal to open marine setting on the Gulf Coast margin. The composition of the dark green peloids, from two localities, has been investigated using X-ray diffraction, back-scattered electron microscopy with X-ray analysis, electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS), Mössbauer spectroscopy, chemical analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. These peloids were previously described on the basis of their color as glauconite (Yancey and Davidoff, 1994); our results, however, show that the dark green indurated pellets are predominantly composed of mixed-layer clays with a high proportion of Fe-rich 7 Å serpentine layers coexisting with a mixed-layer phase containing glauconite, nontronite and vermiculite layers, in addition to discrete illite and kaolinte. Analyses by EELS of single particles with a chemical composition consistent with them being the Fe-rich clay indicate that the Fe is >95% ferric, while Mössbauer analyses of the bulk magnetically separated fraction for the same samples indicates a ferric iron content of ∼60–70%, despite the variable relative proportions of expandable and 7 Å layers. Taking into account that there is a significant amount of 2:1 layers containing ferric Fe, we interpret these data as indicating that the Fe in the 7 Å layers has a significant amount of Fe2+ even taking into account the high ferric Fe ratio from the EELS analysis when the coexisting 2:1 layers are considered. Thus, these 1:1 layers are closer to berthierine in composition than to odinite. The vermiculite layers in the Texas clay may indicate partial ‘verdinization’ of expandable 2:1 clay. A possible reaction is smectite → vermiculite → berthierine-like phase. We estimate a temperature of 20°C for the seawater in which the Texas clay formed, the lower end of the range for modern occurrences of odinite.

Keywords

Clay PelletsEELSMössbauer SpectroscopySerpentine-nontronite-vermiculiteVerdinizationTexasWeches Formation
Type
Research Article
Information
Clays and Clay Minerals , Volume 54 , Issue 1 , February 2006 , pp. 101 - 115
Copyright
Copyright © 2006, The Clay Minerals Society

References

Bailey, S.W., (1988) Odinite, a new dioctahedral-trioctahedral Fe3+-rich 1:1 clay mineral Clay Minerals 23 237–248 10.1180/claymin.1988.023.3.01.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bessons, G. Bookin, A.S. Dainyak, L.G. Rautureau, M. Tsipursky, S.I. Tchoubar, C. and Drits, V.A., (1983) Use of diffraction and Mössbauer methods for the structural and crystallochemical characterisation of nontronites Journal of Applied Crystallography 16 374–383 10.1107/S0021889883010651.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bhattacharyya, D.P., (1983) Origin of berthierine in ironstones Clays and Clay Minerals 31 173–182 10.1346/CCMN.1983.0310302.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brigatti, M.F., (1983) Relationships between composition and structure in Fe-rich smectites Clay Minerals 18 177–186 10.1180/claymin.1983.018.2.06.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brindley, G.W., (1951) The crystal structures of some chamosite minerals Mineralogical Magazine 29 502–525 10.1180/minmag.1951.029.212.04.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brindley, G.W., (1982) Chemical compositions of berthierines — a review Clays and Clay Minerals 30 153–155 10.1346/CCMN.1982.0300211.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brindley, G.W. and Youell, R.F., (1953) Ferrous chamosite and ferric chamosite Mineralogical Magazine 30 57–70 10.1180/minmag.1953.030.220.07.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Burst, J.F., (1958) “Glauconite” ooids: their mineral nature and applications to stratigraphic interpretations American Association of Petroleum Geologists Bulletin 42 310–327.Google Scholar
Calvert, C.C., Brydson, R., Banks, D.A. and Lloyd, G.E. (2001) Quantification of Fe-oxidation state in mixed valence minerals: a geochemical application of EELS. Institute of Physics conference Series Number 168: Section 6, 251–254.Google Scholar
Calvert, C.C. Brown, A.P. and Brydson, R., (2005) Determination of the local chemistry of iron in inorganic and organic materials Journal of Electron Spectroscopy and Related Phenomena 143 173–187 10.1016/j.elspec.2004.03.012.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chamley, H., (1989) Clay Sedimentology Berlin Springer Verlag 10.1007/978-3-642-85916-8 623 pp.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Drits, V.A. and Tchoubar, C., (1990) X-ray Diffraction by Disordered Lamellar Structures Berlin Springer-Verlag 10.1007/978-3-642-74802-8 371 pp.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Drits, V.A. Lindgreen, H. and Salyn, A., (1997) Determination by X-ray diffraction of content and distribution of fixed ammonium in illite-smectite. Application to North Sea illite-smectites American Mineralogist 82 79–87 10.2138/am-1997-1-210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Drits, V.A. Lindgreen, H. Sakharov, B.A. Jakobsen, H.J. Salyn, A. and Dainyak, L.G., (2002) Tobelitization of smectite during oil generation in oil-source shales. Application to North Sea illite-tobelite-smectite-vermiculite Clays and Clay Minerals 50 82–98 10.1346/000986002761002702.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goodman, B.A. Russell, J.D. Fraser, A.R. and Woodhams, F.W.D., (1976) A Mössbauer and infrared spectroscopy study of the structure of nontronite Clays and Clay Minerals 24 53–59 10.1346/CCMN.1976.0240201.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Huggett, J.M. and Cuadros, J. (2006) Low temperature illitization of smectite in the Late Eocene and Early Oligocene of the Isle of Wight (Hampshire basin), UK. American Mineralogist (in press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Imam, M.B. and Shaw, H.F., (1985) The diagenesis of Neogene clastic sediments from the Bengal Basin, Bangladesh Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 55 665–671.Google Scholar
Ivany, L.C. Wilkinson, B.H. Lohmann, K.C. Johnson, E.R. McElroy, B.J. and Cohen, G.J., (2004) Intra-annual isotopic variation in Venericardia bivalves: implications for early Eocene temperature seasonality, and salinity on the U.S. Gulf Coast Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 74 7–19 10.1306/052803740007.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jackson, M.L., (1985) Soil Chemical Analysis — Advanced Course 2nd Madison, Wisconsin, USA Published by the author 11th printing.Google Scholar
Jones, C.E. Jenkyns, H.C. Coe, A.L. and Hesselbo, S.P., (1994) Strontium isotopic variations in Jurassic and Cretaceous seawater Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 58 3061–3074 10.1016/0016-7037(94)90179-1.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
MacEwan, D.M.C. Wilson, M.J., Brindley, G.W. and Brown, G., (1980) Interlayer and intercalation complexes of clay minerals Crystal Structures of Clay Minerals and their X-ray Identification London Mineralogical Society 197–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Macquaker, J.H.S. Taylor, K.G. Young, T.P. Curtis, C.D., Hesselbo, S. and Parkinson, D.N., (1996) Sedimentological and geochemical controls on ooidal ironstone and ‘bone-bed’ formation and some comments on their sequence stratigraphic significance Sequence Stratigraphy in British Geology London Geological Society 97–107.Google Scholar
McCarty, D.K. Reynolds, R.C. Jr., (1995) Rotationally disordered illite-smectite in Paleozoic K-bentonites Clays and Clay Minerals 43 271–284 10.1346/CCMN.1995.0430302.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McCarty, D.K. Drits, V.A. Sakharov, B. Zvyagina, B.B. Ruffell, A. and Wach, G., (2004) Heterogeneous mixed-layer clays from the Cretaceous Greensand, Isle of Wight, southern England Clays and Clay Minerals 52 552–575 10.1346/CCMN.2004.0520503.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moore, D.M. and Reynolds, R.C., (1997) X-ray diffraction and the Identification and Analysis of Clay Minerals 2nd New York Oxford University Press 378 pp.Google Scholar
Newman, A.C.D., (1987) Chemistry of Clays London Mineralogical Society 480 pp.Google Scholar
Odin, G.S. and Odin, G.S., (1988) The verdine facies from the lagoon off New Caledonia Green Marine Clays Amsterdam Elsevier 57–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Odin, G S Sen Gupta, B.K. and Odin, G.S., (1988) The geological significance of the verdine facies Green Marine Clays Amsterdam Elsevier 205–247.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Odin, G.S. Debenay, J.P. Masse, J.P. and Odin, G.S., (1988) The verdine facies deposits identified in 1988 Green Marine Clays Amsterdam Elsevier 131–157.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Odin, G.S. Mackinnon, I.D.R. Pujos, M. and Odin, G.S., (1988) The verdine facies off French Guyana Green Marine Clays Amsterdam Elsevier 105–130.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Plançon, A., (2004) Consistent modeling of the XRD patterns of mixed-layer phyllosilicates Clays and Clay Minerals 52 47–54 10.1346/CCMN.2004.0520106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Porrenga, D.H., (1965) Chamosite in Recent sediments of the Niger and Orinoco delta Geologie Mijnbouw 44 400–403.Google Scholar
Porrenga, D.H., (1967) Glauconite and chamosite as depth indicators in the marine environment Marine Geology 5 495–501 10.1016/0025-3227(67)90056-4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rao, V.P. Thamban, M. and Lamboy, M., (1995) Verdine and glaucony facies from surficial sediments of the eastern continental margin of India Marine Geology 127 105–113 10.1016/0025-3227(95)00056-5.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rude, P.D. and Aller, R.C., (1989) Early diagenetic alteration of lateritic particle coatings in Amazon continental shelf sediment Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 59 704–716.Google Scholar
Ryan, P.C. and Hillier, S., (2002) Berthierine/chamosite, corrensite and discrete chlorite from evolved verdine and evaporite associated facies in the Jurassic Sundance Formation, Wyoming American Mineralogist 87 1607–1615 10.2138/am-2002-11-1210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sakharov, B.A. Lindgreen, H. Salyn, A.L. and Drits, V.A., (1999) Determination of illite-smectite structures using multispecimen XRD profile fitting Clays and Clay Minerals 47 555–566 10.1346/CCMN.1999.0470502.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shterenberg, L.E. Stepanova, K.A. Stravinskaya, E.A. and Uranova, O.V., (1968) Composition and origin of micro-concretions of the profundal zone of Lake Punnis-Harvi Lithology and Mineral Resources 3 733–738.Google Scholar
Smith, A.G. Smith, D.G. and Funnell, B.M., (1994) Atlas of Mesozoic and Cenozoic Coastlines Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 99 pp.Google Scholar
Taylor, K.G., (1990) Berthierine from the non-marine Wealden (Early Cretaceous) sediments of south-east England Clay Minerals 25 391–399 10.1180/claymin.1990.025.3.13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Taylor, K.G., (1998) Spatial and temporal variations in early diagenetic organic matter oxidation pathways in Lower Jurassic mudstones of eastern England Chemical Geology 145 47–60 10.1016/S0009-2541(97)00119-8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Houten, F.B. and Purucker, M.E., (1984) Glauconitic ooids and chamositic ooids, favorable factors, constraints, and problems Earth Science Reviews 20 211–243 10.1016/0012-8252(84)90002-3.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vincent, F.S. and Ewing, T.E., (2000) Lower Claiborne Regional Stratigraphic Architecture, Southeast Texas to East Central Louisiana Gulf Coasts Association of Geological Societies Transactions 50 759–760.Google Scholar
Wermund, E.G., (1961) Glauconite in early Tertiary sediments of Gulf Coast Province Bulletin of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists 45 1667–1696.Google Scholar
Yancey, T.E. and Davidoff, A.J. (1994) Paleogene sequence stratigraphy of the Brazos River Section, Texas. Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies Field Trip Guide, 112 pp.Google Scholar
Zachos, J.C., (1993) Occurrence of the Spatangid echinoid Maretia Arguta (Clark) in the Middle Eocene Texas Journal of Paleontology 67 148–150 10.1017/S0022336000021284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zachos, J.C. Stott, L.D. and Lohmann, K.C., (1994) Evolution of early Cenozoic marine temperatures Paleoceanography 9 353–387 10.1029/93PA03266.CrossRefGoogle Scholar