Detrital clay mineral input reconstructed based on weathering records and its influence on organic matter enrichment: A case study of the Paleogene Shahejie Formation in the Dongpu Sag, Bohai Bay Basin

Abstract

As major components of shales, clay minerals are important for investigating unconventional petroleum geology. However, there are few quantitative methods for investigating possible inputs of clay minerals during sedimentary processes. In this study, shales from the Shahejie Formation in the Dongpu Sag, Bohai Bay Basin, were chosen for investigating clay mineral inputs. The shales are abundant in a variety of clay minerals. The shales, uniformly derived from felsic igneous rocks, underwent mild K metasomatism. Thus, the detrital clay mineral input was primarily influenced by weathering intensity. Accordingly, representative samples subjected to varying weathering intensities were selected to identify detrital and diagenetic clay minerals. Kaolinite and chlorite are of detrital origin. Illite and illite/smectite mixed layers (I/S) have both detrital and diagenetic origins. The precursor minerals of diagenetic minerals can be identified based on their morphological and elemental characteristics. After quantifying the area proportions of various clay minerals, the detrital clay mineral compositions of selected samples were calculated. Further analysis indicated that the detrital illite content and the detrital chlorite content are closely related, while the detrital smectite content correlates well with the chemical index of alteration (CIA). Based on the preceding analysis, the fitting formulas were established to quantitatively characterize the input of detrital clay minerals. The shales from the north sag had a high input of detrital smectite, whereas the shales from the south sag had a high input of detrital illite. Consequently, the shales from the north sag contain more organic matter than those from the south sag.