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Stratigraphic setting, facies types, and mineral paragenesis of the carbonate-bearing succession of Jabal Farasan Area, West Central Arabian Shield, Saudi Arabia

  • AGIC 2017
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Abstract

The studied carbonates are present within the topmost part of Jabal Farasan, 150 km NE Jeddah city, west-central Arabian Shield. These carbonates overlie thick dark slightly metamorphosed basic volcanic and related volcaniclastic deposits of the Samran group. The present stratigraphic and petrographic investigations revealed the presence of nine main intercalated units (units I to IX). The carbonate (marble) units are presently intercalated with green slightly metamorphosed basic to intermediate volcaniclastic deposits. Five carbonate units (units I, III, V, VII, IX) are intercalated with four green volcaniclastic units. There are very characteristic vertical and lateral lithologic variations within the carbonate deposits where the carbonate facies just overlying the green volcaniclastic intercalations are thinly laminated and of gray and green colors. Microscopically, these carbonate facies are composed of hard devitrified tuffs which contain many mafic minerals, i.e., chlorite and wollastonite with less frequent calcite laminae and patches. Going towards the upper parts of the marble-bearing horizons, the carbonates are composed of white and reddish-white thickly bedded zones and composed mainly of fine and coarse crystalline calcite without and silicate green minerals. It is concluded that many quarrying problems in Farasan marble deposits are related to the very complicated lithologic composition of the marble deposits. This is original related to horizontal and vertical variations in paleo-depositional environments and the location of the depositional sites (proximal or distal) within the general frame of the island arc situation. The volcaniclastic input controls to a large extent the purity of the deposited carbonates and also the type of marble deposits.

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Acknowledgements

The authors, therefore, acknowledge with thanks DSR’s technical support.

Funding

The project was funded by the Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, under grant no. G-335–145-1436.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Engineering and Environmental Geology Department, Faculty of Earth Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

    Abdullah R. Sonbul

  2. Geo-Exploration Techniques Department, Faculty of Earth Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

    Ali A. Mesaed

  3. Geology Department, Faculty of Sciences, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt

    Ali A. Mesaed

Authors
  1. Abdullah R. Sonbul
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  2. Ali A. Mesaed
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Correspondence to Ali A. Mesaed.

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The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Geology of North Africa and Mediterranean regions

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Sonbul, A.R., Mesaed, A.A. Stratigraphic setting, facies types, and mineral paragenesis of the carbonate-bearing succession of Jabal Farasan Area, West Central Arabian Shield, Saudi Arabia. Arab J Geosci 14, 2196 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-08577-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-021-08577-z

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