Abstract
A systematic petrographic investigation is used to answer the question of occurrence, distribution and reasons for variation of cementation within reefal carbonates of Lower-Miocene age. Petrographic evidences indicate that submarine cementation occurred at or near the sediment/rock-water interface, but unlike some modern counterparts (i.e. Belize and the Great Barrier Reef) it is not restricted to local areas along the seaward margins of reefs. The f-Member of the Qum Formation is a classic example in which cementation occurs in relatively deeper basinal water as well as a wide variety of lagoonal, reef and fore-reef facies.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
AISSAOUI, D.M., 1988, Magnesian Calcite and their Diagenesis. Dissolution and Dolomitization, Mururoa Atoll:Sedimentology, v. 35 p. 821–841.
AISSAOUI, D.M., CONIGLIO, M., JAMES, N.P., and PURSER, B.M., 1986, Diagenesis of a Miocene Reef-Platform: Jebel Abu Shear, Gulf of Suez, Egypt,in Schroder, J.H. and Purser, B.H., eds., Reef Diagenesis. Springer-Verlag, p. 112–131.
ALEXANDERSSON, E.T. 1974, Carbonate Cementation in Coralline Algal Nodules in the Skegerrak, North Sea, Biochemical Precipitation in Undersatureted Waters:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 44, p. 7–26.
BATHURST, R.G.C., 1986, Carbonate Sediments and their Diagenesis. Ames 6th edition, Elsevier Publishing Company, 658 p.
BEACH, D.K., 1993, Submarine Cementation of Subsurface Pliocene Carbonates from the Interior of Great Bahama Bank:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 63, p. 1059–1069.
CAROZZI, A.V., 1958, Micro-Mechanisms of Sedimentation in the Epicontinental Environment:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 28, p. 133–150.
CAROZZI, A.V., 1989, Carbonate Rocks Depositional Model: A Microfacies Approach. Prentice Hall, 604 p.
DARVISHZADEH, A., 1992, Geology of Iran (in Persian). Neda Publication, 901 p.
DUNHAM, R.J., 1962, Classification of Carbonate Rocks According to Depositional Texture.In Ham, W.E., ed., Classification of carbonate rocks. Tulsa, Okla:American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Memoir 1, p 108–121.
EVANS, G., MURRAY J.W., BIGGS, H.E.J., BATE, R., and BUSH, P.R., 1973, The Oceanography, Ecology, Sedimentology and Geomorphology of parts of the Trucial Coast Barrier Island Complex, Persian Gulf.In Pursur, B.H., ed., The Persian Gulf, Holocene Carbonate Sedimentation and Diagenesis in a Shallow Epicontinental Sea, p. 233–277.
FRIEDMAN, G.M., SANDERS, J.E., GAVISH, E., and ALLEN, R.C., 1971, Marine Lithfication Mechanism Yields Rock Resembling Beachrock.In Bricker, O.P., ed., Carbonate Cement, p. 50–53.
FRIEDMAN, G.M., AMIEL, A.J. and SCHENDERMANN, N., 1974, Submarine Cementation in Reefs: Example from the Red Sea:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 44, p. 816–825.
FRIEDMAN, G.M., 1985, The Problem of Submarine Cements in ClassifyingRReefrock: an Example in Frustration.In Schneidermann, S.N. and Harris, P.M., eds., Carbonate Cements, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, p. 117–119.
GINSBURG, R.N., SHINN, E.A., and SCHROEDER, J.H. 1971, Recent Synsedimentary Cementation in Subtidal Bermuda Reefs,in Bricker, O.P., ed., Carbonate Cements, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, p. 54–59.
GINSBURG, R.N., MARSZALEK, D.S., and SCHNEIDERMANN, N., 1971, Ultrastructures of carbonate cements in a Holocene algal reef Bermuda:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 41, p. 472–482.
GINSBURG, R.N. and SCHROEDER, T.H., 1973, Growth of Submarine Fossilization of Algal Cup Reefs, Bermuda:Sedimentology, v. 20, p. 576–614.
GRAMMAR, G.M. and GINSBURG, R.N., 1992, Highstand vs. Lowstand Deposition on Carbonate Platform insight from Quaternary Foreslopes in Bahamas:Marine Geology, v. 103, p. 125–136.
GRAMMAR, G.M., SWART, P.K., MCNEILL, D. F., JULL, A.J.T., and PREZBINDOWSKI, D.R., 1993, Rapid Growth Rate of Syndepositional Marine Aragonite Cements in Steep Marginal Slope Deposit, Bahamas and Belize:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 63, p. 983–989.
JAMES, N.P., GINSBURG, R.N., MARSZALEK, D.S., and CHOQUETTE, P.W., 1976, Facies and Fabric Specificity of early Subsea Cements in Shallow Belize (British Honduras) Reefs:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 46, p. 523–544.
JAMES, N.P. and GINSBURG, R.N., 1990, Extracts from the Seaward Margins of Belize Barrier and Atoll Reefs.In Tucker, M.E. and Bathurst, R.G.C., eds., Carbonate Diagenesis, p. 55–80.
JAMES, N.P. and BONE, Y., 1992, Sunsedimentary Cemented Calcarenite Layers in Oligo-Miocene Cool-water Shelf limestone, Eucla Platform, southern Australia:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 62, p. 840–872.
KOBLUK, D.R. and RISK, M.J., 1977, Calcification of exposed filaments of endolithic algae, micrite envelope formation and sediment production:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 47, p. 517–528.
LAND, L.S. and GOREAU, T.F., 1970, Submarine Lithification of Jamaican Reefs. T.s.:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 40, p. 457–462.
LAND, L.S., 1971, Submarine lithification of Jamaican reefs.In Bricker, O.P., ed., Carbonate Cements, Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, p. 59–60.
LAND, L.S. and MOORE, C.H., 1980, Lithification, Micritization and Syndepositional Diagenesis of Biolithites on the Jamaican Island Slope:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 50, p. 357–370.
MACINTYRE, I.G., MOUNTJOY, E.W., and D’AGLEYAN, B.F., 1968, An Occurrence of submarine cementation of carbonate sediments off the west coast of Babadose, W. I.:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 38, p. 660–664.
MACINTYRE, I.G., 1977, Distribution of submarine cements in a modern Carribean fringing reef, Galeta Point, Panama:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 47, p. 503–516.
MACINTYRE, I.G., 1984, Extensive submarine lithification in a cave in the Belize Barrier Reef Platform:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 54, p. 221–235.
MACINTYRE, I.G., 1985, Submarine Cements- the Peloidal Question.In Schneiderman, N.S., and Harris, P.M., eds., Carbonate Cements:SEPM Special Publication No. 36, p. 109–116.
MACINTYRE, I.G. and MARSHALL, J.F., 1988, Submarine Lithification in Coral Reefs: Some Facts and Misconceptions. Proceeding of the 6th International Coral Reef Symposium, Australia, v. 1, p. 263–271.
MARSHALL, J.F., 1983, Submarine Cementation in a High-energy platform Reef: One Tree Reef, Southern Great Barrier Reef:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 53, p. 1133–1149.
MARSHALL, J.F., 1986, Regional Distribution of Submarine Cements within an Epicontinental Reef System: Central Great-Barrier Reef, Australia.In Schroder, J.H. and Purser, B.H., eds., Reef Diagenesis. Springer-Verlag, p. 8–26.
MARSHALL, J.F. and DAVIS, P.J., 1981, Submarine Lithification on Windward Reef Slopes: Capricorn-Bunker Group, Southern Great Barrier Reef:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 51, p. 953–960.
MAZZULLO, S.J., 1980, Calcite pseudospar Replacive of Marine Acicular Aragonite, and Implications for Aragonite Cement Diagenesis:Journal of Sedimentary Petrology, v. 50, p. 953–960.
OKHRAVI, R. and CAROZZI, A.V., 1983, The Joachim Dolomite: A Middle Ordovician Sabkha of Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois, U.S.A.:Archives Des Science, Geneva, v. 36, p. 373–424.
OKHRAVI, R. and ALIZADEH KETEK LAHIJANI, H., 1994, Depositional Environments and Diagenesis of the Dorud Fm., Alborz Mountains, Iran:Sedimentary Geology, v. 93, p. 261–277.
PURSER, B.H., 1973, Sedimentation around Bathymetric Highs in the Southern Persian Gulf.In Pursur, B.H., ed., The Persian Gulf, Holocene Carbonate Sedimentation and Diagenesis in a Shallow Epicontinental Sea, Springer-Verlag, p. 233–277.
SAMI, T.T. and JAMES, N.P., 1996. Synsedimentary Cements as Paleoproterozoic Platform Building Blocks, Rettei Group Northwestern Canada:Journal of Sedimentary Research, v. 66, p. 209–222.
SCHROEDER, J.H. and PURSER, B.H., eds., 1986, Reef Diagenesis. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 455 p.
SCOTESE, C.R., GAHAGEN, L.M., and LARSEN, R., 1988, Plate tectonic reconstruction of the Cretaceous and Cenozoic Ocean Basins,In Scotese, C.R. and Sager, W.W., eds., Mesozoic and Cenozoic Plate Reconstruction:Tectonophysics, v. 155, p. 33–34.
SHINN, E.A., 1969, Submarine Lithification of Holocene Carbonate Sediments in the Persian Gulf.Sedimentology, v. 12, p. 109–144.
REID, R.P., MACINTYRE, I.G., and JAMES, N.P. 1990, Internal Precipitation of Microcrystalline Carbonate: a Fundamental Problem for Sedimentologists:Sedimentary Geology, v. 68, p. 163–170.
TUCKER, M.E. 1993, Carbonate Diagenesis and Sequence Stratigraphy.In Wright, V.P., ed., Sedimentology Review, Blackwell Scientific Publishing, p. 51–72.
TUCKER, M.E. and WRIGHT, V.P., 1990, Carbonate Sedimentology. Oxford Blackwell Scientific Publications, 482 p.
TAYLOR, J.C.M. and ILLING, V., 1990, Holocene Intertidal Calcium Carbonate Cementation, Qatar, Persian Gulf.In Tucker, M.E. and Bathurst, R.G.C., eds., Carbonate Diagenesis, p. 52–53.
ZIEGLER, A.M., SCOTESE, C.R., and BARRETT, S.F., 1982, Mesozoic and Cenozoic Paleogeographic maps.In Broshe, P. and Sundermann, eds., Tidal Friction and the Earth Rotation, Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, p. 240–252.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Okhravi, R. Synsedimentary cementation in the Lower Miocene reefal carbonates of the central basin, Iran. Carbonates Evaporites 13, 136–144 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03176587
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03176587