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Terminal Ediacaran anoxia in deep-ocean: Trace element evidence from cherts of the Liuchapo Formation, South China

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Abstract

Here we report a detailed trace element study of the cherts from Liuchapo Formation, which is a terminal Ediacaran (551-542 Ma) succession in South China deposited in deep-water basinal setting. The REE of Liuchapo cherts shows similar features as observed for anoxic modern seawater (but not for hydrothermal fluids), characterized by positive La anomaly (LaN/CeN = 0.83–1.91, average 1.37), moderately negative Ce anomaly (0.53–1.1, average 0.73), positive Gd anomaly (average 1.08), positive Y anomaly (average 1.21), and depleted LREE and MREE. In addition, the Liuchapo cherts have low ΣREE (3.36–56.13 ppm, average 20.6 ppm), low Al2O3, Ti, Th and Zr concentrations, and high Y/Ho ratios (up to 43.9). The redox-sensitive trace elements concentrations in the cherts do not correlate with detrital input proxies. All of these features suggest that the redox-sensitive trace elements in the cherts were authigenically concentrated in water column and their concentrations thus are excellent indicators of ancient redox conditions. Very low Th/U ratios, high V/(V+Ni) and Fe⊤/Al ratios, enrichments of redox-sensitive trace elements (U, V, Mo), and low concentration of Mn in the cherts imply anoxia in the deep seawater. Our data reveal that the terminal Ediacaran ocean was not completely oxidized and the deep ocean was still anoxic, at least in South China. We propose that although the oxidative events existed in the terminal Ediacaran oceans, decomposition of organic matter prolonged anoxia in the deep ocean.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric Evolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China

    HuaJin Chang, XueLei Chu, LianJun Feng & Jing Huang

  2. Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    HuaJin Chang & Jing Huang

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  1. HuaJin Chang
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Correspondence to XueLei Chu.

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Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants Nos. 40532012, 40873007, 40603021) and Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. KZCX3-SW-141)

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Chang, H., Chu, X., Feng, L. et al. Terminal Ediacaran anoxia in deep-ocean: Trace element evidence from cherts of the Liuchapo Formation, South China. Sci. China Ser. D-Earth Sci. 52, 807–822 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-009-0070-7

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