Microstructure and fluid flow in the vicinity of basin bounding faults in rifts – The Dombjerg Fault, NE Greenland rift system

Faults commonly form loci for high fluid flux in sedimentary basins, where fluids, rocks and deformation processes frequently interact. Here, we elucidate the interaction of fluid flow, diagenesis and deformation near basin-bounding faults in sedimentary basins through a study in the vicinity (0–3.5 km) of the Dombjerg Fault in the NE Greenland rift system. Due to fault-controlled fluid circulation, fault-proximal syn-rift clastics underwent pervasive calcite cementation, whereas uncemented clastics at some distance from the fault remained highly porous and friable. Correspondingly, two distinct deformation regimes developed to accommodate continued deformation: discrete brittle fractures formed in calcite cemented rocks, whereas cataclastic deformation bands formed in uncemented deposits. We show that low-permeable deformation bands forming in highly porous rocks were associated with localized host rock alteration, and chemical reduction of porosity along bands. In rocks with cementation-induced low porosity, brittle fractures created new pathways for fluids, but were subsequently filled with calcite. Occasionally, veins comprise multiple generations of microcrystalline calcite, likely precipitated from rapidly super-saturated fluids injected into the fractures. This suggests cemented deposits sealed uncemented compartments, where fluid overpressure developed. We conclude that compartmentalized flow regimes may form in fault-bounded basins, which has wide implications for assessments of potential carbon storage, hydrocarbon, groundwater, and geothermal site

Structure and flow properties of syn-rift border faults: The interplay between fault damage and fault-related chemical alteration (Dombjerg Fault, Wollaston Forland, NE Greenland)

Publisher's version, source: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2016.09.012.Structurally controlled, syn-rift, clastic depocentres are of economic interest as hydrocarbon reservoirs; understanding the structure of their bounding faults is of great relevance, e.g. in the assessment of fault-controlled hydrocarbon retention potential. Here we investigate the structure of the Dombjerg Fault Zone (Wollaston Forland, NE Greenland), a syn-rift border fault that juxtaposes syn-rift deep-water hanging-wall clastics against a footwall of crystalline basement. A series of discrete fault strands characterize the central fault zone, where discrete slip surfaces, fault rock assemblages and extreme fracturing are common. A chemical alteration zone (CAZ) of fault-related calcite cementation envelops the fault and places strong controls on the style of deformation, particularly in the hanging-wall. The hanging-wall damage zone includes faults, joints, veins and, outside the CAZ, disaggregation deformation bands. Footwall deformation includes faults, joints and veins. Our observations suggest that the CAZ formed during early-stage fault slip and imparted a mechanical control on later fault-related deformation. This study thus gives new insights to the structure of an exposed basin-bounding fault and highlights a spatiotemporal interplay between fault damage and chemical alteration, the latter of which is often underreported in fault studies. To better elucidate the structure, evolution and flow properties of faults (outcrop or subsurface), both fault damage and fault-related chemical alteration must be considered. Highlights • Faults juxtaposing syn-rift clastics against crystalline basement are investigated. • Early fault-zone diagenesis profoundly influences later fault-related deformation. • Spatiotemporal interplay between fault damage and chemical alteration. • Findings have implications for fault-bounded syn-rift reservoirs in the subsurface