(Denizli Basin, Turkey) and Modern Mammoth Hot Springs Deposits
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Comparative study of the Pleistocene Cakmak quarry (Denizli Basin, Turkey) and modern Mammoth Hot Springs deposits (Yellowstone National Park, USA) Eva de Boever, Anneleen Foubert, Benjamin Lopez, Rudy Swennen, Cheryl Jaworowski, Mehmet Ozkul, Aurelien Virgone To cite this version: Eva de Boever, Anneleen Foubert, Benjamin Lopez, Rudy Swennen, Cheryl Jaworowski, et al.. Com- parative study of the Pleistocene Cakmak quarry (Denizli Basin, Turkey) and modern Mammoth Hot Springs deposits (Yellowstone National Park, USA). Quaternary International, Elsevier, 2017, 437 (A), pp.129-146. 10.1016/j.quaint.2016.09.011. hal-01765599 HAL Id: hal-01765599 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01765599 Submitted on 13 Apr 2018 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Published in "Quaternary International 437, Part A(): 129–146, 2017" which should be cited to refer to this work. Comparative study of the Pleistocene Cakmak quarry (Denizli Basin, Turkey) and modern Mammoth Hot Springs deposits (Yellowstone National Park, USA) * Eva De Boever a, b, , Anneleen Foubert a, Benjamin Lopez a, c, d, Rudy Swennen b, € Cheryl Jaworowski e, Mehmet Ozkul f,Aurelien Virgone d a Department of Geosciences e Geology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland b Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium c Universite Aix-Marseille, CNRS, CEREGE, Aix-en-Provence, France d Total E&P Recherche Developpement, Paris, France e Yellowstone National Park Service, Yellowstone National Park, WY, USA f Department of Geological Engineering, Pamukkale University, Denizli, Turkey This study compares and contrasts the travertine depositional facies of two of the largest sites of trav- ertine formation, located in very different geological contexts, i.e. the modern Mammoth Hot Spring (MHS) system in the active volcanic complex of Yellowstone National Park (USA) and the Pleistocene Cakmak quarry, a well-exposed example of the Ballık travertines in the extensional Denizli Basin (Turkey). New, 2D to 3D facies maps of both travertine systems, combined with microscopy, assist in proposing an integrated spring depositional model, based on the existing MHS facies model, under- standing general controls on meter to kilometer scale travertine deposit architecture and its preserva- tion, and provide quantitative estimates of facies spatial coverage and slope using GIS. The comparison resulted in the distinction of eight facies, grouped in five downstream facies zones from Vent to Distal Slope. Notwithstanding the different geological context of both travertine systems, observations show that several of the facies are strikingly comparable (draping Apron and Channel Facies, top-slope Pond Facies, crystalline Proximal Slope Facies and Distal Slope Facies), whereas other facies do not have a precise, exposed equivalent (Vent Facies, pavement Apron and Channel Facies, extended Pond facies and phyto Proximal Slope Facies). Combining observations of active springs at MHS with the Cakmak vertical travertine quarry exposures demonstrates that lateral and vertical facies transitions are a sensitive record of changes in the spring dynamics (flow intensity and paths) that become well-preserved in the geological record, and can be recognized as prograding, aggrading, retrograding trends or erosive sur- faces, traceable over tens to hundreds of meters. Quantification of facies specific coverage at MHS shows that Proximal and Distal Slope Facies deposits cover as much as ~90% of the total mapped surface area. In addition, only ~7% of the surface is found to be marked by a waterfilm related to an active flowing spring. Slope statistics reveal that strong slope breaks can often be related to transgressive Apron and Channel Facies belts and that variable, but steep slopes (up to 40) are dominated by Proximal Slope Facies, in agreement with the Cakmak exposures. Integrating travertine facies and architecture of deposits formed in distinct geological contexts can improve the prediction of general spring facies distributions and http://doc.rero.ch controls in other, modern and ancient, subsurface travertine systems. 1. Introduction Travertine refers to a calcium carbonate sedimentary rock that * Corresponding author. Department of Geosciences e Geology, University of precipitates and forms in the outflow drainage pathways of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland. terrestrial springs, characterized by a high concentration of E-mail address: [email protected] (E. De Boever). 1 þ dissolved Ca2 and carbonate species (Pentecost, 2005; Jones and integrated and comparative travertine depositional facies model Renaut, 2010; Brasier, 2011). Often, a distinction has been made based on spatial and quantitative mapping (at meter to kilometer between cool water ‘tufa’ and warm or hot water ‘travertine’ de- length scales) of different, key travertine systems does not exist. posits (Ford and Pedley, 1996; Pedley, 2009). Such classification, The present study presents and compares travertine facies maps however, proves difficult when mapping ancient travertine in the for two of the largest sites of modern and ancient travertine field (Brasier, 2011; Capezzuoli et al., 2014; Cantonati et al., 2016). deposition. These sites include the active Mammoth Hot Spring Furthermore, a continuum exists between cool and warmer springs (MHS) system in the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field of Wyom- in terms of water temperature, water chemistry, rock facies, fabrics ing, Idaho, and Montana, and the Cakmak quarry exposures in the and microbial or biological signatures (Jones and Renaut, 2010; Ballık area of the Denizli extensional Basin, Turkey. Both sites of Lopez et al., in press), which hampers a strict discrimination be- travertine deposition strongly differ in terms of age and basinal tween ambient and warm water ancient carbonate spring deposits. settings. They therefore cover a broad spectrum of depositional As a result, the term travertine will be used in the present study as a facies encountered in continental spring settings, consisting of descriptive term for carbonates formed in continental spring water large, hundreds of meters scale exposures that are easily accessible environments. and have the advantage of being both located in areas that are Calcium carbonate deposits in terrestrial springs are often relatively well known and characterized in terms of their (fluid) associated with a diverse microbial and/or aquatic plant ecology. chemistry. They are documented and evaluated here with the The deposition of travertine results from the interplay of abiotic following goals to: (i) compare and contrast the different travertine processes (CO2 degassing, heat dispersion, flow turbulence) and facies observed (ii) investigate whether the MHS travertine facies the presence and activity of (micro)biota (Andrews and Brasier, model can be validated and is broader applicable to ancient trav- 2005; Pentecost, 2005; Takashima and Kano, 2008; Brasier, 2011; ertine deposits in a different geological context; (iii) understand Pedley, 2014) and may thus contain preserved “biomarkers” that generic controls on spring depositional architecture; and (iv) pro- make it an important target for reconstructing ancient life on the vide quantitative estimates of the spatial facies coverage. The na- early Earth and potentially other planets (Russell and Hall, 1999; ture of the recent, active and ancient, quarry exposures requires a Allen et al., 2000; National Research Council of the National different study approach. Whereas the Modern-to Holocene trav- Academies, 2007). Furthermore, typical, finely laminated calcar- ertine of MHS in Yellowstone National Park (YNP) (Bargar, 1978; eous, continental spring deposits and their isotopic and elemental Christiansen, 2001) permit detailed observations of the short- geochemistry have long been recognized as important records of time scale flow, facies and biological dynamics at the active environmental, climatic and tectonic information throughout the spring surface (days/weeks to decades), the well-exposed Pleisto- Quaternary (Kano et al., 2003; Andrews and Brasier, 2005; Brasier cene travertine system in the extensional Denizli Basin provides et al., 2010; Sierralta et al., 2010; Pazzaglia et al., 2013; Capezzuoli insight into longer time-scale, lateral and vertical facies patterns, et al., 2014; Dabkowski et al., 2015; Frery et al., 2015). More superposition and their preservation in vertical cross sections along recently, offshore discoveries suggest that ancient continental quarry faces. Documenting and integrating three-dimensional (3D) carbonate deposits may contribute to economically important facies maps from both case studies highlights the similarities and subsurface reservoirs (Garland et al., 2012; Ronchi and Cruciani, differences and may yield a more comprehensive understanding of 2015; Schroeder et al., 2016). the structure and controls on the distribution of carbonate spring Different travertine depositional facies models of modern depositional facies in 4D (space and