UNIVERSITY of NEVADA RENO PERMIAN-TRIASSIC SOURCE BED ANALYSIS at QUINN RIVER CROSSING, HUMBOLDT COUNTY, NEVADA a Thesis Submitt
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UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA RENO PERMIAN-TRIASSIC SOURCE BED ANALYSIS AT QUINN RIVER CROSSING, HUMBOLDT COUNTY, NEVADA A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Geology by Scott Byron McDaniel III January 1982 MINES LIBRARY I ( * 2 .3 © 1982 SCOTT BYRON McDANIEL All Rights Reserved The thesis of Scott Byron McDaniel is approved: University of Nevada Reno January, 1982 11 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The writer wishes to take this opportunity of expressing his appreciation to the many people who have contributed of their time and energy in the furtherance of this investigation. I wish to acknowledge the help ful discussions with N. J. Silberling, R. C. Speed, B. R. Wardlaw and L. T. Larson. Special appreciation is ex pressed to J. Lintz, Jr. for his continuing advice throughout the project. Advice and assistance in sur veying, mapping and rock sampling were given by T. De Rocher. Special gratitude is also extended to the Reynosa family and Jim Reid of the Ivory Ranch at Quinn River Crossing, Nevada. I wish to thank Sun Exploration Company, Denver, Colorado, who partially financed this project and also gave me great support. Appreciation is expressed for thin section analyses prepared by Michael Wilson of AGAT Consultants, Inc., of Denver, Colorado, under contract to Sun Exploration Company. Ill ABSTRACT The Quinn River Crossing area is located in north west Humboldt County, Nevada„ Measured sections are lo cated at the southeast margin of the Pine Forest Range and southwest area of the Bilk Creek Range. The Permian Lime stone and Triassic units in both areas have yielded faunules. Structural relations in the area suggests a system of imbricate thrust sheets of Permian-Triassic age. The remnants displayed in the ranges are allochthonous blocks which have been post-depositionally transported over many kilometers distance, and subsequently tilted and uplifted by Tertiary Basin and Range tectonic processes. The age dating, mapping and laboratory analysis of the Quinn River Crossing area have identified a region which is structurally complex. The Pine Forest area ex hibits extensive structural deformation and recrystalliza tion. The Bilk Creek section does not exhibit extensive recrystallization of sediments, and lacks the deformation and metamorphism displayed in the nearby Pine Forest Range and Jackson Mountains. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES, AND PLATES vi CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION 1 Purpose 2 Methods and Materials 3 Geographic Setting 5 II. GEOLOGY OF THE SOUTH BILK CREEK RANGE Stratigraphy 9 Structure 19 III. GEOLOGY OF THE SOUTHEAST PINE FOREST RANGE Stratigraphy 22 Structure 29 IV. CORRELATION Biostratigraphical Description of the Permian 32 The Bilk Creek Section 35 The Southeastern Pine Forest Range (Permian or Older) Limestone Formation 38 The Black Rock Section 38 The Klamath Mountain Section 39 The Coyote Butte Section 41 Biostratigraphical Description of the Late Middle and Upper Triassic 43 The Quinn River Formation 45 The Southeast Pine Forest (Triassic) Limestone Formation 46 V. LABORATORY ANALYSIS Introduction 49 Thin Section Analysis: South Bilk Creek Range 53 Southeast Pine Forest Range 55 Total Organic Carbon Analysis 58 Vitrinite Reflectance Analysis 58 Thermal Alteration Analysis 59 Laboratory Analysis Discussion 63 V VI. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 70 REFERENCES 72 APPENDIX I 88 APPENDIX II 93 APPENDIX III 99 vi LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES, AND PLATES Page Figures Figure 1 - Location of Pine Forest and Bilk Creek Study Areas 6 Figure 2 - Generalized Geologic Map of Pine Forest Valley, Humboldt County, Nevada 7 Figure 3 - Cross-Section B-B', S„ W„ Bilk Creek Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 10 Figure 4 - Geologic Map of the South Bilk Creek Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 11 Figure 5 - Stratigraphic Column of the South Bilk Creek Range, Near Quinn River Crossing, Humboldt County, Nevada 12 Figure 6 - Section Traverse, South Bilk Creek Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 13 Figure 7 - Geologic Map of the Dyke Hot Springs Area, S. E. Pine Forest Range, Humboldt County, Nevada, with Traverse P-P' 23 Figure 8 - Stratigraphic Column of the South Pine Forest Range Near Quinn River Crossing, Humboldt County, Nevada 24 Figure 9 - Cross-Section P-P', S. E. Pine Forest Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 25 Figure 10 - Correlation of Permian Units in Western North America 33 vii Figure 11 - Correlation of Permian and Triassic Stratigraphic Units in the South Bilk Creek Range and Southeastern Pine Forest Range 48 Figure 12 - Rock Sampling Program, South Bilk Creek Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 50 Figure 13 - Rock Sampling Program and Traverse, S. E„ Pine Forest Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 51 Figure 14 - Geothermal Diagenetic Criteria (After Geochem Laboratories,1980) 60 Tables Table 1 - Summary of Laboratory Analysis Results, South Bilk Creek Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 61 Table 2 - Summary of Laboratory Analysis Results, Southeast Pine Forest Range, Humboldt County, Nevada 62 Plates Plate A - View of the South Bilk Creek Range Plate B - View of the Southeast Pine Forest Range Plate C - Arcestes (Proarcestes) carnenteri Smith Plate D - Epigondolella primitia Mosher 1 INTRODUCTION The present topography of Pine Forest Valley and the surrounding mountain ranges developed during the later part of the Tertiary period. In this structurally complex exposure of eugeosynclinal sediments large scale thrusting is exhibited. Previously, the area was very active tec tonically with the major blocks of Permian and Triassic age seen in the surrounding ranges being thrust upon each other. The thrusting was followed by the blocks being broken and tilted from extensive block faulting which con tinued into the Pleistocene epoch. In contrast to the mio- geosyncline to the east, the eugeosyncline area has also undergone regional metamorphism. The rock units of interest exposed in the Pine Forest Range and Bilk Creek Range represent Permian and Triassic ages. They are separated by faults and breccia zones created during different periods of faulting and thrusting. The Pine Forest Range rock units strike to the northwest and dip to the southwest whereas the units in the Bilk Creek Range strike predominately northeast and dip southeast. The rock units in the Bilk Creek Range also show strong evidence of drag folding associated with the thrusting events. These blocks could have been trans ported from various locales, thus providing one explanation to their present difference in orientation. The major 2 thrusting of the Triassic over the Permian units took place from early Triassic to late Cretaceous time0 The thrusting events extended over partly correlative rocks of the con tinental shelf along an accretionary belt of indeterminate length„ Originally, the Bilk Creek limestone was shown to be an allocthonous plate (Willden, 1964) . This conclusion has been recently reviewed as correlating strongly with the Mc Cloud limestone sequence at Shasta Lake, northern California (Stevens, 1977 and Ketner, 1981), There is now evidence that the Pine Forest Range could also be an allochthonous plate„ Skinner and Wilde (1965) also found that the fauna and lith ology of the limestone near Quinn River Crossing had strong similarities to the McCloud Limestone of the eastern Klamath Mountains 0 Purpose The rock units of the Quinn River Crossing area have been mapped previously by R. Willden (Preliminary Geologic Map of Humboldt County, Nevada, NBMG, 1963), J. G. Smith (Geology of the Duffer Peak Quadrangle, USGS 1-606, 1973), and Branch Russell (Ph„D. dissertation, Northwestern Univer sity, 1981)o These maps reflect attempts to study in detail the units exposed in this representative eugeosynclinal area of Northwestern Nevada„ The author has also studied the area in detail by field mapping, laboratory analysis of 3 thin sections and literature investigation. The purpose of this thesis is to accurately determine the ages of the rock units exposed in the southeastern Pine Forest Range and the southwestern Bilk Creek Range. Tech niques utilized included comparing lithologic descriptions and micro and macro-fauna analyses derived from present work and previous literature. Also, the potential for petroleum source beds was studied by examination of the stratigraphic and structural control throughout the area. This analysis was supported by an extensive rock sampling program funded partially by Sun Exploration, Division of Sun Oil Company, Denver, Colorado. Method and Materials A total of six weeks was spent at the Quinn River Crossing locale during May through September, 1981. The Permian limestones and Triassic shales present are primarily secondarily cemented rocks. Sampling of the units was difficult at depth. Rock samples collected were taken mainly from the surface to .5 meter in depth. An attempt was also made to obtain samples which were the least disturbed by surface weathering with sledge hammer and cold chisel. The samples were collected along traverse surveyed by tape and Brunton compass. Horizontal control was plotted from known USGS section corners and end comers of existing mining claims. A total of 45 samples were collected in the study area. From the southeast Pine Forest Range 23 of the 4 samples were obtained and 22 samples were collected at the southwest Bilk Creek Range. Samples were analyzed for source bed, thermal alteration, organic carbon and vitrinite reflec tance parameters. Procedures were based upon Geochem Laboratories' manual, 'Source Rock