Seismic Reflection Imaging of the Chapleau Block, Kapuskasing
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Important Notice This copy may be used only for the purposes of research and private study, and any use of the copy for a purpose other than research or private study may require the authorization of the copyright owner of the work in question. Responsibility regarding questions of copyright that may arise in the use of this copy is assumed by the recipient. 198DE7 C- 9 GALLAG!-iER LfBRARY THE UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY CALGARY, ALBERTA CANADA T2N 1N4 SEISMIC REFLECTION IMAGINE CHAPLEATH F O G U BLOCK, KAPUSKASING STRUCTURAL ZONE, ONTARIO by Wayne T. Geis A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGRE F MASTEO E F SCIENCO R E DEPARTMENT OF GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS CALGARY, ALBERTA AUGUST, 1989 © W.T. Geis, 1989 THE UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES The undersigned certify that they have read and e recommenFacultth f o o Graduatt yd e Studier fo s acceptance, a thesis entitled "Seismic reflection imaging e Chapleath of u block, Kapuskasing Structural Zone, Ontario" submitte y Waynb d . Gei T en partia i s l fulfillment e requirementoth f e degreth Master f o efo s f Scienceo r . _ tt. _________ Supervisor, Dr. F .A. Cook Department of Geology and Geophysics L Dr. D.R.M. Pattison Departmen f Geologo t d Geophysican y s Dr. D.C. Lawton Departmen Geologf o t d Geophysican y s . D.GDr . Smith Department of Geography August 30, 1989 ii ABSTRACT The granulite and upper amphibolite grade rocks of the Kapuskasing structural zone (KSZ Ontarin i ) o represenn a t exposure of Archean crust that has been uplifted along a southeast verging thrust fault system. Regiona d higan lh resolution seismic reflection data recorded acrose th s structur y LITHOPROBeb E imag t leasa e t thre w angllo e e thrust faults that merge into a flat detachment towards the northwest. Alon n east-wesa g t transect acros e southerth s n end of the KSZ the seismic geometry resembles a 'ramp and flat' style of thrusting, resulting in a thin upper plate above the 15-17 km (about 5.0 s two-way time) detachment. Other seismic profiles provide regional three dimensional coverage, allowing construction of time structure maps of the principal fault surface. These maps show that, on a regional scale e timth ,e contours generally parallee th l surface expression of the fault(s), the Ivanhoe Lake fault zone (ILFZ). Large structures imaged beneath the adjacent Abitibi belt also roughly parallel the ILFZ, suggesting they may have controlled the emplacement of the KSZ or are possibly deeper level detachments associated wite hth formation of the KSZ. Coupled with the surface geology and available geobarometry, three conceptual modele ar s proposed that are consistent with the seismic geometry, but 111 differ in respect to which of the faults is the principal detachmen wherd an t e potential ramp placede ar s . From these models estimate minimue th f so m amoun horizontaf o t l shortening range between 55 and 85 km in a NW-SE direction. This large amount of shortening implies that much of the upper-middle crust of Superior province was detached from e loweth r crust durin e formatiogth e e KSZTh th .f o n proposed geometric interpretation, which includes ramps, flats and imbricate thrusts, further implies that rocks deep withi e crus nth y defor ma t m into structures that strongly resemble those in layered media such as sediments in Phanerozoic supra-crustal fold thrusan d t belts. In additio o characterizinnt e geometrigth c information from the reflection data, acquisition of data with both high resolution and regional parameters along a 17 km segmen f lino t e allowe comparisoa d thesf o no mode tw ef o s recording. The initial stacked section of the data recorded with regional parameters indicated thahige th th resolution data provided a far superior image to that of the regional data. However, reprocessin e regionath f o g l data with parameters thae comparablar t e higth ho t e resolution profile, reveals that significant improvements e regiona camadth e n b n eo l profile image quality A shor. t offset range and a correlation statics window that encompasses early arrivals are the two most important considerations when imaging dipping shallow structures. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS deeplm a I y indebte y supervisorm o dt . Fre,Dr d Coor fo k his exceptional scientific guidance, inspiratior fo d an n e opportunitiealth l e Lithoprobsth e projec s giveha . t me n Thanks Frer showinfo d there gm mors i eo seismi t e c exploration than salt domes, reefs and sand channels. Drs. Alan Green and John Percival of the Geological Survey of Canada provided many helpful comments and shared their enthusias Kapuskasine th r fo m g project. John Varsek provided many stimulating scientifid an c philosophical discussions which have y helperolm s a et dpu a geophysicist into perspective. Kevin Coflin's trail blazing efforts in learning new software packages has certainly made my research easier. Special thanks to Paulette Campbell for constant encouragement and for most of all making life enjoyable durin e difficulgth t period M.Scy m f .o s program. None of this work would be possible if not for my parents, Stad Joycan n e Geis o encourage,wh d supportean d d e sacrificemth y l educational r sfo d .da d Thankan m smo you have made durin pase years5 th g2 t . v This thesis is dedicated to my grandmother, Magdalene Stephens. When I was a child she bought me a book on the inner Earth and read it to me because it was "tod advanced". Vl TABL CONTENTF EO S APPROVAL PAGE.................................... ii ABSTRACT......................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS................................. v DEDICATION....................................... vi TABLE OF CONTENTS................................ vii LIST OF TABLES ................................... x LIS FIGURES..................................F TO i x . CHAPTER-1: INTRODUCTION.........................1 . Why study the Kapuskasing structure?.......... 2 Objectives of this research................... 4 CHAPTER-2: BACKGROUN PREVIOUD DAN S WORK.........9 . Regional setting.............................9 . Evolution of thought in the interpretation of the KSZ.................................... 10 Tectonic framewor KSZ................e th f ko 1 1 . Age of Uplift................................. 15 Comparison with Rocky Mountain structures..... 16 CHAPTER-3: SEISMIC DATA BASE..................... 19 Seismic data acquisition.....................9 1 . VIl Seismic data processing......................2 2 . Coherency filtering.....................2 2 . CHAPTER-4: REPROCESSING OF LINE 2 REGIONAL....... 30 Introduction.................................. 30 Standard reprocessing comparison.............. 35 Additional signal enhancement................2 4 . Summary of Chapter 4.......................... 60 CHAPTER-5: THIN THRUST SHEET FORMATION OF THE KSZ............................ 62 Introduction.................................2 6 . Local geology along the seismic profiles...... 62 Data descriptio interpretation..........d nan 5 6 . Line 2 high resolution................... 65 East-west regional data.................3 7 . Discussion and implications of a thin thrust sheet model...........................9 7 . Summar Chaptef yo r 5.........................2 8 . CHAPTER-6: THREE DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE CHAPLEAU BLOCK.......................4 8 . Introduction.................................4 8 . Data description.............................. 84 Line 1................................... 86 Line 6................................... 89 Line 5................................... 92 ViIl 3-D Geometry of Kapuskasing thrust block...... 92 Some comments on the Abitibi belt reflections................................... 95 Summar Chaptef yo r 6.........................0 10 . CHAPTER-7: RECONSTRUCTIONS....................... 101 Introduction.................................1 10 . Constraints................................... 102 Conceptual models............................. 104 Model2..........................d an 1 s 4 10 . Model 3.................................7 10 . Summar Chaptef o y r 7.........................0 11 . CHAPTER-8!CONCLUSIONS............................ 112 Recommendation futurr sfo e work..............4 11 . REFERENCES....................................... 116 IX LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1: Regional data acquisition parameters.................. 20 Table 3.2: High resolution data acquisition parameters.................1 2 . Table 3.3: Regional data processing parameters................... 23 Table 3.4: High resolution data processing parameters..................4 2 . x FIGURE CAPTIONS Figure 1.1: Map of local geology from the southern KSZ showin locatioe th g f no seismic lines........................... 8 Figure 2.1: Crustal cross section of the KSZ........ 12 Figure 2.2: Tectonic framework of the KSZ........... 14 Figure 2.3: Comparison with Rocky Mountain structures..............8 1 . Figure 3.1: Coherency filtering example............. 29 Figure 4.1: Lin regionae2 l original processing....2 3 . Figure 4.2: Lin hige2 h resolution original processing....................4 3 . Figure 4.3: Shot gather from V.P. 189............... 37 Figure 4.4: Shot gather form V.P. 191............... 39 Figure 4.5: Summatio shof no t gathers..............1 4 . Figure 4.6: Reprocessing of regional data........... 44 Figure 4.7: High resolution data band limited....... 47 Figure 4.8: Reprocessed regional data band limited...........................