Composition and Properties of the Pierre Shale and Equivalent Rocks, Northern Great Plains Region
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Composition and Properties of the Pierre Shale and Equivalent Rocks, Northern Great Plains Region GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 106*-B Geochemistry of the Pierre Shale and Equivalent Rocks of Late Cretaceous Age GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1064 This volume was published as separate chapters A and B UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1980 COMPOSITION AND PROPERTIES OF THE PIERRE SHALE AND EQUIVALENT ROCKS, NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS REGION CONTENTS [Letters designate the chapters] (A) Mixed-layer clay in the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks, northern Great Plains region, by Leonard G. Schultz. (B) Composition and properties of the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks, northern Great Plains region, by Leonard G. Schultz, Harry A. Tourtelot, James R. Gill, and Josephine G. Boerngen. ft U S GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 198O—677-129/63 ' V 7%>'.X >.:% Sharon Springs Member of the Pierre Shale in cliffs north of the Cheyenne River, 3 mi west of Oral, S. Dak., showing typical buttress weathering of hard, black, organic-rich shale and the light Ardmore Bentonite Beds. The most prominent bentonite is 3 ft thick, from which came sample 259572 (tables 1 and 2). Sample 259571, an ordinary shale from the Mitten Member (loc. 18, pi. 1), came from the gentle, brush-covered slope in the upper right of the photograph. Composition and Properties of the Pierre Shale and Equivalent Rocks, Northern Great Plains Region By LEONARD G. SCHULTZ, HARRY A. TOURTELOT, JAMES R. GILL, and JOSEPHINE G. BOERNGEN GEOCHEMISTRY OF THE PIERRE SHALE AND EQUIVALENT ROCKS OF LATE CRETACEOUS AGE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1064-B Mineralogical and chemical study, including trace elements, of marine and, nonmarine rocks of Late Cretaceous age UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON: 1980 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR CECIL D. ANDRUS, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY H. William Menard, Director Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Main entry under title: Composition and properties of the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks, northern Great Plains region. (Geochemistry of the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks of Late Cretaceous age) (Geological Survey Professional Paper 1064-B) Bibliography: p. B82 1. Geology, Stratigraphic Cretaceous. 2. Shale Great Plains. 3. Geology Great Plains. I. Schultz, Leonard Gene, 1926- II. Series. III. Series: United States Geological Survey Professional Paper 1064-B. QE688.C65 551.7*7 79-607045 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 CONTENTS Page Page Abstract................................................ Bl Chemical composition Continued Introduction ............................................ 2 Methods ............................................ B40 Acknowledgments....................................... 3 Abundance of elements in the Pierre Shale and some Stratigraphic setting .................................... 3 statistical considerations ....................... 42 Sampling ............................................... 5 Distribution and occurrence of elements within the Pierre Methods ............................................ 5 Shale ......................................... 44 Types of shale and other rock in the Pierre Shale and Rock-forming constituents........................ 44 equivalents........................................ 5 Major elements .............................. 44 Suitability of outcrop samples weathering............ 8 Minor elements sulfur and carbon ............ 53 Mineralogical composition ............................... 9 Trace elements and some minor elements........... 54 Methods of analysis .................................. 9 Some tools for determination of occurrence ..... 54 Hydroxide or chlorite interlayers heated code, Occurrence of elements in other shale....... 54 table 1 ........................................ 9 Correlation coefficients ................... 54 Exchangeable cations air-dried code, table 1 ...... 11 Heavy minerals and size-fractionation...... 56 Anorthite content of plagioclase................... 11 Minor elements (TiO2, P2O5, F, and Cl).......... 57 Composition ........................................ 12 Trace elements occurring mainly in heavy re- Pierre Shale and equivalents the whole unit....... 12 sistates (Zr, Y, Yb, La, and Sn)........... 60 Environment of deposition ......................... 13 Trace elements occurring almost entirely in clay Lithologic type .................................. 15 minerals (Sc and B) ..................... 61 Ordinary shale and siltstone................... 15 Trace elements having multiple occurrences (Ga, Organic-rich shale ............................ 15 Pb, Ba, Sr, and Mn)..................... 63 Shale directly above bentonite................. 17 Trace elements associated with sulfur or organic Frothy-weathering shale ...................... 17 matter................................. 66 Siliceous shale ............................... 18 Interrelations between sulfur (pyrite), organ Marl ........................................ 19 ic matter, and their related elements ...... 66 Volcanic-rich shale ........................... 21 Sulfur-related elements (Co, Ni, and Zn)..... 67 Volcanic-rich siltstone ........................ 21 Organic-matter-related elements (Cd; Cr, V, Bentonite ................................... 25 and Cu; Mo, Se, and As; U).............. 68 Regional and stratigraphic variation............... 28 Effects of weathering ................................ 70 Illite, beidellite, and montmorillonite in mixed- Interrelated physical and chemical properties .............. 72 layer clay.................................. 29 Grain density ....................................... 72 Clay minerals in total clay-mineral fraction ..... 29 Bulk density and porosity ............................ 73 Minerals in the total sample ................... 30 pH ................................................. 73 Types of quartz .............................. 39 Atterberg limits ..................................... 76 Chemical composition.................................... 40 Cation-exchange capacity ............................ 77 Major, minor, trace, and rock-forming elements ter Conclusions ............................................. 77 minology .......................................... 40 References cited ......................................... 82 Explanation of table 1................................ 40 Index................................................... 85 ILLUSTRATIONS Page FRONTISPIECE. Photograph of the Sharon Springs Member showing Ardmore Bentonite Beds and buttress weathering of organic- rich shale. PLATE 1. Stratigraphic cross sections showing localities, sampling, fossil zones, and types of rocks ......................... In pocket FIGURE 1. Schematic cross section of the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks, northern Great Plains Region....................... B3 2. Photomicrograph showing platelets of organic matter in organic-rich shale from Sharon Springs Member............. 6 3. Photograph of Eagle Sandstone showing nonmarine coaly beds ................................................... 6 4. Photographs of weathered shale outcrops ....................................................................... 7 5. X-ray diffraction traces showing effects of interlayer hydroxide sheets on the collapse of heated smectite............. 10 6. Ternary diagram showing types of layers in mixed-layer clay of the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks ................ 12 VI CONTENTS FIGURE 7. Cumulative curves showing abundance of minerals in different environments of deposition of the Pierre Shale and equiv alent rocks................................................................................................. B14 8. Photomicrograph showing authigenic dolomite in marine sandy siltstone ........................................... 15 9. Photomicrograph showing authigenic dolomite in nonmarine silty clay stone ........................................ 15 10. Location and hardness of siliceous shale in the Pierre Shale and amounts of cristobalite and quartz in it................ 20 11. Photomicrograph showing radiolaria in frothy-weathering shale, DeGrey Member ................................... 20 12. Photomicrograph showing rhombic authigenic dolomite in sandy marlstone, Crow Creek Member..................... 21 13. Photomicrograph showing authigenic dolomite in fine-grained marlstone, Crow Creek Member ....................... 21 14. Photomicrograph of volcanic-rich sandy siltstone, Cokedale Formation ............................................. 22 15. Photomicrograph of volcanic-rich sandstone, Two Medicine Formation ............................................. 22 16. Photomicrograph of chloritized volcanic sandstone, Lennep Sandstone ............................................. 24 17. Photomicrographs of volcanic ash partly altered to clinoptilolite, Ardmore Bentonite Beds ........................... 28 18. Photograph of invertebrate borings in zeolitized bentonite bed ..................................................... 29 19. Mineralogy of the Pierre Shale and equivalent rocks by locality and fossil zone ...................................... 32 20. Cumulative curves comparing the mineralogy of all 1,160 shale and siltstone samples with that of 192 chemically ana lyzed samples.............................................................................................. 41 21. Cumulative curves showing