Geometry and Origin of Oolite Bodies in the Ste. Genevieve Limestone (Mississippian) in the Illinois Basin BULLETIN 48 STATE OFINDIANA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL STAFF OF THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY JOHN B. PATTON, State Geologist MAURICE E. BIGGS, Assistant State Geologist MARY BETH FOX, Mineral Statistician COAL SECTION GEOPHYSICS SECTION CHARLES E. WIER, Geologist and Head MAURICE E. BIGGS, Geophysicist and HAROLD C. HUTCHISON, Geologist Head RICHARD L. POWELL, Geologist (on leave) ROBERT F. BLAKELY, Geophysicist VANCE P. WIRAM, Geologist JOSEPH F. WHALEY, Geophysicist MARVIN T. IVERSON, Geological Assistant CLARENCE C. HASKINS, Driller JOHN R. HELMS, Geophysical Assistant DRAFTING AND PHOTOGRAPHY SECTION WILLIAM H. MORAN, Chief Draftsman and Head INDUSTRIAL MINERALS SECTION RICHARD T. HILL, Geological Draftsman DONALD D. CARR, Geologist and Head ROBERT E. JUDAH, Geological Artist- CURTIS H. AULT, Geologist Draftsman GEORGE S. AUSTIN, Geologist ROGER L. PURCELL, Senior Geological MICHAEL C. MOORE, Geologist Draftsman GEORGE R. RINGER, Photographer EDUCATIONAL SERVICES SECTION PETROLEUM SECTION R. DEE RARICK, Geologist and Head T. A. DAWSON, Geologist and Head LEROY E. BECKER, Geologist GEOCHEMISTRY SECTION G. L. CARPENTER, Geologist R. K. LEININGER, Geochemist and Head ANDREW J. HREHA. Geologist LOUIS V. MILLER, Coal Chemist STANLEY J. KELLER, Geologist MARGARET V. GOLDE, Instrumental Ana- DAN M. SULLIVAN, Geologist lyst JAMES T. CAZEE, Geological Assistant ALFRED E. WHITE, Geochemical Assistant WILLIAM E. HAMM, Geological Assistant GEOLOGY SECTION JAMES F. THRASHER, Geological ROBERT H. SHAVER, Paleontologist and Assistant Head HENRY H. GRAY, Head Stratigrapher N. K. BLEUER, Glacial Geologist PUBLICATIONS SECTION EDWIN J. HARTKE, Environmental Geologist GERALD S. WOODARD, Editor and Head JOHN R. HILL, Glacial Geologist DONNA C. SCHULTZ, Sales and Records CARL B. REXROAD, Paleontologist Clerk FRONT COVER: Slightly etched polished section of Ste. Genevieve oolitic limestone showing ooliths in a matrix of sparry calcite. Geometry and Origin of Oolite Bodies in the Ste. Genevieve Limestone (Mississippian) in the Illinois Basin By DONALD D. CARR DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN 48 PRINTED BY AUTHORITY OF THE STATE OF INDIANA BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA: 1973 STATE OF INDIANA Otis R. Bowen, Governor DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES Joseph D. Cloud, Director GEOLOGICAL SURVEY John B. Patton, State Geologist For sale by Geological Survey, Bloomington, Ind. 47401 Price $1.75 Contents Abstract / 1 Introduction / 2 Previous work / 3 Acknowledgments / 3 Geologic setting / 4 Illinois Basin during Mississippian Period / 4 Stratigraphy of Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Limestones / 6 Oolite body near Orleans, Indiana / 10 Associated lithologies / 12 Skeletal (bryozoan) limestone lithology / 14 Pellet-mud carbonate lithology / 14 Impure limestone lithology / 17 The oolite body / 21 Geometry / 21 Petrography / 21 Sedimentary structures / 26 Chemical properties / 29 Physical properties / 31 Interpretation of environment / 33 Paleocurrents / 33 Methods / 33 Results / 34 Interpretation / 40 Basin setting / 46 Comparison of oolite body near Orleans with others / 47 Geometry / 47 Texture / 55 Main events in deposition / 61 Oolite body prediction / 63 Summary / 66 Geologic aspects / 66 Chemical and physical aspects / 68 Literature cited/ / 68 Contents Appendix A: Locations of cores used in the study of the oolite body near Orleans, Ind. / 75 Appendix B: Locations of well-exposed crossbedding in the Ste. Genevieve Limestone in the Illinois Basin / 77 Appendix C: Oolitic carbonate rocks used to study texture / 79 Illustrations Figure 1 Map of Indiana and neighboring states showing locations of principal geologic features in study area / 5 2 Chart showing Mississippian stratigraphic relationships in Illinois Basin / 6 3 Isopach map of Indiana and neighboring states showing thickness of Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Limestones (Renault Limestone and Girkin Formation) in Illinois Basin / 7 4 Diagram showing proportions of rock and limestone types in Paoli and Ste. Genevieve Limestones along eastern outcrop of Illinois Basin in south-central Indiana / 8 5 Diagram showing core holes along outcrop of Blue River River Group in Indiana and position of oolitic lime- stones and statistical moments / 9 6 Index map showing distribution of Mississippian rocks near Orleans, Ind. / 11 7 Diagram showing oolitic limestone and associated lithologies exposed in Radclif f, Inc., quarry near Orleans / 12 8 Photomicrographs of skeletal (bryozoan) limestone lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 13 9 Photomicrographs of pellet-mud carbonate lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 15 10 Photomicrographs of impure limestone lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 18 Illustrations Figure 11 Sedimentary structures in the impure carbonate lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 19 12 Isopach map showing thickness of Ste. Genevieve oolitic limestone lithology near Orleans / 20 13 Oolitic limestone and associated lithologies along the south face of Radcliff, Inc., quarry / 22 14 Diagrammatic section and vertical profiles showing mean grain size, sorting, and type of limestone in Ste. Gene- vieve oolite body near Orleans / 23 15 Photomicrographs of oolitic limestone lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 25 16 Map of crossbedding measurements in oolitic limestone lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone in Radcliff, Inc., quarry / 26 17 Diagram showing vertical profile of crossbedding orienta- tion in oolitic limestone lithology of Ste. Genevieve Limestone, southeast wall of Radcliff, Inc., quarry / 27 18 Diagrammatic section and vertical profiles showing varia- tion of bulk specific gravity and absorption in Ste. Genevieve oolite body near Orleans / 32 19 Sketches of crossbedding in Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 35 20 Histogram and plot on logarithmic probability paper of observed thickness of crossbeds in Paoli and Ste. Genevieve Limestones (or equivalent) in Illinois Basin / 36 21 Histogram and plot on logarithmic probability paper of angle of inclination of foresets in Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Limestones (or equivalent) in Illinois Basin / 37 22 Index map showing locations of detailed maps of cross- bedding in Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Limestones (or equivalent) in Illinois Basin / 38 Illustrations Figure 23 Map showing crossbedding directions in Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Limestones in Indiana and north-central Kentucky / 39 24 Map showing crossbedding directions in Ste. Genevieve Limestone and Girkin Formation (or Renault Lime- stone) in southern Illinois and southern Kentucky / 40 25 Map showing crossbedding directions in Ste. Genevieve Limestone in southwestern Illinois and eastern Mis- souri / 41 26 Map showing crossbedding directions in Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Limestones (or equivalent), summarized by sampling interval, in Illinois Basin / 42 27 Current roses and vector means of crossbedding in sand- stones of Chesterian Series and in Paoli and Ste. Genevieve Limestones in Illinois Basin and Salem Limestone in eastern part of Illinois Basin / 43 28 Histograms of variance of crossbedding in sandstones of Pocono Formation (Mississippian), Dakota Group (Cretaceous), and Mansfield Formation (Pennsyl- vanian) and in Salem and Ste. Genevieve Limestones at outcrops where 15 or more measurements were made / 44 29 Diagram showing vertical profiles of crossbedding orien- tation in Ste. Genevieve Limestone / 45 30 Schematic representation of electric log and strati- graphic column showing position of McClosky poros- ity zones in Ste. Genevieve Limestone in Illinois Basin / 48 31 A, Isopach map of McClosky C porosity zone (oolitic limestone of Ste. Genevieve Limestone), Spencer Field, Posey County, Ind. B, Cross section of poros- ity zone / 49 Illustrations Figure 32 A, Isopach map of McClosky B porosity zone (oolitic limestone of Ste. Genevieve Limestone), North Zion Field, Henderson County, Ky. B, Cross section of porosity zone / 5 1 33 A, Isopach map of McClosky C porosity zone (oolitic limestone of Ste. Genevieve Limestone), Martin Field, Vanderburgh County, Ind. B, Cross section of poros- ity zone / 52 34 Histograms of mean grain size and sorting of ancient and modern carbonate oolitic sands / 56 35 Data from figure 34 A, B, and C plotted on logarithmic probability paper to show close approach to straight- line fit / 57 36 Plot of mean grain size versus sorting of ancient and modern carbonate oolitic sands / 60 Tables Table 1 Attributes of Ste. Genevieve oolite body near Orleans / 28 2 Chemical analyses of samples from Ste. Genevieve oolitic limestone lithology, Radcliff, Inc., quarry / 30 3 Strontium content of Ste. Genevieve oolitic limestone near Orleans (A) and Ste. Genevieve and Paoli lime- stones from Indiana Geological Survey drill hole 150 (B) / 31 4 Distribution of class intervals of crossbedding in Paoli and Ste. Genevieve Limestones (and equivalent) at 147 outcrops in Illinois Basin / 34 5 Comparison of attributes of oolite body near Orleans with modern marine sand belt in Bahamas / 47 6 Comparison of size of ancient and modern oolite bodies / 54 Tables Table 7 Comparison of grain size and sorting of some ancient and modern oolites / 58 Geometry and Origin of Oolite Bodies in the Ste. Genevieve Limestone (Mississippian) in the Illinois Basin By DONALD D. CARR Abstract Oolitic limestones constitute 22 percent of the Ste. Genevieve and Paoli Lime- stones (Mississippian) in seven cores equally spaced along the length