Mineralogical and hydrogeological study of "pouhons" in the lower Palaeozoic formations of the Stavelot-Venn Massif, Belgium

Numerous naturally CO2-rich mineral water springs, locally called pouhons, occur in the Stavelot-Venn Massif. These water springs show a particular composition with a high content of iron, manganese and lithium, and are characterised by a red-orange colour resulting from iron hydroxide precipitation near the land surface. Radon measurements have shown that these ferruginous deposits are weakly radioactive. The Upper Cambrian black shales of the La Gleize Formation are also known to display radioactive anomalies. These rocks show enrichment in HFSE (Pb, U, Y, Ce, Zr, Ti, Nb) and are depleted in transition metals (Co, Ni, Cu, Zn). Specific minerals such as florencite-(Ce), monazite-(Ce), xenotime-(Y) and zircon have been identified and are probably at the origin of the radioactive anomalies. Uranium was gradually leached from these minerals, transported in solution, and finally concentrated in ferruginous muds. These muds are mainly composed of goethite (most often amorphous), residual quartz and calcite in some samples. The most probable hypothesis is that uranium is adsorbed in small concentrations on the goethite surface. On the other hand, the Ottré Formation (Ordovician) appears to be the main source of lithium, iron and manganese. Pouhon waters have therefore probably leached rocks of various mineralogy and chemical composition during their sub-surface circulation.

Provenance of lower Palaeozoic metasediments of the East Odenwald (Mid-German-Crystalline Zone, Variscides)—a correlation with the East European Platform (Poland)

U–Pb age spectra of detrital zircons related to the East European Platform could be traced in paragneiss through the whole Mid-German-Crystalline Zone (Variscides, Central Europe) from the Odenwald via the Spessart to the Ruhla crystalline forming an exotic unit between Armorica and Laurussia. The depositional ages of the paragneiss are defined by the youngest age of the detrital zircons and the oldest intrusion ages as Ordovician to Silurian. The Ediacaran dominated age spectrum of detrital zircons from the paragneiss of the East Odenwald suggests the latter to be derived from the shelf of the East European Platform (Baltica), which was influenced by the 1.5 Ga old detritus delivered from a giant intrusion (Mazury granitoid, Poland). The detrital zircon age spectrum of the lower Palaeozoic paragneiss of the East Odenwald and sandstone of the northern Holy Cross Mountains are identical. The pure Sveconorwegian spectrum of the lower Palaeozoic quartzite from the Spessart, (Kirchner and Albert Int J Earth Sci 2020) and the Ruhla (Zeh and Gerdes Gondwana Res 17:254–263, 2010) could be sourced from Bornholm and southern Sweden. A U–Pb age spectrum with 88% Palaeozoic detrital zircons from a volcano-sedimentary rock of the East Odenwald is interpreted to be derived from a Silurian magmatic arc (46%), which was probably generated during the drift of the Mid-German-Crystalline Zone micro-continent to the south. A tentative plate tectonic model of Mid-German-Crystalline Zone is presented taking into account (a) the East European Platform related age spectra of the detrital zircons (b) the Ordovician to Silurian depositional age of the metasediments (c) the Silurian and Early Devonian intrusion age of the plutonic and volcanic rocks and (d) the U–Pb ages of the Middle Devonian high-grade metamorphism. The East European Platform-related part of the Mid-German-Crystalline Zone is interpreted as a micro-continent, which drifted through the Rheic Ocean to the south and collided with the Saxothuringian (Armorican Terrane Assemblage) during the Early Devonian. Such large-scale tectonic transport from the northern continent to the southern continent is also known from the SW Iberia, where Laurussia-related metasediments of the Rheic suture zone are explained by a large scale tectonic escape (Braid et al. J Geol Soc Lond 168:383–392, 2011).

Enigma variations: characteristics and likely origin of the problematic surface texture Arumberia, as recognized from an exceptional bedding plane exposure and the global record

Arumberia is an enigmatic sedimentary surface texture that consists of parallel, sub-parallel or radiating ridges and grooves, most commonly reported from upper Neoproterozoic – lower Palaeozoic strata. It has variably been interpreted as the impression of a small metazoan, a ‘vendobiont’, a physical sedimentary structure formed on a substrate with or without a microbial mat covering, or a non-actualistic microbial community. In this paper we contribute new insights into the origin of Arumberia, resulting from the discovery of the largest contiguous bedding plane occurrence of the texture reported to date: a 300 m2 surface in the lower Cambrian Port Lazo Formation of Brittany, NW France. We compare the characteristic features of Arumberia at this locality with 38 other global records, revealing four defining characteristics: (1) the three-dimensional (3D) morphology of exposed Arumberia lines (either positive relief ‘ridges’ or negative relief ‘grooves’) records fully preserved cords within clay laminae; (2) lines may transition laterally into reticulated patterns; (3) characteristic parallel and sub-parallel Arumberia lines can become modified by desiccation on emergent substrates prior to interment; and (4) Arumberia are streamlined with palaeoflow in successions showing evidence of unidirectional currents, but are organized parallel to ripple crests where strata were sculpted by oscillatory flows. These characteristics indicate that Arumberia records a 3D entity, distinct in material properties from its host sediment, which occurred in very shallow water settings where it was prone to passive reorganization in moving water, and desiccation when water drained. A literature survey of all known Arumberia occurrences reveals that the most reliable examples of the form are stratigraphically restricted to a 40 Ma interval straddling the Ediacaran–Cambrian boundary (560–520 Ma). Together these characteristics suggest that Arumberia records the remains of extinct, sessile filamentous organisms (microbial or algal?) that occupied very shallow water and emergent environments across the globe at the dawn of the Phanerozoic Eon.

Transport Direction and Scandinavian Source Regions of the Saalian Glacial and Glaciofluvial Deposits in a Case Study of Łubienica-Superunki (Central Poland)

The article contains detailed petrographic studies, which covered a coarse and medium-grain gravel fraction of two layers of glacial till (units ŁS II and ŁS IV) and two layers of sand-gravelly outwash deposits (units ŁS I and ŁS III) related to the Odranian Glaciation (MIS6, Saalian) in Łubienica-Superunki, North Mazovian Lowland, central Poland. Additionally, the indicator erratics were identified to indicate their Scandinavian source areas and the directions of the ice sheet transgressions. This case study is discussed against the background of similar sediments and forms from the same age but from other places in the Polish Lowlands. Regardless of the facies types and fractions, crystalline rocks dominated over all other petrographic groups in all samples. The most common were the indicator erratics derived from the Åland Islands, followed by those from the south-eastern area of Sweden (Småland) and from Dalarna in central Sweden. Amongst the erratics of limited indicative significance, the most common were Lower Palaeozoic limestones and the Jotnian red sandstones. The complex petrographic analyses point to the dipartite nature of the studied profile. This separateness was confirmed by the TBC: 59.1–59.2° N and 18.0–18.2° E for the lower units and 58.8–59.4° N and 17.3–17.9° E for the upper ones.

Ocena wpływu nasuwającego się górotworu karpackiego na przebieg procesów naftowych w utworach jego podłoża w rejonie Rzeszowa

The article presents the concept of petroleum systems modeling in the area with complex fold-thrust belt structure. The aim of the study was to verify the views on the influence of the overtrusting Carpathian orogen on the course of petroleum processes in the basement (Meso-Palaeozoic) formations. The project was implemented in the marginal zone of the Skole Unit (Outer Carpathians) overlapping various structural and tectonic units of the basement. The area of Rzeszów city was selected as it presents adequate complexity of the geological structure to meet assumed methodological objectives of the project and, at the same time, provides relatively vast amount of geological data available which creates a conditions for a comprehensive approach. The study was carried out using the Dynel 2D and PetroMod 2D software. The course of the structural and tectonic evolution of the area was reconstructed in 5 stages, the results of which were subsequently applied in a dynamic modeling of the petroleum systems. The modeling results made it possible to recreate and analyze the course of a complex geological processes, the effects of which are manifested, among others, by the time and amounts of generated hydrocarbons as well as the dynamics of expulsion, migration and accumulation processes. The results show the course of petroleum processes in each stage of the petroleum basin evolution, revealing a special role of thrust tectonic of Outer Carpathians on basement formations. For the adopted assumptions of the structural and tectonic evolution, the generation of hydrocarbons by Lower Palaeozoic source rocks was initiated with the overthrusting of the Carpathians. This increases the chances of their accumulation in reservoir intervals sealed by an overthrusting orogen. This is a positive premise in the context of petroleum exploration in the area.

Late- to post-Variscan tectonics and the kinematic relationship with W-Sn vein-type mineralisation: evidence from Late Carboniferous intramontane basins (Porto-Sátão syncline, Variscan Iberian belt)

Many studies have constrained that late-Variscan buckling produced the arcuate geometry of the Ibero-Armorican belt. Nonetheless, debate remains on the associated geodynamic framework. Poorly studied Late Carboniferous intramontane basins offer an excellent framework to decipher the timing and kinematics of the late- to post-Variscan tectonics. Understanding the latter also helps constrain the structural emplacement mode of contemporaneous W-Sn-Nb-Ta-Li mineralisation. In Iberia, the Porto-Sátão syncline is exemplary of such a Late Carboniferous intramontane basin. We present a structural analysis of the syncline, its basement and the associated W-Sn deposits. The regional structure is dictated by the Alcudian angular unconformity, caused by Cadomian tectonics (575-555Ma) and separating tilted Ediacaran and subhorizontal Lower Palaeozoic formations. Superposed Variscan deformation led to F1-F3 folds with steep and gentle plunges, respectively. The late-orogenic D3 fabric is locally affected by post-orogenic F4 kink folds and a S4 crenulation cleavage. W-Sn bearing vein systems occur along granite-hosted cone sheets, or exploit cross-fold joints associated with the F3 and F4 fold generations, revealing a close kinematic relationship between granite-related mineralisation and the late- to post-Variscan deformation style. This structural history is interpreted as a plate-scale geodynamic change from Late Carboniferous N-S (D3) to Early Permian WNW-ESE (D4) convergence.