Dolomitisation of carbonate platform margins by fault‐controlled geothermal convection: Insights from coupling stratigraphic and reactive transport models

Abstract

Reactive transport modelling is increasingly deployed to quantitatively evaluate conceptual models of diagenetic processes. However, construction of models of complex systems involves trade-offs between accuracy and simplification. This tension is explored for models of fault-associated dolomitisation by sea water convection in a syn-rift carbonate platform, evaluating the contribution of incorporating stratigraphic growth and fault propagation. Simulations of the high heat flux southern margin of the Derbyshire Platform (Northern England), with heterogeneous matrix permeability that reflects the evolving stratal architecture and burial compaction focusses dolomitisation in more permeable units at all depths.F I G U R E 2 Stratigraphic column of the Carboniferous with particular reference to the seismo-stratigraphic stages of the Pennine Basin defined by Fraser and Gawthorpe (2003). Periods EC2-EC6 are used as time stages for the reported simulations.