Syn-thrusting polygonal normal faults exposed in the hinge of the Cingoli anticline, northern Apennines, Italy

Petracchini, Lorenzo; Antonellini, Marco; Billi, Andrea; Scrocca, Davide

doi:10.3389/feart.2015.00067

Cited by 16 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 101 publications

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“…Early studies have suggested that the layer-parallel displacement of these faults is accommodated by regional extension of the host succession (e.g., Higgs and McClay, 1993;Clausen et al, 1999); a hypothesis further developed by recent field studies suggesting polygonal faults form due to radial extension (Antonellini and Mollema, 2015;Petracchini et al, 2015). As outlined above, it is difficult to explain the observed uniform distribution of fault strikes in this system by unidirectional gravity-driven or tectonic extension, but could radial extension of the host succession explain the observed fault displacement?…”

Section: Strainmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…A brief summary of field studies reveals that polygonal fault systems have been documented in: (1) Paleogene mudstones in Belgium (Henriet et al, 1988(Henriet et al, , 1991Verschuren, 1992;Dehandschutter et al, 2004Dehandschutter et al, , 2005a; (2) Cretaceous chalk in France and the UK (Hibsch et al, 2003); (3) Cretaceous chalk in Egypt (Tewksbury et al, 2014); (4) Jurassic sandstones in the US (Antonellini and Mollema, 2015); and (5) Cretaceous to Paleogene carbonates, cherts, and marls in Italy (Petracchini et al, 2015). Whilst earlier studies examining polygonal fault systems in the field mapped faults as discrete slip surfaces (Henriet et al, 1988(Henriet et al, , 1991Verschuren, 1992;Dehandschutter et al, 2004Dehandschutter et al, , 2005a, recent work suggests that "individual" polygonal faults actually consist of dense clusters of slip surfaces (Tewksbury et al, 2014;Antonellini and Mollema, 2015;Petracchini et al, 2015). If the polygonal faults mapped in this study consist of slip surfaces with displacements below the seismic resolution (<10 m), we would underestimate the total strain in the system.…”

Section: Strainmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Kinematics of Polygonal Fault Systems: Observations from the Northern North Sea

et al. 2017

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Layer-bound, low-displacement normal faults, arranged into a broadly polygonal pattern, are common in many sedimentary basins. Despite having constrained their gross geometry, we have a relatively poor understanding of the processes controlling the nucleation and growth (i.e., the kinematics) of polygonal fault systems. In this study we use high-resolution 3-D seismic reflection and borehole data from the northern North Sea to undertake a detailed kinematic analysis of faults forming part of a seismically well-imaged polygonal fault system hosted within the up to 1,000 m thick, Early Palaeocene-to-Middle Miocene mudstones of the Hordaland Group. Growth strata and displacement-depth profiles indicate faulting commenced during the Eocene to early Oligocene, with reactivation possibly occurring in the late Oligocene to middle Miocene. Mapping the position of displacement maxima on 137 polygonal faults suggests that the majority (64%) nucleated in the lower 500 m of the Hordaland Group. The uniform distribution of polygonal fault strikes in the area indicates that nucleation and growth were not driven by gravity or far-field tectonic extension as has previously been suggested. Instead, fault growth was likely facilitated by low coefficients of residual friction on existing slip surfaces, and probably involved significant layer-parallel contraction (strains of 0.01-0.19) of the host strata. To summarize, our kinematic analysis provides new insights into the spatial and temporal evolution of polygonal fault systems.

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Section: Strainmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Strainmentioning

confidence: 99%

Kinematics of Polygonal Fault Systems: Observations from the Northern North Sea

et al. 2017

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“…During eogenesis in mud-dominated sediments numerous polygonal faults are initiated. This process is of high interest for fractured reservoirs and/or cover integrity, even in the extraterrestrial exploration [45][46]. However, at present day, polygonal faults have never been sampled nor modelled giving an uncertainty in their ability for driving fluids from deeper levels [47].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are polygonal faults the keystone for better understanding the timing of fluid migration in sedimentary basins?

Gay

2017

EPJ Web Conf.

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The initial sediment lithification starts with complex interactions involving minerals, surface water, decomposing organic matter and living organisms. This is the eogenesis domain (0 to 2 km below the seafloor) in which the sediments are subject to physical, chemical and mechanical transformations defining the early fabric of rocks. This interval is intensively prospected for its energy/mining resources (hydrocarbons, metal deposits, geothermal energy). In most basins worldwide it is composed of very fine-grained sediments and it is supposed to play the role of a seal for fluids migration. However, it is affected by polygonal faulting due to a volume loss during burial by contraction of clay sediments with a high smectite content. This process is of high interest for fractured reservoirs and/or cover integrity but it is not well constrained giving an uncertainty as this interval can either promote the migration of deeper fluids and the mineralized fluids intensifies diagenesis in the fracture planes, rendering this interval all the more impermeable. The next challenge will be to define where, when and how does this polygonal fault interval occur and this can only be done by understanding the behavior of clay grains and fluids during early burial.

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“…2). The term polygonal refers to the map view pattern (planform geometry) typically made of rhombus-, pentagon-, or hexagon-like shapes (Petracchini et al 2015). Seismic reflectors viewed in vertical cross section had the greatest number of breaks and inflections within the upper Colorado Group (i.e.…”

Section: Vertical Distribution Of Faultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secondary rock structures and the regional hydrogeology of claystone-rich cretaceous strata, Williston Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada

Szmigielski

Hendry

2017

Can. J. Earth Sci.

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The geometry and spatial distribution of a polygonal fault system (PFS) and collapse features within Cretaceous strata (predominantly mudstones and claystones) were investigated using three high-resolution three-dimensional seismic datasets of the Williston Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada. Mapping of the planform geometry and fault throw distributions (throw–depth (T–z) profiling) shows that the PFS present in the Colorado Group and Pierre Fm has a vertical extent of 200–330 m. Variation in the lateral planform geometry is attributed to the relative rates of stress accumulation during early development of the planar faults and is constrained using sequence stratigraphic principles. The mean fault dip is 60° ± 12° (number of measurements, n = 225). The T–z profiles appear as partial C-type profiles, demonstrating that at least half of the total height of the PFS was removed during post-Cretaceous erosion. The presence of polygonal faults in equivalent strata of the Western Interior Sedimentary Basin (WISB) suggests the PFS described in the current study (1510 km2) may be present across the WISB. Collapse features, formed in response to dissolution cavities within underlying strata, crosscut the entire Cretaceous sequence and are subcircular in plan view with typical diameters of 350–450 m. These features are present in each of the datasets at a rate of 0.02–0.11 collapses/km2. The prevalence of collapses in areas where faults display modified throw distributions may suggest post-Cretaceous fault reactivation associated with Pleistocene glacial periods. Although these secondary rock structures likely affect groundwater and solute transport at the basin scale, the impact remains to be determined.

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Syn-thrusting polygonal normal faults exposed in the hinge of the Cingoli anticline, northern Apennines, Italy

Cited by 16 publications

References 101 publications

Kinematics of Polygonal Fault Systems: Observations from the Northern North Sea

Kinematics of Polygonal Fault Systems: Observations from the Northern North Sea

Are polygonal faults the keystone for better understanding the timing of fluid migration in sedimentary basins?

Secondary rock structures and the regional hydrogeology of claystone-rich cretaceous strata, Williston Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada

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