Tectonic control of

sedimentation

Presented by : Dipti solanki Guided by : Dr. N. Y. Bhatt

M.Sc Sem: 4
Paper : 509
 INTRODUCTION
o Sedimentation is controlled by three extrinsic variables:
Tectonics, Climate and Sea level.
o Climate and sea level depends upon each other and they both
depends upon tectonics.
o Tectonics affects sedimentation in two different but often related
ways:

1) Uplift of the land

2) Subsidence of the crust

o Subsidence may be formed by vertical upset of fault.

o Uplifting expose various rocks to weathering and erosion and is
then transported.
o Subsidence provides the accommodation space for the
accumulation and burial of these sediments to be deposited in
the sedimentary basin.
o Although sediments may be deposited in tectonically in-active
and topographically low areas of the crust.
o Among these variables, which effect sedimentation, Tectonics has
the most important control on sedimentation.
o The important effect of tectonics on sedimentation, wither direct
or indirect include:

1. Nature of sediments
2. Rate of sediment supply
3. Rate of deposition
4. Depositional environments
5. Nature of source rock
6. Nature of vertical succession

o Sedimentation also affect tectonics, although to a much lesser

extent,mainly by increasing lithospheric load on the basin.
o Sedimentary record in sedimentary basin tell us about
paleotectonics in the best way.
o The deposition of sediment types, sediment thickness and
paleocurrent in a basin gives us evidence of the existence and
location of elevated areas of the crust created by tectonics.
 Tectonics and Erosion

o There are three processes that can increase rate of erosion at

high elevation and provides abundant sediments to be deposited:

1) Active faulting that exposes fresh unweathered rocks.

2) High altitude mechanical weathering due to steep slope, lack of

vegetation and glacial weathering.

3) Orographic rainfall on windward slope of mountain ranges.

 Tectonics and Sedimentation
o As sedimentation depends upon Tectonics, so first we must know
about Tectonics.
o Tectonics is the study of origin and arrangement of the structural
features of the earth`s surface, including mountain belts,
continents and earthquake belts.
o The concept of Plate Tectonics was born in the late 1960s by
combining two pre-existing ideas;

1) Continental Drift and

2) Sea Floor Spreading.

o Basically Tectonics means that the earth surface is divided into few
large and many small plates that move slowly and change in size.
o Plate is a large mobile slab of a rock that is part of the earth`s
surface.

o These plates move along plate boundaries and intense geologic

activity occurs at these boundaries.

o These plates either move away from each others (Divergent

Boundary), past one another (Transform Boundary) or towards
one another (Convergent Boundary).

o More tectonic activities will lead to more sedimentation on the

earth`s surface mostly along basins.
 Divergent Margins
o If two plates are separating, they form a divergent margin.

o It is characterized by extensional features like seafloor spreading,

normal faulting etc.

o In the first stage continental crust begin to rift apart and hot
mantle plumes move upward.

o This upward movement produces domed uplifts that shed coarse,

immature alluvial and fluvial deposits onto their flanks.

o In the second stage, uplift and extension breaks apart the crust,
and a crustal block drops down to form a fault graben called a rift
valley.
o This stage is occurring today in the East Africa Rift Valley.

o These rift valley form basins for the sediment that erodes from
the up-thrown areas.

o Most of the sediments are coarse, immature alluvial debris and

lesser fluvial deposits.

o In the center of the basin, small lakes may form lacustrine shales
or limestone and even evaporates.
 Convergent Margins
o If two plates are moving towards each other, they form a
convergent margin.

o Such margins are characterized by folding and thrusting.

o Due to plate convergence several types of mountain belts can be

produced.

o Convergence of the two plates may be:

i. Continent-Continent convergence
ii. Ocean-Continent convergence
iii. Ocean-Ocean convergence
 Continent-Continent Convergence
o In this case non of the plate subducts beneath the other, so they
become uplifted and deformed and finally suture along the line of
collision.

o The suture belt itself is an area of erosion.

o It sheds coarse clastic debris and fluvial deposits off its flank into
adjoining plains.

o Himalayas is one of such sutures.

o The molasse sequence of the Siwalik hills of Pakistan and India are
the product of the Himalaya uplift since the Miocene.
 Himalayas
o Himalayas have been formed by the collision of Indian and
Eurasian Plate.

o This collision began 50 million years ago and still continue today.

o The Himalayas are still rising by a rate of 1 cm per year as India

continue to move Northwards into Asia.

o But at the same time weathering and erosion are lowering the
Himalayas at about the same rate.

o Himalayas contain sedimentary rocks of marine origin that were

originally deposited below sea.
 Ocean-Continent Convergence

o In this type of convergence the oceanic plate subducts beneath the

continental plate.

o Due to this type of convergence continental-margin arc forms.

o As this region is epicontinental and sub-aerial, so the sediments

filling the basin are mostly immature alluvial and fluvial sandstones
and shales.

o Most of the pelagic sediments of the oceanic plate is scraped onto

the continental plate and accommodate along the arc to form
accretionary wedge.
 Transform Margins
o If two plates are sliding past each others, neither separating nor
converging they form a Transform margin.

o They are characterized by horizontal shear and strike-slip faulting.

o No such basins are associated with transform margins.

o Because of the irregularities in the sliding, local compression and

extension occurs, forming two types of fault bounding troughs.

1) Transtensional or pull-apart basin

2) Transpressional basin
1) Transtensional or pull-apart basin is formed by extensional gap.
Salton Trough along the Southern Sand Andreas Fault is its common
example.
2) Transpressional basin is formed by the compressional down
warping. Mio-Pliocene Ridge Basin of California.

o They accumulate thick pile of sediments.

o Thick, narrow and immature accumulation of sediments can only

occurs in basins on transform margin.

o Because of rapid rate of deposition and burial of organic

materials, fault bounded basin are good places to explore for
petroleum.

o Many of the petroleum occurrences in California are related to

basins that are formed as a result of the Sand Andreas transform
fault.
 Tectonics and Type of sediments
o The windward side of a mountain receive more rainfall than the
Lee side.

o Due to more rainfall on the windward side most of the sediments

will lack feldspar because of its alteration to other minerals.

o So, in such case the rocks formed will have no or very less
feldspar.

o Less rainfall leads to increased aridity on the Lee side.

o The sediments and sedimentary rocks so formed will have more

feldspar.
  REFRENCES
• Introduction To Sedimentology by S.M. Sengupta.
• Principles of Sedimentology and Stratigraphy 5 Edition by Sam
Boggs.
Thank you