Deep Marine

Submarine fans
 Submarine fans
• Accumulation of land-derived sediment on the
deep sea-floor. Formed in slope settings that start
at the continent edge as the oceanic crust is
thinner than the continental crust.

• Are similar to alluvial fans

• Unlike alluvial fans, submarine fans are longer and

thinner and form in subaqueous environments.
 Submarine fans
Important factors controlling submarine fan
deposition.
• Number of sources (Point source, Multiple
point source or Slope failure)

• Grain size.
 Submarine fans
• A point source is a confined channel that
allows travelling of sediment of sediments
over a long area.

• Incised canyon: which forms on the shelf

down to the basin floor as it feeds sediments
from the land towards the basin floor leading
to channels at the flat base and extends to
form depositional lobes.
 Submarine fans
Upper fan
• Very coarse grained rocks typically gravels are
deposited in these canyons, including large
blocks from the shelf or have broken loose
from the canyon walls.

• These deposits are referred to as the outer

fans deposits and they do not extend laterally
as sediments move by traction and saltation.

• Rock slide and slump are common.

 Submarine fans
Middle fan
• As erosion decreases as we move downward,
these canyons diverge to form channels as
slope is almost zero.

• These channels are root-shaped that receive

and transport sediments from the feeder
canyons as flow velocity decreases .

• They are composed of channelized distributary

sands and inter-channel fine grained deposits.
 Submarine fans
Middle fan
• Here sediments move by debris flow as the
mixture of sediment and water is cohesive,
plastic and laminar.

• These debrites are commonly composed of

coarse, unsorted sands in elongate lobes and
are fond at the proximal portion of the fans.
 Submarine fans
Upper and Middle fan
• During transgression, pelagic shales overly
these fan deposits. therefore, they are
interbedded with very fine grained pelagic
shales that are rich in organic matter.

• These shales act as source and seal rocks to

the sand reservoirs in the canyons and
channels.
 Submarine fans
Lower fan
• Depositional lobes occur at the distal part of the
deep submarine fans.

• They begin where the channels stop and builds as

deposits of very fine sands, silts and clays from
suspension in turbidity currents .

• Turbidity current is the major force here as the

beds here display a Bouma sequence (graded
bedding).
 Submarine fans
Conclusion

• In general, submarine fans have a coarsening

upward succession starting from muds to the
coarse grains in the canyons.
• The submarine fan deposits are very good
hydrocarbon potential reservoirs as it contains
source rocks with sufficient organic matter,
reservoir rocks, seals, reducing environment.
• But most importantly, timing of deposition of
sealing shales during sea level rise must occur
before generation and migration.