A molecular and carbon isotope biogeochemical study of biomarkers and kerogen pyrolysates of the Kimmeridge Clay Facies: palaeoenvironmental implications

Structures and carbon isotopic compositions of biomarkers and kerogen pyrolysis products of a dolomite, a bituminous shale and an oil shale of the Kimmeridge Clay Formation (KCF) in Dorset were studied in order to gain insight into (i) the type and extent of water column anoxia and (ii) changes in the concentration and isotopic composition of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) in the palaeowater column. The samples studied fit into the curve of increasing δ13C of the kerogen (δ13CTOC) with increasing TOC, reported by Huc et al. (1992). Their hypothesis, that the positive correlation between TOC and δ13CTOC is the result of differing degrees of organic matter (OM) mineralisation in the water column, was tested by measuring the δ13C values of primary production markers. These δ13C values were found to differ on average by only 1‰ among the samples, implying that differences in the extent of OM mineralisation cannot fully account for the 3‰ difference in δ13CTOC. The extractable OM in the oil shale differs from that in the other sediments due to both differences in maturity, and differences in the planktonic community. These differences, however, are not likely to have significantly influenced δ13CTOC either. All three sediments contain abundant derivatives of isorenieratene, indicating that periodically euxinia was extending into the photic zone. The sediments are rich in organic sulfur, as revealed by the abundant sulfur compounds in the pyrolysates. The prominence of C1–C3 alkylated thiophenes over n-alkanes and n-alkenes is most pronounced in the pyrolysate of the sediment richest in TOC. This suggests that sulfurisation of OM may have played an important role in determining the TOC–δ13CTOC relationship reported by Huc et al. (1992).