Organic facies characteristics of quaternary sediments, Gulf of Izmit, Marmara Sea, Turkey

Abstract

The classification of organic facies from samples obtained by submarine drilling between Hersek Burnu and Kaba Burun in the Gulf of Izmit was determined using organic geochemistry methods. The host sediment is composed of pebbles, sand, silt, and clay, some of which are rich in organic matter. Results indicate an early diagenesis stage according to total organic carbon (0.11-1.78%) and vitrinite reflectance (0.12-0.32%) values. Rock-Eval pyrolysis data display hydrogen indices (HI) of 3 to 97 mg HC/g TOC and oxygen indices (OI) of 29 to 245 mg HC/g CO2. Microscopic studies show that the dominant organic matter is oxic and terrestrial. These data demonstrate that the organic facies were developed in this environment. The CD facies reflects a mixture of source materials including terrestrial plant detritus, and reworked and fine-grained amorphous organic matter. The D facies consists of highly decomposed, reworked organic matter. These types of organic facies generally appear to be weakly sorted in marine and lake sediments.