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Microfacies analysis and diagenetic features of the Eocene nummulitic accumulations from northwestern Transylvanian Basin (Romania)

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Abstract

Microfacies analyses of twenty-five samples collected from three outcrops located in the northwestern part of the Transylvanian Basin offered new insights into the structural architecture and diagenetic features of the nummultic accumulations in this region. The data from thin-section observations revealed the fact that diagenetic processes (mainly pressure dissolutions) played a crucial role in the fabric development, porosity evolution and general morphology of these build-ups. A high degree of compaction was observed with respect to the abundance of stylolitic structures, fissure sets, and numerous fragmented nummulitic particles within the matrix. Such features allowed the identification of several phases of stylolitization which affected the nummulitic accumulations during burial diagenesis. Moreover, these compactional traits can provide clues for understanding the ratio variations between N. perforatus A (microspheric) and B (macrospheric) forms in such deposits. Combining our results with previous data we better constrained the autochthonous and/or para-autochthonous provenance of the nummulithoclasts. Our results offer a new perspective into the development and preservation of nummulitic accumulations deposited in the Eocene tropical/sub-tropical shallow-marine settings of the central Neotethyan realm.

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Acknowledgements

This study is a contribution to the PALNATB project supported by CNCS-UEFISCDI Romania grant PN-III-P1-1.1-TE-2016–0793, within PNCDI III. The authors thank to the anonymous reviewers and to the editor-in-chief Axel Munnecke for their useful suggestions that have considerably enhanced the manuscript. We are grateful to Lukas Jonkers (MARUM, Bremen) for the comments and corrections made on the earlier version of the manuscript. Alin Oprișa is thanked for the preparation of the thin sections used for this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology and Center for Integrated Geological Studies, Babeş-Bolyai University, M. Kogălniceanu 1, 400084, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    George Pleș, Szabolcs-Attila Kövecsi, Raluca Bindiu-Haitonic & Lóránd Silye

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  1. George Pleș
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  2. Szabolcs-Attila Kövecsi
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  3. Raluca Bindiu-Haitonic
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  4. Lóránd Silye
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Correspondence to Lóránd Silye.

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Pleș, G., Kövecsi, SA., Bindiu-Haitonic, R. et al. Microfacies analysis and diagenetic features of the Eocene nummulitic accumulations from northwestern Transylvanian Basin (Romania). Facies 66, 20 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10347-020-00604-x

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