Geochemistry of the Eocene Jijuntun Formation oil shale in the Fushun Basin, northeast China: Implications for source-area weathering, provenance and tectonic setting

Within the fault-bound Fushun Basin of northeastern China, the Eocene Jijuntun Formation hosts extensive deposits of thick lacustrine oil shale. Systematic sampling and geochemical analysis of these deposits has revealed that the parent rocks of the oil shale underwent moderate chemical weathering; and that its mineralogy and trace and rare earth element geochemistry were mainly controlled by parent rock composition, with no synsedimentary changes in the source terrain. Based on source rock and tectonic setting discrimination diagrams, we concluded that the parent rocks of the oil shale were mostly basalts of the Paleogene Laohutai Formation. These basalts originated in a continental back arc environment and contain abundant nutrient elements such as Fe, P, Ni, Cu and Zn, all of which are essential for the growth of aquatic photoautotrophs in lakes. Continuous, high primary productivity in the Jinjuntun lacustrine depocentre, combined with a stable tectonic setting and underfilled sedimentary environment, were key factors in the genesis of its oil shale.