Mass organic matter accumulation induced by rapid redox variations in lakes: Evidence from the Miaoxi area, Bohai Bay Basin, China

The Member 4 of the Paleogene Shahejie Formation (Es4) in the Bohai Bay Basin is interspersed with a set of high-quality source rocks typified as intercalation of red and black mudstones. A large amount of petroleum (crude oil) originates from these source rocks. The Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM) event occurred during the deposition of Es4 in the Bohai Bay Basin, and the organic matter enrichment model under this event is worth further investigation due to its relationship with and influence on petroleum accumulations. Well LK25-A, as the first oil exploration well drilled into the Es4 in Miaoxi area, serves as a valuable case to study organic matter accumulation. In this study, we integrate total organic carbon (TOC), Rock–Eval pyrolysis, microscopic observation, vitrinite reflectance (VRo), elemental analysis, and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) to evaluate the hydrocarbon generation potential, organic matter types, thermal maturity, and sedimentary environment of the Es4 in Miaoxi area. The analysis of maceral and rock pyrolysis data reveals that Type I and Type II organic matter make up the majority of Paleogene mudstones in this region. The TOC and rock pyrolysis data show that mudstones in this area have high organic matter abundance and oil-generation potential. The measured vitrinite reflectance distribution of mudstone samples, which ranges from 0.3% to 0.74%, demonstrates that the Paleogene strata are at the immature to mature stage, and the samples from this area contain a sizable amount of bituminite and mineral-bituminous groundmass. The analysis of biomarkers in the mudstone samples indicates that most of the mudstones in this area are in lacustrine and brackish-hypersaline lacustrine environment under a reducing condition, and some of the red mudstones in the Es4 are formed under a suboxic condition. Based on the size and morphology of the pyrite framboid, the redox conditions of the water mass during deposition or diagenesis are further analyzed. The ratio of the size of framboid pyrite (D) to the size of its micrograins (d) suggests that the Es4 black mudstone developed in an anoxic sulfuretted water environment. Both the inorganic and organic geochemical indexes show that the Paleogene paleoclimate has a great influence on the source rocks of Es4 in this area. The distribution of red–black strata in the area is the result of the combined action of the water redox state and the climatic variation during the PETM event. The development models of organic-rich source rocks from the Es3 and Es4 in this area have been created in light of potential connections between rapid redox variation and the PETM event during the Paleogene. These models may offer a theoretical guidance for petroleum exploration in Miaoxi area of Bohai Bay Basin and other contemporaneous continental basins around the world.