Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Sedimentology
Liquefaction as an energetic instability of saturated granular systems – Density control and static enthalpy equilibrium
Published: 2025-12-27
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Geophysics and Seismology, Geotechnical Engineering, Hydraulic Engineering, Hydrology, Materials Science and Engineering, Mining Engineering, Other Materials Science and Engineering, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
Liquefaction of saturated granular materials is commonly interpreted within stress-based frameworks that rely on the existence of an intact grain skeleton. At the onset of liquefaction, however, the contact network collapses and effective stress ceases to be a meaningful state variable. This work reformulates liquefaction as an enthalpy-driven instability of the coupled grain–water system and [...]
Spatial Clustering and Reservoir Analysis: An Expert-Guided Synergy Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) Machine Learning Technique on Volve and Norne Fields
Published: 2025-12-23
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geology, Geotechnical Engineering, Other Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
This study introduces an expert-guided application for clustering production wells using Machine Learning (ML), focusing on the Volve and Norne Field datasets to optimise reservoir analysis and decision-making. The Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) algorithm was employed for clustering and further enhanced by spatial visualisation through Voronoi polygons on topographic maps. The study presents a [...]
Joint Rock Physics Inversion and Basin Modeling for Comprehensive Source Rock Characterization
Published: 2025-12-15
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Oil, Gas, and Energy, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
This study presents an integrated workflow that combines statistical rock physics inversion with Monte Carlo basin modeling to comprehensively quantify source rock properties and their uncertainties. First, well-log and seismically-derived elastic properties are used in a statistical rock physics inversion to estimate porosity, kerogen content, and mineral fractions. These posterior distributions [...]
Sediment loading from the Río de la Plata as a driver of regional sea-level variability
Published: 2025-11-27
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geomorphology, Sedimentology
Sea-level reconstructions are critical benchmarks for testing models of ice-sheet stability and climate change. Their interpretation, however, is complicated by sea-level changes driven by different processes, among which the Earth’s response to sediment loading. Here we show that incorporating sediment isostasy reduces long-standing discrepancies among Marine Isotopic Stage (MIS) 5a and 5e [...]
Formation of Parasequence-like Successions at Different Depositional Hierarchical Scales
Published: 2025-10-30
Subjects: Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
The interpretation of parasequences is often complicated by ambiguities in the definition of key surfaces, uncertainties in interpretation of facies successions, varying data quality, and different rules of thumb (heuristics) used for identification. The number of interpreted parasequences in an area can, for example, be directly influenced by factors such as the number of data points, the [...]
A new source-to-sink synthesis of the Middle Triassic Helsby Sandstone Formation (Sherwood Sandstone Group) river systems in the British Isles
Published: 2025-10-30
Subjects: Geology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Sediment grain size and mineralogy change in sediment routing systems from source to sink. A better understanding of sediment routing allows improved predictions to be made of the bulk grain-size and mineralogy of sandstone fairways. We present a new appraisal of sediment routing in the Triassic Helsby Sandstone Formation (Sherwood Sandstone Group) and lowermost Mercia Mudstone Group of the [...]
A Static Enthalpy Equilibrium Approach to the Stability of Saturated Sands (Version 2)
Published: 2025-10-25
Subjects: Civil and Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Construction Engineering and Management, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, Hydraulic Engineering, Mineral Physics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology
This preprint presents a physical formulaton for the stability of saturated granular systems based on a static enthalpy equilibrium. The approach definnes equilibrium as the balance between the gravitationel potential of the granular framework and the hydraulic work of the pore water. From this energetic condition, the limit state and the transition between stable, metastable, and liquefied [...]
Radiogenic Sr-Nd-Pb isotope behavior in different grain-sized fine lithic materials during basalt weathering
Published: 2025-10-15
Subjects: Atmospheric Sciences, Climate, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Geomorphology, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Radiogenic isotopes are widely used as sediment provenance tracers; however, their weathering response has not been fully established. This study investigates the weathering sensitivity of Sr-Nd-Pb isotopes in fine lithic fractions (FLF; grain size <2 μm, <5 μm, and <20 μm) capable of long-range transport. Geochemical and isotope compositions have been measured in the physicochemically [...]
FluvDepoSet: A dataset of synthetic 3D models of fluvial deposits
Published: 2025-10-14
Subjects: Geology, Geomorphology, Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Sediments deposited by rivers constitute a key source for the water, energy, and raw materials that fuel our everyday lives. To find and manage these resources, we need to predict the spatial distribution of those fluvial deposits in the subsurface. This remains a major challenge due to the scarcity and poor quality of subsurface data, but also because traditional modeling approaches struggle to [...]
Eocene lacustrine–volcaniclastic deposits at Aliabad (Central Iran): A possible Proto-basin of the Oligo-Miocene Qom Formation
Published: 2025-10-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Volcanology
Central Iran hosts intricate Cenozoic successions where the Oligo‑Miocene Qom Formation forms a major hydrocarbon reservoir. The stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental relationship of the Eocene Aliabad deposits to this formation has been controversial. This study integrates stratigraphic logging, petrography, geochemistry (XRD/XRF), and ichnology on 46 thin sections from Aliabad and 157 [...]
Steep nested clinoforms in the mixed siliciclastic-carbonate Sobrarbe Deltaic Complex (Eocene, Aínsa Basin, Spain)
Published: 2025-10-09
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
This study investigates the processes controlling the development of nested clinoforms in outcrops of the Eocene Sobrarbe Deltaic Complex of the Aínsa Basin, highlighting their significance as archives of basin-margin evolution. Small-scale clinoforms record the higher-frequency cycles of delta progradation and the coetaneous development of a carbonate factory, while large-scale clinoforms record [...]
How do climate, geomorphology, and land-use control sediment yield generation in an anthropogenically modified landscape?
Published: 2025-08-21
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geomorphology, Hydrology, Sedimentology
Understanding the controls on sediment yield (SY) is essential for water resource management. However, in the Cauvery basin in India, progress is hindered by fragmented studies that lack an integrated analysis. This research quantifies sub-catchment SY using long-term gauging data and employs Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) and multiple regression (MLR) to evaluate geomorphic, climatic, [...]
Geomodelling of multi-scenario non-stationary reservoirs with enhanced GANSim
Published: 2025-08-05
Subjects: Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Hydrology, Mining Engineering, Natural Resources and Conservation, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Oil, Gas, and Energy, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Reservoir geomodelling is critical for groundwater management, CO₂ storage, geothermal exploitation, and hydrocarbon exploration, yet traditional geostatistical methods like multiple-point statistics (MPS) struggle with simulating complex geological patterns. GANSim, a Generative Adversarial Networks-based geomodelling method, has proven effective for single-scenario stationary reservoirs, but [...]
Shear localization and its impact on mass-transport complexes seal potential: insights from geophysical datasets
Published: 2025-07-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Sedimentology
Mass-transport complexes (MTCs), the deposits of submarine slope failures and common features of sedimentary basins worldwide, can act as effective seals for hydrocarbons and carbon sequestration due to shear-induced overcompaction. However, seal failure is occasionally observed in specific parts of MTCs, leading to hydrocarbon and carbon dioxide leakage, and posing potential threats to seabed [...]
Deglaciation history and relative sea level changes since the Last Glacial Maximum in the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada
Published: 2025-07-10
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
During the last glacial period, continents and surrounding shelves in high latitude regions of the Northern Hemisphere were covered by ice sheets. Their retreat during the late Pleistocene and Holocene resulted in isostatic adjustments of the previously glaciated landmass, which influenced post-glacial changes in relative sea level (RSL). Many questions, however, remain about the timing and [...]