Salt mineral crystallization features in the Dawenkou Basin, China: insights from brine fluid inclusions in halite

Authors

  • Krzysztof Bukowski AGH University of Science and Technology https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7289-5956
  • Anatoliy R. Galamay Institute of Geology and Geochemistry of Combustible Minerals, NAS of Ukraine, 3a Naukova Street, Lviv, 79060, Ukraine https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4864-6401
  • Fanwei Meng School of Resources and Earth Sciences, China University of Mining and Technology, No. 1 Daxue Road, Xuzhou, Jiangsu, 221116, China https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1994-0812
  • Wentao Chen Shandong Institute of Geological Sciences, Lishan Road 52, Jinan, Shandong Province, 250013, China
  • Le Li Shandong Luyin Energy Storage Engineering Technology Co., Ltd, Taian 271000, China

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7306/gq.1810

Keywords:

halite, anhydrite, fluid inclusion, stable isotopes, Dawenkou basin

Abstract

The Dawenkou Basin in China is a significant Cenozoic evaporite basin containing a diverse range of salt minerals, including halite, anhydrite, glauberite, polyhalite, and various Na-Mg and K-Mg salts. This study investigates the origins of brines that contributed to salt formation in the basin, as well as the sedimentary and post-sedimentary mineralization processes, through fluid inclusion analysis in halite and sulphur-oxygen isotopic studies in anhydrite. Analysis of fluid inclusions in halite from well XZK 101 revealed both primary and secondary inclusions, with evidence of tectonic activity, recrystallization, and fluid migration. Brine compositions vary widely, with K+, Mg+, and concentrations indicating multiple stages of mineral formation and alteration. The presence of hydrocarbons and algal remnants in inclusions suggests interactions with organic material during or after salt deposition. Isotopic data (δ³⁴S and δ¹⁸O) from anhydrite show values suggesting the primary sulphate source was leached from Cambrian and Ordovician evaporites in the surrounding Yi-Meng Mountains, rather than solely from marine sources. The chemical and isotopic composition of the brines does not exclude the influence of marine transgressions during the Eocene, although the dominant input of sulphate appears to come from continental sources. The complex interplay between marine influx, tectonic processes, and continental sulphate leaching shaped the unique salt mineral assemblage observed in the basin today  

Downloads

Published

2025-11-13

Issue

Recently accepted paper

Section

Articles

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as this can lead to productive exchanges and earlier and more frequent citation of the published work (See The Effect of Open Access).