Journal
JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL GEOLOGY
Volume 130, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.jsg.2019.103908
Keywords
Non-colinear faults; Rift basins; Inherited structures; Stress perturbation; Utsira High
Categories
Funding
- Research Council of Norway
- Aker BP
- ConocoPhillips
- DNO
- Equinor
- Neptune
- Tullow Oil [255229]
- VISTA, Norway
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Pre-existing intra-basement shear zones can induce mechanical and rheological heterogeneities that may influence rifling and the overall geometry of rift-related normal faults. However, the extent to which physical and kinematic interaction between pre-existing shear zones and younger rift faults control the growth of normal faults is less-well understood. Using 3D reflection seismic data from the northern North Sea and quantitative fault analysis, we constrain the 3D relationship between pre-existing basement shear zones, and the geometry, evolution, and synrift depositional architecture of subsequent rift-related normal faults. We identify NE-SW- and N-S-striking rift faults that define a coeval Middle Jurassic Early Cretaceous, non-colinear fault network. NE-SW-striking faults are parallel to underlying intra-basement shear zone. The faults either tip-out above or physically merge with the underlying shear zone. For faults that merges with the basement shear zone, a change from tabular to wedge-shaped geometry of the hangingwall synrift strata records a transition from non-rotational to rotational extension faulting, which we attribute to the time of rift fault's linkage with the shear zone, following downward propagation of its lower tip. N-S-striking faults are oblique to, and offset (rather than link with) intrabasement shear zones. These observations highlight the selective influence pre-existing infra-basement shear zones may (or may not) have on evolving rift-related normal faults.
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