Special aspects of catagenetic sulfate accumulation in Permian sedimentary sequences of Central Russia

The scope and the role of the secondary (catagenetic) processes in sedimentary-rock formation belong to the category of incompletely resolved and, therefore, the urgent problems of lithological science. The purpose of this work was to show, by means of stadium analysis, the huge “hidden” potential of catagenetic processes in the transformation of the mineral composition of sedimentary strata on the example of sulphate complexes. Boundary clay and carbonate sediments of Urzhumskiy and Sakmarskiy stage of Western limit of the pre-Ural trough were selected as the objects of study. It was found that their lithological appearance has been largely shaped by secondary (diaand catagenetic) processes of sulfate mineralization. And, if the first is reflected in the development of scattered concretionary nodules of gypsum, the latter manifested in large-scale metasomatism with the formation of large anhydrite-gypsum and gypsum-anhydrite lens and tabular bodies, stretching for hundreds of meters. It’s possible that metasomatic solutions were very reactive and moved with underground waters. Those solutions were as aggressive as lateritic weathering, and replaced not only the carbonates, but clay and ferrous minerals as well as quartz and feldspar detritus. All of this points to the high alkalinity and to the reducing atmosphere of sulphate of metasomatic solutions.