Geochemistry and petrography of organic matter in sediments from Deep Sea Drilling Project Sites 545 and 547, Mazagan Escarpment.

Abstract

A series of sediment samples of probable Triassic to Miocene age seaward of the Mazagan Plateau were investigated. The total organic matter content and the organofacies types are significantly variable, but a generally strong influence of terrigenous organic matter was found in all sediments. The organic matter preservation was controlled by the intensity of the terrigenous organic matter supply from the nearby continent, which appeared to be particularly strong during the Cretaceous and had diminished at least by early Miocene times. A noticeable amount of marine organic matter has been preserved in the deep-water sediments.-from Authors