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Eight stratigraphic sections from well-exposed outcrops of the Early to Middle Miocene Tanjong Formation in the Kalabakan area, southeast Sabah, were investigated using an integrated approach, in which a comprehensive sedimentological facies analysis was linked with bulk geochemistry and palynological analyses. The integration of facies analysis, elemental CHNS, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and palynological data provided a refined evaluation of the origin of organic matter (OM) and the reconstruction of the paleodepositional model. Seven facies associations were classified in the studied Tanjong Formation from 12 lithofacies components, interpreted as environments ranging from fluvial-deltaic to shallow marine: FA1—Floodplain, FA2—Fluvial channel, FA3—Coastal peat mires, FA4—Tidal flat, FA5—Delta front, FA6—Mouth bar, and FA7—Upper shoreface. Evaluation of the C/N ratio ranged between 4 and 48, and the total sulfur content ranged from 0.5 to 3. Elemental CHNS analysis suggests that the organic matter extracted from the coal and mudstone originated from terrestrial plants and fresh marine plankton. Accordingly, the three most prevalent FTIR spectra from the coal and mudstone samples were the OH- functional group stretching, the absorption spectrum of aromatic C=C stretching, and aromatic in-plane/out-of-plane C-H bending. Terrestrially derived organic matter within the examined samples was further validated by the predominance of aromatic compounds, and the palynological analysis indicated a back-mangrove freshwater pollen assemblage and a lower coastal plain setting proximal to the marine environment. The integrated findings from this research are vital in reconstructing a paleodepositional environment model that will improve the predictability of the petroleum system mechanisms and the future hydrocarbon potential for conventional petroleum exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Original organics and soft tissues are known to persist in the fossil record. To date, these discoveries derive from a limited number of ancient environments, (e.g., rivers, floodplains), and fossils from rarer environments remain largely unexplored. We studied Cretaceous–Paleogene fossils from a peculiar marine environment (glauconitic greensand) from Jean and Ric Edelman Fossil Park in Mantua Township, NJ. Twelve samples were demineralized in acid to remove the mineral component of bone. This treatment frequently yielded products that are visually consistent with bone cells, blood vessels, and bone matrix from modern animals. Fossil specimens that are dark in color exhibit excellent microscopic bone preservation and yielded a greater recovery of original soft tissues, whereas light-colored specimens exhibit poor microscopic preservation and yielded few to no soft tissues. Additionally, a well-preserved femur of a marine crocodilian was found to retain original bone protein by reactions with antibodies. Our results: (1) corroborate previous findings that original soft tissue and proteins can be recovered from fossils preserved in marine environments, and (2) expand the range of ancient environments documented to preserve original organics and soft tissues. This broadens the suite of fossils that may be fruitful to examine in future paleomolecular studies. Endogenous biomolecules and soft tissues are known to persist in the fossil record. To date, these discoveries derive from a limited number of preservational environments, (e.g., fluvial channels and floodplains), and fossils from less common depositional environments have been largely unexplored. We conducted paleomolecular analyses of shallow marine vertebrate fossils from the Cretaceous–Paleogene Hornerstown Formation, an 80–90% glauconitic greensand from Jean and Ric Edelman Fossil Park in Mantua Township, NJ. Twelve samples were demineralized and found to yield products morphologically consistent with vertebrate osteocytes, blood vessels, and bone matrix. Specimens from these deposits that are dark in color exhibit excellent histological preservation and yielded a greater recovery of cells and soft tissues, whereas lighter-colored specimens exhibit poor histology and few to no cells/soft tissues. Additionally, a well-preserved femur of the marine crocodilian Thoracosaurus was found to have retained endogenous collagen I by immunofluorescence and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Our results thus not only corroborate previous findings that soft tissue and biomolecular recovery from fossils preserved in marine environments are possible but also expand the range of depositional environments documented to preserve endogenous biomolecules, thus broadening the suite of geologic strata that may be fruitful to examine in future paleomolecular studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is well known that nowadays as well as in the past the vast majority of human habitation and activities are mainly concentrated in littoral areas. Thus the increased attention to coastal zone management contributed to the development and implementation of shallow-water mapping approaches for capturing current environmental conditions. During the last decade, geophysical imaging techniques like electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) have been used in mapping onshore buried antiquities in a non-destructive manner, contributing to cultural heritage management. Despite its increased implementation in mapping on-shore buried archaeological remains, ERT has minimal to non-existent employment for the understanding of the past dynamics in littoral and shallow off-shore marine environments. This work presents the results of an extensive ERT survey in investigating part of the Hellenistic to Byzantine submerged archaeological site of Olous, located on the north-eastern coast of Crete, Greece. A marine area of 7100 m2 was covered with 178 densely spaced ERT lines having a cumulative length of 8.3 km. A combination of submerged static and moving survey modes were used to document potential buried and submerged structures. The acquired data from the marine environment were processed with two-dimensional and three-dimensional inversion algorithms. A real time kinematic global navigation satellite system was used to map the visible submerged walls and compile the bathymetry model of the bay. The adaptation of ERT in reconstructing the underwater archaeological remains in a shallow marine environment presented specific methodological and processing challenges. The in situ experience from the archaeological site of Olous showed that ERT provided a robust method for mapping the submerged archaeological structures related to the ancient built environment (walls, buildings, roads), signifying at the same time the vertical stratigraphy of the submerged sediments. The inherent limitation of employing ERT in a conductive environment is counterbalanced by the incorporation of precise knowledge for the conductivity and bathymetry of the saline water in the modelling and inversion procedure. Although the methodology definitely needs further refinement, the overall outcomes of this work underline the potential of ERT imaging being integrated into wider shallow marine projects for the mapping of archaeological sites in similar environmental regimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The roughly 6 m thick limestone–green shale alternation within the lignite-bearing Giral Member of the Barmer Basin corresponds to a marine flooding event immediately after the Paleocene–Eocene transition. A detailed characterization of the glauconite using Electron Probe Micro Analyzer (EPMA), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Mössbauer and Field Emission Gun-Scanning Electron Microscope (FEG-SEM) reveals its origin in the backdrop of prevailing warm climatic conditions. The glauconite pellets vary from fine silt-sized to coarse sand-sized pellets, often reaching ~60% of the rock by volume. Mineralogical investigation reveals a 'nascent' to 'slightly evolved' character of the marginal marine-originated glauconite showing considerable interstratification. The chemical composition of the glauconite is unusual with a high Al2O3 (>10 wt%) and moderately high Fe2O3(total) contents (>15 wt%). While the K2O content of these glauconites is low, the interlayer sites are atypically rich in Na2O, frequently occupying ~33% of the total interlayer sites. The Mössbauer spectrum indicates 10% of the total iron is in ferrous form. High tetrahedral Al3+ of these glauconites suggests a high-alumina substrate that transformed to glauconite by octahedral Al-for-Fe substitution followed by the addition of K into the interlayer structure. The unusually high Na2O suggests the possibility of a soda-rich pore water formed by the dissolution of alkaline volcanic minerals. The Giral glauconite formation could have been a part of the major contributors in the Fe-sequestration cycle in the Early Eocene shelves. Warm climate during the Early Eocene time favored the glauconitization because of the enhanced supply of Fe, Al, and Si and proliferation of an oxygen-depleted depositional environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]