Formation of syngenetic and early diagenetic iron minerals in the late Archean Mt. McRae Shale, Hamersley Basin, Australia: New insights on the patterns, controls and paleoenvironmental implications of authigenic mineral formation

A section through the late Archean Mt. McRae Shale comprising, in ascending order, a lower shale interval (LSI), a banded iron formation (BIF), an upper shale (USI) and a carbonate (C1) has been analyzed for total Fe and Al contents and authigenic Fe present as carbonate, oxide, sulfide and silicate phases. The authigenic mineralogy is controlled by the episodic addition of Fe from hydrothermal activity and removal of Fe by sulfide, relative to...