Remanence Acquisition in Marine Carbonates: a Lesson from the K-T Boundary Interval

An apparently complete carbonate-rich Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary interval in ODP section 119-738C- 20R-5 from the southern Kerguelen Plateau provides a unique insight into processes of magnetization acquisition in marine carbonates. The boundary interval is characterized by a 1-m-thick clay-rich zone. The basal 15 cm of this zone is finely laminated, the upper part is bioturbated. It has been inferred that the clay- rich zone formed over a long time interval, and the bulk of the clay in this zone has a local provenance. Although the elevated Ir concentration and the evolutionary change in the nannofossil assemblage are spread over the laminated interval, there is no recognizable change in the composition of the clay mineral assemblage between the laminated and bioturbated zones. No faunal, mineralogical, or chemical evidence for anoxic/sulfate-reducing conditions within the clay-rich zone was found. The total iron content of the clay-rich zone co-varies with the alumosilicate content, indicating detrital source for iron. Normalized by the alumosilicate content, the laminated and bioturbated intervals have comparable total iron values, yet strikingly different magnetic properties. The initial susceptibility and NRM intensities are approximately an order of magnitude higher in the bioturbated interval compared to the laminated one. Our detailed rock magnetic study indicates that PSD magnetite grains likely of biogenic origin are the dominant iron-bearing phase in the bioturbated interval. In the laminated interval, apart from a small ferromagnetic fraction with MD-like behavior, non-silicate-bound iron is mainly sequestered in paramagnetic phases, probably (poorly crystalline) oxyhydroxides. It appears that a shut-down of biological productivity after the K-T event allowed preservation of the initial detrital/early authigenic iron phases that are dominated by reactive iron oxyhydroxides. With the recovery of normal biological activity as evidenced by the resumption of bioturbation, the oxyhydroxides had been transformed into biogenic magnetite. This transformation led to a several-fold increase in the NRM intensity of the rocks. Our results suggest that in deep marine environments distant from clastic sources, the depositional remanent magnetization plays a subordinate role to the biogeochemical magnetization. Potential delay in magnetization acquisition in such carbonate rocks should be considered in high-resolution paleomagnetic studies.