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Method of Estimating the Integral Roundness Index for Detrital Zircons: A Case Study of Cimmeride Sedimentary Sequences in the Crimean Mountains

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Abstract

A technique to evaluate the degree of roundness of detrital zircons on a 5-point scale based on the preservation of crystal vertices, edges, and faces is presented. Based on measurements in individual grains, the integral roundness index Rs is calculated for a zircon grain set from various stratigraphic units. The obtained data make it possible to determine the proportion of different class grains in various sequences and to assess their similarity/difference degree, which can serve as an additional criterion for the differentiation of sedimentary sections. The proposed method is used to compare the roundness characteristics of detrital zircons from some Cimmeride sedimentary sequences in the Crimean Mountains. It is shown that relative to counterparts in the flysch sequences, sandstones of the Chenka sequence are characterized by a higher proportion of unrounded and weakly rounded zircons and a virtual absence of completely rounded grains. Value of Rs for the zircon grain set ranges from 3.41 and 3.95 for the Tauric Group to 2.55 for the Chenka sequence. Thus, Rs values in the sequences are marked by a significant difference, which is also confirmed by values of the mutual pair coefficient p calculated using the Kolmogorov–Smirnov test.

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Notes

  1. If the grain has a non-convex shape, the software will construct a convex shell. The convex shell of data N of plane points designates the minimal (in area) convex polygon including all data points. Correspondingly, parameter Ps is calculated for this convex shell. Parameter Р designates the real grain perimeter. If the grain has a convex shape, P and Ps are one and the same.

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Funding

This work was carried out in accordance with the State Task of the Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences. The semi-automatic analysis of the morphology of zircon grains was performed on equipment purchased under agreement no. 075-15-2022-299 under the development program “Rational Development of Liquid Hydrocarbon Reserves of the Planet” of the National Research Center of the Kazan Federal University.

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  1. Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, 123242, Moscow, Russia

    T. V. Romanyuk

  2. Kazan Federal University, 420111, Kazan, Russia

    P. D. Kotler

  3. Sobolev Institute of Geology and Mineralogy, Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 630090, Novosibirsk, Russia

    P. D. Kotler

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Romanyuk, T.V., Kotler, P.D. Method of Estimating the Integral Roundness Index for Detrital Zircons: A Case Study of Cimmeride Sedimentary Sequences in the Crimean Mountains. Lithol Miner Resour 59, 299–313 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0024490224700524

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