G. А. BELENITSKAYA

SALTS AND NAPHTIDES: GLOBAL SPATIAL AND KINETIC INTERRELATIONS

“Saline-naphtide giants clusters” have been identified: sedimentary basins with the largest salt and naphtide contents. Their common structural-tectonic, petrologic, and fluid dynamic features were highlighted. Assessment of its most important features (paleo and recent tectonic, lithologic, and sedimentary, oil-and-gas and fluid dynamic) is given. Particular attention is given to widespread and extensive development of diverse ascending formations (brine and hydrocarbon flows, saline and clay diapirs, multi-level hydrocarbon occurrences, etc.) inside the basins and on the surface, to their large-scale discharge centres. The Mexican saline-naphtide supergiant was described as a reference target. Most of other major salt-naphtide clusters are comparable with the Gulf of Mexico basin in many respects, and also among the most highly promising, rapidly developing and high dangerous.

Keywords: salt, salt-bearing basins, naphtide basins, hydrocarbon fluids, brine, discharge foci, accidental oil spills, mud volcanoes, salt diapirism