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    Iron formations: A global record of Neoarchaean to Palaeoproterozoic environmental history

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    Date
    2017-06-25
    Author
    Konhauser, Kurt O.  Concept link
    Planavsky, Noah J.  Concept link
    Hardisty, Dalton S.  Concept link
    Robbins, Leslie J.  Concept link
    Warchola, Tyler J.  Concept link
    Haugaard, Rasmus  Concept link
    Lalonde, Stefan V.  Concept link
    Partin, Camille A.  Concept link
    Oonk, Paul B. H.  Concept link
    Tsikos, Harilaos  Concept link
    Lyons, Timothy W.  Concept link
    Bekker, Andrey  Concept link
    Johnson, Clark M.  Concept link
    Metadata
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    Citable URI
    https://hdl.handle.net/1912/9332
    As published
    https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.06.012
    Abstract
    Iron formations (IF) represent an iron-rich rock type that typifies many Archaean and Proterozoic supracrustal successions and are chemical archives of Precambrian seawater chemistry and postdepositional iron cycling. Given that IF accumulated on the seafloor for over two billion years of Earth’s early history, changes in their chemical, mineralogical, and isotopic compositions offer a unique glimpse into environmental changes that took place on the evolving Earth. Perhaps one of the most significant events was the transition from an anoxic planet to one where oxygen was persistently present within the marine water column and atmosphere. Linked to this progressive global oxygenation was the evolution of aerobic microbial metabolisms that fundamentally influenced continental weathering processes, the supply of nutrients to the oceans, and, ultimately, diversification of the biosphere and complex life forms. Many of the key recent innovations in understanding IF genesis are linked to geobiology, since biologically assisted Fe(II) oxidation, either directly through photoferrotrophy, or indirectly through oxygenic photosynthesis, provides a process for IF deposition from mineral precursors. The abundance and isotope composition of Fe(II)-bearing minerals in IF additionally suggests microbial Fe(III) reduction, a metabolism that is deeply rooted in the Archaea and Bacteria. Linkages among geobiology, hydrothermal systems, and deposition of IF have been traditionally overlooked, but now form a coherent model for this unique rock type. This paper reviews the defining features of IF and their distribution through the Neoarchaean and Palaeoproterozoic. This paper is an update of previous reviews by Bekker et al. (2010, 2014) that will improve the quantitative framework we use to interpret IF deposition. In this work, we also discuss how recent discoveries have provided new insights into the processes underpinning the global rise in atmospheric oxygen and the geochemical evolution of the oceans.
    Description
    © The Author(s), 2017. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here under a nonexclusive, irrevocable, paid-up, worldwide license granted to WHOI. It is made available for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Earth-Science Reviews 172 (2017): 140-177, doi:10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.06.012.
    Collections
    • Geology and Geophysics (G&G)
    Suggested Citation
    Preprint: Konhauser, Kurt O., Planavsky, Noah J., Hardisty, Dalton S., Robbins, Leslie J., Warchola, Tyler J., Haugaard, Rasmus, Lalonde, Stefan V., Partin, Camille A., Oonk, Paul B. H., Tsikos, Harilaos, Lyons, Timothy W., Bekker, Andrey, Johnson, Clark M., "Iron formations: A global record of Neoarchaean to Palaeoproterozoic environmental history", 2017-06-25, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2017.06.012, https://hdl.handle.net/1912/9332
     
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