Paper No. 38-5
Presentation Time: 2:40 PM
MERCURY ENRICHMENT PROVIDES EVIDENCE OF GLOBAL VOLCANIC EFFECTS DURING THE PERMIAN-TRIASSIC BOUNDARY CRISIS (Invited Presentation)
SHEN, Jun, Department Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, 210 Whitney St, New Haven, CT 06511, China, ALGEO, Thomas J., Department of Geology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221-0013, China, PLANAVSKY, Noah J., Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, 210 Whitney Ave, New Haven, CT 06511, FENG, Qinglai, State Key Laboratory of Geological Process and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan Hubei, 430074, China, CHEN, Zhong Qiang, State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Wuhan, 430074, China, YU, Jianxin, State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology of Ministry of Education, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China, CHEN, Jiubin, State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry Institute of Geochemistry, hinese Academy of Sciences, 46 Guanshui Road, Guiyang, 550002, China, YUAN, Shengliu, State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 46 Guanshui Road, Guiyang, 550002, China; State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, 46 Guanshui Road, Guiyang, 550002, China and ZHOU, Lian, State Key Laboratory of Geological Process and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences, 388 Lumo Road, Wuhan, 430074, China; State Key Laboratory of Geological Process and Mineral Resources, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan Hubei, 430074, China, jun.shen@yale.edu
The ultimate cause of the ~252-Ma end-Permian mass extinction, the largest biocrisis of the Phanerozoic, is widely regarded as eruption of the Siberian Traps Large Igneous Province, yet little evidence of direct volcanic effects on latest Permian marine systems has been presented to date. Mercury (Hg) is a useful proxy of volcanic inputs, and high levels of Hg have been reported around the Permian-Triassic boundary from sections proximal to the Siberian Traps (e.g., in Arctic Canada).
In this contribution, we document Hg peaks from eleven Permian-Triassic sections with a near-global distribution. Hg isotopic data for a subset of these sections provide insights regarding processes of Hg transportation and deposit. Similar values of Δ199Hg from shallow- to deep-water sections near the extinction interval indicate rapid atmosphere Hg source to the pelagic ocean. Our dataset provides the first evidence of direct, global-scale effects of Siberian Traps volcanism during the Permian-Triassic transition.
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