Articles | Volume 15, issue 21
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-6387-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-6387-2018
Research article
 | 
30 Oct 2018
Research article |  | 30 Oct 2018

Macrofaunal burrowing enhances deep-sea carbonate lithification on the Southwest Indian Ridge

Hengchao Xu, Xiaotong Peng, Shun Chen, Jiwei Li, Shamik Dasgupta, Kaiwen Ta, and Mengran Du

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Cited articles

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Short summary
Processes involved in the formation of deep-sea carbonate rocks remain controversial. It is reported in present study that macrofaunal burrowing may trigger the dissolution of the original calcite above the saturation horizon and thus drive deep-sea carbonate lithification on mid-ocean ridges. The novel mechanism proposed here for nonburial carbonate lithification at the deep-sea seafloor sheds light on the potential interactions between deep-sea biota and sedimentary rocks.
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