Sedimentary Controls On Valley Incision In The Middle To Upper Pennsylvanian Fill Of The Central Appalachian Basin

Abstract

The sedimentary fill of Middle to Upper Pennsylvanian strata in the central Appalachian Basin reveals complex sequence stratigraphy in predominantly fluvial strata. There are three major allogenic sedimentary controls: tectonism, climate change, and eustasy. All three controls can act on a basin at any one time, but they are not always independent. The effects of eustasy weaken up-dip as fluvial-dominant sequences see increasing influence from climate and tectonics. A more applicable fluvial sequence stratigraphic model that places focus on accommodation state rather than relative sea level is adopted, and tested in this study in order to determine the origin of valley incision within the Upper Breathitt Group and Lower Conemaugh Group rocks in the area of the Kentucky/West Virginia state line, and use this information to understand the relationship between sedimentary sequence controls and the fluvial system that filled the basin.