Sulfur sinks and organic carbon relationships in Cretaceous organic- rich carbonates: implications for evaluation of oxygen-poor depositional environments

A succession of Upper Cretaceous organic-rich carbonates and phosphorites in central Israel was used to study the relationships between sulfur sinks and organic carbon. In these sediments, deposited in oxygen-deficient and iron-poor environments, organic matter is the sink for the H₂S obtained from sulfate reduction. The observed relationships between pyrite, organic sulfur, organic S/C ratio, and reduced sulfur isotopic composition provide valuable information on oxygen-poor depositional regimes. -from Authors