In situ red bed development by the oxidation of authigenic pyrite in a coastal depositional environment
Abstract Exposures of Pleistocene coastal sediments in South Carolina illustrate red bed development in progress. Iron pigmentation in the clays is developed from the oxidation of authigenic pyrite in the drab clays by the action of oxygenated ground waters. Migration of ferrous iron upward, with subsequent oxidation and precipitation higher in the section, gives rise to the red and yellow clays. It is also suggested that this mechanism may be possible in other marine-influenced depositional environments where authigenic sulphides form, such as tidal flat, back barrier, lagoon, etc., or in lithified sediments. Red beds formed in this manner have no paleoclimatic or source are implications.