Quantitative Analogue Flume Model Study of Growth-Faulted Delta Systems – an Example from Mahakam Delta Case

ABSTRACT

Physical stratigraphy experiment of particular sedimentary system is commonly modeled to obtain a better understanding of the stratigraphic architecture, succession and its stratal pattern. This study is to demonstrate how a sedimentary system can be scaled down to the size of a flume tank, and how the quantitative, analogue flume modeling results can aid in understanding depositional architecture of growth-faulted deltas setting. Quantitatively, each of empirical variables (base-level estimated, subsidence and sea-level changes) have role as constraint to run the experiment.
An example case that has taken as prototype for this modeling study was Mio-Pliocene sediments of the Mahakam Delta. All of the interpreted sediment packages among the time interval describe as type-1 of sequence boundary. Practically, growth-fault involved in this experiment has role as control of syn-depositional sediments. The spatial scale of the model, in conjunction with sediment-supply rate, result in a time scaling that models basin-fill processes that operated over more than 9.2 million years in 360 minutes of 4 sequences experiment. The resultant of experimental provides general conceptual slug model of sedimentary successions. Further applied experiment could be also used to predict future stratigraphic development.

Key words: flume experimental, Mahakam Delta.