Lithological and isotopic (δ 13C and δ 18O) features of the Upper Silurian back-reef lagoon deposits of the Ilych River Basin, the Northern Urals

The Upper Silurian is widely developed in the Northern Urals, where it is represented by various facies. The continental slope facies and the reef shoal facies are well documented in the geological literature, while as back-reef lagoon facies have not yet been characterized in detail. The studied objects included two sections of the back-reef deposits in the Ilych River basin. In this work, we characterize rock types the make up the sections, and their isotopic characteristics. The Late Silurian back-reef lagoon was characterized by a mosaic sediments distribution, which included the island areas between which there were areas with a quiet hydrodynamic regime. In the latter, mainly muddy carbonates were accumulated, represented by clotted fenestral limestones. The area of small islands was characterized by a wide distribution of lime sands, which clastic material was derived from probable paleosoil carbonates. They are characterized by slightly increased δ 13C values, which, probably, reflects isotopic fractionation at the evaporative geochemical barrier. Dolomitization and karstification are described among secondary alterations in the studied sections. Cementstones is interpreted as karst cavities precipitates.