Lacustrine Facies

Synonym: Lake facies

Lacustrine facies are deposits that is formed by geological processes in lakes. They are the most widely distributed type and one of the main types of terrestrial facies. Ancient lacustrine facies can be divided into freshwater lake facies and salt lake facies. In map view, freshwater lake facies are often banded in rings, where the sediment particles vary from coarse to fine from the lake edge to the centre, and the sand bodies become more well connected. Freshwater lake facies also contain freshwater biota and biological material and are usually composed of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone, sometimes with marl, diatomite and other deposits. Salt lake facies form under dry continental climatic conditions and mainly consist of various kinds of salt deposits, such as gypsum, rock salt, potassium salt, and bauxite with fine clastic rocks, limestone and dolomite. Horizontal bedding is developed and contains cracks, raindrop imprints and markers of biotic activity. In...