Parana Basin
Encyclopedia
The Paraná Basin is a large sedimentary basin
situated in the central-eastern part of South America. About 75% of its areal distribution occurs in Brazil, from Mato Grosso
to Rio Grande do Sul
states. The remainder area is distributed in eastern Paraguay, northeastern Argentina and northern Uruguay. The shape of the depression is elliptical and covers an area of about 1500000 km² (579,153.2 sq mi). The basin developed during the Paleozoic
and the Mesozoic
with a sedimentary record comprising rock
s from the Ordovician
right up to the Cretaceous
, thus spanning the time interval between 460 and 65 million years. The maximum thickness of the infill reaches 7,000 m in its central area and is composed of sedimentary and igneous rocks.
The Paraná Basin is a typical intra-cratonic
flexural basin, although during the Paleozoic it was a gulf
that opened to the southwest. The basin genesis is related to the convergence
between the former Gondwana
supercontinent
and the oceanic crust
of the former Panthalassa
ocean. The basin formed, at least during the Paleozoic orogenesis of the Gondwanides, a foreland basin
.
The Paraná River
, from which the Paraná Basin derived its name, flows along the central axis of the Paraná Basin and drains it.
The first study on the Brazilian side of the Paraná Basin dates from 1841, when a Brazilian Imperial Government Mission prospected for coal
. Turning point in the basin's geological understanding was the "White Report", published in 1908 by the American geologist
Israel C. White
, head of the "Comissão de Estudos das Minas de Carvão de Pedra do Brasil" (Commission for Studies on Brazilian Coal Mines). One of the main results of these studies, besides the reconnaissance for coal, was the discovery of Mesosaurus
fossil
s within Permian
black shale
s (Irati Formation
), and the Glossopteris
flora within the Permian coals. White was one of the first to propose the equivalence between the South American Permian strata and similar rocks of the Karoo Basin
in South Africa
.
supersequences (in the sense of Vail, 1977). These sequences define the stratigraphic framework
of the basin and are bound by distinct depositional hiati, caused by erosive
events.
Rio Ivaí Supersequence: The basal supersequence, deposited during the Late Ordovician
to Early Silurian
, is constituted by three formations: Alto Garças Formation composed mainly of sandstone
s, Rio Ivaí Formation, represented by glacial Ordovician deposits that affected large areas of Gondwana and the Vila Maria Formation, a thick muddy sequence rich in fossil content: graptolite
s, trilobite
s, brachiopod
s and chitinozoa.
Paraná Supersequence: This Devonian
supersequence is represented, at the base, by sheet-like, cross-bedded
coarse to medium sandstones of the Furnas Formation and, on top, by a muddy section, rich in macrofossils and forming a potential petroleum source rock
, named Ponta Grossa Formation.
Gondwana I Supersequence: The Carboniferous
to Early Triassic
Gondwana I Supersequence has two distinctive features:
Finally, during the Late Permian the Irati Formation
was laid down, represented by bituminous shale
, a potential petroleum source rock, and famous worldwide for its Mesosaurus
fauna
. The top of this supersequence defines the end of the marine phase.
Gondwana II Supersequence: This Triassic supersequence marks the beginning of continental sedimentation. It bears an important reptile
and mammal
fauna, that can be correlated to the African continent.
Gondwana III Supersequence: The Late Jurassic
to Early Cretaceous
Gondwana III Supersequence is marked by two major events:
Bauru Supersequence: A Cretaceous supersequence occurring in the north-central part of the basin and composed mainly of sandy-conglomeratic deposits.
s extracted
in Paraná Basin are groundwater
, coal
and oil shale.
Groundwater
The Guaraní Aquifer
is one of the world's largest aquifer
systems and an important source of fresh water
in Argentina
, Brazil, Paraguay
and Uruguay
. The lithology of the Aquifer consists mainly of highly permeable sandstones of the Botucatu and Pirambóia formations. The aquifer covers 1200000 km² (463,322.6 sq mi) with an estimated volume of about 37000 cubic kilometre of water.
Energy resources
of titanosaur
id dinosaur
, found in Brazil, 45 kilometers (28 mi) from the city of Prata
, in the state of Minas Gerais
in 1998, in rocks belonging to Bauru Group, Bauru Supersequence. The Maxakalisaurus fossils belonged to an animal about 13 meters (43.3 ft) long, with an estimated weight of 9 tons, although, according to paleontologist Alexander Kellner
, it could reach a length of approximately 20 meters (65 ft). It had a long neck and tail, ridged teeth (unusual among sauropods) and lived about 80 million years ago. "This is the biggest dinosaur yet described in Brazil", said Alexander Kellner, lead author of the scientific description.
Sedimentary basin
The term sedimentary basin is used to refer to any geographical feature exhibiting subsidence and consequent infilling by sedimentation. As the sediments are buried, they are subjected to increasing pressure and begin the process of lithification...
situated in the central-eastern part of South America. About 75% of its areal distribution occurs in Brazil, from Mato Grosso
Mato Grosso
Mato Grosso is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest in area, located in the western part of the country.Neighboring states are Rondônia, Amazonas, Pará, Tocantins, Goiás and Mato Grosso do Sul. It also borders Bolivia to the southwest...
to Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
states. The remainder area is distributed in eastern Paraguay, northeastern Argentina and northern Uruguay. The shape of the depression is elliptical and covers an area of about 1500000 km² (579,153.2 sq mi). The basin developed during the Paleozoic
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon, spanning from roughly...
and the Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
with a sedimentary record comprising rock
Rock (geology)
In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
s from the Ordovician
Ordovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
right up to the Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
, thus spanning the time interval between 460 and 65 million years. The maximum thickness of the infill reaches 7,000 m in its central area and is composed of sedimentary and igneous rocks.
The Paraná Basin is a typical intra-cratonic
Craton
A craton is an old and stable part of the continental lithosphere. Having often survived cycles of merging and rifting of continents, cratons are generally found in the interiors of tectonic plates. They are characteristically composed of ancient crystalline basement rock, which may be covered by...
flexural basin, although during the Paleozoic it was a gulf
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...
that opened to the southwest. The basin genesis is related to the convergence
Convergent boundary
In plate tectonics, a convergent boundary, also known as a destructive plate boundary , is an actively deforming region where two tectonic plates or fragments of lithosphere move toward one another and collide...
between the former Gondwana
Gondwana
In paleogeography, Gondwana , originally Gondwanaland, was the southernmost of two supercontinents that later became parts of the Pangaea supercontinent. It existed from approximately 510 to 180 million years ago . Gondwana is believed to have sutured between ca. 570 and 510 Mya,...
supercontinent
Supercontinent
In geology, a supercontinent is a landmass comprising more than one continental core, or craton. The assembly of cratons and accreted terranes that form Eurasia qualifies as a supercontinent today.-History:...
and the oceanic crust
Oceanic crust
Oceanic crust is the part of Earth's lithosphere that surfaces in the ocean basins. Oceanic crust is primarily composed of mafic rocks, or sima, which is rich in iron and magnesium...
of the former Panthalassa
Panthalassa
Panthalassa , also known as the Panthalassic Ocean, was the vast global ocean that surrounded the supercontinent Pangaea, during the late Paleozoic and the early Mesozoic years. It included the Pacific Ocean to the west and north and the Tethys Ocean to the southeast...
ocean. The basin formed, at least during the Paleozoic orogenesis of the Gondwanides, a foreland basin
Foreland basin
A foreland basin is a depression that develops adjacent and parallel to a mountain belt. Foreland basins form because the immense mass created by crustal thickening associated with the evolution of a mountain belt causes the lithosphere to bend, by a process known as lithospheric flexure...
.
The Paraná River
Paraná River
The Paraná River is a river in south Central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina for some . It is second in length only to the Amazon River among South American rivers. The name Paraná is an abbreviation of the phrase "para rehe onáva", which comes from the Tupi language...
, from which the Paraná Basin derived its name, flows along the central axis of the Paraná Basin and drains it.
Pioneer studies
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
. Turning point in the basin's geological understanding was the "White Report", published in 1908 by the American geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
Israel C. White
Israel C. White
Israel Charles White was an eminent geologist and professor, internationally known, and the first state geologist of West Virginia....
, head of the "Comissão de Estudos das Minas de Carvão de Pedra do Brasil" (Commission for Studies on Brazilian Coal Mines). One of the main results of these studies, besides the reconnaissance for coal, was the discovery of Mesosaurus
Mesosaurus
Mesosaurus is an extinct genus of reptile from the Early Permian of southern Africa and South America. Along with the genus Stereosternum, it is a member of the family Mesosauridae and the order Mesosauria. Mesosaurus was one of the first marine reptiles, and had many adaptations to a fully...
fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
s within Permian
Permian
The PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
black shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...
s (Irati Formation
Irati Formation
Irati Formation is the name of a geological formation of Brazil.It has previously been dated as Upper Permian using palynomorphs but is now dated as Lower Permian using zircon ages obtained from bentonite layers...
), and the Glossopteris
Glossopteris
Glossopteris is the largest and best-known genus of the extinct order of seed ferns known as Glossopteridales ....
flora within the Permian coals. White was one of the first to propose the equivalence between the South American Permian strata and similar rocks of the Karoo Basin
Karoo Supergroup
The Karoo Supergroup is the largest stratigraphic unit in Southern Africa, covering almost two thirds of the present land surface, including central Cape Province, almost all of Orange Free State, western Natal, much of south-east Transvaal, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
Stratigraphy
The sedimentary column of the Paraná Basin was divided by Milani, 1997, into six second order allostratigraphicStratigraphy
Stratigraphy, a branch of geology, studies rock layers and layering . It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks....
supersequences (in the sense of Vail, 1977). These sequences define the stratigraphic framework
Framework
Framework may refer to:*Software framework, a reusable set of libraries or classes for a software system .**Application framework, a software framework used to implement the standard structure of an application for a specific operating system....
of the basin and are bound by distinct depositional hiati, caused by erosive
Erosion
Erosion is when materials are removed from the surface and changed into something else. It only works by hydraulic actions and transport of solids in the natural environment, and leads to the deposition of these materials elsewhere...
events.
Rio Ivaí Supersequence: The basal supersequence, deposited during the Late Ordovician
Ordovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
to Early Silurian
Silurian
The Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
, is constituted by three formations: Alto Garças Formation composed mainly of sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
s, Rio Ivaí Formation, represented by glacial Ordovician deposits that affected large areas of Gondwana and the Vila Maria Formation, a thick muddy sequence rich in fossil content: graptolite
Graptolite
Graptolithina is a class in the animal phylum Hemichordata, the members of which are known as Graptolites. Graptolites are fossil colonial animals known chiefly from the Upper Cambrian through the Lower Carboniferous...
s, trilobite
Trilobite
Trilobites are a well-known fossil group of extinct marine arthropods that form the class Trilobita. The first appearance of trilobites in the fossil record defines the base of the Atdabanian stage of the Early Cambrian period , and they flourished throughout the lower Paleozoic era before...
s, brachiopod
Brachiopod
Brachiopods are a phylum of marine animals that have hard "valves" on the upper and lower surfaces, unlike the left and right arrangement in bivalve molluscs. Brachiopod valves are hinged at the rear end, while the front can be opened for feeding or closed for protection...
s and chitinozoa.
Paraná Supersequence: This Devonian
Devonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
supersequence is represented, at the base, by sheet-like, cross-bedded
Cross-bedding
In geology, the sedimentary structures known as cross-bedding refer to horizontal units that are internally composed of inclined layers. This is a case in geology in which the original depositional layering is tilted, and the tilting is not a result of post-depositional deformation...
coarse to medium sandstones of the Furnas Formation and, on top, by a muddy section, rich in macrofossils and forming a potential petroleum source rock
Source rock
In petroleum geology, source rock refers to rocks from which hydrocarbons have been generated or are capable of being generated. They form one of the necessary elements of a working petroleum system. They are organic-rich sediments that may have been deposited in a variety of environments including...
, named Ponta Grossa Formation.
Gondwana I Supersequence: The Carboniferous
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
to Early Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
Gondwana I Supersequence has two distinctive features:
- The major glaciationIce ageAn ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
that covered almost all southern portions of GondwanaGondwanaIn paleogeography, Gondwana , originally Gondwanaland, was the southernmost of two supercontinents that later became parts of the Pangaea supercontinent. It existed from approximately 510 to 180 million years ago . Gondwana is believed to have sutured between ca. 570 and 510 Mya,...
, known as Karoo Ice AgeKaroo Ice AgeThe Karoo Ice Age from 360–260 Ma was the second major ice age of the Phanerozoic Eon. It is named after the glacial tills found in the Karoo region of South Africa where evidence for this ice age was first clearly identified....
. The glaciation's apex was reached during the Mississippian (Early Carboniferous), stopping any further sedimentationSedimentationSedimentation is the tendency for particles in suspension to settle out of the fluid in which they are entrained, and come to rest against a barrier. This is due to their motion through the fluid in response to the forces acting on them: these forces can be due to gravity, centrifugal acceleration...
until the onset of deglaciation during the Westfalian (Late Carboníferous). Left behind were huge glacial deposits, which are composed mainly by sandstones, diamictiteDiamictiteDiamictite : through and µεικτός : mixed) is a poorly or non-sorted conglomerate or breccia with a wide range of clasts, up to 25% of them gravel sized...
s, conglomeratesConglomerate (geology)A conglomerate is a rock consisting of individual clasts within a finer-grained matrix that have become cemented together. Conglomerates are sedimentary rocks consisting of rounded fragments and are thus differentiated from breccias, which consist of angular clasts...
and muddy rocks, grouped in the Itararé Group. Typical glacial faciesFaciesIn geology, facies are a body of rock with specified characteristics. Ideally, a facies is a distinctive rock unit that forms under certain conditions of sedimentation, reflecting a particular process or environment....
are widespread, e.g., varvitesVarveA varve is an annual layer of sediment or sedimentary rock.The word 'varve' is derived from the Swedish word varv whose meanings and connotations include 'revolution', 'in layers', and 'circle'. The term first appeared as Hvarfig lera on the first map produced by the Geological Survey of Sweden in...
. - During the Middle PermianPermianThe PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
the waning glaciation allowed the flourishing of the GlossopterisGlossopterisGlossopteris is the largest and best-known genus of the extinct order of seed ferns known as Glossopteridales ....
flora in the sandstones of the Rio Bonito Formation and the development of huge coalCoalCoal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
deposits, extracted in southern Brazil and Uruguay since the 19th century.
Finally, during the Late Permian the Irati Formation
Irati Formation
Irati Formation is the name of a geological formation of Brazil.It has previously been dated as Upper Permian using palynomorphs but is now dated as Lower Permian using zircon ages obtained from bentonite layers...
was laid down, represented by bituminous shale
Bituminous shale
Bituminous shale is an argillaceous shale impregnated with bitumen, often accompanying coal. It may contain kerogen; in that case it is classified as oil shale. When carbonaceous material is present in large amounts, bituminous shale grades into bituminous coal...
, a potential petroleum source rock, and famous worldwide for its Mesosaurus
Mesosaurus
Mesosaurus is an extinct genus of reptile from the Early Permian of southern Africa and South America. Along with the genus Stereosternum, it is a member of the family Mesosauridae and the order Mesosauria. Mesosaurus was one of the first marine reptiles, and had many adaptations to a fully...
fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
. The top of this supersequence defines the end of the marine phase.
Gondwana II Supersequence: This Triassic supersequence marks the beginning of continental sedimentation. It bears an important reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
and mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
fauna, that can be correlated to the African continent.
Jurassic
The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
to Early Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
Gondwana III Supersequence is marked by two major events:
- The great desertificationDesertificationDesertification is the degradation of land in drylands. Caused by a variety of factors, such as climate change and human activities, desertification is one of the most significant global environmental problems.-Definitions:...
of the still united Gondwana supercontinent, the "Botucatu desert" with an area up to 1200000 km² (463,322.6 sq mi). The large sandSandSand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
dune fields left behind thick, coarse to fine, sandstones beds, the Botucatu Formation, housing the important Guaraní AquiferGuaraní AquiferThe Guarani Aquifer, l beneath the surfacntina]], Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, is one of the world's largest aquifer systems and is an important source of fresh water. Named after the Guarani people, it covers 1,200,000 km², with a volume of about 40,000 km³, a thickness of between 50 m and 800 m...
, one of the world's largest aquiferAquiferAn aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...
systems. - Above the Botucatu Formation a large igneous province was installed by the Serra Geral Formation – enormous flood basaltBasaltBasalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
s that occurred 137 to 127 million years ago, associated with the rifting of Gondwana and the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean. Even now the surface area still reaches more than one million square kilometers. The thickness of the flood basalts amounts to 2000 m (6,561.7 ft) and their area extends to the Etendeka basin in NamibiaNamibiaNamibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
and AngolaAngolaAngola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
even into Southwestern Africa.
Bauru Supersequence: A Cretaceous supersequence occurring in the north-central part of the basin and composed mainly of sandy-conglomeratic deposits.
Natural resources
The main natural resourceNatural resource
Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by mankind, in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts of biodiversity and geodiversity existent in various ecosystems....
s extracted
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
in Paraná Basin are groundwater
Groundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
, coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and oil shale.
Groundwater
The Guaraní Aquifer
Guaraní Aquifer
The Guarani Aquifer, l beneath the surfacntina]], Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, is one of the world's largest aquifer systems and is an important source of fresh water. Named after the Guarani people, it covers 1,200,000 km², with a volume of about 40,000 km³, a thickness of between 50 m and 800 m...
is one of the world's largest aquifer
Aquifer
An aquifer is a wet underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology...
systems and an important source of fresh water
Fresh Water
Fresh Water is the debut album by Australian rock and blues singer Alison McCallum, released in 1972. Rare for an Australian artist at the time, it came in a gatefold sleeve...
in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Brazil, Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
and Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. The lithology of the Aquifer consists mainly of highly permeable sandstones of the Botucatu and Pirambóia formations. The aquifer covers 1200000 km² (463,322.6 sq mi) with an estimated volume of about 37000 cubic kilometre of water.
Energy resources
- Coal: The Brazilian coal resources are estimated at 32 billion metric tons (32 Pg), classified as bituminous to sub-bituminous coal and are mainly associated with sandstones of the Rio Bonito Formation. The major producers are located in Rio Grande do SulRio Grande do SulRio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
and Santa CatarinaSanta Catarina (state)Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
states and minor producers are located in ParanáParaná (state)Paraná is one of the states of Brazil, located in the South of the country, bordered on the north by São Paulo state, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Santa Catarina state and the Misiones Province of Argentina, and on the west by Mato Grosso do Sul and the republic of Paraguay,...
and São PauloSão Paulo (state)São Paulo is a state in Brazil. It is the major industrial and economic powerhouse of the Brazilian economy. Named after Saint Paul, São Paulo has the largest population, industrial complex, and economic production in the country. It is the richest state in Brazil...
states.
- Natural gas: There is one gas field in the Paraná Basin, the Barra Bonita field, located in Paraná state and discovered in 1996, with estimated reserves of about 496000000 m³ (17,516,074,441.5 cu ft).
- Oil shale: Since 1972 PetrobrasPetrobrasPetróleo Brasileiro or Petrobras is a semi-public Brazilian multinational energy corporation headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is the largest company in Latin America by market capitalization and revenue, and the largest company headquartered in the Southern Hemisphere by market...
extracts hydrocarbonHydrocarbonIn organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons from which one hydrogen atom has been removed are functional groups, called hydrocarbyls....
s from the Irati Formation oil shaleOil shaleOil shale, an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock, contains significant amounts of kerogen from which liquid hydrocarbons called shale oil can be produced...
s in São Mateus do Sul, a city in the Brazilian state of ParanáParaná (state)Paraná is one of the states of Brazil, located in the South of the country, bordered on the north by São Paulo state, on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the south by Santa Catarina state and the Misiones Province of Argentina, and on the west by Mato Grosso do Sul and the republic of Paraguay,...
, using the PetrosixPetrosixPetrosix is currently the world’s largest surface oil shale pyrolysis retort with an diameter vertical shaft kiln, operational since 1992. It is located in São Mateus do Sul, Brazil, and it is owned and operated by the Brazil energy company Petrobras. Petrosix means also the Petrosix process, an...
process, a Petrobras patentPatentA patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
. The Irati Formation reserves are estimated at 700000000 bbl (111,291,106,500 l) of oil, 9 million metric tons of liquefied gas (LPG), 25 cubic kilometres (882,866,655,316.5 cu ft) of shale gasShale gasShale gas is natural gas produced from shale. Shale gas has become an increasingly important source of natural gas in the United States over the past decade, and interest has spread to potential gas shales in the rest of the world...
and 18 million metric tons of sulfurSulfurSulfur or sulphur is the chemical element with atomic number 16. In the periodic table it is represented by the symbol S. It is an abundant, multivalent non-metal. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with chemical formula S8. Elemental sulfur is a bright yellow...
in the states of São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul.
Maxakalisaurus
Maxakalisaurus is a genusGenus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of titanosaur
Titanosaur
Titanosaurs were a diverse group of sauropod dinosaurs, which included Saltasaurus and Isisaurus. It includes some of the heaviest creatures ever to walk the earth, such as Argentinosaurus and Paralititan — which some believe have weighed up to 100 tonnes...
id dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
, found in Brazil, 45 kilometers (28 mi) from the city of Prata
Prata (Minas Gerais)
Prata is a Brazilian municipality located in the west of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population as of 2008 was 26,573 living in a total area of 4,856 km². The city belongs to the statistical mesoregion of Triângulo Mineiro and Alto Paranaíba and to the statistical microregion of Uberlândia...
, in the state of Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
in 1998, in rocks belonging to Bauru Group, Bauru Supersequence. The Maxakalisaurus fossils belonged to an animal about 13 meters (43.3 ft) long, with an estimated weight of 9 tons, although, according to paleontologist Alexander Kellner
Alexander Kellner
Alexander Wilhelm Armin Kellner is a Liechtensteinian/Brazilian paleontologist, a leading expert in the field of the study of pterosaurs....
, it could reach a length of approximately 20 meters (65 ft). It had a long neck and tail, ridged teeth (unusual among sauropods) and lived about 80 million years ago. "This is the biggest dinosaur yet described in Brazil", said Alexander Kellner, lead author of the scientific description.