Description
The Opalinus Clay was deposited some 180 million years ago (Lower Dogger) by the sedimentation of fine clay particles in the Jurassic Sea. The Opalinus Clay was subjected to two successive stages of burial and uplift. It reached a maximum depth of ca. 1650 m below surface some 10 Ma b.p., i.e. at the time of Molasse sedimentation (clastic sediments from the uprising Alps). Since that time, ca. 1050 m of the overlying sediments were removed by uplift and erosion, which results in an average uplift rate of 0.1 mm/a over the last 10 Ma. Maximum temperatures in the Opalinus Clay were about 85 °C, i.e., the oil window has never been reached. Currently, an uplift/erosion rate of about 100 m per Ma is observed in the Zürcher Weinland.
OPA Category
Category as used in the OPA assessment
OPA Number
Number as used in the OPA assessment
NEA V1 IFEP Reference(s)
Related IFEPs from the NEA V1 IFEP list from 1999