| The global maps of Cambrian plate tectonics, plaeogeography, lithofaices and source rock distribution are compiled up for reconstructing Cambrian global paleo-plates on the basis of the paleomagnetic data and the updating data of the Cambrian global tectonics, lithofacies paleogeography and source rocks. Cambrian plates can be divided into four parts including Gondwana, Laurentia, Siberia and Baltica. They were generally distributed in the southern hemisphere and drifted northwards with contrarotating rotation except the southwards drifting Gondwana supercontinent. Owing to rising of global sea level eustacy and temperature for a long time during the whole Cambrian, the global plates were generally in epeiric sea environments which promoted the Early Cambrian organic-rich deposits and dominant carbonate deposits and provided good conditions for Cambrian life explosion, which were characterized by low climate zone gradients and widely-distributing drought climate zones that led to Lower and Middle Cambrian evaporate and salt deposits. In Gondwana supercontinent, carbonate deposits were mainly in the north part, sandstone deposits in the south and volcanic activities mainly in the east while good source rocks and petroleum resources were commonly distributed in the carbonate and sandstone deposits along the west margin of the central part. Laurentia was characteristic of band sedimentation, outer of which carbonate deposits existed. Huge evaporate rock deposited in the Siberia plate during the Middle-Lower Cambrian and only a few hundreds meter thickness of carbonate deposits did in the late Cambrian, which improved the development of reservoirs and seals under the setting of passive margin. Sandstone and shale were commonly deposited in Baltica plate at relatively high latitude. |
