Heat-flow value of Late Mesozoic to Cenozoic in Putumayo Sub-Basin, Republic of Colombia

Abstract

The heat-flow history of the Putumayo Sub-Basin has undergone a long-term and complex evolutionary process from the Late Mesozoic to the Cenozoic due to multiphases of tectonic evolution. The regional geologic background and the forward modeling of paleo-temperature were applied to determine the heat-flow value during different stages ever since the Cretaceous. The heat-flow value was 64 mW/m2 in the Cretaceous, 95 mW/m2 in the Paleocene, 38 mW/m2 at the end of Oligocene, 120 to 190 mW/m2 (increasing from east to west and averaging 155 mW/m2) in the Pliocene, and 55 mW/m2 at present.

Keywords

• late mesozoic
• cenozoic
• heat flow
• putumayo sub-basin
• republic of colombia