In this dissertation I present a tectonic, geochemical, and thermal history for the Witwatersrand basin, located on the Archean Kaapvaal craton, South Africa. The foreland basin tectonic setting of the Central Rand Group controls both the chemical and the thermal evolution of the basin, and unifies the basin evolution model presented here.
Various geochemical parameters including type and abundance of organic matter (TOC), sulfide-sulfur quantities, fluctuations in bottom-water anoxicity (DOP), metal content differences, and sulfur isotope variations have been assessed in order to characterize Midcontinent Pennsylvanian black shales. Based on these geochemical parameters, the deposits can be grouped into three types: Mecca-type, Heebner-type, and Shanghai-type.