Diversion of heat by Archean cratons: a model for southern Africa

The surface heat flow in the interior of Archean cratons is typically about 40 mW m⁻² while that in Proterozoic and younger terrains surrounding them is generally considerably higher. The eighty-four heat flow observations from southern Africa provide an excellent example of this contrast in surface heat flow, showing a difference of some 25 mW m⁻² between the Archean craton and younger peripheral units. We investigate two possible contributions to this contrast: (1) a shallow mechanism, essentially geochemical, comprising a difference in crustal heat production between the two terrains, and (2) a deeper mechanism, essentially geodynamical, arising from the existence of a lithospheric root beneath the Archean craton which diverts heat away from the craton into the thinner surrounding lithosphere. A finite element numerical model which explores the interplay between these two mechanisms suggests that a range of combinations of differences in crustal heat production and lithospheric thickness can lead to the contrast in surface heat flow observed in southern Africa. Additional constraints derived from seismological observations of cratonic roots, the correlation of surface heat flow and surface heat production, petrological estimates of the mean heat production in continental crust and constraints on upper mantle temperatures help narrow the range of acceptable models. Successful models suggest that a cratonic root beneath southern Africa extends to depths of 200–400 km. A root in this thickness range can divert enough heat to account for 50–100% of the observed contrast in surface heat flow, the remainder being due to a difference in crustal heat production between the craton and the surrounding mobile belts in the range of zero to 0.35 μW m⁻³.     

Subduction and terrane collision stabilize the western Kaapvaal craton tectosphere 2.9 billion years ago

Integrative models of crust and mantle structure, age, and growth of the oldest continental nuclei—the Archean cratons—are critical to understanding the processes that stabilize continental lithosphere. For the Kaapvaal craton of southern Africa, conflicting ages of stabilization have been derived from studies of its crust and underlying mantle. New U-Pb zircon geochronological data from the western Kaapvaal craton reveal that two older (3.7 to 3.1 billion year old) continental masses, the Kimberley and Witwatersrand blocks, were juxtaposed by a significantly younger, previously unresolved episode of subduction and terrane collision between 2.93 and 2.88 billion years ago. Geological evidence indicates that convergence was accommodated by subduction beneath the Kimberley block, culminating in collisional suturing in the vicinity of the present-day Colesberg magnetic lineament. The timing of these convergent margin processes is further shown to correlate with the strong peak in Re-Os age distributions of Kimberley block mantle peridotites, eclogites, and eclogite-hosted diamonds. These data thus support the petrogenetic coupling of continental crust and lithospheric mantle through a model of continental arc magmatism, subduction zone mantle wedge processing and terminal collisional advective thickening to form Archean continental tectosphere.     

Upper Mantle Seismic Structure Beneath Southern Africa: Constraints on the Buoyancy Supporting the African Superswell

We present new one-dimensional SH-wave velocity models of the upper mantle beneath the Kalahari craton in southern Africa obtained from waveform inversion of regional seismograms from an Mw = 5.9 earthquake located near Lake Tanganyika recorded on broadband seismic stations deployed during the 1997–1999 Southern African Seismic Experiment. The velocity in the lithosphere beneath the Kalahari craton is similar to that of other shields, and there is little evidence for a significant low velocity zone beneath the lithosphere. The lower part of the lithosphere, from 110 to 220 km depth, is slightly slower than beneath other shields, possibly due to higher temperatures or a decrease in Mg number (Mg#). If the slower velocities are caused by a thermal anomaly, then slightly less than half of the unusually high elevation of the Kalahari craton can be explained by shallow buoyancy from a hot lithosphere. However, a decrease in the Mg# of the lower lithosphere would increase the density and counteract the buoyancy effect of the higher temperatures. We obtain a thickness of 250 ± 30 km for the mantle transition zone, which is similar to the global average, but the velocity gradient between the 410 and 660 km discontinuities is less steep than in global models, such as PREM and IASP91. We also obtain velocity jumps of between 0.16 ± 0.1 and 0.21 ± 0.1 km/s across the 410 km discontinuity. Our results suggest that there may be a thermal or chemical anomaly in the mantle transition zone, or alternatively that the shear wave velocity structure of the transition zone in global reference models needs to be refined. Overall, our seismic models provide little support for an upper mantle source of buoyancy for the unusually high elevation of the Kalahari craton, and hence the southern African portion of the African Superswell.     

用面波方法研究上扬子克拉通壳幔速度结构

本文研究采用单台法和双台法提取了穿越上扬子的基阶面波相速度和群速度频散;通过对提取的面波群速度和相速度频散进行联合反演,得到的1-D SV速度模型显示上扬子块体下地壳S波速度与典型克拉通区域相当,其上地幔顶部80~170 km深处存在高速的岩石圈盖层,较AK135模型要快2%~3%,其岩石圈厚度约为180 km.在上扬子地区,径向各向异性集中分布在300 km以浅的岩石圈与软流圈部分,其中岩石圈部分SH波比SV波波速要快2%~4%,软流圈部分SH波比SV波波速要快3%~5%;Rayleigh波相速度方位各向异性分析结果显示,上扬子块体周期为25~45 s（大致相当于30~70 km深度范围内）的Rayleigh波相速度存在1.8%~2.7%不等的方位各向异性,其快波方向介于147°~174°.我们认为上扬子块体径向各向异性集中分布在岩石圈、软流圈部分,且各向异性随深度变化, 其岩石圈部分各向异性为大陆克拉通化的遗迹,软流圈部分各向异性与现今板块运动相关.     

Tectonic insight into a pericratonic subcrustal lithosphere affected by anorogenic Cretaceous magmatism in central Brazil inferred from long-period Magnetotellurics

Long period magnetotelluric soundings are available in a 180-km long WSW–ENE profile across the Alto Paranaíba igneous province, a complex Cretaceous alkaline province situated mostly in the southern Neoproterozoic Brasília fold and thrust belt in central Brazil. The data indicate 3D complexity at upper and mid-crust and a simpler 2D regional structure at lower crustal and upper mantle depths. A 2D inversion emphasizing long period data identifies a highly resistive block at the uppermost mantle below the central part of the profile, surrounded by a rapid decrease in resistivity with depth. Resistivities at the block are typical of dry olivine under upper mantle conditions and a deep cratonic lithosphere is defined for this region. It is proposed that the resistive block is a rheologically enduring structure preserved within a southwestward extension of the pericratonic lithosphere of the Archean–Early Proterozoic São Francisco craton that lies beneath the nappes of the Brasília belt. Lower resistivities at shallower upper mantle depths beneath the Sanfranciscana basin at the northeastern end of the profile can be interpreted either as an increased conductivity within the lithosphere or as a localized thinned out lithosphere. The conductivity enhancement possibly arises from the addition of small amounts of water to mantle anhydrous minerals during previous metasomatic percolations.     

Stored mafic/ultramafic crust and early Archean mantle depletion

Both early and late Archean rocks from greenstone belts and felsic gneiss complexes exhibit positive ε_Nd values of +1 to +5 by 3.5 Ga, demonstrating that a depleted mantle reservoir existed very early. The amount of preserved pre-3.0 Ga continental crust cannot explain such high ε values in the depleted residue unless the volume of residual mantle was very small: a layer less than 70 km thick by 3.0 Ga. Repeated and exclusive sampling of such a thin layer, especially in forming the felsic gneiss complexes, is implausible. Extraction of enough continental crust to deplete the early mantle and its destructive recycling before 3.0 Ga ago requires another implausibility, that the sites of crustal generation and of recycling were substantially distinct. In contrast, formation of mafic or ultramafic crust analogous to present-day oceanic crust was continuous from very early times. Recycled subducted oceanic lithosphere is a likely contributor to present-day hotspot magmas, and forms a reservoir at least comparable in volume to continental crust. Subduction of an early mafic/ultramafic “oceanic” crust and temporary storage rather than immediate mixing back into undifferentiated mantle may be responsible for the depletion and high ε_Nd values of the Archean upper mantle. Using oceanic crustal production proportional to heat productivity, we show that temporary storage in the mantle of that crust, whether basaltic as formed by 5–20% partial melting, or partly komatiitic and formed by higher extents of melting is sufficient to balance an early depleted mantle of significant volume with ε_Nd at least +3.0.     

What compensates the topography of southern Norway? Insights from thermo-isostatic modeling

The origin of the high topography of the Norwegian Mountains is currently much debated. Several geophysical studies show that the uppermost mantle below southern Norway has anomalously low velocities as compared to other parts of the Baltic Shield. This study aims to shed lights on the structure of the lithospheric mantle below southern Norway by adapting and further refining a method based on isostatic and thermal equilibrium to compute temperature, temperature-related density and synthetic S-wave velocity in stable continental domains. The one-dimensional steady-state heat equation is used with topographic, Moho depth, crustal density and surface heat flow data. A condition of local isostasy is assumed and geoid undulations are used to constrain the range of possible lithosphere models.Results derived from this method suggest a thickening of the thermal lithosphere below southern Norway from west to east. The western part is found to have higher temperatures, lower densities and lower synthetic S-wave velocities than the eastern part, compatible with results from a recent P-wave travel time residual study. Comparison of the synthetic shear-velocity profiles beneath southwestern Norway with velocity profiles inverted from Rayleigh wave dispersion data suggests that the higher temperatures associated with a thinner lithosphere can explain parts of the seismic low-velocity anomaly.The inferred lithospheric structure is sensitive to uncertainties in the crustal input model, but the main features remain undisturbed by changes in the input data. The results show that the lithosphere of southwestern Norway can be in local isostatic equilibrium, if it is thinner and warmer than the lithosphere of eastern Norway. The present-day high topography may therefore be partially sustained by lower densities in the mantle lithosphere.     

Lithosphere types in North China: Evidence from geology and geophysics

Deep-seated materials from lithosphere are the ba- sic parameters and the foundation for geodynamic and continental dynamic studies. Division of lithosphere types and their deep-seated materials and structure can provide important evidence in interpreting the com- plex phenomena derived from the processes of forma- tion and evolution of continents, in evaluating the mineral resource potential, in predicting geological disasters and in the research of the continental dy- namic process. Huge lit…     

Implications of melting for stabilisation of the lithosphere and heat loss in the Archaean

The increased depth and volume of melting induced in a higher temperature Archaean mantle controls the stability of the lithosphere, heat loss rates and the thickness of the oceanic crust. The relationship between density distributions in oceanic lithosphere and the depth of melting at spreading centres is investigated by calculating the mineral proportions and densities of residual mantle depleted by extraction of melt fractions. The density changes related to compositional gradients are comparable to those produced by thermal effects for lithosphere formed from a mantle which is 200°C or more hotter than modern upper mantle. If Archaean continental crust formed initially above oceanic lithosphere, the compositional density gradients may be sufficient to preserve a thick Archaean continental lithosphere within which the Archaean age diamonds are preserved. The amount of heat advected by melts at mid-ocean ridges today is small but heat advected by melting becomes proportionally more important as higher mantle temperatures lead to a greater volume of melt and as the rate of production of oceanic plates increases. Archaean tectonics could have been dominated by spreading rates 2–3 times greater than now and with mantle temperatures between ca. 1600°C and 1800°C at the depth of the solidus. Mid-ocean ridge melting would produce a relatively thick but light refractory lithosphere on which continents could form, protected from copious volcanism and high mantle temperatures.     

Thickness and thermal history of continental crust and root zones

The survival to the present of the Archean nuclei of Precambrian shields requires special explanation if, as seems likely, the rate of heat flow out of the earth was two or three times greater in the late Archean (2.5 b.y. ago) than at present, since such a high heat flux would have melted the base of the Archean crust. It is proposed that there must have existed beneath stable continental crust a root zone (or lithosphere, or tectosphere) at least 200 km thick which has acted as a thermal buffer between the crust and the convecting mantle; this is virtually the same model as has been proposed to explain the present distribution of heat flow between continents and oceans. The strong temperature dependence of silicate rheology insures that the mantle temperature at the base of the root zone was no more than about 150°C higher in the late Archean than at present; the greater Archean heat flux would have been removed mainly through faster sea-floor spreading. To have survived, the root zone must be mechanically and chemically distinct from the rest of the mantle, and its formation was probably intimately related to the differentiation and stabilization of the continental crust.     

The role of serpentine in preferential craton formation in the late Archean by lithosphere underthrusting

Cratons form the cores of continents and were formed within a narrow window of time (2.5–3.2 Gy ago), the majority having remained stable ever since. Petrologic evidence suggests that the thick mantle roots underlying cratons were built by underthrusting of oceanic and arc lithosphere, but paradoxically this requires that the building blocks of cratons are weak even though cratons must have been strong subsequent to formation. Here, we propose that one form of thickening could be facilitated by thrusting of oceanic lithospheres along weak shear zones, generated in the serpentinized upper part of the oceanic lithosphere (crust + mantle) due to hydrothermal interaction with seawater. Conductive heating of the shear zones eventually causes serpentine breakdown at ~ 600 °C, shutting down the shear zone and culminating in craton formation. However, if shear zones are too thin, serpentine breakdown and healing of the shear zone occurs too soon and underthrusting does not occur. If shear zones are too thick, serpentine breakdown takes too long so healing and lithospheric thickening is not favored. Shear zone thicknesses of ~ 18 km are found to be favorable for craton formation. Because the maximal depth of seawater-induced serpentinization into the lithosphere is limited by the depth of the isotherm for serpentine breakdown, shear zone thicknesses should have increased with time as the Earth's heat flux and depth to the serpentine breakdown isotherm decreased and increased, respectively, with time. We thus suggest that the greater representation of cratons in the late Archean might not necessarily be explained by preferential recycling in the early Archean but may simply reflect preferential craton formation in the late Archean. That is, our model predicts that the early Archean was too hot, the Phanerozoic too cold, and the late Archean just right for making cratons.     

Dynamics of thinning and destruction of the continental cratonic lithosphere: Numerical modeling

Thinning of the cratonic lithosphere is common in nature, but its destruction is not. In either case, the mechanisms for both thinning and destruction are still widely under debate. In this study, we have made a review on the processes and mechanisms of thinning and destruction of cratonic lithosphere according to previous studies of geological/geophysical observations and numerical simulations, with specific application to the North China Craton (NCC). Two main models are suggested for the thinning and destruction of the NCC, both of which are related to subduction of the oceanic lithosphere. One is the “bottom-up” model, in which the deeply subducting slab perturbs and induces upwelling from the hydrous mantle transition zone (MTZ). The upwelling produces mantle convection and erodes the bottom of the overriding lithosphere by the fluid-melt-peridotite reaction. Mineral compositions and rheological properties of the overriding lithospheric mantle are changed, allowing downward dripping of lithospheric components into the asthenosphere. Consequently, lithospheric thinning or even destruction occurs. The other is the “top-down” model, characterized by the flat subduction of oceanic slab beneath the overriding cratonic lithosphere. Dehydration reactions from the subducting slab would significantly hydrate the lithospheric mantle and decrease its rheological strength. Then the subduction angle may be changed from shallow to steep, inducing lateral upwelling of the asthenosphere. This upwelling would heat and weaken the overriding lithospheric mantle, which led to the weakened lithospheric mantle dripping into the asthenosphere. These two models have some similarities, in that both take the subducting oceanic slab and relevant fluid migration as the major driving mechanism for thinning or destruction of the overriding cratonic lithosphere. The key difference between the two models is the effective depth of the subducting oceanic slab. One is stagnation and flattening in the MTZ, whereas the other is flat subduction at the bottom of the cratonic lithosphere. In the NCC, the eastern lithosphere was likely affected by subduction of the Izanagi slab during the Mesozoic, which would have perturbed the asthenosphere and the MTZ, and induced fluid migration beneath the NCC lithosphere. The upwelling fluid may largely have controlled the reworking of the NCC lithosphere. In order to discuss and analyze these two models further, it is crucial to understand the role of fluids in the subduction zone and the MTZ. Here, we systematically discuss phase transformations of hydrous minerals and the transport processes of water in the subduction system. Furthermore, we analyze possible modes of fluid activity and the problems to explore the applied feasibility of each model. In order to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms for thinning and destruction of cratonic lithosphere, we also consider four additional possible dynamic models: extension-induced lithospheric thinning, compression-induced lithospheric thickening and delamination, large-scale mantle convection and thermal erosion, and mantle plume erosion. Compared to the subduction-related models presented here, these four models are primarily controlled by the relatively simple and single process and mechanism (extension, compression, convection, and mantle plume, respectively), which could be the secondary driving mechanisms for the thinning and destruction of lithosphere.     

克拉通岩石圈对流减薄的数值模拟

采用二维有限元数值模拟的方法研究了岩石圈的对流减薄过程,特别是克拉通岩石圈的对流减薄过程.模型的主要参数包括增厚岩石圈的宽度x、增厚倍数γ、以及与岩石圈组分变化导致的黏性和密度变化密切相关的黏性比(ηc)和浮力数(B)或等效密度变化(Δρtc).数值计算结果显示,地幔对流将逐渐减薄增厚的岩石圈部分,(1)当B=0和ηc=1时,即对一般地幔岩石圈,增厚岩石圈对流减薄的时间可表示为0.0073γ0.70 x0.26.将数值结果应用于地球,意味着增厚到300km的岩石圈,如宽度为300km,对流移除增厚部分回到初始平衡厚度120km大约需要225 Ma;如宽度为1500km,移除增厚部分大约需要342 Ma.(2)当B和ηc较小,克拉通岩石圈对流减薄过程与一般加厚岩石圈的对流减薄过程类似,但减薄时间受克拉通组分浮力和黏性比的影响而显著增长,克拉通岩石圈对流减薄的时间可表示为0.0057ηc0.52Δρ-0.21tcγ0.78ηc-0.36 x0.04.因而,对300km厚的克拉通岩石圈,如克拉通岩石圈的密度比周围地幔的密度低0.4%(即B=0.1),宽度1500km,若克拉通岩石圈黏性因组分影响比普通地幔岩石圈大10倍,其被对流减薄到120km大约需要1.18Ga.(3)当B和ηc增大到一定量时(如B≥0.2且ηc10),克拉通岩石圈被移除的过程将发生变化,由于组分浮力的影响,对流主要不是将克拉通岩石圈带到软流圈地幔中,而主要是将较厚的岩石圈物质向两边推送.在此情况下,克拉通岩石圈能长时间(3Ga)保持稳定.     

Formation time of the big mantle wedge beneath eastern China and a new lithospheric thinning mechanism of the North China craton—Geodynamic effects of deep recycled carbon

High-resolution P wave tomography shows that the subducting Pacific slab is stagnant in the mantle transition zone and forms a big mantle wedge beneath eastern China. The Mg isotopic investigation of large numbers of mantle-derived volcanic rocks from eastern China has revealed that carbonates carried by the subducted slab have been recycled into the upper mantle and formed carbonated peridotite overlying the mantle transition zone, which becomes the sources of various basalts. These basalts display light Mg isotopic compositions(δ26 Mg = –0.60‰ to –0.30‰) and relatively low87 Sr/86 Sr ratios(0.70314–0.70564) with ages ranging from 106 Ma to Quaternary, suggesting that their mantle source had been hybridized by recycled magnesite with minor dolomite and their initial melting occurred at 300-360 km in depth. Therefore, the carbonate metasomatism of their mantle source should have occurred at the depth larger than 360 km, which means that the subducted slab should be stagnant in the mantle transition zone forming the big mantle wedge before 106 Ma. This timing supports the rollback model of subducting slab to form the big mantle wedge. Based on high P-T experiment results, when carbonated silicate melts produced by partial melting of carbonated peridotite was raising and reached the bottom(180–120 km in depth) of cratonic lithosphere in North China, the carbonated silicate melts should have 25–18 wt% CO2 contents, with lower Si O2 and Al2 O3 contents, and higher Ca O/Al2 O3 values, similar to those of nephelinites and basanites, and have higher εNdvalues(2 to 6). The carbonatited silicate melts migrated upward and metasomatized the overlying lithospheric mantle, resulting in carbonated peridotite in the bottom of continental lithosphere beneath eastern China. As the craton lithospheric geotherm intersects the solidus of carbonated peridotite at 130 km in depth, the carbonated peridotite in the bottom of cratonic lithosphere should be partially melted, thus its physical characters are similar to the asthenosphere and it could be easily replaced by convective mantle. The newly formed carbonated silicate melts will migrate upward and metasomatize the overlying lithospheric mantle. Similarly, such metasomatism and partial melting processes repeat, and as a result the cratonic lithosphere in North China would be thinning and the carbonated silicate partial melts will be transformed to high-Si O2 alkali basalts with lower εNdvalues(to-2). As the lithospheric thinning goes on,initial melting depth of carbonated peridotite must decrease from 130 km to close 70 km, because the craton geotherm changed to approach oceanic lithosphere geotherm along with lithospheric thinning of the North China craton. Consequently, the interaction between carbonated silicate melt and cratonic lithosphere is a possible mechanism for lithosphere thinning of the North China craton during the late Cretaceous and Cenozoic. Based on the age statistics of low δ26 Mg basalts in eastern China, the lithospheric thinning processes caused by carbonated metasomatism and partial melting in eastern China are limited in a timespan from 106 to25 Ma, but increased quickly after 25 Ma. Therefore, there are two peak times for the lithospheric thinning of the North China craton: the first peak in 135-115 Ma simultaneously with the cratonic destruction, and the second peak caused by interaction between carbonated silicate melt and lithosphere mainly after 25 Ma. The later decreased the lithospheric thickness to about70 km in the eastern part of North China craton.     

Experimental evidence for the exsolution of cratonic peridotite from high-temperature harzburgite

Phase equilibrium experiments were performed on typical ‘oceanic’ and ‘cratonic’ peridotite compositions and a Ca, Al-rich orthopyroxene composition, to test the proposal that garnet lherzolites exsolved from high-temperature harzburgites, and to further our understanding of the origin of ancient cratonic lithospheres. ‘Oceanic’ peridotites crystallize a garnet harzburgite assemblage at pressures above 5 GPa in the temperature range 1450–1600°C, but at 5 GPa and temperatures less than 1450°C, crystallize clinopyroxene to become true lherzolites. ‘Cratonic’ peridotites crystallize a garnet harzburgite assemblage at pressures above 5 GPa in the temperature range 1300–1600°C. Garnet-free harzburgite crystallizes from both ‘cratonic’ and ‘oceanic’ peridotite at temperatures above 1450°C and pressures below 4.5–5 GPa. Phase relations for the high Ca, Al-rich orthopyroxene composition essentially mirror those for ‘oceanic’ peridotite.The complete solution of garnet and clinopyroxene into orthopyroxene observed in all three starting compositions at temperatures near or above the mantle solidus at pressures less than 6 GPa supports the hypothesis that garnet lherzolite could have exsolved from harzburgite. The inferred cooling path for the original high-temperature harzburgite protoliths of garnet lherzolites differs depending on bulk composition. The precursor harzburgite protoliths of garnet lherzolites and harzburgites with ‘cratonic’ bulk compositions apparently experienced simple isobaric cooling from formation temperatures near the peridotite solidus to those at which most of these peridotites were sampled in the mantle (< 1200°C). The cooling histories for harzburgite protoliths of sheared garnet lherzolites with ‘oceanic’ compositional affinity are speculated to have involved convective circulation of mantle material to depths deeper than those at which it was originally formed.Phase equilibria and compositional relationships for orthopyroxenes produced in phase equilibrium experiments on peridotite and komatiite are consistent with an origin for ‘cratonic’ peridotite as a residue of Archean komatiite extraction, which has since cooled and exsolved clinopyroxene and garnet to become the common low-temperature, coarse-grained peridotite thought to comprise the bulk of the mantle lithosphere beneath the Archean Kaapvaal craton.     

塔里木克拉通形成以来的背景热史研究

塔里木盆地是一个典型大型叠合盆地,发育在太古代-早中元古代的结晶基底之上,具有稳定克拉通性质.现今地表热流为43mW·m^-2,平均地温梯度为21℃·km-1,莫霍面温度为550℃,较低的热流背景值指示塔里木盆地经历了一个长期冷却加厚的过程.然而对于这样一个长期冷却过程,之前的研究都只停留在显生宙阶段,并未获得塔里木显生宙以前的热史.本文以塔里木地区已有的地热数据作为约束,依据地幔动力学模型设置底部边界条件,利用正演拟合的方法,反演出塔里木的背景热史,填补了该区域古生代以前热史研究的空白.结果表明,塔里木克拉通自形成以来背景热流不断降低(由85mW·m^-2降至43mW·m^-2),岩石圈持续加厚(由130km加厚到190km),在长时间尺度下,塔里木克拉通总体的热演化模式为长期冷却加厚,这与世界上其他典型克拉通的热演化规律类似.显生宙以来受到短期局部的构造-热事件影响,塔里木克拉通在长期冷却的趋势下叠加了约20～40mW·m^-2的热扰动.     

Regionalized models for the thermal evolution of the Earth

Traditional models for the heat loss in oceanic and continental regions are combined into a regionalized model for the thermal evolution of the Earth. The need for regionalization is obvious when one considers that the mantle loses 3 to 4 times as much heat per unit area in oceanic regions than in continental areas. The present-day rate of heat loss together with a geochemical estimate of the concentration of heat-producing elements in the Earth fixes the response time of the thermally convecting mantle. The response time in turn can be used to select the most reasonable representation for mantle convection in terms of the sensitivity of viscosity on temperature and layering versus mantle-wide circulation. Present geochemical estimates of the bulk composition of the Earth are most easily reconciled with the observed heat flow if the mantle is layered and its rheology is slightly less temperature dependent than generally assumed. The layered system can produce sufficiently high temperatures to explain the high-magnesian komatiites of the Archean. One difficulty with the models is that they predict widespread melting at shallow depth in the early stages of Earth history but do not address how such melting affects and alters the heat transfer mechanisms.     

Thinning and destruction of the cratonic lithosphere:A global perspective

It has been proposed that the North China Craton(NCC)was thinned up to a thickness of100 km during the Phanerozoic,and underwent an associated craton destruction.Evidently,it is an important topic worthy of future study to understanding the mechanism of cratonic destruction and its role played in the continental evolution.After synthesized the global cratons of India,Brazil,South Africa,Siberia,East Europe(Baltic)and North America,we found that lithospheric thinning is common in the cratonic evolution,but it is not always associated with craton destruction.Most cratons was thinned by thermal erosion of mantle plume or mantle upwelling,which,however,may not cause craton destruction.Based on the studies of the North American and North China Cratons,we suggest that oceanic subduction plays an important role in caton destruction.Fluids or melts released by dehydration of the subducted slabs metasomatize the mantle wedge above and trigger extensive partial melting.More importantly,the metasomatized mantle lost its original rigidity and make craton easier to be deformed and then to be destoyed.Therefore,we suggest that the widespread crust-derived granite and large-scale ductile deformation within the continental crust can be regarded as the petrological and structural indicators of craton destruction,respectively.     

A review on developments in the electrical structure of craton lithosphere

Cratons have a long history of evolution. In this paper, applications of the magnetotelluric method used in the study of craton lithosphere over the past 30 years were reviewed, examining case studies of cratons in North America, South America, Asia, Australia, and Africa. The nuclei of the Archean cratons, for example the Kalahari Craton and Rae Craton, are usually characterized by thick and highly resistive lithospheric roots. During or after the formation of the cratons, tectonothermal events, such as collision, mantle plume, and asthenosphere upwelling led to the formation of high-conductivity zones in the craton lithosphere, which could be attributed to the increased hydrogen content (of nominally anhydrous minerals), higher iron content, and formation of graphite films or sulfides along the grain boundary of minerals. These conductive zones are characterized by resistivity discontinuities in craton lithosphere. In particular, the conductive zones include (1) large-scale lithospheric mantle conductors beneath the Slave Craton, Gawler Craton, and central part of North China Craton(Trans-North China Orogen); (2) near-vertical high-conductivity zone associated with the fossil subduction zone beneath the Dharwar Craton and Slave Craton; and (3) regional lateral electrical discontinuities, such as a conductive anomaly under the Bushveld Complex of the Kaapvaal Craton. The eMoho refers to the electrical discontinuity in the crust-mantle boundary. In existing research, this has been detected under the condition of extremely high lithospheric resistivity with only a slight decrease in the lower crust, and in the case of a very thin conductive lower crust or the lack thereof. In the resistivity model, the unique “mushroom-like” lower crust-lithosphere mantle conductor and very thin lower crust layer of the North China Craton may represent lithosphere destruction and/or thinning. We also find that some of the cratons are still not well understood. Therefore, extensive three-dimensional inversion and joint interpretation of geochemical, geophysical, and geologic data are necessary to understand the tectonic evolutionary history of craton lithosphere.

     

Effective elastic thicknesses of the lithosphere in the Central Iberian Peninsula from heat flow: Implications for the rheology of the continental lithospheric mantle

The traditional view of the rheology of the continental lithosphere, sometimes known as the “jelly sandwich model”, consists of a strong upper crust, a weak lower crust, and a strong upper lithospheric mantle. Some authors argue, however, that the lithospheric mantle is weak and contributes little to the total strength and the effective elastic thickness of the lithosphere; this weakness is claimed to be due to the mantle being wet or subjected to temperatures higher than usually believed. This paper uses the relationship between rheology of the lithosphere and heat flow to calculate theoretical effective elastic thicknesses for three regions of the central Iberian Peninsula (the Duero Basin, the Spanish Central System and the Tajo Basin), taking into account the contribution of the crust and the lithospheric mantle, for dry and wet rheologies. We found that a wet peridotite rheology for the lithospheric mantle is generally consistent with independent (based on Bouguer coherence or flexural modeling) estimates of the effective elastic thickness for the study area, whereas a dry peridotite rheology cannot be reconciled with them. Moreover, the contribution of the mantle to the bending moment of the lithosphere, and therefore to both the effective elastic thickness and the total strength of the lithosphere, is important, and it may even be the dominant contribution. Therefore, the jelly sandwich model may be considered valid for the central Iberian Peninsula.