Pre-Cenozoic intra-plate magmatism along the Central Andes (17–34°S): Composition of the mantle at an active margin

Sr–Nd–Pb isotope ratios of alkaline mafic intra-plate magmatism constrain the isotopic compositions of the lithospheric mantle along what is now the eastern foreland or back arc of the Cenozoic Central Andes (17–34°S). Most small-volume basanite volcanic rocks and alkaline intrusive rocks of Cretaceous (and rare Miocene) age were derived from a depleted lithospheric mantle source with rather uniform initial ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ( 0.5127–0.5128) and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ( 0.7032–0.7040). The initial ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios are variable (18.5–19.7) at uniform ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios (15.60 ± 0.05). A variety of the Cretaceous depleted mantle source of the magmatic rocks shows elevated Sr isotope ratios up to 0.707 at constant high Nd isotope ratios. The variable Sr and Pb isotope ratios are probably due to radiogenic growth in a metasomatized lithospheric mantle, which represents the former sub-arc mantle beneath the early Palaeozoic active continental margin. Sr–Nd–Pb isotope signatures of a second mantle type reflected in the composition of Cretaceous (one late Palaeozoic age) intra-plate magmatic rocks (¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd  0.5123, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr  0.704, ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb  17.5–18.5, and ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb  15.45–15.50) are similar to the isotopic composition of old sub-continental lithospheric mantle of the Brazilian Shield.

Published Nd and Sr isotopic compositions of Mesozoic to Cenozoic arc-related magmatic rocks (18–40°S) represent the composition of the convective sub-arc mantle in the Central Andes and are similar to those of the Cretaceous (and rare Miocene) intra-plate magmatic rocks. The dominant convective and lithospheric mantle type beneath this old continental margin is depleted mantle, which is compositionally different from average MORB-type depleted mantle. The old sub-continental lithospheric mantle did not contribute to Mesozoic to Cenozoic arc magmatism.     

TECTONIC EVOLUTION OF THE EOCENE DROSH-VOLCANO-SEDIMENTARY BASIN IN NW-KOHISTAN ISLAND ARC TERRANE, HINDUKUSH, N. PAKISTAN

In NW Himalayas, the suture zone between the collided Indian and the Karakoram plates is occupied by crust of the Cretaceous Kohistan Island\|Arc Terrane [1] . Late Cretaceous (about 90Ma) accretion with the southern margin of the Karakoram Plate at the site of the Shyok Suture Zone turned Kohistan to become an Andean\|type margin. The Neotethys was completely subducted at the southern margin of Kohistan by Early Tertiary, leading to collision between Kohistan and continental crust of the Indian plate at the site of the Main mantle thrust.More than 80% of the Kohistan terrane comprises plutonic rocks of (1) ultramafic to gabbroic composition forming the basal crust of the intra\|oceanic stage of the island arc, and (2) tonalite\|granodiorite\|granite composition belong to the Kohistan Batholith occupying much of the intermediate to shallow crust of the terrane mostly intruded in the Andean\|type margin stage [2] . Both these stages of subduction\|related magmatism were associated with volcanic and sedimentary rocks formed in Late Cretaceous and Early Tertiary basins. This study addresses tectonic configuration of Early Tertiary Drosh basin exposed in NW parts of the Kohistan terrane, immediately to the south of the Shyok Suture Zone.     

Lead isotope evolution of the Central European upper mantle:Constraints from the Bohemian Massif

The Pb isotope composition of the upper mantle beneath Central Europe is heterogeneous due to the subduction of regionally contrasting material during the Variscan and Alpine orogenies.Late Variscan to Cenozoic mantlederived melts allow mapping this heterogeneity on a regional scale for the last ca.340 Myr.Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic anorogenic magmatic rocks of the Bohemian Massif(lamprophyres,volcanic rocks of basanite/tephrite and trachyte/phonolite series) concentrate mostly in the Eger Rift.Cretaceous ultramafic lamprophyres yielded the most radiogenic Pb isotope signatures reflecting a maximum contribution from metasomatised lithospheric mantle,whereas Tertiary alkaline lamprophyres originated from mantle with less radiogenic ~(206)Pb/~(204)b ratios suggesting a more substantial modification of lithospheric source by interaction with asthenosphericderived melts.Cenozoic volcanic rocks of the basanite/tephrite and trachyte/phonolite series define a linear mixing trend between these components,indicating dilution of the initial lithospheric mantle signature by upwelling asthenosphere during rifting.The Pb isotope composition of Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic magmatic rocks of the Bohemian Massif follows the same Pb growth curve as Variscan orogenic lamprophyres and lamproites that formed during the collision between Laurussia,Gondwana,and associated terranes.This implies that the crustal Pb signature in the post-Variscan mantle is repeatedly sampled by younger anorogenic melts.Most Cenozoic mantle-derived rocks of Central Europe show similar Pb isotope ranges as the Bohemian Massif.     

Cenozoic continental arc magmatism and associated mineralization in Ecuador

Most of the economic ore deposits of Ecuador are porphyry-Cu and epithermal style gold deposits associated with Tertiary continental arc magmatism. This study presents major and trace element geochemistry, as well as radiogenic isotope (Pb, Sr) signatures, of continental arc magmatic rocks of Ecuador of Eocene to Late Miocene (~50–9 Ma, ELM) and Late Miocene to Recent (~8–0 Ma, LMR) ages. The most primitive ELM and LMR rocks analyzed consistently display similar trace element and isotopic signatures suggesting a common origin, most likely an enriched MORB-type mantle. In contrast, major and trace element geochemistry, as well as radiogenic isotope systematics of the whole sets of ELM and LMR samples, indicate strikingly different evolutions between ELM and LMR rocks. The ELM rocks have consistently low Sr/Y, increasing Rb/Sr, and decreasing Eu/Gd with SiO₂, suggesting an evolution through plagioclase-dominated fractional crystallization at shallow crustal levels (<20 km). The LMR rocks display features of adakite-type magmas (high Sr/Y, low Yb, low Rb/Sr) and increasing Eu/Gd and Gd/Lu ratios with SiO₂. We explain the adakite-type geochemistry of LMR rocks, rather than by slab melting, by a model in which mantle-derived melts partially melt and assimilate residual garnet-bearing mafic lithologies at deeper levels than those of plagioclase stability (i.e., >20 km), and most likely at sub-crustal levels (>40–50 km). The change in geochemical signatures of Tertiary magmatic rocks of Ecuador from the ELM- to the LMR-type coincides chronologically with the transition from a transpressional to a compressional regime that occurred at ~9 Ma and has been attributed by other investigations to the onset of subduction of the aseismic Carnegie ridge.The major districts of porphyry-Cu and epithermal deposits of Ecuador (which have a small size, <<200 Mt, when compared to their Central Andean counterparts) are spatially and temporally associated with ELM magmatic rocks. No significant porphyry-Cu and epithermal deposits (except the epithermal high-sulfidation mineralization of Quimsacocha) appear to be associated with Late Miocene-Recent (LMR, ~8–0 Ma) magmatic rocks. The apparent infertility of LMR magmas seems to be at odds with the association of major porphyry-Cu/epithermal deposits of the Central Andes with magmatic rocks having adakite-type geochemical signatures similar to LMR rocks. The paucity of porphyry-Cu/epithermal deposits associated with LMR rocks might be only apparent and bound to exposure level, or real and bound (among other possibilities) to the lack of development of shallow crustal magmatic chambers since ~9 Ma as a result of a prolonged compressional regime in the Ecuadorian crust. More work is needed to understand the actual metallogenic potential of LMR rocks in Ecuador.Editorial handling: J. Richards     

冈底斯岩浆弧的形成与演化

位于青藏高原南部的冈底斯岩浆弧是新特提斯大洋岩石圈长期俯冲导致的中生代岩浆作用的产物,而且在印度与亚洲大陆碰撞过程中叠加了强烈的新生代岩浆作用,是世界上典型的复合型大陆岩浆弧,也是研究增生与碰撞造山作用和大陆地壳生长与再造的天然实验室。基于岩浆、变质和成矿作用研究成果,我们将冈底斯弧的形成与演化历史划分5期,即新特提斯洋早期俯冲、新特提斯洋中脊俯冲、新特提斯洋晚期俯冲、印度-亚洲大陆碰撞和后碰撞期。第1期发生在晚白垩世之前,是以新特提斯洋岩石圈的长期俯冲、地幔楔部分熔融形成钙碱性弧岩浆岩为特征。长期的幔源岩浆作用导致了整个冈底斯弧发生显著的新生地壳生长,并在岩浆弧西部形成了一个大型的与俯冲相关的斑岩型铜矿。第2期发生在晚白垩世,活动的新特提斯洋中脊发生俯冲,软流软圈沿板片窗上涌,使上升的软流圈、地幔楔和俯冲洋壳发生部分熔融,导致了强烈的幔源岩浆作用和显著的新生地壳生长与加厚,并以不同类型和不同成分岩浆岩的同时发育和伴随的高温变质作用为特征。第3期发生在晚白垩世晚期,为新特提斯洋脊俯冲后残余大洋岩石圈的俯冲期,以正常的弧型岩浆作用为特征。第4期发生在古新世至中始新世,伴随印度与亚洲大陆的碰撞,俯冲的新特提斯洋岩石圈回转和断离引起软流圈上涌,诱发了强烈的幔源岩浆作用。在此阶段,大陆碰撞导致的地壳挤压缩短和幔源岩浆的底侵与增生,使冈底斯弧经历了显著的地壳生长和加厚,新生和古老加厚下地壳的高压、高温变质和部分熔融,幔源和壳源岩浆岩的共生和强烈的岩浆混合。所形成的I型花岗岩大多继承了新生地壳弧型岩浆岩的化学成分,并多显出埃达克岩的地球化学特征。在岩浆弧北部形成了一系列与起源于古老地壳花岗岩相关的Pb-Zn矿床。第5期发生在晚渐新世到早-中中新世的后碰撞挤压过程中,以地壳的继续加厚,加厚下地壳的高温变质、部分熔融和埃达克质岩石的形成为特征。在岩浆弧东段南部形成了一系列与起源于新生加厚下地壳埃达克质岩石相关的斑岩型Cu-Au-Mo矿。冈底斯带的多期岩浆、变质与成矿作用为其从新特提斯洋俯冲到印度-亚洲大陆碰撞的构造演化提供了重要限定。     

冈底斯弧的岩浆作用：从新特提斯俯冲到印度亚洲碰撞

位于青藏高原南部的冈底斯岩浆弧形成于中生代新特提斯大洋岩石圈的长期俯冲过程中,而且在印度与亚洲大陆碰撞过程中叠加了强烈的新生代岩浆作用,是世界上典型的复合型大陆岩浆弧,已经成为研究汇聚板块边缘岩浆作用和大陆地壳生长与再造的天然实验室。基于对现有研究成果的总结,我们将冈底斯岩浆弧的岩浆构造演化划分为5个阶段：第1阶段发生在晚白垩世之前,以新特提斯洋岩石圈长期正常俯冲和钙碱性弧岩浆岩的发育为特征;第2阶段发生在晚白垩世时期,以活动的新特提斯洋中脊发生俯冲和强烈的岩浆作用与显著的新生地壳生长为特征;第3阶段发生在晚白垩世晚期,以残余的新特提斯大洋岩石圈俯冲和正常弧型岩浆作用为特征;第4阶段发生在古新世至中始新世,以印度与亚洲大陆碰撞、俯冲的新特提斯洋岩石圈回转和断离,及其诱发的幔源岩浆作用、新生和古老地壳的强烈再造为特征;第5阶段为发生在晚渐新世到中中新世的后碰撞阶段,深俯冲印度岩石圈的回转和断离,或加厚岩石圈地幔的对流移去导致了加厚下地壳的部分熔融和埃达克质岩石的广泛发育,同时伴随幔源钾质超钾质岩浆作用。冈底斯弧岩浆作用与岩浆成分的系统时空变化很好地记录了从新特提斯洋俯冲到印度亚洲大陆碰撞的完整构造演化过程。     

Geochemical and isotopic characteristics and evolution of the Jurassic volcanic arc between Arica (18°30′S) and Tocopilla (22°S), North Chilean Coastal Cordillera

The present-day North Chilean Coastal Cordillera between 18°30′S and 22°S records an important part of the magmatic evolution of the Central Andes during the Jurassic. Calc-alkaline to subordinate tholeiitic members from four rock groups with biostratigraphically constrained age display incompatible element pattern characteristic of convergent plate-margin volcanism, whereas alkaline basalts of one group occurring in the Precordillera show OIB-type trace element signatures. The correlation of biostratigraphic ages, regional distribution, and composition of the volcanic rocks provides a basis for the discussion on geochemical evolution and isotope ratios.Major and trace element distributions of the volcanic rocks indicate their derivation from mantle-derived melts. LILE and LREE enrichments in calc-alkaline basaltic andesites to dacites and some of the tholeiites hint at the involvement of hydrous fluids during melting and mobile element transport processes. A part of the Early Bajocian to ?Lower Jurassic and Oxfordian andesites and dacites are adakite-like rocks with a substantial participation of slab melt and are characterized by high Sr/Y ratios and low HREE contents. The Middle Jurassic tholeiitic and calc-alkaline basalts and basaltic andesites have been transported and partly stored within a system of deep-seated feeder fissures and crustal strike-slip faults before eruption.The isotopic composition of Sr (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_i=0.7032-0.7056) and Nd (εNd_i=2.2-7.1) of the Jurassic volcanic rocks mostly fall in the range characteristic for mantle melts although some crustal components may have been involved. A few samples show slightly more radiogenic Sr isotopic composition, which is probably due to interaction with ancient sea-water. The Pb isotopic composition of the arc rocks is uncoupled from the isotopic composition of Sr and Nd and is dominated by the crustal component. Since the Cretaceous and Modern arc volcanic rocks show Pb isotopic compositions that can be largely explained by in situ Pb isotope growth of Jurassic arc volcanic rocks, we argue that the various Andean arc systems between 18°30′S and 22°S formed on the same type of basement.Most of the investigated samples have high Ba, Zr, and Th concentrations compared to island arc mafic volcanic rocks. About 20% of the Jurassic arc volcanics comprise of dacitic to rhyolitic rocks. These characteristics combined with the Pb isotopic composition that shows the influence of a Palaeozoic (or partly older) basement point to a continental margin setting for the North Chilean Jurassic arc. The distribution of the magmatic rocks throughout time, their textures, and the character of intercalated sedimentary rocks reflect westward movement of the magma sources and of the arc/back-arc boundary relative to the current coast line during the Early Bajocian on a broad front between 19°30′ and 21°S.     

Sn, B and Pb-Zn Skarn, Vein and Disseminated Deposits in the East Sikhote–Alin, Russia

Abstract: Sn, B and Pb-Zn skarn, vein and disseminated deposits occur in the eastern part of Sikhote-Alin fold system associated with the late Cretaceous-earliest Paleogene volcano-plutonic complexes, which are products of a continental margin-type subduction along the East Sikhote-Alin belt. There are two metallogenic zones where the ore deposits are concentrated. The Taukha metallogenic zone combining B and Pb-Zn skarn, vein and disseminated deposits occurs on the main volcanic chain along the Japan Sea coast. Late Cretaceous-earliest Paleogene calc-alkaline plutonic and volcanic rocks of magnetite series predominate here. Volcanic rocks overlie on the lower Cretaceous Taukha terrane which consists of abundant olistostromes with numerous olistoliths of Triassic limestones. During the middle-late Cretaceous time, an ignimbrite erupted and formed a huge borosilicate skarn deposit. A later subduction related volcanism of the late Cretaceous-earliest Paleogene stage (70–55 Ma) was predominated by andesites and rhyodacites. Many Pb-Zn skarn and vein deposits were formed. Sulfur isotope compositions of galena in the B and Pb-Zn deposits of the Taukha metallogenic zone vary from –1. 3 to +2. 0%, averaging 0% in the δ³⁴S.     

Cretaceous extensional and compressional tectonics in the Northwestern Andes,prior to the collision with the Caribbean oceanic plateau

The Cretaceous units exposed in the northwestern segment of the Colombian Andes preserve the record of extensional and compressional tectonics prior to the collision with Caribbean oceanic terranes. We integrated field, stratigraphic, sedimentary provenance, whole rock geochemistry, Nd isotopes and U-Pb zircon data to understand the Cretaceous tectonostratigraphic and magmatic record of the Colombian Andes. The results suggest that several sedimentary successions including the Abejorral Fm. were deposited on top of the continental basement in an Early Cretaceous backarc basin (150–100 Ma). Between 120 and 100 Ma, the appearance of basaltic and andesitic magmatism (~115–100 Ma), basin deepening, and seafloor spreading were the result of advanced stages of backarc extension. A change to compressional tectonics took place during the Late Cretaceous (100–80 Ma). During this compressional phase, the extended blocks were reincorporated into the margin, closing the former Early Cretaceous backarc basin. Subsequently, a Late Cretaceous volcanic arc was built on the continental margin; as a result, the volcanic rocks of the Quebradagrande Complex were unconformably deposited on top of the faulted and folded rocks of the Abejorral Fm. Between the Late Cretaceous and the Paleocene (80–60 Ma), an arc-continent collision between the Caribbean oceanic plateau and the South-American continental margin deformed the rocks of the Quebradagrande Complex and shut-down the active volcanic arc. Our results suggest an Early Cretaceous extensional event followed by compressional tectonics prior to the collision with the Caribbean oceanic plateau.     

The Western Mediterranean lamproitic magmatism: origin and geodynamic significance

Ultrapotassic lamproitic rocks in the Western Alps, Tuscany‐Corsica and SE Spain (c. 30 to 1 Ma) show high MgO, Ni and Cr denoting a mantle origin, but also have incompatible element and radiogenic isotope abundances that resemble upper crustal rocks, such as local metapelites and global subducting sediments. The coexistence of mantle and crustal signatures in lamproites indicates a genesis in a lithospheric mantle, which had been contaminated by crustal rocks. The occurrence of lamproitic magmatism along the Alpine collision front suggests that mantle contamination occurred during east‐verging Cretaceous‐Oligocene subduction of the European plate beneath the African margin. We suggest that crustal material originated from the overriding continental margin, which was eroded by the low‐angle subducting European slab. Mantle melting and generation of lamproites took place later, during diachronous opening of Western Mediterranean basins, contemporaneously with a new cycle of magmatism, which was genetically related to the west‐north‐dipping Apennine‐Maghrebian subduction.     

The late Cretaceous lithospheric mantle beneath the Central Andes: Evidence from phase equilibria and composition of mantle xenoliths

Temperature estimates and chemical composition of mantle xenoliths from the Cretaceous rift system of NW Argentina (26°S) constrain the rift evolution and chemical and physical properties of the lithospheric mantle at the eastern edge of the Cenozoic Andean plateau. The xenolith suite comprises mainly spinel lherzolite and subordinate pyroxenite and carbonatized lherzolite. The spinel lherzolite xenoliths equilibrated at high-T (most samples >1000 °C) and P below garnet-in. The Sm–Nd systematics of compositionally unzoned clino- and orthopyroxene indicate a Cretaceous minimum age for the high-T regime, i.e., the asthenosphere/lithosphere thermal boundary was at ca. 70 km depth in the Cretaceous rift. Major elements and Cr, Ni, Co and V contents of the xenoliths range between values of primitive and depleted mantle. Calculated densities based on the bulk composition of the xenoliths are <3280 kg/m³ for the estimated P–T conditions and indicate a buoyant, stable upper mantle lithosphere. The well-equilibrated metamorphic fabric and mineral paragenesis with the general lack of high-T hydrous phases did not preserve traces of metasomatism in the mantle xenoliths. Late Mesozoic metasomatism, however, is obvious in the gradual enrichment of Sr, U, Th and light to medium REE and changes in the radiogenic isotope composition of an originally depleted mantle. These changes are independent of the degree of depletion evidenced by major element composition. ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd_i ratios of clinopyroxene from the main group of xenoliths decrease with increasing Nd content from >0.5130 (depleted samples) to ca. 0.5127 (enriched samples). ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_i ratios (0.7127–0.7131, depleted samples; 0.7130–0.7134, enriched samples) show no variation with variable Sr contents. Pb_i isotope ratios of the enriched samples are rather radiogenic (²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb_i 18.8–20.6, ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb_i 15.6–15.7, ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb_i 38.6–47) compared with the Pb isotope signature of the depleted samples. The large scatter and high values of ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb_i ratios of many xenoliths indicates at least two Pb sources that are characterized by similar U/Pb but by different Th/Pb ratios. The dominant mantle type in the investigated system is depleted mantle according to its Sr and Nd isotopic composition with relatively radiogenic Pb isotope ratios. This mantle is different from the Pacific MORB source and old subcontinental mantle from the adjacent Brazilian Shield. Its composition probably reflects material influx into the mantle wedge during various episodes of subduction that commenced in early Paleozoic or even earlier. Old subcontinental mantle was already replaced in the Paleozoic, but some inheritance from old mantle lithosphere is represented by rare xenoliths with isotope signatures indicating a Proterozoic origin.     

长江中下游中生代安山质火山岩记录的新元古代大洋板片-地幔相互作用

大陆弧安山岩的形成是大洋板片向大陆边缘之下俯冲的结果,但是在具体形成机制上存在很大争议.针对这个问题,对长江中下游地区中生代安山质火山岩及其伴生的玄武质和英安质火山岩进行了系统的岩石地球化学研究,结果对大陆弧安山质火成岩的成因提出了新的机制.分析表明,这些岩石形成于早白垩世,它们不仅表现出典型的岛弧型微量元素分布特征,而且具有高度富集的Sr-Nd-Hf同位素和高的放射成因Pb以及高的氧同位素组成.通过全岩和矿物地球化学成分变化检查发现,地壳混染和岩浆混合作用对其成分的富集特征贡献有限,而其岩浆源区含有丰富的俯冲地壳衍生物质才是其成分富集的根本原因.虽然这些火山岩的喷发年龄为中生代,但是其岩浆源区形成于新元古代早期的华夏洋壳俯冲对扬子克拉通边缘之下地幔楔的交代作用.大陆弧安山岩地幔源区中含有大量俯冲洋壳沉积物部分熔融产生的含水熔体,显著区别于大洋弧玄武岩的地幔源区,其中只含有少量俯冲洋壳来源的富水溶液和含水熔体.正是这些含水熔体交代上覆地幔楔橄榄岩,形成了不同程度富集的超镁铁质-镁铁质地幔源区.在早白垩纪时期,古太平洋俯冲过程的远弧后拉张导致中国东部岩石圈发生部分熔融,其中超镁铁质地幔源区熔融形成玄武质火山岩,镁铁质地幔源区则熔融形成安山质火山岩.因此,大陆弧安山岩成因与大洋弧玄武岩一样,可分为源区形成和源区熔融两个阶段,其中第一阶段对应于俯冲带壳幔相互作用.      

Petrochemical constraints for dual origin of garnet peridotites from the Dabie-Sulu UHP terrane, eastern-central China

Garnet peridotites occur as lenses, blocks or layers within granulite–amphibolite facies gneiss in the Dabie-Sulu ultra-high-pressure (UHP) terrane and contain coesite-bearing eclogite. Two distinct types of garnet peridotite were identified based on mode of occurrence and petrochemical characteristics. Type A mantle-derived peridotites originated from either: (1) the mantle wedge above a subduction zone, (2) the footwall mantle of the subducted slab, or (3) were ancient mantle fragments emplaced at crustal depths prior to UHP metamorphism, whereas type B crustal peridotite and pyroxenite are a portion of mafic–ultramafic complexes that were intruded into the continental crust as magmas prior to subduction. Most type A peridotites were derived from a depleted mantle and exhibit petrochemical characteristics of mantle rocks; however, Sr and Nd isotope compositions of some peridotites have been modified by crustal contamination during subduction and/or exhumation. Type B peridotite and pyroxenite show cumulate structure, and some have experienced crustal metasomatism and contamination documented by high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios (0.707–0.708), low ε_Nd( t ) values (−6 to −9) and low δ¹⁸O values of minerals (+2.92 to +4.52). Garnet peridotites of both types experienced multi-stage recrystallization; some of them record prograde histories. High- P–T  estimates (760–970 °C and 4.0–6.5±0.2 GPa) of peak metamorphism indicate that both mantle-derived and crustal ultramafic rocks were subducted to profound depths >100 km (the deepest may be ≥180–200 km) and experienced UHP metamorphism in a subduction zone with an extremely low geothermal gradient of <5 °C km⁻¹.     

A 3.1 billion year old marble and the 87Sr/86Sr of late-Archean seawater

A marble band in the ≈ 2.75 Gyr old Ramagiri schist belt in the Dharwar craton of south India gave a Pb–Pb age of 3.075 ± 0.095 Gyr. The geochemical data, including high Sr and low Ba and Mn indicate seawater origin for the parent rock, and that there was insignificant geochemical exchange between the marble and the surrounding rocks. The calculated initial Nd isotopic composition and μ₁ indicate an older continental crustal source for the Nd and Pb. The initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr of the marble is 0.70128, which is higher than the calculated mantle value at ≈ 3 Ga. Although pre-3 Gyr old marine carbonate rocks are thought to be buffered by mantle Sr, the Ramagiri marble contains evolved, crustal Sr. Despite this, the marble has the lowest measured ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr among carbonates and represents one of the least radiogenic periods in seawater Sr isotope composition.     

The lower crust beneath cratonic north-east Europe: isotopic constraints from garnet granulite xenoliths

Lower crustal garnet-bearing mafic granulite xenoliths from beneath the cratonic areas of NE Europe (NW Russia, Belarus, Finland) have unradiogenic ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios that differ strongly from those of xenoliths from beneath Phanerozoic regions of the European plate and worldwide, but closely resemble xenoliths from other cratonic regions of the world. Phanerozoic lower crustal xenoliths worldwide also show a very limited range of Pb isotope compositions whereas most cratonic lower crustal xenoliths have more varied but usually unradiogenic Pb isotope compositions, plotting to the left of the Geochron. However, many of the xenoliths from beneath NE Europe plot on the right-hand side of the Geochron and also have more radiogenic ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios. Thus, the lower crust of NE Europe shows characteristics of both cratonic lower crust (unradiogenic Nd isotopes) and Phanerozoic lower crust (radiogenic Pb isotopes). Its present-day low U/Pb and Th/Pb ratios indicate that it has been depleted in heat-producing elements, but the radiogenic Pb isotope ratios show that this depletion occurred relatively recently.     

Cenozoic Italian magmatism – Isotope constraints for possible plume-related activity

Assessment of the isotope systematics and the magmatotectonic history of mainly Cenozoic igneous rocks from Italy shows them to be inconsistent with subduction-related magmatism. We attempt to fit these data into an alternative model involving long-term, recurrent plume activity that extended over a period of about 100 Ma, that involved mantle expansion and subsequent mixing between isotopically-distinct, mantle components. Sr, Nd and Pb isotopic compositions of Cenozoic Italian igneous rocks, rather than being random, reflect binary mixing involving a common end-member similar to FOZO. Most isotopic data from along the entire length of Italy, from the Aeolian Islands to the Alpine belt, define a Main Italian Radiogenic Trend (MIRT), characterized by mixing between FOZO and a highly radiogenic Sr, mantle end-member (ITEM, ITalian Enriched Mantle). Data from the Adria foreland, Sicily and the south-western Tyrrhenian Sea and Sardinia deviate from MIRT suggesting mixing with other components, perhaps HIMU and EM1. Both the absence of pure DMM, and the presence of isotopic end-members not recognized in present-day consuming-plate margins are incompatible with subduction-related models. Two models are discussed, one in which ITEM is attributed to melting of pre-Alpine sediments/upper continental crust entrained in a FOZO-like mantle and the other to widespread metasomatic activity involving deep-seated plume activity. In the latter, the widespread nature of FOZO is attributed to a late Triassic–early Jurassic plume that preceded the opening of the Alpine Tethys and led to modification of the lithosphere and/or asthenosphere. Late Jurassic–early Cretaceous plume activity produced mantle expansion and the opening of the Alpine Tethys. A new phase of plume activity started during the Oligocene with the opening of the western and central Mediterranean Basins. Stretching and large-scale extension of the Mediterranean lithosphere was caused by the progressive eastward growth and volume increase of a plume head trapped within the Transition Zone. Plume-generated fluids/melts enriched in K–Ca–CO₂–H₂O, produced mantle sources capable of generating widespread alkaline, mafic, and carbonatitic magmatism. Lithospheric unloading controlled the Tyrrhenian and peri-Tyrrhenian magmatic activity.     

华北陆块北缘哈毕力格铀矿床S、Pb同位素组成及对成矿作用的指示

哈毕力格铀矿床位于华北陆块北缘中段,主要受乌兰哈达—猴儿山背斜和区内断裂控制。铀矿化主要产于新太古界乌拉山群第二岩段石英岩中,一直被认为是变质成因铀矿床。在分析该矿床成矿地质背景和矿化特征的基础上,系统研究了矿石与围岩中黄铁矿的硫、铅同位素特征。数据表明,硫同位素组成变化于-4.7‰~12.9‰之间,暗示成矿流体主要来自岩浆热液,同时遭受了地层物质的混染。铅同位素组成(²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=36.147~42.968,²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=15.919~34.268, ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=19.488~168.032)远高于单阶段演化模式组成,不同样品的²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb-²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb线性关系良好,为典型的二阶段铅同位素演化体系,表明变质地层为成矿作用提供了铀源。通过放射性²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb计算,结合区域岩浆演化,认为古元古代(~1 805 Ma)区域变质作用促使乌拉山群铀发生初步富集,晚古生代(374 Ma)花岗闪长质岩浆分异出大量流体活化萃取变质地层中的铀,在有利构造空间富集成矿。     

Pressure–temperature conditions and retrograde paths of eclogites, garnet–glaucophane rocks and schists from South Sulawesi, Indonesia

High-pressure metamorphic rocks exposed in the Bantimala area, c . 40  km north-east of Ujung Pandang, were formed as a Cretaceous subduction complex with fault-bounded slices of melange, chert, basalt, turbidite, shallow-marine sedimentary rocks and ultrabasic rocks. Eclogites, garnet–glaucophane rocks and schists of the Bantimala complex have estimated peak temperatures of T  =580–630 °C at 18  kbar and T  =590–640 °C at 24  kbar, using the garnet–clinopyroxene geothermometer. The garnet–omphacite–phengite equilibrium is used to estimate pressures. The distribution coefficient K _D1=[( X _pyr)³( X _grs)⁶/( X _di)⁶]/[(Al/Mg)_M2,wm (Al/Si)_T2,wm]³ among omphacite, garnet and phengite is a good index for metamorphic pressures. The K _D1values of the Bantimala eclogites were compared with those of eclogites with reliable P–T  estimates. This comparison suggests that peak pressures of the Bantimala eclogites were P =18–24  kbar at T  =580–640 °C. These results are consistent with the P–T  range calculated using garnet–rutile–epidote–quartz and lawsonite–omphacite–glaucophane–epidote equilibria.     

Modeling of subduction components in the Genesis of the Meso-Cenozoic igneous rocks from the South Shetland Arc, Antarctica

Isotope data and trace elements concentrations are presented for volcanic and plutonic rocks from the Livingston, Greenwich, Robert, King George and Ardley islands (South Shetland arc, Antarctica). These islands were formed during subduction of the Phoenix Plate under the Antarctica Plate from Cretaceous to Tertiary. Isotopically (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_o ratios vary from 0.7033 to 0.7046 and (¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd)_o ratios from 0.5127 to 0.5129. εNd values vary from +2.71 to +7.30 that indicate asthenospheric mantle source for the analysed samples. ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios vary from 38.12 to 38.70, ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios are between 15.49 and 15.68, and ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb from 18.28 to 18.81. The South Shetland rocks are thought to be derived from a depleted MORB mantle source (DMM) modified by mixtures of two enriched mantle components such as slab-derived melts and/or fluids and small fractions of oceanic sediment (EM I and EM II). The isotopic compositions of the subduction component can be explained by mixing between at least 4 wt.% of sediment and 96 wt.% of melts and/or fluids derived from altered MORB.     

Sr–Nd–Pb isotopic compositions of the Kovdor phoscorite–carbonatite complex, Kola Peninsula, NW Russia

The Sr, Nd and Pb isotopic compositions for the Kovdor phoscorite–carbonatite complex (PCC), Kola Peninsula, NW Russia, have been determined to characterize the mantle sources involved and to evaluate the relative contributions of a plume and subcontinental lithospheric mantle in the formation of the complex. The Kovdor PCC is a part of the Kovdor ultramafic–alkaline–carbonatite massif, and consists of six intrusions. The initial isotopic ratios of the analyzed samples, calculated at 380 Ma, display limited variations: ε_Nd, + 2.0 to + 4.7; ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, 0.70319 to 0.70361 (ε_Sr, − 12.2 to − 6.2); ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, 18.38 to 18.74; ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, 15.45 to 15.50; ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, 37.98 to 39.28. The Nd and Sr isotope data of the Kovdor PCC generally fit the patterns of the other phoscorites and carbonatites from the Kola Alkaline Province (KAP), but some data are slightly shifted from the mixing line defined as the Kola Carbonatite Line, having more radiogenic ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios. However, the less radiogenic Nd isotopic compositions and negative Δ7/4 values of Pb isotopes of the analyzed samples exclude crustal contamination, but imply the involvement of a metasomatized lithospheric mantle source. Isotopic variations indicate mixing of at least three distinct mantle components: FOZO-like primitive plume component, EMI-like enriched component and DMM-like depleted component. The isotopic nature of the EMI- and DMM-like mantle component observed in the Kovdor samples is considered to be inherited from metasomatized subcontinental lithospheric mantle. This supports the previous models invoking plume–lithosphere interaction to explain the origin of the Devonian alkaline carbonatite magmatism in the KAP.