Deformation microstructures of olivine and chlorite in chlorite peridotites from Almklovdalen in the Western Gneiss Region,southwest Norway,and implications for seismic anisotropy

Chlorite peridotites from Almklovdalen in southwest Norway were studied to understand the deformation processes and seismic anisotropy in the upper mantle. The lattice preferred orientation (LPO) of olivine and chlorite was determined using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD)/scanning electron microscopy. A sample with abundant garnet showed [100] axes of olivine aligned sub-parallel to lineation, and [010] axes aligned subnormal to foliation: A-type LPO. Samples rich in chlorite showed different olivine LPOs. Two samples showed [001] axes aligned sub-parallel to lineation, and [010] axes aligned subnormal to foliation: B-type LPO. Two other samples showed [100] axes aligned sub-parallel to lineation, and [001] axes aligned subnormal to foliation: E-type LPO. Chlorite showed a strong LPO characterized by [001] axes aligned subnormal to foliation with a weak girdle subnormal to lineation. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy of the specimens revealed that the olivines with A-type LPO contain a small amount (170 ppm H/Si) of water. In contrast, the olivines with B-type LPOs contain a large amount (340 ppm H/Si) of water.

The seismic anisotropy of the olivine and chlorite was calculated. Olivine showed Vp anisotropy of up to 3.8% and a maximum Vs anisotropy of up to 2.7%. However, the chlorite showed a much stronger Vp anisotropy, up to 21.1%, and a maximum Vs anisotropy of up to 31.7%. A sample with a mixture of 25% of olivine and 75% of chlorite can produce a Vp anisotropy of 14.2% and a maximum Vs anisotropy of 22.9%. Because chlorite has a wide stability field at high pressure and high temperature in the subduction zone, the strong LPO of chlorite can be a source of the observed trench-normal or trench-parallel seismic anisotropy in the mantle wedge as well as in subducting slabs depending on the dipping angle of slab in a subduction zone where chlorite is stable.     

Lattice-preferred orientation of olivine found in diamond-bearing garnet peridotites in Finsch,South Africa and implications for seismic anisotropy

Seismic anisotropy in the upper mantle provides important constraints on mantle dynamics, continental evolution and global tectonics and is believed to be produced by the flow-induced lattice-preferred orientation (LPO) of olivine. Recent experimental studies at high pressure and temperature have suggested that the LPO of olivine is affected by pressure in addition to water and stress. However, there has been no report yet for the pressure-induced LPO of natural olivine because samples from the deep upper mantle are rare and often unsuitable for study due to ambiguous foliation and lineation. Here we show evidence of the pressure-induced LPO of natural olivine in diamond-bearing garnet peridotites from Finsch, South Africa. We found that the [010] axes of olivine are aligned subnormal to foliation and that the [001] axes are aligned subparallel to lineation, which is known as B-type LPO of olivine. The equilibrium pressure of the samples, as estimated using geobarometer, was greater than 4 GPa, indicating that the samples originated from a depth greater than ∼120 km. In addition, FTIR spectroscopy of the olivine showed that the samples are dry, with a water content of less than 90 ± 20 ppm H/Si (5.5 ± 1.2 ppm wt. H₂O). These data suggest that the samples are the first natural examples of olivine displaying B-type LPOs produced due to high pressure under dry condition. Our data indicate that the trench-parallel seismic anisotropy observed in many subduction zones in and below subducting slabs at depths greater than ∼90 km under dry condition may be attributed to the pressure-induced olivine fabrics (B-type LPO) and may be interpreted as the entrainment of the sub-lithospheric mantle in the direction of subduction rather than anomalous trench-parallel flow.     

Olivine [100] normal to foliation: lattice preferred orientation in prograde garnet peridotite formed at high H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O activity,Cima di Gagnone (Central Alps)

Automated electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) was applied using a scanning electron microscope to obtain lattice preferred orientation (LPO) data for olivine in garnet peridotites of the Central Alps. As a reference frame, the LPOs of enstatite were also investigated. In the garnet peridotite at Cima di Gagnone (CDG), a weak foliation carrying a distinct lineation is present. The lineation is characterized by elongated enstatite, olivine and poikiloblastic garnet. Olivine shows a very unusual LPO with [100] normal to foliation and [001] parallel to lineation. Achsenverteilungsanalyse (AVA) maps demonstrate that [001] of olivine grains corresponds quite well to their maximum length axes which are preferentially parallel to the lineation. Numerous planar hydrous defects within (001) planes of olivine are marked by palisades of ilmenite rods and show a preferred orientation normal to lineation. Calculated P-wave velocities for CDG are fastest (8.32 km s^у) normal to foliation with a relatively low anisotropy (2.9%). Compared to mantle peridotites with the usual (010)[100] LPO where the fastest Vp direction is towards the lineation, the relationship between flow geometry and seismic anisotropy is significantly different at CDG. Several mechanisms for the formation of the LPO type at CDG are considered, with glide possible on (100)[001] of olivine. On the basis of field data as well as petrographic and petrologic evidence, it has been demonstrated that the CDG garnet peridotite formed by prograde metamorphism from a hydrous protolith at pressures and temperatures of about 3.0 GPa and 750 °C, respectively. The CDG LPO is interpreted to have formed during hydrous subduction zone metamorphism. The same interpretation may hold for the previously investigated olivine LPO at Alpe Arami, which is similar to that at the nearby CDG. The observed anomalous LPO is no proof for ultradeep (>3.0 GPa) conditions.     

Deformation fabrics of glaucophane schists and implications for seismic anisotropy: the importance of lattice preferred orientation of phengite

ABSTRACT

Strong seismic anisotropy is observed in many subduction zones. This effect is attributed partly to subducting oceanic crust that is transformed into blueschist facies rocks. Because blueschist facies constituents such as glaucophane, epidote, and phengite show strong anisotropic elasticity, seismic anisotropy in subducting oceanic crust can be attributed to the lattice preferred orientation (LPO) of these minerals. We studied the deformation fabrics and seismic properties of phengite-rich epidote–glaucophane schists from the Franciscan Complex of Ring Mountain, California. The samples are composed mainly of glaucophane, epidote, and phengite. Some samples contain abundant phengite, the maximum being 40%. The LPOs of glaucophane showed that the [001] axes are aligned subparallel to lineation, and both (110) poles and [100] axes are aligned subnormal to foliation. The epidote [001] axes are aligned subnormal to foliation, with both (110) and (010) poles aligned subparallel to lineation. The LPOs of phengite are characterized by the maxima of [001] axes subnormal to foliation, and both (110) and (010) poles and [100] axes are aligned in a girdle subparallel to foliation. The phengite showed substantially strong seismic anisotropy (AV_P = 42%, max.AV_S = 37%). The glaucophane schist with abundant phengite showed significantly stronger seismic anisotropy (AV_P = 30%, max.AV_S = 23%) than the epidote–glaucophane schist (AV_P = 13%, max.AV_S = 9%). When the subduction angle of phengite-rich glaucophane schist is considered, the polarization direction of the fast S-waves for vertically propagating S-waves changed to a nearly trench-parallel direction for the subduction angle of 45?60°, and the S-wave anisotropy became stronger for vertically propagating S-waves with increasing subduction angles. Our data showed that phengite-rich blueschist facies rock can therefore contribute to the strong trench-parallel seismic anisotropy occurring at the subducting oceanic crust and at the slab–mantle interface in many subduction zones.     

Deformation microstructures of olivine and pyroxene in mantle xenoliths in Shanwang,eastern China,near the convergent plate margin,and implications for seismic anisotropy

Deformation microstructures, including lattice-preferred orientations (LPOs) of olivine, enstatite, and diopside, in mantle xenoliths at Shanwang, eastern China, were studied to understand the deformation mechanism and seismic anisotropy of the upper mantle. The Shanwang is located across the Tan-Lu fault zone, which was formed due to the collision between the Sino-Korean and South China cratons. All samples are spinel lherzolites and wehrlites, and LPOs of minerals were determined using scanning electron microscope/electron backscattered diffraction. We found two types of olivine LPO: type-B in spinel lherzolites and type-E in wehrlites. Enstatite showed two types of LPO (types BC and AC), and diopside showed four different types of LPO. Observations of strong LPOs and numerous dislocations in olivine suggest that samples showing both type-B and -E LPOs were deformed in dislocation creep. The seismic anisotropy of the P-wave was in the range of 2.2–11.6% for olivine, 1.2–2.3% for enstatite, and 2.1–6.4% for diopside. The maximum seismic anisotropy of the shear wave was in the range 1.93–7.53% for olivine, 1.53–2.46% for enstatite, and 1.81–6.57% for diopside. Furthermore, the thickness of the anisotropic layer was calculated for four geodynamic models to understand the origin of seismic anisotropy under the study area by using delay time from shear wave splitting, and S-wave velocity and anisotropy from mineral LPOs. We suggest that the seismic anisotropy under the study area can be most likely explained by two deformation modes that might have occurred at different times: one of deformed lherzolites with a type-B olivine LPO by lateral shear during/after the period of the Mesozoic continental collision between the Sino-Korean and South China cratons; and the other deformed the wehrlites with a type-E olivine LPO by horizontal extension during the period of change in absolute plate motion in relation to the westward-subducting Pacific plate.     

南苏鲁芝麻房石榴石橄榄岩中橄榄石的“C”类组构及其形成条件探讨

上地幔地震的各向异性主要归因于橄榄石的优选方位,不同的橄榄石优选方位模式可以作为上地幔不同动力学作用的指示剂。不同应力和含水量条件下的高温变形实验已经确定出五类橄榄石组构模式(“A”型、“B”型、“C”型、“D”型和“E”型)。本文运用电子背散射(EBSD)技术对来自苏鲁超高压变质带南部的芝麻房石榴石橄榄岩的橄榄石进行了优选方位测定,不同变形程度的橄榄石均显示了[100]轴近垂直于面理和[001]轴近平行于线理的特征,为“C”类组构模式,可见组构类型与变形程度没有关系,并且橄榄石组构所显示的NW向SE的剪切指向,与围岩-正、副片麻岩中形成于折返过程的石英优选方位所显示的SE向NW的剪切指向完全不同,说明芝麻房石榴石橄榄岩中橄榄石的“C”类组构是折返前形成的。结合橄榄石结构水的测量和已有的芝麻房石榴石橄榄岩形成的温压条件,推测该组构形成于含水俯冲带中,认为芝麻房石榴石橄榄岩的原岩来自于高含水的上部地幔楔碎块,与俯冲的陆壳物质一起经历了超高压变质作用并最终折返至地表。     

苏鲁-大别山超高压变质带迟家店和碧溪岭石榴二辉橄榄岩橄榄石组构

大别山碧溪岭和山东荣成分别发育壳源和幔源的石榴二辉橄榄岩。它们在扬子板块向华北板块的俯冲过程中与俯冲板片一起经历了超高压变质作用。这两种原岩来源不同的石榴橄榄岩中的橄榄石具有相似的结晶学优选方位(LPO):[100]轴主板密垂直于面理面,[010]轴主极密平行于线理,这种橄榄石结晶学优选方位明显不同于高温地幔橄榄岩包体中的橄榄石组构,也不同于最近在超高压变质地体中发现的水导致的橄榄石组构。我们认为碧溪岭和荣成石榴二辉橄榄岩中的这种橄榄石组构可能是在相对较干的超高压变质条件下形成的。本研究为大陆深俯冲超高压变质石榴橄榄岩橄榄石组构特征提供了第一手资料。     

Effect of water and stress on the lattice-preferred orientation of olivine

The influence of water and stress on the lattice-preferred orientation (LPO) of olivine aggregates was investigated through large strain, shear deformation experiments at high pressures and temperatures (P = 0.5–2.1 GPa, T = 1470–1570 K) under both water-poor and water-rich conditions. The specimens are hot-pressed synthetic olivine aggregates or single crystals of olivine. Water was supplied to the sample by decomposition of a mixture of talc and brucite. Deformation experiments were conducted up to γ (shear strain)  6 using the Griggs apparatus where water fugacity was up to  13 GPa at the pressure of 2 GPa. The water content in olivine saturated with water increases with increasing pressure and the solubility of water in olivine at P = 0.5–2 GPa was  400–1200 ppm H/Si. Several new types of LPO in olivine are found depending on water content and stress. Samples deformed in water-poor conditions show a conventional LPO of olivine where the olivine [100] axis is subparallel to the shear direction, the (010) plane subparallel to the shear plane (type-A). However, we identified three new types (type-B, C, and E) of LPO of olivine depending on the water content and stress. The type-B LPO of olivine which was found at relatively high stress and/or under moderate to high water content conditions is characterized by the olivine [001] axis subparallel to the shear direction, the (010) plane subparallel to the shear plane. The type-C LPO which was found at low stress and under water-rich conditions is characterized by the olivine [001] axis subparallel to the shear direction, the (100) plane subparallel to the shear plane. The type-E LPO which was found under low stress and moderate water content is characterized by the olivine [100] axis subparallel to the shear direction, the (001) plane subparallel to the shear plane. Observations by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) show that the dislocations in water-poor samples (type-A) are curved and both b =  [100] and b = [001] dislocations have a similar population. Numerous subgrains are seen in water-poor samples in backscattered electron images. In contrast, water-rich samples (both type-B and type-C) contain mostly b = [001] dislocations and dislocations are straight and sub-grain boundaries are rare compared to those in water-poor samples. These observations suggest that (1) dominant slip systems in olivine change with water fugacity (and stress) and (2) grain boundary migration is enhanced in the presence of water. Seismic anisotropy corresponding to the fabrics under water-rich condition is significantly different from that under water-poor condition. Consequently, the relationship between seismic anisotropy and flow geometry in water-rich regions is expected to be different from that in water-poor regions in which type-A fabric dominates (i.e., the lithosphere). A few cases are discussed including anisotropy in the subduction zone and in the deep upper mantle.     

Petrofabrics and seismic properties of garnet peridotite from the UHP Sulu terrane (China): Implications for olivine deformation mechanism in a cold and dry subducting continental slab

Lattice-preferred orientations (LPO) of olivine, diopside, enstatite and garnet from the Zhimafang garnet peridotite body in the Sulu ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic terrane (China) were measured using the electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique. The peridotite was captured from a mantle wedge immediately adjacent the subducted Yangtze slab and then experienced the UHP metamorphism at 750–950 °C and 4–7 GPa. The olivine LPO is characterized by the [001] axis close to the stretching lineation and the (100) plane subparallel to the foliation, indicating the prevailing of (100) [001] slip. Enstatite LPO displays the dominance of (100) [001] slip. Diopside developed complex LPO patterns that are difficult to explain using a single slip system of (100) [001]. Garnet is almost randomly oriented due to its low volume fractions, cubic symmetry and the presence of numerous slip systems. Calculated seismic properties of the peridotite yield a maximum P-wave velocity normal to the foliation and a minimum along the foliation, with anisotropy up to 8% in strongly sheared samples. The S-wave velocity pattern is complex but the fast polarization plane generally normal to the foliation. The inferred shear sense from the olivine LPO is top-to-SE, in contrary to exhumation-induced top-to-NW thrusting recorded in the quartz LPO, implying that the olivine LPO formed at early UHP metamorphic conditions. The olivine crystals have relatively low water contents (141–475 H/10⁶ Si), indicating a fluid-deficient environment for the LPO formation. The present study suggests that a combination of low temperature and UHP plays a much more important role than the water content to promote the activation of (100) [001] slip in olivine.     

Calculations of upper-mantle P-wave velocity anisotropies

Discovery of anisotropy for upper-mantle P-wave velocities has resulted recently in many laboratory determinations of velocities for natural mantle material, either by direct measurement on rock samples or through calculations based on single-crystal elastic constants, fabrics and modal compositions Comparison of field and laboratory data provides gross constraints for convection processes and flow mechanisms. As natural peridotites yeidl a wide range of maximum seismic anisotropies, their depth of origin and deformation history are inferred from pyroxene geobarometry and geothermometry, and from stress estimates derived from neoblast grain sizes. Large maximum anisotropies (ca. 1.0 km/s) are typical of samples with fabrics strengthened by low-temperature/highstress deformation related to emplacement. Other highly anisotropic mantle material includes peridotites beneath continental rifts and thinned continental crust. Maximum anisotropies for ordinary suboceanic and infracontinental peridotites are generally in the range of the field data (0.3–0.6 km/s) and support a model with [010]_ol nearly vertical (in accord with observations on ophiolites) and [100]_ol subparallel to the spreading direction. On the basis of fabric data, seismic anisotropy should decrease with depth.     

Seismic properties of the upper mantle beneath Lanzarote (Canary Islands): Model predictions based on texture measurements by EBSD

We present a petrophysical analysis of upper mantle xenoliths, collected in the Quaternary alkali basalt fields (Series III and IV) from the island of Lanzarote. The samples consist of eight harzburgite and four dunite nodules, 5 to 15 cm in size, and exhibit a typical protogranular to porphyroclastic texture. An anomalous foliation resulting from strong recovery processes is observed in half of the specimens. The lattice preferred orientations (LPO) of olivine, orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene were measured using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). In most samples, olivine exhibits LPOs intermediate between the typical single crystal texture and the [100] fiber texture. Occasionally, the [010] fiber texture was also observed. Simultaneous occurrence of both types of fiber textures suggests the existence of more than one deformation regime, probably dominated by a simple shear component under low strain rate and moderate to high temperature. Orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene display a weaker but significant texture. The LPO data were used to calculate the seismic properties of the xenoliths at PT conditions obtained from geothermobarometry, and were compared to field geophysical data reported from the literature. The velocity of P-waves (7.9 km/s) obtained for a direction corresponding to the existing seismic transect is in good agreement with the most recent geophysical interpretation. Our results are consistent with a roughly W–E oriented fastest P-wave propagation direction in the uppermost mantle beneath the Canary Islands, and with the lithosphere structure proposed by previous authors involving a crust–mantle boundary at around 18 km in depth, overlaid by intermediate material between 11 and 18 km.     

Textures in deforming forsterite aggregates up to 8 GPa and 1673 K

We report results from axisymmetric deformation experiments carried out on forsterite aggregates in the deformation-DIA apparatus, at upper mantle pressures and temperatures (3.1–8.1 GPa, 1373–1673 K). We quantified the resulting lattice preferred orientations (LPO) and compare experimental observations with results from micromechanical modeling (viscoplastic second-order self-consistent model—SO). Up to 6 GPa (~185-km depth in the Earth), we observe a marked LPO consistent with a dominant slip in the (010) plane with one observation of a dominant [100] direction, suggesting that [100](010) slip system was strongly activated. At higher pressures (deeper depth), the LPO becomes less marked and more complex with no evidence of a dominant slip system, which we attribute to the activation of several concurrent slip systems. These results are consistent with the pressure-induced transition in the dominant slip system previously reported for olivine and forsterite. They are also consistent with the decrease in the seismic anisotropy amplitude observed in the Earth’s mantle at depth greater than ~200 km.     

橄榄石腐蚀像立体模型构建及其岩石组构研究之启示

利用20% 浓度的氢氟酸（HF）对橄榄石晶体不同方向之切面进行了腐蚀实验,以期建立三维立体构型。在晶体上选 取垂直任一结晶轴的单形,如（100）,（010）,（001）等平行双面,（110）,（011）,（101）等菱方柱和（111）菱方双锥进 行了腐蚀实验,由原子力显微镜记录各个切面腐蚀像。结果显示,相同切面上的腐蚀像具有固定的几何形状及角度,且在 晶面上的结晶学方向固定。各腐蚀像形状具有共性,即长轴为[010] 方向,短轴为[100] 方向。由不同切面腐蚀像的变化规律, 建立了橄榄石腐蚀像三维立体模型。相同腐蚀剂对不同晶面腐蚀的容易程度差异巨大,以蚀坑在DIC200× 下能清晰观察到 腐蚀像形态为标准,橄榄石各切面的腐蚀速率为v（010）>v（110）>v（100）>v（111）>v（101）>v（001）>v（011）。由橄榄石晶体腐蚀像的唯一 性及其结晶学定向,在橄榄岩切片中将橄榄石颗粒切面指数化,并获得其结晶学定向及结晶优选方向。由此,在大别山碧 溪岭石榴子石二辉橄榄岩中推断橄榄石[100] 主极密垂直面理面,[010] 主极密平行于线理面。腐蚀像所确定的晶体结晶优选 性为当地构造动力提供了一定有价值资料,开拓了腐蚀像的地质应用意义。     

Mineralogical and seismic properties of serpentinite of Ait Ahmane fault zone of Bou Azzer ophiolite,central Anti-Atlas of Morocco

This paper presents the first seismic measurements of serpentinite of Bou Azzer ophiolite, central Anti-Atlas of Morocco, including seismic velocities and anisotropy. Two serpentinite samples collected from the Ait Ahmane fault zone were analyzed in order to define the mineralogical and seismic features of the natural serpentinite of the Bou Azzer ophiolite. The mineralogical features were investigated using microscopic observation and Raman spectroscopy, while the seismic features were performed using an Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) instrument. Microscopy and spectroscopy analyses confirmed that the investigated serpentinite suffers from a variable degree of serpentinization, and the antigorite is the dominant variety of serpentine minerals in the study area. The crystal preferred orientation (CPO) results show that the axis [001] of the antigorite deformation is aligned subnormal to the foliation, while the axis [010] is mostly aligned subparallel to the lineation. The seismic anisotropy results are depending on serpentine amount in the rock samples. The sample with a low serpentine amount (30%) shows lowest P- and S-wave anisotropy (Vp = 7.2% and AVs = 6.55%), while the sample with a high amount of serpentine (85%) presents highest P-wave and S-wave anisotropy (Vp = 8.6% and AVs = 11.06%). Consequently, the results indicate that seismic anisotropy increases when increasing the antigorite amount.     

Anisotropic seismic properties of the upper mantle beneath the Torre Alfina area (Northern Apennines, Central Italy)

Central Italy is an active tectonic area that has been recently studied by several regional mantle, Pn and SKS, studies which revealed the presence of a strong regional anisotropy. In this paper, we present the first petrophysical results on the only mantle xenoliths from Central Italy, which place new constraints on the upper mantle structures of this region. The Torre Alfina mantle xenoliths are very small in size, from few millimetres to about 1.5 cm. They are mainly dunites and harzburgites, with subordinate lherzolites and wehrlites. Since olivine and spinel are always present, they should have crystallised in the spinel-bearing lherzolite field. Their mineralogical composition is ol+spl±opx±cpx. Both olivines and pyroxenes are present as porphyroclasts and as neoblasts. The xenoliths show different degrees of recrystallization. Geothermobarometry on these xenoliths give a temperature range of 1040±40 °C and a pressure estimate of about 1.5 GPa, corresponding to 50 to 60 km depth. Previous seismic studies have estimated the Moho to be at 20 to 25 km in this region, hence the xenoliths come from a hot mantle, probably asthenospheric, below a lithosphere of about 25 to 40 km in thickness below the Moho. We measure the crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of olivines and pyroxenes using a SEM and the Electron Back Scattered Diffraction (EBSD) technique. The CPO shows all three axes of olivine are tightly clustered: [100] axis is typically more tightly clustered than [010] and [001] is the most widely distributed axis. The fabric strength expressed by the integral J index, varies from 4.5 to 25.9, and decreases with the degree of recrystallization. We use CPO data to calculate anisotropic seismic properties of the xenoliths. They are very homogenous and probably statistically representative of the mantle below the Torre Alfina area. Vp ranges from 8.4 to 9.1 km/s, Vs₁ from 4.8 to 5.0 km/s. The seismic anisotropy is more variable; AVp ranges from 9.8% to 19.3% and AVs from 7.3% to 13.4%. The majority of the xenoliths display an orthorhombic seismic symmetry, but xenoliths with a transverse isotropic behaviour have also been observed.

We consider four geodynamic models for the source region of the xenoliths (extension, shear, upwelling, slab tilted), defined by different orientations of the structural reference frame, and we calculated for each model the variation of the seismic properties with temperature, pressure and volume fraction of orthopyroxene. After comparing this variation of calculated seismic parameters with seismic observations from the region, we form the hypothesis that the xenoliths come from either an extensional tectonic zone (lineation X and foliation plane XY horizontal) or transcurrent shear zone (lineation X horizontal and foliation plane XY vertical) and that the mantle beneath Torre Alfina is composed by 70% olivine and 30% orthopyroxene forming an anisotropic layer of about 160 or 110 km in thickness, respectively.     

Plagioclase preferred orientation by TOF neutron diffraction and SEM-EBSD

The lattice preferred orientation (LPO) of an anorthosite (composed of andesine) sampled from a highly deformed anorthositic mylonite (Grenville Province, Quebec) was measured by TOF neutron diffraction and SEM-EBSD. The quantitative texture analysis of neutron data was accomplished by using the Rietveld texture analysis with the WIMV algorithm, implemented in the program package Materials Analysis Using Diffraction (MAUD). The texture calculations of the EBSD data were performed by using the program BEARTEX. Analyses from neutron and electron diffraction data gave similar results if EBSD data are smoothed to account for grain statistics. The principal pole figures show (010) roughly parallel to the rock foliation, (001) poles exhibiting a low angle (25°) to the pole to foliation, and (100) poles close to the Y-direction (perpendicular to the lineation and foliation pole). The [100] crystallographic direction shows a maximum in the lineation direction, [010] directions concentrate near the foliation pole. The geological deformation conditions and the constructed pole figure patterns indicate that the preferred orientation could be attributed to intracrystalline slip dominantly on (010) with [100] as slip direction. Elastic properties, calculated by averaging, document weak anisotropy that has implications for the seismic structure of the lower crust.     

The Role of Pre-existing Mechanical Anisotropy on Shear Zone Development within Oceanic Mantle Lithosphere: an Example from the Oman Ophiolite

Structural and fabric analysis of the well-exposed Hilti mantlesection, Oman ophiolite, suggests that shear zone development,which may have resulted from oceanic plate fragmentation, wasinfluenced by pre-existing mantle fabric present at the paleo-ridge.Detailed structural mapping in the mantle section revealed agently undulating structure with an east–west flow direction.A NW–SE strike-slip shear zone cuts across this horizontalstructure. The crystal preferred orientation (CPO) of olivinewithin the foliation is dominated by (010) axial patterns ratherthan more commonly observed (010)[100] patterns, suggestingthat the horizontal flow close to the Moho involved non-coaxialflow. Olivine CPO within the shear zone formed at low temperatureis characterized by (001)[100] patterns and a sinistral senseof shear. The olivine CPO becomes weaker with progressive mylonitizationand accompanying grain size reduction, and ultimately developsinto an ultra-mylonite with a random CPO pattern. The olivine[010]-axis is consistently sub-vertical, even where the horizontalfoliation has been rotated to a sub-vertical orientation withinthe shear zone. These observations suggest that the primarymechanical anisotropy (mantle fabric) has been readily transformedinto a secondary structure (shear zone) with minimum modification.This occurred as a result of a change of the olivine slip systemsduring oceanic detachment and related tectonics during cooling.We propose that primary olivine CPO fabrics may play a significantrole in the subsequent structural development of the mantle.Thus, the structural behavior of oceanic mantle lithosphereduring subduction and obduction may be strongly influenced byinitial mechanical anisotropy developed at an oceanic spreadingcenter. KEY WORDS: mantle lithosphere; anisotropy; shear zone; olivine CPO; Oman ophiolite     

榴辉岩组构运动学与大陆深俯冲——中国大陆科学钻探主孔榴辉岩的EBSD研究

中国大陆科学钻探主孔位于苏鲁超高压带南部的东海县毛北榴辉岩体之上。主孔0-600米深度的榴辉岩的塑性变形以具中等倾角的东倾面理,近南北向的水平拉伸线理、“A”型剪切褶皱和一系列平行面理的微型韧性剪切带为特征。使用电子背散射（EBSD）技术测量的主孔7个榴辉岩样品的石榴石和绿辉石的晶格优选定向（LPO）表明：石榴石基本上无序排列,而绿辉石表现出强烈的LPO。绿辉石的[001]轴近平行于拉伸线理方向,（010）面的法线和[100]轴垂直面理分布,{110}的法线形成垂直面理的环带,反映绿辉石的位错蠕变由[001]（100）和1／2〈^-110〉滑移系控制,其不对称的LPO指示了由北向南的剪切指向。根据单斜辉石的高温实验结果,毛北榴辉岩经历了800-900℃的超高压变质作用。通过构造重塑,揭示毛北榴辉岩体为剪切流变褶皱,形成于扬子板块深俯冲时的超高压变质过程。因此榴辉岩中保留的早期岩石组构特征可以为板块的深俯冲运动学和俯冲极性提供重要信息。     

Mantle wedge deformation recorded by high-temperature peridotite fabric superposition and hydrous retrogression (Limo massif, Cabo Ortegal, NW Spain)

The Limo harzburgites constitute a hm-thick tectonic stack where extremely elongated meter-scale sheath folds occur, bearing axes parallel to the macroscopic lineation recognized across the whole complex. They can be identified as close to L-type tectonites, with a weak foliation, a well-developed stretching, and a mineral lineation defined by the mineral assemblage in equilibrium. The linear fabric is recognizable at every scale, from aerial photos to the crystallographic orientation of the harzburgite-forming minerals measured by means of the electron back-scatter diffraction technique. These rocks registered initial deformation under high-temperature and low water fugacity conditions at low stress levels in an anhydrous mantle wedge context, as it is inferred from the activity of the [100](010) slip system in olivine. Then, the ongoing eo-Variscan subduction incorporated fluid/melts from the subducting plate into the suprasubduction mantle wedge zone. The variation in the ambient physicochemical conditions led to the operation of the [001](010) slip system in olivine, indicative of lower temperature and higher water fugacity and stress levels. These changes are recorded, too, by synkinematic recrystallization of oriented chlorite. The L-type fabric of clinopyroxene points to constriction conditions during deformation. The active deformational processes continued along the subduction conduit with the thrust of the peridotites onto the high-pressure granulites of the Bacariza Formation. Posteriorly, the whole ensemble would have shared a common deformational history related to exhumation and initial amphibolitization. Subsequent deformation processes under greenschist facies conditions took place until effective continental collision during the Early Carboniferous gave rise to the Variscan orogen.     

Fabric kinematics of the ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic rocks from the main borehole of the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling Project: Implications for continental subduction and exhumation

The 5158-m-deep main borehole of the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling Project (CCSD-MH) penetrated granitic gneisses, paragneisses, eclogites, retrograde eclogites, amphibolites and ultramafic rocks in the Sulu ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic terrane, eastern China. The CCSD-MH consists of four petro-structural units separated by three SE-dipping ductile shear zones DFa (835-1280 m), DFb (2010-2280 m) and DFc (2920-3225 m), which are correspondent with the regional shear zones in the northern Sulu UHP supracrustal zone. Using the electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique, we investigated the lattice-preferred orientations (LPOs) of omphacite, diopside and quartz in core samples from the CCSD-MH. Omphacite from eclogites and diopside from garnet pyroxenites display very strong LPOs, which are characterized by the maximum concentration of [001]-axes parallel to the lineation and (010)-poles normal to the foliation. Quartz in para- and granitic mylonites/gneisses from the shear zones DFa, DFb and DFc developed multiple slip systems. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating of biotite in para- and granitic gneisses from the CCSD-MH yields 223-202 Ma, which constrains the formation ages of the quartz high-temperature prism slip systems {m}<a> and {m}[c]. The asymmetric LPOs of omphacite, diopside, olivine and quartz with respect to the structural frame reveal three deformation phases in the Sulu terrane. In the Middle Triassic, the northward subduction of the Yangtze plate to depths > 100 km produced a top-to-the-south shear sense in LPOs of omphacite, diopside and olivine, and a nearly N-S-striking foliation and a subhorizontal N-S-trending lineation in eclogites and ultramafic rocks. In the Late Triassic, the UHP rocks were exhumed to the lower crust and quartz developed high-temperature slip systems with a top-to-the-NW shear sense, which is consistent with the regional SE-dipping foliation and SE-plunging lineation in the ductile shear zones. In the Cretaceous the UHP rocks were exhumed to the middle crust when the migmatization and granitic intrusion formed a NE-striking antiform structure. As a result, the activation of quartz low-temperature basal slip (0001)<a> is characterized by a top-to-the-SE shear sense in the south, but a top-to-the-NW shear sense in the north.