Fabric development during shear deformation in the Main Central Thrust Zone, NW-Himalaya, India

Quartz microfabrics and associated microstructures have been studied on a crustal shear zone—the Main Central Thrust (MCT) of the Himalaya. Sampling has been done along six traverses across the MCT zone in the Kumaun and Garhwal sectors of the Indian Himalaya. The MCT is a moderately north-dipping shear zone formed as a result of the southward emplacement of a part of the deeply rooted crust (that now constitutes the Central Crystalline Zone of the Higher Himalaya) over the less metamorphosed sedimentary belt of the Lesser Himalaya. On the basis of quartz c- and a-axis fabric patterns, supported by the relevant microstructures within the MCT zone, two major kinematic domains have been distinguished. A noncoaxial deformation domain is indicated by the intensely deformed rocks in the vicinity of the MCT plane. This domain includes ductilely deformed and fine-grained mylonitic rocks which contain a strong stretching lineation and are composed of low-grade mineral assemblages (muscovite, chlorite and quartz). These rocks are characterized by highly asymmetric structures/microstructures and quartz c- and a-axis fabrics that indicate a top-to-the-south sense that is compatible with south-directed thrusting for the MCT zone. An apparently coaxial deformation domain, on the other hand, is indicated by the rocks occurring in a rather narrow belt fringing, and structurally above, the noncoaxial deformation domain. The rocks are highly feldspathic and coarse-grained gneisses and do not possess any common lineation trend and the effects of simple shear deformation are weak. The quartz c-axis fabrics are symmetrical with respect to foliation and lineation. Moreover, these rocks contain conjugate and mutually interfering shear bands, feldspar/quartz porphyroclasts with long axes parallel to the macrosopic foliation and the related structures/microstructures, suggesting deformation under an approximate coaxial strain path.On moving towards the MCT, the quartz c- and a-axis fabrics become progressively stronger. The c-axis fabric gradually changes from random to orthorhombic and then to monoclinic. In addition, the coaxial strain path gradually changes to the noncoaxial strain path. All this progressive evolution of quartz fabrics suggests more activation of the basal, rhomb and a slip systems at all structural levels across the MCT.     

The Tichka Massif,Morocco—an example of contemporaneous acidic and basic plutonism

The Tichka Massif is a shallowly emplaced, domal intrusion that has produced a thermal aurole in surrounding rocks. The interior of the massif consists of a series of leucocratic granitic, tear-shaped pods sorrounded by dioritic rocks that range in composition from gabbro to granodiorite. The orientation of the pods has a strong vertical component. Flow foliation is well-developed in the rocks that surround the pods, whereas foliation is poorly developed in the granite pods. Dikes of andesite emanate from dioritic rocks and crosscut the granite pods. These rock relationships indicate that a highly viscous granitic liquid (pods) coexisted with a less viscous, denser dioritic liquid. Differences in viscosities of the two magmas and low diffusion rates in the granite magma prevented mixing.     

Fracture Toughness and Fracture Roughness in Anisotropic Granitic Rocks

In this paper we present an experimental approach aimed at assessing the correlation between fracture toughness (K _IC) and fracture roughness of two granitic rocks (Barre and Stanstead granites) exhibiting significant fracture toughness anisotropy. Roughness values have been estimated for fractured surfaces obtained from Chevron Cracked Notch Brazilian Disc samples failed under mode I along three orthogonal planes with respect to their microstructural fabrics. There exists a clear correlation between roughness and toughness within each rock examined along the three planes. Specific orientation of micro-crack alignment could result in preferred out-of-plane propagation of the test-crack irrespective of grain-size distribution. These experimental observations reinforce the hypothesis of the existence of a link among pre-existing petrofabric anisotropy, fracture toughness, fracture roughness, and the evolution and extent of the associated induced fractures within the process zone of granitic rocks along specific directions. This study also highlights the need for employment of pre-failure and advanced post-failure diagnostic techniques in quantifying these inter-relationships.     

玲珑花岗岩体的变形磁组构特征及其与金矿的关系

本文利用磁组构的方法对玲珑花岗岩体的磁组构特征及其与金矿的关系进行研究.玲珑岩体的磁化率各向异性度P的平均值为1.2872,具有典型的构造变形成因特点;磁面理围绕其西北侧的北截花岗闪长岩展布,倾角平缓;磁线理呈SW向近水平展布.玲珑岩体的变形磁组构的特征表明玲珑岩体的变形磁组构是由于后期侵入的北截郭家岭花岗闪长岩体侵入造成的.研究还发现除了断裂的控矿作用以外,位于玲珑岩体内部和边缘的金矿和磁化率各向异性间存在密切的空间对应关系.金矿往往位于磁化率各向异性度P值高的区域,而磁化率各向异性度P值低的区域金矿很少.     

Geochemistry and U-Pb zircon dating constraints of some plutonic rocks along Bir Tawilah shear zone,central Saudi Arabia: Implication for magma peterogenesis and age of gold mineralization

The study area covered by this work is located along the Bir Tawilah fault zone which encompasses the Arabian Shield between Afif terrane and western oceanic terranes. The rocks are dominantly ophiolite assemblages, island arc metavolcanic and metasedimentary rocks, and dioritic to granitic intrusions. The diorite and granodiorite rocks are I-type granitoids, calk-alkaline, metaluminous to peraluminous, formed in a volcanic arc setting, whereas the monzogranite is classified as A-type granite, alkaline and highly fractionated calc-alkaline, generated in within-plate tectonic setting. Nb and Y relationships indicated that the diorites and granodiorites were generated by a mafic parental magma contaminated with crustal materials, and controlled by fractional crystallization, whereas the monzogranites were generated from a magma characterized by an enriched mantle (EM) source.Mineralization including gold is hosted by the carbonatized serpentinite (listvenite) and the syn-tectonic granodiorite along Bir Tawilah thrust zone. U-Pb zircon geochronology indicates that the granodiorite at Jabal Ghadarah is emplaced at ca. 630 ± 12 Ma, probably suggests that the metallic minerals associated with the granodiorite along Bir Tawilah thurst zone are the result of remobilization of pre-existing gold mineralization associated with listevenite that is related to arc accretion.     

Vertical extrusion and middle crustal spreading of omphacite granulite: a model of syn-convergent exhumation (Bohemian Massif, Czech Republic)

The exhumation of eclogite facies granulites (Omp–Plg–Grt–Qtz–Rt) in the Rychleby Mts, eastern Czech Republic, was a localised process initiated by buckling of crustal layers in a thickened orogenic root. Folding and post‐buckle flattening was followed by the main stage of exhumation that is characterized by vertical ductile extrusion. This process is documented by structural data, and the vertical ascent of rocks from a depth of c. 70 to c. 35 km is documented by metamorphic petrology. SHRIMP ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U and ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb evaporation zircon ages of 342 ± 5 and 341.4 ± 0.7 Ma date peak metamorphic conditions. The next stage of exhumation was associated with sideways flat thrusting associated with lateral viscous spreading of granulites and surrounding rocks over indenting adjacent continental crust at a depth of c. 35–30 km. This stage was associated with syntectonic intrusion of a granodiorite sill at 345–339 Ma, emplaced at a crustal depth of c. 25 km. The time required for cooling of the sill as well as for heating of the country rocks brackets this event to a maximum of 250 000 years. Therefore, similar ages of crystallization for the granodiorite magma and the peak of eclogite facies metamorphism of the granulite suggest a very short period of exhumation, limited by the analytical errors of the dating methods. Our calculations suggest that the initial exhumation rate during vertical extrusion was 3–15 mm yr^?1, followed by an exhumation rate of 24–40 mm yr^?1 during further uplift along a magma‐lubricated shear zone. The extrusion stage of exhumation was associated with a high cooling rate, which decreased during the stage of lateral spreading.     

Geochemistry of S-type granitic rocks from the reversely zoned Castelo Branco pluton (central Portugal)

The zoned pluton from Castelo Branco consists of Variscan peraluminous S-type granitic rocks. A muscovite>biotite granite in the pluton's core is surrounded successively by biotite>muscovite granodiorite, porphyritic biotite>muscovite granodiorite grading to biotite=muscovite granite, and finally by muscovite>biotite granite. ID-TIMS U–Pb ages for zircon and monazite indicate that all phases of the pluton formed at 310 ± 1 Ma. Whole-rock analyses show slight variation in ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr_310 Ma between 0.708 and 0.712, Nd_310 Ma values between − 1 and − 4 and δ¹⁸O values between 12.2 and 13.6. These geological, mineralogical, geochemical and isotopic data indicate a crustal origin of the suite, probably from partial melting of heterogeneous Early Paleozoic pelitic country rock. In detail there is evidence for derivation from different sources, but also fractional crystallization linking some of internal plutonic phases. Least-squares analysis of major elements and modelling of trace elements indicate that the porphyritic granodiorite and biotite=muscovite granite were derived from the granodiorite magma by fractional crystallization of plagioclase, quartz, biotite and ilmenite. By contrast variation diagrams of major and trace elements in biotite and muscovite, the behaviours of Ba in microcline and whole-rock δ¹⁸O, the REE patterns of rocks and isotopic data indicate that both muscovite-dominant granites were probably originated by two distinct pulses of granite magma.     

太行-五台山区不同时代花岗岩类岩石学和地球化学的特征对比及陆壳演化

通过对太行－五台山区太古宙、元古宙和中生代等不同时代的花岗岩类岩石学和地球化学特征的对比，并将晚太古时期花岗岩类同国内外同时期花岗岩类进行对比，确定了本区晚太古时期花岗岩类岩石组合为英云闪长岩－奥长花岗岩－花岗闪长岩或英云闪长岩－奥长花岗岩－花岗闪长岩－花岗岩，并以奥长花岗岩演化趋势为主，叠加了部分钙碱性演化；而元古宙、中生代花岗岩类岩石组合则主要为花岗闪长岩－花岗岩或花岗岩，以钙碱性演化趋势为特征。可以认为晚太古时期的太行－五台山区正处于陆壳演化的初始阶段和成熟阶段之间的过渡性阶段。     

Petrology and structure of the Rathjen granitic gneiss of the Palmer region,South Australia

The Rathjen Gneiss is a homogeneous granitic gneiss occurring within the high grade regional metamorphic belt of the Eastern Mount Lofty Ranges.

New mineralogical, chemical and microfabric data are presented and the genesis of the gneiss discussed in the light of these new data. From a comparison of the biotites (two analyses) and potassium feldspars (5 analyses) it is deduced that the gneiss crystallized or recrystallized under the same physical conditions as the envelope rocks. Mesoscopic and microscopic structures are also identical in style and orientation with the envelope rocks.

Five selected specimens of the gneiss have been analysed for major and minor elements. On the basis of a comparison of certain critical element ratios (such as Rb/Ba) in the gneiss with those of probable source rocks, it is suggested that metasomatism has not been a significant factor in its genesis.

To explain its granitic composition and apparent sheet‐like form, it is suggested that the gneiss is a metamorphosed sheet of acid volcanic rocks.     

青海南山东段花岗岩LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb定年及其地质意义

青海南山东段花岗岩类岩石类型为二长花岗岩、花岗闪长岩及英云闪长岩。通过高精度LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb同位素测年,获得二长花岗岩、花岗闪长岩的年龄分别为241±3Ma、245±2Ma和249±3Ma,可代表其成岩年龄。花岗岩类构造环境判别图显示,岩石具俯冲型花岗岩类特征,可能代表早三叠世宗务隆洋的北向俯冲过程。通过对青海南山东段侵入岩体形成时代、岩石成因、构造环境等的研究,为青海宗务隆造山带在印支期的构造环境演化和动力学机制提供了重要的依据。     

Tectonic significance of deformation patterns in granitoid rocks of the Menderes nappes, Anatolide belt, southwest Turkey

Deformation fabrics in Proterozoic/Cambrian granitic rocks of the Çine nappe, and mid-Triassic granites of the Bozdag nappe constrain aspects of the tectonometamorphic evolution of the Menderes nappes of southwest Turkey. Based on intrusive contacts and structural criteria, the Proterozoic/Cambrian granitic rocks of the Çine nappe are subdivided into older orthogneisses and younger metagranites. The deformation history of the granitic rocks documents two major deformation events. An early, pre-Alpine deformation event (D_PA) during amphibolite-facies metamorphism affected only the orthogneisses and produced predominantly top-to-NE shear-sense indicators associated with a NE-trending stretching lineation. The younger metagranites are deformed both by isolated shear zones, and by a major shear zone along the southern boundary of the Çine submassif. We refer to this Alpine deformation event as D_A3. D_A3 shear zones are associated with a N-trending stretching lineation, which formed during greenschist-facies metamorphism. Kinematic indicators associated with this stretching lineation reveal a top-to-south sense of shear. The greenschist-facies shear zones cut the amphibolite-facies structures in the orthogneisses. ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb dating of magmatic zircons from a metagranite, which crosscuts orthogneiss containing amphibolite-facies top-to-NE shear-sense indicators, shows that D_PA occurred before 547.2ǃ.0 Ma. Such an age is corroborated by the observation that mid-Triassic granites of the Çine and Bozdag nappes lack D_PA structures. The younger, top-to-south fabrics formed most likely as a result of top-to-south Alpine nappe stacking during the collision of the Sakarya continent with Anatolia in the Eocene.     

Integration of remote sensing data with the field and laboratory investigation for lithological mapping of granitic phases: Kadabora pluton, Eastern Desert, Egypt

In the current study, an integration of Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+), field, and laboratory data have been used for lithological mapping of different granitic phases in the Kadabora area, Eastern Desert, Egypt. Application of enhancement techniques, including a new proposed band ratio combination (ratio 5/3, 3/1, 7/5 in RGB, respectively) and supervised classification images are used in discriminating different granitic phases in the Kadabora pluton from each other and from their environs. The data have been proved with the help of field and geochemical investigations. The results revealed that: (1) the Kadabora granitic pluton could be distinguished into three phases that recognized by field and laboratory investigation including granodiorite (phase I), monzogranite (phase II), and syeno-alkali feldspar granite (phase III). These phases are arranged according to their relative ages while the country rocks include ophiolitic mélange and metagabbro–diorite complex. It is also confirmed that the granitic pluton is invaded by dyke swarms which is trending in N–S direction. Geochemically, results show that the granodiorite is calc-alkaline, I-type and formed under subduction tectonic regime. Monzogranite falls within the alkaline and highly fractionated calc-alkaline granites, whereas syeno-alkali feldspar granite extends into proper alkaline granitoids field. Monzogranite and syeno-alkali feldspar granite belong to the A₂-subtype granite. This A₂-subtype granite was probably formed in an extensional regime, subsequent to subduction which can lead to tensional break-up of the crust (i.e., post-collisional, post-orogenic granites). The monzogranite and the syeno-alkali feldspar granite were probably formed by partial melting of relatively anhydrous lower crust source and/or tonalite to granodiorite is viable alternative to the granulite source.     

藏东吉塘复式花岗岩成因——来自锆石U-Pb年龄和地球化学的证据

吉塘复式花岗岩位于澜沧江岩浆岩带北段,是研究澜沧江结合带演化过程的重要窗口。对澜沧江北段卡贡地区吉塘复式花岗岩中的黑云母二长花岗岩和花岗闪长岩开展了LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb年代学、岩石地球化学研究。研究结果表明,所选锆石样品均具有明显的生长环带,Th/U值普遍大于0.4,为典型的岩浆锆石,分别获得锆石~(206)Pb/~(238)U年龄加权平均值为222.8±1.5Ma(MSWD=1.60,n=16)、213.6±1.1Ma(MSWD=0.98,n=20)和221.1±1.5Ma(MSWD=1.30,n=15),时代均属于晚三叠世。岩石地球化学特征表明,吉塘黑云母二长花岗岩和花岗闪长岩具有较一致的主量、微量元素含量,其变化特征也具有一致性,反映这2类岩石可能为同一期岩浆演化而来;吉塘复式花岗岩属于过铝质S型花岗岩,与临沧花岗岩、纽多花岗岩具有一致的岩石地球化学性质,为澜沧江花岗岩带的重要组成部分,具有统一的构造岩浆活动模式;吉塘复式花岗岩的成因与碰撞造山导致地壳加厚增温及与岩石圈剪切、伸展期有关的深熔作用有关,澜沧江洋的闭合时间可能为273Ma左右。     

Dielectric constants of tephroite,fayalite and olivine and the oxide additivity rule

The dielectric constants and dissipation factors of synthetic tephroite (Mn₂SiO₄), fayalite (Fe₃SiO₄) and a forsteritic olivine (Mg_1.80Fe_0.22SiO₄) were measured at 1 MHz using a two-terminal method and empirically determined edge corrections. The results are: tephroite, κ′_a= 8.79 tan δ_a = 0.0006 κ′_b = 10.20 tan δ_b = 0.0006 κ′_c= 8.94 tan δ_c= 0.0008 fayalite, gk′_a = 8.80 tan δ_a = 0.0004 gk′_b= 8.92 tan δ_b = 0.0018 gk′_c = 8.58 tan δ_c = 0.0010 olivine, gk′_a = 7.16 tan δ_a = 0.0006 gk′_b = 7.61 tan δ_b = 0.0008 gk′_c = 7.03 tan δ_c = 0.0006 The low dielectric constant and loss of the fayalite indicate an exceptionally low Fe³⁺ content. An FeO polarizability of 4.18 ų, determined from α_D(FeO) = [α_D (Fe₂SiO₄)-α_D(SiO₂)]/2, is probably a more reliable value for stoichiometric FeO than could be obtained from Fe_xO where x = 0.90–0.95. The agreement between measured dielectric polarizabilities as determined from the Clausius-Mosotti equation and those calculated from the sum of oxide polarizabilities according to α_D(M₂M′X₂) = 2α_D(MX) + α_D(M′X₂) is ～+2.8% for tephroite and +0.2% for olivine. The deviation from additivity in tephroite is discussed.     

Coexistence of a Fluid Phase with Granitic Magma: Geochemical Characteristics of REE and Cu in Miyako Granite and in Scheelite-bearing Aplitic Veins at the Yamaguchi Cu-W Skarn Deposit, Iwate, Japan

Abstract: The North granitic body of the Miyako pluton is located in the Northern Kitakami belt, Northeast Japan. The formation of the scheelite–chalcopyrite–magnetite–bearing aplitic veins and scheelite–chalcopyrite–magnetite–bearing Yamaguchi skarn deposit was closely associated with the formation of the Miyako plutons. Petrographic facies of the North granitic body vary from quartz diorite in marginal zone (zone A), to tonalite and granodiorite (zone B), and to granite (zone C) in the central. The large numbers of aplitic veins distributed around the Yamaguchi mining area are divided into two groups: barren and scheelite–mag–netite–chalcopyrite–bearing aplitic veins. The latter cut massive clinopyroxene skarns of the Yamaguchi deposit, and are composed of plagioclase, K‐feldspar and titanite. Some plagioclase crystals have dusty cores with irregularly shaped K‐feldspar flakes, and clear rims of albite. Textures of plagioclase in the mineralized aplitic veins are different from the idiomorphic textures with sharp plagioclase crystal boundaries that occur in the North granitic body and barren aplitic veins. These textural data suggest that the mineralized aplitic veins were formed from hydrothermal fluid. Changes in the contents of major and minor (Rb, Sr, Sc, Co, Th, U) elements in the North Miyako granitic body are similar to those of zoned plutons formed by typical magmatic differentiation processes. On the other hand, concentrations of REE, especially middle to heavy REE, of granitic rocks in zone C and barren aplitic veins are significantly lower than those of granitic rocks in zones A and B. The hypothetical chondrite‐normalized REE patterns, calculated assuming fractional crystallization from zone B granitic melt, suggest that REE concentrations of the residual melt increased with the degree of fractional crystallization, and changed into a pattern with enriched LREE and strongly negative Eu anomaly. However, the REE patterns of granitic rocks in zone C are different from the hypothetical patterns. Moreover, the REE patterns of magnetite–scheelite–chalcopyrite aplitic veins are quite different from those of granitic rocks. The Cu contents of granitic rocks in the North Miyako body increase from zone A (5–26 ppm) to zone B (10–26 ppm), and then clearly decrease to zone C (5–7 ppm) and drastically increase to the barren aplitic veins (39–235 ppm). Concentrations of Cu in the mineralized aplitic veins are also higher than those of the granitic rocks in zone C. The decrease in REE and Cu contents of granitic rocks from zone B to zone C is not a result of simple magmatic fractional differentiation. Fluid inclusions in quartz from mineralized aplitic veins contain 3.3 wt% NaCl equivalent and 5.8 wt% CO₂. It was also demonstrated experimentally that the removal of MREE and HREE by fluid from melt enabled the formation of complexes of REE and ligands of OH^‐ and CO₃^2‐. Based on the possibility that the melt of the granitic rocks of zone C and the mineralized aplitic veins coexisted with CO₂‐bearing fluid, it is thought that REE were extracted from the melt to the CO₂‐bearing fluid, and that the REE in the mineralized aplitic veins were transported by the CO₂‐bearing fluid. It is likely that the low HREE and Cu contents of the granitic rocks in zone C could have been caused by the removal of those elements from the granitic melt by the fluid coexisting with the melt. The expelled materials could have been the sources of scheelite–magnetite–chalcopyrite–bearing aplitic veins and copper mineralization of the Yamaguchi Cu‐W skarn deposit.     

皖南竹溪岭钨多金属矿床花岗闪长岩成因、成矿时代及成岩成矿背景研究

皖南宁国竹溪岭钨多金属矿床位于江南古陆斑岩-矽卡岩型钨矿带的东部,是近年来新发现的一个大型钨矿床。矿体主要产于燕山期黑云母花岗闪长岩与震旦系兰田组灰岩接触带。与矿化关系密切的黑云母花岗闪长岩具有似斑状结构,斑晶主要由更-中长石、石英和少量黑云母组成,基质由更-中长石、石英、钾长石、黑云母和少量角闪石组成。岩石化学分析结果表明,岩石具有高硅、富钾、低镁的特征,A/CNK 1. 0,Mg#=35. 2~37. 2,P_2O_5的含量为0. 17%~0. 21%,为高钾钙碱性弱过铝质花岗质岩石;富集Rb、K,亏损Nb、Ta、Zr和Ti;为90.4×10~(-6)~168.6×10~(-6),LREE/HREE为7.15~15.2,值为10.9~35.1,呈现轻稀土元素富集的右倾配分模式,具弱的Eu负异常,δEu=0.54~0.81。以上特征说明竹溪岭花岗闪长岩为I型花岗质岩,原始岩浆以壳源为主,可能有幔源物质混入。矿石中辉钼矿Re-Os模式年龄为140.4~142.7Ma,等时线年龄为140.2±1.5Ma(MSWD=0.50),与区域成岩成矿年龄基本一致,与北侧的长江中下游地区燕山期斑岩-矽卡岩型Cu-Au-Mo矿可能为同一构造事件的产物。     

Fabric evidence for granodiorite emplacement with extensional shear zones in the Variscan Gredos massif (Spanish Central System)

Three granitoid bodies in the central part of the Gredos massif (Spanish Central System batholith) are tabular, around 1 km in thickness, and intruded into a migmatitic middle crust during the D3 deformation phase of the Variscan Orogeny. Petrologically, they are composed of Bt-granodiorite and Crd-monzogranite, and they show varying abundance of large (cm-scale) feldspar megacrysts. A detailed study of the shape preferred orientation (SPO) magmatic fabric defined by these megacrysts, together with a kinematic analysis of the structures due to interactions between them, and the measurement of quartz c-axis fabrics in migmatites and granitoids, suggests that granitic magma and country rocks were mechanically coupled during deformation. The emplacement took place along large-scale, extensional shear zones active during the first stages of the D3 phase. The shape of the SPO ellipsoids varies from constrictional at the centre of the granitic bodies, to flattening or even oblate at their external contacts with the migmatitic host rocks. The favoured interpretation of this spatial fabric variation is the overprinting of the emplacement fabrics by a constrictional tectonic regime associated with the growth of tabular magma chambers along extensional detachments, followed by shear zone development commonly at the top of the granitic bodies. The entire structure was later folded during the last stages of the D3 phase.     

Chronology and evolution of the Middle Proterozoic Albany‐Fraser Orogen,Western Australia

Geochemical and Sm‐Nd isotopic data, and 19 ion‐microprobe U‐Pb zircon dates are reported for gneiss and granite from the eastern part of the Albany‐Fraser Orogen. The orogen is dominated by granitic rocks derived from sources containing both Late Archaean and mantle‐derived components. Four major plutonic episodes have been identified at ca 2630 Ma, 1700–1600 Ma, ca 1300 Ma and ca 1160 Ma. Orthogneiss, largely derived from ca 2630 Ma and 1700–1600 Ma granitic precursors, forms a belt along the southeastern margin of the Yilgarn Craton. These rocks, together with gabbro of the Fraser Complex, were intruded by granitic magmas and metamorphosed in the granulite facies at ca 1300 Ma. They were then rapidly uplifted and transported westward along low‐angle thrust faults over the southeastern margin of the Yilgarn Craton. Between ca 1190 and 1130 Ma, granitic magmas were intruded throughout the eastern part of the orogen. These new data are integrated into a review of the geological evolution of the Albany‐Fraser Orogen and adjacent margin of eastern Antarctica, and possibly related rocks in the Musgrave Complex and Gawler Craton.     

Structural geometry and kinematics of the Ailao Shan shear zone: insights from integrated structural,microstructural, and fabric studies of the Yao Shan complex,Yunnan, Southwest China

ABSTRACT

The Yao Shan complex, a massif near the southern segment of the Ailao Shan–Red River (ASRR) shear zone, bears important information on the structural framework of the massif and the kinematics of ductile shearing along the ASRR shear zone. In this contribution, structural, microstructural, quartz c-axis fabric, magnetic fabric, and geochronologic data are used to determine the structural framework of the Yao Shan massif and its tectonic implications for the ASRR shear zone. The Yao Shan complex is characterized by an overall linear A-type antiform that contains a core of high-grade metamorphic rocks with Palaeoproterozoic to Mesozoic protoliths and a mantle of Permo-Triassic low-grade rocks. Both the high-grade metamorphic core and low-grade Permo-Triassic rocks have experienced progressive ductile shearing. Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) results from 17 samples collected along the Xinjie–Pingbian section across the complex show that magnetic lineation (K_max) and foliation (K_max–K_int) are generally subparallel to the corresponding structural elements in the sheared rocks. The shape parameter E values of the magnetic ellipsoids are indicative of dominantly oblate and plane strain, but vary with protolith type and degree of strain among the various rock types. In agreement with the field and microstructural observations, the corrected degree of anisotropy (Pj) values reflect high shear strain in the core rocks and relatively low shear strain in the low-grade strata. A kinematic analysis based on structural and magnetic fabric data shows that both left- and right-lateral shear occurred during the deformation of the Yao Shan complex. Therefore, instead of being an element of the ASRR shear zone, the Yao Shan complex constitutes a crustal-scale inharmonic A-type fold with a fold axis parallel to the stretching lineation. Geochronologic data reveal that the folding occurred coevally with ductile shearing of the middle to lower crust between ca. 30 and 21 Ma.