A calculated petrogenetic grid for the system K2O-FeO-MgO-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O, with particular reference to contact-metamorphosed pelites

A petrogenetic grid is presented for the system KFMASH (K₂O-FeO-MgO-Al₂O₃-SiO₂-H₂O), including biotite, muscovite, K-feldspar, chlorite, chloritoid, staurolite, cordierite, garnet, orthoamphibole, orthopyroxene, spinel, andalusite, sillimanite, kyanite, quartz and corundum with H₂O in excess, which was calculated using the computer program THERMOCALC and the Powell and Holland internally consistent thermodynamic dataset. By removing the normal constraint of having quartz in excess, both quartz-bearing and quartz-absent equilibria are shown. Quartz-absent equilibria are particularly relevant at high- T and low- P conditions, because of their common occurrence at these conditions. The calculated mineral assemblage and mineral compositional variations in terms of FeMg-1 and (Fe, Mg)SiAl_-2 exchange vectors are broadly compatible with observations on natural rocks, particularly when non-KFMASH components are taken into account.     

Sequential growth of cordierite and andalusite porphyroblasts, Cooma Complex, Australia: microstructural evidence of a prograde reaction

Abstract Low-pressure prograde metamorphism of pelitic rocks in the Cooma Complex, south-east Australia, has produced cordierite-andalusite schists at intermediate grades. The first foliation (S₁) is preserved largely as inclusion trails in cordierite porphyroblasts. Microstructural evidence indicates that the cordierite porphyroblasts grew during the early stages of development of a crenulation-foliation (S₂) and that andalusite porphyroblasts grew during the development of a later crenulation-foliation (S₃). Microstructural evidence also indicates that the andalusite was a product of the prograde reaction: cordierite + muscovite ± andalusite + biotite + quartz. The occurrence of the products of this reaction in 'beard'structures between cordierite microboudins formed by extension in S₃ confirms that the andalusite grew during the development of S₃. The investigation shows that porphyroblast-matrix relationships can preserve the orientation of an early S-surface that has been largely obliterated from the matrix, as well as providing relatively direct evidence of sequential mineral growth and metamorphic reactions.     

Progressive sequence of reactions of the Ryoke metamorphism in the Yanai district, southwest Japan: the formation of cordierite

The compositions of biotite and muscovite were examined in terms of the paragenesis and the metamorphic grade in low- to medium-grade pelitic rocks of the Ryoke metamorphism in the Yanai district, southwest Japan. The biotite and muscovite that coexist with K-feldspar have a higher K component in an A'KF diagram than those in rocks lacking K-feldspar. This fact reflects an increase in the K₂O content in muscovite, but in biotite it reflects an increase of not only the K₂O content but also of the octahedral vacancy.
At higher metamorphic grade beyond the cordierite isograd, where cordierite coexists with neither chlorite nor K-feldspar, the biotite shows an increase in illite, K Aliv □xii−1 Si−1, and Tschermak components, Alvi Aliv R+−1 Si−1, where □xii and R+ denote the interlayer vacancy and (Fe+Mg+Mn), respectively. A reaction to define the cordierite isograd is proposed by treating this chemical change as being responsible for the first appearance of cordierite, i.e. K,Al-poor biotite+phengitic muscovite=K,Al-rich biotite+cordierite+quartz+water .By treating this as a key reaction in medium-grade metamorphism, a set of reaction in a progressive metamorphism is established for the Ryoke metamorphism, a typical low-pressure type metamorphism. Some textures in one of the high-grade areas, the K-feldspar-cordierite zone, suggest that a further two prograde reactions have taken place, i.e. andalusite+biotite+quartz=cordierite+K-feldspar+water
and   andalusite=sillimanite.quartz=cordierite+K-feldspar+water
This implies that this zone probably has a P–T  path involving isobaric heating.     

Evolution of a kyanite-bearing belt within a HT-LP orogen: the case of NW Variscan Iberia

Kyanite replaces andalusite in a belt of Ordovician and Silurian pelitic rocks that form a narrow synform pinched between high-grade antiforms in NW Variscan Iberia. Kyanite occurs across the belt in Al-rich, black pelites in assemblages I: kyanite–chloritoid–chlorite–muscovite and II: kyanite–staurolite– chlorite–muscovite. In I, kyanite occurs in the matrix and in kyanite–muscovite aggregates that pseudomorph earlier andalusite porphyroblasts. The aggregates are found across the belt and can still be recognized in assemblage II and even in III: andalusite–staurolite–biotite–muscovite, this latter being a hornfelsic Silurian schist where kyanite is relic and staurolite occurs in the matrix, and is resorbed inside new massive pleochroic andalusite. KFMASH and MnKFMASH pseudosections have been constructed using Thermocalc for Al-rich and Al-poorer compositions from the belt. Chloritoid zoning in Al-rich rocks containing assemblage I, plus chloritoid–chlorite thermometry complemented with garnet–chlorite thermometry in Al-poorer lithologies, mean that the path is one of increasing pressure and temperature. Conditions prior to assemblage I, with earlier andalusite stable, are those of the andalusite–chloritoid– chlorite field as testified by chloritoid enclosed in andalusite porphyroblast rims. The passage from assemblage I to II implies a prograde path within the kyanite field. Assemblage III represents peak conditions, indicating a prograde staurolite-consuming reaction across a KFMASH field, leading eventually to a locally found andalusite–biotite–muscovite hornfels. The lowest pressure stages are recorded by cordierite–biotite in Al-poor pelites. Garnet-bearing MnKFMASH assemblages in Al-poorer pelites record conditions similar to assemblages II and III. The replacement of andalusite by kyanite in assemblage I is attributed to downdragging of andalusite-bearing rocks into a synform as testified by the strained andalusite porphyroblasts affected by a subvertical crenulation cleavage. Prograde metamorphism in the eastern contact of the belt is due to heat transferred to the belt from the ascending high grade antiform across the Vivero fault.     

Microstructural features of albite porphyroblasts as indicators of sequential Barrovian metamorphic mineral growth in the Caledonides of the SW Scottish Highlands

Inclusion – porphyroblast and porphyroblast – porphyroblast relationships show that abundant albite in mica schists in the Caledonides of the SW Scottish Highlands are part of the Barrovian metamorphic assemblage. Growth early in the D2 deformational phase of porphyroblast cores followed the growth of Mn‐rich garnet but preceded the growth of porphyroblasts of the index mineral almandine. Two sets of inclusion trails in the albite correspond to the regionally expressed S1 and S2. Straight trails of muscovite, chlorite, quartz, epidote and the earliest growth of biotite make up S1. Crenulated trails express deformation of S1 early in D2 with muscovite, chlorite, biotite, quartz, epidote and the Mn‐rich garnet associated with the development of S2 crenulation cleavage. The geometries of these trails uniquely record early stages of D2 deformational history. An _0?3 growth is related to the temporal coincidence of the formation of S1–S2 crenulation cleavage hinges as favourable sites for nucleation and the release of large amounts of water from prograde reactions during tectonothermal reconstitution of first cycle immature sediments with a volcanic component. The main characteristics of the regionally expressed D2 schistosity were developed during the major grain coarsening that followed both albite and almandine porphyroblast growth. Essentially inclusion‐free An _4?19 rims grew on the inclusion‐containing cores in the almandine zone in the later stages of schistosity growth and unoriented porphyroblasts of muscovite, biotite and chlorite indicate that mineral growth extended from the later stages of D2 to post‐D2. Previous interpretations of the albite porphyroblast growth having been during D4 to post‐D4 contemporaneous with retrogression are inconsistent with the microstructural evidence.     

Chemographic relationships of biotite and cordierite in the McGerrigle thermal aureole, Gaspé, Quebec

Abstract Biotite and cordierite occur in a 1-km wide zone of pelitic hornfelses around the McGerrigle pluton. These phases display systematic changes in X _Fe that can be attributed to continuous reactions involving chlorite or andalusite in the system KFMASH. Through much of the zone biotite and cordierite were products of the 'breakdown'of chlorite. Close to the pluton this continuous reaction was terminated by a discontinuous reaction that introduced andalusite. Pelites which interdigitate with apophyses of the intrusive at the pluton margin contain assemblages that record a continuous reaction between biotite, cordierite, andalusite, muscovite, and quartz or, alternatively, the discontinuous breakdown of muscovite and quartz to K-feldspar and andalusite.
The mole fraction of Fe in biotite and cordierite increased significantly with the progress of the first continuous reaction and apparently decreased during the second continuous reaction. The K _D of Fe-Mg between the minerals decreased and apparently increased, respectively, during the two reactions.
Biotite-cordierite-chlorite assemblages are interpreted to have been stable at temperatures between 525° C and 615° C and biotite-cordierite-andalusite assemblages stable at temperatures between 615° C and 635° C. The confining pressure was estimated to have been < 2 kbar.
The results of this study suggest that the K _D of Fe-Mg between biotite and cordierite is a function of temperature, the Fe-Mg exchange characteristics of the controlling continuous reaction and non-ideal mixing of Fe and Mg.     

Controls on the first appearance of jadeitic pyroxene, northern Diablo Range, California

A reaction producing jadeitic pyroxene in metagreywackes of the northern Diablo Range has been identified on the basis of mineral distribution, isograd patterns and composition of coexisting minerals. The appearance of jadeitic pyroxene (∼Jd₈₀) is closely followed by the disappearance of pumpellyite, which indicates that pumpellyite plays a major role in the pyroxene-producing reaction. A new projection from hematite, lawsonite, chlorite, quartz and H₂O on to the NaAlO₂-FeO-MgO ternary confirms the role of pumpellyite in pyroxene production and suggests a reaction of the form: 1.00 pumpellyite + 0.31 chlorite + 8.71 albite + 0.70 hematite + 2.00 H₂O = 8.54 jadeite + 0.57 glaucophane + 3.09 lawsonite + 5.26 quartz. Metagreywackes of the northern Diablo Range were metamorphosed under conditions of P _H2O= P _total at 200-300 °C and 7.5-10.0 kbar. Despite the low temperatures attained during metamorphism, the assumption of equilibrium yields results consistent with field observations and phase relations.     

The muscovite-melt bathograd and low-P isograd suites in north-central Wopmay Orogen, Northwest Territories, Canada

In north-central Wopmay Orogen, syntectonic low-P(Buchan-type) suites of mineral isograds outline regional metamorphic temperature culminations that are associated, at the higher structural levels, with emplacement of early Proterozoic plutons in the west part of a deformed and eastward transported continental margin prism. The mapped isograds mark the first occurrence of biotite, staurolite, andalusite, sillimanite, sillimanite-K feldspar and K feldspar-plagioclase-quartz ± muscovite (granitic) pods in metapelites, with increasing proximity to the plutons.
Microprobe analyses and field observations have resulted in the formulation of reactions for the 'ideal'pelitic system K₂O-Na₂O-FeO-MgO-Al₂O₃-SiO₂-H₂O-Al₂O₃-SiO₂-H₂O, to account for the various mineral assemblages of each metamorphic zone. A P-T petrogenetic grid showing erosion surface P-T curves for the northern Wopmay Orogen pelites, compiled on the basis of the mapped isograds and the inferred reaction(s) for each metamorphic zone, documents a variation in exposed metamorphic pressure ranging between 2 and 4 kbar.
The configuration of a new bathograd, based on the invariant model reaction sillimanite + K feldspar + plagioclase + biotite + quartz + vapor ± muscovite + liquid and interpolated across three metamorphic suites, is consistent with a major regional structure culmination and with independently determined pressures obtained from anorthite-grossular-quartz-Al₂SiO₅ geobarometry. The positive correlation between the configuration of the bathograd and the structural and pressure culmination points to the pressure-dependence of anatectic-granitic-pod mineral associations.     

Pseudomorphous replacement of cordierite by symplectic intergrowths of andalusite, biotite and quartz

High-grade metapelitic gneisses rich in cordierite and K-feldspar at Cooma, N.S.W., Australia, show microstructural evidence of partial to complete replacement of cordierite grains with biotite inclusions by fine-grained, symplectic intergrowths of andalusite, biotite and quartz. The replacement occurred during the later stages of the history of the Cooma Complex, under retrograde conditions. An equation for the local reaction: cordierite+red-brown biotite+H₂O+K⁺ andalusite+green-brown biotite+quartz+H⁺ can be balanced approximately, using compositions obtained from microprobe analyses of the minerals involved. The volumes occupied by the solid reactants and solid products are nearly identical. The potassium and water were derived from an unknown external source, possibly connected with the replacement of K-feldspar by muscovite in nearby rocks.     

Orthopyroxene–sillimanite–sapphirine granulites from the Bamble granulite terrane, southern Norway

Silica-deficient sapphirine-bearing rocks occur as an enclave within granulite facies Proterozoic gneisses and migmatites near Grimstad in the Bamble sector of south-east Norway (Hasleholmen locality). The rocks contain peraluminous sapphirine, orthopyroxene, gedrite, anthophyllite, sillimanite, sapphirine, corundum, cordierite, spinel, quartz and biotite in a variety of assemblages. Feldspar is absent.
Fe²⁺/(Fe²⁺+ Mg) in the analysed minerals varies in the order: spinel > gedrite ≥ anthophyllite ≥ biotite > sapphirine>orthopyroxene > cordierite.
Characteristic pseudomorph textures indicate coexistence of orthopyroxene and sillimanite during early stages of the reaction history. Assemblages containing orthopyroxene-sillimanite-sapphirine-cordierite-corundum developed during a high-pressure phase of metamorphism and are consistent with equilibration pressures of about 9 kbar at temperatures of 750–800°C. Decompression towards medium-pressure granulite facies generated various sapphirine-bearing assemblages. The diagnostic assemblage of this stage is sapphirine-cordierite. Sapphirine occurs in characteristic symplectite textures. The major mineralogical changes can be described by the discontinuous FMAS reaction: orthopyroxene + sillimanite → sapphirine + cordierite + corundum.
The disequilibrium textures found in the Hasleholmen rocks are characteristic for reactions which have been in progress but then ceased before they run to completion. Textures such as reaction rims, symplectites, partial replacement, corrosion and dissolution of earlier minerals are characteristic of granulite facies rocks. They indicate that, despite relatively high temperatures (700–800° C), equilibrium domains were small and chemical communication and transport was hampered as a result of dry or H₂O-poor conditions.     

Petrology of pelitic schists in the oligoclase-biotite zone of the Sanbagawa metamorphic terrain, Japan: phase equilibria in the highest grade zone of a high-pressure intermediate type of metamorphic belt

The oligoclase-biotite zone of the Bessi area, central Shikoku is characterized by sodic plagioclase (X_Ca= 0.10–0.28)-bearing assemblages in pelitic schists, and represents the highest-grade zone of the Sanbagawa metamorphic terrain. Mineral assemblages in pelitic schists of this zone, all with quartz, sodic plagioclase, muscovite and clinozoisite (or zoisite), are garnet + biotite + chlorite + paragonite, garnet + biotite + hornblende + chlorite, and partial assemblages of these two types. Correlations between mineral compositions, mineral assemblages and mineral stability data assuming PH₂O = P_solid suggests that metamorphic conditions of this zone are about 610 ± 25°C and 10 ± 1 kbar.
Based upon a comparative study of mineralogy and chemistry of pelitic schists in the oligoclase-biotite zone of the Sanbagawa terrain with those in the New Caledonia omphacite zone as an example of a typical high-pressure type of metamorphic belt and with those in a generalized'upper staurolite zone'as an example of a medium-pressure type of metamorphic belt, progressive assemblages within these three zones can be related by reactions such as:     

Reaction textures in calc-silicate granulites from the Bolingen Islands, Prydz Bay, East Antarctica: implications for the retrograde P–T path

Calc-silicate granulites from the Bolingen Islands, Prydz Bay, East Antarctica, exhibit a sequence of reaction textures that have been used to elucidate their retrograde P–T path. The highest temperature recorded in the calc-silicates is represented by the wollastonite- and scapolite-bearing assemblages which yield at least 760°C at 6 kbar based on experimental results. The calc-silicates have partially re-equilibrated at lower temperatures (down to 450°C) as evidenced by the successive reactions: (1) wollastonite + scapolite + calcite = garnet + CO₂, (2) wollastonite + CO₂= calcite + quartz, (3) wollastonite + plagioclase = garnet + quartz, (4) scapolite = plagioclase + calcite + quartz, (5) garnet + CO₂+ H₂O = epidote + calcite + quartz, and (6) clinopyroxene + CO₂+ H₂O = tremolite + calcite + quartz.
The reaction sequence observed indicates that a CO₂ was relatively low in the wollastonite-bearing rocks during peak metamorphic conditions, and may have been further lowered by local infiltration of H₂O from the surrounding migmatitic gneisses on cooling. Fluid activities in the Bolingen calc-silicates were probably locally variable during the granulite facies metamorphism, and large-scale CO₂ advection did not occur.
A retrograde P–T path, from the sillimanite stability field ( c. 760°C at 6 kbar) into the andalusite stability field ( c. 450°C at <3 kbar), is suggested by the occurrence of secondary andalusite in an adjacent cordierite–sillimanite gneiss in which sillimanite occurs as inclusions in cordierite.     

Ductile-brittle transition in pre-Alpine amphibolite facies mylonites during evolution from water-present to water-deficient conditions (Mont Mary nappe, Italian Western Alps)

In the Austroalpine Mont Mary nappe (Italian Western Alps) discrete zones of mylonites–ultramylonites developed from coarse-grained, upper amphibolite facies metapelites of pre-Alpine age. The syn–mylonitic mineral assemblage is quartz–biotite–muscovite–plagioclase–garnet–sillimanite–ilmenite–graphite, and formed via the model hydration reaction: Grt₁+Kfs+H₂O=Bt₂+Ilm₂+Qtz+Ms± Sil .Grain-size reduction of about three orders of magnitude was accompanied by extensive recrystallization of all minerals except sillimanite, and by compositional changes of garnet and biotite. Deformation took place at temperatures of 510–580  °C under low-pressure conditions (0.25–0.45 GPa) and corresponds to the latest stages of pre-Alpine metamorphic evolution. The pre-Alpine mylonitization conditions were close to the brittle-ductile transition, as indicated by syn–mylonitic generation of pseudotachylytes and high differential stress inferred from quartz grain-size piezometry. The brittle-ductile behaviour at a relatively high temperature, and the absence of annealing textures in quartz aggregates, are suggestive of water-deficient conditions during mylonitization. These were accomplished through progressive consumption of water by syn–kinematic hydration reaction and by adsorption onto the greatly increased grain boundary area resulting from dynamic recrystallization.     

On the origin of CO2-rich fluid inclusions in migmatites

Abstract Nearly pure CO₂ fluid inclusions are abundant in migmatites although H₂O-rich fluids are predicted from the phase equilibria. Processes which may play a role in this observation include (1) the effects of decompression on melt, (2) generation of a CO₂-bearing volatile phase by the reaction graphite + quartz + biotite + plagioclase = melt + orthopyroxene + CO₂-rich vapour, (3) selective leakage of H₂O from CO₂+ H₂O inclusions when the pressure in the inclusion exceeds the confining pressure during decompression, and (4) enrichment of grain-boundary vapour in CO₂ by subsolidus retrograde hydration reactions.     

The greenschist metamorphism of Archaean synvolcanic stocks near Wawa, Ontario, Canada

Abstract Two Archaean synvolcanic stocks with contact aureoles occur in the Wawa greenstone belt near Wawa, Ontario, Canada. The Gutcher Lake and Jubilee stocks consist mainly of granitoid trondhjemite with feldspar laths mottled by white mica + calcite + epidote and rimmed by clear albite. Biotite is partly or wholly pseudomorphosed by chlorite + sphene; some epidote is partly altered to calcite + chlorite. The granitoid phase grades into a foliated phase of quartz + albite + white mica + calcite + chlorite near fracture zones traversing the stocks.
The alteration of the Gutcher Lake stock along its foliated margin involved addition of K₂O, H₂O + CO₂, MnO, plus Rb; loss of CaO plus Sr; and a shift in Fe⁺²/Fe_t from 0.66 to 0.81. The alteration of the Jubilee stock along the Darwin Shear involved addition of H₂O + CO₂; loss of Sr; and no significant shift in Fe⁺²/Fe_t. The greenschist alteration also modified the contact aureoles bordering both stocks.
One interpretation is that regional metamorphism in the Archaean overprinted a greenschist assemblage on both stocks. The alteration was intense near fracture zones and sporadic remote from fractures. Lower integrated water to rock ratios along the Darwin Shear compared to the margin of the Gutcher Lake stock may explain the comparatively lower perturbation of the element abundances and redox state of iron.     

Disequilibrium in the Ross of Mull Contact Metamorphic Aureole, Scotland: a Consequence of Polymetamorphism

The Ross of Mull pluton consists of granites and granodioritesand intrudes sediments previously metamorphosed at amphibolitefacies. The high grade and coarse grain size of the protolithis responsible for a high degree of disequilibrium in many partsof the aureole and for some unusual textures. A band of metapelitecontained coarse garnet, biotite and kyanite prior to intrusion,and developed a sequence of textures towards the pluton. InZone I, garnet is rimmed by cordierite and new biotite. In ZoneII, coarse kyanite grains are partly replaced by andalusite,indicating incomplete reaction. Coronas of cordierite + muscovitearound kyanite are due to reaction with biotite. In the higher-gradeparts of this zone there is complete replacement of kyaniteand/or andalusite by muscovite and cordierite. Cordierite chemistryindicates that in Zone II the stable AFM assemblage (not attained)would have been cordierite + biotite + muscovite, without andalusite.The observed andalusite is therefore metastable. Garnet is unstablein Zone II, with regional garnets breaking down to cordierite,new biotite and plagioclase. In Zone III this breakdown is welladvanced, and this zone marks the appearance of fibrolite andK-feldspar in the groundmass as a result of muscovite breakdown.Zone IV shows garnet with cordierite, biotite, sillimanite,K-feldspar and quartz. Some garnets are armoured by cordieriteand are inferred to be relics. Others are euhedral with Mn-richcores. For these, the reaction biotite + sillimanite + quartz garnet + cordierite + K-feldspar + melt is inferred. Usinga petrogenetic grid based on the work of Pattison and Harte,pressure is estimated at 3·2 kbar, and temperature atthe Zone II–III boundary at 650°C and in Zone IV asat least 750°C. KEY WORDS: contact metamorphism; disequilibrium     

Metamorphic phase relations in orthopyroxene-bearing granitoids: implication for high-pressure metamorphism and prograde melting in the continental crust

In this work, the factors controlling the formation and preservation of high-pressure mineral assemblages in the metamorphosed orthopyroxene-bearing metagranitoids of the Sandmata Complex, Aravalli-Delhi Mobile Belt (ADMB), northwestern India have been modelled. The rocks range in composition from farsundite through quartz mangerite to opdalite, and with varying K₂O, Ca/(Ca + Na)_rock and FeO_tot + MgO contents. A two stage metamorphic evolution has been recorded in these rocks.
An early hydration event stabilized biotite with or without epidote at the expense of magmatic orthopyroxene and plagioclase. Subsequent high-pressure granulite facies metamorphism (∼15 kbar, ∼800 °C) of these hydrated rocks produced two rock types with contrasting mineralogy and textures. In the non-migmatitic metagranitoids, spectacular garnet ± K-feldspar ± quartz corona was formed around reacting biotite, plagioclase, quartz and/or pyroxene. In contrast, biotite ± epidote melting produced migmatites, containing porphyroblastic garnet incongruent solids and leucosomes.
Applying NCKFMASHTO T–M (H₂O) and P–T pseudosection modelling techniques, it is demonstrated that the differential response of these magmatic rocks to high-pressure metamorphism is primarily controlled by the scale of initial hydration. Rocks, which were pervasively hydrated, produced garnetiferous migmatites, while for limited hydration, the same metamorphism formed sub-solidus garnet-bearing coronae. Based on the sequence of mineral assemblage evolution and the mineral compositional zoning features in the two metagranitoids, a clockwise metamorphic P–T path is constrained for the high-pressure metamorphic event. The finding has major implications in formulating geodynamic model of crustal amalgamation in the ADMB.     

Retrograde replacement of andalusite by Ca–Na mica in chloritoid-bearing metapelites. PTX modelling of rocks with different Al content in the MnNCKFMASH system

Andalusite porphyroblasts are totally pseudomorphosed by margarite–paragonite aggregates in aluminous pelites containing the peak mineral assemblage andalusite, chlorite, chloritoid, margarite, paragonite, quartz ± garnet, in a NW Iberia contact area. Equilibria at low P–T are investigated using new KFMASH and (mainly) MnCNKFMASH grids constructed with Thermocalc 3.21. P–T and T–X pseudosections with phase modal volume isopleths are constructed for compositions relatively richer and poorer in andalusite to model the assemblages in an andalusite‐bearing rock that contains a thin andalusite‐rich band (ARB) during retrogression. Their compositions, prior to retrogression, are used in the modelling, and have been retrieved by restoring the pseudomorph‐forming elements into the current‐depleted matrix, except for Al₂O₃ which is assumed to be immobile. Compositional differences between the thin band and the rest of the rock have not resulted in differences in andalusite porphyroblast retrogression. The absence of chloritoid resorbtion implies either a pressure increase at constant reacting‐system composition, or that its composition changed during retrogression at constant pressure, by becoming enriched in the progressively replaced andalusite porphyroblasts. T–X pseudosections at 1 kbar model this latter process using as end‐members in X, first, the restored original rock and ARB compositions, and, then the same process, taking into account the change in composition of both as retrogression proceeded. The MnNCKFMASH pseudosections of rocks with different Al contents facilitate making further deductions on the rock‐composition control of the resulting assemblages upon retrogression. Andalusite eventually disappears in relatively Al‐poor rocks, resulting, as in this study, in a rock formed by chloritoid–chlorite as the only FM minerals, plus margarite–paragonite pseudomorphs of andalusite. In rocks richer in Al, chlorite would progressively disappear and a kyanite/andalusite–chloritoid assemblage would eventually be stable at retrograde conditions. The Al‐silicate, stable during retrogression in Al‐rich rocks, indicates pressure conditions and hence the tectonic context under which retrogression took place.     

Microstructural controls and the role of graphite in matrix/ porphyroblast exchange during synkinematic andalusite growth in a granitoid aureole

Abstract In the contact metamorphic aureole of the Tinaroo Batholith (north Queensland, Australia), mylonitic rocks were metamorphosed during a regional folding/crenulation event (D₂) synchronous with the emplacement of muscovite-bearing granitoids. Prismatic and skeletal andalusite porphyoblasts grew in carbonaceous schists, mainly from the dissolution of staurolite. Muscovite, quartz and biotite played a dual role in this reaction, acting in a catalytic capacity as well as reactants or products. Staurolite was replaced by coarse-grained muscovite ± biotite, whereas andalusite locally replaced quartz ± muscovite ± biotite, with diffusion of H, Al, Si, Mg, Fe and K ionic species linking sites of dissolution and growth. Graphite contributed to the reaction mechanism in a number of ways. Accumulations of graphite in front of advancing andalusite crystal faces led to skeletal growth and the formation of chiastolite structure, where incremental growth occurred on adjacent {110} faces, with subsequent filling in and inclusion of graphite along the diagonal zones. The presence of graphite in some layers in the schist matrix prevented recrystallization of strained muscovite grains. The muscovite grains in these layers, in contrast to adjacent thin non-graphitic layers, were preferentially replaced by quartz. This resulted in muscovite-depletion haloes in graphitic layers around andalusite porphyroblasts. Somewhat arcuate zones of graphite, concentrated during dissolution of quartz along a crenulation cleavage, occur on some andalusite faces. Reactivation of the mylonitic foliation during the formation of D₂ crenulations led to a preferential dissolution of quartz in zones of progressive shearing localized near andalusite porphyroblasts and hence the accumulation of graphite. Lack of deflection of the pre-existing mylonitic foliation and anastomosing of the axial planes of D₂ crenulations around andalusite porphyroblasts demonstrate not only the timing of growth, but also that growing porphyroblasts do not push aside existing foliations.     

Staurolite porphyroblast controls on local bulk compositional and microstructural changes during decompression of a St–Bt–Grt–Crd–And schist (Ancasti metamorphic complex,Sierras Pampeanas,W Argentina)

The staurolite–biotite–garnet–cordierite–andalusite–plagioclase–muscovite–quartz metapelitic mineral assemblage has been frequently interpreted in the literature as a result of superimposition of various metamorphic events, for example, in polymetamorphic sequences. The assemblage was identified in schists from the Ancasti metamorphic complex (Sierras Pampeanas of Argentina) where previous authors have favoured the polymetamorphic genetic interpretation. A pseudosection in the MnNCKFMASH system for the analysed XRF bulk composition predicts the stability of the sub‐assemblage staurolite–biotite–garnet–plagioclase–muscovite–quartz, and the compositional isopleths also agree with measured mineral compositions. Nevertheless, the XRF pseudosection does not predict any field with staurolite, andalusite and cordierite being stable together. As a result of more detailed modelling making use of the effective bulk composition concept, our interpretation is that the staurolite–biotite–garnet–plagioclase–muscovite–quartz sub‐assemblage was present at peak metamorphic conditions, 590 °C and 5.2 kbar, but that andalusite and cordierite grew later along a continuous P–T path. These minerals are not in mutual contact and are observed in separate microstructural domains with different proportions of staurolite. These domains are explained as a result of local reaction equilibrium subsystems developed during decompression and influenced by the previous peak crystal size and local modal distribution of staurolite porphyroblasts that have remained metastable. Thus, andalusite and cordierite grew synchronously, although in separate microdomains, and represent the decompression stage at 565 °C and 3.5 kbar.