北京西山房山岩体西北部强变形带的成因新解

北京西山房山岩体西北缘不对称发育一条弧形塑性强变形带,前人根据岩体东南部组构缓倾和岩体内部强应变分布特征提出岩浆斜向底辟侵位模式(王人镜等,1990;张吉顺和李志中,1990)。本文在前人研究的基础上,对房山岩体的组构进行系统观测,研究了西北缘固态塑性强变形带地质特征,着重探讨了岩体侵位时围岩热结构状态。文章认为岩浆同侵位固态塑性强变形带的形成需要早期岩浆进入准固态-固态和后期岩浆膨胀动力这两个必要条件。房山岩体西北部的强变形带是由于岩体侵位时西部围岩的温度较低,岩浆较早进入准固态-固态,后期岩浆侵位时膨胀动力双重因素造成的,提出了围岩热结构状态是房山岩体不对称的固态塑性强变形带的控制因素,而不是岩浆斜向底辟侵位的结果。这一研究成果不仅较合理地解释了房山岩体强变形带不对称发育特征,而且对研究同类花岗质岩体的定位机制有一定启示意义。     

再考查深成岩体侵位作用

以前有关深成岩体的侵位研究都试图解释岩体侵位空间如何形成。事实上，幔源岩浆侵位期间在地壳中“制造空间”的途径不外乎；（１）莫霍面降低；（２）地球表面外移。其它的“岩体侵位机制”均是不增加地壳体积的物质迁移作用（ＭＴＰｓ）。得到广泛引用的“同心带状气球膨胀岩体”侵位时的ＭＴＰｓ是岩体附近围岩的韧性流动。这类深成岩体附近可能形成的构造和总应变与岩体的三维形态、接触变质带的宽度以及岩体是否为刺穿底辟有关     

湘东邓阜仙-锡田印支期花岗岩体的侵位机制

印支期似斑状花岗岩构成了湘东中生代邓阜仙-锡田岩体的主体,其内发育两种类型的叶理构造,即流面和构造成因的片麻理。二者的标志性区别在于长石(斜长石和钾长石)斑晶在前者呈自形的短柱状,没有任何可见的韧性变形,而在后者呈椭圆状,明显被压扁拉长。流面基本上围绕岩体边界呈面状分布,整个侵入体从外到内依次可划分出流面不发育、欠发育和发育三个相带,对应着由早至晚的三次岩浆脉动侵位。该期花岗岩侵位机制总体上类似于气球膨胀模型。与典型气球膨胀岩体不同的是,由于岩浆供给量在该期最后一次脉动侵位时的急剧减少,虽然流速增大,但对外挤压减弱,造成岩石应变强度从外到内趋向增加,而不是递减。构造成因的片麻理局部出现,走向总体上呈NE向,表明该花岗岩在准固态甚至固态下遭受到NW-SE向区域挤压作用。     

中国沉积学的今后发展:若干思考与建议

出露于北京西山房山岩体南北两侧的官地杂岩,主要由正片麻岩、斜长角闪岩组成,局部具混合岩化特征。对官地杂岩的形成时代及出露原因一直存在很大的争议。一种观点认为官地杂岩形成时代为太古宙,出露于中生代早期的区域伸展体制下,另一种观点则认为官地杂岩是中新元古界或古生界泥质变质岩,在房山岩体侵位过程中发生接触变质作用的产物。研究表明,官地杂岩是一套正片麻岩,其中的锆石核部为岩浆成因,而外部普遍发育较窄的浅色边。SHRIMP II锆石铀铅年龄测定获得锆石的一致曲线与不一致曲线上交点年龄值为(2 521 ±20) Ma,代表了新太古代的岩浆结晶年龄,从而证明官地杂岩原岩形成于新太古代。构造分析表明,官地杂岩与上覆中元古代蓟县系至早古生代地层间为剥离断层接触关系,并为房山岩体侵位和改造,证明是一个形成于房山岩体侵位前的变质核杂岩构造。但房山岩体的侵位并未对锆石的岩浆年龄和变质年龄产生明显影响。     

地球内部物质、能量交换与资源和灾害

通过对凤凰山岩体接触带的变质与变形特征、显微构造及变形缩短量的计算 ,分析了凤凰山岩体侵位与接触带变形及区域变形的关系。通过接触带变质矿物变形特征的研究 ,揭示了热变质作用与侵位变形的同时性 ;接触带构造变形研究表明 ,岩体周围发育的流变褶皱、韧性剪切带、压溶缝合线等与岩体左旋上升与汽球膨胀侵位有关 ;围岩缩短量的计算结果表明 ,岩体侵位过程造成强烈的围岩缩短是一种强力侵位机制。研究表明 ,凤凰山岩体侵位是在区域NNE向水平左旋剪切应力场作用下完成的。岩体接触带变形是NNE向水平左旋剪切应力与横向推挤的侵位应力联合作用下形成的。     

崔召花岗岩岩体的磁组构特征及其构造侵位意义

侵入岩体的磁组构形成于岩浆运移侵位、固化的过程中,必然保留了岩体的构造侵位过程的信息.以玲珑复式花岗岩岩基南部的崔召岩体为例,对岩体磁组构的详细研究,可以揭示岩浆运移,就位和变形等一系列特征.崔召岩体的磁线理不发育,反映岩体侵位速度慢,岩体边部磁面理比内部发育,并且岩体边缘磁各向异性度P值明显大于岩体内部,磁线理倾角小,反映岩体侵位过程中侧向挤压作用比较强烈,具有类似于气球膨胀作用的侵位机制.并且此磁组构特征再没有受到后期构造热事件的影响.     

花岗质岩浆侵位对围岩裂隙发育和热结构影响的数值模拟

岩浆侵位会引起围岩的接触变质作用和变形，虽然围岩中的破裂提供了流体活动和元素迁移的重要通道，但是大多数岩浆侵位模型忽略了围岩中热对流的影响。本文总结了岩浆侵位的数值模拟原理和常用模拟方法，然后使用离散元软件MatDEM建立了二维的双层围岩模型和均质围岩模型，用孔隙密度流法模拟花岗质岩浆侵位和冷却过程中岩浆与围岩之间的流- 固- 热- 力耦合过程。结果表明岩浆侵位过程中围岩的裂隙发育和热对流对接触变质晕具有重要影响，围岩的裂隙发育和热传输模式可分为三个阶段：① 岩浆侵位初期的挤压力使围岩中产生广泛分布的、呈径向展布的剪裂隙，围岩以热传导和孔隙渗流为主导；② 在持续的孔隙流体压下，径向裂隙连通形成主干张性断裂并向上扩展，成为熔/流体迁移的重要通道以及伟晶岩型和热液型矿床的成矿空间，通道流和局部热对流控制了围岩的热传输；③ 在岩浆侵位后期，岩浆房附近围岩中的孔隙流体压增大，在侵入体与围岩的接触带形成大量张裂，加强了变质晕内的热对流，有助于矽卡岩型矿床的形成。与只有热传导的模型对比，热对流使围岩中变质晕的宽度减小。接触变质晕的几何形态受侵入体的形态控制，但是变质晕宽度在空间上有显著差异。本研究为重建岩浆侵位过程中的变质- 变形- 成矿作用提供了新方法。     

云南个旧市卡房矿田新山花岗岩侵位机制与成矿关系初探

文章综合了前人对花岗岩侵位机制的研究,对花岗岩几种重要的侵位机制进行了详述.在此基础上结合野外工作和实践,从围岩蚀变、流体运移、断裂控制等几个方面对云南个旧新山花岗岩体的侵位机制类型进行了综合分析,认为新山花岗岩体侵位机制类型属于岩浆底拱作用,新山矿段内形成的矿床主要有接触带铜锡多金属矿床、层脉状铜锡矽卡岩硫化矿床、变...     

敦煌造山带长山子地区变质演化及年代学研究

长山子地区位于敦煌造山带东北部,瓜州南部约100km处。该区主要出露一套中-高级变质表壳岩,主要岩石类型有长英质片麻岩、变泥质麻粒岩、高压基性麻粒岩、斜长角闪片麻岩。高压基性麻粒岩岩块、斜长角闪片麻岩岩块以构造透镜体或布丁(长度为0. 5~15m)的形式,被夹持于长英质片麻岩、变泥质麻粒岩组成的基质之中,呈现典型"基质夹岩块"的混杂带特征。高压基性麻粒岩、斜长角闪片麻岩、泥质麻粒岩中,普遍保留了二至三个阶段的变质矿物组合。进变质阶段矿物组合(M1)为石榴子石变斑晶中的细小矿物包裹体,变质高峰期矿物组合(M2)为石榴子石变斑晶和基质矿物,退变质阶段矿物组合(M3)主要为围绕石榴子石变斑晶边部发育的"白眼圈"状后成合晶。本区各类变质岩石均记录了顺时针型变质作用P-T轨迹,系典型俯冲-碰撞造山带变质作用特征。退变质阶段P-T轨迹属于西阿尔卑斯型,说明变质岩折返速率较快。变质高峰期(M2)属于中压变质相系,P-T条件分别为790~870℃/1.29~1.37GPa(高压基性麻粒岩)、680~685℃/0.89~0.97GPa(斜长角闪片麻岩)、860~880℃/0.90~1.14GPa(变泥质麻粒岩),它们之间存在大的差异。这说明,它们是形成于同一俯冲隧道内不同深度的变质岩石,在构造折返阶段才混杂在一起形成构造混杂岩。二次离子质谱(SIMS)锆石U-Pb定年表明,长山子地区变质杂岩记录了早泥盆世的俯冲事件(419~417Ma)。     

攀枝花大田地区康定群咱里组变质杂岩P-T-t轨迹及其构造意义

扬子板块西缘的康定杂岩为一套由侵入岩和变质岩共同组成的岩浆-变质混合杂岩,是研究罗迪尼亚超大陆裂解的重要窗口。长期以来对康定杂岩中的岩浆杂岩研究较多,但对变质杂岩研究较为薄弱。为全面了解康定杂岩形成的构造背景及成因机制,本文对扬子板块西缘的攀枝花大田地区康定群咱里组石榴夕线黑云斜长片麻岩进行了详细的岩相学、矿物地球化学、变质P-T条件估算研究,同时对同一层位的石榴二云片岩进行了锆石LA-ICP-MSU-Pb年代学分析。结果表明：石榴夕线黑云斜长片麻岩可识别出三期变质矿物组合：进变质阶段矿物组合（M1）为石榴子石变斑晶核部及其核部包裹体（石榴子石核部＋第一期黑云母＋第一期夕线石＋钛铁矿＋石英）,P-T条件为609～690℃-0.2～0.3 GPa;峰期变质阶段矿物组合（M2）为石榴子石变斑晶幔部及变基质矿物（石榴子石幔部＋第二期黑云母＋第二期夕线石＋斜长石＋石英）,P-T条件为643～732℃-0.20～0.51GPa;退变质阶段矿物组合（M3）为石榴子石变斑晶边部及变基质矿物（石榴子石边部＋第二期黑云母＋第二期夕线石＋斜长石＋石英）,P-T条件为602～687℃-0.27～0.39 GPa。石榴夕线黑云斜长片麻岩记录了具近等压冷却型（IBC）的逆时针P-T演化轨迹;石榴二云片岩锆石U-Pb定年结果表明区内的变质时代为842±10Ma,综合分析表明：扬子板块西缘的变质杂岩形成于拉张环境,结合区内的同期岩浆活动特征,认为区内新元古代变质事件可能与超级地幔柱引发的岩浆活动有关。     

Petrology,geochemistry and thermobarometry of the northern area of the Flamenco pluton,Coastal Range batholith,northern Chile. A thermal approach to the emplacement processes in the Jurassic andean batholiths

The Flamenco pluton is part of a N–S alignment of Late Triassic to Early Jurassic intrusive belt comprising the westernmost part of the Coastal Range batholith in northern Chile. The Jurassic-Cretaceous voluminous magmatism related to subduction in the western active continental margin of Gondwana is emplaced in the predominantly metasedimentary Paleozoic host-rocks of the Las Tórtolas formation, which in the northern area of the Flamenco pluton present an intense deformation, including the Chañaral mélange.Geochemically, the Flamenco pluton shows a wide compositional variability (SiO₂ between 48wt % and 67wt %). Gabbros, Qtz-diorites and tonalites, mesocratic and leucocratic granodiorites are classified as calc-alkaline, calcic, magnesian and metaluminous magmatism. Flamenco granitoids define cotectic linear evolution trends, typical of magmatic fractionation processes. Geochemical trends are consistent with magmas evolved from undersaturated and low-pressure melts, even though the absence of transitional contacts between intrusive units precludes in-situ fractionation. Although some granodioritic samples show crossed geochemical trends that point to the compositional field of metasediments, and large euhedral prismatic pinnite-biotite crystals, typical Crd pseudomorph, are observed in contact magmatic facies, geochemical assimilation processes are short range, and the occurrence of host-rocks xenoliths is limited to a few meters from the pluton contact.A thermal approach to the emplacement process has been constrained through the thermobarometric results and a 2D thermo-numerical model of the contact aureole. Some Qtz-diorites and granodiorites located in the north area of the pluton exhibit granulitic textures as Hbl-Pl-Qtz triple junctions, poikiloblastic Kfs and Qtz recrystallization. The Hbl–Pl pairs have been used for the thermobarometric study of this metamorphic process, resulting granoblastic equilibrium temperatures between 770 and 790 °C, whereas Hbl–Pl pairs in domains that preserve the original igneous textures yield temperatures above 820 °C. This is characteristic of self-granulitization processes during the sequential emplacement of composite batholiths.In addition, the thermal modeling was used in order to compare the expected and observed thermal contact aureole of the intrusive body. Model P-T conditions have been established between 3 and 4 kbars (extracted from the thermobarometric results), and temperatures between 1159 °C (liquidus temperature for a tonalitic composition) and 992 °C (fixed at the rheological threshold of a 50% crystal fraction). The thermal modeling estimates a homogeneous contact aureole, where the established temperatures for the melting reactions in the host-rocks are located at distances between 200 and 650 m from the magma chamber boundary, whereas the temperatures for Crd stabilization extend 1500 m far from the contact in the case of the emplacement at liquidus temperatures and 4 kbars. According to field observations, the contact aureole presents a scarce development in the northern area of the Flamenco pluton, with few migmatite outcrops and less than 1 Km in thickness for Crd-schists. However, in the southern contact, partially melted rocks are described at distances up to 2 km from the Flamenco pluton boundary.The processes of self-granulitization and the differences between the observed and calculated (by the thermal modeling of one single pulse) contact aureole suggests a process of incremental emplacement for the Flamenco pluton, by accretion of magmatic pulses from north to south (in its current position), where the thermal maturity reached through the repeated magmatic intrusion generates a more extensive area of high-grade metamorphism.     

北京西山房山岩体岩浆底辟构造及其地质意义

运用底辟构造的理论和模型, 通过对北京西山房山岩体边缘围岩构造、变形和应变的研究, 厘定出岩体边缘的高温剪切带、周缘向斜、呈穹状分布陡倾的线理和面理, 并结合对西山区域构造事件分析后提出房山岩体为典型的岩浆底辟构造(HotStokesDiapir).这项研究成果不仅在世界上首次证实了岩浆底辟的存在, 而且对理清北京西山地区的地质构造格架和演化序列具有十分重要的意义.研究认为房山地区可能不存在变质核杂岩; 房山岩体边缘的关坻太古宙杂岩是基底岩石随岩体底辟流动上升带到地壳上部的; 原先确定的一些印支期“剥离断层”是房山岩体岩浆底辟的刺穿构造或围岩高温剪切作用造成的地层缺失; 太平山和凤凰山等向斜是岩体底辟过程中在围岩拖曳下形成的周缘向斜.      

The zoned Bruinbun granitoid pluton and its aureole

The Bruinbun pluton is a small, massive, I‐type granitoid intruded into the meta‐sedimentary Hill End Trough, in eastern N.S.W. It is a multiple pluton representing two discrete magma pulses, the granodiorite core intruding the adamellite margin. A weak alignment of orthoclase megacrysts in the granitoids is best developed adjacent to both the internal and external intrusive contacts, and is considered by the writer to be a product of magmatic flow. Part of the northern contact and the southern and western contacts dip inward at moderate angles, whereas the eastern contact is vertical to outward‐dipping. The pluton is inferred to be mushroom‐shaped, and slightly tilted.

The intensity of aureole deformation is low. The aureole has been flexed into concordancy with the pluton roof, and a rudimentary rim fold‐zone is present around lower levels of the pluton. Intrusion of the granitoid is inferred to be primarily by uplift of its roof and depression of its floor.

The highest‐grade contact metamorphic parageneses developed are: cordierite‐K feldspar‐biotite‐quartzite ± andesine ± epidote in metapelites, and ferrohornblende‐biotite‐muscovite‐andesine‐epidote‐quartz in metavolcarenites. No intrusion‐related foliation or lineation was formed.     

Contact metamorphism of pelitic,psammitic and calcareous sediments in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales

Contact metamorphism has been recognized along a 4 km wide belt adjacent to the shallow‐dipping eastern margin of the Arthursleigh Tonalite, an Early Devonian pluton of the Marulan Batholith, eastern New South Wales. In Ordovician psammitic and pelitic rocks three zones of progressive contact metamorphism range from muscovite + biotite + chlorite assemblages in the outer zone to K‐feldspar + cordierite assemblages adjacent to the pluton and in metasedimentary xenoliths. Retrograde phenomena include extensive replacement of metamorphic minerals by ‘sericite’ and chlorite. Calcareous metasediments adjacent to the tonalite typically contain assemblages of quartz + calcic plagioclase + ferrosalite + sphene, or wollastonite + calcite + diopside with minor grossularite and vesuvianite. Thermal effects in volcanic rocks along the western margin of the pluton are confined to recrystallization of the groundmass.

The regional geology indicates confining pressures of approximately 1 kbar at the time of emplacement of the tonalite. Contact metamorphic temperatures were estimated from two‐feldspar geothermometry to attain a maximum of approximately 590°C for rocks in the innermost zone of the aureole and 700°C for the xenoliths. Fluid compositions attending progressive contact metamorphism were water‐rich (Xco₂<0.2) and, during cooling, these fluids probably account for the extensive retrograde hydration observed in the aureole.     

Metamorphic Environments around the Cretaceous Kurihashi Pluton in the Kitakami Mountains, NE Japan: in Comparison to the Ganidake Pluton - Kamaishi Skarn Metasomatism

Abstract. Many granitic plutons of Early Cretaceous age are intruded on various scales in the Kitakami Mountains. The stock‐type Ganidake pluton accompanies enormous Fe‐Cu mineralization of the Kamaishi deposits, whereas the Kurihashi pluton accompanies less mineralization. To elucidate the cause of these differences, the metamorphic conditions and redox state of the contact metamorphic aureole around the Kurihashi pluton have been examined by the petrochemical study and gas analysis of the metamorphic rocks. A typical mineral assemblage in the pelitic rocks in the lowest‐grade part is biotite‐muscovite‐chlorite‐quartz‐plagio‐clase‐graphite, which occur more than 2 km away from the contact point with the Kurihashi pluton. Graphite disappears at the 1550 m point, and cordierite and garnet appear in the middle and highest‐grade parts, respectively. A typical mineral assemblage in the tuffaceous rocks in the lower‐grade part is chlorite‐actinolite‐biotite‐quartz‐plagioclase. Actinolite changes into hornblende near to the pluton. The CO₂/CH₄ ratios obtained in measurements by gas chromatography exceeds 100 in the pelitic rocks at the contact point with the pluton. The ratios decrease and become less than 0.1 with distance from the pluton. Equilibrium temperatures calculated from a garnet‐biotite pair in the pelitic rock and a hornblende‐plagioclase pair in the tuffaceous rock are 640d? and 681 d?C at the contact point, respectively. The log?o₂ values among these metamorphic aureoles estimated from the CO₂/CH₄ ratios are slightly lower than the FMQ‐buffer. Redox states of the contact metamorphic aureole are kept in an intermediate condition between oxidized magma of the Kurihashi pluton and graphite‐bearing pelitic country rocks. Judging from these metamorphic conditions around the Kurihashi pluton and from the re‐evaluation of the previous knowledge about contact metasomatism around the Ganidake pluton, the Kurihashi metamorphism has occurred at higher temperatures and dry conditions than the Ganidake metasomatism. These differences in the metamorphic conditions and presence or absence of a large limestone mass around the pluton might be the principal reasons why the Kurihashi pluton accompanies less mineralization and the Ganidake pluton accompanies gigantic Kamaishi skarn mineralization.     

Conditions of contact metamorphism, Papoose Flat Pluton, eastern California, USA: implications for cooling and strain histories

Abstract Petrological study of highly strained carbonate and pelitic rocks within the contact aureole surrounding the western part of the Papoose Flat pluton yields thermal profiles (plots of metamorphic temperature versus distance) across the aureole that show temperature gradients which are relatively flat and narrow (<100m). The gradients occur close to the contact and indicate a slight decrease in temperature from 500–550°C at the pluton/wall rock contact to 450–500°C at the outer margin of the aureole. One thermal profile across low-strain metasedimentary rocks located in the southern part of the aureole shows that thermal effects from emplacement extend no further than 600 m from the contact. Coexistence of andalusite and cordierite in pelitic rocks of the aureole constrain pressures to <4 kbar. Thermal modelling using an analytical solution of the conductive heat flow equation for a rectangular-shaped pluton reproduces the observed thermal maxima and profile shape. Conductive rather than convective cooling also is supported by isotopic and field evidence for limited fluid flow along the strongly deformed margin of the pluton. Simple thermal models coupled with observed high-temperature deformation features and a measured 90% attenuation of stratigraphic units in the plastically deformed western part of the pluton's aureole indicate that strain rates may have been of the order of 10^-12s^-1. Evidence for episodic heating, such as two distinct generations of andalusite growth in pelites from the aureole, alternatively may indicate a longer heating event and, therefore, slower strain rates. Thermal models also indicate that parts of the pluton still may have been above the solidus during deformation of the pluton margin and aureole.     

Patterns of fluid flow in the contact aureole of the Late Miocene Monte Capanne pluton (Elba Island,Italy): the role of structures and rheology

Fluid–rock interaction was investigated in the inner aureole of the Late Miocene Monte Capanne pluton on Elba Island (Tuscany, central Italy) by integrating structural, petrological, fluid inclusion, and stable isotope analyses. In the north-western sector of the aureole (Procchio–Spartaia area), calc–silicates alternate with nearly pure carbonate layers at the metre scale. Close to the pluton, the prograde metamorphic sequence includes calc–silicates that transition within a few metres to overlying nearly pure calcite marbles. The calc–silicates are extensively metasomatised to form massive wollastonite-grossular-bearing exoskarn. The mineralogical assemblage found in the marbles and the unshifted carbon and oxygen isotopic ratios in calcite attest that the fluid phase was internally buffered. On the other hand, the calc–silicates constituted channels for infiltration of disequilibrium fluids of magmatic origin. Fluid infiltration was enhanced by hydrofracturing and structurally-controlled by existing planar anisotropies in calc–silicates (layering and lithological boundaries). At the metamorphic peak (∼600°C and 1.5–2 kbar), the marble–calc–silicate interface acted as a barrier to fluids exsolved from the crystallising intrusions, separating two different flow patterns in the inner aureole: a high fluid–flux region on its higher grade side (Wol-zone) and a low fluid–flux region on the lower-grade side (Cpx zone). Results of this study: (1) documented that fluid pathways in the aureole rocks at the top of the pluton were largely horizontal, controlled by the lithological layering and the pluton–host rock contact; and (2) elucidated the primary control exerted by the structural and rheological properties of the host rocks on the geometry of fluid flow during pluton emplacement.     

The emplacement of the Late Miocene Monte Capanne intrusion (Elba Island,Central Italy): constraints from magnetic fabric analyses

Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) analysis has been carried out in the thermometamorphic aureole surrounding the Late Miocene Monte Capanne pluton (Elba Island, Central Italy). The identification and separation of the main carriers of the magnetic susceptibility by low-temperature and high-field AMS measurements demonstrate that a correct knowledge of the magnetic fabric is needed in order to use AMS for tectonic interpretations. Magnetic fabric data, combined with structural data from the aureole, and their comparison with data from the pluton itself, were used to constraint the mode of pluton emplacement. Results document an intimate linkage between the magmatic flow pattern and the syn-metamorphic fabrics acquired during pluton emplacement in the host rocks. The magnetic/structural fabric in the aureole rocks is dominated by flattening deformation and no systematic relationship with any regional tectonic feature is observed. These results suggest that local processes induced by magma ascent in the upper crust might have played a primary role in space generation for pluton emplacement in the Tuscan Magmatic Province, suggesting a revaluation of the modes of pluton emplacement during the post-orogenic evolution of the northern Apennine system as a whole.     

Contact aureoles as constraints on regional P-T trajectories: an example from the Northern Alabama Piedmont, USA

Abstract Contact aureoles of plutons emplaced into regionally metamorphosed terranes can provide indicators of physical conditions along a portion of regional metamorphic P-T trajectories, thereby allowing reconstruction of more complete P-T loops than would be otherwise possible. In the Northern Alabama Piedmont of the southern Appalachians, Wedowee Group metapelites preserve evidence for two regional metamorphic phases overprinted by contact metamorphism adjacent to the Blakes Ferry Trondhjemite. Textural evidence indicates that an early bt+st+grt assemblage was replaced by bt+chl+grt during the latter stages of regional metamorphism. Changes in AKFM topology, complex Fe-Mg-Ca garnet zoning, and the latestage appearance of epidote indicate that a sequence of continuous reactions (bt+st = grt+ ms followed by chl+ms+Ca-grt+Ca-pl=bt+ (Fe+Mg)-grt+ep) occurred in response to increasing pressure and resulted in the observed changes in mineral assemblage. Pl-ms-bt-grt thermobarometry indicates conditions of 580° 65°C, 8.5±0.8 kbar for equilibration of grt+ bt+chl. Pluton emplacement, subsequent to penetrative deformation, caused textural annealing and mineral re-equilibration by the continuous reaction bt+(Fe+Mg)-grt+ep = chl+ms+Ca-grt+Ca-pl within 50 m of the pluton. Conditions of 510±65°C, 5-7 kbar are inferred. A reconstructed P-T trajectory for this area is characterized by (1) early moderate- T , moderate- P metamorphism; (2) an increase in P to approximately 8.5 kbar; and (3) decompression and slight cooling prior to pluton emplacement. The compressional phase of this path is interpreted to result from underthrusting of the Wedowee metasediments to mid-crustal levels during Palaeozoic crustal thickening. Late-stage decompression prior to intrusion records uplift of these rocks in response to movement on structurally lower thrusts.     

Emplacement History of Pasupugallu Gabbro Pluton, Eastern Ghats Belt, India: a Structural Study

Structural mapping of the Pasupugallu pluton, an elliptical intrusive gabbro-anorthosite body, emplaced into the western contact zone between the Eastern Ghats Mobile Belt and the Archaean East Dharwar Craton, along the east coast of India, reveals concentric, helicoidal and inward dipping magmatic and/or tectonic foliations. We identify a <1 km-wide structural aureole characterized by pronounced deflection of regional structures into margin parallel direction, mylonitic foliations with S-C fabrics, sigmoidal clasts, moderately plunging stretching lineations, non-cylindrical intrafolial folds, and stretched elliptical mafic enclaves in the aureole rocks. Our results suggest that the pluton emplacement is syn-tectonic with respect to the regional ductile deformation associated with the terrane boundary shear zone at the western margin of the Eastern Ghats. We present a tectonic model for the emplacement of the pluton invoking shear-related ductile deformation, rotation and a minor component of lateral expansion of magma. The intrusive activity (1450-800 Ma) along the western margin of the Eastern Ghats can be correlated with the significant event of recurring mafic, alkaline and granitic magmatism throughout the global Grenvillian orogens associated with the continent-continent collision tectonics possibly related to the amalgamation and the breakup of the supercontinent Rodinia.