Steady-state Mantle-Melt Interactions in One Dimension: II. Thermal Interactions and Irreversible Terms

Progress in development of thermodynamically based models ofsilicate equilibria with explicit entropy budgets has motivateda reexamination of the conclusion of McKenzie (Journal of Petrology25, 713–765, 1984) that isentropic upwelling sufficesas a model of mantle melting. An entropy budget equation forfractional melting with melt migration in an upwelling two-phasecontinuum is presented. The energetically self-consistent meltproduction model predicted by MELTS is used to evaluate numericallythe magnitudes of differences between fractional melting (withmelt migration) and equilibrium melting (without relative movement)that can be bounded in one dimension: chemical advection byout-of-equilibrium melt; thermal disequilibrium between migratingliquid and residue; frictional dissipation of gravitationalpotential; dissipation as a result of solid compaction. Likethe familiar isobaric case in which fractional melting is significantlyless productive than equilibrium melting, chemical isolationof the escaping melts from the residue reduces the oceanic crustalthickness by     

The Significance of Multiple Saturation Points in the Context of Polybaric Near-fractional Melting

Experimental petrologists have successfully located basalticliquid compositions parental to mid-ocean ridge basalt thatare, within experimental resolution, multiply saturated withthree-phase harzburgite or four-phase lherzolite assemblageson their liquidus at some elevated pressure. Such an experimentalresult is a necessary consequence of any paradigm in which eruptedbasalts derive from single-batch primary liquids that equilibratewith a mantle residue and undergo no subsequent magma mixingbefore differentiation and eruption. Here we investigate whether,conversely, such evidence of multiple saturation is sufficientto exclude dynamic melting models wherein increments of meltare mixed after segregation from residues, during melt transportor in magma chambers. Using two independent models of crystal–liquidequilibria to simulate polybaric near-fractional peridotitemelting, we find that aggregate liquids from such melting processescan display near-intersections of liquidus surfaces too closeto distinguish experimentally from exact multiple saturationpoints. Given uncertainties in glass compositions, fractionationcorrections, experimental temperature and pressure conditions,and achievement of equilibrium, these results suggest that polybaricmixtures can in fact masquerade as mantle-equilibrated single-batchprimary liquids. Multiple saturation points on the liquidussurfaces of primitive basalts do, however, preserve informationabout the average pressure of extraction of their constituentincrements of liquid. KEY WORDS: mantle melting; basaltic volcanism; experimental igneous petrology; thermodynamic modelling; inverse method     

Geochemistry and Petrogenesis of Late Ediacaran Rare-metalAlbite Granites of the Arabian-Nubian Shield

The Abu Dabbab albite granite(ADAG), in the central Eastern Desert of Egypt, hosts the most significant rare metal ore deposit in the northern part of the Neoproterozoic Arabian-Nubian Shield. Here, we report detailed field,petrographic, mineralogical and geochemical investigation of the ADAG, an isolated stock-like granitic body with sharp intrusive contacts against metamorphic country rocks, probably emplaced at about 600 Ma. The fine-grained porphyritic upper unit is a preserved remnant of the shallowly-emplaced apex of the magma chamber, whereas the medium-grained lower unit crystallized at deeper levels under subvolcanic conditions. The peraluminous leucocratic ADAG shares common geochemical characteristics with post-collisional intraplate A-type magmas. In addition to the conspicuous enrichment in Na2 O, the ADAG is remarkable for its anomalous concentrations of Ta, Nb, Li, Hf, Ga, Sn, Zn and heavy rare-earth elements. Nb-Ta minerals in the ADAG are mixed with Fe-Mn oxides, forming black patches that increase in abundance toward of the base of the intrusion. Columbite-tantalite, cassiterite and wolframite are the most important ore minerals.Pronounced negative Eu anomalies(Eu/Eu* = 0.10–0.24) reflect extreme magmatic fractionation and perhaps the effects of late fluid-rock interaction. The ADAG was most likely generated by partial melting of the juvenile middle crust of the ANS as the geotherm was elevated by erosional uplift following lithospheric delamination and it was emplaced at the intersection of lineations of structural weakness. Although formation of the ADAG and its primary enrichment in rare metals are essentially due to magmatic processes, late-stage metasomatism caused limited redistribution of rare metals. Fluid-driven subsolidus modification was limited to the apex of the magma chamber and drove development of greisen, amazonite, and quartz veins along fracture systems.     

Calculation of Peridotite Partial Melting from Thermodynamic Models of Minerals and Melts, IV. Adiabatic Decompression and the Composition and Mean Properties of Mid-ocean Ridge Basalts

Composition, mean pressure, mean melt fraction, and crustalthickness of model mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORBs) are calculatedusing MELTS. Polybaric, isentropic batch and fractional meltsfrom ranges in source composition, potential temperature, andfinal melting pressure are integrated to represent idealizedpassive and active flow regimes. These MELTS-derived polybaricmodels are compared with other parameterizations; the resultsdiffer both in melt compositions, notably at small melt fractions,and in the solidus curve and melt productivity, as a resultof the self-consistent energy balance in MELTS. MELTS predictsa maximum mean melt fraction (