Petrogenesis of picritic mare magmas: Constraints on the extent of early lunar differentiation

Calculations of isobaric batch, polybaric batch, and polybaric fractional melting have been carried out on a variety of proposed lunar and terrestrial source region compositions. Results show that magmas with a generally tholeiitic character—plagioclase and high-Ca pyroxene crystallize before low-Ca pyroxene reflecting relatively high Al₂O₃ concentrations (>12 wt%)—are the inevitable consequence of anhydrous partial melting of source regions composed primarily of olivine and two pyroxenes with an aluminous phase on the solidus. Low-Al₂O₃ magmas (<10 wt%), as typified by the green picritic glasses in the lunar maria require deep (700–1000 km), low-Al₂O₃ source regions without an aluminous phase. The difference between primitive and depleted mantle beneath mid-ocean ridges amounts to less than 0.1 wt% Al₂O₃, whereas formation of the green glass source region requires a net loss of between 1.5 and 2.5 wt% Al₂O₃. Basalt extraction cannot account for fractionations of this magnitude. Accumulation of olivine and pyroxene at the base of a crystallizing magma ocean is, however, an effective method for producing the necessary Al₂O₃ depletions. Both olivine-rich and pyroxene-rich source regions can produce the picritic magmas, but mixing calculations show that both types of source region are likely to be hybrids consisting of an early- to intermediate-stage cumulate (olivine plus enstatite) and a later stage cumulate assemblage. Mass balance calculations show that refractory element-enriched bulk Moon compositions contain too much Al₂O₃ to allow for the deep low-Al₂O₃ source regions even after extraction of an Al₂O₃-rich (26–30 wt%) crust between 50 and 70 km thick.     

Carbonate assimilation in magmas: A reappraisal based on experimental petrology

The main effect of magma–carbonate interaction on magma differentiation is the formation of a silica-undersaturated, alkali-rich residual melt. Such a desilication process was explained as the progressive dissolution of CaCO₃ in melt by consumption of SiO₂ and MgO to form diopside sensu stricto. Magma chambers emplaced in carbonate substrata, however, are generally associated with magmatic skarns containing clinopyroxene with a high Ca-Tschermak activity in their paragenesis. Data are presented from magma–carbonate interaction experiments, demonstrating that carbonate assimilation is a complex process involving more components than so far assumed. Experimental results show that, during carbonate assimilation, a diopside–hedenbergite–Ca-Tschermak clinopyroxene solid solution is formed and that Ca-Tschermak/diopside and hedenbergite/diopside ratios increase as a function of the progressive carbonate assimilation. Accordingly, carbonate assimilation reaction should be written as follows, taking into account all the involved magmatic components:CaCO₃^solid + SiO₂^melt + MgO^melt + FeO^melt + Al₂O₃^melt → (Di–Hd–CaTs)_ss^solid + CO₂^fluidThe texture of experimental products demonstrates that carbonate assimilation produces three-phases (solid, melt, and fluid) whose main products are: i) diopside–hedenbergite–Ca-Tschermak clinopyroxene solid solution; ii) silica-undersaturated CaO-rich melt; and iii) C–O–H fluid phase. The silica undersaturation of the melt and, more importantly, the occurrence of a CO₂-rich fluid phase, must be taken into account as they significantly affect partition coefficients and the redox state of carbonated systems, respectively.     

Evidence for crustal assimilation,mixing of magmas,and a87Sr-rich upper mantle

¹⁸O/¹⁶O,⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr and chemical analyses were made on 39 lavas and ignimbrites from M. Vulsini, the most northerly district of the K-rich Quaternary Roman Province of Italy. These rocks belong mainly to the undersaturated, leucite-bearing (High-K) series, but also included are samples from the less abundant, SiO₂-saturated, hypersthene-(quartz)-normative (Low-K) series. The effects of post-eruption alteration on the ¹⁸O of these lavas were taken into account by analyzing phenocrysts or by using the extrapolation procedure developed for the nearby Alban Hills center. Because of the high Sr contents (500–2400 ppm), the⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios of these rocks were little affected by such alteration processes. The M. Vulsini volcanics have Sr- and O-isotopic ratios much less uniform, and on the average much higher, than at any of the other volcanic centers of the province:⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.7097 to 0.7168; ¹⁸O=6.5 to 13.8. This is attributable to the fact that M. Vulsini is one of the sites of greatest crustal assimilation and hybridism between K-rich Roman magmas and SiO₂-rich Tuscan anatectic magmas. The High-K series parent magmas at M. Vulsini had a very high and uniform⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.7102 to 0.7104, and a somewhat more variable ¹⁸O=+5.5 to +7.5; they must have come from an upper mantle source region previously metasomatically enriched in⁸⁷Sr and LIL elements. These¹⁸O/¹⁶O and⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios are identical to the parent magma at the Alban Hills, 120 km to the south, where Low-K lavas are absent. Low-K series magmas at M. Vulsini originated from a lower-⁸⁷Sr source region than the High-K series (<0.7097); a similar relationship is observed in all of the other localities in Italy where the two magma series coexist.Contribution No. 4167, Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology     

A Ce/Nd isotope study of crustal contamination processes affecting Palaeocene magmas in Skye,Northwest Scotland

Twelve¹³⁸Ce/¹³⁶Ce isotope determinations, 31 Nd isotope analyses, and 31 REE profiles are presented for Tertiary basic to intermediate igneous rocks from the Isle of Skye, NW Scotland. The aim of this work is to precisely identify the contamination mechanisms of basic magmas emplaced through old crust, and to test the effectiveness of Ce isotope analysis as a petrogenetic tool.Combined Ce/Nd isotope analysis enables the modelling of the light REE profiles of the mantle-derived precursors to contaminated lavas, using different crustal end-members, in order to compare these with the magmatic lineage of uncontaminated Skye lavas. The geochemical data support a contamination mechanism involving a granitic melt, produced either by large degree melting of Scourian granulitefacies acid sheets, or (possibly) by melting of intermediate gneiss out of isotopic equilibrium.Basaltic lavas showing strong isotopic contamination effects yield calculated degrees of crustal contamination by large degree granitic melts of ca. 8 or 9% based on Ce and Nd isotopic data respectively. However, for lavas with liquidus temperatures of over 1250° C, the temperature dependence of the degree of contamination is weak.The combination of this evidence with new and published Pb isotope data suggests that the bulk of crustal contamination of the Skye lavas occurred in sill complexes at distinct levels in the crust, rather than during the actual ascent of magma through the crust in dykes. It is suggested on the basis of published fluid dynamic and field evidence that the assimilation of large degree melts of acid gneiss by turbulently flowing magma is more likely than assimilation of small degree disequilibrium melts from more refractory intermediate gneisses.It is concluded that Ce isotope analysis is a viable and useful adjunct to Nd isotope data in petrogenetic studies of continental igneous rocks emplaced through old basement.     

The variety of lithologies in the Yamato-86032 lunar meteorite: Implications for formation processes of the lunar crust

We performed a petrologic, mineralogical, geochemical, and isotopic study of several lithologies in the Y-86032 feldspathic breccia. This study leads us to conclude that Y-86032 likely originated on the lunar farside. Y-86032 is composed of several types of feldspathic clasts, granulitic breccias, and minor basaltic clasts set in a clastic matrix. We identify an “An97 anorthosite” that has An contents similar to those of nearside FANs. Mg′ (= molar Mg/(Mg + Fe) × 100) values vary significantly from ∼45 to ∼80 covering the ranges of both nearside FANs and the Mg′ gap between FANs and the Mg-suite. A light-gray feldspathic (LG) breccia making up ∼20% of the investigated slab (5.2 × 3.6 cm²) mainly consists of fragments of anorthosites (“An93 anorthosite”) more sodic than nearside FANs. LG also contains an augite-plagioclase clast which either could be genetically related to the An93 anorthosite or to slowly-cooled basaltic magma intruded into the precursor rock. The Na-rich nature of both An93 anorthosite and this clast indicates that the LG breccia was derived from a relatively Na-rich but incompatible-element-poor source. The Mg′ variation indicates that the “An97 anorthosite” is a genomict breccia of several types of primary anorthosites. Granulitic breccias in Y-86032 have relatively high Mg′ in mafic minerals. The highest Mg′ values in mafic minerals for the “An97 anorthosite” and granulitic breccias are similar to those of Mg-rich lithologies recently described in Dhofar 489. Basaltic clasts in the dark-gray matrix are aluminous, and the zoning trends of pyroxene are similar to those of VLT or LT basalts. The crystallization of these basaltic clasts pre-date the lithification age of the clastic matrix at ∼3.8 Ga. The low K contents of plagioclase in both the anorthositic and basaltic clasts and generally low incompatible element abundances in all the lithologies in Y-86032 indicate that KREEP was not involved during the formation of the precursor lithologies. This observation further suggests that urKREEP did not exist in the source regions of these igneous lithologies. All these facts support the idea that Y-86032 was derived from a region far distant from the PKT and that the lithic clasts and fragments are indigenous to that region. An An97 anorthositic clast studied here has distinct Sm-Nd isotopic systematics from those previously found for another An97 anorthositic clast and “An93 anorthosite”, and suggests either that An97 anorthosites come from isotopically diverse sources, or that the Sm-Nd isotopic systematics of this clast were reset ∼4.3 Ga ago. These lines of geochemical, isotopic, and petrologic evidence suggest that the lunar crust is geochemically more heterogeneous than previously thought.     

Limestone assimilation by basaltic magmas: an experimental re-assessment and application to Italian volcanoes

The results of an experimental study of limestone assimilation by hydrated basaltic magmas in the range 1,050–1,150°C, 0.1–500 MPa are reported. Alkali basalts doped with up to 19 wt% of Ca, Mg-carbonates were equilibrated in internally heated pressure vessels and the resulting phase relationships are described. The major effects of carbonate incorporation are: (1) generation of CO₂-rich fluid phases; (2) change in liquidus phase equilibria; the crystallization of Ca-rich clinopyroxene is favored and the other phases (e.g. olivine, plagioclase), present in the absence of carbonate assimilation, are consumed. As a consequence of the massive clinopyroxene crystallization, the residual melt is strongly silica-depleted and becomes nepheline-normative. Compositional and mineralogical evolutions observed in Mt. Vesuvius eruptive products match those documented in our experiments with added carbonates, suggesting the possibility that carbonate assimilation increased during the last 25 ka of activity. In Central-Southern Italy, carbonate assimilation at shallow levels probably superimposes on deeper source heterogeneities.     

High-pressure phase equilibria and element partitioning experiments on Apollo 15 green C picritic glass: Implications for the role of garnet in the deep lunar interior

We report results of nominally anhydrous near-liquidus experiments on a synthetic analog to very low-titanium Apollo 15 green C lunar picritic glass from ∼2 to 5 GPa. Apollo 15 green C glass (A15C) is saturated with garnet and pyroxene on the liquidus at ∼3 GPa. However, such an assemblage is unlikely to represent the lunar-mantle source region for this glass, and instead an olivine + orthopyroxene-dominated source is favored, in accord with earlier lower-pressure experiments on A15C. Near-liquidus garnet has a slight but significant majorite component at ∼5 GPa in this iron-rich bulk composition, as expected from our previous work in ordinary-chondritic bulk compositions. Ion microprobe measurements of partitioning of Sr, Ba, Sc, Nd, Sm, Dy, Yb, Y, Zr, Hf, and Th between garnet and coexisting melt in these experiments are the first garnet partition coefficients (D values) available that are directly relevant to lunar compositions. D values for these garnets differ significantly compared to D values for garnets grown in more magnesian, terrestrial bulk compositions, which until now are all that have been available in modeling the possible role of garnet in the lunar interior. For example, D values for heavy rare earth elements are lower than are those from terrestrial basaltic systems. These partitioning values are well-described by the lattice-strain partitioning model, but predictive relationships for garnet partitioning using that model fail to match the measured values, as was the case in our earlier work on chondritic compositions. Using our new D values in place of the “terrestrial” values in a variety of models of lunar petrogenesis, we suggest that garnet is unlikely to be present in the source regions for very titanium-poor lunar liquids despite its appearance on the liquidus of A15C.     

Mafic magmas from Mount Baker in the northern Cascade arc,Washington: probes into mantle and crustal processes

Five mafic lava flows located on the southern flank of Mount Baker are among the most primitive in the volcanic field. A comprehensive dataset of whole rock and mineral chemistry reveals the diversity of these mafic lavas that come from distinct sources and have been variably affected by ascent through the crust. Disequilibrium textures present in all of the lavas indicate that crustal processes have affected the magmas. Despite this evidence, mantle source characteristics have been retained and three primitive endmember lava types are represented. These include (1) modified low-K tholeiitic basalt (LKOT-like), (2) typical calc-alkaline (CA) lavas, and (3) high-Mg basaltic andesite and andesite (HMBA and HMA). The Type 1 endmember, the basalt of Park Butte (49.3–50.3 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 64–65), has major element chemistry similar to LKOT found elsewhere in the Cascades. Park Butte also has the lowest overall abundances of trace elements (with the exception of the HREE), indicating it is either derived from the most depleted mantle source or has undergone the largest degree of partial melting. The Type 2 endmember is represented by the basalts of Lake Shannon (50.7–52.6 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 58–62) and Sulphur Creek (51.2–54.6 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 56–57). These two lavas are comparable to calc-alkaline rocks found in arcs worldwide and have similar trace element patterns; however, they differ from each other in abundances of REE, indicating variation in degree of partial melting or fractionation. The Type 3 endmember is represented by the HMBA of Tarn Plateau (51.8–54.0 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 68–70) and the HMA of Glacier Creek (58.3–58.7 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 63–64). The strongly depleted HREE nature of these Type 3 units and their decreasing Mg# with increasing SiO₂ suggests fractionation from a high-Mg basaltic parent derived from a source with residual garnet. Another basaltic andesite unit, Cathedral Crag (52.2–52.6 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 55–58), is an Mg-poor differentiate of the Type 3 endmember. The calc-alkaline lavas are least enriched in a subduction component (lowest H₂O, Sr/P_N, and Ba/Nb), the LKOT-like lavas are intermediate (moderate Sr/P_N and Ba/Nb), and the HMBA are most enriched (highest H₂O, Sr/P_N and Ba/Nb). The generation of the LKOT-like and calc-alkaline lavas can be successfully modeled by partial melting of a spinel lherzolite with variability in composition of slab flux and/or mantle source depletion. The HMBA lavas can be successfully modeled by partial melting of a garnet lherzolite with slab flux compositionally similar to the other lava types, or less likely by partial melting of a spinel lherzolite with a distinctly different, HREE-depleted slab flux.     

Predicting phosphate saturation in silicate magmas: An experimental study of the effects of melt composition and temperature

A series of 1 atm experiments has been performed to test the influence of iron content and oxidation state on the saturation of phosphate minerals in magmatic systems. Four bulk compositions of different iron content have been studied. The experiments cover a range of temperature from 1030 to 1070 °C and oxygen fugacity from 1.5 log units below to 1.5 log units above the Fayalite-Magnetite-Quartz buffer. The results demonstrate that neither iron content of the liquid nor oxidation state play a significant role on phosphate saturation. On the other hand, SiO₂ and CaO contents of the liquid strongly influence the appearance of a crystalline phosphate. Our results are combined with data from the literature to define an equation which predicts the P₂O₅ content of silicate liquids saturated in either whitlockite or fluorapatite:

     

An experimental study of amphibole stability in low-pressure granitic magmas and a revised Al-in-hornblende geobarometer

We report new experimental data on the composition of magmatic amphiboles synthesised from a variety of granite (sensu lato) bulk compositions at near-solidus temperatures and pressures of 0.8–10 kbar. The total aluminium content (Al^tot) of the synthetic calcic amphiboles varies systematically with pressure (P), although the relationship is nonlinear at low pressures (<2.5 kbar). At higher pressures, the relationship resembles that of other experimental studies, which suggests of a general relationship between Al^tot and P that is relatively insensitive to bulk composition. We have developed a new Al-in-hornblende geobarometer that is applicable to granitic rocks with the low-variance mineral assemblage: amphibole + plagioclase (An_15–80) + biotite + quartz + alkali feldspar + ilmenite/titanite + magnetite + apatite. Amphibole analyses should be taken from the rims of grains, in contact with plagioclase and in apparent textural equilibrium with the rest of the mineral assemblage at temperatures close to the haplogranite solidus (725 ± 75 °C), as determined from amphibole–plagioclase thermometry. Mean amphibole rim compositions that meet these criteria can then be used to calculate P (in kbar) from Al^tot (in atoms per formula unit, apfu) according to the expression:

$${\textit{P }}\left( {\text{kbar}} \right) = 0.5 + 0.331\left( 8 \right) \times {\text{Al}}^{\text{tot}} + 0.995\left( 4 \right) \times \left( {{\text{Al}}^{\text{tot}} } \right)^{2}$$

This expression recovers equilibration pressures of our calibrant dataset, comprising both new and published experimental and natural data, to within ±16 % relative uncertainty. An uncertainty of 10 % relative for a typical Al^tot value of 1.5 apfu translates to an uncertainty in pressure estimate of 0.5 kbar, or 15 % relative. Thus the accuracy of the barometer expression is comparable to the precision with which near-solidus amphibole rim composition can be characterised.

     

An experimental study of the dissolution mechanism and rates of muscovite

Steady-state muscovite dissolution rates have been measured at temperatures from 60 to 201 °C and 1 ? pH ? 10.3 as a function of reactive solution K, Si, and Al concentration. The pegmatitic muscovite used in these experiments has a composition consistent with (Na_0.09, K_0.86)Fe_0.05Al_2.92Si_3.05O₁₀(OH_1.95, F_0.06). All experiments were performed in titanium mixed-flow reactors. All experiments were performed at far-from-equilibrium conditions with respect to muscovite. All reactive solutions were undersaturated with respect to secondary product phases other than for some experiments which were supersaturated with respect to bohemite and diaspore; steady-state dissolution was stoichiometric for all experiments that were undersaturated with respect to these phases.The variation of rates with reactive solution composition depends on the solution pH. At pH ? 7 rates were found to decrease significantly with increasing reactive fluid Al activity but be independent of aqueous SiO₂ activity. pH < 7 rates measured in the present study from 60 to 175 °C are consistent with

     

Parental magmas of lunar troctolites: Genetic problems and estimated original compositions

The paper presents a review of hypotheses of the early magmatic differentiation of the Moon and petrogenetic processes responsible for the origin of the parental magmas of the magnesian suite of the highland crust. An important role of hybridism of the parental magmas is discussed in the context of the transformations of the melting products and the differentiation of the subchondritic mantle via anorthosite assimilation. These processes are thought to have proceeded simultaneously with the consolidation of the anorthosite crust and resulted in high-Mg magmas, which later gave rise to troctolites, norites, and gabbronorites. An updated version of the METEOMOD model was utilized for simulations of the composition of primitive troctolite melts corresponding to equilibrium with olivine of the composition Fo ₈₈ and Fo ₉₁. The differences between the simulated melt compositions are interpreted with regard for variations in the temperature and composition of the parental magnesian liquids that assimilated compositionally similar feldspathic material. The compositional data obtained are a necessary component of a thermochemical model of assimilation that would also involve the enthalpy of phase transitions and the heat capacity for the reactants and products of crystallization associated with the partial dissolution of anorthosites in high-temperature magmas.     

The north-eastern Polish anorthosite massifs: petrological, geochemical and isotopic evidence for a crustal derivation

ABSTRACT Deeply buried 1.5 Ga Polish anorthosites, accessible only by bore holes, reveal diagnostic features of some massif-type anorthosites (polybarism, jotunitic parent magma), diapirically emplaced in the mid crust together with the rapakivi granites of the EW-trending Mazury complex, intruded along a major crustal discontinuity. Geochemical modelling and isotope data corroborate recent experimental work on the basaltic system in dry conditions: the source rock of the parental magma is a gabbronorite, necessarily lying in the lower crust. Since no Archaean crust is known in the region, high initial ¹⁸⁸Os/¹⁸⁷Os ratios for sulphide-oxide isochrons and negative ε_Nd values are best accounted for by melting a ∼ 2.0 Ga mafic crust.     

A lunar rock of deep crustal origin: sample 76535

Lunar sample 76535 is a coarse-grained troctolitic granulite exhibiting a texture indicative of long annealing times. It is composed of homogeneous crystals of plagioclase (58 per cent, An₉₆), olivine (37 per cent, Fo₈₈) and bronzite (4 per cent, En₈₆).Chromian spinel-bronzite-diopside (Wo₄₆En₅₀Fs₄) symplectic intergrowths commonly occur along olivine-plagioclase boundaries and as tiny inclusions within olivine grains. These symplectites apparently formed by a reaction of the type:

$\text{OI + An + Chromite → Opx + Cpx + Al-Mg-chromite}$

. The reaction is related to the experimentally determined reaction

$\text{OI + An = Opx + Cpx + Sp}$

of Kushiro and Yoder (1966). The enstatite content of the diopside coexisting with the bronzite indicates equilibration at about 1000°C. Thermodynamic calculations for 1000°C indicate that the symplectites formed at a minimum pressure of about 0.6 kb. Low alumina contents of the pyroxenes indicate equilibration near this minimum pressure.Clusters of the same assemblage found in the symplectic intergrowths, but containing accessory metal, troilite, Ca-phosphates, baddeleyite, plagioclase and/or K-feldspar occur sporadically throughout the rock. These apparent late stage products crystallized in the low temperature-high pressure region discussed above.Phase relations of co-existing metal phases indicate that the rock cooled at a few tens of degrees/my, corresponding to depths of 10–20 km below the lunar surface, in agreement with the above pressure estimate.We infer that 76535 represents an original cumulate deposited at a depth between about 10 and 30 km. The last liquid crystallized in the relatively high pressure-low temperature field opx + cpx + Al-Mg-chromite. Cooling was extremely slow and accompanied by extensive chemical and textural re-equilibration. Reaction to form the symplectites occurred during the late stages of re-equilibration.     

Heat effects of assimilation,crystallization, and vesiculation in magmas

The heat balance for crystal fractionation and assimilation processes is the enthalpy difference between the initial and final states of a system. To order the calculations, the process is viewed as one of assimilation; the heat change for a crystallization process is obtained by changing the signs of the pertinent heat effects. The initial state is a mineral assemblage at T _s and P and an initial magma at T _m and P. The final state is a magma at T _m and P.The net heat change results from: (a) Unmixing of solid solutions, (b) Heating (cooling) each component to its fusion temperature, (c) Fusion of each component, (d) Cooling (heating) of each fused component to the magma temperature, (e) Mixing of each fused component in succession with the melt.The heat required to form a basaltic melt from its equilibrium mineral assemblage is approximately twice that required for a granitic melt. A zero heat balance, with the heat of crystallization from phases with which the magma is saturated supplying the energy for assimilation, necessitates that the mass crystallized be approximately twice that assimilated. The heat effects attendant on release of H₂O from silicic melts depends on the state of the H₂O in the external environment; a low fugacity could cause the magma to cool.The uncertainties in the calculations are estimated at ±10%.     

An experimental study of grain scale melt segregation mechanisms in two common crustal rock types

Creation of pathways for melt to migrate from its source is the necessary first step for transport of magma to the upper crust. To test the role of different dehydration‐melting reactions in the development of permeability during partial melting and deformation in the crust, we experimentally deformed two common crustal rock types. A muscovite‐biotite metapelite and a biotite gneiss were deformed at conditions below, at and above their fluid‐absent solidus. For the metapelite, temperatures ranged between 650 and 800 °C at P_c=700 MPa to investigate the muscovite‐dehydration melting reaction. For the biotite gneiss, temperatures ranged between 850 and 950 °C at P_c=1000 MPa to explore biotite dehydration‐melting under lower crustal conditions. Deformation for both sets of experiments was performed at the same strain rate (ε.) 1.37×10^?5 s^?1. In the presence of deformation, the positive ΔV and associated high dilational strain of the muscovite dehydration‐melting reaction produces an increase in melt pore pressure with partial melting of the metapelite. In contrast, the biotite dehydration‐melting reaction is not associated with a large dilational strain and during deformation and partial melting of the biotite gneiss melt pore pressure builds more gradually. Due to the different rates in pore pressure increase, melt‐enhanced deformation microstructures reflect the different dehydration melting reactions themselves. Permeability development in the two rocks differs because grain boundaries control melt distribution to a greater extent in the gneiss. Muscovite‐dehydration melting may develop melt pathways at low melt fractions due to a larger volume of melt, in comparison with biotite‐dehydration melting, generated at the solidus. This may be a viable physical mechanism in which rapid melt segregation from a metapelitic source rock can occur. Alternatively, the results from the gneiss experiments suggest continual draining of biotite‐derived magma from the lower crust with melt migration paths controlled by structural anisotropies in the protolith.     

An experimental study of Ostwald ripening of olivine and plagioclase in silicate melts: implications for the growth and size of crystals in magmas

We carried out an experimental study to characterize the kinetics of Ostwald ripening in the forsterite-basalt system and in the plagioclase (An₆₅)-andesite system. Eight experiments were done in each system to monitor the evolution of mean grain size and crystal size distribution (CSD) with time t; the experiments were performed in a 1-atmosphere quench furnace, at 1,250°C for plagioclase and 1,300°C for olivine. Very contrasted coarsening kinetics were observed in the two series. In the plagioclase series, the mean grain size increased as log(t), from ≈3 μm to only 8.7 μm in 336 h. The kinetic law in log(t) means that Ostwald ripening was rate-limited by surface nucleation at plagioclase-liquid interfaces. In the olivine series, the mean grain size increased as t ^1/3, from ≈3 μm to 23.2 μm in 496 h. A kinetic law in t ^1/3 is expected when Ostwald ripening is rate-limited either by diffusion in the liquid or by grain growth/dissolution controlled by a screw dislocation mechanism. The shape of olivine CSDs, in particular their positive skewness, indicates that grain coarsening in the olivine experiments was controlled by a screw dislocation mechanism, not by diffusion. As the degrees of undercooling ΔT (or supersaturation) involved in Ostwald ripening are essentially <1°C, the mechanisms of crystal growth identified in our experiments are expected to be those prevailing during the slow crystallisation of large magma chambers. We extrapolated our experimental data to geological time scales to estimate the effect of Ostwald ripening on the size of crystals in magmas. In the case of plagioclase, Ostwald ripening is only efficient for mean grain sizes of a few microns to 20 μm, even for a time scale of 10⁵ years. It can, however, result in a significant decrease of the number of small crystals per unit volume, and contribute to the development of convex upwards CSDs. For olivine, the mean grain size increases from 2–3 μm to ≈70 μm in 1 year and 700 μm in 10³ years; a mean grain size of 3 mm is reached in 10⁵ years. Accordingly, the rate of grain size-dependent processes, such as compaction of olivine-rich cumulates or melt extraction from partially molten peridotites, may significantly be enhanced by textural coarsening.     

Geochemistry of silicic magmas in the Macolod Corridor, SW Luzon, Philippines: evidence of distinct, mantle-derived, crustal sources for silicic magmas

Silicic volcanic deposits (>65 wt% SiO₂), which occur as domes, lavas and pyroclastic deposits, are relatively abundant in the Macolod Corridor, SW Luzon, Philippines. At Makiling stratovolcano, silicic domes occur along the margins of the volcano and are chemically similar to the silicic lavas that comprise part of the volcano. Pyroclastic flows are associated with the Laguna de Bay Caldera and these are chemically distinct from the domes and lavas at Makiling stratovolcano. As a whole, samples from the Laguna de Bay Caldera contain lower concentrations of MgO and higher concentrations of Fe₂O_3(t) than the samples from domes and lavas. The Laguna de Bay samples are more enriched in incompatible trace elements. The silicic rocks from the domes, Makiling Volcano and Laguna de Bay Caldera all contain high alkalis and high K₂O/Na₂O ratios. Melting experiments of primitive basalts and andesites demonstrate that it is difficult to produce high K₂O/Na₂O silicic magmas by fractional crystallization or partial melting of a low K₂O/Na₂O source. However, recent melting experiments (Sisson et al., Contrib Mineral Petrol 148:635–661, 2005) demonstrate that extreme fractional crystallization or partial melting of K-rich basalts can produce these silicic magmas. Our model for the generation of the silicic magmas in the Macolod Corridor requires partial melting of mantle-derived, evolved, moderate to K-rich, crystallized calc-alkaline magmas that ponded and crystallized in the mid-crust. Major and trace element variations, along with oxygen isotopes and ages of the deposits, are consistent with this model. Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at     

Pyrite tracks assimilation of crustal sulfur in Pyrenean peridotites

Cobalt-bearing pyrite (0.5?C2.0?wt.% Co) is abnormally abundant (up to 35?vol.% of the total volume of the sulfide phase) in some eastern Pyrenean peridotite massifs, compared to pieces of subcontinental mantle studied so far for sulfides. Pyrite occurs as vermicular intergrowths inside pentlandite and/or chalcopyrite or as coarser, blocky grains in the intergranular pores of host peridotites. Those different pyrites are characterized by different platinum-group element systematics (measured by laser ablation microprobe and ICP-MS). Vermicular pyrite intergrown with pentlandite displays Os-, Ir-, Ru- and Rh-enriched chondrite normalized PGE patterns of Monosulfide solid solution (Mss). In contrast, coarse-grained intergranular (??blocky??) pyrites, are PGE-poor. Chalcophile trace elements (i.e. Zn, Pb, Ag, Au) that are not usually concentrated in mantle-derived sulfides were commonly detected. By contrast, selenium contents are generally low, yielding thus pyrite with high S/Se ratio (>10⁵), consistent with a sedimentary sulfur source. Pyrite microtextures and chalcophile trace element contents support a process of assimilation of crustal sulfur from the metamorphosed sedimentary country rocks. These latter generated highly reactive CO₂-S fluids, which were injected into structural discontinuities of the lherzolitic bodies. Sulfur has reacted at T?=?300?C550°C with pre-existing, mantle-derived, metal-rich sulfide assemblages (pentlandite-chalcopyrite). Addition of crustal sulfur did produce Mss which, on cooling, exsolved the Os-rich pyrite in addition to pentlandite. The coarse-grained pyrite types have crystallized directly from S-rich fluids.