Reduction of mare basalts by sulfur loss

Metallic Fe content and S abundance are inversely correlated in mare basalts. Either S volatilization from the melt results in reduction of Fe²⁺ to Fe⁰ or else high S content decreases Fe⁰ activity in the melt, thus explaining the correlation. All considerations favor the model that metallic iron in mare basalts is due to sulfur loss. The Apollo 11 and 17 mare basalt melts were probably saturated with S at the time of eruption; the Apollo 12 and 15 basalts were probably not saturated.Non-mare rocks show a positive correlation of S abundance with metallic Fe content; it is proposed that this is due to the addition of meteoritic material having a fairly constant Fe⁰/S ratio. If true, metallic Fe content or S abundance in non-mare rocks provides a measure of degree of meteoritic contamination.     

Petrology, geochemistry, and age of low-Ti mare-basalt meteorite Northeast Africa 003-A: A possible member of the Apollo 15 mare basaltic suite

Northeast Africa 003 (NEA 003) is a lunar meteorite found as a two paired stones (6 and 118 g) in Libya, 2000 and 2001. The main portion (∼75 vol%) of the 118 g meteorite, used for this study, (NEA 003-A) consists of mare-basalt and a smaller adjacent portion (∼25 vol%) is a basaltic breccia (NEA 003-B). NEA 003-A has a coarse-grained magmatic texture consisting mainly of olivine, pyroxene and plagioclase. The late-stage mineral association is composed mainly of elongated plagioclase, ilmenite, troilite, fayalite, Si-K-rich glass, apatite, and a rare SiO₂ phase. Other accessory minerals include ulvöspinel, chromite, and trace Fe-Ni metal. Olivine and pyroxene contain shock-induced fractures, and plagioclase is completely converted into maskelynite.The Fe/Mn values of the whole rock, olivines and pyroxenes, and the bulk-rock oxygen isotopic composition provide evidence for the lunar origin of NEA 003-A meteorite. This is further supported by the presence of Fe-Ni metal and the anhydrous mineral association.NEA 003-A is geochemically and petrographically distinct from previously described mare-basalt meteorites and is not paired with any of them. The petrography and major element composition of NEA 003-A is similar to the composition of low-Ti olivine mare basalts from Apollo 12 and olivine-normative basalts from Apollo 15. The NEA 003-A meteorite shows obvious geochemical similarities in trace elements contents with Apollo 15 olivine-normative basalts and could represent a yet unknown geochemically primitive member of the olivine-normative basalt series. The meteorite is depleted in rare earth elements (REE) and incompatible trace elements indicating a primitive character of the parental magma. The bulk-rock chemical composition demonstrates that the parent melt of NEA 003-A was not contaminated with KREEP components as a result of magma mixing or assimilation processes. Results of crystallization modelling and low minimum cooling rate estimates (∼0.07 °C/h) suggest that the parent melt of NEA 003-A crystallized in the lower part of a lava flow containing cumulate olivine (∼10%) and was probably derived from more primitive picritic magma by fractional crystallization processes.Sm-Nd dating yields an age of 3.09 ± 0.06 Ga which corresponds to the period of lower Eratosthenian lunar volcanic activity, and the near-chondritic ε_Nd value of −0.4 ± 0.3 indicates that the meteorite could be derived from a slightly enriched mantle source similar to the Apollo 15 green glasses. Ar-Ar step release results are inconsistent with Sm-Nd ages suggesting that NEA 003-A was exposed to one or more impact events. The most extensive event took place at 1.8 Ga and the shock intensity was likely between 28 and 45 GPa. The absence of solar Ar suggests that NEA 003-A has not been directly exposed at the lunar surface but the cosmic ray exposure age of 209 ± 6 Ma suggests that NEA 003-A resided in the upper regolith for part of its history.     

Petrogenesis of the Apollo 14 high-alumina basalts: Implications from ion microprobe analyses

In this study, ion microprobe analyses of individual minerals are used to investigate the petrogenesis of the Apollo 14 high-Al basalts. We use trace element concentrations from individual minerals in the Apollo 14 high-Al basalts to evaluate both endogenic and exogenic models. The data show that if the Apollo 14 high-Al basalts were produced by melting within the lunar mantle, these basalts cannot be related to one another by closed-system fractional crystallization of a single basaltic melt. Rather, the trace element data show that variable amounts of a KREEP component were added to the basalts by either assimilation, mixing into mantle sources, or impact melting. Single-stage assimilation-fractional crystallization models can only explain the data from this study if an excessively large mass of urKREEP is assimilated into the parent magma before olivine crystallization. Alternatively, the trace element data can be explained if the Apollo 14 high-Al basalts were produced by melting multiple Al-rich mantle sources that contain different amounts of urKREEP. Finally, for impact melting to be a relevant process, the data require that multiple large impact melts be formed from mixed KREEP-rich target lithologies. The resulting impact melts must then crystallize to produce basalts with igneous textures, high Al₂O₃ concentrations, uniform major element compositions, and a wide range of incompatible trace element concentrations.     

Petrology, chemistry and origin of Apollo 15 regolith breccias

Variations in modal petrology, mineral compositions and bulk compositions were determined for ten Apollo 15 regolith breccias for comparison with local soils and assessment of the intrasite petrologic variability of the Apollo 15 regolith. Based on the above criteria the breccias are of local origin and mimic the soils from the corresponding sampling stations, with the exception of station 2 breccia 15205. This sample formed from an anomalous regolith and although not considered exotic to the site is not representative of the soil at the site. KREEP basalt and green glass components vary from trace amounts to dominant in the breccias, evidence that these materials entered the regolith prior to formation of the breccias. Breccias from the edge of Hadley Rille are modally richer in highland fragments than the soils, whereas at the base of Hadley Delta the reverse is true. This is explained by the loss of material into the Rille to be replaced by basalt-derived material, making the soils more basalt-rich. At the base of Hadley Delta highland material is accumulating and the soils are becoming more highland-rich. Over billions of years these processes have developed differences between the present day, evolving soils and “fossil” non-evolving soils represented by the regolith breccias. This shows that there has been little change in the geology and the morphology of the Apollo 15 site, probably since the eruption of mare basalts at the site (˜3.3 b.y.).     

The regolith at the Apollo 15 site and its stratigraphic implications

Regolith samples from the Apollo 15 landing site are described in terms of two major fractions, a homogeneous glass fraction and a non-homogeneous glass fraction. The proportions of different components in the homogeneous glass fraction were determined directly by chemical analyses of individual particles. They are mainly green glass, a mare-like glass, and different types of Fra Mauro and Highland type glasses. The proportions of various components in the remainder of each of the soils were determined indirectly by finding the mix of components that best fits their bulk compositions. The mixing model suggests that the Apennine Front consists mainly of rocks of low-K Fra Mauro basalt composition. These may overlie rocks with the composition of anorthositic gabbro. Green glass, which occurs widely throughout the site is believed to be derived from a green glass layer which darkens upland surfaces and lies beneath the local mare surface.     

Strontium and neodymium isotope study of Bohemian basalts

Summary The Cenozoic alkaline basalts of northern and western Bohemia are part of the Central European Volcanic Province (CEVP) which extends from the Rhineland (Eifel, Germany) to Moravia (Czechoslovakia) and the Lover Silesia (Poland). Seven samlpes from locations within Czechoslovakia have been analyzed isotopically for the Rb-Sr and the Sm-Nd systems. Present-day, normalised 87Sr/86Sr ratios range from 0.7031 to 0.7036, and the corresponding 143Nd/144Nd ratios range from 0.51279 to 0.51286. An eigth sample from the Silurian basalts of the St. Jan type (K-Ar age: 420 Ma) occuring in the Barrandian basin in Central Bohemia is also analysed. Its Present-day, normalised, 87Sr/86Sr ratio is 0.7031, and the corresponding 143Nd/144Nd ratio 0.51288.The Nd ratios of the Cenozoic basalts are similar, but more restricted than those from Germany, but are lower than those from Lower Silesia; a trend which is converse for the Sr ratios.Comparison of the results with the systematics ofZindler andHart (1986), suggests that the mande reservoir source of the Bohemian Cenozoic CEVP basalts is similar to the HIMU (High- ocean island basalts), with transition to PUM (primitive upper mantle) or BSE (bulk silicate earth). The reservoir for the Silurian Barrandian basin basalts suggest some affinity to MORB (mid-ocean ridge basalts) or HIMU.

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Résumé Les basaltes alcalins du Cénozoique du nord et de l'ouest de la Bohème appartiennent à la Province Volcanique de l'Europe Centrale (PVEC) qui s'étend de la région du Rhin (Allemagne) jusqu'en Moravie et Basse-Silésie (Pologne). Nous avons analysé les isotopes de Rb-Sr et de Sm-Nd dans sept échantillons de Tchécoslovaquie. Les valeurs mesurées, et normalisées, du rapport 87Sr/86Sr sont comprises entre 0.7031 et 0.7036 tandis que celles du rapport 143Nd/144Nd varient entre 0.51279 et 0.51286. Un huitième échantillon provient des basaltes Siluriens du type St. Jan (avec un age K-Ar de 420 Ma) dans le bassin Barrandien de la Bohème centrale. La valeur normalisée de son rapport actuel 87Sr/86Sr est de 0.7031, celle de 143Nd/144Nd est de 0.51288.Les rapports isotopiques du Nd de ces basaltes Cénozoiques sont analogues á ceux des basaltes de l'Allemagne, bien qu'ayant un domaine de variation plus restreint, mais sont plus faibles que ceux des basaltes de Basse-Silésie. Les rapports isotopiques du Sr évoluent de façon opposée.L'interprétation de ces données suivant la systématique de ces systemes isotopiques proposée par Zindler et Hart (1986) suggere que le réservoir mantellique source des basaltes de la PVEC en Boheme, est proche du pôle HIMU transitionel vers PUM ou BSE. Le réservoir mantellique source du basalt Silurien du bassin Barrandien montre des affinités avec les pôles MORB ou HIMU.

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With 5 Figures     

Transportation of detrital materials on the lunar surface: evidence from Apollo 15

The thickness frequency distribution of stratigraphic layers intersected by the Apollo 15 deep core suggests that the majority of impact events reworking the lunar soil are small and produce ejecta blankets with an average thickness of less than 1·D5 cm. The energy frequency distribution of the meteorites producing the layers may be bimodal. The impacting meteorites produce both normal and reverse graded beds which appear to be the end products of two depositional mechanisms. First, the normally graded beds appear to be produced in base surges as escaping gases fluidize the flowing debris and larger particles move downwards in response to Stokes Law. Second, if the gas loss from the base surge is excessive the fluidization may cease and inertial grain flow dominates. In this situation the beds are reverse graded as larger particles move under dispersive pressure to the region of minimum shear stress at the upper boundary of the base surge. The same processes also produce measurable shape sorting of the particles in the beds.     

Trace element partitioning between ilmenite, armalcolite and anhydrous silicate melt: Implications for the formation of lunar high-Ti mare basalts

We performed a series of experiments at high pressures and temperatures to determine the partitioning of a wide range of trace elements between ilmenite (Ilm), armalcolite (Arm) and anhydrous lunar silicate melt, to constrain geochemical models of the formation of titanium-rich melts in the Moon. Experiments were performed in graphite-lined platinum capsules at pressures and temperatures ranging from 1.1 to 2.3 GPa and 1300-1400 °C using a synthetic Ti-enriched Apollo ‘black glass’ composition in the CaO-FeO-MgO-Al₂O₃-TiO₂-SiO₂ system. Ilmenite-melt and armalcolite-melt partition coefficients (D) show highly incompatible values for the rare earth elements (REE) with the light REE more incompatible compared to the heavy REE ( 0.0020 ± 0.0010 to 0.069 ± 0.010 for ilmenite; 0.0048 ± 0.0023 to 0.041 ± 0.008 for armalcolite). D values for the high field strength elements vary from highly incompatible for Th, U and to a lesser extent W (for ilmenite: 0.0013 ± 0.0008, 0.0035 ± 0.0015 and 0.039 ± 0.005, and for armalcolite 0.008 ± 0.003, 0.0048 ± 0.0022 and 0.062 ± 0.03), to mildly incompatible for Nb, Ta, Zr, and Hf (e.g. 0.28 ± 0.05 and : 0.76 ± 0.07). Both minerals fractionate the high field strength elements with D_Ta/D_Nb and D_Hf/D_Zr between 1.3 and 1.6 for ilmenite and 1.3 and 1.4 for armalcolite. Armalcolite is slightly more efficient at fractionating Hf from W during lunar magma ocean crystallisation, with D_Hf/D_W = 12-13 compared to 6.7-7.5 for ilmenite. The transition metals vary from mildly incompatible to compatible, with the highest compatibilities for Cr in ilmenite (D ∼ 7.5) and V in armalcolite (D ∼ 8.1). D values show no clear variation with pressure in the small range covered.Crystal lattice strain modelling of D values for di-, tri- and tetravalent trace elements shows that in ilmenite, divalent elements prefer to substitute for Fe while armalcolite data suggest REE replacing Mg. Tetravalent cations appear to preferentially substitute for Ti in both minerals, with the exception of Th and U that likely substitute for the larger Fe or Mg cations. Crystal lattice strain modelling is also used to identify and correct for very small (∼0.3 wt.%) melt contamination of trace element concentration determinations in crystals.Our results are used to model the Lu-Hf-Ti concentrations of lunar high-Ti mare basalts. The combination of their subchondritic Lu/Hf ratios and high TiO₂ contents requires preferential dissolution of ilmenite or armalcolite from late-stage, lunar magma ocean cumulates into low-Ti partial melts of deeper pyroxene-rich cumulates.     

The oxygen isotope composition, petrology and geochemistry of mare basalts: Evidence for large-scale compositional variation in the lunar mantle

To investigate the formation and early evolution of the lunar mantle and crust we have analysed the oxygen isotopic composition, titanium content and modal mineralogy of a suite of lunar basalts. Our sample set included eight low-Ti basalts from the Apollo 12 and 15 collections, and 12 high-Ti basalts from Apollo 11 and 17 collections. In addition, we have determined the oxygen isotopic composition of an Apollo 15 KREEP (K - potassium, REE - Rare Earth Element, and P - phosphorus) basalt (sample 15386) and an Apollo 14 feldspathic mare basalt (sample 14053). Our data display a continuum in bulk-rock δ¹⁸O values, from relatively low values in the most Ti-rich samples to higher values in the Ti-poor samples, with the Apollo 11 sample suite partially bridging the gap. Calculation of bulk-rock δ¹⁸O values, using a combination of previously published oxygen isotope data on mineral separates from lunar basalts, and modal mineralogy (determined in this study), match with the measured bulk-rock δ¹⁸O values. This demonstrates that differences in mineral modal assemblage produce differences in mare basalt δ¹⁸O bulk-rock values. Differences between the low- and high-Ti mare basalts appear to be largely a reflection of mantle-source heterogeneities, and in particular, the highly variable distribution of ilmenite within the lunar mantle. Bulk δ¹⁸O variation in mare basalts is also controlled by fractional crystallisation of a few key mineral phases. Thus, ilmenite fractionation is important in the case of high-Ti Apollo 17 samples, whereas olivine plays a more dominant role for the low-Ti Apollo 12 samples.Consistent with the results of previous studies, our data reveal no detectable difference between the Δ¹⁷O of the Earth and Moon. The fact that oxygen three-isotope studies have been unable to detect a measurable difference at such high precisions reinforces doubts about the giant impact hypothesis as presently formulated.     

板内玄武岩来源于再循环碳酸盐化榴辉岩的地球化学证据: 以四子王旗新生代玄武岩为例

本文对中国东部中新世四子王旗玄武岩开展了详细的全岩和橄榄石主、微量元素及全岩Sr-Nd-Pb-Hf-Mg同位素研究, 据此探讨它们的成因及源区性质。研究发现, 四子王旗玄武岩具有类似于高μ(HIMU)型地幔起源熔体的微量元素分布特征, Zr、Hf、Ti的负异常, 高的Zr/Hf比值(Zr/Hf=49.3~54.8), 以及低于正常地幔范围的δ²⁶Mg值(-0.51‰~-0.49‰), 表明其来源于碳酸盐化地幔源区。它们还具有低的Sc含量(10.1×10^-6~10.5×10^-6)和高的Gd/Yb比值(8.7~9.4), 结合它们橄榄石斑晶低的Fo值, 高的NiO含量和Fe/Mn比值, 揭示其母岩浆为碳酸盐化榴辉岩部分熔融产生。四子王旗玄武岩具有亏损的Sr-Nd-Hf同位素(⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.70370~0.70449;ε_Nd=+6.3~+6.4;ε_Hf=+9.7~+10.3), 以及较低的Pb同位素组成(²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=17.94, ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=15.44, ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=37.89), 指示它们源区为年轻的再循环洋壳物质, 很有可能来自于滞留的西太平洋板片。四子王旗玄武岩位于南北重力梯度带以西并远离海沟, 意味着滞留的西太平洋板片在物质上对上覆地幔的影响范围较之前认识的要更广。

     

Re-evaluating Nd/Nd in lunar mare basalts with implications for the early evolution and bulk Sm/Nd of the Moon

The Moon likely accreted from melt and vapor ejected during a cataclysmic collision between Proto-Earth and a Mars-sized impactor very early in solar system history. The identical W, O, K, and Cr isotope compositions between materials from the Earth and Moon require that the material from the two bodies were well-homogenized during the collision process. As such, the ancient isotopic signatures preserved in lunar samples provide constraints on the bulk composition of the Earth. Two recent studies to obtain high-precision ¹⁴²Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios of lunar mare basalts yielded contrasting results. In one study, after correction of neutron fluence effects imparted to the Nd isotope compositions of the samples, the coupled ¹⁴²Nd-¹⁴³Nd systematics were interpreted to be consistent with a bulk Moon having a chondritic Sm/Nd ratio [Rankenburg K., Brandon A. D. and Neal C. R. (2006) Neodymium isotope evidence for a chondritic composition of the Moon. Science312, 1369-1372]. The other study found that their data on the same and similar lunar mare basalts were consistent with a bulk Moon having a superchondritic Sm/Nd ratio [Boyet M. and Carlson R. W. (2007) A highly depleted Moon or a non-magma origin for the lunar crust? Earth Planet. Sci. Lett.262, 505-516]. Delineating between these two potential scenarios has key ramifications for a comprehensive understanding of the formation and early evolution of the Moon and for constraining the types of materials available for accretion into large terrestrial planets such as Earth.To further examine this issue, the same six lunar mare basalt samples measured in Rankenburg et al. [Rankenburg K., Brandon A. D. and Neal C. R. (2006) Neodymium isotope evidence for a chondritic composition of the Moon. Science312, 1369-1372] were re-measured for high-precision Nd isotopes using a multidynamic routine with reproducible internal and external precisions to better than ±3 ppm (2σ) for ¹⁴²Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd ratios. The measurements were repeated in a distinct second analytical campaign to further test their reproducibility. Evaluation of accuracy and neutron fluence corrections indicates that the multidynamic Nd isotope measurements in this study and the 3 in Boyet and Carlson [Boyet M. and Carlson R. W. (2007) A highly depleted Moon or a non-magma origin for the lunar crust? Earth Planet. Sci. Lett.262, 505-516] are reproducible, while static measurements in the previous two studies show analytical artifacts and cannot be used at the resolution of 10 ppm to determine a bulk Moon with either chondritic or superchondritic Sm/Nd ratios. The multidynamic data are best explained by a bulk Moon with a superchondritic Sm/Nd ratio that is similar to the present-day average for depleted MORB. Hafnium isotope data were collected on the same aliquots measured for their ¹⁴²Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd isotope ratios in order to assess if the correlation line for ¹⁴²Nd-¹⁴³Nd systematics reflect mixing processes or times at which lunar mantle sources formed. Based on the combined ¹⁴²Nd-¹⁴³Nd-¹⁷⁶Hf obtained we conclude that the ¹⁴²Nd-¹⁴³Nd correlation line measured in this study is best interpreted as an isochron with an age of 229⁺²⁴₋₂₀Ma after the onset of nebular condensation. The uncertainties in the data permit the sources of these samples to have formed over a 44 Ma time interval. These new results for lunar mare basalts are thus consistent with a later Sm-Nd isotope closure time of their source regions than some recent studies have postulated, and a superchondritic bulk Sm/Nd ratio of the Moon and Earth. The superchondritic Sm/Nd signature was inherited from the materials that accreted to make up the Earth-Moon system. Although collisional erosion of crust from planetesimals is favored here to remove subchondritic Sm/Nd portions and drive the bulk of these bodies to superchondritic in composition, removal of explosive basalt material via gravitational escape from such bodies, or chondrule sorting in the inner solar system, may also explain the compositional features that deviate from average chondrites that make up the Earth-Moon system. This inferred superchondritic nature for the Earth similar to the modern convecting mantle means that there is no reason to invoke a missing, subchondritic reservoir to mass balance the Earth back to chondritic for Sm/Nd ratios. However, to account for the subchondritic Sm/Nd ratios of continental crust, a second superchondritic Sm/Nd mantle reservoir is required.     

Anhydrous melting of peridotite at 0–15 Kb pressure and the genesis of tholeiitic basalts

The anhydrous melting behaviour of two synthetic peridotite compositions has been studied experimentally at temperatures ranging from near the solidus to about 200° C above the solidus within the pressure range 0–15 kb. The peridotite compositions studied are equivalent to Hawaiian pyrolite and a more depleted spinel lherzolite (Tinaquillo peridotite) and in both cases the experimental studies used peridotite –40% olivine compositions. Equilibrium melting results in progressive elimination of phases with increasing temperature. Four main melting fields are recognized; from the solidus these are: olivine (ol)+orthopyroxene (opx)+clinopyroxene (cpx)+Al-rich phase (plagioclase at low pressure, spinel at moderate pressure, garnet at high pressure)+liquid (L); ol+opx+cpx+Cr-spinel+L; ol+opx+Cr-spinel +L: ol±Cr-spinel+L. Microprobe analyses of the residual phases show progressive changes to more refractory compositions with increasing proportion of coexisting melt i.e. increasing Mg/(Mg+Fe) and Cr/(Cr+Al) ratios, decreasing Al₂O₃, CaO in pyroxene.The degree of melting, established by modal analysis, increases rapidly immediately above the solidus (up to 10% melting occurs within 25°–30° C of the solidus), and then increases in roughly linear form with increasing temperature.Equilibrium melt compositions have been calculated by mass balance using the compositions and proportions of residual phases to overcome the problems of iron loss and quench modification of the glass. Compositions from the melting of pyrolite within the spinel peridotite field (i.e. 15 kb) range from alkali olivine basalt (<15% melting) through olivine tholeiite (20–30% melting) and picrite to komatiite (40–60% melting). Melting in the plagioclase peridotite field produces magnesian quartz tholeiite and olivine-poor tholeiite and, at higher degrees of melting (30–40%), basaltic or pyroxenitic komatiite. Melts from Tinaquillo lherzolite are more silica saturated than those from pyrolite for similar degrees of partial melting, and range from olivine tholeiite through tholeiitic picrite to komatiite for melting in the spinel peridotite field.The equilibrium melts are compared with inferred primary magma compositions and integrated with previous melting studies on basalts. The data obtained here and complementary basalt melting studies do not support models of formation of oceanic crust in which the parental magmas of common mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) are attributed to segregation from source peridotite at shallow depths ( 25 km) to leave residual harzburgite. Liquids segregating from peridotite at these depths are more silica-rich than common MORB.     

A Study on the Forming Conditions of Basalts in Seamounts of the South China Sea

Volcanic rocks in seamounts of the South China Sea consist mainly of alkali basalt, tholeiitic basalt, trachyandesitic pumice, dacite, etc. Inclusions in the minerals of the volcanic rocks are mainly amorphous melt inclusions, which reflects that the volcanic rocks are characterized by submarine eruption and rapid cooling on the seafloor. Furthermore, fluid-melt inclusions have been discovered for the first time in alkali basalts and mantle-derived xenoliths. indicating a process of differentiation between magma and fluid in the course of mantle partial melting. Alkali basalts and inclusions may have been formed in this nonhomogeneous system. Rock-forming temperatures of four seamounts were estimated as follows: the Zhongnan seamount alkali basalt 1155 ∼ 1185 °C; the Xianbei seamount alkali basalt 960 ∼ 1200 °C; tholeiitic basalt 1040 ∼ 1230 °C; the Daimao seamount tholeiitic basalt 1245 ∼ 1280 °C; and the Jianfeng seamount trachyandestic pumice 880 ∼ 1140 °C. Equilibrium pressures of alkali basalts in the Zhongnan and Xianbei seamounts are 13.57 and 8.8 × 10⁸ Pa, respectively. Pyroxene equilibrium temperatures of mantle xenoliths from the Xianbei seamount were estimated at 1073 ∼ 1121 °C, and pressures at (15.58 ∼ 22.47)×10⁸Pa, suggesting a deep-source (e.g. the asthenosphere) for the alkali basalts. This project was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and Guangzhou Marine Geology Survey.     

A Systematic Spectroscopic Study of Four Apollo Lunar Soils

A systematic spectroscopic study including Raman,Mid-IR,NIR,and VIS-NIR,is used to investigate four endmember lunar soils.Apollo soils(<45 μm) 14163,15271,67511,and 71501 were selected as endmembers to study,based on their soil chemistry,maturity against space weathering,and the sampling locations.These endmembers include an anorthositic highlands soil(67511),a low-Ti basaltic soil(15271) ,a high-Ti basaltic soil(71501),and a mafic,KREEPy,impact-melt-rich soil(14163) .We used a laser Raman point-counting pr...     

感耦等离子体质谱法测定高纯氧化钪中15个痕量稀土杂质的研究

文章报道了用感耦等离子体质谱法测定高纯氧化钪中１５个痕量稀土杂质的研究，考察了测定中的各种干扰和影响因素，选择Ｃｓ为内标元素补颈体抑制效应和灵敏度漂移。各稀土元素的检出限在０．００５－０．０２７ｎｇ／ｍｌ范围，标准加入回收率为９４．５％－１０３．７％，精密度为０．８５％－１．９５％，称取１０ｍｇ样品，酸溶解后可直接测定高纯氧化钪中总量低于２μｇ／ｇ的１５个稀土杂质。     

Mineralogical study of spinel-lherzolite inclusions from basalts in southern and eastern China

Ten spinel-lherzolite inclusions and one olivine-websterite inclusion, which were collected from Fujian, Jiangsu, Hebei and Yunnan Provinces, consist of olivine (FΦ_87.7–91.2), enstatite (En_87.3–89.7), Cr-diopside and spinel. According to the Mg/(Mg+Fe²⁺) ratios in the rocks and their mineralogies, they are designated to the Cr-diopside type. The websterite is composed of bronzite (En_71.9) and augite, while the gabbro-norite consists of hypersthene (En_68.9) and augite, belonging to the Al-augite type. The geothermos of spinel-lherzolites were calculated with four geothermometric methods, giving a temperature range of 925°–1,072°C. However, according to P. R. A. Wells' method, temperatures range from 845δ to 1,014°C, and by D. H. Lindsly's approach, from 716°–974°C. Pressures range from 15.1 to 19.8 kb. Genetically, Spinel-lherzolites and olivine-websterite are thought to have been derived from residual mantle material by partial melting at approximately 1,000°C and at a depth of about 50–70 km. Websterite and gabbro-norite may be products of the crystallization-differentiation of alkali basaltic magma.     

Mineralogy,petrology and chemistry of lithic fragments from Luna 20 fines: origin of the cumulate ANT suite and its relationship to high-alumina and mare basalts

Bulk analyses of 157 lithic fragments of igneous origin and analyses of their constituent minerals (plagioclase, pyroxene, olivine, Mg-Al spinel, chromite, ilmenite, armalcolite, baddeleyite, zirkelite, K-feldspar, interstitial glass high in SiO₂ and K₂O) have been used to characterize the lunar highland rock suites at the Luna 20 site. The predominant suite is composed of ANT (anorthositic-noritic-troctolitic) rocks, as found at previous Apollo and Luna sites. This suite consists of an early cumulate member, spinel troctolite, and later cumulate rocks which are gradational from anorthosite to noritic and troctolitic anorthosite to anorthositic norite and troctolite; anorthositic norite is the most abundant rock type and its composition is close to the average composition for the highland rocks at this site. Spinel troctolite is a distinctive member of this suite and is characterized by the presence of Mg-Al spinel, magnesian olivine (average, Fo₈₃), and plagioclase. High-alumina basalt with low alkali content is another important rock type and melt of this composition may be parental to the cumulate ANT suite. Alkalic high-alumina basalt (KREEP) was not found in our sample, but may be genetically related to the ANT suite in that it may have formed by partial melting of rocks similar to those of the ANT suite. Fractional crystallization of low alkali, high-alumina basalt probably cannot produce alkalic high-alumina basalt because the enrichment in KREEP component is many times greater than the simultaneous change in major element components. Formation of alkalic high-alumina basalt by mechanical mixing of ANT rocks with very KREEP-rich components is not likely because the high-alumina basalt suite falls on a cotectic in the anorthiteolivine-silica system. Mare basalts may also be genetically related in that they may have been derived by remelting of rocks formed from residual liquids of fractional crystallization of parental low-alkali, high-alumina basalt, plus mafic cumulate crystals; the resultant melt would have a negative Eu anomaly and high $\text{Fe}\text{Mg}$ and $\text{pyroxene}\text{plagioclase}$ ratios.