Granulite and pyroxenite xenoliths from the Deccan Trap: insight into the nature and composition of the lower lithosphere beneath cratonic India

Granulite and pyroxenite xenoliths in lamprophyre dykes intruded during the waning stage of Deccan Trap volcanism are derived from the lower crust beneath the Dharwar craton of Western India. The xenolith suite consists of plagioclase-poor mafic granulites (55% of the total volume of xenoliths), plagioclase-rich felsic granulites (25%), and ultramafic pyroxenites and websterites (20%) with subordinate wehrlites. Rare spinel peridotite xenoliths are also present, representing mantle lithosphere. The high Mg #, low SiO₂/Al₂O₃ and low Nb/La (<1) ratios suggest that the protoliths of the mafic granulites broadly represent cumulates of sub-alkaline magmas. All of the granulites are peraluminous and light rare-earth element-enriched. The felsic granulites may have resulted from anatexis of the mafic lower crustal rocks; thus, the mafic granulites are enriched in Sr whereas the felsic ones are depleted. Composite xenoliths consisting of mafic granulites traversed by veins of pyroxenite indicate intrusion of the granulitic lower crust by younger pyroxenites. Petrography and geochemistry of the latter (e.g. presence of phlogopite) indicate the metasomatised nature of the deep crust in this region.Thermobarometric estimates from phase equilibria indicate equilibration conditions between 650 and 1200 °C, 0.7-1.2 GPa suggestive of lower crustal environments. These estimates provide a spatial context for the sampled lithologies thereby placing constraints on the interpretation of geophysical data. Integration of xenolith-derived P-T results with Deep Seismic Soundings (DSS) data suggests that the pyroxenites and websterites are transitional between the lower crust and the upper mantle. A three-layer model for the crust in western India, derived from the xenoliths, is consistent with DSS data. The mafic nature of this hybrid lower crust contrasts with the felsic lower crustal composition of the south Indian granulite terrain.     

Geochemical and isotopic characteristics of lower crustal xenoliths, San Francisco Volcanic Field, Arizona, U.S.A

A wide variety of xenoliths has been entrained in Miocene-to-Recent alkali olivine and hypersthene-normative basalts in the San Francisco Volcanic Field (SFVF), northern Arizona, U.S.A. Based on petrography, mineralogy, bulk rock chemistry and Sr-Nd isotopic characteristics, SFVF xenoliths can be divided into two major groups: cumulates and granulites. The cumulates are genetically related to the Cenozoic volcanic rocks and represent under- and/or intraplated additions to the crust of the Colorado Plateau. Assemblages are mafic to ultramafic and are dominated by clinopyroxene-orthopyroxene-plagioclase-spinel-amphibole-olivine. The granulites are probably Proterozoic in age, mafic-to-intermediate/felsic in bulk composition, either two pyroxene-plagioclase-spinel or plagioclase-alkali feldspar-quartz-magnetite-amphibole-biotite assemblages. Many of the granulites show evidence of partial melting. Some high SiO₂, very high Rb/Sr glasses are close in composition to erupted rhyolites, and probably represent end-member melts that have interacted with basalt to produce a variety of hybrid intermediate lavas. The major element, trace element and Sr-Nd isotope geochemistry is highly variable in the SFVF xenoliths. Extremely high Ba contents and Ba/Nb of a number of the granulites are equivalent to values characteristics of modern supra-subduction zone magmas. The considerable variation of chemical and isotopic composition depends upon mineral proportions, assemblages and chemistry. Isotopically, three end-members can be identified within the granulites: (i) lowest ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (0.702870) with low ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd (0.511541, εNd-21.4); (ii) high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (0.711069) with the lowest ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd (0.511434, εNd-23.5); (iii) highest ⁸⁷Sr/{86}Sr (0.715306) with low ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd (0.511793, εNd-16.5). Two important age ranges deduced from the isotopic data probably relate to episodes of crustal-growth beneath the SFVF (1.88 ± 0.33 Ga and Cenozoic). Thermobarometric calculations assuming equilibrium show that the xenoliths are derived from the lower crust (0.6–1.3 GPa, 850–1050 °C). The average SFVF lower crust is mafic in composition. In the absence of partial lithospheric delamination, the lower crust may become mafic with time due to under- and intraplating of continental crust by mafic magmas derived from the mantle.     

Crustal make-up of the northern Andes: evidence based on deep crustal xenolith suites, Mercaderes, SW Colombia

Samples of the deep crust and upper mantle in the Northern Andes occur as abundant xenoliths in the Granatífera Tuff, a late Cenozoic vent in the Mercaderes area of SW Colombia. The lower crustal assemblage includes granulites, hornblendites, pyribolites, pyroxenites and gneisses; mafic rocks predominate, but felsic material is also common. P–T conditions for the pyribolite assemblages (i.e. Hbl+Fs/Scp+Grt+Cpx+Qtz±Bt), which are the best constrained, are 720–850 °C and 10–14 kbar, consistent with a deep-to-lower crustal origin. A notable feature of this xenolith suite is that it is dominated by hornblende. However, mineral reactions within the suite show that there is a transition from amphibolite to granulite facies, and there is a probable restite–melt relationship represented within the suite. However, the latter appears to be dominated by hornblende and garnet.The mafic rocks mostly lack the high Cr and Ni that would be expected of cumulates. Neither do they possess the positive Sr and Eu anomalies that would be consistent with resite or cumulate models for the lower crust. They bear greatest similarity to oceanic basalts (s.l.). The Rb contents of the xenoliths, whether mafic or silicic, are very low, and the more silicic members of the suite tend to have small positive Sr and Eu anomalies, which are transitional to adakitic compositions. The Sr isotopic compositions of the xenoliths lie between 0.704 and 0.705; however, the Nd isotopic compositions are much more variable, indicating considerable long-term heterogeneity. Few of the xenoliths can be compositionally recognised as metasedimentary; however, a sedimentary component is evident in the Pb isotopic compositions. Within these constraints, our favoured model is a deep crust formed by basaltic components (subduction–accretion?), and minor sediment, which is subject to an increase in thermal gradient to produce the granulites, any melting being dominated by hornblende-out reactions involving garnet. However, there is no evidence of any pervasive crustal melting, leading to the conclusion that the voluminous Andean magmatism arises from the mantle wedge.     

Garnet Granulite Xenoliths from the Northern Baltic Shield--the Underplated Lower Crust of a Palaeoproterozoic Large Igneous Province?

Garnet granulite facies xenoliths hosted in Devonian lamprophyresfrom the Kola Peninsula are interpreted to represent the high-grademetamorphic equivalents of continental flood tholeiites, emplacedinto the Baltic Shield Archaean lower crust in early Proterozoictime. Geochronological data and similarities in major and traceelement geochemistry suggest that the xenoliths formed duringthe same plume-related magmatic event that created a widespreadPalaeoproterozoic large igneous province (LIP) at 2·4–2·5Ga. They are, thus, the first samples of the lower crust ofa Palaeoproterozoic LIP to be studied in petrological detail.The suite includes mafic granulites (gar + cpx + rutile ±plag ± opx ± phlog ± amph), felsic granulites(plag + gar + cpx + rutile ± qtz ± Kspar ±phlog ± amph) and pyroxenites (± phlog ±amph), but mafic garnet granulites predominate. Although somesamples are restites, there is no evidence for a predominanceof magmatic cumulates, as is common for Phanerozoic lower-crustalxenolith suites. Metasediments are also absent. Phlogopite and/oramphibole occur in xenoliths of all types and are interpretedto be metasomatic in origin. The K-rich metasomatic event occurredat     

Geochemistry of mafic and ultramafic xenoliths from Fidra (Southern Uplands, Scotland): implications for lithospheric processes in Permo-Carboniferous times

Several types of xenoliths occur in a Permian basanite sill in Fidra, eastern central Scotland. One group consists of spinel lherzolites, which have geochemical and isotopic characteristics similar to those of lithospheric upper mantle from elsewhere in western Europe, with both LREE-depleted and LREE-enriched compositions. A separate group comprises pyroxenites and wehrlites, some of which contain plagioclase; these have compositions and textures that indicate that they are cumulates from mafic magmas. In terms of Sr and Nd isotope compositions, the pyroxenites closely resemble the host basanite and most likely formed by high-pressure fractionation of Permo-Carboniferous alkaline magmas at lower crustal depths. They also have mantle-like δ¹⁸O values. A third group is composed of granulite xenoliths that vary between plagioclase-rich and clinopyroxene-rich compositions, some of which probably form a continuum with the pyroxenites and wehrlites. They are all LREE-enriched and most have positive Eu anomalies; thus, they are also mostly cumulates from mafic magmas. Many of the granulites also have Sr and Nd radiogenic isotope ratios similar to those of the host basanite, indicating that they have formed from a similar magma. However, several of the granulites show more enriched isotopic compositions, including higher δ¹⁸O values, trending towards an older crustal component. Thus, the pyroxenites and granulites are largely cogenetic and are mainly the product of a mafic underplating event that occurred during the widespread magmatism in central Scotland during Permo-Carboniferous times.     

东昆仑沟里地区暗色包体及其寄主岩石地球化学特征及成因

通过青海东昆仑东部沟里地区阿斯哈岩体中寄主闪长岩和暗色微粒包体的岩相学、全岩地球化学研究,确定了岩石成因及其构造属性。阿斯哈岩体中暗色包体广泛分布,包体岩性主要为角闪辉长岩。包体具有岩浆结构,部分包体具有塑性流变特征,包体中可见寄主岩石矿物的捕掳晶和针状磷灰石,表现出岩浆混合的岩相学特征。主岩及暗色包体同属准铝质、高钾钙碱性-钾玄岩系列过渡岩石,主量元素在Harker图解及Al₂O₃/K₂O-CaO/K₂O和SiO₂/CaO-K₂O/CaO的共分母协变图上具良好的线性关系,反映两者成分的变化与岩浆混合作用有关。两者的稀土元素配分模式总体一致,显示二者密切的成因联系。两者都富含大离子亲石元素（Rb、K）,相对亏损高场强元素（Nb、Ta、P、Ti）。暗色包体具有贫硅（w(SiO₂)=50.70%~53.88%）和富镁、铁、钙的地球化学特征,其Mg^#值较高（Mg^#=0.52~0.59）,暗示其来源于俯冲带流体交代地幔楔的部分熔融。主岩的Rb/Sr值为0.22~0.27,接近地壳平均值,Nb/Ta值为14.5~15.2,介于地幔平均值与地壳平均值之间,表明寄主岩石岩浆具有壳源岩浆的性质并经历了幔源岩浆的混合作用。结合区域构造演化及构造判别,认为阿斯哈岩体形成于安第斯型活动大陆边缘的构造环境。早三叠世,阿尼玛卿洋向北俯冲,俯冲带流体交代地幔楔,导致其部分熔融形成基性岩浆,底侵的幔源基性岩浆诱发下地壳部分熔融并与之发生混合形成本区闪长岩,而其中的暗色包体为幔源岩浆混合不彻底的产物。     

Granulite xenoliths from western Saudi Arabia: the lower crust of the late Precambrian Arbian-Nubian Shield

Mafic and intermediate granulite xenoliths, collected from Cenozoic alkali basalts, provide samples of the lower crust in western Saudi Arabia. The xenoliths are metaigneous two-pyroxene and garnet granulites. Mineral and whole rock compositions are inconsistent with origin from Red Sea rift-related basalts, and are compatible with origin from island arc calc-alkaline and low-potassium tholeiitic basalts. Most of the samples are either cumulates from mafic magmas or are restites remaining after partial melting of intermediate rocks and extraction of a felsic liquid. Initial⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios are less than 0.7032, except for two samples at 0.7049. The Sm-Nd data yield T_DM model ages of 0.64 to 1.02 Ga, similar to typical Arabian-Nubian Shield upper continental crust. The isotopic data indicate that the granulites formed from mantle-derived magmas with little or no contamination by older continent crust. Calculated temperatures and pressures of last reequilibration of the xenoliths show that they are derived from the lower crust. Calculated depths of origin and calculated seismic velocities for the xenoliths are in excellent agreement with the crustal structure model of Gettings et al. (1986) based on geophysical data from western Saudi Arabia. Estimation of mean lower crustal composition, using the granulite xenoliths and the Gettings et al. (1986) crustal model, suggests a remarkably homogeneous mafic lower crust, and an andesite or basaltic andesite bulk composition for Pan-African juvenile continental crust.     

The nature and geological history of the deep crust under the Eifel, Germany

The crust ≈ 10–20 km under the Eifel is composed of amphibolite-facies metasediments and meta-igneous rocks of tonalitic to granodioritic composition; mafic granulites occupy the base of the crust down to a Moho depth between about 29 and 34 km. The meta-granodiorites and meta-tonalites have I-type chemical characteristics and appear to have formed approximately 400 Myr ago by partial melting of a lower crustal source. Amphibolite-facies metamorphism probably followed within the same orogeny. During the Quaternary, many amphibolite-facies rocks were subjected to contact heating in crustal magma chambers and/or during transport to the earth's surface. Contact heating is also recorded in radiogenic isotope compositions of minerals from one xenolith. A genetic link between meta-igneous amphibolites and the deeper crustal mafic granulites can neither be proven nor discounted by the isotope data. If there is a genetic relationship, it requires fractionation of a mafic magma in the lower crust and assimilation of metasediments and separation of a highly evolved melt.     

Phanerozoic magma underplating and crustal growth beneath the North China Craton

Evidence for post‐Archaean crustal growth via magma underplating is largely based on U–Pb dating of zircons from granulite‐facies xenoliths. However, whether the young zircons from such xenoliths are genetically related to magma underplating or to anatexis remains controversial. The lower‐crustal xenoliths carried by igneous rocks in the Chifeng and Ningcheng (North China Craton) have low SiO₂ and high MgO, indicating that parental melts of their protoliths were of unambiguous mantle origin. The xenoliths contain abundant magmatic zircons with late‐Palaeozoic ages, and have more radiogenic zircon Hf‐isotope compositions and hence younger model ages than ancient crustal magmas and the “reworking array” of the basement rocks. Our data suggest that the granulites represent episodic magmatic underplating to the lower crust of this craton in Phanerozoic time. Considering the observation that regional lowermost crust (~5 km) is mafic and characterized by Phanerozoic zircons, this work reports an example of post‐Archaean crustal growth via magma underplating.     

Thermal and petrological structure of the lithosphere beneath Hannuoba, Sino-Korean Craton, China: evidence from xenoliths

Deep-seated xenoliths entrained in the Hannuoba basalts of the northern Sino-Korean Craton include mafic and felsic granulites, mantle wall-rock from spinel– and garnet–spinel peridotite facies, and basaltic crystallisation products from the spinel-pyroxenite and garnet-pyroxenite stability fields. The mineral compositions of the xenoliths have been used to estimate temperatures and, where possible, pressures of equilibration, and to construct a geothermal framework to interpret the upper mantle and lower crustal rock-type sequences for the region. The xenolith-derived paleogeotherm is constrained in the depth interval of 45–65 km and like others from areas of young basalt magmatism, is elevated and strongly convex toward the temperature axis. Two-pyroxene granulites give the lowest temperatures and garnet pyroxenites the highest, while the spinel lherzolites fall between these two groups. The present-day Moho beneath the Hannuoba area is defined at 42 km by seismic data, and coincides with the deepest occurrence of granulite. Above this boundary, there is a lower crust–upper mantle transition zone about 10-km thick, in which spinel lherzolites and mafic granulites (with variable plagioclase contents) are intermixed. It is inferred that this underplating has resulted in a lowering of the original pre-Cenozoic Moho (then coinciding with the crust–mantle boundary, CMB) from about 30 km to its present-day position and was due to intrusions of basaltic magmas that displaced peridotite mantle wall-rock and equilibrated to mafic granulites. Trace element patterns of the diopsides (analysed by laser ablation-ICPMS) from the Cr-diopside series spinel lherzolites and associated layered xenoliths (spinel lherzolites and pyroxenites) indicate a fertile uppermost mantle with moderate depletion by low degrees of partial melting and little evidence of metasomatic activity. The similarity in major and trace element compositions of the minerals in both rock types suggests that the layered ultramafic xenoliths formed by mantle deformation processes (metamorphic segregation), rather than by melt veining or metasomatism.     

Crustal xenoliths from Tertiary volcanics of the Northern Hessian Depression

A suite of crustal xenoliths from Tertiary basaltic tuffs of the Northern Hessian Depression (NHD) volcanic field comprises abundant meta-igneous pyroxene granulites of mafic, noritic to anorthositic, IAT and tonalitic composition. Less abundant are granitic, tonalitic and leucogranitic gneisses and metasedimentary xenoliths. A total of 49 samples were analyzed for modal compositions, for major and trace elements (including Li, Rb, Sr, Ba, Cs, V, Sc, Cr, Co, Ni, Y, Zr, Nb, Ta, Hf, Th and REE) and oxygen isotopes. Two-pyroxene thermometry yields temperatures between 700 and 900° C for mafic and noritic granulites. Feldspar thermometry indicates temperatures of 660°–710° C for tonalitic granulites and 470°–520° C for granitic and tonalitic gneisses. One highly depleted sillimanite-rich metasediment contains cordierite and garnet which have equilibrated at temperatures of 780° C. The general lack of garnet in the mafic and noritic granulites and the presence of sillimanite in felsic xenoliths indicates that metamorphic pressures have not exceeded 10 kb. Major and trace element data and oxygen isotope compositions of the mafic granulites are compatible with an origin from spilitized enriched-type MORB rocks (enrichment in ¹⁸O to 11 and in Li to 34 ppm at average SiO₂ contents of 44.1 wt%). These low-T spilites were transformed into amphibolites and then pyroxene granulites during subsequent high temperature metamorphic events. Low Si, Al, K, and Rb concentrations along with An contents in plagioclase ranging from near 50 to 98 mole percent suggest that amphibolite facies protoliths have generated tonalitic melts during partial melting at temperatures above 700° C. The mafic granulite xenoliths are interpreted as restites whereas the tonalitic samples probably represent the extracted partial melts derived by 20 to 30 percent degree of melting. Metasedimentary xenoliths strongly depleted in granitic component could represent restites from which granitic S-type partial melts have been extracted. Tonalitic and leucogranitic gneisses including one trondhjemite xenolith have many chemical characteristics (e.g. REE distribution) in common with tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite suites of the North Atlantic region but cannot be accounted for a more specific origin. Estimated elastic properties of the main types of NHD xenoliths yield P-wave velocities of 6.0–6.4 km^-1 for granitic, tonalitic and trondhjemite gneisses including tonalitic granulites and 6.5–7.0 for the more mafic xenoliths. When compared with two seismic depths-V_p profiles these data are in accordance with a model where the mafic, andesitic, noritic and tonalitic granulites comprise abundant rock types at depths between 29 km (Moho) and 20 km which mainly consists of old oceanic crust including subduction related volcanic products. The more felsic xenoliths probably represent material from depths between 12 and 20 km.     

Near-Ultrahigh Pressure Processing of Continental Crust: Miocene Crustal Xenoliths from the Pamir

Xenoliths of subducted crustal origin hosted by Miocene ultrapotassicigneous rocks in the southern Pamir provide important new informationregarding the geological processes accompanying tectonism duringthe Indo-Eurasian collision. Four types have been studied: sanidineeclogites (omphacite, garnet, sanidine, quartz, biotite, kyanite),felsic granulites (garnet, quartz, sanidine and kyanite), basalticeclogites (omphacite and garnet), and a glimmerite (biotite,clinopyroxene and sanidine). Apatite, rutile and carbonate arethe most abundant minor phases. Hydrous phases (biotite andphengite in felsic granulites and basaltic eclogites, amphibolesin mafic and sanidine eclogites) and plagioclase form minorinclusions in garnet or kyanite. Solid-phase thermobarometryreveals recrystallization at mainly ultrahigh temperatures of1000–1100°C and near-ultrahigh pressures of 2·5–2·8GPa. Textures, parageneses and mineral compositions suggestderivation of the xenoliths from subducted basaltic, tonaliticand pelitic crust that experienced high-pressure dehydrationmelting, K-rich metasomatism, and solid-state re-equilibration.The timing of these processes is constrained by zircon agesfrom the xenoliths and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages of the host volcanic rocksto 57–11 Ma. These xenoliths reveal that deeply subductedcrust may undergo extensive dehydration-driven partial melting,density-driven differentiation and disaggregation, and sequestrationwithin the mantle. These processes may also contribute to thealkaline volcanism observed in continent-collision zones. KEY WORDS: xenolith; high-pressure; subduction; Pamir; Tibet     

Composition and structure of the lower crust of the Belomorian Mobile Belt, Baltic Shield

The lower crust of the Belomorian Mobile Belt consists predominantly of garnet peridotites with subordinate amounts of pyroxenites and spinel peridotites, which occur as xenoliths in Devonian diatremes and dikes in the southern part of the Kola Peninsula. When transported to the surface by ultrabasic melts, the xenoliths were affected by fluids from the host ultrabasic lamprophyres with the introduction of Ca, Mg, and such trace elements as Ba, Nb, Sr, and P. The concentrations of trace elements (Sm, Nd, Y, Ti, Zr, Ni, Cr, and others) and the Sm-Nd isotopic composition were not significantly modified, which makes it possible to use them to compare the xenoliths with the near-surface complexes and to reproduce the composition of the protoliths. The Paleoproterozoic lower crust was produced during the emplacement of mantle magmas into metabasites in the Neoarchean lower crust, a process that was accompanied by the contamination of the melts and the origin of rocks showing characteristics of mantle and crust material. The emplacement of significant melt volumes into the Neoarchean lower crust caused its heating and enabled its viscous-plastic flow. This flow could likely also affect the material of the upper mantle, as follows from the occurrence of spinel peridotite nodules among the garnet granulites with an increase in the amount of mantle xenoliths from the roof to bottom of the lower crust. The overall amount of ultrabasic rocks in the lower crust was evaluated at 8–10%.     

Evolution of the petrological and seismic Moho-implications for the continental crust-mantle boundary

The chemical and petrological composition of mafic rocks from the lower continental crust are discussed by comparing mafic granulites and meta-gabbroic rocks from the Ivrea Zone and the Northern Hessian Depression (NHD) xenolith suite. Both regions contain contrasting types of meta-mafic lithologies (i) former basaltic rocks with trace element patterns ranging from MORB-Iike to subduction-related or intra-plate tholeütes and (ü) Ca-and Al-enriched, plagiodase-dominated gabbroic rocks showing positive Eu-anomalies generated by complex deep crustal magmatic processes such as fractionation, accumulation of plagiodase and pyroxene, and crustal contamination. The absence of typical garnet-omphadte parageneses in these rocks indicates that the eclogite stability field was not reached during Palaeozoic orogenic processes. A compilation of experimentally determined P-wave velocities and densities for mafic granulites, gabbroic rocks, eclogites and peridotites is used to evaluate key physical properties of lower crustal mafic rocks during crystal thickening caused by continent-continent collision. In a step-by-step scenario it is demonstrated that the position of the seismic Moho (defined as a first-order velocity discontinuity) and the petrological Moho (defined as the boundary between non-peridotitic crustal rocks and olivine-dominated rocks) is not identical for the case that mafic rocks are transformed into edogites at the base of orogenically thickened crust. P-wave velocities of eclogites largely overlap with those of peridotites, although their densities are significantly higher than common upper mantle rocks. As a consequence, refraction seismic field studies may not detect edogites as crustal rocks. This means that the seismic Moho detected by refraction seismic field studies appears at the upper boundary between edogites and overlying crustal units. Since edogites generally have higher densities than peridotites, they might be recycled into the deeper lithosphere thereby transferring excess Eu into the upper mantle. This process could be a due for understanding the negative Euanomaly in the upper continental crust which is apparently not balanced quantitatively by the abundance of common mafic crustal rocks.     

Petrogenesis of ultramafic and mafic xenoliths from Mesozoic basanites in southern Sweden: constraints from mineral chemistry

Jurassic basanite necks occurring at the junction of two major fault zones in Scania contain ultramafic (peridotites, pyroxenites) and mafic xenoliths, which together indicate a diversity of upper mantle and lower crustal assemblages beneath this region. The peridotites can be subdivided into lherzolites, dunites and harzburgites. Most lherzolites are porphyroclastic, containing orthopyroxene and olivine porphyroclasts. They consist of Mg-rich silicates (Mg# = Mg/(Mg + Fe_tot) × 100; 88–94) and vermicular spinel. Calculated equilibration temperatures are lower in porphyroclastic lherzolites (975–1,007°C) than in equigranular lherzolite (1,079°C), indicating an origin from different parts of the upper mantle. According to the spinel composition the lherzolites represent residues of 8–13% fractional melting. They are similar in texture, mineralogy and major element composition to mantle xenoliths from Cenozoic Central European volcanic fields. Dunitic and harzburgitic peridotites are equigranular and only slightly deformed. Silicate minerals have lower to similar Mg# (83–92) as lherzolites and lack primary spinel. Resorbed patches in dunite and harzburgite xenoliths might be the remnants of metasomatic processes that changed the upper mantle composition. Pyroxenites are coarse, undeformed and have silicate minerals with partly lower Mg# than peridotites (70–91). Pyroxenitic oxides are pleonaste spinels. According to two-pyroxene thermometry pyroxenites show a large range of equilibration temperatures (919–1,280°C). In contrast, mafic xenoliths, which are mostly layered gabbronorites with pyroxene- and plagioclase-rich layers, have a narrow range of equilibration temperatures (828–890°C). These temperature ranges, together with geochemical evidence, indicate that pyroxenites and gabbroic xenoliths represent mafic intrusions within the Fennoscandian crust.     

On the origin and fluid content of some rare crustal xenoliths and their bearing on the structure and evolution of the crust beneath the Bakony–Balaton Highland Volcanic Field (W-Hungary)

Rarely occurring clinopyroxene-plagioclase bearing, felsic granulite and skarn xenoliths were studied from the mantle and crustal xenolith-bearing alkaline basaltic and pyroclastic localities of the Bakony–Balaton Highland Volcanic Field (W-Hungary). Geobarometry and geothermometry of the xenoliths made it possible to categorise them in three groups according to their depth of formation. The first group formed in the lower crust together with mafic and metasedimentary granulites. The second group represents magmatic intrusions of the middle crust, and the third one comprises contact metamorphic rocks of relatively shallow origin. The calculated pressure difference from the core and rim compositions of plagioclase and clinopyroxene as well as garnet breakdown reactions in some xenoliths show evidence for pressure decrease due to crustal thinning both in lower crustal and middle crustal xenoliths during formation of the Pannonian Basin. Fluid inclusion studies reveal the dominance of the CO₂-rich fluids in the whole crustal section in contrast with fluids found in mafic garnet-bearing xenoliths. Crustal stratigraphy was constructed for the periods prior to the extension and after the extension on the basis of geobarometry and geophysical data. On the basis of mineral stabilities and geothermo-barometry, we estimated that the pre-extensional thickness of the lower and upper crust may have been 27–34 and 26–28?km, respectively. Comparison of pre-extensional and present-day thickness of the lower and upper crust indicate that thinning affected both the lower and the upper portion of the crust but on a different scale. The calculated thinning factors are between 2.25 and 3.4 for the lower crust and 1.3–1.56 for the upper crust.     

What Happened in the Trans-North China Orogen in the Period 2560-1850 Ma？

The Trans-North China Orogen （TNCO） was a Paleoproterozic continent-continent collisional belt along which the Eastern and Western Blocks amalgamated to form a coherent North China Craton （NCC）. Recent geological, structural, geochemical and isotopic data show that the orogen was a continental margin or Japan-type arc along the western margin of the Eastern Block, which was separated from the Western Block by an old ocean, with eastward-directed subduction of the oceanic lithosphere beneath the western margin of the Eastern Block. At 2550-2520 Ma, the deep subduction caused partial melting of the medium-lower crust, producing copious granitoid magma that was intruded into the upper levels of the crust to form granitoid plutons in the low- to medium-grade granite-greeustone terranes. At 2530-2520 Ma, subduction of the oceanic lithosphere caused partial melting of the mantle wedge, which led to underplating of mafic magma in the lower crust and widespread mafic and minor felsic volcanism in the arc, forming part of the greenstone assemblages. Extension driven by widespread mafic to felsic volcanism led to the development of back-arc and/or intra-arc basins in the orogen. At 2520-2475 Ma, the subduction caused further partial melting of the lower crust to form large amounts of tonalitic-trondhjemitic-granodioritic （TTG） magmatism. At this time following further extension of back-arc basins, episodic granitoid magmatism occurred, resulting in the emplacement of 2360 Ma, -2250 Ma 2110-21760 Ma and -2050 Ma granites in the orogen. Contemporary volcano-sedimentary rocks developed in the back-arc or intra-are basins. At 2150-1920 Ma, the orogen underwent several extensional events, possibly due to subduction of an oceanic ridge, leading to emplacement of mafic dykes that were subsequently metamorphosed to amphibolites and medium- to high-pressure mafic granulites. At 1880-1820 Ma, the ocean between the Eastern and Western Blocks was completely consumed by subduction, and the dosing of the ocean led to the continent-arc-continent collision, which caused large-scale thrusting and isoclinal folds and transported some of the rocks into the lower crustal levels or upper mantle to form granulites or eclogites. Peak metamorphism was followed by exhumation/uplift, resulting in widespread development of asymmetric folds and symplectic textures in the rocks.     

乳山地区中生代花岗岩及捕虏体年代学、Hf同位素特征对胶东半岛地壳演化的启示

花岗岩是大陆地壳主要组成部分,胶东半岛中生代花岗岩的出现是推演俯冲板片岩浆演化与构造演化的重要依据. 因此,通过研究乳山地区出露的花岗岩及其捕虏体（变质基性岩）,有助于更好的了解中生代胶东半岛的岩浆演化与地壳演化. 该研究为胶东地区提供了新的主微量元素数据、U?Pb和Lu?Hf同位素数据. 岩石地球化学表明黑云母二长花岗岩具有高钾钙碱性特征,相对贫钛、铁、锰、镁等元素,岩体有可能是分异程度较高的I型或者M型花岗岩. 大离子亲石元素Ba和Sr明显富集,高场强元素Zr无明显亏损. 斜长角闪岩SiO₂、TiO₂、Fe₂O₃T和MgO含量分别为48.9%、0.68%、12.64%和7.33%,为拉斑玄武岩成分,全碱ALK（K₂O+Na₂O）较低. 大离子亲石元素Ba和Sr无明显富集,高场强元素Zr弱亏损,与石榴斜长角闪岩地球化学性质相似. 锆石CL图像中花岗岩为岩浆锆石,斜长角闪岩为变质重结晶锆石. 黑云母二长花岗岩锆石U?Pb定年获得年龄为118.5±2.7 Ma,ε_Hf（t）值为-15.4~-27.7（Mean=-25.2±1.4）,相应二阶段模式年龄（T_DM2）为2.16~2.90 Ga,但大部分集中在~2.8 Ga. 捕虏体斜长角闪岩锆石U?Pb上交点年龄为1 839±27 Ma,ε_Hf（t）值为0.5~5.1（Mean=3.23±0.74）,相应的一阶段模式年龄（T_DM1）为2.02~2.18 Ga. 此外,念头村含榴花岗岩ε_Hf（t）值为-25.1~-27.1（Mean=-26.0±0.18）,相应的二阶段模式年龄（T_DM2）为2.75~2.87 Ga. 其捕虏体含榴斜长角闪岩ε_Hf（t）值为3.7~4.4（Mean=3.93±0.21）,相应的一阶段模式年龄（T_DM1）为1.99~2.03 Ga. 上述数据指示花岗岩为华北太古宙地壳重新熔融的产物;变基性岩属华北荆山群物质. 因此,乳山地区中生代花岗岩及其捕虏体都具有华北板块的亲缘性. 乳山地区模式年龄为太古宙的花岗岩暗示胶东半岛地壳演化的相关信息,并不具备拆沉作用产生岩浆岩的特点. 捕虏体（变基性岩）可能为下地壳部分熔融后形成的新生地壳物质在短时间内携裹的产物.      

Lower crustal xenoliths from Mongolia and their bearing on the nature of the deep crust beneath central Asia

Rare lower crustal xenoliths found in Cenozoic alkali basalts from the Tariat region in central Mongolia and the Dariganga Plateau in south-eastern Mongolia are the only direct samples of lower crustal material known so far from central and eastern Asia. They are two-pyroxene granulites, including some garnet granulites, as well as scarce amphibolite-facies rocks. The xenoliths are broadly basaltic to andesitic in bulk chemical composition. Their igneous protoliths appear to represent underplated fractionated liquids and cumulates from such liquids. The xenoliths yield equilibration temperatures of 840 ± 30 °C (Wells, 1977) and, for Tariat garnet granulites only, pressures of 14 ± 1.5 kbar. For central Mongolia, these estimates indicate unusually great depths of origin which, however, are in line with some geophysical models for that area.

Extensive to complete kelyphitisation has affected the garnets where originally present in the Tariat suite; nevertheless, the kelyphite has largerly preserved the major element and REE compositions of the original garnet. Mineral and whole-rock Sm-Nd data obtained for three samples from Tariat and Dariganga indicate, within large errors, low or zero ages. These may either indicate that the rocks are young (Cenozoic) or that ambient temperatures in the lower crust were high enough to permit continuous isotopic equilibration on a mineral-to-mineral scale.     

Thermobarometry and P–T–t paths: the granulite to eclogite transition in lower crustal xenoliths from eastern Australia

‘Lower crustal’ suite xenoliths in basaltic and kimberlitic magmas are dominated by mafic granulites and may also include eclogites and garnet pyroxenites. Pressures of up to 25 kbar obtained from such xenoliths are well in excess of an upper value of c. 12 kbar for exposed granulite terranes. Palaeogeotherms constructed from xenoliths for the lower crust beneath the Phanerozoic fold belts of eastern Australia (SEA) and beneath the eastern margin of the Australian craton (EMAC) indicate two distinct thermal regimes. The two geotherms have similar form, with the EMAC curve displaced c. 150°C to lower temperatures. Reaction microstructures show the partial re-equilibration of primary igneous assemblages to granulite and eclogite assemblages and are interpreted to reflect the cooling from magmatic temperatures. Variations in mineral compositions and zoning are used to constrain further the history of several EMAC xenoliths to near-isobaric trajectories. Detailed graphical models are constructed to predict compositional changes for isobaric P–T paths (at 7, 14 & 21 kbar) to transform an SEA-type geotherm to a cratonic geotherm. The models show that for the assemblage grt + cpx ± ky + plag + qtz, the changes associated with falling temperature in X_gr, X_jd (increase) and X_an (decrease) will be greater at higher pressures. These results indicate that discernible zoning is more likely to be preserved in the higher pressure xenoliths. The zoning recorded in clinopyroxene from mafic granulite xenoliths over the pressure range c. 12–22 kbar suggests isobaric cooling of a large crustal thickness (30–35 km). An isobaric cooling path is consistent with magma accretion models for the transition of a crust–mantle boundary from an SEA-type geotherm to a cratonic geotherm. The coexistence of granulite and eclogite over the depth range 35–75 km beneath the EMAC indicates that the granulite to eclogite transition in the lower crust is controlled by P–T conditions, bulk chemistry and kinetic factors. At shallower crustal levels, typified by exposed granulite terranes, isobaric cooling may not result in the transition to eclogite.