Deep slab subduction and dehydration and their geodynamic consequences: Evidence from seismology and mineral physics

We present new pieces of evidence from seismology and mineral physics for the existence of low-velocity zones in the deep part of the upper mantle wedge and the mantle transition zone that are caused by fluids from the deep subduction and deep dehydration of the Pacific and Philippine Sea slabs under western Pacific and East Asia. The Pacific slab is subducting beneath the Japan Islands and Japan Sea with intermediate-depth and deep earthquakes down to 600 km depth under the East Asia margin, and the slab becomes stagnant in the mantle transition zone under East China. The western edge of the stagnant Pacific slab is roughly coincident with the NE–SW Daxing'Anling-Taihangshan gravity lineament located west of Beijing, approximately 2000 km away from the Japan Trench. The upper mantle above the stagnant slab under East Asia forms a big mantle wedge (BMW). Corner flow in the BMW and deep slab dehydration may have caused asthenospheric upwelling, lithospheric thinning, continental rift systems, and intraplate volcanism in Northeast Asia. The Philippine Sea slab has subducted down to the mantle transition zone depth under Western Japan and Ryukyu back-arc, though the seismicity within the slab occurs only down to 200–300 km depths. Combining with the corner flow in the mantle wedge, deep dehydration of the subducting Pacific slab has affected the morphology of the subducting Philippine Sea slab and its seismicity under Southwest Japan. Slow anomalies are also found in the mantle under the subducting Pacific slab, which may represent small mantle plumes, or hot upwelling associated with the deep slab subduction. Slab dehydration may also take place after a continental plate subducts into the mantle.     

Aseismic deep subduction of the Philippine Sea plate and slab window

We have made great efforts to collect and combine a large number of high-quality data from local earthquakes and teleseismic events recorded by the dense seismic networks in both South Korea and West Japan. This is the first time that a large number of Korean and Japanese seismic data sets are analyzed jointly. As a result, a high-resolution 3-D P-wave velocity model down to 700-km depth is determined, which clearly shows that the Philippine Sea (PHS) plate has subducted aseismically down to ∼460 km depth under the Japan Sea, Tsushima Strait and East China Sea. The aseismic PHS slab is visible in two areas: one is under the Japan Sea off western Honshu, and the other is under East China Sea off western Kyushu. However, the aseismic PHS slab is not visible between the two areas, where a slab window has formed. The slab window is located beneath the center of the present study region where many teleseismic rays crisscross. Detailed synthetic tests were conducted, which indicate that both the aseismic PHS slab and the slab window are robust features. Using the teleseismic data recorded by the Japanese stations alone, the aseismic PHS slab and the slab window were also revealed (Zhao et al., 2012), though the ray paths in the Japanese data set crisscross less well offshore. The slab window may be caused by the subducted Kyushu-Palau Ridge and Kinan Seamount Chain where the PHS slab may be segmented. Hot mantle upwelling is revealed in the big mantle wedge above the Pacific slab under the present study region, which may have facilitated the formation of the PHS slab window. These novel findings may shed new light on the subduction history of the PHS plate and the dynamic evolution of the Japan subduction zone.     

Mantle dynamics of Western Pacific and East Asia: Insight from seismic tomography and mineral physics

Recent results of high-resolution seismic tomography and mineral physics experiments are used to study mantle dynamics of Western Pacific and East Asia. The most important processes in subduction zones are the shallow and deep slab dehydration and the convective circulation (corner flow) processes in the mantle wedge. The combination of the two processes may have caused the back-arc spreading in the Lau basin, affected the morphology of the subducting Philippine Sea slab and its seismicity under southwest Japan, and contributed to the formation of the continental rift system and intraplate volcanism in Northeast Asia, which are clearly visible in our tomographic images. Slow anomalies are also found in the mantle under the subducting Pacific slab, which may represent (a) small mantle plumes, (b) upwellings associated with the slab collapsing down to the lower mantle, or (c) sub-slab dehydration associated with deep earthquakes caused by the reactivation of large faults preserved in the slab. Combining tomographic images and earthquake hypocenters with phase diagrams in the systems of peridotite + water, we proposed a petrologic model for arc volcanism. Arc magmas are caused by the dehydration reactions of hydrated slab peridotite that supply water-rich fluids to the mantle wedge and cause partial melting of the convecting mantle wedge. A large amount of fluids can be released from hydrated MORB at depths shallower than 55 km, which move upwards to hydrate the wedge corner under the fore-arc, and never drag down to the deeper mantle along the slab surface. Slab dehydration reactions at 120 km depth are the antigorite-related 5 reactions which supply water-rich fluids for forming the volcanic front. Phase A and Mg-surssasite breakdown reactions at 200 and 300 km depths below 700 °C cause the second and third arcs, respectively. Moreover, the dehydration reactions of super-hydrous phase B, phases D and E at 500–660 km depths cause the fluid transportation to the mantle boundary layer (MBL) (410–660 km depth). The stagnant slabs extend from Japan to Beijing, China for over 1000 km long, indicating that the arc–trench system covers the entire region from the Japan trench to East Asia. We propose a big mantle wedge (BMW) model herein, where hydrous plumes originating from 410 km depth cause a series of intra-continental hot regions. Fluids derived from MBL accumulated by the double-sided subduction zones, rather than the India–Asia collision and the subsequent indentation into Asia, are the major cause for the active tectonics and mantle dynamics in this broad region.     

印度大陆板片前缘撕裂与分段俯冲：来自冈底斯新生代火山-岩浆作用证据

青藏高原碰撞造山带不仅呈现南北不均一性,而且显示东西分段性。以横贯高原腹地的NNE向负磁异常带为界,将冈底斯分为三段。在宽约300km的负磁异常带为代表的中段,近SN向的裂谷和正断层系统、重要地震和现代热水活动、古新世林子宗火山岩系和中新世超钾质火山岩系、以及日喀则弧前盆地集中发育,伴有斑岩型Cu-Mo和成因独特的Au-Cu矿化;在85°E以西的西段,主要发育强烈逆冲推覆系、同碰撞期花岗岩和中新世钾质-超钾质火山岩系,伴有造山型Au矿化;而在90°E以东的东段,主要发育走滑断裂系、同碰撞期花岗岩和中新世埃达克质斑岩,伴有斑岩型Cu-Mo矿化。古新世林子宗火山岩的精细定年和地球化学特征揭示,印度大陆板片向北的俯冲-汇聚至少在50Ma前没有表现出明显的时间差异性。然而,中新世钾质-超钾质岩和大规模花岗岩基的时空分布和地球化学特征反映,印度大陆板片前缘可能发生撕裂,并发生分段式差异俯冲,西段(85°E以西)俯冲规模大,距离远,东段(90°E以东)俯冲规模小,可能未跨过雅江缝合带。沿着负磁异常带两侧的边界裂谷带,高SiO_2煌斑岩和念青唐古拉花岗岩基及相伴钾质火山岩的发育,揭示来源于软流圈地幔的岩浆和高热流穿过板片撕裂带并沿耦合上覆的裂谷带上涌,前者侵位和喷发,后者诱发地壳熔融。90°E与85°E之间的俯冲板片可能由于撕裂、断离和破碎,因而导致斜跨高原腹地的大面积通道式负磁异常带。     

Tomographic imaging of hydrated crust and mantle in the subducting Pacific slab beneath Hokkaido, Japan: Evidence for dehydration embrittlement as a cause of intraslab earthquakes

We estimate detailed three-dimensional seismic velocity structures in the subducting Pacific slab beneath Hokkaido, Japan, using a large number of arrival-time data from 6902 local earthquakes. A remarkable low-velocity layer with a thickness of ~ 10 km is imaged at the uppermost part of the slab and is interpreted as hydrated oceanic crust. The layer gradually disappears at depths of 70–80 km, suggesting the breakdown of hydrous minerals there. We find prominent low-velocity anomalies along the lower plane of the double seismic zone and above the aftershock area of the 1993 Kushiro-oki earthquake (M7.8). Since seismic velocities of unmetamorphosed peridotite are much higher than the observations, hydrous minerals are expected to exist in the lower plane as well as the hypocentral area of the 1993 earthquake. On the other hand, regions between the upper and lower planes, where seismic activity is not so high compared to the both planes, show relatively high velocities comparable to those of unmetamorphosed peridotite. Our observations suggest that intermediate-depth earthquakes occur mainly in regions with hydrous minerals, which support dehydration embrittlement hypothesis as a cause of earthquake in the subducting slab.     

深俯冲和折返动力学:来自中国大陆科学钻探主孔及苏鲁超高压变质带的制约

中国大陆科学钻探工程和苏鲁高压-超高压变质带为大陆岩石圈的深俯冲与折返动力学的研究提供了以下制约(1)苏鲁高压/超高压变质地体迭置于南、北苏鲁两个不同时代及属性的基底之上;(2)苏鲁巨量表壳岩石深俯冲至200km以下的上地幔深度,并经历超高压变质作用;(3)根据不同类型超高压变质岩石锆石的SHRIMP-U/Pb原位精确定年,获得超高压变质岩石的深俯冲-折返全过程(240～252Ma→230～237Ma→207～218Ma)时限.并建立了新的深俯冲-折返全过程的P-T-t轨迹;(4)富钛铁的辉长岩在大陆地壳的深俯冲过程中,经历了超高压变质作用并转变成了富含金红石的榴辉岩,形成了超高压变质的钛矿床;(5)通过榴辉岩和石榴石橄榄岩的显微构造分析及石榴石、绿辉石和橄榄石EBSD测量,确定深俯冲过程中绿辉石和橄榄石的组构运动学和流变学特征;(6)在大陆的深俯冲过程中,强烈水化的陆壳岩石经历了进变质脱水过程,巨量的地表水带入到＞100～200Km的地幔深处,在超高压变质峰期的极端条件下,通过含水超高压变质矿物的分解形成超临界的含水熔体,导致有效的壳-幔物质交换和岩石圈物质分异;(7)苏鲁超高压变质地体在折返阶段形成挤出纳布构造,与岩石圈深俯冲管道流的折返挤出机制有关;(8)提出新的深俯冲-折返动力学模式陆.陆碰撞的深俯冲剥蚀模式及大陆地壳多重性、分层型和穿时性的俯冲和折返模式.     

深部过程中地幔流体现实微观踪迹的实验证据

伴随深部地质过程的地幔流体作用是引发地壳中成矿作用的重要物质源和动力源。由于地幔流体的超深源性及由此决定其性质和演化的复杂性,使人们很难具体捕捉其实际存在,或者多数情况下很难准确界定。通过岩相学、岩石化学、电子探针和扫描电镜及能谱分析的综合研究发现,地幔流体活动的现实微观踪迹和存在方式可以表现为富铁熔浆包体和富铁微晶玻璃,二者在透射偏光显微镜下无光性,呈黑色不透明状;反射偏光显微镜下不反光,但在电子显微镜下呈显微晶质结构,显示微晶金属和非金属矿物之间呈熔离交生,超微晶矿物组成以硅酸盐和石英为主,尤其是经过成分配比换算,得到碳硅石,含铬自然铁、钛铁矿、磷灰石和含钛镜铁矿等地幔标型矿物,反映了地幔流体的熔浆性质。捕捉和揭示深部地质过程中地幔流体作用的现实微观踪迹,对于深入分析和认识地壳地质作用的机制和成矿效应具有重要理论和现实意义。     

Imaging of Vp, Vs, and Poisson’s ratio anomalies beneath Kyushu, southwest Japan: Implications for volcanism and forearc mantle wedge serpentinization

We determine detailed 3-D V_p and V_s structures of the crust and uppermost mantle beneath the Kyushu Island, southwest Japan, using a large number of arrival times from local earthquakes. From the obtained V_p and V_s models, we further calculate Poisson’s ratio images beneath the study area. By using this large data set, we successfully image the 3-D seismic velocity and Poisson’s ratio structures beneath Kyushu down to a depth of 150 km with a more reliable spatial resolution than previous studies. Our results show very clear low V_p and low V_s anomalies in the crust and uppermost mantle beneath the northern volcanoes, such as Abu, Kujyu and Unzen. Low-velocity anomalies are seen in the mantle beneath most other volcanoes. In contrast, there are no significant low-velocity anomalies in the crust or in the upper mantle between Aso and Kirishima. The subducting Philippine Sea slab is imaged generally as a high-velocity anomaly down to a depth of 150 km with some patches of normal to low seismic wave velocities. The Poisson’s ratio is almost normal beneath most volcanoes. The crustal seismicity is distributed in both the high- and low-velocity zones, but most distinctly in the low Poisson’s ratio zone. A high Poisson’s ratio region is found in the forearc crustal wedge above the slab in the junction area with Shikoku and Honshu; this high Poisson’s ratio could be caused by fluid-filled cracks induced by dehydration from the Philippine Sea slab. The Poisson’s ratio is normal to low in the forearc mantle in middle-south Kyushu. This is consistent with the absence of low-frequency tremors, and may indicate that dehydration from the subducting crust is not vigorous in this region.