High-pressure behaviour of Ca-rich C 2 /c clinopyroxenes along the join diopside-enstatite (CaMgSi2O6-Mg2Si2O6)

 An in situ high-pressure (HP) X-ray diffraction investigation of synthetic diopside and of the Ca_0.8Mg_1.2Si₂O₆ clinopyroxene (Di₈₀En₂₀) was performed up to respectively P=40.8 and 15.1 GPa, using high brilliance synchrotron radiation. The compression of the cell parameters is markedly anisotropic, with β_b ⋙ β_c > β_a > β_asinβ for any pressure range and for both diopside and Di₈₀En₂₀. The compressibility along the crystallographic axes decreases significantly with pressure and is higher in Di₈₀En₂₀ than in diopside. The β cell parameter decreases as well with pressure, at a higher rate in Di₈₀En₂₀. The cell volume decreases at almost the same rate for the two compositions, since in diopside a higher compression along a* occurs. A change in the mechanism of deformation at P higher than about 5–10 GPa is suggested for both compositions from the analysis of the strain induced by compression. In diopside at lower pressures, the deformation mainly occurs, at a similar rate, along the b axis and at a direction 145° from the c axis on the (0 1 0) plane. At higher pressures, instead, the deformation occurs mostly along the b axis. In Di₈₀En₂₀ the orientation of the strain axes is the same as in diopside. The substitution of Ca with Mg in the M2 site induces at a given pressure a higher deformation on (0 1 0) with respect to diopside, but a similar change in the compressional behaviour is found. Changes in the M2 polyhedron with pressure can explain the above compressional behaviour. A third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state was fit to the retrieved volumes, with K=105.1(9) GPa, K′=6.8(1) for diopside and K=107.3(1.4) GPa, K′=5.7(3) for Di₈₀En₂₀; the same equation can be applied for any pressure range. The elasticity of diopside is therefore not significantly affected by Mg substitution into the M2 site, in contrast to the significant stiffening occurring for Ca substitution into Mg-rich orthopyroxenes. Received: 3 January 2000 / Accepted: 21 May 2000     

Evolution of a calcite marble shear zone complex on Thassos Island, Greece: microstructural and textural fabrics and their kinematic significance

The deformation history of a monophase calcite marble shear zone complex on Thassos Island, Northern Greece, is reconstructed by detailed geometric studies of the textural and microstructural patterns relative to a fixed reference system (shear zone boundary, SZB). Strain localization within the massive marble complex is linked to decreasing P–T conditions during the exhumation process of the metamorphic core complex. Solvus thermometry indicates that temperatures of 300–350°C prevailed during part of the shear zone deformation history. The coarse-grained marble protolith outside the shear zone is characterized by symmetrically oriented twin sets due to early coaxial deformation. A component of heterogeneous non-coaxial deformation is first recorded within the adjacent protomylonite. Enhanced strain weakening by dynamic recrystallization promoted strong localization of plastic deformation in the ultramylonite of the calcite shear zone, where high strain was accommodated by non-coaxial flow. This study demonstrates that both a pure shear and a simple shear strain path can result in similar crystallographic preferred orientations (single c-axis maximum perpendicular to the SZB) by different dominant deformation mechanisms. Separated a-axis pole figures (+a- and −a-axis) show different density distributions with orthorhombic texture symmetry in the protolith marble and monoclinic symmetry in the ultramylonite marble consistently with the observed grain fabric symmetry.     

Reversed pyroxene phase equilibria in CaO-MgO-SiO2 from 925° to 1,175° C at one atmosphere pressure

Experiments using V₂O₅ as a high-temperature solvent have produced compositional reversals defining the miscibility gap between enstatite and diopside on the join Mg₂Si₂O₆-CaMgSi₂O₆ between 925° and 1,175° C at atmospheric pressure. These experiments locate an equilibrium near 1,000° C among diopside, protoenstatite, and orthoenstatite; they verify the stable coexistence of diopside and protoenstatite above 1,000° C and disprove the hypothesis that orthoenstatite has a stability field which is continuous from temperatures below 1,000° C to the solidus. The phase relations suggest that the orthorhombic low-Ca pyroxene on the solidus in this system (formerly identified as orthoenstatite) is a phase distinct from the orthoenstatite stable with diopside at low subsolidus temperatures. Data locating the orthoenstatite-diopside miscibility gap validate the use at low pressures of symmetric orthopyroxene and asymmetric clinopyroxene solution models in this system.     

Mg-vacant structural modules and dilution of the symmetry of hydrous wadsleyite, β-Mg2–xSiH2xO4 with 0.00≤x≤0.25

The crystal structures of the two hydrous wadsleyite crystals with formulae, Mg_1.75SiH_0.50O₄ (0.5H–β) and Mg_1.86SiH_0.28O₄ (0.3H–β) have been analyzed in this study. The single-crystal X-ray diffraction data showed that the unit cells of the 0.3H–β and the 0.5H–β are metrically monoclinic with a slight distortion from the orthorhombic cell but their intensity distributions conform to the orthorhombic symmetry within the limit of experimental errors. The Fourier and the difference Fourier syntheses were calculated. Small but significant Fourier peaks were found at the site, Si2, in a normally vacant tetrahedral void adjacent to Mg3 site as reported for the monoclinic hydrous wadsleyite by Smyth et al.. From the comparison of the hydrous and anhydrous wadsleyite structures, the Mg-vacant structural modules were found to be the building units for the structure of hydrous wadsleyite. The dilution of symmetry from orthorhombic to monoclinic in the hydrous wadsleyite structure is interpreted qualitatively due to lack of mirror perpendicular to the a axis in the module. The mode of arrangement of the Mg-vacant structural modules interprets the symmetry and hydrogen content of the hydrous wadsleyite and gives the structural relationship between hydrous wadsleyite and hydrous ringwoodite. Received: 8 May 1998 / Revised, accepted: 3 October 1998     

A new high-pressure phase of strontium carbonate

High-pressure and high-temperature experiments conducted in a laser-heated diamond-anvil cell with a synchrotron X-ray diffraction method have revealed a phase transformation in the aragonite-type SrCO₃ at pressures above 10 GPa. The new phase has an orthorhombic symmetry and was confirmed to remain stable to 32 GPa. The Birch-Murnaghan equation of state for new phase was determined from the experimental unit cell parameters, with K₀ = 101 (± 16) GPa, K₀ = 4 (constrained value), and V₀ = 111.9 (± 2.2). This transformation in SrCO₃ is different from that in BaCO₃ as reported in previous studies. After decompression at ambient pressure, the high-pressure phase transforms to a metastable structure, which has an orthorhombic symmetry. This result should also resolve a dispute regarding the stable high-pressure phases in BaCO₃, which is an analog material of CaCO₃ and SrCO₃.This revised version was published in February 2005 with corrections to the Introduction and to the References.     

Microfabrics of calcite ultramylonites as records of coaxial and non-coaxial deformation kinematics: Examples from the Rocher de l'Yret shear zone (Western Alps)

Microfabrics were analysed in calcite mylonites from the rim of the Pelvoux massif (Western Alps, France). WNW-directed emplacement of the internal Penninic units onto the Dauphinois domain produced intense deformation of an Eocene-age nummulitic limestone under lower anchizone metamorphic conditions (slightly below 300 °C). Two types of microfabrics developed primarily by dislocation creep accompanied by dynamic recrystallisation in the absence of twinning. Coaxial kinematics are inferred for samples exhibiting grain shape fabrics and textures with orthorhombic symmetry. Their texture (crystallographic preferred orientation, CPO) is characterised by two c-axis maxima, symmetrically oriented at 15° from the normal to the macroscopic foliation. Non-coaxial deformation is evident in samples with monoclinic shape fabrics and textures characterised by a single oblique c-axis maximum tilted with the sense of shear by about 15°. From the analysis of suitably oriented slip systems for the main texture components under given kinematics it is inferred that the orthorhombic textures, which developed in coaxial kinematics, favour activity of <10–11> and <02–21> slip along the f and r planes, respectively, with minor contributions of basal-<a> slip. In contrast, the monoclinic textures, which developed during simple shear, are most suited for duplex <a> slip along the basal plane. The transition between the dominating slip systems for the orthorhombic and monoclinic microfabrics is interpreted to be due to the effects of dynamic recrystallisation upon texture development. Since oblique c-axis maxima documented in the literature are most often rotated not with but against the shear sense, calcite textures alone should not be used as unequivocal shear sense indicators, but need to be complemented by microstructural criteria such as shape preferred orientations, grain size estimates and amount of twinning.     

Clinoamphibole lamellae in diopside of garnet lherzolite from Alpe Arami,Bellinzona, Switzerland

Porphyroclastic diopside in garnet lherzolite from Alpe Arami, Bellinzona, Switzerland includes optically-visible clinoamphibole lamellae with a composition intermediate between pargasite and edenite. X-ray and electron microscopic observations show that the diopside crystal contains sub-microscopic thin clinoamphibole lamellae parallel to (010), which have coherent interfaces to the host. A kind of planar defect parallel to (010) in clinopyroxene structure, as suggested by Chisholm (1973), is shown here to correspond to intercalation of a 9 Å lattice fringe of double-chain structure in the electron micrograph of the diopside. The thin clinoamphibole lamellae are observed to be segregated domains consisting of two and more 9 Å fringes.From the chemical characteristics and textural relations of the development of such clinoamphiboles, the chemical change required to form them is considered to have been caused principally by decreasing solubility of atoms such as Na, Al and Cr in clinopyroxene structure during the retrogressive reequilibration. Also, a possibility of finite solid solution of clinoamphibole in clinopyroxene is discussed.     

Zur Interpretation von Pyrrhotin-Gefügen

Zusammenfassung Die Gefüge von Pyrrhotinerzen von vier Lagerstätten wurden mit einem Röntgentexturgoniometer untersucht. Alle Proben zeigen eine Einregelung von (0001) ± parallel zur Ebene der Lagigkeit (s) der Erze. Die Gefügediagramme der (10 2)-, (11 0)- und (10 0)-Reflexe von drei Fundpunkten haben orthorhombische Symmetrie. Die gleichen Diagramme der vierten Lagerstätte sind hexagonal.Die orthorhombischen Gefüge werden durch eine Deformation mit einfacher Scherung erklärt. Mit Hilfe eines Rechenprogrammes wurden entsprechende synthetische Gefügediagramme erzeugt. Ihre Ähnlichkeit mit der Mehrzahl der natürlichen Texturen macht das angenommene Modell wahrscheinlich. Auch kann geschlossen werden, daß die Proben — ausgenommen diejenigen mit nicht hinreichend deutbarer hexagonaler Symmetrie — durch eine Scherverformung entstanden sind.Gelegentlich scheint es möglich, durch Gefügeuntersuchungen an Erzen Rückschlüsse auf die tektonische Geschichte der Lagerstätte bzw. auf deren Beanspruchung zu ziehen.

---

The fabrics of pyrrhotite ores from four deposits are determined by means of an X-ray texture goniometer. All specimens show (0001) ± parallel to the plane of schistosity (s) of the ores. The pole figures of the (10 2)-, (11 0)-, and (10 0)-reflections from samples of three localities are of orthorhombic symmetry. The same pole figures from the fourth deposit show hexagonal symmetry.The fabrics of pyrrhotite with orthorhombic symmetry are explained assuming a model with a deformation by simple shear. Synthetic diagrams are plotted using a program which simulates the conditions of this model. The synthetic diagrams are in good agreement with most of the measured ones, and this argues for the validity of the suggested model on the one hand and on the other hand confirms that these pyrrhotite fabrics may have been formed by simple shear. The fabrics with hexagonal symmetry seem to be produced by a quite different mechanism.In some cases one may infer from the results of the fabric analysis of ores to the tectonical history and the mode of deformation of the ore deposit.

     

Melting and premelting of silicates: Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction of Li2SiO3 and Na2SiO3

The isostructural lithium (Li₂SiO₃) and sodium (Na₂SiO₃) metasilicates have been investigated from room temperature up to the melting point by single-crystal Raman spectroscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray powder diffraction. The unit-cell parameters and Raman frequencies of Li₂SiO₃ vary regularly with temperature up to the melting point, which is consistent with the lack of premelting effects in calorimetric measurements. In contrast, Na₂SiO₃ undergoes a transition at about 850 K from orthorhombic Cmc 2₁ symmetry, to a lower symmetry (possibly Pmc 2₁), and shows near 1200 K changes in the Raman spectra that correlate well with the premelting effects as determined from calorimetry observations. In both compounds, a high alkali mobility likely sets in several hundreds of degrees below the melting point. Premelting in Na₂SiO₃ is associated with extensive deformation of the silicate chains as evidenced near the melting point by similarities in the Raman spectra of the crystalline and liquid phases.     

Vibrational and thermodynamic properties of Ni<Subscript>3</Subscript>S<Subscript>2</Subscript> polymorphs from first-principles calculations

We have calculated the compressional, vibrational, and thermodynamic properties of Ni₃S₂ heazlewoodite and the high-pressure orthorhombic phase (with Cmcm symmetry) using the generalized gradient approximation to the density functional theory in conjunction with the quasi-harmonic approximation. The predicted Raman frequencies of heazlewoodite are in good agreement with room-temperature measurements. The calculated thermodynamic properties of heazlewoodite at room conditions agree very well with experiments, but at high temperatures (especially above 500 K) the heat capacity data from experiments are significantly larger than the quasi-harmonic results, indicating that heazlewoodite is anharmonic. On the other hand, the obtained vibrational density of states of the orthorhombic phase at 20 GPa reveals a group of low-frequency vibrational modes which are absent in heazlewoodite. These low-frequency modes contribute substantially to thermal expansivity, heat capacity, entropy, and Grüneisen parameter of the orthorhombic phase. The calculated phase boundary between heazlewoodite and the orthorhombic phase is consistent with high-pressure experiments; the predicted transition pressure is 17.9 GPa at 300 K with a negative Clapeyron slope of −8.5 MPa/K.     

一种翡翠的仿制品透辉石微晶玻璃的宝石学特征

针对市场上出现的一种外观酷似翡翠的透辉石微晶玻璃,利用常规宝石学检测仪器、X射线粉末衍射和红外光谱等测试方法,对该材料样品的宝石学特征、物相组成及谱学特征进行了初步研究。结果显示,在宝石显微镜下透辉石微晶玻璃显示特征的放射状晶花,具球晶结构;X射线粉末衍射分析表明,其主要物相为透辉石和玻璃质;红外光谱分析显示,该样品的谱学特征与翡翠的红外光谱有较大的差异。     

Transformation Trillings in Cordierite

Cordierite sector trillings, which are found well developedin some A1-rich volcanic rocks and pelitic buchites, are thoughtto have formed initially as hexagonal high cordierite crystals.Subsequent ordering of the (Al, Si) configuration in the crystalstructure would have produced the present orthorhombic modificationand simultaneously the sector trilling, preserving in the processthe hexagonal habit of form. The predominance of the regularsixfold sector pattern in the composition plane configurationof the resulting trilling is best explained by assuming thatits formation is kinetically more advantageous than that ofother configurations because it mimics the hexagonal trend setby the initial crystal. The three orthorhombic orientations in the cordierite trillingshave parallel c-axes and each can be transformed into eitherof the other two by operation of a threefold axis (rotationthrough 120°) parallel to the common c-axis and coincidentwith the main axis of the original hexagonal form. The compositionplanes in the sector trilling pattern are shown to be essentiallyirregular in the present orthorhombic form; they do not belongto {110} or {130}. The traditional explanation that the trillings are multipletwins with repeated twin and composition planes of {110} or{130} is rejected since elementary geometrical considerationsshow that this model is only feasible if (110) (110) of orthorhombiccordierite equals 120°. X-ray work shows conclusively thatthis is not the case. In fact (110) (110) = 120° woulddefine a hexagonal symmetry.     

Symplectites in upper mantle peridotites: Development and implications for the growth of subsolidus garnet,pyroxene and spinel

Silicate-oxide symplectites in complex mineral intergrowths are relatively common in upper mantle xenoliths and in xenoliths in the Jagersfontein Kimberlite, South Africa.Harzburgites of olivine and high-Al (1.9–3.6 wt%), Ca (0.6–0.9 wt%) and Cr (0.3–0.9 wt%) enstatite contain symplectites of spinel and diopside, or spinel, diopside and lower-Al (0.8–2.2 wt%), Ca (0.1–0.4 wt%) and Cr (0.02–0.8 wt%) enstatite. From textures and mineral chemistries these symplectites are interpreted to have formed by mineral unmixing and migration from Al–Ca–Cr discrete enstatite to adjoining mineral interfaces.Garnet harzburgites are composed of large (0.5–1 cm) olivine, equally large discrete low-Al (0.6–1.1 wt%), Ca (0.1–0.5 wt%), and Cr (0.1–0.3 wt%) enstatite and smaller interstitial garnet, diopside, and high-Cr and low-Al spinel. Symplectites are composed of either spinel+diopside+garnet, or garnet+spinel. Spinel diopside garnet symplectites have cores of spinel+diopside, resembling symplectites inharzburgites, but surrounded by rims of garnet or garnet+undigested globular spinel. From textures and chemistries we suggest that the spinel+diopside cores formed from Ca-Al-Cr-rich orthopyroxene initially as a nonstoichiometric homogeneous single phase clinopyroxene enriched in Fe, Cr and Al. This was followed by decomposition of the clinopyroxene to diopside+spinel, and subsequent garnet formation in a prograde reaction with olivine or enstatite. In bothharzburgites andgarnet harzburgites the metastable cellular structures may also have formed by the simultaneous precipitation of pyroxene and spinel. In all cases there is a strongly preferred embayment of symplectite bodies into olivine. Olivine appears to have activated adjacent     

Fabric kinematics of the ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic rocks from the main borehole of the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling Project: Implications for continental subduction and exhumation

The 5158-m-deep main borehole of the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling Project (CCSD-MH) penetrated granitic gneisses, paragneisses, eclogites, retrograde eclogites, amphibolites and ultramafic rocks in the Sulu ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic terrane, eastern China. The CCSD-MH consists of four petro-structural units separated by three SE-dipping ductile shear zones DFa (835-1280 m), DFb (2010-2280 m) and DFc (2920-3225 m), which are correspondent with the regional shear zones in the northern Sulu UHP supracrustal zone. Using the electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) technique, we investigated the lattice-preferred orientations (LPOs) of omphacite, diopside and quartz in core samples from the CCSD-MH. Omphacite from eclogites and diopside from garnet pyroxenites display very strong LPOs, which are characterized by the maximum concentration of [001]-axes parallel to the lineation and (010)-poles normal to the foliation. Quartz in para- and granitic mylonites/gneisses from the shear zones DFa, DFb and DFc developed multiple slip systems. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating of biotite in para- and granitic gneisses from the CCSD-MH yields 223-202 Ma, which constrains the formation ages of the quartz high-temperature prism slip systems {m}<a> and {m}[c]. The asymmetric LPOs of omphacite, diopside, olivine and quartz with respect to the structural frame reveal three deformation phases in the Sulu terrane. In the Middle Triassic, the northward subduction of the Yangtze plate to depths > 100 km produced a top-to-the-south shear sense in LPOs of omphacite, diopside and olivine, and a nearly N-S-striking foliation and a subhorizontal N-S-trending lineation in eclogites and ultramafic rocks. In the Late Triassic, the UHP rocks were exhumed to the lower crust and quartz developed high-temperature slip systems with a top-to-the-NW shear sense, which is consistent with the regional SE-dipping foliation and SE-plunging lineation in the ductile shear zones. In the Cretaceous the UHP rocks were exhumed to the middle crust when the migmatization and granitic intrusion formed a NE-striking antiform structure. As a result, the activation of quartz low-temperature basal slip (0001)<a> is characterized by a top-to-the-SE shear sense in the south, but a top-to-the-NW shear sense in the north.     

Transformations of the stuffed cristobalites, K2MSiO4, M=Mg, Zn, Co, Cd, with temperature and composition

The effects of composition and of temperature on the orthorhombic, Pca2 ₁ to cubic, F4ˉ3m transition of the stuffed cristobalite structure are reported. A distorton index which measures the departure of the orthorhombic unit cell from a metrically cubic cell shows that at room temperature, distortion increases in the progression K₂CdSiO₄ <K₂MgSiO₄ <K₂ZnSiO₄≈K₂CoSiO₄. High temperature X-ray powder measurements document an apparently discontinuous transition to a structure of F4ˉ3m symmetry. Differential scanning calorimetry shows a sharp, reversible, first order transition to the high temperature phase at about 500–600 °C for these compounds. Measured transformation enthalpies in the range of 7 to 16 J/g correlate roughly with the distortion index. The transformation involves tetrahedral rotation to an orientationally disordered cubic structure which retains an ordered M²⁺/Si distribution. Received: 8 November 1996 / Revised, accepted: 14 October 1997     

Origin and tectonic interpretation of multiple fault patterns

It is shown that in two-dimensional and three-dimensional deformation accommodated by fracture, the symmetry of the fault patterns is an intrinsic attribute because it reflects the symmetry of either stress or strain tensors. The deformation accommodated by sliding along pre-existing planes, when there is kinematic interaction between that planes, forms multiple fault pattern and multiple slickenline sets during a single deformation event. These fault patterns have no restrictions with respect to symmetry, number of fault sets or fault orientation.

The kinematic analysis developed here shows that an interacting system is formed by two cross cutting faults and three slickenlines. One slickenline must be parallel to the intersection line between the planes. Also, it is demonstrated that the slickenlines generally do not correspond to the shear stress solution on the planes. Thus, the interaction between planes does not satisfy the assumption of parallelism between shear stress and slip vector. We conclude that the inversion methods to calculate paleostress tensors can lead to erroneous interpretations in structurally complex zones with many pre-existing planes of weakness.

We propose four possibilities to form multiple fault patterns: (1) two or more events of faulting obeying Coulomb's law with a change of orientation of the principal stresses in each event; (2) reactivation of non-interacting planes according to the Bott (1959) model; (3) one three-dimensional strain event that obeys the “Slip Model”; this mechanism will form an orthorhombic four-fault pattern and two slickenline sets in a single strain event; and (4) one or more events obeying the interacting block model proposed here, with or without rotation of the principal stresses. We propose the last origin as the most common in continental regions.     

Über Beanspruchung und Verformung von Gesteinen

A new real triaxial deformation apparatus for p ₁p ₂p ₃ tests and temperatures up to 700° C has been developed. In five creep tests over 8 hours the strain-time curves at 650° C for axial and orthorhombic symmetry of stress are plotted in the three main directions and compared with the petrofabric diagrams of the deformed material. In all tests the symmetry of the petrofabrics can be correlated with the symmetry of the external loading. From the strain-time curves it can be deduced that the intermediate loading p ₂ is of great influence in the stress-strain behavior.Syntectonic recrystallization is found to be common for all tests in the form of broad lensoid and irregular defined {01¯12} lamellae oriented favorably for twinning. Measurements of c-axes in newly recrystallized grains show preferential alingnement subparallel to the axis of maximum principal loading.

---

---

Der Deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft sei für die finanzielle Unterstützung der Untersuchungen besonders gedankt.     

The 3D quantitative lattice and shape preferred orientation of a mylonitised metagranite from Monte Rosa (Western Alps): Combining neutron diffraction texture analysis and synchrotron X-ray microtomography

Two complementary 3D techniques, neutron diffraction and synchrotron X-ray microtomography (SXR-μCT), were used to compare the Shape and Lattice Preferred Orientations of a mylonitised metagranite from the Monte Rosa unit (Western Alps, Italy). The goal of using these techniques was to obtain two different orientation distribution functions. Although the two functions describe relatively independent characteristics of the rock fabric, nonetheless they also exhibit close relationships to macroscopic fabrics and may be complementarily used to quantify rock fabrics and microstructures, thereby highlighting 3D features that cannot be obtained with either technique, if used independently. We describe an approach that can be potentially useful in various disciplines, e.g., structural geology, rock mechanics, tectonics and geophysics, when a complete data set of preferred orientations and size distribution is needed.Micas display a strong orthorhombic symmetry between mesoscopic lineation and microscopic SPO and LPO, whereas quartz and feldspars are characterised by a monoclinic symmetry between mesoscopic lineation and LPO. These observations suggest a rheological decoupling between the weak phase mica layers and the stronger quartz + feldspar layers. This mechanical decoupling occurred during the Alpine subduction-collision, when the Monte Rosa unit was part of the Insubric Line system and accommodated large vertical strain.     

Melting and metasomatism in the continental lithosphere: laser ablation ICPMS analysis of minerals in spinel lherzolites from eastern Australia

Olivine, low-Ca pyroxene, diopside, and spinel from a suite of protogranular lherzolite xenoliths from southeastern Australia have been analysed for their major and trace element compositions using electron microprobe and laser ablation ICPMS. Bulk compositions of the lherzolites range from fertile (12–13% modal diopside) to depleted (2–3% modal diopside), with equilibration temperatures of 850–900 °C indicating entrainment of these lherzolites from relatively shallow depths (probably ≤ 35 km) within the lithosphere. Mineral compositions and abundances indicate a primary control by partial melting, with decreasing abundance of modal diopside accompanied by increasing Mg# of olivine and pyroxene, decreasing Al and Ti contents of diopside, increasing Ni contents of olivine, and increasing Cr/Al of spinel. HREE, Y, and Ga in diopside also follow melting trends, decreasing in concentration with increasing Mg#. In contrast, highly incompatible elements such as LREE, Nb, and Th reveal divergent behaviour that cannot be ascribed entirely to partial melting. Diopsides from the fertile lherzolites have mantle-normalized patterns that are depleted in Th, Nb, and the LREE relative to Y and the HREE, whereas, diopsides from the cpx-poor samples are strongly enriched in Th, Nb and the LREE, and have elevated Sm/Hf and Zr/Hf, and low Ti/Nb. All diopsides have strongly negative Nb anomalies relative to Th and the LREE. Trace element patterns of diopside in the fertile lherzolites can be reproduced by ≤ 5% batch melting of a primitive source. The negative Nb anomalies are a consequence of this melting, and do not require special conditions or tectonic environments. The low concentrations of Y and HREE in diopside from the cpx-poor lherzolites cannot be produced by realistic degrees of batch melting, but can be accomplished by up to ∼20% fractional melting, suggesting multiple episodes of melt depletion. Os isotopic compositions of these lherzolites show that the melt depletion events occurred in the middle and late Proterozoic, demonstrating the long-term stability of lithospheric mantle beneath regions of eastern Australia. The LREE-enriched diopsides are well equilibrated and record metasomatic enrichment events that pre-date the magmatism that entrained these xenoliths. Trace element patterns of these pyroxenes suggest a carbonatitic melt as the metasomatic agent. Received: 24 September 1996 / Accepted: 12 August 1997