Phase equilibria modelling of kyanite‐bearing anatectic paragneisses from the central Grenville Province

Kyanite‐bearing paragneisses from the Manicouagan Imbricate Zone and its footwall (high‐P belt of the central Grenville Province) preserve evidence of partial melting with development of metamorphic textures involving biotite–garnet ± kyanite ± plagioclase ± K‐feldspar–quartz. Garnet in these rocks displays a variety of zoning patterns with respect to Ca. Pseudosection modelling in the Na₂O–CaO–K₂O–FeO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂O–TiO₂–O (NCKFMASHTO) system using measured bulk rock compositions accounts for the textural evolution of two aluminous and two sub‐aluminous samples from the presumed thermal peak to conditions at which retained melt solidified. The prograde features are best explained by pseudosections calculated with compositions to account for melt loss. The intersection of isopleths of grossular content and Fe/(Fe + Mg) relating to large porphyroblasts of garnet provide constraints on the P–T conditions of the metamorphic peak. These P–T estimates are considered to be minima because of the potential for diffusional modification of the composition of garnet at high‐T and during the early stages of cooling. However, they are consistent with textural observations and pseudosection topology, with peak assemblages best preserved in rocks for which the calculated pseudosections predict only small changes in mineral proportions in the P–T interval, in which retrograde reactions are inferred to have occurred between the thermal peak and the solidus. Maximum P–T conditions (14.5–15.5 kbar and 840–890 °C) and steep retrograde P–T paths inferred for rocks from the Manicouagan Imbricate Zone are comparable with those determined for mafic rocks from the same area. In contrast, maximum P–T conditions of 12.5–13 kbar and 815–830 °C and flatter P–T paths are inferred for the rocks of the footwall to the Manicouagan Imbricate Zone. The general consistency between textures, mineral compositions and the topologies of the calculated pseudosections suggests that the pseudosection approach is an appropriate tool for inferring the P–T evolution of high‐P anatectic quartzo‐feldspathic rocks.     

Constraints on the timing and conditions of high‐grade metamorphism,charnockite formation and fluid–rock interaction in the Trivandrum Block,southern India

Incipient charnockites have been widely used as evidence for the infiltration of CO₂‐rich fluids driving dehydration of the lower crust. Rocks exposed at Kakkod quarry in the Trivandrum Block of southern India allow for a thorough investigation of the metamorphic evolution by preserving not only orthopyroxene‐bearing charnockite patches in a host garnet–biotite felsic gneiss, but also layers of garnet–sillimanite metapelite gneiss. Thermodynamic phase equilibria modelling of all three bulk compositions indicates consistent peak‐metamorphic conditions of 830–925 °C and 6–9 kbar with retrograde evolution involving suprasolidus decompression at high temperature. These models suggest that orthopyroxene was most likely stabilized close to the metamorphic peak as a result of small compositional heterogeneities in the host garnet–biotite gneiss. There is insufficient evidence to determine whether the heterogeneities were inherited from the protolith or introduced during syn‐metamorphic fluid flow. U–Pb geochronology of monazite and zircon from all three rock types constrains the peak of metamorphism and orthopyroxene growth to have occurred between the onset of high‐grade metamorphism at c. 590 Ma and the onset of melt crystallization at c. 540 Ma. The majority of metamorphic zircon growth occurred during protracted melt crystallization between c. 540 and 510 Ma. Melt crystallization was followed by the influx of aqueous, alkali‐rich fluids likely derived from melts crystallizing at depth. This late fluid flow led to retrogression of orthopyroxene, the observed outcrop pattern and to the textural and isotopic modification of monazite grains at c. 525–490 Ma.     

Metamorphism of high‐P metagreywacke from the Eastern Himalayan syntaxis: phase equilibria and P–T path

High‐pressure (HP) metagreywacke from the Namche Barwa Complex, Eastern Himalayan Syntaxis (EHS), consists of garnet, biotite, plagioclase, quartz, rutile and ilmenite with or without K‐feldspar, sillimanite, cordierite, spinel and orthopyroxene. Two types of metagreywacke are recognized: medium‐temperature (MT) and high‐temperature (HT) types. Garnet in the MT metagreywacke shows significant growth zoning and contains lower MgO than the weakly zoned garnet in the HT metagreywacke. Petrographic observations and phase equilibria modelling for four representative samples indicate that both types of metagreywacke experienced clockwise P–T paths subdivided into three stages: stage I is the pre‐peak prograde to pressure peak (P_max) stage characterized by progressive increase in P–T conditions. The P_max conditions are estimated using the garnet composition with maximum CaO, being 12.5–13.5 kbar and 685–725 °C for the MT metagreywacke, and 15–16 kbar and 825–835 °C for the HT one. Stage II is the post‐P_max decompression with heating or near‐isothermal to T_max stage and the T_max conditions, constrained using the garnet compositions with maximum MgO, are 11 kbar and 760 °C for the MT metagreywacke, and ~12 kbar and 830–845 °C for the HT one. The modelled mineral assemblages at T_max are garnet + biotite + K‐feldspar + rutile + plagioclase ± ilmenite in the presence of melt for both types of metagreywacke, consistent with the petrographic observations. Stage III is the post‐T_max retrograde metamorphism, characterized by decompression and cooling. The modelling suggests that the melts with high Na/K ratios (1.7–5.2) have been produced during stages I and II, which could be responsible for the formation of sodium‐rich leucogranites. This study and previous results indicate that the Higher Himalayan Crystallines in the EHS consist of MT–HP and HT–HP metamorphic units separated by a speculated tectonic contact. Petrological and structural discontinuities within the EHS cannot be easily interpreted with ‘tectonic aneurysm’ model.     

Challenges in constraining the P–T conditions of mafic granulites: An example from the northern Trans‐North China Orogen

Some mafic granulites in the Sanggan area of the northern Trans‐North China Orogen (TNCO) have a relatively simple mineralogy with low energy grain shapes that are compatible with an assumption of equilibrium, but the rock‐forming minerals show variations in composition that create challenges for thermobarometry. The mafic granulites, which occur as apparently disrupted dyke‐like bodies in tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite gneisses, are divided into two types based on petrography and chemical composition. Type 1 mafic granulites are fine‐ to medium‐grained with an equilibrated texture and an assemblage of plagioclase+clinopyroxene+garnet+magnetite+ilmenite and sometimes minor hornblende±orthopyroxene. Type 2 mafic granulites are coarse‐grained and hornblende bearing with a peak assemblage of garnet+clinopyroxene+plagioclase+hornblende and variably developed coronae and symplectites of plagioclase+hornblende+orthopyroxene partially replacing porphyroblastic garnet±clinopyroxene. SIMS U–Pb dating of metamorphic zircon from two type 1 mafic granulites yields metamorphic ages of c. 1.84 and 1.83 Ga, consistent with published ages of the type 2 mafic granulites. Based on phase equilibrium modelling, we use the common overlap of P–T fields defined by the mineral assemblage limits, and the mole proportion and composition isopleths of different minerals in each sample to quantify the metamorphic conditions. For type 1 granulites, overlap of the mineral proportion and composition fields for each of three samples yields similar P–T conditions of 710–880°C at 0.57–0.79 GPa, 820–850°C at 0.59–0.63 GPa and 800–860°C at 0.59–0.68 GPa. For the type 2 granulites, overlaying the peak assemblage fields for three samples yields common P–T conditions of 870–890°C at 1.1–1.2 GPa. For the retrograde assemblage, overlap of the mineral proportion and composition fields for each sample yields similar P–T conditions of 820–840°C at 0.85–0.88 GPa, 860–880°C at 0.83–0.86 GPa and 880–930°C at 0.89–0.95 GPa. The P–T conditions appear distinct between the two types of mafic granulite, with the mineralogically simple type 1 mafic granulites recording the lowest pressures. However, there are significant uncertainties associated with these results. For the granulites, there are uncertainties related to the determination of modes and composition of the equilibration volume, particularly estimation of O and H₂O contents, and in the phase equilibrium modelling there are uncertainties that propagate through the calculation of mole proportions and mineral compositions. The compound uncertainties on pressure and temperature for high‐T granulites are large and the results of our study show that it may be unwise to rely on P–T conditions determined from the simple intersection of calculated mineral composition isopleths alone. Since the samples in this study are from a limited area—a few hundred square metres—we infer that they record a single P–T path involving both decompression and cooling. However, there is no evidence of the high‐P granulite facies event at 1.93–1.90 Ga that is recorded elsewhere in the TNCO, which suggests that the precursor basic dykes were emplaced late during the assembly of the North China Craton.     

Rapid high‐T decompression recorded by Archean granulites in the northern Wyoming Province: Insights from petrological modelling

This study places new constraints on the pressure–temperature (P–T) path and duration of high‐temperature (HT) metamorphism recorded by Archean granulite facies metasedimentary rocks from the northern Wyoming Province in the eastern Beartooth Mountains, MT and WY, USA. These rocks exist as m‐ to km‐scale xenoliths within a c. 2.8 Ga calc‐alkaline granitoid batholith. Different interpretations of the timing of HT metamorphism relative to batholith intrusion in previous works have led to ambiguity over the mechanism by which these rocks were heated (i.e. batholith intrusion v. a later, cryptic event). The P–T path recorded by these rocks and the duration of this path may be indicative of the heating mechanism but are not currently well constrained. Here, we combine phase equilibria thermobarometry and diffusion modelling of major element zonation in garnet in order to constrain the P–T path of HT metamorphism and the durations of different parts of this path. It is shown that these rocks record a tight, clockwise P–T path characterized by near‐isobaric heating at ~6.5–7 kbar to ?770–800°C, HT decompression to ~6 kbar, 780–800°C, followed by limited decompression while cooling. Diffusion modelling of major element zonation in garnet suggests that HT decompression was brief (likely <1 Ma), and that cooling rates following this decompression were on the order of 10–100°C/Ma. Substantial changes in apparent thermal gradient along this P–T path indicate that the rocks record a significant but short‐lived thermal anomaly that occurred in the Wyoming mid‐crust in the Late Archean.     

Growth of plagioclase rims around metastable kyanite during decompression of high‐pressure felsic granulites (Bohemian Massif)

Samples of high‐pressure felsic granulites from the Bohemian Massif (Variscan belt of Central Europe) characterized by a peak metamorphic (high‐pressure) mineral assemblage of garnet – kyanite – plagioclase – K‐feldspar – quartz ± biotite show well‐developed plagioclase reaction rims around kyanite grains in two microstructural settings. In one setting, kyanite is randomly distributed in the polyphase matrix, whereas in the other setting, it is enclosed within large perthitic K‐feldspar. Kyanite is regarded as a relict of the high‐pressure metamorphic assemblage that became metastable during transition to a low‐pressure overprint. Plagioclase rims from both microstructural settings show continuous outwards decrease of the anorthite content from An_32–25 at the contact with kyanite to An_20–19 at the contact with the matrix or to the perthitic K‐feldspar respectively. Based on mass balance considerations, it is shown that in some cases, a small amount of kyanite was consumed in the rim‐forming reaction to provide the Al₂O₃ component for the growth of plagioclase, whereas in other cases no Al₂O₃ from kyanite was necessary. In a majority of examples, the necessary Al₂O₃ was supplied with CaO and Na₂O from the surrounding matrix material. For kyanite in perthite, a thermodynamic analysis reveals that the kyanite became metastable at the interface with the host perthite at the peak metamorphic pressure, and therefore the plagioclase rim started to grow at ～ 18 kbar. In contrast, kyanite in the polyphase matrix remained stable down to pressures of ～ 16 kbar, and the plagioclase rim only started to grow at a later stage during the decompression. Plagioclase rims around kyanite inclusions within large perthite have a radial thickness of up to 50 μm. In contrast, the radial thickness of plagioclase rims around kyanite in the polycrystalline matrix is significantly larger, up to 200 μm. Another peculiarity is that the plagioclase rims around kyanite in the matrix are polycrystalline, whereas the plagioclase rims around kyanite inclusions in perthitic hosts are single crystals with the same crystallographic orientation as the host perthite. The difference in rim thickness for the two microstructural settings is ascribed to the differences in the efficiency of chemical mass transfer next to the reaction site. The comparatively large thickness of the plagioclase rims grown around kyanite in the matrix is probably due to efficient material transport along the grain and phase boundaries in the matrix. In contrast, chemical mass transfer was comparatively slow in the large perthitic K‐feldspar grains.     

High-P granulites of the Songshugou area (Qinling Orogen,east-central China): Petrography,phase relations,and U/Pb zircon geochronology

High-pressure (HP) granulites provide telling records of mineral reactions at upper mantle to lower crustal levels and key information on the fate of material in subduction systems. The latter especially applies when they abut eclogite and mantle dunite because such rock associations are crucial for understanding the incompletely known processes at the interface of converging plates. A continental arc, active c. 520–395 Ma ago, formed an enigmatic example of such a rock association in the Songshugou area, Qinling Orogen. To unravel the juxtaposition of the distinct rocks, this study combines petrography, phase equilibria modelling, conventional thermobarometry, and zircon U–Th–Pb–Ti–REE analysis. Two mafic HP granulites, which contain the mineral assemblages garnet–clinopyroxene–plagioclase–rutile–mesoperthite–quartz and garnet–clinopyroxene–plagioclase–rutile, experienced peak metamorphic conditions of ≤1.4 GPa, 860°C and ~1.3 GPa, ≥910°C, respectively. During decompression and cooling, at 489 ± 4 Ma, amphibole lamellae unmixed from a clinopyroxene solid solution and orthopyroxene in part replaced garnet. A felsic HP granulite shows equilibration of garnet, perthite, antiperthite, kyanite, quartz, and rutile at 810–860°C, ~1.2 GPa, sillimanite growth during decompression, and upper amphibolite facies cooling at 510 ± 4 Ma. Though the thermobarometric data are just within the methodological errors, the U/Pb zircon ages imply the HP granulites did not evolve coherently. The HP granulites either represent foundered lower arc crust or originated from subduction erosion because their geochemistry is indistinguishable from that of the hanging-wall plate. Published and new pressure–temperature–time–deformation paths converge at ~710°C, ~0.9 GPa, and ≲470 Ma, implying exhumation tectonics juxtaposed the HP granulites with a mélange of eclogite and mantle dunite at lower crustal levels. This study highlights that lower arc crust can comprise material of diverse evolution.     

P–T evolution of kyanite eclogite from the Pirin Mountains (SW Bulgaria): implications for the Rhodope UHP Metamorphic Complex

A new occurrence of kyanite eclogite in the Pirin Mountains of southwestern Bulgaria within the rocks belonging to the Obidim Unit of the Rhodope Metamorphic Complex is presented. This eclogite provides important information about the peak–pressure conditions despite strong thermal overprint at low pressure. Textural relationships, phase equilibrium modelling and conventional geothermobarometry were used to constrain the metamorphic evolution. Garnet porphyroblasts with inclusions of omphacite (up to 43 mol.% Jd), phengite (up to 3.5 Si p.f.u.), kyanite, polycrystalline quartz, pargasitic amphibole, zoisite and rutile in the Mg‐rich cores (X_Mg = 0.44–0.46) record a prograde increase in P–T conditions from ～2.5 GPa and 650 °C to ～3 GPa and 700–750 °C. Maximum pressure values fall within the stability field of coesite. During exhumation, the peak–pressure assemblage garnet + omphacite + phengite + kyanite was variably overprinted by a lower pressure one forming symplectitic textures, such as diopside + plagioclase after omphacite and biotite + plagioclase after phengite. The development of spinel (X_Mg = 0.4–0.45) + corundum + anorthite assemblage in the kyanite‐bearing domains at ～1.1 GPa and 800–850 °C suggests a thermal overprint in the high‐pressure granulite facies stability field. This thermal event was followed by cooling at ～0.8 GPa under amphibolite facies conditions; retrograde kelyphite texture involving plagioclase and amphibole was developed around garnet. Our results add to the already existing evidence for ultra high pressure (UHP) metamorphism in the Upper Allochthon of the Rhodope Metamorphic Complex as in the Kimi Unit and show that it is more widespread than previously known. Published age data and field structural relations suggest that the Obidim Unit represents Variscan continental crust involved into the Alpine nappe edifice of the Rhodopes and that eclogite facies metamorphism was Palaeozoic, in contrast to the Kimi Unit where age determinations suggest a Jurassic or Cretaceous age for UHP metamorphism. This implies that UHP metamorphism in the Upper Allochthon of the Rhodopes may have occurred twice, during Alpine and pre‐Alpine orogenic events, and that two independent HP/UHP provinces of different age overlap in this area.     

Using calculated chemical potential relationships to account for replacement of kyanite by symplectite in high pressure granulites

Calculated mineral equilibria are used to account for the formation of sapphirine–plagioclase, spinel–plagioclase and corundum–plagioclase symplectites replacing kyanite in quartz–plagioclase–garnet–kyanite granulite facies gneisses from the Southern Domain of the Athabasca granulite terrane, a segment of the Snowbird tectonic zone in northern Saskatchewan, Canada. Metamorphic conditions of >14 kbar and 800 °C are established for the high pressure, garnet–kyanite assemblage using constraints from P–T pseudosections and Zr‐in‐rutile thermometry. Replacement of kyanite by symplectites reflects the reaction of kyanite with the matrix following near‐isothermal decompression to <10 kbar. The chemical potential gradients developed between the kyanite and the matrix led to diffusion that attempted to flatten the gradients, kyanite persisting as a stable phase while it is consumed by symplectite from its edge. In this local equilibrium model, the mineral and mineral compositional spatial relationships are shown to correspond to paths in μ(Na₂O)–μ(CaO)–μ(K₂O)–μ(FeO)–μ(MgO) in the model chemical system, Na₂O–CaO–K₂O–FeO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂ (NCKFMAS), with SiO₂ and Al₂O₃ taken to be completely immobile. The values of μ(Na₂O) and μ(CaO) are constrained by fixing P–T conditions and choosing appropriate μ(Na₂O) and μ(CaO) values that correspond to the observed plagioclase compositions. μ(FeO)–μ(MgO) diagrams show the corresponding spatial relationships with kyanite and the symplectite phases. These results demonstrate that the replacement of kyanite by sapphirine–plagioclase and spinel–plagioclase appears to be metastable with respect to replacement by corundum–plagioclase. Replacement by corundum–plagioclase does also occur, apparently overprinting pre‐existing symplectite and also kyanite. Ignoring corundum, the resulting diagrams account for the spatial relationships and compositions observed in the spinel–plagioclase and sapphirine–plagioclase symplectites. They are predicted to occur over both a wide range of P–T conditions (6–11 kbar, 650–850 °C) and plagioclase compositions (X_An = 0.5–0.9). The wide range of P–T conditions that may result in identical spatial and compositional relationships suggests that such reaction textures may be of limited use in accurately quantifying the P–T conditions of retrograde metamorphism.     

Two successive phases of ultrahigh temperature metamorphism in Rogaland,S. Norway: Evidence from Y‐in‐monazite thermometry

In Rogaland, South Norway, a polycyclic granulite facies metamorphic domain surrounds the late‐Sveconorwegian anorthosite–mangerite–charnockite (AMC) plutonic complex. Integrated petrology, phase equilibria modelling, monazite microchemistry, Y‐in‐monazite thermometry, and monazite U–Th–Pb geochronology in eight samples, distributed across the apparent metamorphic field gradient, imply a sequence of two successive phases of ultrahigh temperature (UHT) metamorphism in the time window between 1,050 and 910 Ma. A first long‐lived metamorphic cycle (M1) between 1,045 ± 8 and 992 ± 11 Ma is recorded by monazite in all samples. This cycle is interpreted to represent prograde clockwise P–T path involving melt production in fertile protoliths and culminating in UHT conditions of ~6 kbar and 920°C. Y‐in‐monazite thermometry, in a residual garnet‐absent sapphirine–orthopyroxene granulite, provides critical evidence for average temperature of 931 and 917°C between 1,029 ± 9 and 1,006 ± 8 Ma. Metamorphism peaked after c. 20 Ma of crustal melting and melt extraction, probably supported by a protracted asthenospheric heat source following lithospheric mantle delamination. Between 990 and 940 Ma, slow conductive cooling to 750–800°C is characterized by monazite reactivity as opposed to silicate metastability. A second incursion (M2) to UHT conditions of ~3.5–5 kbar and 900–950°C, is recorded by Y‐rich monazite at 930 ± 6 Ma in an orthopyroxene–cordierite–hercynite gneiss and by an osumilite gneiss. This M2 metamorphism, typified by osumilite paragenesis, is related to the intrusion of the AMC plutonic complex at 931 ± 2 Ma. Thermal preconditioning of the crust during the first UHT metamorphism may explain the width of the aureole of contact metamorphism c. 75 Ma later, and also the rarity of osumilite‐bearing assemblages in general.     

Phase equilibria modelling and zircon age dating of pelitic granulites in Zhaojiayao,from the Jining Group of the Khondalite Belt,North China Craton

The Jining Group occurs as the eastern segment of the Khondalite Belt, North China Craton and is dominated by a series of granulite facies rocks involving ‘normal’ pelitic granulites recording peak temperatures of ~850 °C and ultrahigh‐temperature (UHT) pelitic granulites recording peak temperatures of 950–1100 °C. The P–T paths and ages of these two types of granulites are controversial. Three pelitic granulite samples in the Jining Group comprising two sillimanite–garnet gneiss samples (J1208 and J1210) and one spinel–garnet gneiss sample (J1303) were collected from Zhaojiayao, where ‘normal’ pelitic granulites occur, for determination of their metamorphic evolution and ages. Samples J1208 and J1210 are interpreted to record cooling paths from the T_max stages with P–T conditions respectively of ~870–890 °C/7–8 kbar and >840 °C/>7.5 kbar constrained from the stability fields of the observed mineral assemblages and the isopleths of plagioclase, garnet and biotite compositions in pseudosections. Sample J1303 is interpreted to record pre‐T_max decompression from the kyanite‐stability fields to the T_max stage of 950–1020 °C/8–9 kbar and a post‐T_max cooling path revealed mainly from the stability field of the observed mineral assemblage, the plagioclase zoning and the biotite composition isopleth in pseudosections. The post‐T_max cooling stage can be divided into suprasolidus and subsolidus stages. The suprasolidus cooling may not result in an equilibrium state at the solidus in a rock. Therefore, different minerals may record different P–T conditions along the cooling path; the inferred maximum temperature is commonly higher than the solidus as well as different solidi being recorded for different samples from the same outcrop but experiencing different degrees of melt loss. Plagioclase compositions, especially its zoning in plagioclase‐rich granulites, are predicted to be useful for recording the higher temperature conditions of a granulite's thermal history. The three samples studied seem to record the temperature range covering those of the ‘normal’ and UHT pelitic granulites in the Jining Group, suggesting that UHT conditions may be reached in ‘normal’ granulites without diagnostic UHT indicators. LA‐ICP‐MS zircon U–Pb data provide a continuous trend of concordant ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb ages from 1.89 to 1.79 Ga for sample J1210, and from 1.94 to 1.80 Ga for sample J1303. These continuous and long age spectrums are interpreted to represent a slow cooling and exhumation process corresponding to the post‐T_max cooling P–T paths recorded by the pelitic granulites, which may have followed the exhumation of deeply buried rocks in a thickened crust region resulted from a collision event at c. 1.95 Ga as suggested by the pre‐T_max decompression P–T path.     

Polymetamorphism in the mainland Lewisian complex,NW Scotland – phase equilibria and geochronological constraints from the Cnoc an t’Sidhean suite

The metamorphic evolution of rocks cropping out near Stoer, within the Assynt terrane of the central region of the mainland Lewisian complex of NW Scotland, is investigated using phase equilibria modelling in the NCKFMASHTO and MnNCKFMASHTO model systems. The focus is on the Cnoc an t’Sidhean suite, garnet‐bearing biotite‐rich rocks (brown gneiss) with rare layers of white mica gneiss, which have been interpreted as sedimentary in origin. The results show that these rocks are polymetamorphic and experienced granulite facies peak metamorphism (Badcallian) followed by retrograde fluid‐driven metamorphism (Inverian) under amphibolite facies conditions. The brown gneisses are inferred to have contained an essentially anhydrous granulite facies peak metamorphic assemblage of garnet, quartz, plagioclase and ilmenite (±rutile, K‐feldspar and pyroxene) with biotite, hornblende, muscovite, chlorite and/or epidote as hydrous retrograde minerals. P–T constraints imposed by phase equilibria modelling imply conditions of 13–16 kbar at >900 °C for the Badcallian granulite facies metamorphic peak, consistent with the field evidence for partial melting in most lithologies. The white mica gneiss comprises a muscovite‐dominated matrix containing porphyroblasts of staurolite, corundum, kyanite and rare garnet. Previous studies have suggested that staurolite, corundum, kyanite and muscovite all grew at the granulite facies peak, with partial melting and melt loss producing a highly aluminous residue. However, at the inferred peak P–T conditions, staurolite and muscovite are not predicted to be stable, suggesting they are retrograde phases that grew during amphibolite facies retrograde metamorphism. The large proportion of mica suggests extensive H₂O‐rich fluid‐influx, consistent with the retrograde growth of hornblende, biotite, epidote and chlorite in the brown gneisses. P–T conditions of 5.0–6.5 kbar at 520–550 °C are derived for the Inverian event. In situ dating of zircon from samples of the white mica gneiss yield apparent ages that are difficult to interpret. However, the data are permissive of granulite facies (Badcallian) metamorphism having occurred at c. 2.7–2.8 Ga with subsequent fluid driven (Inverian) retrogression at c. 2.5–2.6 Ga, consistent with previous interpretations.     

Early Palaeozoic high‐pressure granulites from the Dunhuang block,northeastern Tarim Craton: constraints on continental collision in the southern Central Asian Orogenic Belt

The Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) is one of the largest accretionary collages in the world, and records a prolonged sequence of subduction‐accretion and collision processes. The Tarim Craton is located at the southernmost margin of the CAOB. In this study, the discovery of early Palaeozoic high‐pressure (HP) granulites from the Dunhuang block in the northeastern Tarim Craton is reported, and these rocks are characterized through detailed petrological and geochronological studies. The peak mineral assemblage of the HP mafic granulite is garnet + clinopyroxene + plagioclase + quartz + rutile, which is overprinted by amphibolite facies retrograde metamorphic assemblages. The calculated P–T conditions of the peak metamorphism are ～1.4–1.7 GPa and ～800 °C. The retrograde P–T conditions are ～0.7 GPa and ～700 °C. The metamorphic zircon grains from the HP mafic granulite show homogeneous CL‐images, low Th/U ratios and flat HREE patterns and yield a weighted mean ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age of 444 ± 5 Ma. The metamorphic zircon grains from the associated kyanite‐bearing garnet gneiss and garnet‐mica schist show a similar ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age of 429 ± 3 and 435 ± 4 Ma, respectively. The c. 440–430 Ma age is interpreted to mark the timing of HP granulite facies metamorphism in the Dunhuang block. The results from this study suggest that the Dunhuang block experienced continental subduction prior to the early Palaeozoic collisional orogeny between the northeastern Tarim Craton and the southern CAOB, and the Dunhuang area could be considered as the southward extension of the CAOB. It is suggested that the continental collision in the eastern part involving the Dunhuang block of the southern CAOB may have occurred c. 120 Ma earlier than in the western part involving the Tianshan orogen.     

Micro‐sampling Lu–Hf geochronology reveals episodic garnet growth and multiple high‐P metamorphic events

We present Lu–Hf dates from multiple growth zones within two large garnet porphyroblasts by a micro‐sampling method. A single eclogite sample, taken from the Huwan shear zone in the Hong'an orogen, was investigated with Lu–Hf geochronology by micro‐sampling and traditional bulk separation methods. The sample contains a few large garnet porphyroblasts up to several centimetres in diameter and a second major population of smaller (0.1–2.0 mm) garnet porphyroblasts, comprised of dark cores and pale rims. Elemental compositions and mineral inclusions in the garnet appear consistent with two garnet generations. Lu–Hf dates (c. 400–264 Ma) were determined from twelve micro‐sawed garnet sections from two large garnet porphyroblasts. These Lu–Hf dates overlap with age peaks defined by 115 SIMS zircon U–Pb analyses from the same eclogite sample. Bulk analyses of smaller garnet separates define a minimum date of c. 306 Ma and a maximum date of c. 252 Ma for the dark cores and pale rims respectively. These Lu–Hf dates were interpreted to bracket the period of garnet growth and the broad interval from c. 400 to 264 Ma is best explained by protracted and episodic garnet growth, which may require that these rocks experienced two subduction cycles that were initiated during the Devonian and terminated in the Triassic.     

Factors affecting preservation of coesite in ultrahigh‐pressure metamorphic rocks: Insights from TEM observations of dislocations within kyanite

To understand the preservation of coesite inclusions in ultrahigh‐pressure (UHP) metamorphic rocks, an integrated petrological, Raman spectroscopic and focussed ion beam (FIB) system–transmission electron microscope (TEM) study was performed on a UHP kyanite eclogite from the Sulu belt in eastern China. Coesite grains have been observed only as rare inclusions in kyanite from the outer segment of garnet and in the matrix. Raman mapping analysis shows that a coesite inclusion in kyanite from the garnet rim records an anisotropic residual stress and retains a maximum residual pressure of ~0.35 GPa. TEM observations show quartz is absent from the coesite inclusion–host kyanite grain boundaries. Numerous dislocations and sub‐grain boundaries are present in the kyanite, but dislocations are not confirmed in the coesite. In particular, dislocations concentrate in the kyanite adjacent to the boundary with the coesite inclusion, and they form a dislocation concentration zone with a dislocation density of ~10⁹ cm^?2. A high‐resolution TEM image and a fast Fourier transform‐filtered image reveal that a tiny dislocation in the dislocation concentration zone is composed of multiple edge dislocations. The estimated dislocation density in most of the kyanite away from the coesite inclusion–host kyanite grain boundaries is ~10⁸ cm^?2, being lower than that in kyanite adjacent to the coesite. In the case of a coesite inclusion in a matrix kyanite, using Raman and TEM analyses, we could not identify any quartz at the grain boundaries. Dislocations are not observed in the coesite, but numerous dislocations and stacking faults are developed in the kyanite. The estimated overall dislocation density in the coesite‐bearing matrix kyanite is ~10⁸ cm^?2, but a high dislocation density region of ~10⁹ cm^?2 is also present near the coesite inclusion–host kyanite grain boundaries. Inclusion and matrix kyanite grains with no coesite have dislocation densities of ≤10⁸ cm^?2. Dislocation density is generally reduced during an annealing process, but our results show that not all dislocations in the kyanite have recovered uniformly during exhumation of the UHP rocks. Hence, one of the key factors acting as a buffer to inhibit the coesite to quartz transformation is the mechanical interaction between the host and the inclusion that lead to the formation of dislocations in the kyanite. The kyanite acts as an excellent pressure container that can preserve coesite during the decompression of rocks from UHP conditions. The search for and study of inclusions in kyanite may be a more suitable approach for tracing the spatial distribution of UHP metamorphic rocks.     

Dehydration of metapelites during high‐P metamorphism: The coupling between fluid sources and fluid sinks

Polymetamorphic metapelites and embedded eclogites share a complex, episodic interplay of dehydration and fluid infiltration at the eclogite type‐locality (Saualpe–Koralpe, Eastern Alps, Austria). The metapelites inherited a fluid content (i.e. mineral‐bound OH expressed in terms of mol.% H₂O) of ～6–7 mol.% H₂O from high‐T–low‐P metamorphism experienced during the Permian. At or near P_max of the subsequent Eoalpine event (～20 kbar and 680^°C), the breakdown of paragonite to Na‐rich clinopyroxene and kyanite in metapelites released a discrete pulse of hydrous fluid. Prior to the dehydration event, the rocks were largely fluid absent, allowing only limited re‐equilibration during the prograde Eoalpine evolution. Similarly, Permian‐aged gabbros have persisted metastably due to the absence of a catalyst prior to fluid‐induced re‐equilibration. The fluid triggered partial to complete eclogitization along a fluid infiltration front partially preserved in metagabbro. Near‐isothermal decompression to ～7.5–10 kbar and 670–690°C took place under fluid‐absent conditions. After decompression, a second breakdown of phengitic white mica and garnet produced muscovite, biotite, plagioclase and ～0.1–0.7 mol.% H₂O that enhanced extensive fluid‐aided re‐equilibration of the metapelites. Potential relicts of high‐P assemblages were largely obliterated and replaced by the recurrent amphibolite facies assemblage garnet+biotite+staurolite+kyanite+muscovite+plagioclase+ilmenite+quartz. The hydrous fluid originating from the metapelites infiltrated the embedded eclogites at these P–T conditions and induced the local breakdown of the peak assemblage omphacite and garnet to fine‐grained symplectites of diopside and plagioclase. Further fluid infiltration led to the formation of hornblende–quartz poikiloblasts at the expense of the symplectites. The metapelites re‐equilibrated until the growth of retrograde staurolite consumed any remaining free fluid, thereby terminating the process. Further re‐equilibration is inhibited by both the lack of a catalytic fluid and H₂O as a reactant essential for rehydration reactions. The interplay between fluid sources and fluid sinks describes a closed cycle for the rocks at the eclogite type‐locality. Final, near‐isobaric cooling is indicated by a slight increase of X_Fe in garnet rims. Post‐decompression dehydration and fluid‐aided re‐equilibration arrested by the introduction of staurolite might explain the apparently homogeneous retrogression conditions as well as the notorious absence of diagnostic high‐P assemblages in metapelites at the eclogite type‐locality.     

Zircon (re)crystallization during short‐lived,high‐P granulite facies metamorphism (Eger Complex,NW Bohemian Massif)

The Eger Complex in the northwestern Bohemian Massif consists mainly of amphibolite facies granitic gneisses containing a subordinate volume of felsic granulites. Microstructural changes and modelling of metamorphic conditions for both rock types suggest a short‐lived static heating from ~760 to ~850 °C at a constant pressure of ~16 kbar, which led to the partial granulitization of the granitoid rocks. Detailed study of the protolith zircon modifications and modelling of the Zr re‐distribution during the transition from amphibolite to granulite facies suggests that the development of c. 340 Ma old zircon rims in the granulite facies sample is the result of recrystallization of older (c. 475 Ma) protolith zircon. This study suggests that the partial granulitization is a result of a short exposure of the Eger Complex metagranitoids to a temperature of ~850 °C at the base of an arc/fore‐arc domain and their subsequent rapid exhumation during the Lower Carboniferous collision along the western margin of the Bohemian Massif.     

Garnet–chloritoid–kyanite assemblages: eclogite facies indicators of subduction constraints in orogenic belts

The assemblage garnet–chloritoid–kyanite is shown to be quite common in high‐pressure eclogite facies metapelites from orogenic belts around the world, and occurs over a narrowly restricted range of temperature ～550–600 °C, between 20 and 25 kbar. This assemblage is favoured particularly by large Al₂O₃:K₂O ratios allowing the development of kyanite in addition to garnet and chloritoid. Additionally, ferric iron and manganese also help stabilize chloritoid in this assemblage. Pseudosections for several bulk compositions illustrate these high‐pressure assemblages, and a new thermodynamic model for white mica to include calcium and ferric iron was required to complete the calculations. It is extraordinary that so many orogenic eclogite facies rocks, both mafic eclogites sensu stricto as well as metapelites with the above assemblage, all yield temperatures within the range of 520–600 °C and peak pressures ～23±3 kbar. Subduction of oceanic crust and its entrained associated sedimentary material must involve the top of the slab, where mafic and pelitic rocks may easily coexist, passing through these P–T conditions, such that rocks, if they proceed to further depths, are generally not returned to the surface. This, together with the tightly constrained range in peak temperatures which such eclogites experience, suggests thermal weakening being a major control on the depths at which crustal material is decoupled from the downgoing slab.     

Petrogenetic relations among titanium‐rich minerals in an anatectic high‐P mafic granulite

The petrogenetic relations among Ti‐rich minerals in high‐grade metabasites is illuminated here through a detailed petrological investigation of an anatectic garnet–clinopyroxene granulite from the Grenville Province, Ontario, Canada containing rutile, titanite and ilmenite in distinct microtextural settings. Garnet porphyroblasts exhibit zoned Ti concentrations (up to 0.15 wt% TiO₂ in their cores), as well as a variety of rutile inclusion types, including clusters of small, variably elongate grains and thin (≤1 μm) oriented needles. Calcite inclusions in garnet, commonly observed surrounding garnet cores containing quartz and clinozoisite, indicate the presence of evolving C–O–H fluids during garnet growth and suggest that the rutile clusters may have formed from subsequent Ti diffusion and rutile precipitation within existing fluid inclusions. Titanite forms large subhedral crystals and typically occurs where the primary garnet–clinopyroxene assemblage is in contact with leucosome containing megacrystic hornblende, silvialitic scapolite and calcic plagioclase. Many titanite crystals exhibit marginal subgrains that correspond with sharp changes in their major and trace element composition, likely related to a dissolution–precipitation or recrystallization process following primary crystallization. Clinopyroxene–ilmenite symplectite coronas surround titanite in most locations, likely forming from reaction with the hornblende‐plagioclase matrix (±fluids/melt). Integration of multi‐equilibria thermobarometry and Zr thermometry in rutile and titanite with phase equilibrium modelling allows definition of a clockwise P–T path evolving to peak pressures of ~1.5 GPa at ~750°C during garnet and rutile growth, followed by peak temperature conditions of ~1.2 GPa and ~820–880°C associated with melt‐present titanite growth, and finally cooling and decompression to regional amphibolite facies conditions (~1.0 GPa and ~750°C) associated with the formation of clinopyroxene–ilmenite symplectites surrounding titanite. P–T pseudosections calculated for the pristine (leucosome‐ and titanite ‐free) metabasite bulk composition reproduce much of the prograde phase relations, but predict rutile as the stable Ti‐rich mineral at the peak thermal conditions associated with melt‐present titanite growth. The P–M(CaO) and T–M(CaO) models show that bulk CaO concentrations have a significant effect on the stability ranges of titanite and rutile. Increased bulk CaO tends to stabilize titanite to higher pressure and temperature at the expense of rutile, with a ≥15% increase in CaO producing the observed titanite‐bearing assemblage at high‐P granulite facies conditions. Thus, the model results are consistent with the textural observations, which suggest that titanite stability is associated with a chemical exchange between the host metabasite and a Ca‐rich melt.     

The interpretation of reaction textures in Fe‐rich metapelitic granulites of the Musgrave Block,central Australia: constraints from mineral equilibria calculations in the system K2O–FeO–MgO–Al2O3–SiO2–H2O–TiO2–Fe2O3

Fe‐rich metapelitic granulites of the Musgrave Block, central Australia, contain several symplectic and coronal reaction textures that post‐date a peak S2 metamorphic assemblage involving garnet, sillimanite, spinel, ilmenite, K‐feldspar and quartz. The earliest reaction textures involve spinel‐ and quartz‐bearing symplectites that enclose garnet and to a lesser extent sillimanite. The symplectic spinel and quartz are in places separated by later garnet and/or sillimanite coronas. The metamorphic effects of a later, D3, event are restricted to zones of moderate to high strain where a metamorphic assemblage of garnet, sillimanite, K‐feldspar, magnetite, ilmenite, quartz and biotite is preserved. Quantitative mineral equilibria calculations in the system K₂O–FeO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂O–TiO₂–Fe₂O₃ (KFMASHTO) using Thermocalc 3.0 and the accompanying internally consistent dataset provide important constraints on the influence of TiO₂ and Fe₂O₃ on biotite‐bearing and spinel‐bearing equilibria, respectively. Biotite‐bearing equilibria are shifted to higher temperatures and spinel‐bearing equilibria to higher pressures and lower temperatures in comparison to the equivalent equilibria in K₂O–FeO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂O (KFMASH). The sequence of reaction textures involving spinel is consistent with a D2 P–T path that involved a small amount of decompression followed predominantly by cooling within a single mineral assemblage stability field. Thus, the reaction textures reflect changes in modal proportions within an equilibrium assemblage rather than the crossing of a univariant reaction. The D3 metamorphic assemblage is consistent with lower temperatures than those inferred for D2.