Exposed Cross-section of the Archaean Lower Crustin the Shanxi-Hebei-Inner Mongolia Border Region: Problems and Prospects

The Archaean lower crust represented by granulite facies rocks, which is rare in China, is found to be exposed in the Shanxi-Hebei-Inner Mongolia border region. Studies of the regional structure and deformation and metamorphism of the region indicate that there occurred at least two phases of deformation and metamorphism in the region. Early-phase nearly E-W-directed deformational structure is well preserved in the Zhangjiakou-Xuanhua area. Observations of the features of the geological structure from north to south (in the Hengshan metamorphic terrain) have revealed a possible exposed cross-section through the Archaean lower crust. The structure was superimposed by a NE-SW-trending high-temperature ductile shear zone in the Datong area in the late phase, thus reworking the Archaean sequence.     

Mantle convection and early crustal evolution

The existence of peridotitic komatiites in the Archaean suggests that the Archaean mantle was significantly hotter than the modern mantle. This evidence is contradicted by estimates of Archaean continental geothermal gradients, based on the pressure and temperature recorded in metamorphic rocks, which suggest that there is no marked difference between Archaean and modern continental geothermal gradients.Numerical modelling shows that small changes in the mantle temperature can have an important influence on convection. If the average temperature of the upper mantle is increased by 200°C, convection within the mantle becomes chaotic and an upper mantle partial melt zone encircles the globe. The crust formed during this period will be komatiitic in composition but will be unstable and will be mixed back into the mantle by subduction. Later, when the mantle temperature falls to 100°C above its present level, the upper mantle partial melt zone contracts away from subduction areas.It is suggested that the first primitive felsic magmas were generated at subduction zones. The appearance of these magmas at ～3.8 Ga permitted the formation of buoyant continents and eventually led to crustal thickening. As a consequence of this thickening the proto-continents, consisting of a bimodal suite of basalts and sodic granodiorites, contained two types of latent energy: (1) radioactive energy held in elements such as Th, K and U; and (2) potential energy resulting from the elevation of the continents above sea level. The potential energy of the continents led to sedimentation. The increase in the rate of sedimentation during the Archaean resulted from increased crustal buoyancy. At the same time heat released by radioactive elements in the deep crust built up under the insulating blanket of the upper crust. This caused a major metamorphic, metasomatic and crustal melting event which produced the potassic granites of the late Archaean. Once the radioactive elements had been removed from the lower crust, that region of the continent become tectonically stable. The Proterozoic shelf sediments were deposited at the margins of these stable cratons.Convection models of the Archaean mantle show hot diapirs rising from the boundary layer above the core—mantle interface. We suggest that these diapirs began to melt at a depth of ～ 450 km, giving rise to komatiitic magmas. This model requires the average temperature of the Archaean upper mantle to be ～ 100°C above that of the modern mantle. The similarity between Archaean and modern continental geothermal gradients can be explained if Archaean continents formed above subduction zones.Raising the temperature of the Archaean mantle by 100°C (1) halves the thickness of the oceanic lithosphere, (2) increases the oceanic geothermal gradient at the mid-point of a convection cell, (3) decreases the viscosity of the mantle by at least an order of magnitude. The combination of these effects produces a marked decrease in the strength of the Archaean lithosphere and mantle. Thus the form of Archaean tectonics can be expected to have been very different from modern tectonics.     

Salinity of the Archaean oceans from analysis of fluid inclusions in quartz

Fluids trapped in inclusions in well-characterized Archaean hydrothermal quartz crystals were analyzed by the extended argon–argon method, which permits the simultaneous measurement of chlorine and potassium concentrations. Argon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of the trapped fluids were also determined by static mass spectrometry. Fluids were extracted by stepwise crushing of quartz samples from North Pole (NW Australia) and Barberton (South Africa) 3.5–3.0-Ga-old greenstone belts. The data indicate that fluids are a mixture of a low salinity end-member, regarded as the Archaean oceanic water, and several hydrothermal end-members rich in Cl, K, N, and radiogenic parentless ⁴⁰Ar. The low Cl–K end-member suggests that the salinity of the Archaean oceans was comparable to the modern one, and that the potassium content of the Archaean oceans was lower than at present by about 40%. A constant salinity of the oceans through time has important implications for the stabilization of the continental crust and for the habitability of the ancient Earth.     

The western border of the Archaean province of the Baltic shield: evidence from northern Sweden

Restricted areas of acid to intermediate gneisses in northernmost Sweden are known to be Archaean and several other gneissic granodioritic to tonalitic massifs have been suggested to be of this age. To delimit the western border of the Archaean province of the Baltic Shield, and to characterize the Swedish Archaean, we have studied the 2.83 Ga old Soppero gneiss and 8 of the proposed Archaean massifs in northern Sweden by Sm-Nd isotopic analyses, U-Pb zircon dating (in two cases), and geochemistry.Of the Archaean gneisses proposed thus far, only those from the Soppero and Kukkola areas have Archaean ages (2.83 and 2.67 Ga, respectively). These gneisses have geochemical characteristics such as LREE-enrichment, low U-contents, and low K/Na-ratios, which are typical of Archaean TTG (tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite) rocks worldwide. The REE results indicate that the Soppero and the Kukkola gneisses were generated by partial melting of basic rocks, presumably amphibolites. According to the Sm-Nd isotopic data for the Soppero gneiss, this process occurred only a short time after initial segregation from the mantle ( _Nd values between +0.9 and +3.5). The Kukkola gneiss, however, has longer crustal residence time as indicated by negative _Nd values (–1.0 and –2.5) at the U-Pb zircon age of 2.67 Ga. Evidence in support of an important event at that time is given by secondary overgrowth on zircon cores in the 2.83 Ga old Soppero gneiss.The Sm-Nd isotope results show that the Proterozoic granitoids in northern Sweden have a decreasing involvement of Archaean source material with increasing distance from the Archaean areas. Before the Proterozoic reworking, the rather small Archaean areas in northern Sweden presumably belonged to a large continuous Archaean craton. The western palaeoboundary of this craton in Sweden probably follows approximately a line extrapolated from the western limit of the Archaean of central Finland, passing west of Kukkola, and then continues to the Lofoten area in northern Norway.     

Two types of Precambrian high-grade metamorphism, Inner Mongolia, China

Abstract Archaean and Proterozoic granulite facies complexes of Inner Mongolia differ in lithological association, tectonic style, mineral assemblage and metamorphic P–T path. A nearly isobaric cooling path for Archaean high-grade metamorphic rocks is suggested by reaction textures and geothermobarometry. Early Proterozoic metamorphic rocks show nearly isothermal decompression. Archaean metamorphism may have been caused by magmatic accretion, whereas early Proterozoic metamorphism suggests a major continental thickening event followed by exhumation.     

Stagnant lids and mantle overturns:Implications for Archaean tectonics,magmagenesis,crustal growth,mantle evolution,and the start of plate tectonics

The lower plate is the dominant agent in modern convergent margins characterized by active subduction,as negatively buoyant oceanic lithosphere sinks into the asthenosphere under its own weight.This is a strong plate-driving force because the slab-pull force is transmitted through the stiff sub-oceanic lithospheric mantle.As geological and geochemical data seem inconsistent with the existence of modernstyle ridges and arcs in the Archaean,a periodically-destabilized stagnant-lid crust system is proposed instead.Stagnant-lid intervals may correspond to periods of layered mantle convection where efficient cooling was restricted to the upper mantle,perturbing Earth's heat generation/loss balance,eventually triggering mantle overturns.Archaean basalts were derived from fertile mantle in overturn upwelling zones(OUZOs),which were larger and longer-lived than post-Archaean plumes.Early cratons/continents probably formed above OUZOs as large volumes of basalt and komatiite were delivered for protracted periods,allowing basal crustal cannibalism,garnetiferous crustal restite delamination,and coupled development of continental crust and sub-continental lithospheric mantle.Periodic mixing and rehomogenization during overturns retarded development of isotopically depleted MORB(mid-ocean ridge basalt)mantle.Only after the start of true subduction did sequestration of subducted slabs at the coremantle boundary lead to the development of the depleted MORB mantle source.During Archaean mantle overturns,pre-existing continents located above OUZOs would be strongly reworked;whereas OUZOdistal continents would drift in response to mantle currents.The leading edge of drifting Archaean continents would be convergent margins characterized by terrane accretion,imbrication,subcretion and anatexis of unsubductable oceanic lithosphere.As Earth cooled and the background oceanic lithosphere became denser and stiffer,there would be an increasing probability that oceanic crustal segments could founder in an organized way,producing a gradual evolution of pre-subduction convergent margins into modern-style active subduction systems around 2.5 Ga.Plate tectonics today is constituted of:(1)a continental drift system that started in the Early Archaean,driven by deep mantle currents pressing against the Archaean-age sub-continental lithospheric mantle keels that underlie Archaean cratons;(2)a subduction-driven system that started near the end of the Archaean.     

乌拉山—大青山地区太古宙地层的混合岩化—重熔特征及地质意义

内蒙乌拉山—大青山地区太古界混合岩化—重熔作用 ,随地质时代不同发育特征不同。上太古界乌拉山岩群主要发育重熔条带 ,局部出现重熔 ;中太古界集宁岩群有百分之五十发生了重熔 ;下太古界兴和岩群几乎全部被熔融 ,只残留了部分偏基性的难熔组分。现在的兴和岩群只代表兴和期火山—沉积岩石组合的一少部分。     

Crustal contamination as an indicator of the extent of early Archaean continental crust: Pb isotopic evidence from the late Archaean gneisses of West Greenland

Ph isotopic analyses are reported for 119 samples of late Archaean (ca. 3000-2800 Myr) calc alkaline orthogneisses and associated anorthosites from southern West Greenland. Over most of the area. $\text{Pb}\text{Pb}$ whole rock isotope systematics indicate derivation of the magmatic precursors of the gneisses and anorthosites from a source region with a typically mantle-type $\text{U}\text{Pb}$ ratio (μ₁ value of 7.5) at. or shortly before, ca. 3000-2800 Myr ago. In contrast, in the Godthaabsfjord region, late Archaean Nûk gneisses and associated anorthosites were emplaced into or through early Archaean (ca. 3700 Myr) Amîtsoq gneisses, and crystallised with variable proportions of two isotopically distinct types of Pb which commenced their respective crustal developments at ca. 3000-2800 Myr and at ca. 3700 Myr ago. Isotopic and other geochemical constraints demonstrate that Nûk gneisses and their temporal equivalents were not produced by reworking or melting of Amîtsoq gneisses. Mixing of early and late Archaean Pb results from contamination of the magmatic precursors of Nûk gneisses and anorthosites (characterised by mantle-type Pb at time of emplacement) with ancient, unradiogenic Pb derived from ca. 3700 Myr-old Amîtsoq-type continental crust invaded by the Nûk magmas. The contaminant is considered to be a trace-element enriched fluid phase released from dehydrating older continental crust during progressive burial and heating by emplacement of calc alkaline magmas in the late Archaean ‘accretion differentiation superevent’. This was followed by mixing of the released fluids with younger Nûk magmas.Pb isotopic compositions of late Archaean gneisses and anorthosites outside the Godthaabsfjord region provide no evidence for the presence of early Archaean Amîtsoq-type continental crust in southern West Greenland in areas more than a few tens of km outside the known outcrop of Amîtsoq gneisses. We suggest that early Archaean crust does not exist at depth in late Archaean areas with undisturbed Pb-isotope systematics, either in Greenland or elsewhere in the North Atlantic craton.Pb-isotope evidence for crust magma interaction, involving selective extraction of certain trace elements by a fluid phase from wall rock and subsequent mixing between magma and contaminant fluid, provides a powerful tool for detection, sub-surface ‘mapping’, and geochronological and geochemical characterisation of deep, ancient continental crust.     

Relation between trace and major element composition of the Chitaldrug metabasalts,Mysore, India,and the Archaean mantle

The ferromagnesium trace-element content of the Chitaldrug metabasalts is not compatable with its normative composition. The major elements resemble quartz-normative tholeiites and some trace-elements like Co are even higher or similar to that of olivine-normative tholeiites or the deep-oceanic tholeiites. The relationship between MgO and ferromagnesium traces is sympathetic but of very low order. The high ferromagnesium trace content in this suite and its poor relation with major elements suggest that probably the Archaean/Early Precambrian upper mantle had higher levels of these elements than the present mantle. Lateral compositional inhomogeneities in the Archaean upper mantle are also indicated from the available trace-element data over the Archaean metabasalts from different shields.     

辽宁鞍本—抚顺地区新太古代含铁建造层位对比及形成时代讨论

辽宁鞍本—抚顺地区太古宙变质层状岩系,前人分别建立了太古宙鞍山群井家沟组、石棚子组、通什村组、红透山组、樱桃园组、大峪沟组和茨沟组等地层单位,这些地层单位均呈规模大小不等的包体状、孤岛状等形态赋存于太古宙变质深成岩中,各组之间大部分孤立存在,无底无顶,相互间接触关系不清,是否属于同一时期形成的产物,长期一来存在着较多的争议。通过对各岩组原岩恢复、层序对比、含铁建造、变质作用等特点和以往及近期获得高精度测年数据的分析研究,把辽宁鞍本—抚顺地区太古宙层状岩系厘定为新太古代井家沟岩组、红透山岩组、茨沟岩组和樱桃园岩组等四个构造岩石地层单位,形成时间在27²5亿a左右,为新太古代中晚期产物。     

Geochronology of an archaean tonalitic gneiss dome in Northern Finland and its relation with an unusual overlying volcanic conglomerate and komatiitic greenstone

Archaean gneiss-greenstone relationships are still unresolved in many ancient cratonic terrains although there is growing evidence that most of the late Archaean greenstone assemblages were deposited on older tonalitic crust.We report here well defined basement-cover relationships from a late Archaean greenstone belt in Lapland, north of the Polar Circle. The basal greenstone sequence contains quartzite, schist, komatiitic volcanics and an unusual volcanic conglomerate with well preserved granite pebbles of an older basement. These rocks surround a gneiss dome composed of foliated tonalite which shows a polyphase deformation pattern not seen in the neighbouring greenstones.Zircon fractions of the gneisses plot on two discordia lines and give upper intercept ages with concordia at 3,069±16 Ma and 3,110±17 Ma respectively. One fraction contains metamict zircons with components at least 3,135 Ma old. These are the oldest reliable ages yet reported from the Archaean of the Baltic Shield. Rb-Sr whole-rock dating of the tonalitic gneiss yielded an isochron age of 2,729±122 Ma and an I_Sr of 0.703±0.001. This is interpreted to reflect a resetting event during which the gneisses may have acquired their present tectonic fabric.Rb-Sr model age calculations yield mantle values for I_Sr at about 2,950±115 Ma and suggest that the tonalite was intruded into the crust as juvenile material at about 3.1 Ga ago as reflected by the zircon ages. It was subsequently deformed and isotopically reset at about 2.7 Ga ago, prior to greenstone deposition.Comparison with tonalitic gneisses of eastern Karelia displays significant differences and suggests that the Archaean of Finland may contain several generations of pre-greenstone granitoid rocks.     

内蒙古大青山地区早前寒武纪再造岩系及再造作用

在内蒙古大青山地区存在再造太古宙基底，它经历了太古宙麻粒岩相变质作用和早元古宙角闪岩相－麻粒岩相的再造作用，再造太古宙基底岩石即为再造岩系，它是一套混合岩化变晶糜棱岩。再造岩系中混合岩化作用与再造作用同时，亦受韧性剪切变形变质作用控制。     

Natural polycomponent solid solutions of the Ru–Os–Ir–Pt–Fe system from the eastern Witwatersrand (South Africa)

This study presents compositional features of platinum-group element mineralization derived from the Late Archaean placers in the eastern part of the Witwatersrand basin. The significant presence of platinum-group minerals, formed by polycomponent solid-solution series in the system Ru–Os–Ir–Pt(±Fe), was determined using an electron microprobe analysis. Compositional data indicate that the source for polycomponent solid solutions of the Ru–Os–Ir–Pt–Fe system was the Archaean mantle of the Earth, slightly differentiated with respect to platinum-group elements.     

Recognising early Archaean mantle: a reappraisal

This paper examines 3.8 Ga peridotites from Greenland and Labrador to test claims that these samples are unmodified early Archaean mantle. Geochemical criteria were applied in which samples were compared to the mantle array in Mg/Si versus Al/Si (wt%) space, their REE patterns were compared to those of different mantle types and their chromite compositions were compared to mantle chromite compositions as expressed by their cr# and fe#. Geochemical data were used from the previously published works of Friend et al. (2002) and Bennett et al. (2002). Only two samples, from the region south of Isua satisfied all criteria, indicating that the area south of the Isua Greenstone Belt in west Greenland is a suitable place to search for early Archaean mantle. This study also confirms the observation by Friend et al. (2002) that early Archaean mantle from south of Isua is of a different character from Archaean mantle from the subcontinental lithosphere. Calculations presented here show that some mantle fragments from south of Isua experienced a lower degree of melt extraction and were probably more oxidising than early Archaean mantle preserved in the subcontinental lithosphere. Elemental concentrations of Os in early Archaean mantle are lower than the new estimate for the primitive upper mantle of Becker et al. (2006). Peridotites from the Isua greenstone belt are not mantle, but have an affinity with the layered intrusions found south of Isua.     

华北断块西南部晚太古代变质铁矿建造的原岩恢复及铁矿成因类型探讨

本文试图通过主要造岩元素的岩石化学和微量元素地球化学,以八台、桂村、老羊沟地区为例,对华北断块西南部晚太古代的变质铁矿建造的原岩进行恢复,并对铁矿成因类型作一初步探讨。     

Origin of the 3500-3300 Ma calc-alkaline rocks in the Pilbara Archaean: isotopic and geochemical constraints from the Shaw Batholith

Calc-alkaline plutonic rocks, intruded at 3450Ma, comprise a major component of the Shaw Batholith in the Archaean east Pilbara Block, Western Australia. New whole-rock Pb isotopic geochronology confirms the extent of these rocks, but a minor plutonic phase is dated at 3338±52 Ma and represents a second plutonic event of the same age as much of the nearby Mt Edgar Batholith. The Sm----Nd isotopic systematics of the 3450Ma rocks imply their derivation from a heterogeneous source, which probably included a slightly older crustal component as well as a depleted mantle component. The 3338±52 Ma pluton includes components derived from crustal sources older than 3600 Ma. The geochemistry and Sm---Nd isotopic systematics of these rocks are consistent with crustal growth in the early Archaean from upper mantle sources as depleted as the modern upper mantle. The Shaw Batholith calc-alkaline suites exhibit very similar chemical trends on variation diagrams to modern calc-alkaline plutonic rocks which can be modelled by a combination of mixing and fractionation. A suite collected from outcrops displaying prominent igneous layering shows distinct geochemical trends which can be modelled by differentiation into a component enriched in ferromagnesian minerals, principally hornblende, and possibly sphene, magnetite and epidote, and into a leucocratic component containing quartz, plagioclase and K-feld-par. These Archaean calc-alkaline plutonic rocks, in common with rocks from many other Archaean calc-alkaline provinces, exhibit very fractionated REE patterns with depleted HREE contents, a feature considered to result from equilibrium with garnet at depth in lower crustal regions. The geochemistry of the Pilbara Archaean calc-alkaline rocks is identical to the subset of modern continental-margin calc-alkaline plutonic rocks with fractionated REE patterns, such as those from the central and eastern Peninsular Ranges Batholith, western USA. The tectonic setting in which the Archaean calc-alkaline rocks formed is still not known. This reflects both uncertainty associated with the petrogenesis and environments of modern calc-alkaline rocks, as well as the limited knowledge of the precise timing and relationships of plutonic, depositional and tectonic events in the Pilbara Archaean.     

Petrogenesis of Archaean ultrabasic and basic volcanics: Evidence from rare earth elements

Rare earth element (REE) and major element data are presented on 44 Archaean samples which include spinifex textured ultramagnesian lavas (STPK) spinifex textured basalts (STB) and low MgO tholeiites. The samples come from the Yilgarn and Pilbara Blocks (W. Australia), Barberton (South Africa), Belingwe and Que Que (Rhodesia), Abitibi (Canada) and the 3.7 b.y. Isua Belt of Western Greenland. In addition REE data are given on three near primitive mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) and a glassy MORB-type basalt from Taiwan. We suggest that REE patterns, particularly the light REE and Eu, can be affected by metamorphism, but argue that the consistency of pattern from samples both within and between areas enables recognition of primary patterns. La/Sm ratios of 2.7 b.y. STPK are characterised by being lower than those of associated basalts. The 3.5 b.y. STPK Barberton material does not show this feature but instead displays significant heavy REE depletion. The separation of garnet from these liquids is suggested as a possible mechanism for the high CaO/Al₂O₃ ratios, (Al loss) and the heavy REE and Sc depletion. The REE data on Barberton material is equivocal on the derivation of the so-called basaltic komatiites from the peridotitic komatiites. However, REE analyses on STPK and high magnesian lavas from elsewhere suggests that crystal fractionation is not a viable mechanism to produce one from the other. We suggest instead, that varying amounts of partial melting of different sources is responsible for the spectrum of compositions. The STB appear to be an easily recognised rock type within the Archaean. They are characterised by quench (clinopyroxene) textures and a light REE enriched pattern. It is suggested that these are near primary melts and that their REE patterns mirror their mantle source. We propose a two stage model for the 2.7 b.y. mafic complexes, in which, prior to the generation of ultrabasic magmas, the source underwent a small amount of partial melting which resulted in the removal of a melt enriched in incompatible elements. The depletion process could be achieved either during mantle diapirism or by upward migration of interstitial melts into an Archaean low velocity zone. The spread of La/Sm ratios in STPK and STB is used as an argument that the Archaean mantle was chemically heterogeneous and that the degree of heterogeneity was similar to that observed in modern ocean volcanics. As a result, partial melting of the mantle under different P-T conditions produced a spectrum of magma types. The information presently available on Archaean mafic and silicic magmatism and the incompleteness of geochemical data on present day tectonic environments are two major obstacles in formulating Archaean tectonic models. In addition a comparison of present day and Archaean ultramafic and silicic rocks suggests that plate tectonic models as presently understood may not be suitable analogues for all Archaean tectonic environments.     

津巴布韦太古宙花岗-绿岩型金矿类型与资源潜力

津巴布韦太古宙花岗-绿岩型金矿床受构造的控制,金矿可分为褶皱控矿型、剪切带控矿型、层控型、深成花岗岩控矿型和构造-蚀变岩型等5类。津巴布韦花岗-绿岩型金矿多产于花岗质片麻岩与绿岩带的接触带上,金以自然金或金的硫化物形式产出。金矿成矿时代大致分为(2660±50)Ma和(2410±70)Ma(米德兰德绿岩带北部白钨矿Sm-Nd测年)2个时段,分别与新太古代TTG事件和大岩墙侵入相关。津巴布韦花岗-绿岩型金矿较多,但发现的中-大型绿岩型金矿较少,具有较好的金矿找矿前景。     

Geochronological constraints on early volcanic evolution of the Pilbara Block,Western Australia

U‐Pb isotopic systems of zircons from the Boobina and Spinaway Porphyries from the Precambrian Pilbara Block of Western Australia indicate ages of 3307± 19 Ma and 2768 ± 16 Ma, respectively. The Boobina Porphyry intrudes upper members of the Archaean greenstones of the Warrawoona Group. The Spinaway Porphyry intrudes basal units of the unconformably overlying volcanics and sediments of the Mt Bruce Supergroup. The age of the Boobina Porphyry, together with previous zircon U‐Pb and whole rock Sm‐Nd age determinations on stratigraphically older units, indicate that early Archaean volcanism in the Pilbara took place between 3560 Ma and 3300 Ma. On the basis of the age determination of the Spinaway Porphyry, and the chronometric definition of 2500 Ma for the Archaean—Proterozoic boundary, by the International Subcommis‐sion on Precambrian Stratigraphy (James H. L. 1978, Precambrian Res. 7, 193–204), the lower units of the Mt Bruce Supergroup should now be assigned to the Archaean.