Petrological evolution of amphibolite shear zones, Cheyenne Belt, south-eastern Wyoming, USA

Abstract Metre-scale amphibolite boudins in the Cheyenne Belt of south-eastern Wyoming are cut and deformed by shear zones which preserve a full strain transition across 7 cm, from relatively undeformed amphibolite with a relict igneous texture to mylonitic amphibolite with an L-S tectonic fabric. The strain transition is marked by the progressive rotation of amphibole + plagioclase aggregates into parallelism with the shear-zone boundary. An increase in strain magnitude is indicated by development of the tectonic fabric and progressive reduction of amphibole and plagioclase grain size as a result of cataclasis. Bulk chemistry of five samples across a single strain transition shows no significant or systematic variation in major element chemistry except for a minor loss of SiO₂, which indicates that the shear zone was a system essentially closed to non-volatile components during metamorphism and deformation. Amphibolites throughout the shear zone consist of amphibole and plagioclase with only minor amounts of quartz, chlorite, epidote, titanite and ilmenite. Within the relatively undeformed amphibolite, amphibole and plagioclase have wide compositional ranges in single thin sections. Amphibole compositions vary from actinolitic hornblende to magnesio-hornblende with increases in Al, Fe, Na and K contents and decreases in Si and Mg that can be modelled as progress along tschermakite, edenite and FeMg_-1 exchange vectors from tremolite. Plagioclase ranges from An₆₀ in cores to An₃₀ within grain-boundary domains. With increasing strain magnitude, local variation of amphibole composition decreases as amphibole becomes predominantly magnesio-hornblende. Plagioclase composition range also decreases, although grain-boundary domains still have higher albite content. These petrological data indicate that shear-zone metamorphism was controlled by the magnitude of strain during synmetamorphic deformation. SEM and microprobe imaging indicate that chemical reactions occurred by a dissolution and reprecipitation process during or after cataclastic deformation. This suggests that grain-boundary formation was an important process in the petrological evolution of the shear zone, possibly by providing zones for fluid ingress to facilitate metamorphic reactions. These results highlight the necessity for conducting detailed microstructural evaluation of rocks in order to interpret petrological, isotopic and geochronological data.     

Grain-size reduction of feldspars by fracturing and neocrystallization in a low-grade granitic mylonite and its rheological effect

Feldspar grain-size reduction occurred due to the fracturing of plagioclase and K-feldspar, myrmekite formation and neocrystallization of albitic plagioclase along shear fractures of K-feldspar porphyroclasts in the leucocratic granitic rocks from the Yecheon shear zone of South Korea that was deformed under a middle greenschist-facies condition. The neocrystallization of albitic plagioclase was induced by strain energy adjacent to the shear fractures and by chemical free energy due to the compositional disequilibrium between infiltrating Na-rich fluid and host K-feldspar. With increasing deformation from protomylonite to mylonite, alternating layers of feldspar, quartz and muscovite developed. The fine-grained feldspar-rich layers were deformed dominantly by granular flow, while quartz ribbons were deformed by dislocation creep. With layer development and a more distributed strain in the mylonite, lower stresses in the quartz-rich layers resulted in a larger size of dynamically recrystallized quartz grains than that of the protomylonite.     

Application of scanning X-ray analytical microscope to the petrographic characterization of a ductile shear zone: an alternative method to image microstructures

A ductile shear zone within a metasomatic biotite band in the Ryoke granite, Teshima, SW Japan, has been studied using the scanning X-ray analytical microscope (SXAM). This enabled the quantitative distributions of major elements, such as Si, K, Fe, Al and Ca, to be determined within the shear zone. These element maps were processed to transform them into images showing the distribution of minerals such as quartz, biotite, plagioclase and K-feldspar, which form the major minerals within the biotite band and the granite protolith. Mineral profiles based on these mineral maps compared with the simple shear strain profile reveal that the shear zone is most intense where quartz and biotite have been substituted for the primary mineral assemblage of the granite protolith, suggesting that the stresses imposed on the granite caused the shear strain to localize along the biotite band to produce the observed shear zone. It appears that the rheological behavior changed around 50–60% of quartz modal composition.     

Structural Setting and Kinematic Analysis of the Halaban Region,Eastern Arabian Shield,Saudi Arabia

The vorticity analysis technique was applied to measure the different lithological units,such as schist,metagranite and metavolcano-sedimentary rocks,which are present in the Halaban region.This work aims to interpret the relationship between the different lithologies and the tectonic setting,in order to elucidate the nature of kinematic analysis in the Halaban region.The kinematic analyses were applied to feldspar porphyroclasts,quartz and hornblende for twentysix samples.The kinematic vorticity number (W_m) for deformed rocks in the study area ranged from～0.6 to 0.9.The direction of the long axes for finite strain data (X axes) revealed a WNW trend with shallow dipping.The direction of the short axes for finite strain data (Z axes) were represented by vertical with associated horizontal foliation.The results of the kinematic vorticity and strain analyses are characterized by simple shear with different degrees of deformation in the Halaban region.Furthermore,our finite strain data shows no significant volume change during deformation.The subhorizontal foliation was synchronized with thrusting and deformation.Furthermore,throughout the overlying nappes,the same attitudes of tectonic contacts are observable,the nappes in the orogens being formed from simple shear deformation.     

Middle Miocene thermal metamorphism due to the infiltration of high-temperature fluid in the Sanbagawa metamorphic belt,southwest Japan

 The Middle Miocene Tobe hornfels in the Sanbagawa metamorphic belt, western Shikoku, southwest Japan, is characterized by an abnormally steep metamorphic gradient compared with other hornfelses associated with intrusive bodies. The basic hornfels, originally Sanbagawa greenschist rocks, is divided into the following three metamorphic zones: plagioclase, hornblende, and orthopyroxene. The plagioclase zone is defined by the appearance of calcic plagioclase, the hornblende zone by the assemblage of hornblende+calcic plagioclase+quartz, and the orthopyroxene zone is characterized by the assemblage of orthopyroxene + clinopyroxene + plagioclase + quartz. Calcic amphibole compositions change from actinolite to hornblende as a result of the continuous reactions during prograde metamorphism. Petrographical and thermometric studies indicate a metamorphic temperature range of 300–475°C for the plagioclase zone, 475–680°C for the hornblende zone, and 680–730°C for the orthopyroxene zone. The temperature gradient based on petrological studies is approximately 5°C/m, which is unusually high. Geological and petrological studies demonstrate that the hornfelses were formed by the focusing of high-temperature fluids through zones of relatively high fracture permeability. The steep thermal gradient in the Tobe hornfels body is consistent with a large fluid flux, greater than 8.3 × 10^–7 m³ m^–2S^–1, over the relatively short duration of metamorphism, approximately 100 years. Received: 10 October 1995 / Accepted: 28 May 1996     

韧性剪切带的剪切作用类型和韧性减薄量

韧性剪切带组构的演化和剪切作用类型受到许多研究者的关注。运用极莫尔圆法、有限应变法、刚性颗粒法、石英光轴组构结合有限应变测量法、拖尾形态法、剪切带内变形脉体(岩墙)法、碎斑法等方法可以估算剪切带变形过程中的运动学涡度,进而判别剪切带中单剪切组分与纯剪切组分的相对含量。自然界的剪切带一般介于单剪与纯剪之间,运动学涡度Wk介于0~1之间,表明韧性剪切带在变形过程中发生了垂直于剪切带边界(Z轴)方向的韧性减薄。剪切带变形过程中的韧性减薄量可依据有限应变测量与运动学涡度估算求得,也可依据剪切带内的石香肠(布丁)构造求解,还可依据构建极莫尔圆求解。以华北克拉通北缘的楼子店变质核杂岩及其韧性剪切带,以及希腊西奈山的Chelmos剪切带为例,介绍估算韧性剪切带韧性减薄的方法,这种韧性减薄是对大规模岩石圈减薄的有益补充和完善。研究结果表明,定量估算与变质核杂岩相关的韧性剪切带的剪切作用类型是分析变质核杂岩形成机制的有效途径和方法。     

Weakening and strain localization produced by syn-deformational reaction of plagioclase

There are many observations in naturally deformed rocks on the effects of mineral reactions on deformation, but few experimental data. In order to study the effects of chemical disequilibrium on deformation we have investigated the hydration reaction plagioclase + H₂OM more albitic plagioclase + zoisite + kyanite + quartz. We utilized fine-grained (2-6 µm) plagioclase aggregates of two compositions (An54 and An60), both dried and with 0.1-0.4 wt% H₂O present, in shear deformation experiments at two sets of conditions: 900 °C, 1.0 GPa (in the plagioclase stability field) and 750 °C, 1.5 GPa (in the zoisite stability field). Dry samples and those deformed in the plagioclase stability field underwent homogeneous shearing by dislocation creep, but samples with 0.1 to 0.4 wt% water deformed in the zoisite stability field showed extreme strain localization into very narrow (~1-3 µm) shear bands after low shear strain. In these samples the microstructures of reaction products in the matrix differ from those in the shear bands. In the matrix, large (up to 400 µm) zoisite crystals grew in the direction of finite extension, and relict plagioclase grains are surrounded by rims of recrystallized grains that are more albitic. In the shear bands, the reaction products albitic plagioclase, zoisite, white mica, and traces of kyanite form polyphase aggregates of very fine-grained (<0.1 µm) dislocation-free grains. Most of the sample strain after % ~2 has occurred within the shear bands, within which the dominant deformation mechanism is inferred to be diffusion-accommodated grain boundary sliding (DAGBS). The switch from dislocation creep in dry samples deformed without reaction to DAGBS in reacted samples is associated with a decrease in flow stress from ~800 to <200 MPa. These experiments demonstrate that heterogeneous nucleation driven in part by chemical disequilibrium can produce an extremely fine-grained polyphase assemblage, leading to a switch in deformation mechanism and significant weakening. Thus, localization of deformation in polyphase rocks may occur on any pressure (P),temperature (T)-path where the equilibrium composition of the constituent minerals changes.     

Proterozoic metamorphism and uplift history of the north-central Laramie Mountains, Wyoming, USA

The Laramie Mountains of south-eastern Wyoming contain two metamorphic domains that are separated by the 1.76 Ga. Laramie Peak shear zone (LPSZ). South of the LPSZ lies the Palmer Canyon block, where apatite U–Pb ages are c. 1745 Ma and the rocks have undergone Proterozoic kyanite-grade Barrovian metamorphism. In contrast, in the Laramie Peak block, north of the shear zone, the U–Pb apatite ages are 2.4–2.1 Ga, the granitic rocks are unmetamorphosed and supracrustal rocks record only low-T amphibolite facies metamorphism that is Archean in age. Peak mineral assemblages in the Palmer Canyon block include (a) quartz–biotite–plagioclase–garnet–staurolite–kyanite in the pelitic schists; (b) quartz–biotite–plagioclase–low-Ca amphiboles–kyanite in Mg–Al-rich schists, and locally (c) hornblende–plagioclase–garnet in amphibolites. All rock types show abundant textural evidence of decompression and retrograde re-equilibration. Notable among the texturally late minerals are cordierite and sapphirine, which occur in coronas around kyanite in Mg–Al-rich schists. Thermobarometry from texturally early and late assemblages for samples from different areas within the Palmer Canyon block define decompression from >7 kbar to <3 kbar. The high-pressure regional metamorphism is interpreted to be a response to thrusting associated with the Medicine Bow orogeny at c. 1.78–1.76 Ga. At this time, the north-central Laramie Range was tectonically thickened by as much as 12 km. This crustal thickening extended for more than 60 km north of the Cheyenne belt in southern Wyoming. Late in the orogenic cycle, rocks of the Palmer Canyon block were uplifted and unroofed as the result of transpression along the Laramie Peak shear zone to produce the widespread decompression textures. The Proterozoic tectonic history of the central Laramie Range is similar to exhumation that accompanied late-orogenic oblique convergence in many Phanerozoic orogenic belts.     

Application of SEM-EBSD to regional scale shear zone analysis: A case study of the Bhavani Shear Zone,South India

The Bhavani Shear Zone (BSZ), part of the Palghat-Cauvery shear system of southern India, comprises a number of subparallel shear zones ranging in width from a few centimetres to tens of metres. These shear zones are characterised by progressive mylonitisation and shear fabrics corresponding to increasing strain, as documented by grain size reduction, flattening, elongation and dimensional preferred orientation of constituent minerals (quartz, hornblende, biotite, plagioclase and orthoclase). However, SEM-EBSD measured crystal preferred orientations (CPO) of these minerals are more complex and indicate interchange of maximum (X) and intermediate (Y) tectonic axes during different phases of deformation, with the minimum axis (Z) remaining approximately constant. The tectonic evolution of the BSZ and the disposition of the surrounding Archaean and Pan-African granulites are interpreted therefore in terms of polyphase deformation involving both dip-slip and strike-slip movement events in a multiply reactivated setting. SEM-EBSD CPO analysis provides clearer indication of potentially conflicting movement directions that are otherwise poorly constrained by shear markers and shear sense indicators.     

新疆尾亚地区石英二长闪长岩的岩浆混合成因

新疆东天山的尾亚钒钛磁铁矿矿区,在花岗岩中含有大量闪长岩包体,而且花岗岩与闪长岩相互包裹、渗透,并在花岗岩与闪长岩接触带形成二者混合的产物——岩浆混合岩。通过野外特征、岩相学和矿物成分对比,发现矿区中部的石英二长闪长(斑)岩体与岩浆混合岩完全相同,表明该岩体系岩浆混合成因。各类参与岩浆混合作用岩石的岩相学和矿物学表现出典型的岩浆混合作用特征。矿物不平衡组构主要有:钾长石的更长环斑结构、斑晶的环边结构、针状磷灰石发育、暗色矿物的聚晶团块、岩浆混合岩中出现钾长石"变晶"等等。各类岩石中斜长石和角闪石的主要氧化物成分对SiO_2(%)表现出类似全岩哈克图解的线性关系。主要造岩矿物的化学成分以及钾长石巨晶的化学成分剖面,反映出本区岩浆混合作用有化学混合的参与。黑云母的化学成分表明,本区岩浆混合为以壳慢混源为基础的混合作用。     

Metamorphic differentiation at Einasleigh,Northern Queensland

Biotite‐muscovite‐garnet gneisses at Einasleigh contain quartz‐feldspar veins composed of the same minerals as found in the enclosing rock. The vein‐gneiss boundaries are commonly irregular and on a microscopic scale, gradational.

Certain amphibolite layers contain quartz‐feldspar veins composed of the same minerals as found in the amphibolite. Hornblende‐rich extraction zones surround these veins, and material balance calculations show that all or nearly all of the vein‐forming matter was locally derived. Variation in the abundance of hornblende and plagioclase in the amphibolite as a function of distance from a quartz‐feldspar vein can be expressed by error‐function curves, thus suggesting that the mineral‐segregation process was diffusion‐controlled. During the mineral rearrangement, the Na and Ca contents of plagioclase have evidently remained unchanged, but the vein hornblende has become slightly richer in Fe+3, Mg, and Ca, and poorer in Si and Al relative to hornblende in the adjacent amphibolite.

A certain biotite‐plagioclase rock forms layers and boudins in the gneisses and contains pegmatite veins composed of the same minerals as found in the host rock. The plagioclase in these veins is more sodic than that in the host rock while the biotite contains slightly more Ti and Fe+² and less Si and Mg than the biotite of the enclosing rock.

The data indicate that significant portions of the vein‐forming matter at Einasleigh were locally derived. The chemistry of some minerals has changed slightly during the segregation process, resulting possibly from different diffusion rates for the different mineral‐forming constituents.     

Usage of strain and vorticity analyses to interpret large‐scale fold mechanisms along the Sanandaj–Sirjan HP‐LT metamorphic belt,SW Iran

3D finite strain analyses and kinematic vorticity measurements were carried out on the Loghon Anticline within the HP‐LT Sanandaj–Sirjan metamorphic belt (Neyriz area, SW Iran). Rƒ/φ and Fry methods were used on the strain markers (e.g. deformed fossils) to interpret geometric relationships between the fold axis, strain ellipsoid axes and shear zone boundaries. The results indicate the predominance of prolate strain in the anticline. Quantitative kinematic analyses show that the W_k parameter is 0. 67 ± 0. 06 (i.e. pure‐shear dominated non‐coaxial flow). This study quantitatively supports the establishment of a dextral transpressive system, which is responsible for the development of the large‐scale right‐lateral shear zones that strike sub‐parallel to the major folds. Flexural shear combined with regional dextral‐shear is suggested to be the most common mechanism of folding in this area. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kinematic analyses of orogen-parallel L-tectonites from Pelling-Munsiari thrust of Sikkim Himalayan fold thrust belt: Insights from multiple,incremental strain markers

Fault rocks associated with the Pelling thrust (PT) in the Sikkim Himalayan fold thrust belt (FTB) change from SL tectonites to local, transport-parallel L-tectonites that are exposed in discontinuous klippen south of the PT zone. By estimating the incremental kinematic vorticity number (W_k) from quartz c-axes fabric, oblique fabric, and subgrains, we reconstruct a first-order, kinematic path of these L-tectonites. Quartz c-axes fabric suggests that the deformation initiated as pure-shear dominated (∼56–96%) that progressively became simple-shear dominated (∼29–54%), as recorded by the oblique fabric and subgrains in the L-tectonites. These rocks record a non-steady deformation where the kinematic vorticity varied spatially and temporally within the klippen.The L-tectonites record ∼30% greater pure-shear than the PT fault rocks outside the klippen, and the greatest pure-shear dominated flow among the published vorticity data from major fault rocks of the Himalayan FTB. The relative decrease in the transport-parallel simple-shear component within the klippen, and associated relative increase of transport-perpendicular, pure-shear component, support the presence of a sub-PT lateral ramp in the Sikkim Himalayan FTB. This study demonstrates the influence of structural architecture for fault systems for controlling spatial and temporal variations of deformation fabrics and kinematic path of deforming thrust wedges.     

Kinematic,finite strain and vorticity analysis of the Sisters Shear Zone,Stewart Island,New Zealand

The Sisters Shear Zone (SSZ) on Stewart Island, New Zealand, is a greenschist-facies extensional shear zone active prior to and possibly during the development of the Pacific–Antarctica spreading ridge at ∼76 Ma. We report quantitative kinematic and rotation data as well as apatite fission-track (AFT) ages from the SSZ. Early kinematic indicators associated with the NNE-trending stretching lineation formed under upper greenschist-facies metamorphism and show alternating top-to-the-NNW and top-to-the-SSE senses of shear. During progressive exhumation lowermost greenschist-facies and brittle-ductile kinematic indicators depict a more uniform top-to-the-SSE sense of shear in the topmost SSZ just below the detachment plane. Deformed metagranites in the SSZ allow the reconstruction of deformation and flow parameters. The mean kinematic vorticity number (W_m) ranges from 0.10 to 0.89; smaller numbers prevail in the deeper parts of the shear zone with a higher degree of simple shear deformation in the upper parts of the shear zone (deeper and upper parts relate to present geometry). High finite strain intensity correlates with low W_m and high W_m numbers near the detachment correlate with relatively weak strain intensity. Finite strain shows oblate geometries. Overall, our data indicate vertical and possibly temporal variations in deformation of the SSZ. Most AFT ages cluster around 85–75 Ma. We interpret the AFT ages to reflect the final stages of continental break-up just before and possibly during the initiation of sea-floor spreading between New Zealand and Antarctica.     

Application of General Shear Theory to the Study of Formation Mechanism of the Metamorphic Core Complex:A Case Study of Xiaoqinling in Central China

The kinematic vorticity number and strain of the mylonitic zone related to the detachment fault increase from ESE to WNW along the moving direction of the upper plate of the Xiaoqinling metamorphic core complex (XMCC) and the geometry of quartz c-axis fabrics changes progressively from crossed girdles to single girdles in the same direction. Therefore, pure shear is dominant in the ESE part of the XMCC while simple shear becomes increasingly important towards WNW. However, the shear type does not change with the strain across the shear zone, thus the variation of shear type is of significance in indicating the formation mechanism. The granitic plutons within the XMCC came from the deep source and their emplacement was an active and forceful upwelling prior to the detachment faulting. The PTt path demonstrates that magmatism is an important cause for the formation of the XMCC. The formation mechanism of the XMCC is supposed to be active plutonism and passive detachment. Crustal thickening and magmatic do     

Application of kinematic vorticity and gold mineralization for the wall rock alterations of shear zone at Dungash gold mining,Central Eastern Desert,Egypt

The use of porphyroclasts rotating in a flowing matrix to estimate mean kinematic vorticity number (Wm) is important for quantifying the relative contributions of pure and simple shear in wall rocks alterations of shear zone at Dungash gold mine. Furthermore, it shows the relationship between the gold mineralization and deformation and also detects the orientation of rigid objects during progressive deformation. The Dungash gold mine area is situated in an EW-trending quartz vein along a shear zone in metavolcanic and metasedimentary host rocks in the Eastern Desert of Egypt. These rocks are associated with the major geologic structures which are attributed to various deformational stages of the Neoproterozoic basement rocks. We conclude that finite strain in the deformed rocks is of the same order of magnitude for all units of metavolcano-sedimentary rocks. The kinematic vorticity number for the metavolcanic and metasedimentary samples in the Dungash area range from 0.80 to 0.92, and together with the strain data suggest deviations from simple shear. It is concluded that nappe stacking occurred early during the underthrusting event probably by brittle imbrication and that ductile strain was superimposed on the nappe structure during thrusting. Furthermore, we conclude that disseminated mineralization, chloritization, carbonatization and silicification of the wall rocks are associated with fluids migrating along shearing, fracturing and foliation of the metamorphosed wall rocks.     

Structures,kinematic analysis,rheological parameters and temperature-pressure estimate of the Mesozoic Xingcheng-Taili ductile shear zone in the North China Craton

The NE to ENE trending Mesozoic Xingcheng-Taili ductile shear zone of the northeastern North China Craton was shaped by three phases of deformation. Deformation phase D₁ is characterized by a steep, generally E–W striking gneissosity. It was then overprinted by deformation phase D₂ with NE-sinistral shear with K-feldspar porphyroclasts forming a subhorizontal low-angle stretching lineation on a steep foliation. During deformation phase D₃, lateral motion accommodated by ENE sinistral strike-slip shear zones dominated. Associated fabrics developed at upper greenschist metamorphic facies conditions and show the deformation characteristics of middle- to shallow crustal levels. In some parts, the older structures have been in turn overprinted by late-stage sinistral D₃ shearing. Finite strain and kinematic vorticity in all deformed granitic rocks indicate a prolate ellipsoid (L-S tectonites) near plane strain. Simple shear-dominated general shear during D₃ deformation is probably of general significance. The quartz c-axis textures indicate prism-gliding with a dominant rhomb <a> slip and basal <a> slip system formed mainly at low-middle temperatures. Mineral deformation behavior, quartz c-axis textures, quartz grain size and the Kruhl thermometer demonstrate that the ductile shear zone developed under greenschist facies metamorphic conditions at deformation temperatures ranging from 400 to 500 °C. Dislocation creep is the main deformation mechanism at a shallow crustal level. Fractal analysis showed that the boundaries of recrystallized quartz grains had statistically self-similarities. Differential stresses deduced from dynamically recrystallized quartz grain size are at around 20–39 MPa, and strain rates in the order of 10⁻¹² to 10⁻¹⁴ s⁻¹. This indicates deformation of granitic rocks in the Xingcheng-Taili ductile shear zone at low strain rates, which is consistent with most other ductile shear zones. Hornblende-plagioclase thermometer and white mica barometer indicate metamorphic conditions of medium pressures at around ca. 3–5 kbar and temperatures of 400–500 °C within greenschist facies conditions. The main D₃ deformation of the ENE-trending sinistral strike-slip ductile shearing is related to the roll-back of the subducting Pacific plate beneath the North China Craton.     

运动学涡度和极摩尔圆的基本原理与应用

运动学涡度是岩石递进变形中非同性的一种量度，利用其对韧性剪切带进行应变分解，确定剪切作用类型是当今构造地质学研究的较新课题。极摩尔圆同时适用共轴和非共为形，是应变分析的一种有利工具，并特别适用于从应变测量数据求取运动学涡度；从力学理论角度对运动学涡度进行了系统而简明的论述，地极摩尔圆的原理进行了推导，提出了它们在韧性剪切带应变分析中的应用。     

东天山图拉尔根大型铜镍硫化物矿床的斜长石主量成分特征：对矿床成因的指示

图拉尔根镍铜矿床产于康古尔塔格-黄山韧性剪切带NEE向的次级挤压破碎带上,位于黄山-镜儿泉岩浆铜镍成矿带的东段。矿田范围内有I、II、III号3个镁铁质-超镁铁质杂岩体,主要铜镍矿体就位于I号基性-超基性杂岩体内。该杂岩体主要包括辉长岩、角闪橄榄岩、二辉橄榄岩、角闪辉橄岩等岩相,其中角闪橄榄岩为主要的赋矿岩相。本文通过对矿物颗粒镜下形态、结构、构造的观察,对钻孔中赋矿岩相、不含矿岩相的斜长石进行系统的成分分析和对比,来进一步限定岩浆的演化及矿床成因。图拉尔根矿床中主要造岩矿物的结晶次序为:橄榄石-辉石(角闪石)-角闪石。仅见极少数斜长石颗粒包裹橄榄石,而与辉石和角闪石没有明显的包裹关系,可能是略晚于橄榄石结晶的另一单独结晶序列的矿物。赋矿的角闪橄榄岩中斜长石与硫化物含量呈负相关性。斜长石中SiO2和Al2O3含量相对集中,CaO、Na2O、K2O含量变化范围大。SiO2含量从深部到浅部,表现出含量从低到高变化的趋势,说明岩体中斜长石受同源岩浆结晶分异作用的控制。越靠近富硫化物的角闪橄榄岩,斜长石中CaO和Al2O3含量越高,SiO2、Al2O3、CaO、Na2O、K2O等主量元素的含量变化范围较大。因此,斜长石的主量成分可以作为接近硫化物富矿体的指示。     

A comment on diffusion and the displacement of atoms in metamorphic transformations

Experimental data on diffusion in olivine , are used to define certain terms – diffusion coefficient, jump frequency, characteristic distance, random walk – that are useful in a discussion of atom displacements under natural conditions. Examples of atom displacements in two metamorphic terranes of the Canadian Precambrian Shield are then examined, as follows. (i) In a high‐grade metamorphic terrane in the Mid‐Proterozoic Grenville Province (Otter Lake Area), Mg concentration gradients about dolomite microcrystals in calcite and Na gradients about albite microcrystals in K‐feldspar are viewed as stranded Mg–Ca and Na–K interdiffusion gradients, formed by exsolution during slow cooling from ~700 to ~400 °C. (ii) In the Archean Slave Province (Yellowknife area), the crystallization of sillimanite, near andalusite but within crystals of quartz, possibly occurred by coupled Al–Si and oxygen–vacancy interdiffusion in quartz at ~550 °C. And the crystallization of garnet from chlorite occurred by the two‐way crystal‐boundary diffusion of several kinds of atoms across distances ranging to 3 mm. (iii) In the Otter Lake area, the crystallization of orthopyroxene–hornblende–spinel reaction zones at boundaries between crystals of olivine and plagioclase in metagabbro, evidently occurred by the mechanism of interstitial diffusion, that transported Mg, Fe, Mn and O atoms across the reaction zone from olivine to the plagioclase–(hornblende+spinel) boundary, and Si, Al, Ca and Na atoms from plagioclase to the olivine–orthopyroxene boundary, accompanied by NaSi–CaAl interdiffusion in plagioclase, and the addition of hydrogen and minor Ti, Zn, F, Cl and K from beyond the reaction zone. Also, centimetric reaction zones, with abundant biotite and plagioclase, at boundaries between K‐feldspar gneiss and deformed amphibolite dykes, evidently formed by the reaction, strained hornblende (in amphibolite) + K‐feldspar (in gneiss)→biotite (in amphibolite) + plagioclase (in gneiss), with crystal‐boundary diffusion of (Na + Ca) atoms and of K atoms across the reaction zone.