Trace element ratios as indicators of source mixing and magma differentiation of alkali granitoids and basites of the Haldzan-Buregtey massif and the Haldzan-Buregtey rare-metal deposit, western Mongolia

The Haldzan-Buregtey group of alkali granitoid massifs with an age of 391–395 Ma is located among the Early Caledonides of the Ozernaya zone of western Mongolia and consists of seven intrusive phases, including two rare-metal phases with Zr, Mn, Y, and REE mineralization. In order to identify the magma sources of the massifs, the abundances and canonical ratios of incompatible trace elements in the rocks of various intrusive phases are analyzed and compared with those in the volcanic rocks of Pantelleria island. The latter rocks were taken as the reference association of rocks linked through crystallization differentiation. The rocks of the Haldzan-Buregtey Complex were formed by mixing an OIB source (with participation of MORB) and host ophiolites, while alkali granitoids of phase 2 originated via mixting these sources with the host non-alkaline granitoids. Practically all rocks have mixed sources, with all transitional varieties from OIB, MORB to ophiolites. OIB was the main source for the rocks, while the host ophiolites could serve as sources for anatectic magmas or contaminants of the magmas of other considered rocks. The rare-metal granitoids were produced from the same sources as the barren magmatic rocks of the Haldzan-Buregtey Complex. The rocks of the Haldzan-Buregtey Complex show a bimodal distribution, with the practically complete absence of intermediate varieties between basite dikes and syenite-granite rocks. This seems to be related to the formation of the least differentiated sialic rocks (nordmarkites, pantellerites, some alkali granites) by anatexis of their own parental basite rocks (dolerites and basites), their cumulates, or ophiolites. Most of the phase-2 alkali granites likely resulted from the differentiation of the phase-1 nordmarkites coupled with assimilation of the host ophiolites. Ekerites are geochemically similar to the nordmarkites and can be interpreted as their residual in situ melts or their anatectic melts.     

Late Paleozoic gabbroids of western Transbaikalia: U-Pb and Ar-Ar isotopic ages,composition, and petrogenesis

We provide new isotope-geochronological evidence for the synchronous occurrence of Late Paleozoic basic and granitoid magmatism in western Transbaikalia; this is a strong argument for the contribution of mantle magmas to granitoid petrogenesis. The Late Paleozoic basic rocks originated from the phlogopite-garnet-bearing lherzolitic mantle, which melted under “hydration conditions.” The specific features of Late Paleozoic magmatism in western Transbaikalia were determined by the combination of the activity of a low-energy mantle plume with the final stage of the Hercynian orogeny in space and time. At the early stage of magmatism, during the formation of the Barguzin granites,the plume had only a thermal influence on the crustal rocks heated as a result of Hercynian fold-thrust deformations. The mixing of mantle basic and crustal salic magmas at different levels marked the transition from crustal to mixed (mantle-crustal) granites, which include all post-Barguzin complexes (probably, except for alkali granites). In the geologic evolution of Transbaikalia, the Late Paleozoic magmatism was postorogenic, but it was initiated and influenced by the mantle plume.     

Composition,sources, and mechanisms of origin of rare-metal granitoids in the Late Paleozoic Eastern Sayan zone of alkaline magmatism: A case study of the Ulaan Tolgoi massif

The Ulaan Tolgoi massif of rare-metal (Ta, Nb, and Zr) granites was formed at approximately 300Ma in the Eastern Sayan zone of rare-metal alkaline magmatism. The massif consists of alkaline salic rocks of various composition (listed in chronologic order of their emplacement): alkaline syenite → alkaline syenite pegmatite → pantellerite → alkaline granite, including ore-bearing alkaline granite, whose Ta and Nb concentrations reach significant values. The evolution of the massif ended with the emplacement of trachybasaltic andesite. The rocks of the massif show systematic enrichment in incompatible elements in the final differentiation products of the alkaline salic magmas. The differentiation processes during the early evolution of the massif occurred in an open system, with influx of melts that contained various proportions of incompatible elements. The magma system was closed during the origin of the ore-bearing granites. Rare-metal granitoids in the Eastern Sayan zone were produced by magmas formed by interaction between mantle melts (which formed the mafic dikes) with crustal material. The mantle melts likely affected the lower parts of the crust and either induced its melting, with later mixing the anatectic and mantle magmas, or assimilated crustal material and generated melts with crustal–mantle characteristics. The origin of the Eastern Sayan zone of rare-metal alkaline magmatism was related to rifting, which was triggered by interaction between the Tarim and Barguzin mantle plumes. The Eastern Sayan zone was formed in the marginal part of the Barguzin magmatic province, and rare-metal magmas in it were likely generated in relation with the activity of the Barguzin plume.     

Trachytes,comendites, and pantellerites of the Late Paleozoic bimodal rift association of the Noen and Tost ranges,southern Mongolia: Differentiation and contamination of peralkaline salic melts

The bimodal association of the Noen and Tost ranges is ascribed to the Gobi-Tien Shan rift zone and was formed 318 Ma ago at the continental margin of the North Asian paleocontinent. It is made up of volcanic series of alternating basalts and peralkaline rhyolites with subordinate trachytes, dike belts, and massifs of peralkaline granites. The association also includes a coeval massif of biotite granites. Based on Al₂O₃ and FeO_tot contents, the peralkaline rhyolites are subdivided into comendites (FeO_tot 1.5–5.7 wt %, Al₂O₃ 10.5–15.4 wt %) and pantellerites (FeO_tot 5.2–7.5 wt %, Al₂O₃ 9.1–10.2 wt %). The peralkaline salic rocks of the bimodal association were formed by the crystallization differentiation of rift basaltic magmas combined with crustal assimilation. The comendites, pantellerites, and peralkaline granites inherited negative Nb and Ta and positive K and Pb anomalies from basalts. They are also similar to basalts in Nd isotope composition (?_Nd(T) = 5.5–7.4) and have nearly mantle oxygen isotope composition (δ¹⁸O = 5.9–7.3‰). The most differentiated and least contaminated rocks of the bimodal series of the Noen and Tost ranges are pantellerites. Calculations indicate that the fraction of the residual pantellerite melt was 8% or less of the parental basaltic magma. The comendites were derived from peralkaline salic melts by the assimilation of anatectic crustal melts compositionally similar to biotite granites. The formation of the latter within the Noen and Tost ranges is explained by the specific geodynamic position of the Gobi-Tien Shan rift zone, which was formed near a paleocontinental margin that evolved in an active margin regime shortly before the beginning of rifting.     

Revisiting Early–Middle Jurassic igneous activity in the Nanling Mountains,South China: Geochemistry and implications for regional geodynamics

Early–Middle Jurassic igneous rocks (190–170 Ma) are distributed in an E–W-trending band within the Nanling Tectonic Belt, and have a wide range of compositions but are only present in limited volumes. This scenario contrasts with the uniform but voluminous Middle–Late Jurassic igneous rocks (165–150 Ma) in this area. The Early–Middle Jurassic rocks include oceanic-island basalt (OIB)-type alkali basalts, tholeiitic basalts and gabbros, bimodal volcanic rocks, syenites, A-type granites, and high-K calc–alkaline granodiorites. Geochemical and isotopic data indicate that alkaline and tholeiitic basalts and syenites were derived from melting of the asthenospheric mantle, with asthenosphere-derived magmas mixing with variable amounts of magmas derived from melting of metasomatized lithospheric mantle. In comparison, A-type granites in the study area were probably generated by shallow dehydration-related melting of hornblende-bearing continental crustal rocks that were heated by contemporaneous intrusion of mantle-derived basaltic magmas, and high-K calc-alkaline granodiorites resulted from the interaction between melts from upwelling asthenospheric mantle and the lower crust. The Early–Middle Jurassic magmatic event is spatially variable in terms of lithology, geochemistry, and isotopic systematics. This indicates that the deep mantle sources of the magmas that formed these igneous rocks were significantly heterogeneous, and magmatism had a gradual decrease in the involvement of the asthenospheric mantle from west to east. These variations in composition and sourcing of magmas, in addition to the spatial distribution and the thermal structure of the crust–mantle boundary during this magmatic event, indicates that these igneous rocks formed during a period of rifting after the Indosinian Orogeny rather than during subduction of the paleo-Pacific oceanic crust.     

Late Paleozoic and Early Mesozoic rare-metal magmatism of Central Asia: Stages, provinces, and formation settings

Late Paleozoic and Early Mesozoic epochs in the formation history of the Central Asian Foldbelt are distinguished by high rare-metal productivity. A number of large REE, Ta, Nb, Zr, Be, Sn, Li, Mo, Re, and other deposits were formed at that time. As a rule, they are of the magmatic origin and related to the intrusions of highly evolved igneous rocks varying in composition from alkaline ultramafic with carbonatites to alkali and Li-F granites. In general, the occurrences of rare-metal magmatism are related to the rift zones of the Central Asian Rift System formed 310?C190 Ma ago and conjugated with a consecutive series of the Barguzin, Hangay, and Hentiy zonal igneous provinces characterized by the large batholiths in their centers and rift zones in the framework. Such a structure indicates that these provinces were formed above isometric mantle sources or plumes with participation of large-scale crustal anatexis. The evident links of rare-metal deposits to occurrences of mantle magmatism within the zonal igneous provinces show that plume sources played an important role in their formation.     

Early paleozoic adakites in the eastern sayan: Geochemistry and sources

The paper reports data on the geochemistry of Early Paleozoic granitoids in the Munku-Sardyk Range, Eastern Sayan. It has been established that the rocks composing this pluton have compositional characteristics corresponding to the genetically unified association of NEB (Nb-enriched basites) and adakites. The NEB basites, adakites and adakite granites compose phases 1, 2, and 3 of the pluton, respectively. Geochemical and isotopic data indicate that the NEB basites and adakites were produced by the melting of a single lithospheric source (subcontinental mantle metasomatized by melting products of basites from subducted oceanic lithosphere), and the adakite granites were formed by the mixing of the parental adakite magma and continental crustal material.     

Petrology and composition of rare-metal alkaline rocks in the South Gobi Desert,Mongolia

Earlier, a belt of alkali-granite plutons and a carbonatite province were discovered in the South Gobi Desert, Mongolia. The Lugingol pluton of pseudoleucitic syenites with carbonatites was assigned to the alkali-granite belt. However, new dating showed that it is 40 Myr younger than the Khan-Bogdo pluton and a large fault separates it from the alkali-granite belt. In the same part of the South Gobi Desert, a dike series of alkaline K-shonkinites with a rare-metal carbonatite vein was found by V.I. Kovalenko west of the Lugingol pluton, near Mt. Baruun Hasar Uula, and a dike series of alkali and nepheline syenites was found by us northeast of the Lugingol pluton. These data give grounds to distinguish an intrusive complex of K-alkaline shonkinites and leucitic syenites with Late Paleozoic REE-bearing carbonatites. Thus, three alkaline-rock complexes of different ages are distinguished in the South Gobi Desert. We present refined geological maps of these complexes. The plutons of all three complexes are deposits of trace elements (REE, Nb, Zr, Y, P). The chemical composition of the silicate rocks of the complex, rare-metal agpaitic pegmatites, and carbonatite and apatite rare-metal ores was considered in detail. Shonkinites from Mt. Baruun Hasar Uula and the Mountain Pass mine (United States) and their carbonatites, along with the Lugingol carbonatites, belong to a single association of K-alkaline rocks and carbonatites, as evidenced by their identical chemical, mineral, and geochemical rare-metal compositions. Rare-earth element patterns and spidergrams show similarities and differences between the rare-metal rocks of three complexes as well as paragenetic differences between their rare-metal minerals. A rare process is described—the amorphization of rare-metal minerals, related to their high-temperature crystallization in a medium with abnormal silica contents of the Khan-Bogdo pegmatites. The parental magmas of the alkali-carbonatite complexes were generated from the EM-2 contaminated mantle that had undergone recycling, whereas the parental magmas of the Khan-Bogdo agpaitic alkali granites were produced from depleted mantle.     

Rare earth elements in some igneous rocks in the Oslo rift, Norway

Rare earth element (REE) concentrations have been determined for 27 plutonic rocks in the Permian Oslo rift, including kjelsåsite/larvikites, lardalites, nordmarkites, ekerites and Drammen granites.

The kjelsåsite/larvikites from different parts of the rift have very similar REE concentrations and must be derived from a source or sources homogeneous with respect to REE.

The genetic relations between the kjelsåsite/larvikites and the other rocks were tested by comparing observed REE enrichment factors with calculated ones based on hypothetical fractionation relations derived from petrographic mixing calculations. Several of the analyzed nordmarkites may be derived from kjelsåsitic/larvikitic parent magmas: the ekerites are closely related to the nordmarkites.     

Genesis and crystallization of ultramafic alkaline carbonatite magmas of Siberia: ore potential,mantle sources,and relationship with plume activity

This paper discusses the genesis of large Siberian alkaline massifs hosting major ore deposits. These reference massifs are grouped based on the predominance of alkalies (K or Na) and their agpaitic index (miaskitic and agpaitic). We proposed new emplacement schemes for the Tomtor, Murun, Burpala, Synnyr, and Bilibino massifs supported by petrochemical and geochemical data, as well as new age estimates. Types of their ore potential and genesis of rare-metal mineralization are discussed. The formational types of carbonatites as the main ore-bearing rocks are given. The depth of magma generation and types of mantle sources are determined using isotopic data from previous studies. A model of plume-related generation of ultramafic alkaline magmas is proposed.     

Age and geological position of the Okunyovo rare-metal ore magmatic complex (Western Sayan Mountains)

Geological, geochemical, and geochronological studies of rocks have been performed at the Okunyovo rare-metal ore magmatic complex (Western Sayan Mountains) composed of alkali granites and related F–Be mineralization. The geological data obtained and the features of the geochemical similarity of granite and ore mineralization identified are indicative of their genetic relation. Riebeckite from two granite samples has been subjected to ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar analyses. The estimated age values of 481.5 ± 2.7 Ma and 486.5 ± 5.8 Ma are consistent within the limits of error and determine the age of Okunyovo alkali granite within 481–486 Ma ago. These data have made it possible to relate the studied rock and ore formation to the development of the Early Paleozoic ASFR controlled by the mantle plume. Along with the Okunyovo rare-metal granite massif, within the Sayan Region of the magmatic province, there are a number of Early Paleozoic alkali massifs related to the Aryskan, Raduga, and Kazyr rare-metal deposits. They are located in the conjugation area of the Western and Eastern Sayan ridges, in the Early Paleozoic Eastern Sayan rare-metal magmatism zone specialized in Be, W, Mo, Zr, Nb, and REEs.     

微量元素和Pb同位素对西藏雅鲁藏布构造带日喀则蛇绿岩形成环境的制约

西藏南部雅鲁藏布构造带分布有一系列蛇绿岩体。人们对这些蛇绿岩体的形成环境仍然存在较大的争议。雅鲁藏布构造带中段日喀则蛇绿岩路曲和大竹曲岩体镁铁质岩石的微量元素和Pb同位素特征指示其母岩浆起源于亏损地幔源区。这些镁铁质岩石的La/Sm和Sm/Yb比值显示其岩浆产生于尖晶石二辉橄榄岩地幔经过大约10%部分熔融作用。综合岩相学和全岩主量元素特征暗示这些镁铁质岩石形成于无水玄武质岩浆。而且这些镁铁质岩石的微量元素和REE元素配分模式均非常相似于N-MORB,除了弱Nb-Ta负异常。这些特征表明路曲和大竹曲岩体形成于大洋中脊环境。此外,路曲和大竹曲镁铁质岩石的Pb同位素结果指示其地幔源区与印度洋MORB地幔域具有相似的地球化学特征。这些镁铁质岩石N-MORB标准化微量元素模式显示弱Nb-Ta负异常可能是由于其地幔源区交代了古老的俯冲带物质。     

Comparison of Proterozoic and Phanerozoic rift-related basaltic-granitic magmatism

This paper compares the 1.67–1.47 Ga rapakivi granites of Finland and vicinity to the 1.70–1.68 Ga rapakivi granites of the Beijing area in China, the anorogenic 130 Ma granites of western Namibia, and the 20–15 Ma granites of the Colorado River extensional corridor in the Basin and Range Province of southern Nevada. In Finland and China, the tectonic setting was incipient, aborted rifting of Paleoproterozoic or Archean continental crust, in Namibia it was continental rifting and mantle plume activity that led to the opening of southern Atlantic at 130 Ma. The 20–15 Ma granites of southern Nevada were related to rifting that followed the Triassic–Paleogene subduction of the Farallon plate beneath the southwestern United States. In all cases, extension-related magmatism was bimodal and accompanied by swarms of diabase and rhyolite–quartz latite dikes. Rapakivi texture with plagioclase-mantled alkali feldspar megacrysts occurs in varying amounts in the granites, and the latest intrusive phases are commonly topaz-bearing granites or rhyolites that may host tin, tungsten, and beryllium mineralization. The granites are typically ferroan alkali-calcic metaluminous to slightly peraluminous rocks with A-type and within-plate geochemical and mineralogical characteristics. Isotope studies (Nd, Sr) suggest dominant crustal sources for the granites. The preferred genetic model is magmatic underplating involving dehydration melting of intermediate-felsic deep crust. Juvenile mafic magma was incorporated either via magma mingling and mixing, or by remelting of newly hybridized lower crust. In Namibia, partial melting of subcontinental lithospheric mantle was caused by the Tristan mantle plume, in the other cases the origin of the mantle magmatism is controversial. For the Fennoscandian suites, extensive long-time mantle upwelling associated with periodic, migrating melting of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle, governed by heat flow and deep crustal structures, is suggested.     

Geodynamics and sources of preaccretionary magmatism in western Mongolia

The paper reports original isotopic and geochemical data on Early Precambrian lavas in the Ozernaya Zone in Mongolia. According to their normalized trace-element patterns, the rocks are classified into the following groups: (1) rocks similar to N-MORB; (2) rocks similar to E-MORB; (3) basalts enriched in trace elements, with HFSE minima; and (4) basalts depleted in trace elements, with HFSE minima. All of the lava types could be produced in an island arc—backarc basin system. The magmatic rocks of group (1) were likely formed in a spreading backarc basin, and those of group (2) were likely generated within the influ- ence zone of a hotspot or were derived from heterogeneous upper mantle domains. The lavas of group (3) seem to be fragments of an ensimatic, relatively primitive island arc. The basalts and basaltic andesites of group (4) were likely produced by mixing melts of groups (1) and (3). The fact that lavas of groups (1) and (4) sometimes intercalate within a single stratigraphic section suggests that the extension and subduction zones were closely spaced and operated simultaneously. The magmas of groups (1), (2), and (3) were derived from different mantle sources, which possessed different ratios of trace elements and were different in isotopic composition.     

Isotopic and geochemical zoning of Devonian magmatism in the Altai–Sayan rift system: Composition and geodynamic nature of mantle sources

Based on the systematic investigation of the geochemical and isotopic (Sr and Nd) characteristics of basic rocks from various volcanic areas of the Devonian Altai-Sayan rift system, the compositions of mantle magma sources were characterized, and the geodynamic scenarios of their entrainment into rifting processes were reconstructed. It was found that the titanium-rich basic rocks (2.5 < TiO₂ < 4.2 wt %) of this region are enriched in lithophile trace elements, including the rare earth elements, compared with N-MORB and are similar in composition to intraplate subalkali basalts of the OIB type. In contrast, moderate-titanium basic rocks (1.1 < TiO₂ < 2.5 wt %) are mainly depleted in the highly charged incompatible elements Th, U, Nb, and Ta (La/Yb = 1.2−2.2) and, to a lesser extent, in Zr, Hf, and LREE ((La/Yb)_N < 7), but are enriched in Ba. With respect to these characteristics, the moderate-titanium basites are similar to rocks formed in subduction environments. The geochemical parameters of the basites are strongly variable, which probably reflects the heterogeneity of the mantle sources that contributed to the formation of the rift system. In particular, the most notable variations in rock composition related to an increase in the contribution of an OIB-type source to magma composition were observed in the eastern direction, i.e., inland from the paleocontinent margin. The isotopic composition of the basites is relatively stable within individual rift zones and significantly variable at a comparison of rocks from different zones of the region. Based on the isotopic characteristics of the rocks, three melt sources were identified. One of them is chemically similar to the PREMA and is a common component in all observed trends of isotopic variations, irrespective of the position of the particular assemblage in the structure of the region. This component dominates the composition of the titaniumrich basalts with geochemical signatures of the derivatives of enriched mantle reservoirs of the E-MORB and OIB types and is considered as a plume source. Two other isotopic melt sources are related to subduction processes, which is indicated by their dominance during the formation of the moderate-titanium basalts showing the geochemical signatures (primarily, Ta-Nb depletion) of typical volcanic-arc rocks. These differences are consistent with the formation of the Altai-Sayan rift system in a complex geodynamic setting, which developed under the influence of intraplate magma sources (mantle plume) on the region of melt generation in an active continental margin (subduction zone).     

Late Neoproterozoic alkaline magmatism in the Arabian–Nubian Shield: the postcollisional A-type granite of Sahara–Umm Adawi pluton, Sinai, Egypt

The Sahara–Umm Adawi pluton is a Late Neoproterozoic postcollisional A-type granitoid pluton in Sinai segment of the Arabian–Nubian Shield that was emplaced within voluminous calc-alkaline I-type granite host rocks during the waning stages of the Pan-African orogeny and termination of a tectonomagmatic compressive cycle. The western part of the pluton is downthrown by clysmic faults and buried beneath the Suez rift valley sedimentary fill, while the exposed part is dissected by later Tertiary basaltic dykes and crosscut along with its host rocks by a series of NNE-trending faults. This A-type granite pluton is made up wholly of hypersolvus alkali feldspar granite and is composed of perthite, quartz, alkali amphibole, plagioclase, Fe-rich red biotite, accessory zircon, apatite, and allanite. The pluton rocks are highly evolved ferroan, alkaline, and peralkaline to mildly peraluminous A-type granites, displaying the typical geochemical characteristics of A-type granites with high SiO₂, Na₂O + K₂O, FeO*/MgO, Ga/Al, Zr, Nb, Ga, Y, Ce, and rare earth elements (REE) and low CaO, MgO, Ba, and Sr. Their trace and REE characteristics along with the use of various discrimination schemes revealed their correspondence to magmas derived from crustal sources that has gone through a continent–continent collision (postorogenic or postcollisional), with minor contribution from mantle source similar to ocean island basalt. The assumption of crustal source derivation and postcollisional setting is substantiated by highly evolved nature of this pluton and the absence of any syenitic or more primitive coeval mafic rocks in association with it. The slight mantle signature in the source material of these A-type granites is owed to the juvenile Pan-African Arabian–Nubian Shield (ANS) crust (I-type calc-alkaline) which was acted as a source by partial melting of its rocks and which itself of presumably large mantle source. The extremely high Rb/Sr ratios combined with the obvious Sr, Ba, P, Ti, and Eu depletions clearly indicate that these A-type granites were highly evolved and require advanced fractional crystallization in upper crustal conditions. Crystallization temperature values inferred average around 929°C which is in consistency with the presumably high temperatures of A-type magmas, whereas the estimated depth of emplacement ranges between 20 and 30 km (upper-middle crustal levels within the 40 km relatively thick ANS crust). The geochronologically preceding Pan-African calc-alkaline I-type continental arc granitoids (the Egyptian old and younger granites) associated with these rocks are thought to be the crustal source of f this A-type granite pluton and others in the Arabian–Nubian Shield by partial melting caused by crustal thickening due to continental collision at termination of the compressive orogeny in the Arabian–Nubian Shield.     

Magmatic sources of dikes and veins in the Moncha Tundra Massif,Baltic Shield: Isotopic-geochronologic and geochemical evidence

The dike-vein complex of the Moncha Tundra Massif comprises dolerites, gabbro-pegmatites, and aplites. The dolerite dikes are classified into three groups: high-Ti ferrodolerites, ferrodolerites, low-Ti and low-Fe gabbro-dolerites. The U-Pb age of the ferrodolerites is 2505 ± 8 Ma, and the amphibole-plagioclase metagabbroids hosting a ferrodolerite dike are dated at 2516 ± 12 Ma. Data on the U-Pb isotopic system of zircon from the gabbro-pegmatites and titanite from the aplites indicate that the late magmatic evolution of the Moncha Tundra Massif proceeded at 2445 ± 1.7 Ma, and the youngest magmatic events in the massif related to the Svecofennian orogeny occurred at 1900 ± 9 Ma. The data obtained on the Sm-Nd and Rb-Sr isotopic systems and the distribution of trace elements and REE in rocks of the dike-vein complex of the massifs provide insight into the composition of the sources from which the parental magmas were derived. The high-Ti ferrodolerites were melted out of a deep-sitting plume source that contained an asthenospheric component. The ferrodolerites were derived from a mantle MORB-type source that contained a crustal component. The parental melts of the gabbro-dolerites were melted out of the lithospheric mantle depleted in incompatible elements after Archean crust-forming processes above an ascending mantle plume, with the participation of a crustal component. The gabbro-dolerites and the rocks of the layered complex of the Moncha Tundra Massif exhibit similar geochemical characteristics, which suggest that their parental melts could be derived from similar sources but with more clearly pronounced crustal contamination of the parental melts of the rocks of the massif itself. The geochemical traits of the gabbro-pegmatites are thought to be explained not only by the enrichment of the residual magmas in trace elements and a contribution of a crustal component but also by the uneven effect of sublithospheric mantle sources. The aplites were derived from a sialic crustal source.     

Geochemistry and formation conditions of rare-metal granites with various fluorine-bearing minerals (fluorite,topaz, and cryolite)

A comparative geochemical study of rare-metal granitoids with various fluorine-bearing minerals (fluorite, topaz, and cryolite) was carried out. It was shown that these rocks correspond to both plumasitic and agpaitic geochemical types. The fluorite-, topaz-, and cryolite-bearing granites of these geochemical types are distinctly different in geochemical parameters and the character of magmatic evolution. These differences are related to the composition of initial magmas and their sources. Rare-metal granitoids with fluorine-bearing minerals compose small massifs, stocks, and dike swarms. Their formation is independent of the composition and age of the country rocks or geologic structures where they occur. Original Russian Text ? V.S. Antipin, E.A. Savina, M.A. Mitichkin, 2006, published in Geokhimiya, 2006, No. 10, pp. 1040–1052.     

Geochemistry and petrology of Mesozoic-Cenozoic magmatic complexes of the southern framing of the Aldan shield: Geodynamic problems

This paper summarizes the results of long-term geological, petrological, and geochemical investigations of the Mesozoic-Cenozoic complexes of the Stanovoy Range in order to determine the main reasons for their generation and evolution. The analysis of this material showed that the compositionally variable Late Mesozoic igneous complexes of the Stanovoy Range were formed in various depth facies, from abyssal to surficial. The majority of their salic complexes show minor compositional variations, whereas the mafic complexes are more variable, especially in the southeast of the region. The southeastern Stanovoy Range comprises comparable amounts of both subalkaline and low-alkali igneous rocks, whereas the central part is dominated by subalkaline rocks, and the northwestern part contains rocks only of the shoshonite-latite series. This zoning is fundamentally different from that of typical island arcs, which are characterized by the occurrence of volcanic rocks of similar alkalinity in each zone. Extrusive and intrusive rocks with similar alkali and silica contents (and schlieren-like inclusions in the granitoids of the region) were formed from common magmas of corresponding chemical compositions. In addition, the mafic and most of the salic magmas were formed as independent melting products, whereas the magmas of intermediate composition were formed mainly by mixing of chemically contrasting liquids (i.e., salic and basic). It was shown that the available information on the magmatism of the region is best interpreted in terms of the model of mantle diapirism. In particular, mantle diapirs ascended rather slowly during the Mesozoic and occurred over the whole territory of the Stanovoy Range during the Jurassic-Cretaceous stage (J₃-K₁), when alkaline and subalkaline basalts were formed. During the Early-Late Cretaceous stage, mantle diapirs produced alkali-poor basalts in the central and eastern parts. During the Cenozoic, the diapir ascended rather rapidly but only in a small area in the eastern part of the region forming alkali basalts. In contrast to the Cenozoic, the Earth’s crust was strongly affected by mantle diapirs and related mafic magmas in the Mesozoic. As a result, crustal sequences were reworked by fluids and subsequently yielded tremendous volumes of compositionally corresponding salic magmas, which interacted and mixed with mafic magmas producing the corresponding chemical zoning. The maximum generation of crustal magmas was confined to the axial zones of ascending diapirs, where the highest energy effects took place, whereas the role of autochthonous gneissic granites increased away from the axis at the expense of typical intrusive complexes.     

Petrogenesis of the highly potassic 1.42 Ga Barrel Spring pluton,southeastern California,with implications for mid-Proterozoic magma genesis in the southwestern USA

Syenites from the Barrel Spring pluton were emplaced in the Early Proterozoic Mojave crustal provine of southeastern California at 1.42 Ga. All rocks, even the most mafic, are highly enriched in incompatible elements (e.g. K₂O 4–12 wt%, Rb 170–370 ppm, Th 12–120 ppm, La 350–1500xchondrite, La/Yb_n 35–100). Elemental compositions require an incompatible element-rich but mafic (or ultramafic) source. Trace element models establish two plausible sources for Barrel Spring magmas: (1) LREE enriched garnet websterite with accessory apatite±rutile (enriched lithospheric mantle), and (2) garnet amphibolite or garnet-hornblende granulite with enriched alkali basalt composition, also with accessory apatite±rutile (mafic lower crust). Nd and Pb isotopic ratios do not distinguish a crust vs mantle source, but eliminate local Mojave province crust as the principal one, and indicate that generation of the enriched source occurred several hundred million years before emplacement of the Barrel Spring pluton. 1.40–1.44 Ga potassic granites are common in southeastern California, suggesting a genetic link between the Barrel Spring pluton and the granites; however, although the same thermal regime was probably responsible for producing both the granitic and syentic magmas, elemental and isotopic compositions preclude a close relationship. Isotopic similarity of the Barrel Spring pluton to 1.40–1.44 Ga granites emplaced in the Central Arizona crustal province to the east may imply that a common component was present in the lithosphere of these generally distinct regions.