Caribbean island-arc rifting and back-arc basin development in the Late Cretaceous: Geochemical, isotopic and geochronological evidence from Central Hispaniola

We present new regional petrologic, geochemical, Sr–Nd isotopic, and U–Pb geochronological data on the Turonian–Campanian mafic igneous rocks of Central Hispaniola that provide important clues on the development of the Caribbean island-arc. Central Hispaniola is made up of three main tectonic blocks—Jicomé, Jarabacoa and Bonao—that include four broad geochemical groups of Late Cretaceous mafic igneous rocks: group I, tholeiitic to calc-alkaline basalts and andesites; group II, low-Ti high-Mg andesites and basalts; group III, tholeiitic basalts and gabbros/dolerites; and group IV, tholeiitic to transitional and alkalic basalts. These igneous rocks show significant differences in time and space, from arc-like to non-arc-like characteristics, suggesting that they were derived from different mantle sources. We interpret these groups as the record of Caribbean arc-rifting and back-arc basin development in the Late Cretaceous. The> 90 Ma group I volcanic rocks and associated cumulate complexes preserved in the Jicomé and Jarabacoa blocks represent the Albian to Cenomanian Caribbean island-arc material. The arc rift stage magmatism in these blocks took place during the deposition of the Restauración Formation from the Turonian–Coniacian transition (~ 90 Ma) to Santonian/Lower Campanian, particularly in its lower part with extrusion at 90–88 Ma of group II low-Ti, high-Mg andesites/basalts. During this time or slightly afterwards adakitic rhyolites erupted in the Jarabacoa block. Group III tholeiitic lavas represent the initiation of Coniacian–Lower Campanian back-arc spreading. In the Bonao block, this stage is represented by back-arc basin-like basalts, gabbros and dolerite/diorite dykes intruded into the Loma Caribe peridotite, as well as the Peralvillo Sur Formation basalts, capped by tuffs, shales and Campanian cherts. This dismembered ophiolitic stratigraphy indicates that the Bonao block is a fragment of an ensimatic back-arc basin. In the Jicomé and Jarabacoa blocks, the mainly Campanian group IV basalts of the Peña Blanca, Siete Cabezas and Pelona–Pico Duarte Formation, represent the subsequent stage of back-arc spreading and off-axis non-arc-like magmatism, caused by migration of the arc toward the northeast. These basalts have geochemical affinities with the mantle domain influenced by the Caribbean plume, suggesting that mantle was flowing toward the NE, beneath the extended Caribbean island-arc, in response to rollback of the subducting proto-Caribbean slab.     

Metamorphic consequences of secular changes in oceanic crust composition and implications for uniformitarianism in the geological record

Cooling of the Earth's mantle since the Meso-Archean is predicted by thermal and petrological models to have induced a secular change in the composition of primary mantle-derived magmas-and thus bulk oceanic crust; in particular, suggesting a decrease in maficity over time. This hypothesis underpins several recent studies that have addressed key geological questions concerning evolving plate tectonic styles, the rates and timing of continental crust formation, comparative planetology, and the emergence of complex life on Earth. Major, minor, and trace element geochemical analyses of(meta)mafic rocks preserved in the geological record allows exploration of this theory, although no consensus currently exists about the magnitude of this change and what compositions-if anything-constitute representative examples of Paleo-, Meso-, or Neo-Archean primitive oceanic crust. In this work, we review the current state of understanding of this issue, and use phase equilibria to examine the different mineral assemblages and rock types that would form during metamorphism of basalt of varying maficity in subduction zone environments. The presence(or absence) of such metamorphic products in the geological record is often used as evidence for(or against) the operation of modern-day subductiondriven plate tectonics on Earth at particular time periods; however, the control that secular changes in composition have on the stability of mineral assemblages diagnostic of subduction-zone metamorphism weakens such uniformitarianistic approaches. Geodynamic interpretations of the Archean metamorphic rock record must therefore employ a different set of petrological criteria for determining tectonothermal histories than those applied to Proterozoic or Phanerozoic equivalents.     

Geochemical characteristics of a pre-Middle Jurassic oceanic crust fragment from the Central Pontides in northern Turkey: Geodynamic implications on intra-oceanic subduction initiation

The Central Pontides (northern Turkey) is one of the key localities to understand the geodynamic evolution of the Palaeo- and Neotethyan oceans. It consists of the pre-Jurassic basement units, the Early Jurassic and the Early Cretaceous accretionary complexes, the widespread Middle Jurassic continental arc magmatics and the Late Jurassic to Tertiary cover units. The Early Cretaceous accretionary complex is represented by the Central Pontide Structural Complex and includes the Middle Jurassic oceanic units, which were metamorphosed during the Early Cretaceous. Apart from these oceanic units, a few metaophiolite and serpentinite fragments have been recognized within the basement units, which may represent the remnants of an older ocean. The pre-Middle Jurassic Devrekani Metaophiolite is the largest oceanic fragment and tectonically intercalated within/between the Devrekani Metamorphics and the Çangaldağ Metamorphic Complex. It is mainly composed of harzburgites, dunites with chromite veins and metagabbros, and cut by metabasaltic andesites and metadacites. Petrographically, the gabbro consists mainly of plagioclase and clinopyroxene, and displays phaneritic/porphyritic texture. In contrast, the metabasaltic andesite includes plagioclase and mica phenocrysts within a fine-grained groundmass. Also, the metadacite is composed predominantly of quartz, plagioclase, and mica minerals. Two different magmatic groups belonging to completely different tectono-magmatic settings have been geochemically determined based on the immobile trace element systematics. The metadacites and metabasaltic andesites are akin to continental arc magmatics and characterized by negative Nb and Ta anomalies and depleted HFSE relative to Th and La contents. However, the metagabbro samples display the geochemical signatures of boninitic rocks and characterized by highly depletion in HFSEs and REEs relative to N-MORB. The Devrekani Metaophiolite in the Central Pontides may represent another remnant of pre-Middle Jurassic oceanic crust generation and can be north-eastward continuation of the Permian-aged Almacık complex and the Boğazköy Metaophiolite fragment in the western Sakarya Composite Terrane. It may have been cut by intrusions of the extensive Middle Jurassic continental arc magmatism after its imbrication within the basement unit. The presence of pre-Middle Jurassic oceanic units may indicate that the Paleozoic ocean may have survived as the Jurassic Intra-Pontide Ocean between the Scythian Platform and Sakarya Composite Terrane during the Mesozoic time. Thus, the Intra-Pontide Suture may normally include the Palaeozoic and Mesozoic remnants of the long-lived northward subducting Tethyan ocean.     

Must magmatic intrusion in the lower crust produce reflectivity?

The Færoe–Iceland Ridge (FIR) provides a laboratory in which to investigate the reflectivity and velocity structure of thick crust generated above a mantle plume in order to constrain models of underplating and the origins of lower-crustal layering in an environment dominated by young igneous processes. Over 600 km of common midpoint (cmp) data were collected along and across the FIR using a large airgun array with a 240-channel streamer. The interpretation of these data has been integrated with a velocity model of the crust and upper mantle along the FIR obtained from wide-angle seismic arrivals into ocean bottom and land seismometers. Due to the intermediate water depths and the presence of basalt near the water bottom, specialized processing steps were required for the cmp data. A wave equation-based multiple attenuation scheme was applied to the prestack data, which used a forward model of the multiple series to predict and attenuate multiple energy. Array simulations were applied in the shot and receiver domains in order to minimize spatial aliasing and reduce low apparent-velocity noise. Most of the sections over the central (oceanic) portion of the FIR show no pronounced reflectivity, although occasional Moho and/or lower-crustal reflections are observed. We believe that the poor reflectivity results largely from a lack of physical property contrasts rather than being an effect of acquisition or processing, although we also conclude that residual energy from strong multiple reflection remains in the final sections. Amplitude decay and reflection strength vary along the FIR, but there is good signal-to-noise ratio to travel times of at least 9 s (i.e., into the lower crust), implying that the reduced reflectivity beneath the main part of the FIR is not an artifact of signal penetration loss. We conclude that the addition of melt to the lower crust along the trace of the plume apparently did not produce strong physical property contrasts in the lower crust, where little reflectivity is apparent. Perhaps this was because the entire crust was hot at the time of formation. In contrast, igneous intrusion into preexisting continental crust (at the Færoe Islands end of the FIR) and into older igneous crust (at the Iceland end of the FIR) produces significant lower-crustal reflectivity. Strong lower-crustal reflectivity elsewhere beneath the northwestern European continental margins may have a similar intrusive origin.     

The formation of SiO<Subscript>2</Subscript>-rich melts within the deep oceanic crust by hydrous partial melting of gabbros

Small amounts of felsic, evolved plutonic rocks, often called oceanic plagiogranites, always occur as veins or small stocks within the gabbroic section of the oceanic crust. Four major models are under debate to explain the formation of these rocks: (1) late-stage differentiation of a parental MORB melt, (2) partial melting of gabbroic rocks, (3) immiscibility in an evolved tholeiitic liquid, and (4) assimilation and partial melting of previously altered dikes. Recent experimental data in hydrous MORB-type systems are used to evaluate the petrogenesis of oceanic plagiogranites within the deep oceanic crust. Experiments show that TiO₂ is a key parameter for the discrimination between different processes: TiO₂ is relatively low in melts generated by anatexis of gabbros which is a consequence of the low TiO₂ contents of the protolith, due to the depleted nature of typical cumulate gabbros formed in the oceanic crust. On the other hand, TiO₂ is relatively high in those melts generated by MORB differentiation or liquid immiscibility. Since the TiO₂ content of many oceanic plagiogranites is far below that expected in case of a generation by simple MORB differentiation or immiscibility, these rocks may be regarded as products of anatexis. This may indicate that partial melting processes triggered by water-rich fluids are more common in the deep oceanic crust than believed up to now. At slow-spreading ridges, seawater may be transported via high-temperature shear zones deeply into the crust and thus made available for melting processes.     

Geochemistry and petrogenesis of Cretaceous oceanic plateau lavas in eastern Jamaica

Basaltic lavas of Turonian to Coniacian age belonging to the Bath–Dunrobin Formation occur with intercalated island arc tuffs in the south of the Blue Mountain inlier, have been interpreted as being derived from the Caribbean oceanic plateau. This study presents new major and trace element and Sr–Pb–Nd–Hf isotopic data for these igneous rocks. The Jamaican rocks are altered by tropical weathering, hydrothermal and metamorphic processes, which have mobilised many of their elements (e.g. K and Ba). Consequently, the basalts and dacitic tuffs have been classified by using immobile trace elements. The trace element and _Hf(i)–_Nd(i) geochemistry suggests that the basaltic lavas are derived from a chemically similar source region by variable degrees of partial melting. The Caribbean plateau basalts lie on a mixing line between a depleted plume component and HIMU in Nd–Hf isotopic space. The Pb isotope data also demonstrate that the Jamaican plateau lavas are composed of a larger HIMU component than the other plateau lavas within the Caribbean region. The intercalated island arc tuffs are the first to be found in any oceanic plateau succession in the Caribbean and imply that the Caribbean oceanic plateau at  90 Ma was relatively close to the subduction zone along South America and the Great Arc of the Antilles.     

Production and recycling of oceanic crust in the early Earth

Because of the strongly different conditions in the mantle of the early Earth regarding temperature and viscosity, present-day geodynamics cannot simply be extrapolated back to the early history of the Earth. We use numerical thermochemical convection models including partial melting and a simple mechanism for melt segregation and oceanic crust production to investigate an alternative suite of dynamics which may have been in operation in the early Earth. Our modelling results show three processes that may have played an important role in the production and recycling of oceanic crust: (1) Small-scale (x×100 km) convection involving the lower crust and shallow upper mantle. Partial melting and thus crustal production takes place in the upwelling limb and delamination of the eclogitic lower crust in the downwelling limb. (2) Large-scale resurfacing events in which (nearly) the complete crust sinks into the (eventually lower) mantle, thereby forming a stable reservoir enriched in incompatible elements in the deep mantle. New crust is simultaneously formed at the surface from segregating melt. (3) Intrusion of lower mantle diapirs with a high excess temperature (about 250 K) into the upper mantle, causing massive melting and crustal growth. This allows for plumes in the Archean upper mantle with a much higher excess temperature than previously expected from theoretical considerations.     

Numerical modelling of dyke interaction and its influence on oceanic crust formation

Dykes are an essential element in building oceanic crust, most prominent in sheeted dyke complexes in the upper crust. Since dykes alter the magnitude and orientation of the local stress field, they cannot be treated as passive infillings of extensional fractures.We use a quasi-static, iterative 2-D boundary element method allowing for a wholesale movement of fluid-filled fractures. Effects of stress and pressure gradients, buoyancy and enclosed fluid mass are considered. The implications of the dyke-induced stress field are analysed combining the simulation of fracture propagation with computation of dyke interaction. Dyke interaction occurs by the adaptation of ascending dykes to the stress field caused by previous fractures arrested in the crust and leads to focussing and crossing of dykes. Examples for applications are introduced, concerning e.g. the generation of a magma chamber and the formation of the sheeted dyke complex. Our main results are that the interaction between dykes can be considerable and that the most important controlling factor is stress. The interaction is small when the horizontal tensional stress is large compared to the pressure in the dyke head. Otherwise, dykes tend to attract each other and to form centres of high dyke density or sill layers.     

大洋下地壳堆晶岩组成及其对蛇绿岩研究的启示

大洋下地壳是大洋岩石圈和蛇绿岩的重要组成部分,在洋中脊及俯冲带演化以及蛇绿岩成因研究中具有重要的意义。本文总结了不同构造环境形成的大洋下地壳堆晶岩的岩石组合、地球化学组成,以建立起适用于蛇绿岩中堆晶岩的构造环境判别标志。洋中脊和俯冲相关环境堆晶岩在Pearce图解上均区别于对应的熔岩成分,表明蛇绿岩中的堆晶岩无法应用Pearce图解进行构造环境判别。不同构造环境产出的堆晶岩在岩石组合、结晶顺序和地球化学上存在明显差异：(1)绝大多数洋中脊堆晶岩和弧后盆地堆晶岩较为类似,反映其来源于洋中脊玄武岩型母岩浆低压、贫水体系的分离结晶;(2)中大西洋脊DSDP 334的洋中脊堆晶岩较为类似弧前堆晶岩,是海水蚀变难熔橄榄岩重熔或混染的产物;(3)弧前堆晶岩的岩石学、地球化学特征与亏损的富水、富硅的玻安质熔体的低压分离结晶过程相吻合;(4)洋岛堆晶岩的特征与相对贫水、成分富集的洋岛玄武岩高压分离结晶的特征相吻合。最后,本文总结了应用堆晶岩进行蛇绿岩构造环境判别的一系列岩石学、地球化学指标,并结合日喀则蛇绿岩中的堆晶岩体和辉长岩脉的实例论述堆晶岩在蛇绿岩研究中的应用。

     

The fate of subducted oceanic crust: a mineral segregation model

Plate subduction and mantle plumes are two of the most important material transport processes of the silicate Earth. Currently, a debate exists over whether the subducted oceanic crust is recycled back to the Earth's surface through mantle plumes, and can explain their derivation and major characteristics. It is also puzzling as to why plume heads have huge melting capacities and differ dramatically from plume tails both in size and chemical composition. We present data showing that both ocean island basalt and mid-ocean ridge basalt have identical supra-primitive mantle mean Nb/U values of ～46.7, significantly larger than that of the primitive mantle value. From a mass balance calculation based on Nb/U?we have determined that nearly the whole mantle has evolved by plate subduction-induced crustal recycling during formation of the continental crust. This mixing back of subducted oceanic crust, however, is not straightforward, because it generally would be denser than the surrounding mantle, both in solid and liquid states. A mineral segregation model is proposed here to reconcile different lines of observation. First of all, subducted oceanic crustal sections are denser than the surrounding mantle, such that they can stay in the lower mantle, for billions of years as implied by isotopic data. Parts of subducted oceanic crust may eventually lose a large proportion of their heavy minerals, magnesian-silicate-perovskite and calcium-silicate-perovskite, through density segregation in ultra-low-velocity zones as well as in very-low-velocity provinces at the core-mantle boundary due to low viscosity. The remaining minerals would thus become lighter than the surrounding mantle, and could rise, trapping mantle materials, and forming mantle plumes. Mineral segregation progressively increases the SiO₂ content of the ascending oceanic crust, which enhances flux melting, and results in giant Si-enriched plume heads followed by dramatically abridged plume tails. Therefore, ancient mineral-segregated subducted oceanic crust is likely to be a major trigger and driving force for the formation of mantle plumes.     

Crustal accretion and dynamic feedback on mantle melting of a ridge centred plume: The Iceland case

A major consequence of the interaction of a plume with an oceanic ridge is the enhanced melt production and associated crust generation. In the case of Iceland crustal thickness as large as 20 to 40 km has been reported. Crustal seismic velocities are high, and have to be explained by thermal or chemical effects. In the first part of the paper we address the question whether extraction of melt out of the plume beneath a slowly spreading ridge and deposition of extracted basalt volumes at the surface produces a dynamic feedback mechanism on mantle melting. To study this question we solve the convection equations for a ridge centred plume with non-Newtonian rheology including melting, melt extraction associated with deposition of cold crust at the surface of the model, and using a simplified approach for compaction. The assumption of cold crust is justified if the thickness of each deposited basaltic layer is less than roughly 1 km. Depending on the buoyancy flux of the plume, crustal thicknesses between 10 and 40 km are modelled, showing characteristic dipping structures resembling the rift-ward dipping basaltic layers of East- and Western Iceland. Comparing the resulting crustal thickness and magma generation rate with models in which the dynamic effect of crust deposition has been suppressed indicates, that melt generation beneath a slowly spreading ridge is considerably damped by the dynamic feedback mechanism if the plume buoyancy flux exceeds 400 to 600 kg/s. Based on the observed crustal thickness of Iceland our models predict a plume buoyancy flux of 1140 kg/s.In the second part we study the accretion of the Icelandic crust by a thermo-mechanical model in more detail based on the Navier–Stokes-, the heat transport and the mass conservation equations including volumetric sources. Hot (1200 °C) molten crustal material is injected into the newly forming crust with a constant rate at different crustal source regions: a) deep, widespread emplacement of dykes and sills including crustal underplating, b) magma chambers at shallow to mid-crustal level, and c) surface extrusions and intrusions in fissure swarms at shallow depth connected to volcanic centres. We identify the material from the different source regions by a marker approach. Varying the relative dominance of these source regions, characteristic crustal structures evolve, showing shallow dipping upper crustal layers with dip angles between 10 and 15°. The thermal structure of the crust varies between cold crust (shallow-source region dominating) and hot crust (deep-source region dominating). We use observations of maximum depth of seismicity to constrain the depth of the 650 °C isotherm and seismological inferences on the lower crust to constrain temperatures in that region. The best agreement with our models is achieved for crust formation dominated by deep dykes and underplating with a considerable influence of magma chamber accretion.     

大兴安岭中生代玄武岩的地球化学特征：壳幔相互作用的证据

大兴安岭中生代玄武岩类由北区碱性系列岩石和南区亚碱性系列岩石组成, 主要活动时期为晚侏罗世至早白垩世, 在时间、空间上显示大体呈北北东向展布的环状 “热向斜构造”。北区碱性系列岩石高度富集轻稀土元素和大离子亲石元素, 其丰度类似于板内碱性玄武岩, 但明显亏损高场强元素这一特点又类似于火山弧钙碱性玄武岩。南区亚碱性系列岩石强烈亏损高场强元素的特征类似于火山弧钙碱性玄武岩, 但轻稀土元素和大离子亲石元素富集程度又类似于洋中脊拉斑玄武岩和岛弧拉斑玄武岩。显然, 大兴安岭中生代玄武岩系列显示地球化学双重性, 也就是既有板内特征又有火山弧特征, 既有富集特征又有亏损特征。这种地球化学双重性表明, 大兴安岭地区存在若干不同性质的地幔源： 富集性的、亏损性的、过渡性的地幔源。解释一个地区存在多元地幔源区模式的最佳方案是地幔柱。这种包含富集成分和亏损成分的地幔柱源区的形成是与古生代地质时期古亚洲域闭合过程中俯冲洋壳与亏损地幔相互作用的动力学、地球化学过程有关。     

The origin and compositions of Mesoarchean oceanic crust: Evidence from the 3075 Ma Ivisaartoq greenstone belt, SW Greenland

The Mesoarchean (ca. 3075 Ma) Ivisaartoq greenstone belt contains well-preserved primary magmatic structures, such as pillow lavas, volcanic breccias, and clinopyroxene cumulate layers (picrites), despite the isoclinal folding and amphibolite facies metamorphism. The belt also includes variably deformed gabbroic to dioritic dykes and sills, actinolite schists, and serpentinites. The Ivisaartoq rocks underwent at least two stages of post-magmatic metamorphic alteration, including seafloor hydrothermal alteration and syn- to post-tectonic calc-silicate metasomatism, between 3075 and 2961 Ma. These alteration processes resulted in the mobilization of many major and trace elements. The trace element characteristics of the least altered rocks are consistent with a supra-subduction zone geodynamic setting and shallow mantle sources. On the basis of geological similarities between the Ivisaartoq greenstone belt and Phanerozoic forearc ophiolites, and intra-oceanic island arcs, we suggest that the Ivisaartoq greenstone belt represents a relic of dismembered Mesoarchean supra-subduction zone oceanic crust. This crust might originally have been composed of a lower layer of leucogabbros and anorthosites, and an upper layer of pillow lavas, picritic flows, gabbroic to dioritic dykes and sills, and dunitic to wehrlitic sills.

The Sm–Nd and U–Pb isotope systems have been disturbed in strongly altered actinolite schists. In addition, the U–Pb isotope system in pillow basalts appears to have been partially open during seafloor hydrothermal alteration. Gabbros and diorites have the least disturbed Pb isotopic compositions. In contrast, the Sm–Nd isotope system appears to have remained relatively undisturbed in picrites, pillow lavas, gabbros, and diorites. As a group, picrites have more depleted initial Nd isotopic signatures (ε_Nd = + 4.23 to + 4.97) than pillow lavas, gabbros, and diorites (ε_Nd = + 0.30 to + 3.04), consistent with a variably depleted, heterogeneous mantle source.

In some areas gabbros include up to 15 cm long white inclusions (xenoliths). These inclusions are composed primarily (> 90%) of Ca-rich plagioclase and are interpreted as anorthositic cumulates brought to the surface by upwelling gabbroic magmas. The anorthositic cumulates have significantly higher initial ε_Nd (+ 4.8 to + 6.0) values than the surrounding gabbroic matrix (+ 2.3 to + 2.8), consistent with different mantle sources for the two rock types.     

He, Sr, Nd, and Pb isotopic constraints on the origin of the Marquesas and other linear volcanic chains

The classic hotspot hypothesis [Morgan, W. J., 1971. Convection plumes in the lower mantle. Nature 230, 42–43], which posits that linear volcanic chains are traces of fixed plumes in the mantle on moving lithospheric plates, was instrumental in elevating the plate tectonics paradigm in the 1960s into a modern Earth Science theory. The hypothesis itself, however, remains conjectural because many of its predictions, particularly the simple age-progressive type of volcanism, are not observed in many linear volcanic chains. As an alternative explanation, it is proposed that linear volcanic chains are formed through magmatism along pre-existing lines of weakness such as transform zones and old sutures, or along cracks created by stresses on lithospheric plates. The Marquesas linear volcanic chain in south-central Pacific has geologic features that are consistent with some of the predictions of both hypotheses. To better constrain the origin of this volcanic chain, we collected major and trace element and Sr, Nd, Pb, and He isotopic data from several Marquesan lavas. Our new analyses combined with literature data classify the samples into the well established tholeiitic to mildly alkalic, low ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, high ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd, shield-building volcanic phase lava group and highly alkalic, high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, low ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd, post-shield phase group. Lead isotopes show generally higher ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios and suggest evidence of crustal assimilation for the shield-building phase lavas, consistent with the argument that the shield-building phase volcanism has a lithospheric source component. On the other hand, post-shield phase lavas that are predicted to represent the true composition of the mantle source by the hotspot hypothesis have higher ³He/⁴He ratios and these are coupled to other geochemical tracers. Thus our results show that the Marquesas volcanic chain, similar to many other linear volcanic chains, has a high ³He/⁴He component in its mantle source. The presence of such a distinct source component cannot be easily explained by dispersed upper mantle heterogeneities, but provides a powerful constraint for the hotspot origin of many linear volcanic chains.     

Quantification and isotopic analysis of nitrogen in rocks at the ppm level using sealed tube combustion technique: A prelude to the study of altered oceanic crust

The present paper reports recent improvements in sealed tube combustion technique used for the determination of N isotopic composition in various rocks characterized by low N contents (i.e. few ppm). Nitrogen is extracted from samples by combustion in quartz tubes sealed under vacuum. The nitrogen gas purified using Cu, CuO and CaO, is quantified as dinitrogen N₂ by capacitance manometry in ultra-high vacuum line. Nitrogen isotopic analysis is performed on a triple-collector static vacuum mass spectrometer, allowing measurement of nanomole quantity of N₂. Nitrogen amount and isotopic composition of the analytical blanks are low and describe Gaussian distribution with mean values of 0.65 ± 0.30 nmol N and − 3.7‰ ± 2.7‰, respectively (2σ). Systematic analyses of international and internal standards demonstrate that this technique provides accurate and precise results. The precision on N content and isotopic composition are better than ± 8% and ± 0.5‰ respectively, even for samples containing less than 2 ppm N. The sealed tube combustion technique is shown to apply successfully to rocks of various lithologies such as metagabbros, metaperidotites and altered basalts. It is thus suitable for studying oceanic crust in a perspective to better constrain N exchanges between Earth mantle and surface reservoirs. The investigation can also be extended to analysis of small size samples, particularly when little sample exists and when high spatial resolution is required.     

深部过程对埃达克质岩石成分的制约

埃达克岩、太古宙TTG和中国东部广泛出露的燕山期埃达克质中酸性火山-侵入岩在岩石地球化学特征方面有许多相似之处,也有一些显著的差异。与典型的埃达克岩相比,太古宙TTG具有相对高Si和低Mg^#的特点：中国东部埃达克质岩石多表现为低Mg^#贫A120,和高K特征。埃达克岩相对高Mg^#是由于俯冲洋壳部分熔融产生的原生埃达克岩熔体受到了地幔橄榄岩的混染,太古宙TTG多无明显的地幔混染印记,反映其可能主要形成于下地壳底侵玄武岩的部分熔融,而与洋壳俯冲没有直接联系。中国东部埃达克质岩石相对低Mg^#畜K,暗示其可能是下地壳底侵玄武岩部分熔融或拆沉-熔融的产物,而幔源富钾熔体的混合、壳内分异和混染过程都有可能影响其成分特征中国东部部分地区的高镁埃达克质岩石可能揭示了下地壳拆沉一熔融和地幔混染过程。钾质埃达克岩的源区可能是被小比例软流圈熔体交代富集的底侵玄武岩层(增厚的下地壳)。结合燕山期岩浆作用和构造转换的特点来看,埃达克岩的形成是中国东部晚中生代岩石圈强烈减薄和大规模岩浆作用产物的一部分,这一重大构造体制的转换可能与地幔柱上涌对岩石圈的侵蚀和导致的伸展作用有关。     

How partial melts of mafic lower crust affect ascending magmas at oceanic ridges

We present experiments showing that the lower oceanic crust should melt efficiently and quickly when heated by hot ascending magmas. Average plagioclase–olivine and plagioclase–augite pairs from the lower crust at the Southwest Indian Ridge have melt–mineral saturation boundaries at 1,190 and 1,154°C, respectively, and melt rapidly (>0.01 mm/h) at 50°C or more above these temperatures. Melting experiments performed on olivine–plagioclase and augite–plagioclase mineral pairs from actual oceanic lower crustal rock samples and under conditions applicable to a MOR setting (1,220–1,330°C, 1 atm, quartz–fayalite–magnetite oxygen buffer, 0.25–24 h) indicate that the resulting disequilibrium melts are linear mixes of the mineral compositions. The rates of melting are slower than the rate of heat-diffusion into a sample and are approximated as:

贵州水城二叠纪钠质粗面玄武岩的地球化学特征及其源区

贵州水城二叠纪玄武岩位于峨眉山大火成岩省东部。该玄武岩全岩SiO₂的含量为44.5%~50.04%,TiO₂的含量为2.38%~2.74%,MgO的含量为5.74%~7.96%, Mg^#值较低为0.40~0.49,Na₂O含量高,为4.81%~7.19%,并且Na₂O/K₂O>4,属于钠质粗面玄武岩即夏威夷岩。具有ΣREE富集的右倾型稀土元素分布模式,稀土和微量元素特征和Pb同位素特征显示洋岛玄武岩OIB的地球化学特征,(⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_i=0.70482~0.70503,ε_Nd(t)和(²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb)_<em>t变化范围较窄:1.3~1.8和17.21~17.62。与贵州威宁黑石头和织金二叠纪玄武岩比较,水城玄武岩富碱,TiO₂含量低,Na₂O、MgO和Al₂O₃含量高,造成峨眉山大火成岩省东部贵州境内三个地方玄武岩不同性质的主要原因是由于地幔源区不同,分离结晶程度和地壳混染程度的不同,水城玄武岩来源于交代富集地幔,是峨眉山地幔柱上升至石榴石稳定区发生部分熔融,地幔柱的部分熔融体和富含挥发分的大陆岩石圈地幔混合,在上升到地表过程中受到轻微的地壳混染所形成。     

大洋富钴结壳资源调查与研究进展

富钴结壳是继多金属结核资源之后被发现的又一深海沉积固体矿产资源,在太平洋、大西洋和印度洋的海底均有分布。据估算,全球三大洋海山富钴结壳干结壳资源量为(1081.1661~2162.3322)×108t。世界各国对富钴结壳的调查始于20世纪80年代初,截至目前,已有日本、中国、俄罗斯和巴西等4个国家与国际海底管理局签订了富钴结壳勘探合同,而韩国的矿区申请也于2016年获得核准。富钴结壳按形态可分为板状结壳,砾状结壳和钴结核3种类型。富钴结壳内部结构构造在宏观上通常表现为三层构造,即底部亮煤层、中部疏松层和顶部较致密层;在微观下主要表现为柱状构造、叠层构造、斑块状构造、纹层状构造等多种类型。富钴结壳的矿物成分主要为自生的铁锰矿物,包括水羟锰矿、钡镁锰矿、羟铁矿、四方纤铁矿、六方纤铁矿、针铁矿等。富钴结壳富含Mn、Fe、Co、Ni、Cu、Pb、Zn等金属元素以及稀土元素和铂族元素,其中Co含量尤为显著。三大洋中,以太平洋富钴结壳的Co平均含量最高。富钴结壳的生长过程极其缓慢,平均仅几毫米每百万年。研究表明,西太平洋富钴结壳最早于始新世-早中新世开始生长。目前通常认为富钴结壳为水成成因,即Co、Fe、Mn等金属元素来源于海水。此外,有研究表明微生物在富钴结壳的形成过程中也起着非常重要的作用。富钴结壳的分布及特征受地形、水深、基岩类型、海水水文化学特征、经纬度等多种因素的影响,其主要分布于碳酸盐补偿深度以上、最低含氧带以下、水深800~2500 m的海山、岛屿斜坡和海底高地上,西、中太平洋海山区被认为是全球富钴结壳的最主要产出区。     

Formation, subduction, and exhumation of Penninic oceanic crust in the Eastern Alps: time constraints from Ar/Ar geochronology

New ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology places time constraints on several stages of the evolution of the Penninic realm in the Eastern Alps. A 186±2 Ma age for seafloor hydrothermal metamorphic biotite from the Reckner Ophiolite Complex of the Pennine–Austroalpine transition suggests that Penninic ocean spreading occurred in the Eastern Alps as early as the Toarcian (late Early Jurassic). A 57±3 Ma amphibole from the Penninic subduction–accretion Rechnitz Complex dates high-pressure metamorphism and records a snapshot in the evolution of the Penninic accretionary wedge. High-pressure amphibole, phengite, and phengite+paragonite mixtures from the Penninic Eclogite Zone of the Tauern Window document exhumation through ≤15 kbar and >500 °C at 42 Ma to 10 kbar and 400 °C at 39 Ma. The Tauern Eclogite Zone pressure–temperature path shows isothermal decompression at mantle depths and rapid cooling in the crust, suggesting rapid exhumation. Assuming exhumation rates slower or equal to high-pressure–ultrahigh-pressure terrains in the Western Alps, Tauern Eclogite Zone peak pressures were reached not long before our high-pressure amphibole age, probably at ≤45 Ma, in accordance with dates from the Western Alps. A late-stage thermal overprint, common to the entire Penninic thrust system, occurred within the Tauern Eclogite Zone rocks at 35 Ma. The high-pressure peak and switch from burial to exhumation of the Tauern Eclogite Zone is likely to date slab breakoff in the Alpine orogen. This is in contrast to the long-lasting and foreland-propagating Franciscan-style subduction–accretion processes that are recorded in the Rechnitz Complex.