Metalliferous sediments from DSDP Leg 92: The East Pacific Rise transect

The carbonate-free metalliferous fraction of thirty-nine sediment samples from four DSDP Leg 92 sites has been analyzed for 12 elements, and a subset of 16 samples analyzed for Pb isotopic composition. The main geochemical features of this component are as follows: i) very high concentrations of Fe and Mn, typically 25–39% and 5–14%, respectively; ii) Al and Ca contents generally less than 2% and 5%, respectively; iii) high Cu (1000–2000 ppm), and Zn and Ni (500–1000 ppm) values; and iv) Co and Pb concentrations of 100–250 ppm. In terms of element partitioning within the metalliferous fraction, amorphous to poorly crystallized oxide-oxyhydroxides removed by the second leach carry virtually all of the Mn, and about 90% of the Ca, Sr and Ni. The well-crystallized goethite-rich material removed by the third leach carries the majority of Fe, Cu, and Pb. These relations hold for sediments as young as ~ 1–2 Ma, indicating early partitioning of hydrothermal Fe and Mn into separate phases.Calculated mass accumulation rates (MAR) for Fe, Mn, Cu, Pb, Zn and Ni in the bulk sediment show the same overall trends at three of the sites, with greatest MAR values near the basement, and a general decrease in MAR values towards the tops of the holes (for sediments deposited above the lysocline). These relations strongly support the concept of a declining hydrothermal contribution of these elements away from a ridge axis. Nevertheless, MAR values for these metals up to ~200 km from the ridge axis are orders of magnitude higher than on abyssal seafloor plains where there is no hydrothermal influence. Mn/Fe ratios throughout the sediment column at two sites indicate that the composition of the hydrothermal precipitates changed during transport through seawater, becoming significantly depleted in Mn beyond 2̃00–300 km from the axis, but maintaining roughly the same proportion of Fe.Most of the Pb isotope data for the Leg 92 metalliferous sediments form approximately linear arrays in the conventional isotopic plots, extending from the middle of the field for mid-ocean ridge basalts toward the field for Mn nodules. The array of data lying between these two end-members is most readily interpreted in terms of simple linear mixing of Pb derived from basaltic and seawater end-member sources. The least radiogenic sediments reflect the average Pb isotope composition of discharging hydrothermal solutions and ocean-ridge basalt at the EPR over the ≈4–8 Ma B.P. interval. Pb in sediments deposited up to 250 km from the axis can be almost entirely of basaltic-hydrothermal origin. Lateral transport of some basaltic Pb by ocean currents appears to extend to distances of at least 1000 km west of the East Pacific Rise.     

东太平洋洋隆Siqueiros转换断层带的地球化学特征

东太平洋洋隆Siqueiros转换断层带(西经103°~104°、北纬8°20′~8°30′),位于中美洲之西可可斯板块与太平洋板块交接处(图1).该转换断层的玄武岩,成分从原始的到富化的,变化很大.最原始的玄武岩产于A-B走滑断层内,其MgO含量高达14.91%;最富化的玄武岩产在西部洋脊与转换断层交叉部位,其MgO含量较低,成分变化大.转换断层内的洋中脊玄武岩可分三类:富化的洋脊玄武岩(E-MORB)、原始的正常洋脊玄武岩(Primitive N-MORB)和正常洋脊玄武岩(N-MORB).Siqueiros转换断层区已确定有两个地幔源:一个位于转换断层西部下面的富集地幔,其特点是稀土总量高,富轻稀土,低MgO、K2O和TiO2,而高87Sr/86Sr;另一个是位于转换断层中-东部下面的亏损地幔,来自这个地幔源的玄武岩具有低87Sr/86Sr、低稀土元素和微量元素含量,但MgO含量较高.     

Saponite and celadonite in layer 2 basalts,DSDP Leg 37

Detailed examination of igneous core recovered during Leg 37 of the DSDP, has revealed that basalt diagenesis, an alteration effect resulting from low temperature interaction with seawater, is pervasive to depths of greater than 600 meters in layer 2. Phyllosilicates are among the main components of this low grade alteration effect and occur exclusively as saponite, celadonite and interlayered mixtures of these two phases. Saponites fall into two chemical groups as (a) Mg rich-Fe poor types characteristic of oxidative diagenesis and (b) Fe rich-Mg poor types characteristic of non-oxidative diagenesis. Celadonite is entirely restricted in occurrence to the oxidative diagenetic environment (oxidation halos) and rarely, if ever, occurs as a pure phase. In this respect, X-ray and electron microprobe analyses suggest the presence of interlayered smectite in some cases and iron-oxide contamination in others.Phyllosilicates generated during oxidative diagenesis of basalt occur in discrete mineralogical zones, typically arranged in the sequence Fe³⁺-oxide, celadonite, saponite proceeding outwards from a vein. The generation of these zones are modelled in terms of an infiltration dominated metasomatic process and their occurrence reflects a gradual extraction of oxygen from inflowing seawater during progressive reaction with the massive crystalline basalt.Mass balance calculations applied to the oxidative diagenetic process suggest that a source external to the immediate environment of the massive crystalline rock is required for Si, Fe, K, Mg, Ca, and Al, in order to account for the observed secondary minerals. While Mg, K, and Ca are indigenous to seawater, Si, Fe, and Al were probably enriched in the fluid during wall rock reactions in the fracture system.It is suggested that diagenesis of layer 2 basalts results in the extraction of Mg and K from seawater, in enough quantity to contribute significantly to the chemical mass balance of the oceans.     

东太平洋海隆热液活动区沉积岩心的地球化学研究

东太平洋隆是现代海底热液活动及热液沉积分布最为广泛的构造环境之一。本文对采自 EPR13°N 现代海底热液活动区附近的两个沉积物岩心分别进行了元素地球化学分析，并结合沉积物中有孔虫壳体对岩心进行关键层位 14C 年代学研究。目的在于通过对比距现代海底热液喷口不同距离的两岩心的地球化学特征，研究热液活动在岩心沉积物中所何存的地球化学记录，探讨海底热液活动对洋中脊附近沉积作用的贡献，以及热液活动在一定地质历史时期内的变化规律。显示，距热液喷口区相对较近的 B13－26 岩心沉积物含有丰富的热液特征组分，绝大多数微量元素和 REE 都与 Fe和Mn 成较强的正相关关系，而与 Al、Na、Ca、Mg、Ti 等元素相关性较弱或呈负相关，说明这些元素的富集机制主要是热液成因非晶质 Fe－Mn 化合物对热液及海水中元素的吸附作用。距热液喷口区相对较远的 B13－62岩心上部沉积物中元素的富集特征与 B13－26 岩心相似，但中下部沉积物中 Fe 与 Mn 无明显的相关关系，说明这些元素的富集主要受深海粘土沉积的影响，而受热液活动的影响减弱或消失。由于与海隆扩张轴距离的不同，两岩心受热液活动影响的强度不同。由海隆扩张轴向外，沉积作用受热活动的影响逐渐减弱，正常深海沉积作用逐渐加强。两个岩心沉积物地球化学上的共性是 Ca 和 Sr 都与其他元素呈现负相关关系或极微弱的正相关关系，表明生物碳酸盐沉积作用的独特性。有孔虫 14C 年龄测定结果表明，B13－26 岩心 35～250cm 段年龄十分接近，前后相差仅在几百年内。根据年龄测量中的误差范围，可以断定这段沉积物岩心是短时间内快速沉积的产物。结合热液活动特征性元素在岩心中的分布特征，判断该岩心段记录一次强烈的热液活动事件，从而形成了典型的事件沉积。在 B13－62 岩心的45～50cm 处测得有孔虫的 14C 年龄为距今 32900±530 yr。由于 14C 测年方法上的局限性，在岩心 135～140cm 处 14C 测年只能给出大于40000 yr 的结果。显然，B13－62 岩心处早期并没有受到热液活动明显的影响，沉积速率非常缓慢，只是在近期受到了热液活动的影响，形成了上部富含 Fe、Mn、Zn、Cr、Co、Ni、V 等热液活动特征元素的沉积。     

REE characteristics of ocean floor basalts from the MAR 37 °N (Leg 37 DSDP)

On a total of 62 basalt samples from five different sites of Leg 37 DSDP the abundances of the REE La, Ce, Nd, Sm, Eu, Tb, Dy, Yb and Lu have been determined by INAA. The chondrite-normalized REE patterns show a surprising variability even within one single hole. Distribution curves, so far regarded as being typical for abyssal tholeiites have only been found in two of the samples. Most basalts are characterised by an enrichment of the lighter RE over the heavier, the La/Sm enrichment factor varying from 2.0 to 1.0. Several samples exhibit chondritic, i.e. unfractionated patterns. These rocks show the lowest overall enrichment, A few basalts have pronounced positive Eu anomalies and in one case a negative Eu anomaly was found. The extrapolated REE in all basalts is low, lying between 19 and 57.5 ppm. A grouping and correlation of basalt sequences according to their REE patterns is not possible even between two adjacent holes which were drilled only 100 m apart.The data obtained do not support the view that the source effect (RE abundances in the starting material, degree of partial melting etc.), is the dominant factor in determining the RE characteristics of the basalts investigated. It is rather concluded, that the observed RE abundances are strongly affected by fractionation processes in small, shallow-seated magma chambers and that these processes overprinted the original mantle inherited RE patterns. Possibly Ti-magnetite, which has not been taken into consideration in previous models, may be of major importance in this respect.     

Phyllosilicates in hydrothermally altered basalts from DSDP Hole 504B,Leg 83 — a TEM and AEM study

Phyllosilicates occurring as replacements of olivine, clinopyroxene and interstitial materials and as veins or fracture-fillings in hydrothermally altered basalts from DSDP Hole 504B, Leg 83 have been studied using transmission and analytical electron microscopy. The parageneses of phyllosilicates generally change systematically with depth and with the degree of alteration, which in turn is related to permeability of basalts. Saponite and some mixed-layer chlorite/smectite are the dominant phyllosilicates at the top of the transition zone. Chlorite, corrensite, and mixed-layer chlorite/corrensite occur mainly in the lower transition zone and upper levels of the sheeted dike zone. Chlorite, talc, and mixed-layer talc/chlorite are the major phyllosilicates in the sheeted dike zone, although replacement of talc or ohvine by saponite is observed. The phyllosilicates consist of parallel or subparallel discrete packets of coherent layers with packet thicknesses generally ranging from< 100 Å to a few hundred Å. The packets of saponite layers are much smaller or less well defined than those of chlorite, corrensite and talc, indicating poorer crystal-linity of saponite. by contrast, chlorite and talc from the lower transition zone and the sheeted dike zone occur in packets up to thousands of Å thick. The Si/(Si+Al) ratio of these trioctahedral phyllosilicates increases and Fe/(Fe+Mg) decreases in the order chlorite, corrensite, saponite, and talc. These relations reflect optimal solid solution consistent with minimum misfit of articulated octahedral and tetrahedral sheets. Variations in composition of hydrothermal fluids and precursor minerals, especially in Si/(Si+Al) and Fe/(Fe+Mg) ratios, are thus important factors in controlling the parageneses of phyllosilicates. The phyllosilicates are generally well crystallized discrete phases, rather than mixed-layered phases, where they have been affected by relatively high fluid/rock ratios as in high-permeability basalts, in veins, or areas adjacent to veins. Intense alteration in basalts with high permeability (indicating high fluid/rock ratios) is characterized by pervasive albitization and zeolitization. Minimal alteration in the basalts without significant albitization and zeolitization is characterized by the occurrence of saponite±mixed-layer chlorite/smectite in the low-temperature alteration zone, and mixed-layer chlorite/corrensite or mixed-layer talc/chlorite in the high-temperature alteration zone. Textural non-equilibrium for phyllosilicates is represented by mixed layering and poorly defined packets of partially incoherent layers. The approach to textural equilibrium was controlled largely by the availability of fluid or permeability.Contribution No. 488 from the Mineralogical Laboratory, Department of Geological Sciences, The University of Michigan     

Petrogenesis of Basalt Glasses from the Tamayo Region, East Pacific Rise

Samples collected by the Tamayo scientific team both by dredgingand by submersible along 75 km of the East Pacific Rise (EPR)up to its intersection with the Tamayo fracture zone allow explorationof the systematics of ocean ridge basalt petrogenesis in thevicinity of a major transform fault. To investigate these systematicstwenty-nine samples of hand-picked glasses have been analyzedfor major elements, REE and other trace elements. There are distinct chemical differences between samples collectedfar from the Tamayo transform and close to the transform. Samplesfurthest from the transform, where the EPR is characterizedby a broad swell, are, for the same MgO content, lower in abundancesof all incompatible elements than samples near the transformwhere the ridge morphology is characterized by a rift. We callsuch chemical systematics the transform fault effect (TFE).Possible models for the transform fault effect include: (1)fractional crystallization at low or high pressure; (2) partialmelting; and (3) open system fractionation and mixing. Thesemodels have been evaluated using accurately calculated liquidlines of descent for the major elements, and an inversion techniquefor the trace elements. Although low and possibly high pressure fractionation are important,partial melting accounts best for the variations among the Tamayoparental magmas. Basalts erupted in close proximity (< 16km) to the transform (‘rift’ samples) are derivedfrom melts generated by smaller extents of melting than thoseerupted farther (45–75 km) from the transform (‘swell’samples). Inversion of the Tamayo trace element data shows thatbatch melting can account quantitatively for the trace elementvariations, provided that the extents of melting are very small(1–5 per cent). Continuous melting seems more physicallyrealistic and allows slightly higher extents of melting althoughthe total amount of melt removed from the mantle would be ofthe order of 5 per cent. Both melting models account for thedata better if the swell samples are derived from magmas formedat greater depths where garnet is a stable phase while the riftsamples are derived at shallower levels where garnet is notstable. This suggests that melting may occur near the garnet/spinelphase transition in the mantle. The lesser extents of meltingnear the transform could be caused directly by the cooling effectsof ridge truncation, or by perturbation of mantle flow and magmadynamics at ridge/transform intersections. Examination of theTFE at many other ridge/transform intersections is necessaryto distinguish among these possibilities.     

Clay Minerals in Basalt Sills from the Sediment Cover,East Pacific Rise

Clay minerals in basalt sills from the northern East Pacific Rise, covered by Upper Pleistocene clayey–sandy–silty sediments (turbidites, hemipelagites, and diatom oozes) sampled from DSDP Holes 477, 478, and 481A, were studied by X-ray methods based on the modeling of diffraction patterns. Trioctahedral smectites formed in thin (0.1–0.5 and 1.8–4 m) fissured sills that are well permeable for water delivered from the water-saturated host sediments heated by the sills. Smectites in basalts are found in the interstices (20–40 vol % in the rock and up to 50–80 vol % in hyalobasalts). They replace olivine and fill cracks and vesicles. Plagioclase and clinopyroxene are generally unaltered. The structure of smectites is characterized by different height of layers depending on the composition of cations in the interlayers and the degree of their hydration. The different-height layers either make up individual smectite phases or alternate in different proportions and with a high degree of segregation in the mixed-layer structures. Under conditions of a prolonged cooling, thick (43 m) sills are distinguished from the thin varieties by the formation of trioctahedral minerals (smectite–chlorite, chlorite, defective chlorite, and talc). They are found mainly in the interstices that make up 3–7 vol % of the rock.     

Alteration of basalts from site 396 B,DSDP: Petrographic and mineralogic studies

Samples of crystalline basalt from Site 396 B are all more or less altered, usually in strongly zoned patterns. Evidence has been found for several related or independent alteration stages, including (1) minor localized deuteric (amphibole and mixed clay minerals in miarolitic voids); (2) minor widespread nonoxidizing (pyrite on walls of vugs and cracks); (3) localized diffusion-controlled vug filling ( glauconite in black halos); (4) pervasive low level oxidizing (transformation of titanomagnetite to cation-deficient titanomaghemite); (5) localized diffusion-controlled strongly oxidizing (breakdown of olivine and titanomaghemite in brown zones). Plagioclase and pyroxene are essentially unaltered. Detailed analyses of gray and brown zones in pillow basalts show that low temperature oxidation has proceeded in a step-wise fashion, with the relative stabilities of the igneous minerals controlling the steps. Secondary minerals that crystallized from pore fluids on to the walls of vugs may or may not be related to local alteration of primary phases.During the most intense stage of alteration, brown oxidation zones grew into basalt fragments behind diffusion controlled fronts. The specific reactions and products of this stage differ among the lithologic units at the site. A model is proposed whereby efficient seawater circulation through the pillow units maintains the pH and the concentrations of Mg²⁺ and SiO₂ dissolved at low levels in pore fluids, so that olivine is replaced by hydrous ferric oxides, and Mg and SiO₂ are removed from the system. In the massive basalt unit, circulation is somewhat less effective and Mg and SiO₂ are retained in smectites.Deposition of authigenic minerals in the sequence saponite/Fe-Mn oxides/phillipsite/calcite in vugs and cracks may reflect the gradual closing of the systems and probably signals the end of localized oxidation in parts of the core. Mineral compositions indicate that most of these deposits formed from seawater at very low temperature.     

Depth and controls of Ca-rhodochrosite precipitation in bioturbated sediments of the Eastern Equatorial Pacific, ODP Leg 201, Site 1226 and DSDP Leg 68, Site 503

The occurrence of early diagenetic Ca‐rhodochrosite [(Mn,Ca)CO₃] is reported in association with ‘griotte’‐type nodular limestones from basinal settings in the geological record; however, without the comparison of analogous modern examples, the controls on precipitation remain speculative. Here the findings of four layers of primary Ca‐rich rhodochrosite recovered from a modern deep‐sea setting in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific, from bioturbated sediments 300 m below sea floor, are reported (Ocean Drilling Program, Leg 201, Site 1226). The mineralogy is similar to cements in burrows recovered during Deep Sea Drilling Project Leg 68 at Eastern Equatorial Pacific Site 503 and from Ca‐rhodochrosite laminae in sediments of the central Baltic Sea. Petrographic relationships and constant oxygen isotopic compositions in the Ca‐rhodochrosite around 5‰ at all depths indicate a shallow burial depth of formation. The onset of 1‰ heavier oxygen isotope composition of Ca‐rhodochrosite at Site 503, about 30 m below the Pliocene/Pleistocene boundary, further suggests that precipitation occurs in the range of 30 m below sea floor. The approximate depth of formation allowed an approximate empirical fractionation factor for marine Ca‐rhodochrosite to be constrained that strongly differs from previously published theoretical values. Based on the approximate precipitation depth, authigenic Ca‐rhodochrosite forms within the SO₄^2?‐reduction zone. Moderately negative δ¹³C values (around ?3‰) and total organic carbon lower than 2 wt% indicate a relatively low contribution of CO₃^2? from organic C mineralization within the expanded redox zonation in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific. It is suggested that the alkalinity is increased by a rise in pH at focused sites of Mn‐reduction coupled with S^2? oxidation. High concentrations of Mn‐oxide can accumulate in layers or burrows because of Mn‐cycling in suboxic sediments as suggested for the Baltic Sea Ca‐rhodochrosites. This study demonstrates how early diagenetic precipitates document biogeochemical processes from past diagenetic systems.     

An occurrence of secondary sulfides from Leg 37 basalts

Two types of secondary sulfides occur on the walls of a vesicle in slightly altered basalt recovered from site 332A of DSDP Leg 37. The first consists of euhedral crystals of pure pyrite, with occasional small partial overgrowths of fibrous chalcopyrite, embedded within smectite (altered glass) which lines the vesicle. The second type occurs as small composite sulfide spherules lightly attached to the surface of the smectite. The spherules are composed of pyrite crystallites arranged in approximate pyritohedral symmetry, with marcasite crystallites decorating the pyritohedron edges. Precession camera photographs and optical studies suggest the marcasite and pyrite grew simultaneously from a pyrite nucleus, with marcasite adopting the pyrite growth habit. These spherules differ sharply from the magmatic sulfide spherules previously described.     

Plio-Pleistocene microtephra in DSDP site 231, Gulf of Aden

We reconstruct a Plio-Pleistocene microscopic tephrostratigraphy for DSDP Site 231 in the Gulf of Aden. Systematic microtephrostratigraphy increases the potential for identifying tephra horizons for regional stratigraphic correlation and age control, as well as providing information about eruptive histories. Microtephra reveal three main pulses of volcanism c. 4.0–3.2 Ma, 2.4 Ma and 1.7–1.3 Ma, corresponding to peaks in volcanic activity recorded in the East African Rift System. Previous studies of DSDP Site 231 have reported six visible tephra horizons (up to 25 cm thick) with geochemical compositions matching East African tuffs. We find 68 additional microtephra horizons through microscopic examination of 1050 samples (each integrating c. 3 ka) in over 200 m of marine sediments. We report the major and minor element geochemical compositions of individual glass shards in six of these microtephra horizons and establish a robust correlation at 168.73 m to the Lokochot Tuff (3.58 Ma), which together with previously identified tephra, provides a tightly constrained chronostratigraphy for the mid Pliocene.     

Melting in the lithospheric mantle: Inverse modelling of alkali-olivine basalts from the Big Pine Volcanic Field,California

The variations in trace element abundances of a suite of alkali-olivine basalts from the Big Pine volcanic field, California, have been ‘inverted’ following the method of Hofmann and co-workers to obtain source concentration and distribution coefficient data. The high Mg-numbers and ne-normative mineralogy of these lavas allow a simple correction to be made for fractional crystallisation, and together with a limited range in ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (0.7056–0.7064), suggest derivation from a relatively homogeneous source region. Negative correlations between SiO₂ and P₂O₅, and SiO₂ and Rb in the calculated primary magmas imply that both major and trace elements vary in a coherent fashion as a function of the degree of partial melting. The Big Pine lavas are characterised by high ratios of large-ion lithophile to high-field strength elements (Ba/Nb>60), and the inverse procedure demonstrates that this reflects source concentrations, as opposed to a mineralogical control. The calculated mantle source is further characterised by generally high abundances of Sr, Ba, K, and Th relative to Nb and Ta which imply that incompatible element enrichment of the source occurred above a subduction zone. A model Sm/Nd age of 1.8 Ga for this enrichment coincides with the regional crustal formation age. Such features imply that both the major and trace element components of the Big Pine lavas are derived from within lithospheric mantle, perhaps mobilised by the high geothermal gradients which characterise the extensional environment of the Basin and Range Province. A comparison with other Cenozoic mafic lavas throughout the western United States suggests that a substantial proportion of the mantle lithosphere in this area has similar chemical characteristics to the source of the Big Pine lavas. If this is the case, then it implies that convergent margins represent an important tectonic environment for the formation of lithospheric mantle.     

Chemistry of submarine hydrothermal solutions at 21 °N,East Pacific Rise

The three hydrothermal fields at 21°N latitude, East Pacific Rise, were resampled and an additional one was discovered. Maximum fluid temperatures observed were within a few degrees of 350°C and these waters had concentrations of Mg and sulfate indistinguishable from zero. One field, NGS, which had active 350°C springs in 1979, was inactive when first located in 1981. However, when a chimney was broken open during sampling, water issued at 273°C and continued to flow for at least five days. The chemical composition strongly suggests that these waters cooled conductively from 350°C in the sealed conduit.The major ion data are consistent with the estimates based on extrapolation of the original measurements made on the hot springs from the Galapagos Spreading Center (Edmondet al., 1979a). The fluids have a pH of 3.5 and the sulfide-forming element concentrations show significant inter-field variations. Fe levels range from 0.8 to 2.4 mmoles/kg; the ratio Fe:Mn varies from 0.9 to 2.9 similar to metalliferous sediments on the ridge flanks, but much higher than observed at Galapagos (where sub-surface precipitation of iron sulfides occurs) indicating that the overwhelming proportion of the mass flux from hydrothermal systems occurs at high temperatures. Zn ranges from 40 to 106 μmoles/kg with Cu being substantially lower. Since the ratio of these elements in tholeiites is about unity, there is strong net preferential mobilization of Zn. Lead ranges from 183 to 359 nmoles/kg. Nickel and Be are highly immobile relative to the other trace elements. The abundance of H₂S is about three times that of the total sulfide-forming cations. These data demonstrate that acid solutions at elevated temperatures can transport substantial amounts of ore-forming elements in the presence of large excesses of sulfide.     

The strontium isotopic composition of basalts from the East Pacific and Chile Rises and abyssal hills in the Eastern Pacific Ocean

Strontium isotopic differences between the basalts from the East Pacific and the Chile Rises (0.7026–0.7035, average 0.7028) and abyssal hills (0.7025–0.7037, average 0.7033) suggest that these are produced from different source materials. A progressive increase of K/Rb with decrease in Sr⁸⁷/Sr⁸⁶ ratio is interpreted in terms of relative depletion of dispersed elements in the source materials.Institute of Marine Sciences Contribution No. 163.     

Pacific superplume-related oceanic basalts hosted by accretionary complexes of Central Asia, Russian Far East and Japan

Plume-related oceanic magmatism form oceanic islands, seamounts and plateaus (hereafter “seamounts” or “paleoseamounts”), which are important features in geological history. The accretion of oceanic seamounts to active continental margins significantly contributed to the formation of the continental crust. This paper reviews occurrences of Late Neoproterozoic–Mesozoic seamounts of the Paleo-Asian and Paleo-Pacific oceans, which are hosted by accretionary complexes (ACs) of Russian Altai, East Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russian Far East and Japan. The paleoseamounts commonly consist of Ti–LREE–Nb-enriched plume-related basalts (OIB-type or intraplate basalts) capped with massive limestone and associated with other units of oceanic plate stratigraphy (OPS): oceanic floor basalts (MORB), pelagic chert, epiclastic slope facies, etc. The paper presents available geochemical data on the plume-related basalts including the first geochemical data on the Middle Paleozoic OIB-type basalts of the Paleo-Asian Ocean hosted by the Ulaanbaatar AC of Mongolia. An emphasis is made for the structural setting of OPS units, specific geochemical features of intraplate basalts, problems of their identification, and distinguishing from magmatic units of a different origin such as MORB, island-arc and back-arc basalts. Finally, we propose a continuous, though periodical, evolution of the Pacific superplume-related magmatism, which can be more reliably proved by studying Middle Paleozoic OPS units hosted by ACs of Mongolia and Tien Shan, and discuss prospects of future studies.     

Trace elements geochemistry and petrogenesis of basalt from the southern part of the East Pacific Rise

Trace element geochemistry of basalt samples collected from 6°S-24°S of the southern EPR, representing a super-fast spreading axis is discussed. Trace element data classify these basalts into Normal and Transitional types of MORB, however, LREE enrichment is also observed in few of them. Chondrite normalized REE data plots show highly fractionated nature of these lavas, suggesting their derivation from the primitive mantle source. Petrogenetic modeling of the data suggests variation in the solidus pressure (14–20 kb.) and temperature (1316–1425°C), where 15 to 20% partial melting of the mantle is accountable for the generation of the melt. The pressure and temperature conditions at the beginning of the mantle melting were high along higher latitudes (24°S of EPR), but it gradually lowered down in the lower latitudinal areas (6°S of EPR), supporting for the presence of passively rising upper mantle beneath the Southern EPR.     

Geochemical diversity in submarine HIMU basalts from Austral Islands, French Polynesia

We present the first report of geochemical data for submarine basalts collected by a manned submersible from Rurutu, Tubuai, and Raivavae in the Austral Islands in the South Pacific, where subaerial basalts exhibit HIMU isotopic signatures with highly radiogenic Pb isotopic compositions. With the exception of one sample from Tubuai, the ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages of the submarine basalts show no significant age gaps between the submarine and subaerial basalts, and the major element compositions are indistinguishable at each island. However, the variations in Pb, Sr, Nd, and Hf isotopic compositions in the submarine basalts are much larger than those previously reported in subaerial basalts. The submarine basalts with less-radiogenic Pb and radiogenic Nd and Hf isotopic compositions show systematically lower concentrations in highly incompatible elements than the typical HIMU basalts. These geochemical variations are best explained by a two-component mixing process in which the depleted asthenospheric mantle was entrained by the mantle plume from the HIMU reservoir during its upwelling, and the melts from the HIMU reservoir and depleted asthenospheric mantle were then mixed in various proportions. The present and compiled data demonstrate that the HIMU reservoir has a uniquely low ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf decoupled from ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd, suggesting that it was derived from an ancient subducted slab. Moreover, the Nd/Hf ratios of the HIMU basalts and curvilinear Nd–Hf isotopic mixing trend require higher Nd/Hf ratios for the melt from the HIMU reservoir than that from the depleted mantle component. Such elevated Nd/Hf ratios could reflect source enrichment by a subducted slab during reservoir formation.     

Pacific superplume-related oceanic basalts hosted by accretionary complexes of Central Asia,Russian Far East and Japan

Plume-related oceanic magmatism form oceanic islands, seamounts and plateaus (hereafter “seamounts” or “paleoseamounts”), which are important features in geological history. The accretion of oceanic seamounts to active continental margins significantly contributed to the formation of the continental crust. This paper reviews occurrences of Late Neoproterozoic–Mesozoic seamounts of the Paleo-Asian and Paleo-Pacific oceans, which are hosted by accretionary complexes (ACs) of Russian Altai, East Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russian Far East and Japan. The paleoseamounts commonly consist of Ti–LREE–Nb-enriched plume-related basalts (OIB-type or intraplate basalts) capped with massive limestone and associated with other units of oceanic plate stratigraphy (OPS): oceanic floor basalts (MORB), pelagic chert, epiclastic slope facies, etc. The paper presents available geochemical data on the plume-related basalts including the first geochemical data on the Middle Paleozoic OIB-type basalts of the Paleo-Asian Ocean hosted by the Ulaanbaatar AC of Mongolia. An emphasis is made for the structural setting of OPS units, specific geochemical features of intraplate basalts, problems of their identification, and distinguishing from magmatic units of a different origin such as MORB, island-arc and back-arc basalts. Finally, we propose a continuous, though periodical, evolution of the Pacific superplume-related magmatism, which can be more reliably proved by studying Middle Paleozoic OPS units hosted by ACs of Mongolia and Tien Shan, and discuss prospects of future studies.     

Structural contribution from the Oman ophiolite to processes of crustal accretion at the East Pacific Rise

A comprehensive model for the activity of the elementary accretion segment at fast‐spreading ridges relies on integration of structural data from the Oman ophiolite and geophysical results from the East Pacific Rise (EPR) around 9°N, which are of comparable size and spreading rates. The axial melt lens at shallow crustal level provides a link between Deval segmentation at the seafloor and a lower melt sill at Moho level, imaged at the EPR as a crustal melt zone (CMZ) and mapped in Oman as the Moho transition zone (MTZ). Both are attached to a mantle upwelling at the EPR, and to a frozen diapir in Oman. The physical link between diapiric mantle uprising at the Moho and Devals segmentation at the seafloor is the melt being injected from the mantle into the lower MTZ, ponding there, and then being released by powerful injections into the upper melt lens. The magma chamber covers the diapir at a distance of 5 km from the ridge axis.