Olivine-normative dolerite dikes from western South Carolina: Mineralogy,chemical composition and petrogenesis

This investigation describes five Mesozoic dolerite dikes which intrude Paleozoic metamorphic and igneous rocks of the Inner Piedmont of western South Carolina. The dikes are vertical or nearly so and strike approximately N40° W. Three major northeast-trending faults also occur in the study area. Left lateral displacement of one dolerite is documented at a locality near Cleveland, South Carolina. Elsewhere, several of the dolerite dikes appear to terminate at or near the faults. — The dolerite dikes have subophitic to microporphyritic textures and consist principally of plagioclase (generally An_70–80), olivine (dominantly Fo_80–90) and augite with subordinate pigeonite, titanomagnetite, chromite and brown, partly glassy mesostasis. In one dike pyroxene compositions trend from augite to ferroaugite in contrast to an augitesubcalcic augitepigeonite trend characteristic of the other dolerites. The contrasting trends primarily result from differences in SiO₂ abundance in the dolerite magmas. — Major and trace element analyses indicate the presence of two different olivine-normative dolerite magma types. The two magma types are not related by near surface crystal fractionation. Models for genesis of the olivine-normative dolerite magmas by partial melting of a plagioclase peridotite upper mantle source region are presented. The models require that the source region be enriched in LREE and incompatible elements such as Rb, Ba, Hf and Th relative to Cl chondritic abundances. One magma type appears to represent a primary dolerite magma that ascended from the source region with little subsequent compositional change. The second magma type most likely experienced assimilation of clinopyroxene-garnet (eclogite) during ascent, thereby acquiring a REE pattern with a less steep negative slope for the LREE and a slight positive slope in the HREE.     

Petrology of a leucogabbroic interval within basal layered gabbros at North Arm Mountain,Bay of Islands ophiolite

Data from detailed sample traverses in the layered gabbro unit of the North Arm Mauntain massif, Bay of Islands ophiolite, allow meter-scale resolution of magmatic processes in spreading ridge magma chambers. One suite of 46 samples from a 195 m interval near the base of the layered gabbro unit contains cumulus plagioclase (An_73.7–87.5; average modal abundance=75%), clinopyroxene (Mg#=80.3–86.0; 18%), and olivine (Fo_76.6–82.1; 6%), with intergranular orthopyroxene (Mg#=78.0–83.3; 1%), and accessory Cr-Al spinel (Cr#=32.3–41.4). Ilmenite rims spinel in one sample. Whole rock Zr contents range from <6 to 15 ppm. Plots of stratigraphic height in the traverse versus petrogenetic indicators (e.g. Mg#'s of mafic phases and An in plagioclase) reveal both normal and reverse cryptic variation patterns; the patterns for all indices are generally correlated. The normal portions of the patterns formed during fractional crystallization of basalt batches. Ranges of mineral compositions in the normal trends suggest that 29–38% crystallization of each batch of basalt occurred before magmatic replenishment. The reverse cryptic trends formed by crystallization of hybrid magmas produced during periods of magma mixing. Other evidence for magma mixing is the systematic association of spinel and reversely zoned plagioclase with the reverse trends. Experiments and observations of natural assemblages indicate that 55% modal plagioclase crystallizes from basalts at the olivine+plagioclase+clinopyroxene+liquid piercing point. The average plagioclase content of this suite of leucogabbros from North Arm Mountain is too high to have formed from simple crystallization at the piercing point. Petrologic modeling indicates the leucogabbros may have formed from basalts into which a small amount (<10%) of plagioclase was resorbed during mixing; the initial compositions of these hybrid basalts lie in the plagioclase primary phase volume. Other suites of layered gabbros from North Arm Mountain are not so plagioclase-rich as the leucogabbros described above. Crystallization of basalts in the plagioclase primary phase volume and the consequent formation of plagioclaserich gabbros may occur in restricted portions of zoned magma chambers underlying oceanic spreading centers, or may occur episodically in the overall lifetimes of the magma chambers.     

Geochemistry of Mesozoic dolerite dikes from eastern North America

Major and trace element analyses of over one hundred Mesozoic dolerite dikes from eastern North America have established three main chemical types: 1) olivine-normative; 2) high-TiO₂ quartz-normative; and 3) low-TiO₂ quartz-normative; and a less common high-Fe₂ O₃ ^* ( Fe as Fe₂O₃) quartz-normative type. Quartz-normative dikes predominate from Nova Scotia to Maryland whereas olivine-normative dikes predominate in North and South Carolina. In Virginia and Georgia these types occur in approximately equal abundance.The high-Fe₂O₃ ^* quartz-normative type may be a result of local differentiation. The other quartz-normative types are chemically distinct from each other and probably evolved from different parental magmas. The olivine-normative type may be representative of these parental magmas, and either the parental magmas overlap in composition or only one magma is represented by analyzed olivine-normative dikes.Simple crystal fractionation models coupled with constraints on liquidus phases imposed by recent experimental studies reveal that 1) all three quartz-normative types can be derived from the olivine-normative type by the removal of slightly different cumulate assemblages, but not by contamination with any common crustal composition, and 2) the two-main quartz-normative types are related to each other by neither crystal fractionation nor contamination processes. According to the models, any of the quartz-normative types can be derived from the olivine-normative type by 60–70% accumulation, with the cumulate consisting primarily of 50% plagioclase, 25–30% olivine, and 15% clinopyroxene.The concept of vertical inhomogeniety with respect to incompatible elements in the upper mantle source areas is invoked as a possible explanation for the chemically distinct parental magmas. The spatial distribution of the chemical types and the gross outcrop pattern of the dike swarm clearly indicate that the tectonic environment of the northern Appalachian region differed from that of the southern part during the early Mesozoic.     

Origins of compositional heterogeneity in olivine-hosted melt inclusions from the Baffin Island picrites

The Baffin Island picrites are highly magnesian (22 wt% MgO) olivine tholeiites, erupted through felsic continental crust. Plots of most major and minor element oxides against MgO for the lavas define very tight trends consistent with modification of melts parental to the erupted suite by olivine fractionation or accumulation. However, melt inclusions trapped in primitive olivine phenocrysts in these lavas have much more diverse compositions. After correction for post-entrapment modification, the inclusions are systematically slightly lower in Al₂O₃, and significantly higher in SiO₂, K₂O and P₂O₅ than the lavas fractionation trends. CaO, Na₂O and TiO₂ contents lie within the lavas fractionation trends. Similarly, most inclusions are higher in Sr/Nd, K/Nb, Rb/Ba, Rb/Sr, U/Nb and Ba/Th than the lavas. These characteristics resulted from up to 15% contamination of evolving picritic-basaltic liquids by locally-derived, broadly granitic partial melts of the quartz + feldspar-rich crust through which the picrites erupted. Contamination was minor in the bulk lavas (<1%), suggesting that the inclusions compositions partly reflect a link between wall rock reaction and precipitation of liquidus olivine. Rapid crystallisation of liquidus olivine from the picrites, along with melting of felsic crustal wall rocks of magma chambers or conduits, were likely during emplacement of hot picritic magmas into cooler felsic crust. Inclusion compositions may thus reflect mixing trends or may be constrained to phase boundaries between olivine and a phase being resorbed, for example, an olivine-plagioclase cotectic. The extent of contamination was probably a complex function of diffusion rates of components in the magmas, and phenocryst growth rates and proximity to wall rock. These results bear on the common observation that melt inclusions compositions are frequently more heterogeneous than those of the lavas that host them.     

Origin and differentiation of picritic arc magmas,Ambae (Aoba), Vanuatu

Key aspects of magma generation and magma evolution in subduction zones are addressed in a study of Ambae (Aoba) volcano, Vanuatu. Two major lava suites (a low-Ti suite and high-Ti suite) are recognised on the basis of phenocryst mineralogy, geochemistry, and stratigraphy. Phenocryst assemblages in the more primitive low-Ti suite are dominated by magnesian olivine (mg 80 to 93.4) and clinopyroxene (mg 80 to 92), and include accessory Cr-rich spinel (cr 50 to 84). Calcic plagioclase and titanomagnetite are important additional phenocryst phases in the high-Ti suite lavas and the most evolved low-Ti suite lavas. The low-Ti suite lavas span a continuous compositional range, from picritic (up to 20 wt% MgO) to high-alumina basalts (<5 wt% MgO), and are consistent with differentiation involving observed phenocrysts. Melt compositions (aphyric lavas and groundmasses) in the low-Ti suite form a liquid-line of descent which corresponds with the petrographically-determined order of crystallisation: olivine + Cr-spinel, followed by clinopyroxene + olivine + titanomagnetite, and then plagioclase + clinopyroxene + olivine + titanomagnetite. A primary melt for the low-Ti suite has been estimated by correcting the most magnesian melt composition (an aphyric lava with 10.5 wt% MgO) for crystal fractionation, at the oxidising conditions determined from olivine-spinel pairs (fo₂ FMQ + 2.5 log units), until in equilibrium with the most magnesian olivine phenocrysts. The resultant composition has 15 wt% MgO and an mg ^Fe2 value of 81. It requires deep (3 GPa) melting of the peridotitic mantle wedge at a potential temperature consistent with current estimates for the convecting upper mantle (T _p 1300°C). At least three geochemically-distinct source components are necessary to account for geochemical differences between, and geochemical heterogeneity within, the major lava suites. Two components, one LILE-rich and the other LILE- and LREE-rich, may both derive from the subducting ocean crust, possibly as an aqueous fluid and a silicate melt respeetively. A third component is attributed to either differnt degrees of melting, or extents of incompatible-element depletion, of the peridotitic mantle wedge.     

Nature and cause of compositional variation among the alkalic cap lavas of Mauna Kea Volcano,Hawaii

Most Hawaiian basaltic shield volcanoes are capped by moderately to strongly evolved alkalic lavas (MgO<4.5 wt.%). On Mauna Kea Volcano the cap is dominantly composed of hawaiite with minor mugearite. Although these lavas contain dunite and gabbroic xenoliths, they are nearly aphyric with rare olivine and plagioclase phenocrysts and xenocrysts. The hawaiites are nearly homogeneous in radiogenic isotope ratios (Sr, Nd, Pb) and they define coherent major and trace element abundance trends. These compositional trends are consistent with segregation of a plagioclase-rich cumulate containing significant clinopyroxene and Fe-Ti oxides plus minor olivine. Elements which are usually highly incompatible, e.g., Rb, Ba, Nb, are only moderately incompatible within the hawaiite suite because these elements are incorporated into feldspar (Rb, Ba) and oxides (Nb). However, in the most evolved lavas abundances of the most incompatible elements (P, La, Ce, Th) exceed (by 5–10%) the maximum enrichments expected from models based on major elements. Apparently, the crystal fractionation process was more complex than simple, closed system fractionation. The large amounts of clinopyroxene in the fractionating assemblage and the presence of dense dunite xenoliths with CO₂ inclusions formed at minimum pressures of 2 kb are consistent with fractionation occurring at moderate depths. Crystal segregation along conduit or magma chamber walls is a possible mechanism for explaining compositional variations within these alkalic cap lavas.     

Pb−Sr−Nd−O isotopic constraints on the origin of rhyolites from the Taupo Volcanic Zone of New Zealand: evidence for assimilation followed by fractionation from basalt

A comprehensive Sr–Nd–Pb–O isotopic study is reported for rhyolites from the Maroa Volcanic Centre in the Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ) of New Zealand. The Sr–Nd isotopic compositions of the rhyolites (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.705236 to 0.705660 and _Nd = 2.0 to 0.2) are intermediate between those of primitive basalts (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.70387 and _Nd = 5.3) and the Torlesse basement (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr=0.709 and _Nd = -4.5). The relatively low mantle-like oxygen isotopic compositions of ¹⁸ O = 7 ± 0.5 are consistent with the Nd-Sr isotopic constraints in that they can be accounted for by 15% to 25% crustal contamination of a basaltic parent by relatively ¹⁸ O-rich Torlesse metasediment. High precision Pb isotopic analyses of plagioclase separates from the Maroa rhyolites show that they have essentially the same compositions as the Torlesse metasedimentary terrane which is itself distinctive from the Western or Waipapa metasediments. Due to the high concentration of Pb in the Torlesse metasediments (>20 ppm) compared to the basalts (<2 ppm), the Pb isotopic composition of the volcanics may be controlled by relatively small amounts (>10%) of crustal contamination. All these results are shown to be consistent with derivation of the rhyolites by 15% to 25% contamination of relatively primitive basaltic magmas with Torlesse metasedimentary crust, followed by extensive, essentially closed system fractionation of the basalt to a magma of rhyolite composition. It is argued that the processes of assimilation and fractionation are separated in both space and time. The voluminous high silica rhyolites, which make up >97% of the exposed volcanism in the continental margin back-are basin environment of the TVZ, therefore appear to be a product of predominantly new additions to the crust with assimilation-recycling of pre-existing crust being of secondary importance.     

18O-Enrichment of silicic magmas caused by crystal fractionation at the Galapagos Spreading Center

An extremely differentiated suite of unaltered volcanic rocks dredged from the Galapagos Spreading Center ranges in ¹⁸O from 5.7 to 7.1 At 95°W, low K-tholeiites, FeTi-basalts, andesites and rhyodacites were recovered. Their lithologic and major element geochemical variation can be accounted for by crystal fractionation of plagioclase, pyroxenes, olivine and titanomagnetite in the same proportions and amounts needed to model the ¹⁸O variation by simple Rayleigh fractionation. More complicated behaviour was observed in a FeTi-basalt suite from 85°W. This study shows that 90% fractionation only enriches the residual melt by about 1.2 in ¹⁸O. It also implies that the magma chambers along parts of the Galapagos Spreading Center were static and isolated such that extreme differentiation could occur.     

Geochemistry of Karroo dolerite sills in the Calvinia district,Western Cape Province,South Africa

Two Karroo dolerite sills display chemical and mineralogical variation compatible with cumulus enrichment. The Blaauwkrans sill is an olivine tholeiite and contains a central zone slightly enriched in olivine, plagioclase and clinopyroxene. The thicker Hangnest sill is a quartz tholeiite and shows evidence of crystal settling and has a lower zone enriched in cumulus orthopyroxene and plagioclase.The two sills differ quite markedly in their trace element compositions, with the Hangnest magma enriched by a factor of two in LIL elements (Rb, Ba, Nb, Zr, Y) relative to the Blaauwkrans magma. The Hangnest magma contained extremely low Ni contents (3–5 ppm), whereas the Blaauwkrans magma contained higher but more normal Ni (100–110ppm). Such contrasting trace element compositions preclude any simple genetic relationship between the two Karroo magmas but they may be related either through a common parent or are derivatives from separate parental magmas.South African Contribution No. 24 to the International Geodynamics Project     

Petrology and geochemistry of Rodrigues Island,Indian Ocean

Rodrigues Island is composed of a differentiated series of transitional-mildly alkaline olivine basalts. The lavas contain phenocrysts of olivine (Fo_88–68)±plagioclase (An_73–50), together with a megacryst suite involving olivine, plagioclase, kaersutite, clinopyroxene, apatite, magnetite and hercynite-rich spinels. Troctolitic-anorthositic gabbro xenoliths are widely dispersed throughout the lavas and are probably derived from the upper parts of an underlying layered complex: the megacrysts may originate from coarse, easily disaggregated differentiates near the top of this body.Modelling of major and trace element data suggests that the majority of chemical variation in the lavas results from up to 45% fractionation of olivine, clinopyroxene, plagioclase and magnetite at low pressures, in the ratio 2035396. The clinopyroxene-rich nature of this extract assemblage is significantly different to that of the xenoliths, and suggests that clinopyroxene-rich gabbros and/or ultrabasic rocks may lie at greater depth.Sr and Nd isotopic data (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr 0.70357–070406,¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd 0.51283–0.51289) indicate a mantle source with relative LREE depletion, and emphasise an unusual degree of uniformity in Indian Ocean island sources. A small group of lavas with strong HREE enrichment suggest a garnet-poor source for these, while high overall Al₂O₃/ CaO ratios imply high clinopyroxene/garnet ratios in refractory residua.     

Tholeiitic basalt magmatism of Mount Etna and its relations with the alkaline series

Mount Etna is composed for the most part of intermediate alkaline products, most of them porphyritic-the etnaïtes-, that may be defined as sodic trachybasalts or trachyandesites. The strato-volcanio itself overlies tholeiitic basalts (usually aphyric, except for olivine) belonging to three major types: olivine tholeiites (normative Ol+Hy; modal olivine and augite, titanomagnetite and ilmenite), pigeonite tholeiites (normative Hy+minor Ol or Qz; modal pigeonite and augite with minor olivine, ilmenite and titanomagnetite), transitional tholeiites, i.e. transitional between pigeonite tholeiites (aphyric) and alkali basaltic etnaïtes (porphyritic, with normative Ol+Ne or minor Hy; modal augite and olivine, titanomagnetite alone). An analcite basalt, chemically close to alkali basaltic etnaïtes, forms the small Cyclopean Islands, SE of Etna, and an alkali olivine basalt composes a neck at Paterno, SW foot of Etna.Both pigeonite tholeiites and alkali basaltic etnaïtes may be derived from a primitive olivine tholeiite magma by subtraction or addition of phases crystallized at moderate and low pressure (kaersutite±olivine, calcic plagioclase and clinopyroxene). The differentiation process implies crystal fractionation of the primitive olivine tholeiite magma at varying levels of the crust. The speed of ascent of the magma is thought to be the factor controlling the level at which differentiation may take place: in low velocity regimes, fractionation takes place at deeper levels of the crust. Slow ascent speeds would be the consequence of a developing crustal extension episode, induced by mantle diapirism that generated the olivine tholeiite magma below the Mount Etna area.     

Alkalic magma modified by incorporation of diverse tholeiitic components: ‘Complex’ hybridization on Kahoolawe Island, Hawaii

Summary Kahoolawe Island is a 1.4 to 1 Ma shield volcano composed of shield, caldera-fill, and postshield tholeiitic lavas, and postshield alkalic basalt and hawaiite lavas. One postshield vent erupted alkalic lavas (K₂O 1.1–1.6 wt.%) with resorbed olivines of wide compositional range (cores, Fo_86–71), resorbed Na-plagioclase (An_57–30; largely andesine) and clinopyroxene (evolved; Mg#s 76–71), and groundmass orthopyroxene (Mg# 62). They also contain tholeiitic gabbro xenoliths, which, as a suite, have a continuum of mineral compositions — clinopyroxene Mg#s 83–74, orthopyroxene Mg#s 83–76, and plagioclase An_69–35 (e.g., includes andesine gabbro). Lava compositions do not fall on expected Hawaiian fractionation trends due to MgO enrichment (e.g., CaO 7 wt.% @ MgO 6 wt.%). This assortment of mineral and rock components within alkalic lavas with apparent Mg enrichment is owed to a complex history that began with protracted mixing among primitive and differentiated tholeiitic magmas, probably near the end of shield building. These hybrid magmas crystallized a compositional variety of olivines that were resorbed during reservoir replenishments, and also crystallizedin situ to form orthopyroxene-bearing gabbro on reservoir walls. When magma production rates declined during the shield to postshield transition of tholeiitic to alkalic magmatism, the tholeiitic hybrids in reservoirs fractionated to yield highly evolved phases such as andesine and clinopyroxene with Mg# < 75. When postshield hawaiite magmas subsequently entered reservoirs, alkalic-tholeiitic hybridization occurred; the resulting `complex' mixture of hawaiite+tholeiitic hybrids resorbed andesine and clinopyroxene crystals and, upon eruption, entrained xenoliths of gabbro. Mass balancing suggests that the alkalic-tholeiitic hybridization involved 44% hawaiite mixed with a nearly equal amount of tholeiitic hybrid (MgO 9.5 wt.%) plus olivine and andesine. This type of complex hybridization is a logical process for magmatism associated with tholeiitic to alkalic transitions and waning magma production, and this Kahoolawe example is the first to document such mixing in Hawaiian reservoirs.

---

Die Modifikation alkalischer Magmen durch die Inkorporation tholeiitischer Komponenten: Komplexe Hybridisierung auf der Insel Kahoolawe, Hawaii

Zusammenfassung Die Insel Kahoolawe ist ein 1.4 bis 1 Ma alter Schildvulkan, der sich aus tholeiitischen Schild-, Kaldera- und Post-Schildlaven, sowie aus alkalibasaltischen und hawaiitischen Post-Schildlaven zusammensetzt. Ein Post-Schildschlot förderte alkalische Laven (K₂O 1.1–1.6 Gew.%) mit resorbierten Olivinen, die eine breit gestreute Zusammensetzung zeigen (Kerne, Fo_86–71), resorbiertem Na-Plagioklas (An_57–30; großteils Andesin) und entwickeltem Klinopyroxen (Mg# 76–71), sowie Orthopyroxen in der Grundmasse (Mg# 62). Sie führen auch tholeiitische Gabbro-Xenolithe, die als Suite kontinuierliche Mineralzusammensetzungen zeigen — Klinopyroxen Mg# 83–74, Orthopyroxen Mg# 83–76 und Plagioklas An_69–35 (z.B. inklusive Andesin-Gabbro). Die Lavenzusammensetzungen folgen wegen einer Mg-Anreicherung (z.B. CaO7 Gew.% @ MgO6 Gew.%) nicht dem für Hawaii erwarteten Fraktionierungstrend. Diese Ansammlung von Mineral- und Gesteinskomponenten in alkalischen Laven mit scheinbarer Mg-Anreicherung geht auf eine komplexe Entwicklungsgeschichte zurück, die mit einer länger andauern Mischung von primitiven und differentierten tholeiitischen Magmen, wahrscheinlich im Endstadium der Schildbildung, begann. Diese hybriden Magmen kristallisierten Olivin variabler Zusammensetzung, der im Zuge der Reservoir-Auffüllung resorbiert wurde und kristallisierte an den Reservoir-Wändenin situ als Orthopyroxen-führende Gabbros. Als die Magmenproduktionsraten im Übergang vom tholeiitischen Schild- zum alkalischen Post-Schild-Magmatismus geringer wurden, fraktionierten die tholeiitischen Hybride in den Reservoiren und führten zur Bildung von kochentwickelten Phasen, wie Andesin und Klinopyroxen mit Mg# < 75. Die Zufuhr von Post-Schildmagmen in die Reservoire verursachte eine alkalisch-tholeiitische Hybridisierung. Die resultierende Mischung von Hawaiit-Tholeiit-Hybriden resorbierte Andesin- und Klinopyroxen-Kristalle und verfrachtete die Gabbro-Xenolithe bei der Eruption. Massenbilanzen weisen darauf hin, daß die alkalisch-tholeiitische Hybridisierung 44% Hawait, gemischt mit etwa dem gleichen Anteil an tholeiitischem Hybrid (MgO29.5 Gew.%) plus Olivin und Andesin, beinhaltete. Diese Art komplexer Hybridisierung ist ein logischer Prozeß von Magmatismus mit tholeiitisch-alkalischem Übergangschemismus und ausklingender Magmenproduktion und dieses Beispiel von Kahoolawe ist das erste, das derartige Mischungsprozesse für Reservoire auf Hawaii dokumentiert.

---

---

With 8 Figures     

Chemical assembly of Archean anorthosites from amphibolite- and granulite-facies terranes, SW Greenland

We report whole-rock, major- and trace-element compositions (obtained by XRF and INA methods) for the amphibolite-facies Buksefjorden and granulite-facies Nordland anorthosites, SW Greenland. In a previous petrologic study on the same sample suite, we documented differences in texture, mineralogy, and mineral compositions between these two anorthosite bodies. Chemical analyses confirm differences in composition between the two bodies, but these differences cannot be explained by variations in metamorphic conditions, and point towards differences in the nature of their protoliths. Analyzed Nordland samples are anorthosites and leucogabbros with 88-98% normative plagioclase, whereas those from Buksefjorden include anorthosite, leucogabbro, and gabbro with ~55-95% normative plagioclase. Two or more compositional groupings can be recognized at each site, which correspond to differences in color and mineralogy of the hand samples. Samples from Buksefjorden are mainly quartz-normative, whereas those from Nordland are olivine (- nepheline) normative. Other differences include higher Ni/Co ratio and REE contents in the granulite-facies anorthosites from Nordland. REE pattern shapes are similar, however, being moderately fractionated at ~0.5-102 chondrites with positive Eu-anomalies. Calculated equilibrium melt patterns are similar for both anorthosites, being relatively flat at ~50-1502 chondrites, suggesting unfractionated (but evolved) parental magmas. Olivine must have been present in the protoliths of the Nordland rocks compared with Buksefjorden. Otherwise, the protoliths contained plagioclase with variable An-content (~An₆₂-An₉₂) and a mafic component with variable Fe/Mg (mg ~0.3-0.8). This mafic component was either hornblende or a combination of ortho- and clinopyroxene in fixed proportions, plus a small amount of magnetite. Mixing calculations demonstrate that some Buksefjorden anorthosites contain two varieties of plagioclase: a calcic type that may correspond to cumulus crystals, and a sodic-type that may correspond to a trapped-melt component. On plots of normative whole-rock An versus mg, compositions of the Buksefjorden and Nordland anorthosites form crude negative arrays that differ from the generally positive trends of mafic layered intrusions (Kiglapait, Skaergaard) and from the generally flats trends of plagioclase-rich cumulate rocks (St. Urbain and Stillwater anorthosites). This difference provides further evidence for the distinctive nature of Archean calcic-anorthosite complexes compared with other types of mafic intrusions. Moreover, this distribution of data points is consistent with the assembly of the protolith of the SW Greenland anorthosites mainly as mixtures of plagioclase and hornblende. Finally, the field for the Buksefjorden and Nordland anorthosites overlaps only slightly with that for the Fiskenaesset Complex, thus extending the known range of compositions for Archean anorthosites in West Greenland.     

Isotopic variation in the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite,central Sierra Nevada,California

Granitoid rocks of the compositionally zoned Late Cretaceous Toulumne Intrusive Suite in the central Sierra Nevada, California, have initial⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values (Sri) and¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd values (Ndi) that vary from 0.7057 to 0.7067 and from 0.51239 to 0.51211 respectively. The observed variation of both Sri and Ndi and of chemical composition in rocks of the suite cannot be due to crystal fractionation of magma solely under closed system conditons. The largest variation in chemistry, Ndi, and Sri is present in the outer-most equigranular units of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite. Sri varies positively with SiO₂, Na₂O, K₂O, and Rb concentrations, and negatively with Ndi, Al₂O₃, Fe₂O₃, MgO, FeO, CaO, MnO, P₂O₅, TiO₂, and Sr concentrations. This covariation of Sri, Ndi and chemistry can be modeled by a process of simple mixing of basaltic and granitic magmas having weight percent SiO₂ of 48.0 and 73.3 respectively. Isotopic characteristic of the mafic magma are Sri=0.7047, Ndi=0.51269 and ¹⁸O=6.0, and of the felsic magma are Sri=0.7068, Ndi=0.51212 and ¹⁸O=8.9. The rocks sampled contain from 50 to 80% of the felsic component. An aplite in the outer equigranular unit of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite apparently was derived by fractional crystallization of plagioclase and hornblende from magma with granudiorite composition that was a product of mixing of the magmas described above. Siliceous magmas derived from the lower crust, having a maximum of 15 percent mantle-derived mafic component, are represented by the inner prophyritic units of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite.     

Parental magmas of the Nain Plutonic Suite anorthosites and mafic cumulates: a trace element modelling approach

Equilibrium melt trace element contents are calculated from Proterozoic Nain Plutonic Suite (NPS) mafic and anorthositic cumulates, and from plagioclase and orthopyroxene megacrysts. Assumed trapped melt fractions (TMF) <20% generally eliminate all minor phases in most mafic cumulate rocks, reducing them to mixtures of feldspar, pyroxene and olivine, which would represent the high-temperature cumulus assemblage. In anorthosites, TMF <15% generally reduce the mode to a feldspar-only assemblage. All model melts have trace element profiles enriched in highly incompatible elements relative to normal mid-ocean ridge basalt (NMORB); commonly with negative Nb and Th anomalies. Most mafic cumulates yield similar profiles with constant incompatible element ratios, and can be linked through fractional crystallization. High K-La subtypes probably represent crust-contaminated facies. Mafic cumulates are inferred to belong to a tholeiitic differentiation series, variably contaminated by upper and lower crustal components, and probably related to coeval tholeiitic basaltic dyke swarms and lavas in Labrador. Model melts from anorthosites and megacrysts have normalized trace element profiles with steeper slopes than those calculated from mafic cumulates, indicating that mafic cumulates and anorthosites did not crystallize from the same melts. Orthopyroxene megacrysts yield model melts that are more enriched than typical anorthositic model melts, precluding an origin from parental melts. Jotunites have lower K-Rb-Ba-Y-Yb and higher La-Ce than model residues from fractionation of anorthositic model melts, suggesting they are not cosanguineous with them, but provide reasonable fits to evolved mafic cumulate model melts. Incompatible element profiles of anorthositic model melts closely resemble those of crustal melts such as tonalites, with steep Y-Yb-Lu segments that suggest residual garnet in the source. Inversion models yield protoliths similar to depleted lower crustal granulite xenoliths with aluminous compositions, suggesting that the incompatible trace element budget of the anorthosites are derived from remobilization of the lower crust. The similarity of the highly incompatible trace elements and LILE between anorthositic and mafic cumulate model melts suggests that the basalts parental to the mafic cumulates locally assimilated considerable quantities of the same crust that yielded the anorthosites. The reaction between underplating basalt and aluminous lower crust would have forced crystallization of abundant plagioclase, and remobilization of these hybrid plagioclase-rich mushes then produced the anorthosite massifs.     

The influence of amphibole fractionation on the evolution of calc-alkaline andesite and dacite tephra from the central Aleutians,Alaska

Petrologic studies of tephra from Kanaga, Adak, and Great Sitkin Islands indicate that amphibole fractionation and magma mixing are important processes controlling the composition of calc-alkaline andesite and dacite magmas in the central Aleutians. Amphibole is ubiquitous in tephra from Kanaga and Adak Islands, whereas it is present only in a basaltic-andesite pumice from Great Sitkin. Dacitic tephra from Great Sitkin do not contain amphibole. Hornblende dacite tephra contain HB+PLAG+OX±OPX±CPX phenocrysts with simple zoning patterns, suggesting that the dacites evolved in isolated magma chambers. Andesitic tephra from Adak contain two pyroxene and hornbelende populations, and reversely zoned plagioclase, indicating a more complex history involving mixing and fractional crystallization. Mass balance calculations suggest that the andesitic tephra may represent the complements of amphibole-bearing cumulate xenoliths, both formed during the evolution of high-Al basalts. The presence of amphibole in andesitic and dacitic tephra implies that Aleutian cale-alkaline magmas evolve in the mid to lower crust under hydrous (>4 wt.% H₂O) and oxidizing (Ni–NiO) conditions. Amphibole-bearing andesites and pyroxene-bearing dacites from Great Sitkin indicates fractionation at several levels within the arc crust. Despite its absence in many calc-alkaline andesite and dacite lavas, open system behavior involving amphibole fractionation can explain the trace element characteristies of lavas found on Adak Island. Neither open nor closed system fractionation involving a pyroxene-bearing assemblage is capable of explaining the trace element concentrations or ratios found in the Adak suite. We envision a scenario where amphibole was initially a liquidus phase in many calc-alkaline magmas, but was later replaced by pyroxenes as the magmas rose to shallow levels within the crust. The mineral assemblage in these evolved lavas reflects shallow level equilibration of the magma, whereas the trace element chemistry provides evidence for a earlier, amphibole-bearing, mineral assemblage.     

Experimental constraints on depths of fractionation of mildly alkalic basalts and associated felsic rocks: Pantelleria,Strait of Sicily

Pantelleria, Italy, is a continental rift volcano consisting of alkalic basalt, trachyte, and pantellerite. At 1 atm along the FMQ buffer, the least-evolved basalt (Mg #= 58.5% norm ne) yields olivine on the liquidus at 1,180° C, followed by plagioclase, then by clinopyroxene, and by titanomagnetite and ilmenite at 1,075°. After 70% crystallization, the residual liquid at 1,025° is still basaltic and also contains apatite and possibly kaersutite. A less alkalic basalt shows the same order of phase appearance. Glass compositions define an Fe-enrichment trend and a density maximum for anhydrous liquids that coincides with a minimum in Mg#.During the initial stages of crystallization at 1 atm, liquids remain near the critical plane of silica-undersaturation until, at lower temperatures, Fe-Ti oxide precipitation drives the composition toward silica saturation. Thus the qtz-normative trachytes and pantellerites typically associated with mildly ne-normative basalts in continental rifts could be produced by low-pressure fractional crystallization or by shallow-level partial melting of alkali gabbro. At 8 kbar, clinopyroxene is the liquidus phase at 1,170° C, followed by both olivine and plagioclase at 1,135°. Because clinopyroxene dominates the crystallizing assemblage and plagioclase is more albitic than at 1 atm, liquids at 8 kbar are driven toward increasingly ne-normative compositions, suggesting that higher-pressure fractionation favors production of phonolitic derivatives.Natural basaltic samples at Pantelleria are aphyric or contain 1–10% phenocrysts of plag olcpx or ol>cpx, with groundmass Fe-Ti oxides and apatite. The lack of phenocrystic plagioclase in two of the lavas suggests that crystallization at slightly higher PH₂O may have destabilized plagioclase relative to the 1-atm results, but there is no preserved evidence for significant fractionation at mantle depths as clinopyroxene is the least abundant phenocryst phase in all samples and contains only small amounts of octahedral Al. The liquid line and phenocryst compositions match more closely the 1-atm experimental results than those at 8 kbar.Although major-element trends in natural liquids and crytals reflect low-pressure fractionation, minor- and trace-element concentrations preserve evidence of multiple parental liquids. Scatter in variation diagrams exceeds that attributable to crystal accumulation in these phenocryst-poor rocks, and the large range in concentrations of P and Ti at high MgO contents cannot be produced by polybaric fractionation nor by mixing with coexisting felsic magmas. Sr and O isotope ratios rule out significant interaction with crystalline upper crust, Mesozoic shelf sediments, or Tertiary evaporites. Positive correlations of compatible and incompatible elements suggest that the basalts are not simply related to one another by closed-system fractional crystallization of a single parental magma. Increasing Ce/Yb with Ce suggests that these relations are not a product of mixing within a replenished magma chamber, nor of mixing with more felsic members of the suite, which have smaller Ce/Yb ratios. Low-pressure fractional crystallization of ol+cpx+ plag±oxides from slightly different parental magmas produced by varying degrees of melting of garnet-bearing peridotite is a possible scenario.Small and infrequently replenished magma reservoirs in this continental rift environment may account for the strongly differentiated nature of the Pantellerian basalts. There is no correlation between Mg# and eruptive frequency, in part because concentration of volatiles in residual liquids offsets the effect of Fe-enrichment on melt density, such that strong Fe-enrichment is no hindrance to eruption.     

Petrology of Serra Geral (Paraná) continental flood basalts,southern Brazil: crustal contamination,source material,and South Atlantic magmatism

The Serra Geral (Paraná) continental flood basalt (SG-CFB) province in Brazil is associated with the Jurassic-Cretaceous breakup of Gondwanaland and the transition of continental to oceanic magmatism during the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean. A suite of 24 samples representative of the SG-CFB in Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil, shows a compositional continuum from basalt (50–53 wt% SiO₂, Mg# 60-45), to basaltic andesite, to andesite, rhyodacite, and rhyolite (73 wt% SiO₂). Certain compositional aspects of the mafic rocks (e.g., TiO₂, K₂O, CaO, Zr/Nb, Zr/Y, Ti/Zr) resemble those of basaltic dikes and flows associated with the opening of the North Atlantic Ocean.Fractionation trends are apparent in MgO variation diagrams and calculations show that basalt-basaltic andesite continuums are largely due to removal of plagioclase and clinopyroxene. These mafic rocks can be categorized as (i) having higher or lower incompatible-element contents (e.g. K₂O 0.6–1.5 wt%; Rb 12–43 ppm; Ba 125–240 ppm) due to incorporation of Brazilian Archean crust or rhyolitic magma by basalt from a particular source material or to partial-melting differences of that source, and (ii) as having higher or lower TiO₂, Sr, Ba, and P contents due to source heterogeneities. Crustal components are obvious in certain basaltic samples, as where K₂O > 1 wt%, SiO₂ > 51%, and TiO₂ 1%, but are insignificant in others (e.g., compositions close to those of South Atlantic basin basalts). Calculations indicate origins for intermediate and silicic rocks by removal of pl, cpx, and Ti-magnetite from basaltic andesite, but crust and magma-mixing affecting basaltic-andesite fractionates were likely also involved. Where contamination is insignificant, Zr, Nb, and Y abundances indicate T-type MORE source material like that for certain S. Atlantic Ocean basalts. Source material was essentially a 91 hybrid of N-type and P-type MORB components. N-type MORB lithosphere followed SG-CFB because decompression due to rifting crust enabled partial melting of uppermost (depleted) mantle.     

Pre-eruptive geochemistry of the ignimbrite-forming magmas of the Campanian Volcanic Zone, Southern Italy, determined from silicate melt inclusions

Summary ¶The Campanian Ignimbrite rock samples include two compositionally distinct populations of clinopyroxene phenocrysts, and the entrapped MI (melt inclusions) are also different in composition. The cores of the more MgO-enriched phenocrysts carry basaltic trachyandesite MI that contain >6wt.% MgO, whereas other phenocrysts contain MI with <4wt.% MgO. The MgO-enriched MI also contain comparatively greater abundances of F, CaO, TiO₂, P₂O₅, SO₂, and Sr and show marginally higher ratios of (CaO/Al₂O₃) than the low-MgO MI. Most of the high-MgO MI also contain comparatively more H₂O. The MgO-enriched MI are restricted to diopsidic clinopyroxenes and show minimal compositional variability, demonstrating that they were derived from a common magmatic source or sources. We interpret these MI to represent primary, mafic magma. In contrast, the more evolved, low-MgO melt inclusions, which are restricted to salitic clinopyroxenes, span the compositional range of trachyandesite to trachyte. The low-MgO fractions of Campanian Ignimbrite magma evolved via fractional crystallization with or without mingling or mixing with more primitive, high-MgO magma.Interestingly, the MI from the Giugliano sample also cluster into low-MgO and high-MgO fractions, and the evolutionary trends for major, minor, and trace elements mirror those exhibited by the Campanian Ignimbrite MI, suggesting that both magmas were derived from similar or the same source(s) and that the processes of magma evolution were equivalent for both magmas.The MI also indicate that the Campanian Ignimbrite and Giugliano magmas did not form by evolution of Taurano magma, because the geochemical trends expressing melt evolution of the former and latter magmas are too dissimilar. Most Taurano MI show higher (CaO/Al₂O₃) and contain less SiO₂, (Na₂O+K₂O), Cl, Li, Rb, Cs, Sr, Nb, Th, and U than the high-MgO and low-MgO Campanian Ignimbrite and Giugliano MI, indicating that the Taurano MI represent magmas which were much more primitive.Received July 15, 2002; revised version accepted March 27, 2003     

Timing and origin of midcontinent rift alkaline magmatism,North America: evidence from the Coldwell Complex

The Coldwell Complex represents the largest alkaline intrusion associated with the Midcontinent Rift System in North America. This complex contains a plethora of rock types that have previously been subdivided into three intrusive centers. A detailed U-Pb zircon/baddeleyite age study of five samples indicates that the majority of the complex was emplaced into cold Archean crust at 1108±1 Ma and likely experienced a rapid cooling history. These data, combined with published U-Pb zircon/baddeleyite results for other rift related igneous activity, document the contemporaneous production and emplacement of tholeiitic and alkaline magmas at the onset of rifting. The Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic compositions of selected minerals from different phases of the complex display considerable scatter that is best explained by the presence of magmas with different initial isotopic compositions. The initial Sr and Nd isotopic compositions for clinopyroxene and plagioclase from one of the earliest gabbro phases (_Nd=+0.5 to +1.6; _Sr=+2.4 to +3.1) are identical to published data for primitive olivine tholeiites from the rift and indicate that the majority of magmas, both tholeiitic and alkaline, have a uniform, nearly chondritic isotopic composition. This very reproducible isotopic composition for rift magmatism can be explained by the dominance of a well-mixed mantle plume signature in magma genesis. The shift in isotopic compositions observed for the more evolved granite and syenite samples (_Nd=–4.6 to –6.4; _Sr=+10.2 to +13.8) combined with a less radiogenic Pb isotopic signature is consistent with derivation of these magmas from or interaction with an older granulite facies lower crust. The chondritic isotopic signature typical of most MRS volcanic and plutonic rocks is quite distinct from published results on associated carbonatites (_Nd=+2.1 to +4.5; _Sr=–8.0 to 2212;11.5) indicating the presence of at least two distinct subcontinental mantle isotopic reservoirs in this region.