Loss of 40Ar(rad) from leucite-bearing basanite at low temperature: implications on K/Ar dating.

The Bakony-Balaton Highland Volcanic Field (BBHVF) is located in the central part of Transdanubia, Pannonian Basin, with over 50 alkali basaltic volcanoes. The basanite plug of Hegyestu erupted in the first phase of volcanic activity. K/Ar and Ar/Ar ages were published for the BBHVF. K/Ar and Ar/Ar ages of the leucite-bearing basanite of Hegyestás were conflicting. This is caused by the special Ar retention feature of leucite in this basanite. K/Ar ages measured in the usual way were 25–45% younger, but after HCl treatment of the rock, or after reducing the baking temperature of the argon extraction line from 250°C to 150°C, they became similar to the Ar/Ar ages. All Ar/Ar determinations were performed after HF treatment. HCl treatment dissolved olivine, nepheline, leucite, magnetite and from 1-1 sample analcime or calcite. K dissolution studies from different locations of Hegyestü have shown that K content is mostly ≈2%, but it may decrease to ≈0.3%. HCl treatment dissolved 28.0–63.5% of the K content. The calculated K concentration for the dissolved part of samples with ~2%K was 4.02-6.42%: showing that leucite is responsible for the low temperature loss of ⁴⁰Ar(rad). Ar may release at low temperature from very finegrained mineral, or when the Ar release mechanism changes. A ⁴⁰Ar(rad) degassing spectrum has been recorded in the 55–295°C range of baking temperature and the data were plotted in the Arrhenius diagram. The diagram shows that a change of the structure in the 145–295°C range caused the loss of ⁴⁰Ar(rad). On fractions of HCl treated rock 7.56±0.17 Ma isochron K/Ar age has been determined. This is regarded as minimum age of eruption and it is similar to the Ar/Ar isochron age (7.78±0.07 Ma).     

Ar/Ar Single Grain Dating and Mineral Chemistry of Hornblendes South of the Red River Shear Zone (Vietnam): New Evidence for Early Proterozoic Tectonothermal Event

The pre-Mesozoic metamorphic belt runs parallel to the Day Nui Con Voi - Red River shear zone in Vietnam to the south. The belt is mainly composed of hornblende gneisses, amphibolite lenses and mica-schists. Five hornblendes from a gneiss and an amphibolite were analyzed chemically and chronologically by Electron Probe Micro Analysis (EPMA) and ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar methods. EPMA analyses show that hornblendes in the gneiss and the amphibolite have significant amount of edenite component and similar average composition. However, the recalculated Fe³⁺ content is significantly heterogeneous in a thin section while total Fe is nearly the same among the analyses. The rim of each crystal is higher in Fe³⁺/(Fe³⁺ + Fe²⁺) than the core. These chemical and petrological features suggest that the hornblendes have suffered significant oxidation, in particular, largely in the gneiss.

⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar analyses showed that the gneiss has a significant variation of plateau ages (2089±14, 1977±19 and 1873±13 Ma) among three hornblende grains, whereas the amphibolite gives the same plateau ages (2056±14 and 2044±21 Ma) for two grains. All grains of both samples have excess ages in the first few fractions at low temperatures and partial-loss ages between the excess and plateau spectra. The Ca/K ratios indicate some disturbed phases for the lower temperature spectra but the partial-loss ages are also derived from hornblende phase. These facts suggest that hornblende in the gneiss has experienced partial argon loss by oxidation and/or thermally activated argon diffusion process. However, the gneiss and the associated amphibolite have preserved the early Proterozoic tectono-metamorphic event in the hornblende crystals except for their rims, giving new evidence for the early Proterozoic event within the pre-Mesozoic metamorphic belt (northern Vietnam) south of the Red River shear zone in Indochina.