Contrast in stress–strain history during exhumation between high- and ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic units in the Western Alps: Microboudinage analysis of piemontite in metacherts

Our analyses of microboudinage structures of piemontite grains embedded within six samples of metachert, one collected from an ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic unit at Lago di Cignana in Italy of the Western Alps, and the other five from surrounding high-pressure (HP) metamorphic units in Italy and France, have revealed that the structures are all symmetrical in type, and were presumably produced in coaxial strain fields. Stress–strain analyses of the microboudinaged grains revealed significant contrasts in the stress and strain histories of the UHP and HP metamorphic units, with the differential stress recorded by the UHP sample being unequivocally lower than that recorded by the five HP samples. In addition, our analyses showed that the UHP sample underwent stress-relaxation during microboudinage, whereas the five HP samples did not. On the basis of these observations and analyses we discuss the mechanical decoupling of the UHP and HP units that led to different histories in differential stress between the units during exhumation of the Western Alps.     

Low-temperature constraints on the Alpine thermal evolution of the Western Carpathian basement rock complexes

The Cretaceous to Palaeogene Alpine exhumation of previously buried Variscan basements is recorded in the southern portion of the Western Carpathians in the Gemeric and Veporic units. The Meso-Cenozoic collisional processes resulted in basement exhumation of the Tatric Unit from Palaeogene to Neogene times. According to zircon and apatite fission track data, the Gemeric Unit, an uppermost thick-skinned thrust sheet, cooled from depth levels of ∼10 up to 2.5 km (temperature interval of ∼250–60 °C) about 88–64 Ma ago, after the collapse of overlying Meliata-Turňa-Silica Mesozoic accretionary prism. The middle and lower thick-skinned thrust sheets, Veporic and Tatric units, cooled from the depths of ∼10 up to 2.5 km ∼110–40 Ma ago. The process was controlled by unroofing of footwall from beneath the Gemeric Unit. About 50–20 Ma ago, the internal zone of Tatric Unit gradually exhumed to depth of <2 km and some parts of the unit appeared at the surface level. However, the external zone of Tatric Unit was buried beneath the Eocene to Lower Miocene sedimentary successions and exhumed to the subsurface level at ∼21–8 Ma ago, as a result of oblique collision of the Western Carpathians with the European Platform.     

The first evidence of paleo-wildfire from the Campanian (Late Cretaceous) of North Africa

Although the fossil record of plant macro- and mesofossils, including fossil charcoal, is patchy geographically and temporally, such remains play an important role for the interpretation of paleoenvironmental and paleoclimatic developments in the continental realm. In Egypt, previous palynological studies on the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) deposits suggested presence of lush subtropical forests, dominated by angiosperms and pteridophytes, which developed under warm and wet climatic conditions. In the present study, the occurrence of paleo-wildfires during the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) is presented for the first time, based on samples from a surface exposure in the vicinity of the Baris Oasis, south Western Desert, Egypt. Macroscopic charcoal was collected and subsequently analyzed under a stereomicroscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The charred wood remains were identified as belonging to gymnosperms, which were important components of the North African paleoflora during the Cretaceous. These charcoal remains represent the first verified occurrence of paleo-wildfires in Africa during the Campanian.     

Mawsoniid remains (Sarcopterygii: Actinistia) from the lacustrine Missão Velha Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of the Araripe Basin,North-East Brazil

Mawsoniids are a lineage of extinct fresh/brackish water coelacanth fishes, common in Cretaceous Godwanan deposits of South America, North and West Africa and Madagascar. Here we formally describe mawsoniid remains from the fluvio-lacustrine Missão Velha Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of the Araripe Basin, North-East Brazil. The examples from the Missão Velha Formation are here described as Mawsonia cf. gigas, based mainly on elements of the lower jaw and opercular series. The occurrence of M. cf. gigas in the Missão Velha Formation expands the stratigraphic and geographical ranges of the type species.     

河南老湾金矿床上上河矿段矿床地质和成矿流体地球化学

河南桐柏老湾金矿床是桐柏-大别山(北坡)金银成矿带内大型造山带型金矿床之一。文章对该矿床的上上河矿段进行了矿床地质和成矿流体地球化学研究,旨在查明该矿段的流体成矿过程。根据矿脉穿插关系、矿石结构构造、矿物共生组合以及黄铁矿的粒度和晶形,将老湾金矿上上河矿段成矿过程划分为:石英粗粒自形黄铁矿(Ⅰ)、石英细粒半自形-他形黄铁矿(Ⅱ)、石英多金属硫化物(Ⅲ)及石英碳酸盐(Ⅳ)4个阶段。镜下观察显示,矿床中的包裹体类型有含CO_2包裹体(LH_2O+LCO_2+VCO_2)、纯CO_2包裹体(LCO_2+VCO_2)、液相包裹体(LH_2O+VH_2O)及少量含子晶包裹体(LH_2O+VH_2O+S)。第Ⅰ阶段、第Ⅱ阶段和第Ⅲ阶段均可见含CO_2包裹体、纯CO_2包裹体和液相包裹体,有时可见含CO_2包裹体与液相包裹体共存。流体包裹体显微测温结果表明,成矿流体可近似看做中温、低盐度、富CO_2的NaCl-H_2O-CO_2体系,纯CO_2包裹体和液相包裹体所代表的流体可能是由含CO_2包裹体所代表的Na Cl-H_2O-CO_2流体经不混溶形成的,三者在寄主矿物沉淀时,被同时捕获而共存。从第Ⅰ阶段到第Ⅳ阶段,成矿流体温度从303~379℃逐渐降低到138~195℃,盐度w(Na Cleq)从4.07%~9.59%逐渐降低到1.06%~2.74%。在成矿的第Ⅰ阶段成矿流体发生了不混溶作用,而在第Ⅱ阶段和第Ⅲ阶段流体中的CO_2起泡分离再次引发了不混溶作用。从第Ⅰ阶段到第Ⅲ阶段,成矿流体的δ18OH_2O从6.56‰~9.71‰经1.89‰~4.01‰变化到0.08‰,δDH_2O从-78.1‰~-64.2‰经-79.5‰~-76.3‰变化到-72.6‰,表明老湾金矿第Ⅰ阶段成矿流体主要为岩浆热液,第Ⅱ阶段成矿流体中有少量大气降水加入,第Ⅲ阶段成矿流体中大气降水的比例明显加大。     

华北克拉通东部鲁西早白垩纪基性岩墙成因:来自锆石年龄、地球化学和Sr-Nd-Hf同位素的证据

中生代基性辉绿岩墙广泛分布于华北克拉通东部山东地区。本研究给出代表性岩墙的U-Pb锆石年龄、地球化学和Sr-Nd-Hf同位素证据,4个代表性锆石的LA-ICP-MS年龄范围处于121.9±0.6Ma和124.3±0.5Ma之间(早白垩纪)。岩石的主量元素组成变化较小,岩石富集轻稀土元素和大离子亲石元素(如,Rb、Ba、U、K和Pb),以及亏损高场强元素(如,Nb、Ta和Ti)。另外,基性岩墙具有相对一致的(⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_i比值(~0.7098),负的ε_Nd(t)值(-14.7~-14.5)、ε_Hf(t)值(-31.4~-26.7)和高的Hf模式年龄(t_DM1=1817~2024Ma)。研究显示基性岩墙来自富集岩石圈地幔的部分熔融作用,并在上升侵位过程中经历了一定程度的地壳混染作用影响。总体研究表明,基性岩墙的成因机制与扬子克拉通与华北克拉通的碰撞有关,岩浆源区为晚中生代前受俯冲扬子地壳沉积物交代后的富集岩石圈地幔。     

Study on the Temporal-Spatial Evolution of Prehistoric Settlements and Its Correlation with Subsistence Strategy and Climate History in the Western Liao River Area

Western Liao River area is one of the most important birthplaces of agricultural civilization in northern China. With recent works like relics survey, site excavation and environmental archaeology going further, the time sequence, cultural content and subsistence strategy history of this area are getting explicit. Questions like ancient exploiting history of natural resources, climate background and cultural impact of subsistence strategy have been paid great attention. Traditional environmental archaeology methods like plant and animal remains analysis are mostly utilized to conduct in-site investigation, current studies rarely adopt quantitative methods to examine the sites’ macro temporal-spatial distribution and aggregation pattern. Based on abundant digitized relic survey data, GIS methods like kernel density analysis are utilized to indicate the temporal-spatial distribution and aggregation pattern of prehistoric cultures in Western Liao River area. The latitudinal, longitudinal and altitudinal migrations of site distributional core are indicated by 3D perspective shift and elevation statistics. By referencing existing studies on subsistence strategy and paleoclimate history, results of spatial analysis are used to reveal the correlation among sites’ temporal-spatial distribution, subsistence strategy adopted and climate variation. This also contributes to our understanding and utilization of massive locational information of prehistoric sites in ancient man-land relationship study.     

Characteristic and Geological Significance of Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures(MISS) in Terrestrial P-T Boundary in Xingyang,Western He’nan Province

Microbially Induced Sedimentary Structures (MISS) are primary sedimentary structures that arise syndepositionally from microbial community activity. Especially valuable are MISS for the analysis of early Archean (and extraterrestrial) deposits. However, most reports of MISS have focused on the Precambrian and Phanerozoic mass extinction marine sediments, and only a few and terrestrial MISS have been studied. The MISS presented in this paper, which mainly consists of mat growth feature, mat destruction feature and mat decay feature, are well preserved in terrestrial clastic rocks around the P-T boundary in Xiyang area, western Henan. Large U ridges, oriented sand quartz, mica grains and thin clayey laminae arranged parallel to bedding plane are the main features visible under the microscope. Several lines of evidence indicate that the Xingyang MISS are of biogenic origin. Abundant MISS in Xingyang may indicate the degradation of terrestrial ecosystems and proliferation of microbial mats immediately after the severe Permian-Triassic mass extinction. Study aiming at MISS helps to analyze their space distribution in the globe and to probe into links between microbial proliferation and environmental stresses following the end-Permian mass extinction in terrestrial ecosystems.     

河南义马地区页岩气储层孔隙非均质性

运用高压压汞、液氮吸附及渗透率测试等实验,利用极差、突进系数、变异系数等参数,表征煤系页岩孔渗特征及孔隙层间非均质性,分析孔隙层间非均质性主控因素。结果表明:河南义马地区上、下石盒子组泥页岩微孔与小孔较为发育,山西组大孔较为发育,分别提供了气体吸附附着面积和储存运移空间;上石盒子组孔容与孔径相对偏差最小,孔隙分布均匀,山西组比表面积相对偏差最小,表面积分布均匀;随围压增大,渗透率不断降低,且满足负指数相关关系;渗透率级差、突进系数和变异系数显示下石盒子组渗透率非均质性较弱,山西组渗透率非均质性很弱,更易于压裂开发。非均质性宏观上主要受沉积物质组成和构造改造作用影响,微观上受成岩演化影响。     

河南嵩县松里沟金矿床中碲化物的发现及其地质意义

松里沟金矿位于华北陆块南缘熊耳山地区,已探明金资源储量26 t。矿体产于中新太古界-古元古界太华群片麻岩NWW向的断裂带中。其热液成矿过程包括4个成矿阶段:黄铁矿-石英阶段、石英-黄铁矿阶段、金-碲化物阶段和石英-碳酸盐阶段。显微镜下发现金-碲化物阶段存在大量与金共生的碲化物。利用电子探针和能谱分析查明碲化物的种类、共生关系和形成条件,确认的碲化物有碲铅铋矿、碲铅矿、碲铋矿、碲金矿、碲金银矿、硫碲铋铅金矿、辉碲铋矿,此外还有大量的自然金和少量的辉铋矿。该矿床为一与岩浆作用有关的碲金矿床。Au主要以自然金和金银碲化物的形式存在。Au、Ag以硫氢络合物的形式发生迁移,Te2(g)和H2Te(g)冷凝进入含贵金属的氯化物溶液是碲化物沉淀主要机制。相图及化学反应方程式分析表明,金-碲化物阶段受温度、碲逸度、硫逸度、氧逸度和酸碱度控制,其中,黄铁矿-石英阶段和石英-黄铁矿阶段形成于logf_(Te2)-14.4和logf_(S2)=-11.1~-6.5的环境。金-碲化物阶段形成于温度为110~313℃、logf_(Te2)=-15.2~-9.4和logf_(S2)=-16.5~-14.6、f_(O_2)升高和pH值降低的环境。碲化物的发现为探讨该矿床成因和熊耳山地区寻找同类型的矿床提供了依据。