Geochemistry of post-collisional mafic lavas from the North Anatolian Fault zone, Northwestern Turkey

Extensive magmatic activity developed at the northwestern part of the Anatolian block and produced basaltic lavas that are situated along and between the two segments of the North Anatolian Fault zone. This region is a composite tectonic unit formed by collision of continental fragments after consumption of Neotethyan ocean floor during the late Cretaceous. Northwestern Anatolian basalts and evolved lavas exhibit both tholeiitic and calc-alkaline characteristics. Mafic lavas are moderately enriched in LILE (except depleted part of Yuvacık and İznik samples) and depleted in HFSE (but not Zr, Hf) relative to primitive mantle values, suggesting derivation from a MORB-like mantle source that is unexpected in this subduction environment. Sr and Nd isotopes are close to the mantle array and vary beyond analytical error (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr 0.70404–0.70546, ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd 0.51270–0.51289). These geochemical features may result from two possible processes: (1) melting of a MORB-like mantle source that was modified by subduction-released fluids and melts or (2) modification of mafic liquids derived from a dominantly MORB-like source by crustal or lithospheric mantle material. Geochemical characteristics of the lavas (e.g., Ba/Rb, Rb/Sr, Ba/Zr, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, Sr/P) vary systematically along the fault zone from east to west, consistent with a decrease in the degree of melting from east to west or a change in the nature of the source composition itself. Thus, the difference in incompatible elements and Sr–Nd isotopic ratios seems to result from small-scale mantle heterogeneity in a post-collisional tectonic environment.     

Relative contributions of crust and mantle to the generation of the Tianshan Carboniferous rift-related basic lavas, northwestern China

The Tianshan Carboniferous–Permian rift-related volcanism in northwestern China represents a newly recognized large igneous province extending over at least 1.5 × 10⁶ km². The volcanic successions comprise thick piles of basaltic lavas and subordinate intermediate and silicic lavas and pyroclastics, and are interpreted to result from a mantle plume head with component of ε_Nd(t) ≈ +5, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr(t) ≈ 0.704 and La/Nb ≈ 0.9. On the basis of petrogeochemical data, the Carboniferous basic lavas can be generally incorporated into low-Ti/Y (LT, Ti/Y < 500) magma type that can be further divided into three subtypes: LT1, LT2 and LT3. The chemical evolution of the LT1, LT2 (in central Tianshan) and LT3 (in western Tianshan and Jungar) lavas is controlled by an olivine (ol) + clinopyroxene (cpx) fractionation, but gabbroic fractionation accounts for the chemical variation of the LT3 lavas from eastern Tianshan. Elemental and isotopic data suggest that the chemical variation of Tianshan Carboniferous basic lavas cannot be explained by crystallization from a common parental magma.The Sr–Nd isotopic variation of the crustally contaminated LT3 lavas is related to the nature of lithosphere through which the plume-derived melts have erupted. The involvement of an older (Precambrian) lithosphere led the LT3 lavas in western Tianshan to have lower to negative ε_Nd(t) (−1.2 to +6.1) and variable ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr(t) (0.7036–0.7061), whereas the LT3 lavas from eastern Tianshan and Jungar are characterized by high ε_Nd(t) (+4.2 to +9.7) and low ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr(t) (0.7035–0.7044), that are related to the contamination of upper crust containing early Paleozoic and Devonian arc-basin volcanic rocks and/or to a pre-Carboniferous subduction enrichment of the lithospheric mantle source region. The observed geochemical variations in the Tianshan data are consistent with an AFC process.The Tianshan Carboniferous rift-related volcanic rocks display a spatial petrogeochemical variation in which predominantly uncontaminated LT1 and less-contaminated LT2 tholeiitic lavas erupted in central Tianshan rift and predominantly the strongly contaminated LT3 tholeiites erupted in the circumjacent regions of the central Tianshan rift. The LT1 and LT2 lavas were generated by a higher degree (10–30%) of partial melting in the garnet stability field of the mantle plume compared to the LT3 lavas. The lower degree (<10%) of partial melting in the spinel–garnet transition zone of the mantle plume, as is characteristic of the LT3 lavas, may be the result of a relatively lower geotherm.     

Geochemistry and geochronology of mafic rocks from Bamenda Mountains (Cameroon): Source composition and crustal contamination along the Cameroon Volcanic Line

Mafic rocks from the Bamenda volcanic province along the Cameroon Volcanic Line have been dated from 17 to 0 Ma. Associated with some trachytes and rhyolites, this volcanism covers a period of more than 25 Ma. The studied rocks are basalts to mugearites. Most of them have been contaminated by continental crust during their transit to the surface. The oldest rocks are the most contaminated. One group of samples shows high Eu, Sr and Ba contents. This characteristic is not due to crustal contamination process, but has a mantle source origin. We argue that these characteristics have been acquired by mixing of melts formed by partial melting of mantle pyroxenites with melts formed in mantle peridotites. Such pyroxenites have been observed as mantle xenoliths in the Adamaoua province, and their chemical and isotopic compositions are consistent with such a model.     

Cyclic sedimentation in the Permian coal measures of New South Wales

Statistical analysis of borehole sections through the Illawarra and Newcastle Coal Measures of the Sydney Basin shows that cyclic sedimentation is present. The composite sequence for the Southern Coalfield (Illawarra Coal Measures) is (in ascending order): sandstone—sandstone/siltstone alternations—shale—coal, whereas that for the Newcastle Coalfield is: shale—sandstone/siltstone alternations—sandstone, often conglomeratic, or conglomerate—sandstone/siltstone alternations—shale —coal.

The environment of deposition is discussed. It is suggested that in the Southern Coalfield cyclicity is due to sedimentational processes inherent in the deltaic and alluvial conditions envisaged during Permian times. Periodic influxes of glacial meltwaters, although not essential, are not ruled out.

In the Newcastle Coalfield, however, the composite sequence does not match easily the ideal cycles expected in deltaic and/or alluvial regimes. Contemporary volcanism and tectonism complicated matters and lack of sedimentological details makes it impossible at present to give preference to any one mechanism of cycle formation.     

西藏冈底斯东段叶巴组火山岩地球化学特征及其地质构造意义

西藏冈底斯东段叶巴组火山岩的岩石地球化学特征研究表明:该火山岩为一套岩性连续分布的钙碱性火山岩,其中基性火山岩主要来源于岩石圈地幔的部分熔融,并受到流体的交代作用,中酸性火山岩则主要来源于地壳的部分熔融.叶巴组火山岩形成于岛弧或活动大陆边缘的构造环境,其动力来源应为新特提斯洋向北的俯冲消减.叶巴组发育的岛弧地区是形成具重要经济价值的VMS矿床的最佳地域.叶巴组火山岩的研究对早、中侏罗世的生物事件、气候变化以及海退或海侵事件也有重要的意义.     

江绍断裂带晚中生代镁铁质火山岩成因及其深部过程意义

本文对沿江绍断裂带的江山和浦江两地区中生代镁铁质火山岩进行了Ar-Ar年代学、岩石学和元素-同位素地球化学研究。Ar-Ar年代学结果显示,江山玄武岩的形成年龄约为99Ma,为晚白垩世喷发产物;浦江玄武岩和玄武质安山岩的喷发时间为111～112Ma,属于早白垩世。两区中生代镁铁质火山岩都为中钾钙碱性系列,根据其地球化学指标可划分为三组:第1组为江山OIB型玄武岩,在微量元素组成上无Nb-Ta亏损和Pb负异常,高ε_(Nd)(t)和低(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)_i比值,总体上显示出类似洋岛玄武岩的元素-同位素组成特征;第2组为高钛磷玄武岩,Nb-Ta弱负异常和明显Pb正异常,中等ε_(Nd)(t)和(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)_i比值;第3组为低钛磷玄武岩,强烈Nb-Ta负异常和中等Pb正异常,低ε_(Nd)(t)(-6.0～-3.7)和高(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)_i为特征。三组镁铁质火山岩相互之间缺乏分异演化关系,也不是同一母岩浆经历地壳混染作用的结果。对比三组镁铁质火山岩的La/Nb、Ba/Nb、Zr/Ba比值和Sr-Nd同位素模拟结果,我们认为江绍断裂带晚中生代玄武岩为软流圈-岩石圈相互作用的产物,从早期(111～112Ma)到晚期(99Ma)镁铁质岩浆地幔源区软流圈组分的比例越来越多而岩石圈成份逐渐减少的趋势。考虑到该区晚中生代的盆岭构造格局与邻区郴州-临武断裂带同时期镁铁质岩浆的产出特点,华南地区在早白垩世晚期到晚白垩世期间发生了强烈的岩石圈伸展-减薄作用。     

Petrogenesis of Tholeiitic Lavas from the Submarine Hana Ridge, Haleakala Volcano, Hawaii

Hana Ridge, the longest submarine rift zone in the Hawaiianisland chain, extending from Maui 140 km to the ESE, has a complexmorphology compared with other Hawaiian rift zones. A totalof 108 rock specimens have been collected from the submarineHana Ridge by six submersible dives. All of the rocks (76 bulkrocks analyzed) are tholeiitic basalts or picrites. Their majorelement compositions, together with distinctively low Zr/Nb,Sr/Nb, and Ba/Nb, overlap those of Kilauea lavas. In contrast,the lavas forming the subaerial Honomanu shield are intermediatein composition between those of Kilauea and Mauna Loa. The compositionalcharacteristics of the lavas imply that clinopyroxene and garnetwere important residual phases during partial melting. The compositionsof olivine and glass (formerly melt) inclusions imply that regardlessof textural type (euhedral, subhedral–undeformed, deformed)olivine crystallized from host magmas. Using the most forsteriticolivine (Fo_90·6) and partition coefficients     

Tectonic control of bioalteration in modern and ancient oceanic crust as evidenced by carbon isotopes

Abstract We review the carbon‐isotope data for finely disseminated carbonates from bioaltered, glassy pillow rims of basaltic lava flows from in situ slow‐ and intermediate‐spreading oceanic crust of the central Atlantic Ocean (CAO) and the Costa Rica Rift (CRR). The δ¹³C values of the bioaltered glassy samples from the CAO show a large range, between ?17 and +3‰ (Vienna Peedee belemnite standard), whereas those from the CRR define a much narrower range, between ?17‰ and ?7‰. This variation can be interpreted as the product of different microbial metabolisms during microbial alteration of the glass. In the present study, the generally low δ¹³C values (less than ?7‰) are attributed to carbonate precipitated from microbially produced CO₂ during oxidation of organic matter. Positive δ¹³C values >0‰ likely result from lithotrophic utilization of CO₂ by methanogenic Archaea that produce CH₄ from H₂ and CO₂. High production of H₂ at the slow‐spreading CAO crust may be a consequence of fault‐bounded, high‐level serpentinized peridotites near or on the sea floor, in contrast to the CRR crust, which exhibits a layer‐cake pseudostratigraphy with much less faulting and supposedly less H₂ production. A comparison of the δ¹³C data from glassy pillow margins in two ophiolites interpreted to have formed at different spreading rates supports this interpretation. The Jurassic Mirdita ophiolite complex in Albania shows a structural architecture similar to that of the slow‐spreading CAO crust, with a similar range in δ¹³C values of biogenic carbonates. The Late Ordvician Solund–Stavfjord ophiolite complex in western Norway exhibits structural and geochemical evidence for evolution at an intermediate‐spreading mid‐ocean ridge and displays δ¹³C signatures in biogenic carbonates similar to those of the CRR. Based on the results of this comparative study, it is tentatively concluded that the spreading rate‐dependent tectonic evolution of oceanic lithosphere has a significant control on the evolution of microbial life and hence on the δ¹³C biosignatures preserved in disseminated biogenic carbonates in glassy, bioaltered lavas.     

Temperature and Hf-O isotope correlations of young erupted zircons from Tengchong (SE Tibet): Assimilation fractional crystallization during monotonic cooling

Young zircons from crystal-poor volcanic rocks provide the best samples for the investigations of pre-eruption magmatic processes and for testing a possible relationship between zircon Eu anomalies and crustal thickness. We report trace element chemistry and Hf-O isotope compositions of young zircons from 3 Holocene volcanoes in the Tengchong volcanic field, SE Tibet, in order to provide insights into magma evolution processes and conditions for high-K calc-alkaline volcanic rocks in a post-collisional setting. As decreasing zircon Ti content and falling temperature, zircon Hf content and Yb/Sm increase whereas zircon Eu anomaly and Th/U decrease, indicating fractional crystallization of plagioclase and zircon during magma cooling. More importantly, zircon Hf isotope ratio (ε_Hf values) increases with decreasing zircon Ti content and falling temperature (T), suggesting gradually increasing incorporation of relatively high ε_Hf juvenile materials in the crystallizing zircons during magma evolution. Negative correlations between zircon ε_Hf and zircon δ¹⁸O also support open-system magma evolution. Our data suggest fractional crystallization of a magma with simultaneous contamination by high ε_Hf and low δ ¹⁸O juvenile (immature) crustal materials during monotonic cooling after zircon saturation. The low-T, high-ε_Hf and low- δ ¹⁸O zircons may indicate the involvement of the early Cretaceous juvenile granitic country rocks during shallow magma evolution. Average Eu anomalies in zircons from young Tengchong lavas yield crustal thickness of 40.7 ± 6.8 km, consistent with present crustal thickness (42.5 km) determined by geophysical methods.     

Volcanic facies analysis of a subaqueous basalt lava-flow complex at Hruškovec,NW Croatia — Evidence of advanced rifting in the Tethyan domain

The Hruškovec quarry of basaltoid rocks is situated on the northwestern slopes of Mt. Kalnik, within the Zagorje–Mid-Transdanubian zone, a part of the North-western Dinarides. The basaltoids are inter-bedded with radiolarites of the Middle and Upper Triassic age (Langobardian, Carnian–Norian). Spilites, altered diabases and meta-basalts form part of Triassic volcanic-sedimentary sequence, made of sandstones, shales, micritic limestone, altered vitric tuffs and radiolarian cherts, incorporated tectonically into the Jurassic–Cretaceous mélange.