Crustal reworking in a shear zone: transformation of metagranite to migmatite

This study uses field, microstructural and geochemical data to investigate the processes contributing to the petrological diversity that arises when granitic continental crust is reworked. The Kinawa migmatite formed when Archean TTG crust in the São Francisco Craton, Brazil was reworked by partial melting at ~730 °C and 5–6 kbar in a regional‐scale shear zone. As a result, a relatively uniform leucogranodiorite protolith produced compositionally and microstructurally diverse diatexites and leucosomes. All outcrops of migmatite display either a magmatic foliation, flow banding or transposed leucosomes and indicate strong, melt‐present shearing. There are three types of diatexite. Grey diatexites are interpreted to be residuum, although melt segregation was incomplete in some samples. Biotite stable, H₂O‐fluxed melting is inferred via the reaction Pl + Kfs + Qz + H₂O = melt and geochemical modelling indicates 0.35–0.40 partial melting. Schlieren diatexites are extremely heterogeneous; residuum‐rich domains alternate with leucocratic quartzofeldspathic domains. Homogeneous diatexites have the highest SiO₂ and K₂O contents and are coarse‐grained, leucocratic rocks. Homogeneous diatexites, quartzofeldspathic domains from the schlieren diatexites and the leucosomes contain both plagioclase‐dominated and K‐feldspar‐dominated feldspar framework microstructures and hence were melt‐derived rocks. Both types of feldspar frameworks show evidence of tectonic compaction. Modelling the crystallization of an initial anatectic melt shows plagioclase appears first; K‐feldspar appears after ~40% crystallization. In the active shear zone setting, shear‐enhanced compaction provided an essentially continuous driving force for segregation. Thus, Kinawa migmatites with plagioclase frameworks are interpreted to have formed by shear‐enhanced compaction early in the crystallization of anatectic melt, whereas those with K‐feldspar frameworks formed later from the expelled fractionated melt. Trace element abundances in some biotite and plagioclase from the fractionated melt‐derived rocks indicate that these entrained minerals were derived from the wall rocks. Results from the Kinawa migmatites indicate that the key factor in generating petrological diversity during crustal reworking is that shear‐enhanced compaction drove melt segregation throughout the period that melt was present in the rocks. Segregation of melt during melting produced residuum and anatectic melt and their mixtures, whereas segregation during crystallization resulted in crystal fractionation and generated diverse plagioclase‐rich rocks and fractionated melts.     

Schlieren formation in diatexite migmatite: examples from the St Malo migmatite terrane, France

Schlieren are trains of platy or blocky minerals, typically the ferromagnesian minerals and accessory phases, that occur in granites and melt‐rich migmatites, such as diatexites. They have been considered as: (1) unmelted residue from xenoliths or the source region; (2) mineral accumulations formed during magma flow; (3) compositional layering; and (4) sites of melt loss. In order to help identify schlieren‐forming processes in the diatexites at St Malo, differences in the size, shape, orientation, distribution and composition of the biotite from schlieren and from their hosts have been investigated. Small biotite grains are much less abundant in the schlieren than in their hosts. Schlieren biotite grains are generally larger, have greater aspect ratios and have, except in hosts with low (< 10%) biotite contents, a much stronger shape preferred orientation than host biotite. The compositional ranges of host and schlieren biotite are similar, but schlieren biotite defines tighter, sharper peaks on composition‐frequency plots. Hosts show magmatic textures such as imbricated (tiled), unstrained plagioclase. Some schlieren show only magmatic textures (tiled biotite, no crystal‐plastic strain features), but many have textures indicating submagmatic and subsolidus deformation (e.g. kinked grains) and these schlieren show the most extensive evidence for recrystallization. Magmas at St Malo initially contained a significant fraction of residual biotite and plagioclase crystals; smaller biotite grains were separated from the larger plagioclase crystals during magma flow. Since plagioclase was also the major, early crystallizing phase, the plagioclase‐rich domains developed rapidly and reached the rigid percolation threshold first, forcing further magma flow to be concentrated into narrowing melt‐rich zones where the biotite had accumulated, hence increasing shear strain and the degree of shape preferred orientation in these domains. Schlieren formed in these domains as a result of grain contacts and tiling in the grain inertia‐regime. Final amalgamation of the biotite aggregates into schlieren involved volume loss as melt trapped between grains was expelled after the rigid percolation threshold was reached in the biotite‐rich layers.     

Genesis of the Kapuskasing (Ontario) migmatitic mafic granulites by dehydration melting of amphibolite: the importance of quartz to reaction progress

Migmatitic, granulite-grade mafic gneisses make up a significant part of the Kapuskasing Structural Zone (KSZ), Ontario. Although they contain a common mineral assemblage [hornblende (Hbl)+plagioclase (Pl)+diopside (Di)±garnet (Grt)+quartz (Qtz)±titanite (Ttn)], the mafic gneisses show wide variations in modal mineralogy from hornblende-rich to diopside+garnet-rich varieties and all gradations between. Up to 25 vol.% segregated plagioclase+quartz-rich (trondhjemitic) leucosome (Tdh) is intimately associated with the mafic gneiss, occurring in a continuum of patches, veins and transecting dykes at scales ranging from decimetres to micrometres. The texture and composition of the leucosome, combined with P-T estimates for the host rocks above the solidus, suggest it represents crystallized trondhjemitic melt. Quartz is mainly restricted to the segregated leucosomes but more rarely occurs in a variety of interstitial textures in the mafic gneiss, suggesting that it crystallized from a melt phase rather than having been present as a solid phase at peak metamorphic conditions. Modal and textural data indicate a reaction relationship of the form: Hbl+Pl(+Qtz?)=Grt+Di+Ttn+leucosome (Tdh), implying that the granulite-forming process involved dehydration melting of an amphibolite protolith. Pressure-temperature estimates from Grt+Di+Pl+Qtz geothermobarometry are 9 kbar and 685-735 °C; however, based on experimental studies of dehydration melting of amphibolite, we estimate that peak conditions were closer to 11 kbar, 850 °C. Mass balance analysis, using the technique of singular value decomposition, and reaction space analysis were used to quantify the reaction and to determine the controls on reaction progress. The following mass balance provides a model for the natural reaction:1.00 Hbl+0.92 Pl+3.76 Qtz=1.14 Grt+1.54 Di+0.21 Ttn+1.49 Tdh+0.14 ‘pg’+0.39 Fe_?1Mg+0.33 NaSiCa_?1Al_?1where ‘pg’ is a pargasite-like exchange. In all model mass balances tested, quartz is a reactant with a large coefficient. We argue that the abundance of quartz in the amphibolite protolith was the primary control on the differing extents of reaction observed. Mineral compositional variation exerted a secondary control on reaction progress, with Fe-richer layers containing An-richer plagioclase and more actinolitic amphibole reacting earliest (i.e. at lowest temperatures). Comparison of the calculated amount of melt produced in the gneisses with that now observed implies expulsion of 5–30% of the melt. These volumes are similar to those predicted from REE modelling of Archaean tonalities and trondhjemites from a garnet amphibolite source, suggesting that the KSZ mafic gneisses may be representative of partially depleted source rocks for trondhjemite-tonalite generation.     

粤西福湖岭混合岩及其原岩的地质年代学研究

为了深入认识华夏地块早古生代陆内造山作用相应的地壳再造过程,本文选取粤西福湖岭混合岩进行了详细的岩相学以及锆石U-Pb年代学研究。根据混合岩化程度,粤西福湖岭混合岩剖面由上而下可以分为3部分:混合岩化沉积变质岩、条带状混合岩和混合花岗岩。根据岩性与岩相学特征,福湖岭混合岩又可分为古成体、暗色体和浅色体。LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb定年结果及与区域上基底变质岩资料的对比研究表明,福湖岭混合岩的原岩(古成体)是形成于新元古代的变质沉积岩。粤西福湖岭混合岩的形成时代为441~435 Ma,是华夏地块早古生代陆内造山事件的重要产物。     

The pressure–temperature–time path of migmatites from the Sikkim Himalaya

A combined metamorphic and isotopic study of lit‐par‐lit migmatites exposed in the hanging wall of the Main Central Thrust (MCT) from Sikkim has provided a unique insight into the pressure–temperature–time path of the High Himalayan Crystalline Series of the eastern Himalaya. The petrology and geochemistry of one such migmatite indicates that the leucosome comprises a crystallized peraluminous granite coexisting with sillimanite and alkali feldspar. Large garnet crystals (2–3 mm across) are strongly zoned and grew initially within the kyanite stability field. The melanosome is a biotite–garnet pelitic gneiss, with fibrolitic sillimanite resulting from polymorphic inversion of kyanite. By combining garnet zoning profiles with the NaCaMnKFMASHTO pseudosection appropriate to the bulk composition of a migmatite retrieved from c. 1 km above the thrust zone, it has been established that early garnet formed at pressures of 10–12 kbar, and that subsequent decompression caused the rock to enter the melt field at c. 8 kbar and c. 750 °C, generating peritectic sillimanite and alkali feldspar by the incongruent melting of muscovite. Continuing exhumation resulted in resorption of garnet. Sm–Nd growth ages of garnet cores and rim, indicate pre‐decompression garnet growth at 23 ± 3 Ma and near‐peak temperatures during melting at 16 ± 2 Ma. This provides a decompression rate of 2 ± 1 mm yr^?1 that is consistent with exhumation rates inferred from mineral cooling ages from the eastern Himalaya. Simple 1D thermal modelling confirms that exhumation at this rate would result in a near‐isothermal decompression path, a result that is supported by the phase relations in both the melanosome and leucosome components of the migmatite. Results from this study suggest that anatexis of Miocene granite protoliths from the Himalaya was a consequence of rapid decompression, probably in response to movement on the MCT and on the South Tibetan detachment to the north.     

Temporal and compositional differences between subsolidus and anatectic migmatite leucosomes from the Quetico metasedimentary belt, Canada

Abstract Migmatites in the Quetico Metasedimentary Belt contain two types of leucosome: (1) Layer-parallel leucosomes that grew during deformation and prograde metamorphism. These are enriched in SiO₂, Sr, and Eu, but depleted in TiO₂, Fe₂O₃, MgO, Cs, Rb, REE, Sc, Th, Zr, and Hf relative to the Quetico metasediments. (2) Discordant leucosomes that formed after the regional folding events when metamorphic temperatures were at their peak. These are enriched in Rb, Ba, Sr and Eu, but display a wide range of LREE, Th, Zr, and Hf contents relative to the Quetico metasediments.
Layer-parallel leucosomes formed by a subsolidus process termed tectonic segregation. This stress-induced mass transfer process began when the Quetico sediments were deformed during burial, and continued whilst the rocks were both stressed and heterogeneous. Subsolidus leucosome compositions are consistent with the mobilization of quartz and feldspar from the host rocks by pressure solution. The discordant leucosomes formed by partial melting of the Quetico metasediments, possibly during uplift of the belt. The range of composition displayed by the anatectic leucosomes arises from crystal fractionation during leucosome emplacement. Some anatectic leucosomes preserve primary melt compositions and have smooth REE patterns, but those with negative Eu anomalies represent fractionated melts, and others with positive Eu anomalies represent accumulations of feldspar plus trapped melt.     

Geological and Geochemical Evidence for Discriminating Anatectic and Subsolidus Migmatites in the Dabieshan Complex,Northeastern Hubei Province

Based on the geological and geochemical information about migmatites,the following lines of evidence have been proposed for discriminating the anatectic leucosome in the Dabieshan Complex:(1)its width is larger than that derived from the subsolidus genesis,cutting across regional foliation,thus giving rise to complicated folds and wider selvages;(2)it is composed of melanic and accessory minerals in addition to quartz and feldspars;(3)the significant dfference in anorthites of plagioclase between paleosome and leucosome;(4)temperature and pressure(P/T) conditions revealed by the mineral compositions and assemblages are over those for the onset of anatexis;and (5)it is enriched in the major elements(e.g.Al2O3.Fe2O3and TiO2)and immobile and incompatible elements(e.g.LREE,Th,Hf and Zr).Finally,by combining the geological and geochemical features with the statistical data for the spatial distribution of minerals and mass-balance in the migatites,it is concluded that anatexis is the cardinal mechanism of migmatization in the Dabieshan Complex.     

Modelling of the thermal history of metamorphic zoning in the Connemara region (western Ireland)

The Connemara region of the Irish Caledonides is a classic example of regional-scale metamorphism of low pressure and high temperature. This terrane is considered as part of a fold belt comprising metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks that are correlated with the Neoproterozoic–Lower Paleozoic Dalradian Supergroup of Scotland. In mid-Ordovician time, the extensive and high-temperature metamorphism was superimposed on the Dalradian rocks resulting in the Connemara zoning. The key feature of the zoning is elevated horizontal thermal gradient of ca. 14 °C/km. Geological data and geochronological evidence point to a causative link between metamorphism and associated magmatic intrusions, and a brief period of development for the metamorphic zoning. Magmatic intrusion into the middle part of continental crust is treated as a most plausible source of heat for metamorphism, and other conjectures as to the origin of the zoning (flow of hot fluid through the permeable rocks, fracture conduit flushed by flowing magma) are believed to be improbable. To examine in sufficient detail the problem of the nature of heat source, a series of appropriate calculations have been performed to reach the best agreement between the observed and simulated spatial distribution of maximum temperatures at different times. The mathematical modelling shows that the temperature–spatial structure of the Connemara zoning is best explained by the model version based on mid-crustal heating above the upper contact of magmatic intrusive body gently curved and tilted at an angle between 20° and 40°, with an initial temperature of the magma appropriate to a basaltic melt. The model estimate of total lifetime of the temperature anomaly in the crust is of the order of 5–6 Ma. In general, this is in rather good agreement with the currently available evidence of geochronological duration of metamorphism and magmatism in Connemara.     

The clew bay group: A displaced terrane of highland border group rocks (Cambro-ordovician) in Northwest Ireland

Marine turbidites, tuffs, black mudstones and conglomerates of the Cambro-Ordovician Clew Bay Group, were deposited in the E–W elongate transtensional Clew Bay Graben that is centred on Clew Bay, NW Ireland. The group is characterized by extensive sedimentary deformation and mass movement on slides; olistostromes, autoclastic breccias and course proximal turbidites are interbedded with apparently less disturbed but often overturned sediments. The Clew Bay Group lies structurally above serpentinized dunite/harzburgite breccias, schistose carbonate peridotites, and other basic and ultrabasic igneous rocks that have ophiolitic geochemical affinities; the sediments may have been in part deposited upon oceanic crust. Ophiolites and sediments that now rest on the Clew Bay Thrust abut Silurian shallow water strata in which the main tectonothermal history, associated with sinistral transcurrent faulting along the thrust zone, is dated at about 410 Ma. The sole thrust dips northward and coalesces with a major deep structure along the Fair Head-Clew Bay Line (FCL) that is the western continuation of the Highland Border Fault of Scotland. Blueschist relics in the Dalradian immediately to the north of the FCL indicate that subduction was active early in the history of the late Cambrian–early Ordovician Grampian orogeny. The Clew Bay Thrust was a sinistral, transpressional shear zone late in its history, but it probably originated as an obduction complex. The Clew Bay Group cannot be traced into sedimentary, metamorphic or structural continuity with the adjacent Dalradian to the north or Ordovician and Silurian rocks in the South Mayo Trough to the south. It should be considered as a distinct terrane (Clew bay Terrane) or a subterrane of Highland Border-type rocks along the southern margin of the Grampian Terrane.