Petrology and geochemistry of high-titanium and low-titanium mafic dykes from the Damodar valley,Chhotanagpur Gneissic Terrain,eastern India and their relation to Cretaceous mantle plume(s)

The Damodar valley within the Chhotanagpur Gneissic terrain at the northern-most margin of the Singhbhum craton, eastern India, is perhaps the only geological domain in the entire Indian shield which hosts the early Cretaceous Rajmahal as well as the late Cretaceous Deccan igneous activities. A number of Cretaceous mafic dykes intrude the Gondwana sedimentary formations and are focus of the present study. One set of these dykes strike NNE to ENE, are very fresh and mainly exposed within the Jharia, Bokaro and Karanpura basins; whereas the other set of dykes (including the well-known Salma mega dyke) trend NW to NNW, intrude mainly the Raniganj basin and show meagre hydrothermal alteration. Majority of the samples from both these dyke groups display ophitic or sub-ophitic textures and are essentially composed of augite/titan augite and plagioclase. On the basis of petrographic and geochemical characteristics the NNE to ENE dykes are identified as high-Ti dolerite (HTD) dykes and the NW to NNW dykes are referred to as low-Ti dolerite (LTD) dykes. Apart from the first-order distinction on their titanium contents, both these groups also show conspicuous geochemical differences. The HTD dykes contain relatively high values of iron, and high-field strength elements than those from the LTD dykes with an overlapping MgO contents.Although available field, paleomagnetic and limited geochronological data for most of the studied dykes suggests their emplacement during early Cretaceous period (110–115 Ma), the Salma dyke, dated to be of Deccan-age at ∼65 Ma, is an exception. Geochemically all the studied samples show an undoubted plume-derived character but their unequivocal affinity to either the early Cretaceous Kerguelen (Rajmahal) or the late-Cretaceous Reunion (Deccan) plume is not straightforward since they share bulk-rock characteristics of rocks derived from both these plumes. Even though, the spatial and temporal association of the mafic dykes of present study with the Rajmahal Traps are suggestive of their linkage to the Kerguelen plume activity, robust geochronological and paleomagnetic constraints are clearly required to understand the relative contributions of the two Cretaceous mantle plumes in the genesis of the mafic igneous activity in this interesting domain.     

The Neoproterozoic continental rift magmatism of the eastern Jiangnan orogen: new evidence from the mafic sheets in northern Zhejiang Province,South China

Massive mafic sheets were recently recognized intruding the Neoproterozoic strata in Fuyang area, eastern Jiangnan orogen. Geochronological, geochemical, and isotopic studies were carried out to understand their mantle source, crust–mantle interaction, and tectonic setting. LA-ICP-MS U-Pb zircon data indicate that the sheets were generated at 808 ± 7 Ma. The mafic sheets consist of two groups: high Ti and low Ti. They are enriched in light rare earth elements (LREE; 3.3–5.3 ppm) and show negligible Eu anomalies (δEu = 0.77–1.12). They also have strong large-ion lithophile element (LILE; Sr, K, Rb, Ba) enrichment, moderately strong high-field-strength element (HFSE) enrichment (except for Nb-Ta depletion), and positive εNd(t) (5.1–9.1). Geochemical and isotopic data indicate that the mafic sheets were generated from a depleted asthenospheric mantle source. The high-Ti mafic sheets have higher HFSE contents and less Nb-Ta depletion than the low Ti series, indicating a lower degree of partial melting and crustal contamination. The mafic sheets grew in a within-plate setting, concurrent with the ~820–750 Ma rifting events in the eastern Jiangnan orogen. They are likely related to the breakup of the Rodinia supercontinent.     

华北克拉通基性岩墙成因模式：来自锆石U-Pb年龄、地球化学和Sr-Nd-Pb同位素证据

本研究共涉及来自太行山和郯庐断裂岩浆带的12组基性岩墙群,岩墙群具体出露于河北省、山西省、山东省和安徽省。研究中给出了新的锆石LA-ICP-MS U-Pb年龄、地球化学和Sr-Nd-Pb同位素基性岩墙测试数据。基性岩墙形成于128.1±1.2Ma与115.0±0.8Ma之间,且具有典型的辉绿结构。另外,基性岩墙富集轻稀土元素（LREE）、个别大离子亲石元素（如,Rb、Ba、Sr）、Pb和Th,亏损Nb、Ta和Ti,具有高的初始⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr比值（0.7056~0.7105）,负的ε_Nd（t）（-15.5~-12.4）、相对一致的初始Pb同位素比值（²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=16.45~16.49、²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=15.44~15.51、²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb=36.49~36.53）及较大的Nd模式年龄（t_DM2^Nd=1.82~2.69Ga）。研究结果表明,基性岩墙来自石榴石二辉橄榄岩地幔源区（类似EM1）一定程度的（1.0%~5.0%）部分熔融,岩浆侵位前经历了橄榄石、单斜辉石和角闪石的分离结晶作用,同时受到少量地壳混染的影响。目前,关于华北克拉通破坏和中生代岩浆作用的成因已有较多可能模式,本研究基性岩墙成因的新模式：古太平洋板块与华北克拉通的持续碰撞,导致华北克拉通岩石圈（地幔和地壳）加厚,并发生可能的榴辉岩化,并在一定时间发生拆沉作用。在新模式的制约下,导致了研究区中生代基性岩墙的产生和侵位。     

胶东焦家金矿床基性脉岩地球化学特征及其与金矿化的关系

野外观察发现,焦家金矿床中有成矿前和成矿后2期基性脉岩,该文对取自基性岩脉的样品进行了岩相学、主元素、微量元素及S同位素的研究,探讨了脉岩的岩石成因及其与金矿化的关系。研究区基性脉岩包括辉绿玢岩和煌斑岩,其中辉绿玢岩SiO_2为47.96%,Na_2O+K_2O为4.075%,煌斑岩SiO_2为44.20%~45.34%,Na_2O+K_2O为6.407%~6.45%,属玄武岩、粗玄岩和碱玄岩类;TiO_2为1.31%~2.40%,Ti/Y为331~913。岩石以富集轻稀土元素(LILE)和大离子亲石元素(LREE)为特征,黄铁矿δ~(34)S范围在(1.0~2.8)×10~(-3)之间。研究表明,成矿前煌斑岩和辉绿玢岩具有高Ti煌斑岩的特征,而成矿后的煌斑岩则类似于低Ti煌斑岩。脉岩的岩浆来源于尖晶石—石榴石转换带软流圈地幔的部分熔融,焦家金矿床形成于高Ti与低Ti煌斑岩不同性质岩浆源区的转化过程。     

Geochronology,petrogenesis and tectonic implications of the Zhongchuan granitic pluton in the Western Qinling metallogenic belt,China

The Zhongchuan district is an important component of the metallogenic belt in the Western Qinling. The Zhongchuan granite pluton occurring in the centre of the Zhongchuan metallogenic area has been poorly constrained, though the Triassic granite in Western Qinling has been well documented. In‐situ zircon U–Pb ages, Hf isotopic compositions and whole‐rock geochemical data are presented for host granite and mafic microgranular enclaves (MMES) from the Zhongchuan pluton, in order to constrain its sources, petrogenesis and tectonic setting of the pluton. The distribution of major, trace and rare earth elements apparently reflect exchange between the MMES and the host granitic rocks mainly due to interactions between coeval felsic host magma and mafic magma. The zircon U–Pb age of host granite (231.6 ± 1.5 to 235.8 ± 2.3 Ma) has overlapping uncertainty with that of the MMES (236.6 ± 1.3 Ma), establishing that the mafic and felsic magmas were coeval. The Hf isotopic composition of the MMES (ε_Hf(t) = −13.4 to 4.0) is distinct from the host granite (ε_Hf(t) = −15.7 to 0.0), indicating that both enriched subcontinental lithosphere mantle (SCLM) and crustal sources contributed to their origin. The zircons have two‐stage Hf model ages of 1064 to 1798 Ma for the host granite and 858 to 1747 Ma for the MMES. This suggests that the granitic pluton was likely derived from partial melting of a Late Mesoproterozoic crust, with subsequent interaction with the SCLM‐derived mafic magmas in tectonic affinity to the South China Block. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.