Experimental evidence for diamond-facies metamorphism in the Dora-Maira massif

The peak metamorphic conditions of subducted continental crust in the Dora-Maira massif (Western Alps) have been revised by combining experimental results in the KCMASH system with petrologic information from whiteschists. Textural observations in whiteschists suggest that the peak metamorphic assemblage garnet+phengite+kyanite+coesite±talc originates from the reaction kyanite+talc↔garnet+coesite+liquid. In the experimentally determined petrogenetic grid, this reaction occurs above 45 kbar at 730 °C. At lower pressures, talc reacts either to orthopyroxene and coesite or, together with phengite, to biotite, coesite and kyanite. The liberated liquid contains probably similar amounts of H₂O and dissolved granitic components. The composition of the liquid in the whiteschists at peak metamorphic conditions, a major unknown in earlier studies, was probably very similar to the liquid composition produced in the experiments. Therefore, the experimentally determined petrogenetic grid represents a good model for the estimation of the peak metamorphic conditions in whiteschists. Experimentally determined Si-isopleths for phengite further constrain peak pressures to 43 kbar for the measured Si=3.60 of phengite in the natural whiteschists. All these data provide evidence that the whiteschists reached diamond-facies conditions.

The fluid-absent equilibrium 4 kyanite+3 CELADONITE=4 coesite+3 muscovite+pyrope has been calibrated on the basis of garnet and phengite compositions in the experiments and serves as a geothermobarometer for ultra-high-pressure (UHP) metapelites. For graphite-bearing metapelites and kyanite–phengite eclogites, forming the country rocks of the whiteschists, peak metamorphic pressures of about 44±3 kbar were calculated from this barometer for temperatures of 750 °C estimated from garnet–phengite thermometry. Therefore, the whole ultra-high-pressure unit of the Dora-Maira massif most likely experienced peak metamorphic conditions in the diamond stability field. While graphite is common in the metapelites, diamond has not been found so far. The absence of metamorphic microdiamonds might be explained by the low temperature of metamorphism, the absence of a free fluid phase in the metapelites and a short residence time in diamond-facies conditions resulting in kinetic problems in the conversion of graphite to diamond.     

Continental subduction and exhumation of UHP rocks. Structural and geochronological insights from the Dabieshan (East China)

In the Dabieshan, the available models for exhumation of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) rocks are poorly constrained by structural data. A comprehensive structural and kinematic map and a general cross-section of the Dabieshan including its foreland fold belt and the Northern Dabieshan Domain (Foziling and Luzenguang groups) are presented here. South Dabieshan consists from bottom to top of stacked allochtons: (1) an amphibolite facies gneissic unit, devoid of UHP rocks, interpreted here as the relative autochton; (2) an UHP allochton; (3) a HP rock unit (Susong group) mostly retrogressed into greenschist facies micaschists; (4) a weakly metamorphosed Proterozoic slate and sandstone unit; and (5) an unmetamorphosed Cambrian to Early Triassic sedimentary sequence unconformably covered by Jurassic sandstone. All these units exhibit a polyphase ductile deformation characterized by (i) a NW–SE lineation with a top-to-the-NW shearing, and (ii) a southward refolding of early ductile fabrics.

The Central Dabieshan is a 100-km scale migmatitic dome. Newly discovered eclogite xenoliths in a Cretaceous granitoid dated at 102 Ma by the U–Pb method on titanite demonstrate that migmatization post-dates HP–UHP metamorphism. Ductile faults formed in the subsolidus state coeval to migmatization allow us to characterize the structural pattern of doming. Along the dome margins, migmatite is gneissified under post-solidus conditions and mylonitic–ultramylonitic fabrics commonly develop. The north and west boundaries of the Central Dabieshan metamorphics, i.e. the Xiaotian–Mozitan and Macheng faults, are ductile normal faults formed before Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous. A Cretaceous reworking is recorded by synkinematic plutons.

North of the Xiaotian–Mozitan fault, the North Dabieshan Domain consists of metasediments and orthogneiss (Foziling and Luzenguang groups) metamorphosed under greenschist to amphibolite facies which never experienced UHP metamorphism. A rare N–S-trending lineation with top-to-the-south shearing is dated at 260 Ma by the ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar method on muscovite. This early structure related to compressional tectonics is reworked by top-to-the-north extensional shear bands.

The main deformation of the Dabieshan consists of a NW–SE-stretching lineation which wraps around the migmatitic dome but exhibits a consistently top-to-the-NW sense of shear. The Central Dabieshan is interpreted as an extensional migmatitic dome bounded by an arched, top-to-the-NW, detachment fault. This structure may account for a part of the UHP rock exhumation. However, the abundance of amphibolite restites in the Central Dabieshan migmatites and the scarcity of eclogites (found only in a few places) argue for an early stage of exhumation and retrogression of UHP rocks before migmatization. This event is coeval to the N–S extensional structures described in the North Dabieshan Domain. Recent radiometric dates suggest that early exhumation and subsequent migmatization occurred in Triassic–Liassic times. The main foliation is deformed by north-verging recumbent folds coeval to the south-verging folds of the South Dabieshan Domain. An intense Cretaceous magmatism accounts for thermal resetting of most of the ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dates.

A lithosphere-scale exhumation model, involving continental subduction, synconvergence extension with inversion of southward thrusts into NW-ward normal faults and crustal melting is presented.     

洋脊和年轻洋壳俯冲与埃达克岩生成的热模拟

新生代以来 ,环太平洋周边分布的埃达克岩 (Adakite)主要与年轻洋壳俯冲时在 70～ 90km深处的部分熔融有关。利用数值方法 ,模拟了洋壳俯冲的热演化过程并讨论了脱水、熔融对埃达克岩浆活动的影响。结果表明 :仅在活动海岭俯冲前后约 10Ma内 ,年轻的、热的俯冲海洋板片在 75～85km深度范围内 ,温度升高至 82 5～ 10 0 0℃脱水 ,导致年轻洋壳中角闪岩部分熔融 ,形成埃达克岩(Adakite)。而一般洋壳俯冲在 10 0km以下深度才脱水 ,由于脱水区压力较高洋壳自身不能熔融 ,水进入上覆地幔楔状体导致部分熔融 ,形成安山岩 (Andesite     

The crustal fluid evolution and the causes of earthquakes(Ⅲ)

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试论陆壳增生的两种基本模式及其对比

大陆地壳是地球形成演化的必然产物。大陆地壳由不同时代、不同类型、不同规模地体的拼贴而增生；同时已形成的大陆地壳沿着新的断裂分裂、离散而碱小。因此大陆地壳是地体拼贴增生与分裂离散的综合结果。太古代早期，原始陆壳形成后，主要通过环太平洋型与天山型两种基本模式达到陆壳的增生。环太平洋型陆壳增生模式出现于陆块的边缘，由古大陆向大洋方向单向增生，增生年代由老到新，增生地体一般都有较大距离的移置，其增生与板块的俯冲作用密切有关。天山型陆壳增生模式出现在陆块的内部，其形成与陆块的开台作用密切有关，可以但不一定伴随有俯冲作用。当古大陆沿一定方向断裂带分裂、离散。其间形成新的海槽接受碳酸盐岩和正常陆源碎屑沉积物与来自地壳深部或地幔的火山物质。由于壳下应力条件改变，两侧古陆相向运动，海槽中物质受两侧古陆碰撞挤压，形成褶皱造山带，并把两侧的古大陆“焊接”成新的、范围更大的大陆地壳。     

Formation Environment of the High-Pressure Metamorphic Rocks, Western Tianshan, Xinjiang, China

1.IntroductionFromexperimefltalphaseequilibrium,stableisotOPe,andthermo-barometricstudies,ProgradebineschistdineralparageneseshavebeenproducedexclusivelyatrelativelyhighPadratios(DeRoever,1956;Miyashiro,1961;DobretsovandSobolev,1984;Emst,1973,1988;Maruyamaetal.,1996).InthelastthreedeCades,withtheadvanceofplatetectonics,manygeologistssuggestedthatblueschists,representinghigh-Pressurelow-tCmperamre~rphism,areformedbysubductionofoceanicplate(Emst,1973).Blueschistshavealsobeenregardedasoneof…     

The Zihuatanejo, Mexico, earthquake of 1994 December 10 (M= 6.6): source characteristics and tectonic implications

An analysis of the Zihuatanejo, Mexico, earthquake of 1994 December 10 ( M = 6.6), based on teleseismic and near-source data, shows that it was a normal-faulting, intermediate-depth ( H = 50 ± 5 km) event. It was located about 30 km inland, within the subducted Cocos plate. The preferred fault plane has an azimuth of 130°, a dip of 79° and a rake of −86°. The rupture consisted of two subevents which were separated in time by about 2 s, with the second subevent occurring downdip of the first. The measured stress drop was relatively high, requiring a Δσ of about a kilobar to explain the high-frequency level of the near-source spectra. A rough estimate of the thickness of the seismogenic part of the oceanic lithosphere below Zihuatanejo, based on the depth and the rupture extent of this event, is 40 km.
This event and the Oaxaca earthquake of 1931 January 15 ( M = 7.8) are the two significant normal-faulting, intermediate-depth shocks whose epicentres are closest to the coast. Both of these earthquakes were preceded by several large to great shallow, low-angle thrust earthquakes, occurring updip. The observations in other subduction zones show just the opposite: normal-faulting events precede, not succeed, updip, thrust shocks. Indeed, the thrust events, soon after their occurrence, are expected to cause compression in the slab, thus inhibiting the occurrence of normal-faulting events. To explain the occurrence of the Zihuatanejo earthquake, we note that the Cocos plate, after an initial shallow-angle subduction, unbends and becomes subhorizontal. In the region of the unbending, the bottom of the slab is in horizontal extension. We speculate that the large updip seismic slip during shallow, low-angle thrust events increases the buckling of the slab, resulting in an incremental tensional stress at the bottom of the slab and causing normal-faulting earthquakes. This explanation may also hold for the 1931 Oaxaca event.