Rock-buffered Fluid Evolution of Metapelites and Quartzites in the Picuris Range, Northern New Mexico

Pelitic schists and quartzites in the Picuris Range of northernNew Mexico exhibit mineral ¹⁸O and D compositions that indicaterock-buffered isotopic exchange during metamorphism at uniformphysical conditions of T 530C and P 4 kbar. Phase assemblagesand major-element compositions among silicates and oxides areuniform within stratigraphic units, but they change abruptlyacross lithologic contacts, yielding distinctive mineral Mg/Fe²⁺ratios and inferred f(O₂) values. Mineral compositions reflectthe pre-metamorphic compositions of individual rock units. O-and H-isotopic compositions of quartz and muscovite are alsodiscontinuous across lithologic boundaries, showing intra-layerhomogeneity and bulk-rock isotopic compositions retained fromsedimentary protoliths. Uniform ¹⁸ O_Qu-Ms values indicate isotopicequilibrium at peak metamorphic conditions. Sharp discontinuitiesin mineral and fluid isotopic compositions reflect limited isotopicexchange between units. The isotopic system in these units wasprobably one of rock-buffered exchange, in which the sedimentarycompositions of individual rock units exerted the dominant controlon mineral and fluid isotopic composition over short distancesin a relatively closed metamorphic system. Fluid migration duringprogressive metamorphic devolatilization in this simple systemwas probably non-pervasive, and it was probably influenced bycontrasting rock permeability. Consequently, our study suggeststhat pervasive exchange between interlayered units may be uncommonin regionally metamorphosed terrains that show weak initialgeochemical gradients. In contrast, the chemical and isotopichomogenization that attends pervasive fluid flow and high fluidfluxes may be restricted to settings characterized by extremegeochemical gradients, such as interlayered silicates and carbonates,or terrains that host plutonic hydrothermal systems. KEY WORDS: fluids; metamorphism; stable isotopes; New Mexico ^*Corresponding author. E-mail: jgoodgc{at}sun.cis.smu.edu.. Telephone (214) 768–4140. Fax (214) 768–2701     

Pre-Middle Jurassic accretionary metamorphism in the southern Klamath Mountains of northern California, USA

Abstract High- P/T metamorphic parageneses are preserved within two late Palaeozoic to early Mesozoic assemblages of the southern Klamath Mountains that show contrasting structural styles and mineral parageneses reflecting formation in different parts of a subduction-zone regime. Blueschist facies tectonites of the Stuart Fork terrane represent a coherent subduction complex formed at relatively deep crustal levels, whereas the chaotic metasedimentary mélange of the eastern Hayfork terrane contains a diverse range of metamorphic parageneses reflecting complex structural mixing of metamorphic components at shallower levels. The convergent-margin-type accretionary metamorphism evident in both terranes pre-dates Middle Jurassic low- P/T metamorphism resulting from regional tectonic contraction and magmatism.
The epidote- to lawsonite-zone Stuart Fork blueschists (and eclogites locally) formed at pressures of about 6-11 kbar and temperatures of 250-400° C. Deformed matrix material of the eastern Hayfork mélange formed at similar temperatures but lower pressures, on the order of 3-6 kbar. The mélange contains a diverse assemblage of tectonic blocks that formed under a range of P-T conditions, including those of the blueschist, pumpellyite-actinolite, greenschist and upper greenschist to amphibolite facies.
The succession of mineral parageneses and inferred P-T conditions of the eastern Hayfork blocks reflect those of igneous protolith formation, structural mixing, subduction-zone metamorphism, olistolith transport, and tectonic and erosional denudation. Although temporal relations are not well constrained, the evolution of these terranes is consistent with formation within a single convergent-margin system.