Petrology of some Glaucophane Schists and Related Rocks from Taiwan

Detailed laboratory study has been made on pre-Tertiary coarse-grainedglaucophane schist, garnet-epidote amphibolite, and epidoteamphibolite in the eastern slope of the Central Mountain Range,Taiwan. These petrotectonic assemblages are considered to beexotic tectonic blocks emplaced within the feebly metamorphosedin situ graphite and quartzose schists of the Yuli belt. Thinlenses of Mn-rich metamorphosed tuff are intercalated withinthe metabasaltic rocks. Such high MnO (2 wt. per cent) and lowMgO (3–4 wt. per cent) tuffaceous rocks are similar inbulk composition to some volcanic clays collected in deep oceanbasins. They consist of the characteristic assemblage Mn-bearinggarnet (5–7 wt. per cent MnO and 30 volume per cent inthe rock)+muscovite+epidote+hornblende+quartz+ albite+rutile?pyrite. Successive stages of conversion of garnet-epidote amphiboliteto blueschist assemblages were noticed. The most recrystallizedschists display abundant Mn-bearing garnet, zoned amphibole,phengite, zoned epidote, stilpnomelane, chlorite, quartz, minoralbite, magnetite, and sphene. The recrystallization processis nearly isochemical except the glaucophane schists appearto be more oxidized and contain more Na₂O than the relict amphibolites.Intimately associated amphibolites of basaltic composition,in contrast, contain the assemblage hornblende+paragonite+epidote+chlorite+quartz+albite+rutile. Microprobe analyses of the coexisting minerals in glaucophaneschists, garnet-epidote amphibolites and epidote amphibolitesyield the following results: (1) garnets, consisting of almandine,spessartine, and grossular components, are less Mn and Mg-richcompared to those in in situ metabasalts of the Franciscan;(2) rim epidotes of the glaucophane schists are more pistastic(X_Fe=0?27–0?30) than that of the garnet-epidote amphibolite(0?2–0?22) implying higher fO₂ values for the glaucophanization;(3) phengitic micas of the glaucophane schist have less Al₂O₃content (29 wt. per cent) than those of the garnet-epidote amphibolite(32 wt. per cent) whereas micas of epidote amphibolites areparagonites with K/(K+Na) ratio of 0?04; (4) the zoned amphibolesshow glaucophane occurring marginal to cores of calcic amphibole.Sodic amphiboles with Al₂O₃ of 6-? to 10?4 wt. per cent arecrossite-glaucophane whereas all calcic amphiboles analyzedare barroisite-pargasite (Al₂O₃ greater than 10 wt. per cent). The garnet-epidote-rutile bearing glaucophane schist of Taiwanprobably recrystallized at temperatures above 350 ?C (the epidotezone) whereas the lawsonite-sphene glaucophane schists of theFranciscan equilibrated below 350 ?C (the lawsonite zone). TheMn-rich basaltic tuffs and their associated flows appear tohave been metamorphosed at profound depths and at the relativelyhigh temperatures of the epidote amphibolite facies, succeededlater by glaucophane schist facies metamorphism at lower temperatures.