The geochemistry of repetitive cyclical volcanism from basalt through rhyolite in the uchi-confederation greenstone belt,canada

Archean volcanic rocks in the Confederation Lake area, northwestern Ontario, Canada, are in three mafic to felsic cycles collectively 8,500 to 11,240 m thick. Each cycle begins with pillowed basalt and andesite flows and is capped with andesitic to rhyolitic pyroclastic rocks and minor flows. Seventy five samples from this succession were analyzed for major and trace elements including the rare earth elements. In two cycles, tholeiitic basalts are overlain by calcalkaline andesite to rhyolite. In the third, cycle, the tholeiitic basalts are overlain by tholeiitic rhyolites. Fe enrichment in basalts is accompanied by depletion of Ca, Al, Cr, Ni, and Sr, and enrichment in Ti, P, the rare earth elements, Nb, Zr, and Y. This is interpreted as open system fractionation of olivine, plagioclase, and clinopyroxene. Si enrichment in dacites and rhyolites is attributed to fractional crystallization of plagioclase, K-feldspar, and biotite. Tholeiitic basalt liquids are believed to be mantle-derived. Intercalated andesites with fractionated rare earth patterns appear to be products of mixing of tholeiitic basalt and rhyolite liquids and, andesites with flat rare earth patterns are probably produced by melting of previously depleted mantle. Felsic magmas are partial melts of tholeiitic basalt or products of liquid immiscibility in a tholeiitic system perhaps involving extreme fractionation in a high level magma chamber, and assimilation of sialic crust. It is concluded that Archean cyclical volcanism in this area involves the interplay of several magmatic liquids in processes of fractional crystallization, magma mixing, liquid immiscibility, and the probable existence of compositionally zoned magma chambers in the late stages of each cycle. The compositionally zoned chambers existed over the time period represented by the upper felsic portion of each cycle.     

Differentiation processes in an unusual iron-rich alumina-poor Archean ultramafic/mafic igneous body,Ontario

Detailed field and petrographic observation and geochemical study of the Boston Creek ferropicrite (BCF), a layered Fe-rich Al-poor Archean ultramafic igneous body, has yielded important insight into the controls on differentiation processes in ferropicrite liquids. Presence of flow top breccia, spinifex, vesicles (amygdules), and altered glass together with chert on its top, and the fact that it is in direct contact with pillowed and massive basalt flows, strongly suggest an effusive origin. Anomalous thickness (30 m) of the spinifex-textured layer compared to thick and differentiated komatiitic basalt and typical tholeiitic basalt flows of similar magnesium contents results from the great abundance of Ca, Fe and Mg relative to Al and high contents of volatiles in the parental liquids and supercooling-induced rapid crystallization, which together increased the interval of clinopyroxene crystallization. Relatively anomalous lithological (clinopyroxenite to diorite), textural (pegmatitiic to fine-grained), and geochemical (Mg-numbers between 45 and <20) complexity in the gabbroic layer results from the high volatile content of the parental liquids and the crystallization of Fe-Ti oxide prior to plagioclase, and consequent displacement, mixing, and entrapment of low-density, volatile-enriched residual liquids. Variations in the development of pegmatite, liquid segregation pockets, and PGE mineralization in the gabbroic layer along strike reflect variations in the extent of within-flow displacement, migration, and mixing of residual liquids.     

Reaction Between Ultramafic Rock and Fractionating Basaltic Magma I. Phase Relations, the Origin of Calc-alkaline Magma Series, and the Formation of Discordant Dunite

This paper presents results of modelling reaction between peridotiteand fractionating tholeiitic basalt in simple and complex silicatesystems. Reactions are outlined in appropriate binary and ternarysilicate systems. In these simple systems, the result of reactionsbetween ‘basalt’ and ‘peridotite’ maybe treated as a combination of Fe-Mg exchange and mass transferreactions at constant Fe/Mg. Fe-Mg exchange in ternary and higher-ordersystems is nearly isenthalpic, and involves a slight decreasein magma mass at constant temperature. Mass transfer reactions,typically involving dissolution of orthopyroxene and consequentcrystallization of olivine, are also nearly isenthalpic in ternaryand higher-order silicate systems, and produce a slight increasein the magma mass at constant temperature. The combined reactionsare essentially isenthalpic and produce a slight increase inmagma mass under conditions of constant temperature or constantenthalpy. Initial liquids saturated in plagioclase+olivine will becomesaturated only in olivine as a result of near-constant-temperaturereaction with peridotite, and crystal products of such reactionswill be dunite. Liquids saturated in clinopyroxene+olivine willremain on the cpx-ol cotectic during reaction with peridotite,but will crystallize much more olivine than clinopyroxene asa result of reaction, i.e., crystal products will be clinopyroxene-bearingdunite and wehrlite rather than olivine clinopyroxenite, whichwould be produced by cotectic crystallization. The Mg/Fe ratioof crystal products is ‘buffered’ by reaction withmagnesian peridotite, and dunites so produced will have high,nearly constant Mg/Fe. Production of voluminous magnesian dunitein this manner does not require crystal fractionation of a highlymagnesian olivine tholeiite or picrite liquid. Combined reaction with ultramafic wall rock and crystal fractionationdue to falling temperature produces a calc-alkaline liquid lineof descent from tholeiitic parental liquids under conditionsof temperature, pressure, and initial liquid composition whichwould produce tholeiitic derivative liquids in a closed system.Specifically, closed-system differentiates show iron enrichmentat near-constant silica concentration with decreasing temperature,whereas the same initial liquid reacting with peridotite producessilica-enriched derivatives at virtually constant Mg/Fe. Reaction between fractionating basalt and mafic to ultramaficrock is likely to be important in subduction-related magmaticarcs, where tholeiitic primary liquids pass slowly upward throughhigh-temperature wall rock in the lower crust and upper mantle.Although other explanations can account for chemical variationin individual calc-alkaline series, none can account as wellfor the characteristics shared by all calc-alkaline series.This process, if it is volumetrically important on Earth, hasimportant implications for (Phanerozoic) crustal evolution:sub-arc mantle should be enriched in iron, and depleted in silicaand alumina, relative to sub-oceanic mantle, acting as a sourcefor sialic crust It is probable that inter-occanic magmaticarcs have basement similar to alpine peridotite, in which sub-oceanicmantle has been modified by interaction with slowly ascendingbasaltic liquids at nearly constant temperature. Discordantdunite bodies in alpine pendotite may record extraction of sialiccrust from the Earth's upper mantle. ^*Present address: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543     

Aleutian tholeiitic and calc-alkaline magma series I: The mafic phenocrysts

Diagnostic mafic silicate assemblages in a continuous spectrum of Aleutian volcanic rocks provide evidence for contrasts in magmatic processes in the Aleutian arc crust. Tectonic segmentation of the arc exerts a primary control on the variable mixing, fractional crystallization and possible assimilation undergone by the magmas. End members of the continuum are termed calc-alkaline (CA) and tholeiitic (TH). CA volcanic rocks (e.g., Buldir and Moffett volcanoes) have low FeO/MgO ratios and contain compositionally diverse phenocryst populations, indicating magma mixing. Their Ni and Cr-rich magnesian olivine and clinopyroxene come from mantle-derived mafic olivine basalts that have mixed with more fractionated magmas at mid-to lower-crustal levels immediately preceding eruption. High-Al amphibole is associated with the mafic end member. In contrast, TH lavas (e.g., Okmok and Westdahl volcanoes) have high FeO/MgO ratios and contain little evidence for mixing. Evolved lavas represent advanced stages of low pressure crystallization from a basaltic magma. These lavas contain groundmass olivine (FO 40–50) and lack Ca-poor pyroxene. Aleutian volcanic rocks with intermediate FeO/MgO ratios are termed transitional tholeiitic (TTH) and calc-alkaline (TCA). TCA magmas are common (e.g., Moffett, Adagdak, Great Sitkin, and Kasatochi volcanoes) and have resulted from mixing of high-Al basalt with more evolved magmas. They contain amphibole (high and low-Al) or orthopyroxene or both and are similar to the Japanese hypersthene-series. TTH magmas (e.g., Okmok and Westdahl) contain orthopyroxene or pigeonite or both, and show some indication of upper crustal mixing. They are mineralogically similar to the Japanese pigeonite-series. High-Al basalt lacks Mg-rich mafic phases and is a derivative magma produced by high pressure fractionation of an olivine tholeiite. The low pressure mineral assemblage of high-Al basalt results from crystallization at higher crustal levels.     

Crystallization of oxidized, moderately hydrous arc basalt at mid- to lower-crustal pressures: implications for andesite genesis

This study focuses on the production of convergent margin calc-alkaline andesites by crystallization–differentiation of basaltic magmas in the lower to middle crust. Previous experimental studies show that dry, reduced, subalkaline basalts differentiate to tholeiitic (high Fe/Mg) daughter liquids, but the influences of H₂O and oxidation on differentiation are less well established. Accordingly, we performed crystallization experiments at controlled oxidized fO₂ (Re–ReO₂ ≈ ΔNi–NiO + 2) on a relatively magnesian basalt (8.7 wt% MgO) typical of mafic magmas erupted in the Cascades near Mount Rainier, Washington. The basalt was synthesized with 2 wt% H₂O and run at 900, 700, and 400 MPa and 1,200 to 950 °C. A broadly clinopyroxenitic crystallization interval dominates near the liquidus at 900 and 700 MPa, consisting of augite + olivine + orthopyroxene + Cr-spinel (in decreasing abundance). With decreasing temperature, plagioclase crystallizes, Fe–Ti-oxide replaces spinel, olivine dissolves, and finally amphibole appears, producing gabbroic and then amphibole gabbroic crystallization stages. Enhanced plagioclase stability at lower pressure narrows the clinopyroxenitic interval and brings the gabbroic interval toward the liquidus. Liquids at 900 MPa track along Miyashiro’s (Am J Sci 274(4):321–355, 1974) tholeiitic versus calc-alkaline boundary, whereas those at 700 and 400 MPa become calc-alkaline at silica contents ≥56 wt%. This difference is chiefly due to higher temperature appearance of magnetite (versus spinel) at lower pressures. Although the evolved liquids are similar in many respects to common calc-alkaline andesites, the 900 and 700 MPa liquids differ in having low CaO concentrations due to early and abundant crystallization of augite, with the result that those liquids become peraluminous (ASI: molar Al/(Na + K + 2Ca) > 1) at ≥61 wt% SiO₂, similar to liquids reported in other studies of the high-pressure crystallization of hydrous basalts (Müntener and Ulmer in Geophys Res Lett 33(21):L21308, 2006). The lower-pressure liquids (400 MPa) have this same trait, but to a lesser extent due to more abundant near-liquidus plagioclase crystallization. A compilation of >6,500 analyses of igneous rocks from the Cascades and the Sierra Nevada batholith, representative of convergent margin (arc) magmas, shows that ASI increases continuously and linearly with SiO₂ from basalts to rhyolites or granites and that arc magmas are not commonly peraluminous until SiO₂ exceeds 69 wt%. These relations are consistent with plagioclase accompanying mafic silicates over nearly all the range of crystallization (or remelting). The scarcity of natural peraluminous andesites shows that progressive crystallization–differentiation of primitive basalts in the deep crust, producing early clinopyroxenitic cumulates and evolved liquids, does not dominate the creation of intermediate arc magmas or of the continental crust. Instead, mid- to upper-crustal differentiation and/or open-system processes are critical to the production of intermediate arc magmas. Primary among the open-system processes may be extraction of highly evolved (granitic, rhyolitic) liquids at advanced degrees of basalt solidification (or incipient partial melting of predecessor gabbroic intrusions) and mixing of such liquids into replenishing basalts. Furthermore, if the andesitic-composition continents derived from basaltic sources, the arc ASI–SiO₂ relation shows that the mafic component returned to the mantle was gabbroic in composition, not pyroxenitic.     

Liquid Lines of Descent of Island Arc Magmas and Genesis of Rhyolites: Evidence from the Shirahama Group, Japan

The Mio-Pliocene Shirahama Group, Izu Peninsula, Central Japan,a well-exposed submarine volcanic arc complex of lava flows,pyroclastic rocks and associated shallow intrusives, is characterizedby a tholeiitic series (basalt to dacite) and a calc-alkalineseries (andesite to dacite). Chemical variations in the tholeiiticseries and calc-alkaline series are consistent with crystalfractionation from basalt and magnesian andesite (boninite),respectively. Crystal–liquid phase relations of thesemagmas have been investigated by study of sample suites fromthese two series. Compositions of liquids in equilibrium withphenocrysts were determined by microprobe grid analyses, inwhich 49 points were averaged in 03 mm 03 mm groundmassareas. The liquid compositions, coupled with the phenocrystmineralogy of the same samples, define the liquid lines of descentof these volcanic arc magmas. Major findings include the following:(1) Crystallization of the tholeiitic series magma is consistentwith early stage crystallization in the simple system Fo–Di–Silica–H₂O,with olivine having a reaction relation to augite and the tholeiiticliquid. (2) The later stage products of the tholeiitic seriesmagma are, however, crystal-poor (<10%) dacites with no maficminerals, suggesting that tholeiitic liquids, hypersthene andaugite were no longer on the cotectic (3) A characteristic ofthe calc-alkaline series magmas is the development of rhyoliticliquids. Hypersthene, augite, plagioclase and Fe–Ti oxideoccur in most calc-alkaline rocks studied, and hornblende andquartz can be found in about half of these. However, their differentiationpaths show that the cotectic relation between quartz and liquidended at a later stage, resulting in the resorption of quartzphenocrysts and ultimately in the formation of quartz-free magmas.(4) The late-stage liquids of both the tholeiitic and calc-alkalineseries have deviated from their cotectics, which cannot be explainedby fractional crystallization alone. The addition of H₂O froman outside system is probably required to explain the differentiationpaths. (5) The formation of chilled margins, the in situ crystallizationof a magma chamber in the solidification zone, and/or the migrationof groundwater into the magma chamber are thought to be likelyprocesses affecting magmas during their migration and intrusioninto the crust. An extreme effect of H₂O addition would be tolower the liquidus temperatures of all precipitating silicatephases far below their restorable range before eruption, resultingin the production of aphyric magmas. Even when a temperaturedecrease in the magma chamber causes a liquid to intersect theliquidus of a pre-existing phase, the addition of H₂O shiftsthe cotectic toward SiO₂, resulting in quartz being the lastphase to crystallize. The resorption of quartz is interpretedto be the result of a liquidus boundary shift caused by theaddition of H₂O. The genesis of aphyric rhyolites is thereforeinferred to result from fractional crystallization followingaddition of H₂0. KEY WORDS: Shirahama Group; Japan; island arc; rhyolite; magma series     

The Permian Huangshanxi Cu–Ni deposit in western China: intrusive–extrusive association,ore genesis,and exploration implications

The Permian Huangshanxi Cu–Ni deposit is the second largest magmatic sulfide deposit discovered to date in a major Ni–Cu province related to protracted basaltic magmatism in eastern Xinjiang, China. It is hosted by a small mafic–ultramafic intrusion comprised predominantly of lherzolites, olivine websterites, gabbronorites, and gabbros. The Huangshanxi intrusion is coeval with Permian basalts of tholeiitic and alkaline affinities in the Tuha and Tarim basins, respectively. To evaluate a possible genetic relationship between the Huangshanxi intrusion and a specific type of coeval basalt in the region, as well as ore genesis in the intrusion, we have carried out an integrated mineralogical, petrological, and geochemical study. Our data reveal that the Huangshanxi intrusive rocks are characterized by relatively flat chondrite-normalized REE patterns, depletion in Nb and Ta, and elevated εNd values varying between 6 and 10. These features are similar to those of coeval tholeiitic basalts in the nearby Tuha basin, but are significantly different from those of coeval alkaline basalts in the relatively remote Tarim basin. The geochemical similarities and differences suggest that the Huangshanxi intrusion is genetically related to the tholeiitic basalts in the Tuha basin, not to the alkaline basalts in the Tarim basin, as suggested previously by some researchers. This implies that regional exploration for the Huangshanxi-type Cu–Ni deposits should be centered in the Tuha basin instead of the Tarim basin. More specifically, the uplifted areas around the Tuha basin where similar intrusions may have been brought close to the surface should be carefully examined for mineralization potential. Intrusive relations and mass balance constraints from incompatible trace elements and sulfide abundances suggest that the Huangshanxi intrusion represents a dynamic magma conduit through which multiple pulses of magma ascended to higher levels or to the surface. Numerical simulation of magma evolution and mixing calculations using Sr–Nd isotopes indicate that selective assimilation of S-bearing crustal materials is important for sulfide saturation during the early stages of magma evolution when lherzolites formed. Fractional crystallization may have also played a role in the attainment of sulfide saturation during the later stages of magma evolution when olivine websterites and gabbronorites formed. In both cases, immiscible sulfide droplets were retained in the conduit to form disseminated sulfide lenses while the fractionated silicate liquids and buoyant phases such as plagioclase continued to ascend. Extremely low PGE tenors in the sulfide ores of the Huangshanxi deposit suggest that the parental magma was highly depleted in chalcophile elements possibly due to previous sulfide segregation at depth.     

“三江”哀牢山带蛇绿岩特征研究

哀牢山带蛇绿岩由变质橄榄岩、堆晶杂岩和基性熔岩组成。其中二辉橄榄岩近似原始地幔岩,方辉橄榄岩为残留地幔岩。辉长岩－辉绿岩－辉石玄武岩系列及辉石岩－辉长闪长岩－钠长玄武岩－苦橄玄武岩系列分别为原始二辉橄榄岩经部分熔融产生的拉斑玄武岩浆及苦橄玄武岩浆结晶或结晶分异演化而成;前者具有洋脊玄武岩特征,后者具有准洋脊玄武岩特征,它们形成于大洋中脊环境。其形成时代不晚于早石炭世（Ｃ１）,侵位在晚三叠世一碗水组（Ｔ３ｙ）之前。     

大别造山带前陆阳新盆地古近纪玄武岩地球化学特征与成因研究

大别造山带前陆阳新盆地古近纪玄武岩的成分从石英拉斑玄武质到橄榄拉斑玄武质,以相对较高的大离子亲石元素(Rb、Ba、K、Th、U等)丰度和弱到中等亏损高场强元素(Nb和Ta)为特征,岩石地球化学的总体特征类似于初始裂谷的拉斑玄武岩,而与大陆拉斑玄武岩所表现出的强烈亏损高场强元素Nb和Ta的地球化学特征明显不同。该拉斑玄武质岩浆喷发前曾经历过较小程度(约4．5％)的以橄榄石为主的矿物分离结晶,玄武岩的母岩浆则是源区物质经过约15％的部分熔融形成的,源区物质可能包含了来自下地幔的FOZO和富集型大陆岩石圈地幔两种组分。大别造山带内及前、后陆地区古近纪拉斑玄武岩的地球化学特征具有可比性,意味着随着大别造山带山根的拆沉,来自下地幔的FOZO岩浆(可能以地幔柱的形式)上涌,对大陆岩石圈的地幔部分发生了大规模的改造,使得原性质明显不同的两大岩石圈地幔在会聚带附近其地球化学分区性变得模糊。所形成的玄武岩总体具有较多的FOZO特征,但(除造山带内部)也不同程度地保留有岩石圈地幔的性质。     

长白山天池火山造锥阶段玄武质火山活动期次划分及成因探讨

在天池火山造锥阶段,长白山火山区玄武质火山活动频繁。文章在野外调查的基础上,通过年代学及地球化学研究,对其活动期次进行划分,并探讨其岩浆来源与演化。天池火山造锥阶段的玄武质火山岩主要呈火山渣锥或小型河谷玄武岩形式分布,其形成可划分为两期:一期为老房子小山期,形成时限为0.87~0.54 Ma,属碱性岩石系列;另一期为老虎洞期,形成时限为0.34~0.1 Ma,属碱性岩石系列和拉斑岩石系列。地球化学特征显示,碱性系列玄武岩具高Al、Ti、K、P和低Mg特征,拉斑系列玄武岩具高Mg、富Fe、Ca和低Na特征;二者稀土和微量特征较为一致,稀土元素配分曲线呈右倾型,略显正铕异常,并富集Ba、K、Pb、P、Ti,亏损Th、U、Sr,但拉斑系列玄武岩的稀土元素和微量元素含量及轻重稀土分馏强度均低于碱性系列。天池火山造锥阶段形成的玄武质火山岩均来源于进化岩浆,具有同源特征,经历了一致或相似的演化过程,岩浆房赋存位置相当于上地幔—下地壳的过渡部位,结晶分异岩浆作用显著、地壳混染作用微弱,其成分变化受控于多期次结晶分异作用和早期结晶再循环的岩浆作用过程。     

Basic lavas of the Archean La Grande Greenstone belt: Products of polybaric fractionation and crustal contamination

Despite the fact that some greenstone belts preserve the record of contemporaneous komatiitic and tholeiitic volcanism, a genetic link between the two is not widely accepted. The significance of a compositional gap seperating these magma types and differences in their respective degree of light rare earth element (LREE) enrichment, cited as evidence against a derivative relationship, are complicated by the possibility of crustal assimilation by magmas of komatiitic affinity. In the Archean La Grande Greenstone belt of northern Quebec a succession of metamorphosed tholeiitic basalts and younger, high-Mg, LREE-enriched andesites are preserved. The tholeiites are differentiated basaltic rocks whose chemical compositions appear to have been controlled by low pressure, gabbroic fractional crystallization and are similar to Type 1 MORB. Parental magmas were probably high-Mg liquids of compositions similar to komatiitic basalts which also occur in the greenstone belt. These high-Mg liquids are believed to be themselves the product of high pressure, OLIV+OPX fractional crystallization of more magnesian primary liquids of komatiitic composition. The higher La/Sm ratios of komatiitic basalts and tholeiites relative to komatiites in this belt, can be explained by small degrees of crustal assimilation. In the central part of the belt, late-stage, mafic igneous rocks have chemical compositions similar to Archean examples of contaminated volcanic rocks (e.g., Kambalda, Australia). These late-stage lavas consist of basalts and andesites with high-Mg, Ni and Cr abundances, LREE-enriched profiles and low Ti abundances. They are believed to be the products of crustal assimilation and crystallization of OPX-PLAG-CPX from high-Mg liquids of komatiitic affinity. The volcanic stratigraphy records the progressive effects of crustal contamination through time. A light sialic crust may have initially acted as a density barrier, preventing the eruption of primary high-Mg liquids and forcing fractionation at depth which produced more buoyant compositions. With subsequent thinning of the crust, the density barrier presumably failed, and primary liquids migrated directly toward the surface. Reaction of these liquids with tonalitic crust produced contaminated differentiates.     

Experiments on liquid immiscibility along tholeiitic liquid lines of descent

Crystallization experiments have been conducted on compositions along tholeiitic liquid lines of descent to define the compositional space for the development of silicate liquid immiscibility. Starting materials have 46–56 wt% SiO₂, 11.7–17.7 wt% FeO_tot, and Mg-number between 0.29 and 0.36. These melts fall on the basaltic trends relevant for Mull, Iceland, Snake River Plain lavas and for the Sept Iles layered intrusion, where large-scale liquid immiscibility has been recognized. At one atmosphere under anhydrous conditions, immiscibility develops below 1,000–1,020°C in all of these compositionally diverse lavas. Extreme iron enrichment is not necessary; immiscibility also develops during iron depletion and silica enrichment. Variations in melt composition control the development of silicate liquid immiscibility along the tholeiitic trend. Elevation of Na₂O + K₂O + P₂O₅ + TiO₂ promotes the development of two immiscible liquids. Increasing melt CaO and Al₂O₃ stabilizes a single-liquid field. New data and published phase equilibria show that anhydrous, low-pressure fractional crystallization is the most favorable condition for unmixing during differentiation. Pressure inhibits immiscibility because it expands the stability field of high-Ca clinopyroxene, which reduces the proportion of plagioclase in the crystallizing assemblage, thus enhancing early iron depletion. Magma mixing between primitive basalt and Fe–Ti–P-rich ferrobasalts can serve to elevate phosphorous and alkali contents and thereby promote unmixing. Water might decrease the temperature and size of the two-liquid field, potentially shifting the binodal (solvus) below the liquidus, leading the system to evolve as a single-melt phase.     

Petrology and geochemistry of komatiites and tholeiites from Gorgona Island,Colombia

Komatiitic rocks from Gorgona Island, Colombia, in contrast to their Archaean counterparts, occur as rather structureless flows. In addition, textural and mineralogical features indicate that the Gorgona komatiites may have crystallized from superheated liquids. Komatiitic rocks have MgO contents which range from 24 to 11 wt.% and plot on well-defined olivine (Fo₉₀) control lines. Calculations show that potential evolved liquids (MgO<11 wt%) will be SiO₂-poor. Komatiites, in this case, cannot be regarded as parental to the associated tholeiitic basalt sequence.On the basis of REE concentrations and Sr, Nd isotopic compositions, the associated basalts are found to be of two types. One type (K-tholeiite) is characterized by noticeably fractionated REE patterns and relatively primitive isotopic compositions similar to those of the komatiites. K-tholeiites, together with komatiites, are regarded as comprising a distinctive komatiitic suite. REE patterns within this suite show progressive depletion in the LREE from K-tholeiites to komatiites, and represent increasingly higher degrees of melting of the same mantle source region. The other type (T-tholeiite), representative of the bulk of the exposed basalt sequence, has flat REE patterns and relatively evolved isotopic compositions. This tholeiitic suite is clearly genetically unrelated to the komatiitic suite.     

A potassium-rich Alkalic Suite from the Deccan Traps,Rajpipla, India

The Rajpipla Alkalic Suite is the most potassium-enriched group of basaltic rocks so far described from the Deccan Traps. In the same area however early tholeiitic flows and late tholeiitic dykes show the potassium-poor nature characteristic of most Deccan Trap magmas. The rocks of the alkalic suite are highly porphyritic and their major element variation can be interpreted in terms of crystal fractionation dominated by clinopyroxene. Plagioclase, which is an important phenocryst phase, has fractionated only in relatively small amounts as a result of a lack of density contrast between it and the liquids. A dyke-like form for the magma chambers in which fractionation has taken place is postulated to account for the abundance of highly porphyritic types. The Rajpipla area is also notable as being one of the few Deccan localities where rhyolites are found.Abbreviations AB ankaramitic basalt - PB porphyritic basalt - PTB porphyritic trachybasalt - FPM feldsparphyric mugearite - M mugearite - TR trachyte - P. RHY potassic rhyolite - Th. B. tholeiitic basalt - Th. D. tholeiitic dolerite - Af alkali feldspar     

鄂尔多斯盆地西缘汝箕沟大岭－鼓鼓台玄武岩锆石U-Pb定年及其构造意义

利用显微镜、地球化学、ELA-ICPMS定年等技术, 对鄂尔多斯盆地西缘汝箕沟大岭－鼓鼓台玄武岩及其样品中的锆石进行了内部结构、元素组成分析和原位定年。汝箕沟大岭－鼓鼓台玄武岩为典型的大陆拉斑玄武岩, 所获得的锆石年龄分别为1966±15 Ma、344±22 Ma和241±7 Ma, 其中1966±15 Ma为继承锆石年龄, 344±22 Ma为岩浆第一次分离结晶年龄, 而241±7 Ma代表了玄武质岩浆最后喷出时的锆石结晶年龄。可见, 中晚三叠世盆地西缘北部贺兰山地区处于区域挤压背景下的局部伸展环境, 可能为一小型裂谷盆地。     

The Liquid Line of Descent of Anhydrous, Mantle-Derived, Tholeiitic Liquids by Fractional and Equilibrium Crystallization--an Experimental Study at 1{middle dot}0 GPa

Two series of anhydrous experiments have been performed in anend-loaded piston cylinder apparatus on a primitive, mantle-derivedtholeiitic basalt at 1·0 GPa pressure and temperaturesin the range 1060–1330°C. The experimental data provideconstraints on phase equilibria, and solid and liquid compositionsalong the liquid line of descent of primary basaltic magmasdifferentiating in storage reservoirs located at the base ofthe continental crust. The first series are equilibrium crystallizationexperiments on a single basaltic bulk composition; the secondseries are fractionation experiments where near-perfect fractionalcrystallization was approached in a stepwise manner using 30°Ctemperature steps and starting compositions corresponding tothe liquid composition of the previous, higher-temperature glasscomposition. Liquids in the fractional crystallization experimentsevolve with progressive SiO₂ increase from basalts to dacites,whereas the liquids in the equilibrium crystallization experimentsremain basaltic and display only a moderate SiO₂ increase accompaniedby more pronounced Al₂O₃ enrichment. The principal phase equilibriacontrols responsible for these contrasting trends are suppressionof the peritectic olivine + liquid = opx reaction and earlierplagioclase saturation in the fractionation experiments comparedwith the equilibrium experiments. Both crystallization processeslead to the formation of large volumes of ultramafic cumulatesrelated to the suppression of plagioclase crystallization relativeto pyroxenes at high pressures. This is in contrast to low-pressurefractionation of tholeiitic liquids, where early plagioclasesaturation leads to the production of troctolites followed by(olivine-) gabbros at an early stage of differentiation. KEY WORDS: liquid line of descent; tholeiitic magmas; equilibrium crystallization; fractional crystallization     

Mineralogy and Petrology of Erta Ale and Boina Volcanic Series, Afar Rift, Ethiopia

Erta Ale and Boina are two volcanic areas in northern Afar riftwhere a complete suite of products from mildly alkalic transitionalbasalts to peralkaline rhyolites have been erupted in very recentQuaternary time. Subaphyric lava samples of both localities,representing the entire sequence of erupted magmas, have beenselected for a mineralogical study and all the main mineralphases analysed with the microprobe. Results confirm that ErtaAle and Boina rocks can be explained as suites of liquids producedby fractional crystallization of transitional basalts at shallowcrustal levels. The crystallization history is reconstructedand temperature and oxygen fugacity are evaluated. The differentiationprocesses are quantitatively reconstructed using the compositionsof analysed microphenocrysts to compute the fraction of thesolids separating at each step of fractionation. Slight butclear chemical differences in the parent basalt are reflectedin the two series particularly in the late stages of fractionation.The slightly more alkalic Boina series was produced under fO²controlled by QFM buffer; olivine was stable all along the crystallizationinterval and clinopyroxenes have compositions intermediate betweenthose considered typical of respectively tholeiitic and alkalicsuites. The main differences between the two series are a shiftin the appearance of oxides towards more evolved liquids, crystallizationat Erta Ale of more calcic plagioclase and more magnesian olivineand clinopyroxene than those observed at Boina from liquidswith the same Ca/(Na + Ca) and Mg/(Fe + Mg) and the lack ofalkali feldspar in Erta Ale rhyolites. Together with the lowerCa content of Erta Ale clinopyroxenes, they are the expressionof the more tholeiitic affinity of Erta Ale rocks. Departuresfrom the typical mineralogy of the series are observed for someErta Ale basalt and rhyolite and variously explained as an expressionof a slight difference in the primary nature of the magma, asa liquid-xenocrysts mixing and as fO₂ changes in an open system. Present address: Bureau de Reacherches Géologiques et Minières, Département Géothermie, Orléans, France.     

Mantle Sources and the Highly Variable Role of Continental Lithosphere in Basalt Petrogenesis of the Kerguelen Plateau and Broken Ridge LIP: Results from ODP Leg 183

Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 183 was designed to investigatethe origin and evolution of the large igneous province composedof the Kerguelen Plateau and Broken Ridge. Of the eight sitesdrilled, basalt was recovered from seven, five on the plateauand two on Broken Ridge. We present results from four of thesesites, 1136, 1138, 1141 and 1142. Although this large igneousprovince is interpreted as being derived from the Kerguelenmantle plume, the geochemical characteristics of basalt fromsome parts of the province indicate a role for continental lithosphere.The 118–119 Ma basalt flows recovered in the SouthernKerguelen Plateau (Site 1136) have a more subtle continentalsignature than shown by basalt at Leg 119 Site 738. A continentalsignature is absent in the 100–101 Ma tholeiitic basaltsat Site 1138 in the Central Kerguelen Plateau (CKP); their age-correctedNd–Sr–Pb isotopic values and incompatible elementratios are similar to those estimated for primitive mantle.These flows may represent a major mantle source in the Kerguelenstarting-plume head. The 20 basalt units identified are a productof magma chamber replenishment, fractional crystallization,and resorption of crystallizing phases. The topmost unit, Unit1, is a dacite that evolved from a basalt magma similar to thoserepresented by Units 3–22; unlike the basalts the dacitemagma was probably influenced by continental material. MiddleCretaceous (     

Phenocryst-bulk rock composition relations of abyssal tholeiites and their petrogenetic significance

In order to infer equilibrium phase relations of abyssal tholeiites, olivine, plagioclase, augite, and pigeonite tholeiites from the ocean floor are plotted in terms of the CIPW norm proportions in the tetrahedron olivine-plagioclase-diopside-quartz. The phase relations of abyssal tholeiites have a general similarity in form to those of the experimentally studied relevant systems. Experimental studies on natural basalts allow the pressure of crystallization for abyssal tholeiitic magmas to be evaluated approximately. It appears that the pressure at which the phenocryst-stage crystallization of abyssal tholeiites takes place is as high as 2 or 3 kbar, provided that abyssal tholeiitic magmas are ‘dry’.Abyssal tholeiites could be derived from liquids that are in equilibrium with Ca-poor pyroxene in the pressure range of about 5–8 kbar. Major element chemistry of abyssal tholeiites is incompatible with the view that these tholeiitic basalts are derived from picritic magma by olivine fractionation.     

塔里木西北缘阿克苏地区大陆拉斑玄武岩对新元古代裂解事件的制约

塔里木西北缘新元古界苏盖特布拉克组不整合覆盖在前寒武纪阿克苏群蓝片岩及侵入其中的基性岩墙之上,苏盖特布拉克组底部发育两层玄武岩夹层,其形成时代和成因背景对认识塔里木板块前寒武纪构造演化及有关的超大陆循环和地球动力学过程具有重要意义。本文对这两层玄武岩进行了全岩地球化学和锆石U-Pb年代学研究。结果显示,玄武岩均属于大陆拉斑玄武岩系列,微量元素地球化学特性与典型的大陆溢流玄武岩非常相似,其岩浆来源于富集地幔,并遭受了一定程度的地壳混染作用。玄武岩中锆石的LA-ICP-MS U-Pb年龄分布在1945~755Ma,这些锆石均属于玄武岩浆上升过程中从地壳岩石捕获的继承锆石,记录了塔里木北缘元古代期间多期变质和岩浆事件。这一年龄范围表明,玄武岩形成的时代应晚于755Ma。本文的研究结果表明,阿克苏大陆拉斑玄武岩形成于板内裂谷环境,可能与新元古代Rodinia超大陆之下的地幔柱活动有关,是塔里木板块从Rodinia超大陆裂解出来的直接证据。