Basalt geochemistry as a diagnostic indicator of tectonic setting

Abstract

Basalt geochemistry can be used as a diagnostic indicator for determining the tectonic setting of origin, because specific plate tectonic settings often impart distinctive geochemical characteristics. For example: (1) mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) and oceanic island basalts (OIB) have clearly distinguishable trace element and Sr-Nd isotope geochemical characteristics; (2) arc related basalts, including IOAB (intra-oceanic arc basalts), IAB (island arc basalts) and CAB (continental arc basalts), exhibit following distinguishing features: all are characterized by low Nb/La ratios (<0.85) and negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies; most exhibit low Nb concentrations (<8 ppm), high positive ɛNd values and low enrichment of incompatible elements except the continental arc shoshonitic basalts that possess high concentrations of incompatible trace elements and lower to negative ɛNd values; (3) although contamination by continental crust or lithosphere can impart subduction-like signature (e.g., low Nb, low Ta and low Ti) and lead to misidentification of contaminated continental intraplate basalts as arc related, there are still some essential differences between continental intraplate basalts and arc related ones; such as: uncontaminated continental intraplate basalts have high Nb concentrations, Nb/La > 1, “hump-shaped” OIB-like trace element patterns and moderate positive ɛNd values that distinguish them from the arc related ones; whereas, the contaminated continental intraplate basalts are characterized by pronounced negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies, but their concentrations of incompatible trace elements are conspicuously higher than those of subduction-zone basalts that also distinguishes them from the arc related ones; (4) an important difference between back-arc basin basalts (BABB) and the MORB is that the former exhibit both MORB-like and arc-like geochemical characteristics; (5) most oceanic plateau basalts (OPB) show diagnostic geochemical characteristics of enriched MORB (E-MORB) to transitional MORB (T-MORB); only the Kerguelen Plateau is an exception; the early (pre 90 Ma) volcanism of the Kerguelen Plateau is associated with the Early Cretaceous break-up of Gondwana and displays features of continental flood basaltic volcanism; with time, the tectonic setting of the Kerguelen plume-derived volcanism changed from a rifted continental margin setting (133–118 Ma) through a young, widening ocean (118–40 Ma), finally to an oceanic intraplate setting (~40 Ma to the present).Tectonic discrimination diagrams should not be used in isolation, but can still be useful as part of holistic geochemical characterization. For example: (1) MORB and OIB are distinguishable from each other in the 3Tb-Th-2Ta diagram; (2) the arc related basalts, including IOAB, IAB and CAB, constantly plot in the arc-related basalts fields in the Th/Yb-Ta/Yb diagram; (3) the 3Tb-Th-2Ta diagram can be utilized to fully illustrate both MORB-like and arc-like characteristics of BABB; (4) some discriminant diagrams (such as Zr/Y-Zr, Th/Yb-Ta/Yb, 3Tb-Th-2Ta and Hf/3-Th-Nb/16 diagrams) can be used to distinguish continental intra plate basalts from arc related ones; (5) although there are not any discrimination diagrams published that delineate an OPB field, some trace element diagrams can still reveal diagnostic characteristics of the OPB.