Abstract
The Cangaldag Complex in northern central Turkey is one of the main tectonic units of the Central Pontide Structural Complex that represents the remains of the poorly known Intra-Pontide branch of the Neotethys. It comprises low-grade metamorphic rocks of intrusive, extrusive, and volcaniclastic origin displaying a wide range of felsic to mafic compositions. Petrographically the complex consists of basalts-andesites-rhyodacites and tuffs with minor amount of gabbros and diabases. On the basis of geochemistry, the Cangaldag samples are of subalkaline character and represented by both primitive and evolved members. All rock types are variably depleted in Nb compared to LREEs, similar to the lavas from subduction-related tectonic settings. In N-MORB normalized plots, the primitive members are separated into 3 groups on the basis of levels of enrichment. The first group is highly depleted and displays characteristics of boninitic lavas. The second group is relatively enriched compared to the first group but still more depleted than N-MORB. The third group, however, is the most enriched one among the three, whose level of enrichment is around that of N-MORB. The overall geochemical features suggest that the Cangaldag Complex has been generated with the involvement of a subduction-modified mantle source. The chemistry of the primitive members further indicates that the melts generated for the formation of the Cangaldag Complex probably occurred in both arc and back-arc regions above an intraoceanic subduction within the Intra-Pontide branch of the Neotethys.
Highlights
Turkey is a part of the Alpine-Himalayan orogenic belt and was formed by accretion of a number of microplates (Şengör and Yılmaz, 1981) or terranes (Göncüoğlu et al, 1997, 2010; Okay and Tüysüz, 1999; Robertson et al, 2014)
The Çangaldağ Complex (CC; Ustaömer and Robertson, 1990) is one of these tectonic units located in the northern part of this structural complex, recently named as the Central Pontide Structural Complex (CPSC) by Tekin et al (2012) or the Central Pontide Supercomplex by Okay et al (2013)
The complexThe Çangaldağ Complex (CC) is an arc-shaped body of approximately 50 km long and 40 km wide. It is geographically located between the subunits of the Sakarya Composite Terrane and the CPSC belonging to the IntraPontide Suture Belt
Summary
Turkey is a part of the Alpine-Himalayan orogenic belt and was formed by accretion of a number of microplates (Şengör and Yılmaz, 1981) or terranes (Göncüoğlu et al, 1997, 2010; Okay and Tüysüz, 1999; Robertson et al, 2014). The third view differs from the others in that the CC is the conjugate of the Nilüfer Unit of the Karakaya Complex (Okay et al, 2006) Later, this suggestion was revised by new age findings (Okay et al, 2013, 2014) as “arc-related magmatism” considering the geochemical data from Ustaömer and Robertson (1999). This suggestion was revised by new age findings (Okay et al, 2013, 2014) as “arc-related magmatism” considering the geochemical data from Ustaömer and Robertson (1999) This brief introduction shows that the petrogenesis of the CC’s metaigneous rocks and their ages are crucial for a better understanding of the interpretation of the paleotectonic setting and geological evolution of the Central Pontides. The geochemical evaluation of the sources and possible igneous processes that may have generated the igneous complex together with the correlation of the surrounding metaigneous complexes in the Central Pontides will certainly provide insights to the geological evolution of this less-known area within the Northern Tethyan realm
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