Na/K Diversity of Primary Basaltic Magmas Induced by the Separation of Slab-derived Supercritical Liquid: Implications from Alkali Basaltic Lavas from Rishiri Volcano, Southern Kuril Arc

Abstract

Abstract Primary basaltic magmas in subduction zones exhibit chemical diversity even in individual volcanoes. In this study, we aim to elucidate the dominant factors that determine the chemical composition, especially the Na/K, of primary basaltic magmas by conducting a comparative petrological study of the high-Na/K Horyosawa lava and low-Na/K Nozuka lava from Rishiri Volcano in the southern Kuril Arc. Both lava flows are basaltic and are suitable for estimating the magma generation conditions. The whole-rock SiO2 content of the high-Na/K Horyosawa lava, the main target of this study, ranges from 51·9 to 53·4 wt%. The petrological and geochemical features of this lava indicate that the effects of magma mixing and assimilation of crustal materials were limited, and the low-SiO2 magmas were essentially derived via olivine fractionation from the primary magma. The primary magma is estimated to have been generated by ~2·4 % partial melting of the source mantle with ~0·10 wt% water at ~1300 °C and ~2·4 GPa. By comparing the results of the high-Na/K Horyosawa lavas with those published for the low-Na/K basalts (Nozuka lava), we find that (1) the slab-derived fluids involved in their formation were supercritical liquids with similar compositions, including Na/K, when released from the subducting slab, and (2) the Horyosawa primary magma was generated at a shallower level in the mantle than the Nozuka primary magma. From these observations, it is inferred that the primary magma of the Horyosawa lava was formed by the influx melting of aqueous fluid separated from the supercritical liquid at depths shallower than the critical point, whereas the Nozuka lava was generated by supercritical liquid-fluxed melting at depths deeper than the critical point. These findings show that elemental partitioning during the separation of slab-derived supercritical liquid into aqueous fluid and hydrous melt can induce chemical diversity within the primary basaltic magmas of a single volcanic system.