Omphacite-bearing calcite marble and associated coesite-bearing pelitic schist from the meta-ophiolitic belt of Chinese western Tianshan

Abstract

In the meta-ophiolitic belt of Chinese western Tianshan, marble (5–50cm thick) is found interlayered with pelitic schist. The marble is mainly composed of calcite (>90% in volume) and accessory phases include omphacite, quartz, dolomite, albite, phengite, clinozoisite and titanite with or without rutile core. This is the first omphacite (Jd35–50) reported from marble of Chinese western Tianshan. It mainly occurs in the calcite matrix, rarely as inclusion in albite. The presence of omphacite suggests that the layered marble was subjected to eclogite-facies metamorphism, consistent with the occurrence of high-Si phengite (Si a.p.f.u. up to 3.7) and aragonite relic in albite. The associated pelitic schist consists of quartz, white mica (phengite+paragonite), garnet, albite, amphibole (barroisite±glaucophane) and rutile/titanite, as well as minor amounts of dolomite, tourmaline and graphite. Coesite is optically recognized within porphyroblastic pelitic garnet and is further confirmed via Raman spectroscopy. Thermodynamic models support the UHP metamorphism of calcite marble, similar to the associated pelitic schist. Shared UHP-LT history of calcareous and pelitic rocks in Chinese western Tianshan suggests that the supracrustal carbon-rich sediments have been carried to depths of >90km during fast subduction and thus are potential sources for carbon recycled into arc crust.