Petrogenesis and possible fingerprints of the Najd shear system on the evolution of deformed granitic rocks in the west Wadi Nugrus area, Egypt

Abstract

In this paper, we present petrological constraints on the geodynamic evolution of deformed granitic rocks in the west Wadi Nugrus area, south Eastern Desert of Egypt. The deformation belt trends NW-SE forming the so-called “Nugrus Shear Zone (NSZ)” a major tectonic feature in the Arabian-Nubian Shield (ANS) at the junction between Wadi El Gemal and Wadi Hafafit areas, namely “Site I″ and “Site II”. The deformed granitic rocks comprise highly sheared arc granitoids and post-collisional to within-plate younger granites. Although the investigated granitic rocks are highly deformed, they show no signs of metamorphism and retain their primary igneous minerals. The melts from which the investigated granitic types originated experienced considerable degrees of partial melting in the transitional lower crust/upper lithospheric mantle as indicated by the contents of incompatible and rare-earth elements (REEs). Typical A-type granites developed before deformation and during emplacement in a continental environment. Zircon has ThO2/UO2 > 0.1, which is typical of igneous zircon, which sometimes experiences little recrystallization during the late magmatic deuteric stage, either pre-or syn-deformational due to circulation of fluids along the shear zone. It is believed that the deformation of all granitic rocks in the west Wadi Nugrus area is possibly synchronous and related to the Najd Fault System (NFS). The (NFS) extends from the western Arabian Peninsula to develop the NW-trending Nugrus Shear Zone (NSZ) in the south Eastern Desert. Sub-magmatic, solid-state, and sub-solidus deformational microstructures are evidence for the deformation related to the (NFS). Chessboard patterns in quartz and sub-magmatic fractures in plagioclase indicate deformation at high temperatures (T > 650 °C) in the presence of melt, which demonstrate the shearing during granitic cooling. On the other hand, quartz grain boundary migration and sub-grain recrystallization are two examples of solid state-related high-temperature deformation-related microstructures (T > 450 °C). Mica kinks along feldspar twinning and bending planes refer to low-temperature sub-solidus microstructures (T < 450 °C).