Petrology and age of granitoids of the Aturkol Massif, Gorny Altai: Contribution in the problem of formation of intraplate granitoids

Abstract

Geological, mineralogical, petrographic, geochemical, and geochronological data are reported for granitoids of the Aturkol Massif (Gorny Altai). It is shown that it was formed in within-plate setting in the Early Triassic, nearly simultaneously with flood basalts of the Kuznetsk Basin and alkalic basite and lampropyre dike swarms in the western Altai-Sayan Fold Region. At the same time, the mineralogical-petrographic, geochemical, and isotope characteristics of the considered granitoids are close to those of I-type granites. Intraplate signatures (elevated HFSE and REE) are recognized only in the least silicic rocks (granosyenites). Obtained data suggest mantle–crustal nature of the granitoids. They were formed by mixing of lamprophyre magmas with high pressure (>10 kbar) crustal melts derived from a mixed source consisting mainly of N-MORB-type metabasites with insignificant admixture of high-Ti basalts and metasedimentary rocks. The contribution of mantle component in the granitoids was insignificant (<20%). Proposed petrogenetic mechanism can provide the formation of large volumes of granitoid magmas with “crustal” geochemical and isotope signatures in an intraplate setting.