The Palma Volcano-Sedimentary Supersuite, Precambrian Sul-Riograndense Shield, Brazil

Abstract

Komatiites are generally found in Archean greenstone belts, but have been reported in some Mesozoic volcano-sedimentary sequences. The Palma Volcano-Sedimentary Supersuite (PVSS) is a Neoproterozoic sequence composed of meta-ultramafic volcanic rocks, mafic-to-felsic metavolcanic rocks, and metasedimentary rocks ranging from quartzites to chlorite-mica-quartz schists, marbles, and marls. Original PVSS structures were overprinted by two penetrative deformational surfaces (So//Sn and Sn+1); associated metamorphic assemblages are assigned to the upper greenschist facies. Basalts predominate over andesites and rhyodacites, and their major, minor, trace, and rare-earth elements display compatible geochemical trends characteristic of calc-alkaline magmas. Meta-ultramafic rocks are variable-thickness flows in the metasedimentary sequence. Metamorphism caused the development of a metasomatic tremolite zone around the serpentinite bodies, as well as chlorite and talc schist metasomatic zones. Evaluation of the geochemical mobility of the elements showed that the ratios between major and minor elements have not changed in the serpentinites. It was then possible to investigate the lithogeochemical nature of the serpentinites by studying the minor, trace, and rare-earth elements. The lithogeochemical investigation and the structures of the serpentinite bodies enable them to be regarded as komatiitic flows extruded under shallow water. These komatiite flows and calc-alkaline basalt to rhyodacite flows associated with shallow-water sediments suggest that this volcano-sedimentary sequence was developed in a Neoproterozoic arc-related tectonic setting.