Abstract
A small isolated Neogene, possibly Quaternary, monogenetic alkali olivine basalt cone in northeastern Iran contains both mantle peridotite and crustal gabbroic xenoliths, as well as plagioclase megacrysts. The basaltic magma rose to the surface along pathways associated with local extension at the junction between the N–S right-lateral and E–W left-lateral strike slip faults that form the northeastern boundary of the Lut microcontinental block. This basalt is enriched in LREE relative to HREE, and has trace-element ratios similar to that of oceanic island basalts (OIB). Its 87Sr/86Sr (0.705013 to 0.705252), 143Nd/144Nd (0.512735 to 0.512738), and Pb isotopic compositions all fall in the field of OIB derived from enriched (EM-2) mantle. It formed by mixing of small melt fractions from both garnet-bearing asthenospheric and spinel-facies lithospheric mantle. Plagioclase (An26-32) megacrysts, up to 4 cm in length, have euhedral crystal faces and show no evidence of reaction with the host basalt. Their trace-element concentrations suggest that these megacrysts are co-genetic with the basalt host, although their 87Sr/86Sr (0.704796) and 143Nd/144Nd (0.512687) ratios are different than this basalt. Round to angular, medium-grained granoblastic meta-igneous gabbroic xenoliths, ranging from ~ 1 to 6 cm in dimension, are derived from the lower continental crust. Spinel–peridotite xenoliths equilibrated in the subcontinental lithosphere at depths of 30 to 60 km and temperatures of 965 °C to 1065 °C. These xenoliths do not preserve evidence of extensive metasomatic enrichment as has been inferred for the mantle below the Damavand volcano further to the west in north-central Iran, and clinopyroxenes separated from two different mantle xenoliths have 87Sr/86Sr (0.704309 and 0.704593) and 143Nd/144Nd (0.512798) ratios which are less radiogenic than either their host alkali basalt or Damavand basalts, implying significant regional variations in the composition and extent of metasomatism in the sub-Iranian mantle.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.