The systematics of chlorine, fluorine, and water in Izu arc front volcanic rocks: Implications for volatile recycling in subduction zones

Abstract

We studied the systematics of Cl, F and H 2O in Izu arc front volcanic rocks using basaltic through rhyolitic glass shards and melt inclusions (Izu glasses) from Oligocene to Quaternary distal fallout tephra. These glasses are low-K basalts to rhyolites that are equivalent to the Quaternary lavas of the Izu arc front (Izu VF). Most of the Izu glasses have Cl ∼400–4000 ppm and F ∼70–400 ppm (normal-group glasses). Rare andesitic melt inclusions (halogen-rich andesites; HRA) have very high abundances of Cl (∼6600–8600 ppm) and F (∼780–910 ppm), but their contents of incompatible large ion lithophile elements (LILE) are similar to the normal-group glasses. The preeruptive H 2O of basalt to andesite melt inclusions in plagioclase is estimated to range from ∼2 to ∼10 wt% H 2O. The Izu magmas should be undersaturated in H 2O and the halogens at their preferred levels of crystallization in the middle to lower crust (∼3 to ∼11 kbar, ∼820° to ∼1200°C). A substantial portion of the original H 2O is lost due to degassing during the final ascent to surface. By contrast, halogen loss is minor, except for loss of Cl from siliceous dacitic and rhyolitic compositions. The behavior of Cl, F and H 2O in undegassed melts resembles the fluid mobile LILE (e.g.; K, Rb, Cs, Ba, U, Pb, Li). Most of the Cl (>99%), H 2O (>95%) and F (>53%) in the Izu VF melts appear to originate from the subducting slab. At arc front depths, the slab fluid contains Cl = 0.94 ± 0.25 wt%, F = 990 ± 270 ppm and H 2O = 25 ± 7 wt%. If the subducting sediment and the altered basaltic crust were the only slab sources, then the subducted Cl appears to be almost entirely recycled at the Izu arc (∼77–129%). Conversely, H 2O (∼13–22% recycled at arc) and F (∼4–6% recycled) must be either lost during shallow subduction or retained in the slab to greater depths. If a seawater-impregnated serpentinite layer below the basaltic crust were an additional source of Cl and H 2O, the calculated percentage of Cl and H 2O recycled at arc would be lower. Extrapolating the Izu data to the total length of global arcs (∼37,000 km), the global arc outflux of fluid-recycled Cl and H 2O at subduction zones amounts to Cl ∼2.9–3.8 × 10 12 g/yr and H 2O ∼0.7–1.0 × 10 14 g/yr, respectively—comparable to previous estimates. Further, we obtain a first estimate of global arc outflux of fluid-recycled F of ∼0.3–0.4 × 10 12g/yr. Despite the inherent uncertainties, our results support models suggesting that the slab becomes strongly depleted in Cl and H 2O in subduction zones. In contrast, much of the subducted F appears to be returned to the deep mantle, implying efficient fractionation of Cl and H 2O from F during the subduction process. However, if slab devolatilization produces slab fluids with high Cl/F (∼9.5), slab melting will still produce components with low Cl/F ratios (∼0.9), similar to those characteristic of the upper continental crust (Cl/F ∼0.3–0.9).