Tracing Sediment Melt Activity in the Sub‐Continental Lithosphere: Insights From Zn‐Fe Stable Isotopes

Abstract

AbstractRecycling of upper crustal sediments through slab subduction contributes to sub‐continental lithospheric refertilization and heterogeneity. However, the nature of recycled upper crustal components is unclear and direct evidence for sediment melt activity in the sub‐continental lithosphere is lacking. Here, we integrate major and trace elements, zircon U‐Pb dating, Sr‐Nd‐Zn‐Fe isotopic compositions of clinopyroxenites (crust‐mantle boundary) and a “glassy” xenolith from the North China Craton to relate their petrogenesis to the potential recycling of upper continental crust and provide direct insight into the sediment melt‐rock interaction. The clinopyroxenites have relatively uniform δ56Fe values (the permil deviation of the 56Fe/54Fe ratio from the IRMM014; −0.05‰–0.07‰, except for one outlier) and are not affected by melt metasomatism. The clinopyroxenites have highly variable whole‐rock δ66Zn values (the permil deviation of the 66Zn/64Zn ratio from the JMC‐Lyon standard) between 0.04‰ and 0.46‰, that closely correlate with Rb/La, K/U, Ba/Th, and Th/Nb ratios, and generate arrays that trend toward a composition similar to the “glassy” xenolith. The “glassy” xenolith has a high δ66Zn value (0.43‰ ± 0.05‰, 2SD) and a significantly low 143Nd/144Nd ratio (0.510991). This evidence implies that the “glassy” xenolith may represent a quenched sediment melt formed by the melting of carbonate‐bearing terrigenous sediments that may also be responsible for the metasomatism of clinopyroxenite xenoliths. The geochemical evidence from the “glassy” and clinopyroxenite xenoliths provides a direct evidence for the activity of sediment melt with upper continental crust components in the sub‐continental lithosphere.