Tracing the evolution and distribution of F and Cl in plutonic systems from volatile-bearing minerals: a case study from the Liujiawa pluton (Dabie orogen, China)

Abstract

Fluorine and chlorine play an important role in magmatic differentiation, hydrothermal alteration, and related mineralization processes, but tracing their evolution in magmatic and especially plutonic systems is not an easy task. The F and Cl in melts can be estimated from F and Cl concentrations in minerals, provided that partitioning between minerals and melts are constrained. Based on available partitioning models between mineral/melt, mineral/fluid, and melt/fluid, a set of equations has been derived to determine F and Cl concentrations in melts from the compositions of amphibole, biotite, and apatite. The new calculation procedure has been applied to a plutonic system, the Liujiawa pluton, eastern Dabie orogen (China). Cl and F concentrations in amphiboles, biotites, and apatites from different rock types (gabbronorite, two-pyroxene diorite, clinopyroxene diorite, and hornblende gabbro) have been determined by electron microprobe. Most amphiboles show a negative correlation between log(Cl/OH) and Mg-number and a positive correlation between log(F/OH) and A-site occupation. Biotites from the gabbronorite and two-pyroxene diorite show a slight positive correlation between log(Cl/OH) and Mg, which is however not the case for the clinopyroxene diorite. Apatites from all the samples are rich in F and show negative correlations between Cl and F concentrations. In our case study, we demonstrate that the Cl concentration in melt remains approximately constant at 1,000–2,000 ppm over the major crystallization interval, but decreases strongly at near solidus temperatures as a result of fluid exsolution. The F concentration in melt remains nearly constant at ca. 2,000–3,000 ppm at high temperatures as well as near solidus conditions, indicating that it is not largely affected by fluid exsolution because of its strongly preferred incorporation into melt. Interestingly, the evolution of Cl and F concentrations in melt with magmatic differentiation is similar to that determined in volcanic systems, suggesting that the evolution of Cl and F in melts during crystallization and late magmatic stages at depth (plutonic systems) is similar to that observed in volcanic systems during decompression and degassing.