Host Magma Research Articles

Nucleation delay controlling the formation of mafic enclaves and banded pumice

The presence of mafic enclaves and banded pumice reveals key physical processes associated with volcanic eruptions. Here, through the textural and geochemical analyses of the 3550 B.P. Waimihia deposits in Taupō, New Zealand, we demonstrate how disequilibrium crystallization controls the way magmas mix. Andesitic enclaves in pyroclastic deposits from this predominantly rhyolitic eruption consist of microlites that crystallized rapidly during mafic injection into rhyolitic host magma. The variation of microlite textures depends on enclave size, implying that mafic enclaves crystallized as discrete blobs within a host rhyolitic magma. However, gray pumice and dark bands in banded pumice are characterized by a lack of or less plagioclase microlites that should be present if equilibrium crystallization occurred. Our textural and chemical data suggest that the lack of plagioclase in gray pumice and dark bands resulted from the nucleation delay arising from the mixing with rhyolitic magma. After mafic magma broke up in a magma chamber as discrete mafic blobs, the plagioclase-free rim of the blobs was disaggregated by shear flow. The eroded mafic blobs form a hybrid magma by mixing with rhyolitic magma, which further delays the plagioclase nucleation. This hybrid magma eventually erupted as gray pumice or banded pumice, depending on the intensity of magma mingling in the conduit. We use a plagioclase nucleation delay model to calculate residence times of hours to tens of hours prior to eruption. Our mixing model with nucleation delay enables small volumes of mafic magma to mix with large amounts of silicic magma.

The geology of the Aracruz pluton (Espírito Santo, Brazil), a Cambrian post-orogenic intrusion in the aftermath of Gondwana amalgamation

ABSTRACT We present the first geological map of the Aracruz pluton (Espírito Santo, Brazil), which belongs to the late Cambrian post-orogenic suite that intruded the Nova Venécia metapelites and Ediacaran syn-orogenic S-type granites of the Araçuaí belt. Our mapping coupled with airbone magnetic and radiometric observations reveals that the pluton is not regularly zoned. It is composed of porphyric alkali feldspar granites, into which charnockite and quartz-diorite bands intruded as several pulses while the granites were a deforming crystal mush, and an undeformed central norite emplaced when most movement of the host magma had ceased. Steep-dipping concentric magmatic foliation, magmatic foliation parallel to tectonic foliation in the country rock, the noritic core, and the irregular charnockite and quartz-diorite band alignment suggest buoyancy-driven diapirism as emplacement mechanism. The Aracruz pluton is a superb example of mantle-derived post-orogenic intrusion attesting for the production of continental crust during the final stages of a Wylson cycle.

Multi-Stage Evolution of the Oceanic Lithosphere beneath Heard Island, Southern Indian Ocean

Abstract The Kerguelen Plateau is the second biggest submarine large igneous province (LIP) on Earth, however, the nature of the lithospheric mantle source underlying it remains poorly constrained. In this contribution, we provide novel insights into the oceanic lithospheric mantle underlying Heard Island (southern Indian Ocean), which represents the most recent and active phase of volcanic activity (<1 Ma) in the Kerguelen Plateau. We present petrographic and geochemical data for a suite of spinel-bearing harzburgite xenoliths hosted in basanite lavas and provide detailed constraints for distinguishing in situ mantle metasomatism from post-entrapment modification of the xenoliths following interaction with the host magma. We demonstrate that the xenolith mineral compositions and textures preserve a complex multistage history of different modal and cryptic transformations that occurred in the mantle due to: i) high degrees of partial melting that produced highly refractory whole-rock Mg# (Mg# = (Mg + Fe)/Mg × 100; 88–92), major element (FeO/MgO = 0.17) and mineral compositions (e.g. highly forsteritic olivine; Fo = (Mg + Fe)/Mg × 100; 91–92 mol %); ii) solid-state re-equilibration reactions during decompression that caused exsolution of clinopyroxene and Cr-spinel from xenolith orthopyroxene to form symplectite intergrowths; iii) cryptic metasomatism affecting the composition of xenolith clinopyroxene (i.e. enrichment in Na, Th, U and light rare earth elements, and depletion in Rb, Nb, Zr, Hf and Ti) due to interaction with carbonatitic melts in the mantle. Mantle fragments, entrapped by ascending basanite magmas as xenoliths were further modified by reactions with the host magma. This resulted in the partial dissolution of mantle orthopyroxene and replacement by newly formed and compositionally distinct assemblages of clinopyroxene (Mg# 87–91), olivine (Fo: 81–88 mol %) and Cr-spinel (i.e. ‘wehrlitisation’ of the xenoliths). This study highlights the utility of combining petrography and mineral chemistry to decipher the complex and sometimes overprinting and masking effects that different processes (e.g. melting events, metasomatism) exert on the lithospheric mantle, as well as constrain the processes that modify the xenoliths during transport towards the surface.

The Petrogenesis and Geological Implications of the Sanggeda Gabbros, Southern Tibet: Insights from the Amphibole Crystal Population

Amphibole is an important mineral during the differentiation of arc magmas but rarely as a phenocryst in arc lavas or eruptive pyroclastic rocks. The Sanggeda complex, intruded into the ophiolite of the Indus–Yarlung Zangbo Suture Zone (IYZSZ), Zedong, southern Tibet, mainly consists of amphibole-rich, fine-grained, and porphyritic gabbros. The complex provides an opportunity to study the differentiation of arc magmas through amphibole crystals. Four distinct amphibole crystal populations can be recognized according to petrographic observations, EMPA, and LA–ICP–MS analysis. The first ones (Type 1) are fined-grained and euhedral, are crystallized during ascent, and are the product of the shallow emplacement of host magma. The second ones (Type 2) are euhedral, with slight negative Eu and Sr anomalies, and crystallize from an evolved magma that previously experienced plagioclase fractionation. Type 3 amphiboles have similar morphological characteristics to Type 2 but are without Eu and Sr anomalies. Type 4 crystals are shown as pseudomorphs, formed by the reaction–replacement between the clinopyroxene and melt. Type 1 crystals are autocrysts. Other amphiboles within host magma, whether presented as phenocrysts or cumulate nodules, are antecrysts. Based on the amphibole crystal population developed in the complex, in this study, a trans-crustal magma plumbing system is proposed, containing at least three magma reservoirs located at different crust depths: the shallow emplaced crust (~4.8 km), the mid-crust (~12.9 km), and the lower crust (~21.8–24.9 km). Early amphibole crystallization is an effective process to generate silicic residual melts. Gravity could help in that sense. Precursor amphibole and clinopyroxene can efficiently delaminate back into the mantle and promote the generation of silicic continental crust.

Garnet Pyroxenite Cumulates from Cretaceous Alkaline Intraplate Magmas Underplate the Zealandia Mantle Lithosphere

Abstract The elemental and isotopic properties of garnet pyroxenites can yield information on lithospheric mantle composition, thermal state, and evolution. The 34Ma Kakanui Mineral Breccia in New Zealand contains spectacular but little-studied mantle peridotite and pyroxenite xenoliths that yield new insights into the evolution of a portion of the underlying mantle lithosphere of a former Gondwana margin. The moderately depleted and metasomatized spinel peridotites, as judged from spinel and olivine compositions and bulk rock major and platinum group element abundances, give mineral equilibration temperatures <1020°C and are derived from the middle to shallow (~35 to 50 km) lithospheric mantle when projected onto a 70 mW∙m−2 geotherm. These residues have low Re/Os and Re-depletion 187Os/188Os model ages that range from Eocene (0.05 Ga) to Paleoproterozoic (1.9 Ga), consistent with extraction from a lithospheric mantle comprising fragments with complex depletion histories. Although the peridotites have restricted δ18O (olivine +5.2 to 6.2), evidence for an isotopically heterogeneous mantle column in addition to the 187Os/188Os is seen in clinopyroxene 87Sr/86Sr (0.70244 to 0.70292), εNd (+4.1 to 18.8), 206Pb/204Pb (17.8 to 20.3), and εHf (+10 to +101). Higher metamorphic equilibrium temperatures of the garnet pyroxenites (Fe–Mg exchange of >1150°C) compared to the peridotites indicate their Eocene extraction was from towards the base of this isotopically heterogeneous mantle lithosphere. Pyroxenite bulk compositions point to cumulate origins, and the mineral isotope ratios of 87Sr/86Sr (0.70282 to 0.70294), εNd (+5.5 to 8.0) and 206Pb/204Pb (18.1 to 19.3) match many of the Zealandia metasomatized mantle peridotite xenoliths as well as the primitive intraplate basalts but not the garnet pyroxenite host magmas. In contrast to many global pyroxenite studies, the garnet pyroxenite 87Sr/86Sr and δ18O (+5.2 to 5.8) data provide no evidence for subducted crustal material in the primary magma source region, and Sm–Nd and Lu–Hf isotope data yield mid-Cenozoic ages that are probably related to isotope closure during eruption. An exception is one sample that yields a Lu–Hf isochron age of 111.9 ± 9.1 Ma, which corresponds to the convergence of the Lu–Hf isotope evolution curves of three other samples. Liquids calculated to have been in equilibrium with these cumulates have trace element compositions comparable to primitive alkaline intraplate basalts like those found at the surface of Zealandia. The new data, therefore, indicate that a pulse of intraplate magmatism occurred during or directly after the cessation of long-lived subduction on the former Zealandia Early Cretaceous forearc Gondwana margin, despite any volcanic surface exposure having been long eroded away. The lower lithospheric mantle emplacement of the garnet pyroxenites suggests that the source of the alkaline parent magmas was probably the convecting mantle, which supports conclusions that intraplate magmas in Zealandia have asthenospheric and lithospheric mantle sources.

Improved precision at high-spatial resolution of strontium isotope analysis in apatite and apatite inclusions by LA-MC-ICP-MS with 1013 Ω amplifiers

Recent advancements in in situ analytical techniques have generated new interest in measuring strontium (Sr) isotopes in rock-forming apatite and apatite inclusions in zircon, because they can bring new insights into the primary signatures of magmatic sources. This paper introduces a novel approach based on laser ablation multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-MC-ICP-MS), which allows to achieve higher precision in situ analysis of Sr isotopes in small volumes of samples. The use of 1013 Ω current amplifiers for the acquisition of the signal on m/z 83, 83.5, 84, 85, 85.5, 86, 86.5, 87 and 88, along with a specific data reduction protocol, enhance both the internal precision and the external reproducibility of the 87Sr/86Sr ratio by a factor of four, presenting a significant improvement over the conventional use of 1011 Ω amplifiers. An internal precision better than 0.45‰ (i.e. 450 ppm; 2 s.e.) on the 87Sr/86Sr ratio can be achieved on the Durango apatite standard with a 13 μm square-shaped laser beam and a laser ablation pit of 60 μm depth. With a 5 μm beam, the precision is 2.2‰ on average with a 10 μm ablation pit depth for this standard. This analytical procedure was applied to investigate Sr isotopes in apatite and apatite inclusions within zircons from seven high BaSr magmatic rocks in the Northern Highland Terrane, Scotland. For these well-characterised, geochemically undisturbed samples, the data reveals similar Sr isotope compositions between apatite inclusions armoured in zircon, matrix apatites, and the bulk rock. This highlights the ability of apatite inclusions to faithfully record primary signatures of host magmas, elucidating their utility as reliable indicators in petrological studies of ancient samples.

Magma mingling during the 1959 eruption of Kīlauea Iki, Hawaiʻi

Magma mingling and mixing are common processes at basaltic volcanoes and play a fundamental role in magma petrogenesis and eruption dynamics. Mingling occurs most commonly when hot primitive magma is introduced into cooler magma. Here, we investigate a scenario whereby cool, partially degassed lava is drained back into a conduit, where it mingles with hotter, less degassed magma. The 1959 eruption of Kīlauea Iki, Hawaiʻi involved 16 high fountaining episodes. During each episode, fountains fed a lava lake in a pit crater, which then partially drained back into the conduit during and after each episode. We infer highly crystalline tachylite inclusions and streaks in the erupted crystal-poor scoria to be the result of the recycling of this drain-back lava. The crystal phases present are dendrites of plagioclase, augite and magnetite/ilmenite, at sizes of up to 10 µm. Host sideromelane glass contains 7–8 wt% MgO and the tachylite glass (up to 0.5% by area) contains 2.5–6 wt% MgO. The vesicle population in the tachylite is depleted in the smallest size classes (< 0.5 mm) and has overall lower vesicle number densities and a higher degree of vesicle coalescence than the sideromelane component. The tachylite exhibits increasingly complex ‘stretching and folding’ mingling textures through the episodes, with discrete blocky tachylite inclusions in episodes 1 and 3 giving way to complex, folded, thin filaments of tachylite in pyroclasts erupted in episodes 15 and 16. We calculate that a lava lake crust 8–35 cm thick may have formed in the repose times between episodes, and then foundered and been entrained into the conduit during drain-back. The recycled fragments of crust would have been reheated in the conduit, inducing glass devitrification and crystallisation of pyroxene, magnetite and plagioclase dendrites and eventually undergoing ductile flow as the temperature of the fragments approached the host magma temperature. We use simple models of magma mingling to establish that stretching and folding of recycled, ductile lava could involve thinning of the clasts by up to a factor of 10 during the timescale of the eruption, consistent with observations of streaks and filaments of tachylite erupted during episodes 15 and 16, which may have undergone multiple cycles of eruption, drain-back and reheating.

Brittle fragmentation of Fissure 17 enclave magma revealed by fractal analysis

The 2018 LERZ eruption of Kilauea featured a wide range of eruptive styles. In particular, Fissure 17 (F17) displayed activity ranging from Hawaiian fountaining in the eastern part of the fissure to Strombolian explosions in the western part. Lava erupted from F17-West was highly viscous and contained magmatic enclaves. Magmatic enclaves have previously been observed in many other volcanic systems (e.g. Vulcano Island, IT and Sete Cidades Volcano, PT), where they have been attributed to injection of mafic magma into an evolved magma chamber, resulting in viscous fingering, quenching, and break-off into fragments. The F17 enclaves differ from previous studies in that the chemical compositions of the enclave and host magmas are very similar, and that the enclaves have a limited spatial distribution and lack signs of viscous behavior and quenching, pointing to a different formation mechanism than inferred for other volcanic systems.In order to test a different formation hypothesis, we conducted fractal analysis of the size distribution of 84 individual enclaves from F17-West lavas. Our results, including a fractal dimension of fragmentation Df of 2.59, indicate that the F17 enclaves likely formed by brittle fragmentation. Since the enclave and host magmas were at temperatures far above the glass transition during the magma hybridization, high strain rates have to be invoked to explain the brittle fragmentation. This may have caused the enclave magma to transition into solid-state behavior, allowing it to break off into fragments that were subsequently picked up by the host magma and carried to the free surface.The enclaves from F17-West therefore offer a unique insight into the diversity of processes that characterizes the shallow parts of volcanic systems, as well as the importance of strain rates in modulating the rheological behavior of magmas.

Origin of Crystals in Mafic to Intermediate Magmas from Circum-Pacific Continental Arcs: Transcrustal Magmatic Systems Versus Transcrustal Plutonic Systems

Abstract Complex zoning in crystals including repeated resorption and overgrowth is characteristic for arc magmas and occurs in response to closed-system changes in magmatic P–T–fO2 conditions and open system processes such as magma mixing and degassing or regassing. However, over which time frame do such changes occur? Do zoning patterns record changes occurring during the polybaric ascent of magmas that carry crystals or glomerocrysts sourced from variably mushy magma reservoirs, or alternatively indicate the uptake of antecrysts that experienced long periods of cold storage in plutonic precursors? A priori, these scenarios are endmember models, with the former transcrustal magmatic systems, where the crystals record changing conditions during magma ascent or changing interstitial melt compositions, traditionally preferred over the latter, which we here term transcrustal plutonic systems. In subsolidus plutonic systems, aphyric parental melts would acquire their entirely antecrystic crystal cargo during ascent from plutonic protoliths, and only crystal rims may be related to the host magma. We discuss the evidence for dominantly plutonic antecrystic cargo in some continental arc magmas, identified by considering mineral phase proportions, hydration of crystal rims that indicate hydrothermally altered cargo picked up by fresh melts, and uranium isotope disequilibria between crystals and matrix. We then turn to two-pyroxene thermobarometry and review the evidence for plutonic antecryst dominance revealed by this method in southwest Japan and the southern Taupo Volcanic Zone. We provide additional two-pyroxene data from the Andes, the Cascades, and the Tatun Volcano Group in northern Taiwan, corroborating that the uptake of crystals by aphyric to scarcely phyric melts is prevalent in continental arc magmatic systems. Thus, in many cases transcrustal plutonic systems seem to dominate, implying that a significant proportion of parental melts of continental arc magmas are variably enriched in silica, too hot to carry crystals, and typically too hot and not hydrous enough to be generated by differentiation in frequently postulated lower crustal hot zones, as we will demonstrate here. Our data indicate that in continental subduction zones, the mantle wedge is the source of a diversity of melt compositions (low- to high-silica), irrespective of the age and temperature of the subducting slab. Before discussing some of the implications of the prevalence of non-canonical transcrustal plutonic systems for the thermal structure of the crust, magma ascent processes, volcano monitoring, economic geology, as well as the evolution of continental crustal growth and recycling through deep time, we critically evaluate this novel perspective in terms of published data that might favour more traditional supersolidus transcrustal magmatic systems. This contribution provides the community with the opportunity to consider significantly colder crustal environments than typically accepted, and outlines avenues of future research.

Mineral Chemistry of Olivine, Oxy-Spinel, and Clinopyroxene in Lavas and Xenoliths from the Canary, Azores, and Cape Verde Islands (Macaronesia, North Atlantic Ocean): New Data and Comparisons with the Literature

An electron microprobe study was carried out on olivine, clinopyroxene, and oxy-spinel occurring in basalts and dunite xenoliths from the archipelagos of the Azores, the Canary Islands, and Cape Verde. By comparing our results with previously published data from the volcanic islands of Macaronesia, we confirmed the validity of the compositions of olivine, clinopyroxene, and oxy-spinel as geochemical tracers. The origin of olivine, i.e., crystallized in the lithospheric mantle or in volcanic rocks, was successfully discriminated. Olivine from Lanzarote dunite xenoliths, which represent fragments of the mantle transported to the surface by host magmas, exhibited higher Fo% values (Fo91.02 to Fo91.94) and a different distribution of minor elements Ca, Ni, and Mn (CaO up to 0.42 wt%, NiO 0.07–0.41 wt%, MnO 0.06–0.3 wt%) when compared with olivine occurring as phenocrysts in basaltic lavas from the Macaronesian islands. The highly variable forsterite contents (Fo75.1 to Fo94.4) in olivine from gabbro and peridotite xenoliths found across the islands of Macaronesia were attributed to fractional crystallization that started in a deep magma reservoir, suggesting that these xenoliths represent cumulate rocks and not mantle fragments. Alternatively, these xenoliths may have been affected by the interaction with metasomatic fluids. The composition of clinopyroxene phenocrysts was used to decipher formation conditions under extensional tectonics. Their composition suggests that the host lavas have an alkaline to calc-alkaline signature. Furthermore, clinopyroxene euhedral shapes and compositions suggest an origin by fractional crystallization in a closed magmatic system. The composition alone of oxy-spinel from Macaronesian basalts and xenoliths was not sufficient to draw conclusions about the geodynamic environment where they were formed. Nevertheless, the relationship between oxy-spinel and olivine crystallized in equilibrium was successfully used as oxybarometers and geothermometers. The oxy-spinel–olivine pairs show evidence that the basaltic lavas were crystallized from melts with higher oxygen fugacity and different cooling histories than those of the mantle xenoliths, as the latter crystallized and re-equilibrated much slower than the basalts.

Mineral chemistry and thermobarometry of the pre-rift Upper Cretaceous to Paleocene melilite-bearing dykes from the northern part of the Bohemian Massif (Ploučnice River region): Implications for compositional variations of spinels from ultracalcic melts

The Ploučnice River region (polzenite group) is uniquely characterized by its melilite-bearing subvolcanic rocks located in the northern section of the Bohemian Massif. They are the crystallization products of ultracalcic melts during the pre-rift evolution of the Ohře/Eger Rift, which is the easternmost part of the European Cenozoic Rift System. The melt was produced by low-degree partial melting of carbonate-bearing garnet peridotite and pyroxenite at a depth of approximately 100 km (P ~ 3.0 Gpa). The rapid ascent of the ultracalcic melts through the lithosphere was accompanied by fractional crystallization of olivine + spinel ± clinopyroxene mainly within the upper to middle crustal storage zone at depths between 12 and 24 km (0.3–0.6 Gpa). Notably, olivine crystallized generally at higher temperatures (1257–1356 °C) compared to clinopyroxene (1156–1203 °C) and plagioclase (1099–1112 °C). The calculated oxygen fugacity during fractional crystallization (perovskite, −4.8 to +3.9 ΔNNO) decreases at the late-stage of crystallization due to residual magma exsolving oxidizing fluids and decreased fO2 (oxygen fugacity) of the magmas from which monticellite was crystallized (ΔNNO −6.0 to −3.9). The rounded shapes and chemical composition (Cr/(Cr + Al) 0.52–0.82) of partially resorbed chromite xenocrystic cores in subhedral to euhedral spinel grains indicate that they originated in the mantle. The first stage of magmatic evolution for the studied rocks is related to the Cr-spinel (Cr/(Cr + Al) 0.35–0.50) crystallization, which successively changed to a high-alumina composition (Cr/(Cr + Al) 0.25–0.30). Magnetite (magnetite–ulvöspinel solid solution) forms an atoll texture or small euhedral crystals in the groundmass. Both textural types of magnetite crystallized during the late-stage magmatic evolution of the ultracalcic melt. Carbonate or quartz-rich xenoliths were incorporated during magma emplacement under the upper crust. Sr-Nd isotopic data, mineral composition, and whole-rock chemical composition all verified that the assimilation of the xenoliths only affected the chemical composition of the host magma in the immediate neighborhood of the contract (up to a few millimeters around the xenolith).

Apatite Geochemical and Nd Isotopic Insights into Trachyte Petrogenesis in the Tianchi Volcanic Area of Changbai Mountain, NE China

AbstractWe report the oxide, element geochemistry and Nd isotopic geochemical data of apatite in the middle Pleistocene medium‐ and fine‐grained trachyte in the Tianchi volcanic area (TVA) of Changbai Mountain, discussing the relationship between apatite and the composition of the whole rock. The purpose is to use the apatite geochemical data to constrain the evolutionary process of trachytic magma and the petrogenesis of trachyte in the cone‐forming period of the Tianchi volcano. Apatite (Ca5(PO4)3(OH, F, Cl)) is a common accessory mineral that occurs widely in volcanic rocks in the TVA. The apatites in the trachyte are mainly subhedral–anhedral, having the characteristics of magmatic apatite. In terms of oxide and element geochemistry, they have homogeneous Al2O3, SiO2, MgO, P2O5, K2O, CaO and heterogeneous TiO2, with high F content. They are generally enriched in Th, U and LREEs, depleted in Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf and HFSEs, showing negative Ba, Sr and Ti anomalies, similar to those of the whole‐rock host trachytes. The ratios of high (La/Yb)N, low δEu (Eu/Eu*), Sr/Y value and ΣREE content in apatite, and the F, Sr, Y, Th/U, La/Sm, and Nd/Tb with ΣREE and δEu anomalies showed a linear correlation, all of those indicating that the host magma has the characteristic of high differentiation. The apatite grains generally having 147Sm/144Nd, 143Nd/144Nd ratios and εNd(t) values of 0.1072–0.1195, 0.5123–0.5126 and –3.49 to –0.10, respectively, are similiar to those of the host rock. The Nd model ages TDM1 are 949–803 Ma in apatite. Combined with the εNd(t) value of the apatite core (–7.06 to –3.49), we conclude that the initial magma of the host trachyte was derived from the partial melting of Proterozoic crustal material and there was an assimilation of wall rocks during its evolution.

Petrology of ijolite xenoliths entrained in a nephelinite dyke from the Kamthai area, Late Cretaceous polychronous Sarnu-Dandali alkaline complex, North-West India: Evidence for recurrent magmatic pulses and magma mixing

The Late Cretaceous (89–65 Ma) Sarnu-Dandali alkaline complex is intrusive into the Neoproterozoic (∼750 Ma) Malani Igneous Suite of rocks in North-Western India. This complex represents a polychronous setup owing to the available age groups of varied rock types involving nephelinites, alkali pyroxenites, syenites, phonolites, ijolites, carbonatites and lamprophyres. In this study, we report xenoliths of ijolite up to 2 mm in size, comprising minerals such as aegirine, nepheline, sodalite, apatite, sphene, fluorite, Ti-rich andradite, and perovskite entrained in the host nephelinite from this complex. Pyroxene thermobarometry for both host and xenoliths reveals that the xenoliths crystallized around 876–1114°C; 4.6–18 kbar (Kdcpx−melt ∼0.164), whereas the host magma crystallized around 800–1165°C and 4.5–17.9 kbar (Kdcpx−melt ∼0.44). The redox conditions of the magma are also estimated from Fe-Nb oxy barometry of perovskite and the log oxygen fugacity varies from -2.5 to -3.7 (ΔNNO), showing a resemblance with that of the world-wide kimberlites derived from the cratonic mantle. Furthermore, the composition as well as the barometric study of clinopyroxenes from both the host and the xenoliths, suggest multiple shallower magma chambers composed of ijolite and nephelinite magmas which were activated by different magmatic pulses, thereby forming a complex magmatic plumbing system.

Thermal Evolution of the Lithosphere‐Asthenosphere Boundary Beneath Arc and Its Geodynamic Implications: Depth Variation of Thermal Histories of Mantle Xenoliths From Ichinomegata, Northeast Japan

AbstractQuantitative reconstruction of thermal history recorded in mantle xenoliths is imperative for understanding the temporal change of thermal state and dynamics of the lithosphere‐asthenosphere boundary (LAB). We challenged this problem in the arc settings by examining nine spinel peridotite xenoliths from Ichinomegata maar in the back‐arc side of Northeast Japan Arc. Extensive mineral chemical analyses combined with the derivation depths of the xenoliths revealed a depth‐dependent variation of chemical zoning patterns in olivine and pyroxenes. The depth variation of thermal histories of the Ichinomegata xenoliths was decoded by applying diffusion‐controlled reaction modeling to reproduce the zoning patterns. The decoded thermal events in the order of occurrence are (a) ∼14 million years of cooling causing lithosphere thickening up to ∼55 km depth, (b) subsequent ∼12 thousand years of heating from the underlying asthenosphere resulting in lithosphere thinning up to the depths of ∼40 km, and (c) 1–68 days of heating during xenolith transportation by the host magma. The duration of the lithosphere thickening is consistently explained by the period of the Japan Sea opening. On the other hand, the timescale of the lithosphere thinning is too short to be explained by heat conduction through the ∼15 km thick LAB and requires a more effective heat transportation mechanism such as direct magma injection into the LAB or significant viscosity reduction of the mantle peridotite aided by the pervasive permeable flow of silicate melt.

Sub-arc mantle fugacity shifted by sediment recycling across the Great Oxidation Event

The chemical exchange between the atmosphere, crust and mantle depends on sediment recycling via subduction. However, it remains unclear how atmospherically modified sediment may affect mantle oxygen fugacity through time. The Great Oxidation Event, among the most important atmospheric changes on Earth, offers an opportunity to investigate changes in magmatism related to surface–mantle interactions. Here we use sulfur K-edge micro X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy to measure the relative abundances of S6+, S4+ and S2− state in apatite inclusions hosted in 2.4–2.1-billion-year-old igneous zircons from the Mineiro Belt, Brazil. The host magmas record intracrustal melting of juvenile crust and the involvement of recycled sediments in the sub-arc mantle wedge. Unaltered apatite inclusions reveal a change from reduced to more oxidized magmas from pre- to post-Great Oxidation Event during the early Proterozoic. We argue that this change is a direct result of deep subduction of oxidized sediments and thus evidence of mantle–atmosphere interaction across the Great Oxidation Event. This suggests that the onset of sediment recycling in the Archaean provided atmospheric access to the mantle, and early ‘whiffs’ of oxygen may have already contributed to a localized increase of calc-alkaline magmatism and related ore deposits on Earth.

Multi-scale and multi-modal imaging study of mantle xenoliths and petrological implications

Abstract The accurate textural characterization of mantle xenoliths is one of the fundamental steps to understanding the main processes occurring in the upper mantle, such as sub-solidus recrystallization, magmatic crystallization, and metasomatism. Texture, composition, and mineralogy reflect the temperature, pressure, stress conditions, melting, and/or contamination events undergone before and during the entrapment in the host magma. For these reasons, characterizing the three-dimensional (3D) texture of silicate, oxide, sulfide, and glass phases has great importance in the study of mantle xenoliths. We performed a multi-scale and multi-modal 3D textural analysis based on X-ray computed microtomography (µ-CT) data of three mantle xenoliths from different geodynamic settings (i.e., mobile belt zone, pericraton, oceanic hotspot). The samples were selected to represent different, variably complex internal structures composed of grains of different phases, fractures, voids, and fluid inclusions of different sizes. We used an approach structured in increasing steps of spatial and contrast resolution, starting with in-house X-ray µ-CT imaging (spatial resolution from 30 µm down to 6.25 µm) and moving to high-resolution synchrotron X-ray µ-CT at the micrometer scale. We performed a 3D characterization of mantle xenoliths, comparing the results with the analysis of conventional 2D images (thin sections) obtained by optical microscopy and simulating the random sectioning of several thin sections to estimate the probability of correct modal classification. The 3D models allow the extraction of textural information that cannot be quantified solely from thin sections: spinel layering, distribution of silicic glass, and related vesicles. Moreover, high-density volumes identified as sulfides were detected in two xenoliths, showing no relation with the spinel layering in one case and a preferential concentration along fractures in the other. Given the variety of textures and mineral assemblages of mantle xenoliths worldwide, the results are used to suggest experimental and analytical protocols for the characterization of these materials.

The Strontian Intrusive Complex: Petrography, Thermobarometry and the Influence of Titanite on Residual Melt Chemistry

Abstract Although the evolution of residual melts in magmatic systems controls their eruptability and ore-forming potential, their compositions are obscured in plutonic rocks by a protracted near-solidus evolution and the absence of interstitial glass. Here, we trace the evolution of residual melt compositions in rocks from the Strontian Intrusive Complex, Scotland, using the trace element chemistry of amphiboles, and titanites which are intergrown with amphibole rims. Laser ablation mapping reveals an abrupt change in certain trace elements in the amphibole rims, with sharp increases in Eu/Eu* and Sr/Y, and decreases in rare earth elements, Ta, Nb, and Ta/Nb ratios. Core-rim variations in these elements in titanite show the same variations as in amphibole, but are more gradual. By reconstructing the crystallisation sequence of the Strontian magmas using textural observations and thermobarometric estimates, we determine that amphibole cores crystallised prior to titanite saturation, but amphibole rims crystallised simultaneously with titanite. Using the trace element composition of the mineral phases and their modal abundance in the rock, with comparison to the whole-rock chemistry, we determine that titanite hosts the majority of the rare earth and high field strength element budget of the rocks. We therefore propose that the onset of titanite crystallisation had a profound effect on the trace element composition of late-stage residual melts at Strontian, which were inherited by the amphibole rims and subsequent titanites. This is supported by Rayleigh fractional crystallisation modelling, which demonstrates that the composition of amphibole rims cannot be explained without the influence of titanite. We therefore show that the saturation of trace element-rich phases in magmas represents a significant geochemical event in the petrogenesis of intermediate to silicic magmas. This has implications for provenance studies that attempt to reconstruct bulk rock compositions from mineral compositions, as the residual melts from which those minerals crystallise can be driven to significantly different compositions from the host magma by late-stage accessory phase crystallisation.

U-Pb-Hf isotope compositions of detrital zircons from Tongtian River sediments of northern-central Tibetan Plateau: Implications for the closure of the Jinshajiang Ocean

The closure time of the Jinshajiang Ocean (a branch ocean of the Paleo-Tethys) has been widely debated due to the complex structure and strong deformation of the northern-central Tibetan Plateau. In this paper, the U-Pb-Hf isotope compositions of detrital zircons from Tongtian River sand sediments from the northern-central Tibetan Plateau were analyzed via laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). The UPb ages of the detrital zircons from Tongtian River sand sediments were distributed in six major groups: 2685–2346 Ma, 2035–1676 Ma, 1220–580 Ma, 544–407 Ma, 297–157 Ma, and 46–20 Ma. The εHf(t) values (range from −30 to +19) of the detrital zircons varied within a wide range from negative to positive, indicating that the zircons were sourced from diverse host magmas. The 46–20 Ma zircons and their Hf isotope compositions reveal that the far-field effect of the Cenozoic India-Eurasia plate collision triggered reworking of the Neoproterozoic basement of the North Qiangtang terrane. The U-Pb-Hf isotope compositions of these detrital zircons indicate that the Tongtian River sand sediments are composed of a mixture of materials from the Bayan Har-Songpan Ganzi terrane and the North Qiangtang terrane, with a contribution ratio of 3:7. The UPb ages and Hf isotope compositions of the zircons from the Tongtian River sediments and regional igneous rocks suggest that the εHf(t) values of the Permian zircons are predominantly positive while those of the Triassic, especially the Late Triassic, are negative. This marked shift most likely indicates that the closure of the Jinshajiang Ocean occurred by at least the Late Triassic.

Petrogenesis of high-alumina basalts: Implications for magmatic processes associated with the opening of the South China Sea

Results of International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expeditions on the northern continental margin of the South China Sea (SCS) have nullified the early notion that the SCS is a magma-poor margin. However, there are continuing debates on how the rapid transition from continent to ocean is supported by geochemical and petrologic data, and whether such a process was related to plate subduction or mantle plume activities. Here we present the results of bulk-rock and plagioclase phenocryst geochemistry of the basalts generated during the early spreading stage (initial and steady ocean stages) of SCS basin extension, which were drilled at IODP Sites U1500 and U1503, respectively. We combined these findings with published data from the late spreading stage of the SCS basin, which provides an excellent opportunity to examine the magmatic processes associated with the evolution of the SCS basin. Our results revealed that the SCS basalts generally exhibit higher Al contents than global Mid-Ocean Ridge Basalts, particularly at lower MgO contents, which is similar to the characteristics of modern arc basalts. Nevertheless, their origins are site-specific and complex. For instance, some of the Site U1503 basalts originated through fractional crystallization of water-rich parental magmas with the lowest degree of melting, while the basalts from the other sites, including Site U1500, were primarily generated by the accumulation of plagioclase. More specifically, the water-rich magmas from Site U1503 displayed strong subduction signals in terms of trace elements, and their correlations with Al2O3 content suggest that they are the product of partial melting of the mantle wedge, closely related to the northward subduction of proto-SCS. This subduction had a significant effect on triggering the opening of the SCS, rather than a mantle plume. Moreover, the Site U1500 basalts exhibit a significant increase in plagioclase An values with the increase of host magma Al contents, indicating that the plagioclase floatation mechanism cannot account for the origin of their plagioclase accumulation. Therefore, we propose that the high abundance of plagioclase in Site U1500 basalts requires rapid ascent of magma, supporting a rapid rifting and strong magmatism during the initial opening of the SCS.

Silicic frothy xenoliths (xeno-pumice) in recent volcanics from Gran Canaria, Canary Islands

The Quaternary small-volume alkaline magmatic episode on Gran Canaria erupted dominantly basanite and nephelinite lavas and scoria deposits that contain a range of mantle and crustal xenoliths. These xenoliths comprise peridotite nodules, partially melted plutonic and volcanic rock fragments, and a group of light colored, felsic, and commonly frothy quartz-bearing rock fragments (xeno-pumice) that show evidence for intense interaction with their host magmas. Here we study a selection of these felsic and, in part, glassy and vesicular xenoliths from North and North-East Gran Canaria, with the aim to unravel their ultimate origin and learn more about magma storage and ascent within and below the island. Inspection of textures, mineral assemblages and glass compositions reveal one group of felsic xenoliths with fresh to partly altered igneous phenocryst assemblages and relict magmatic textures in addition to δ18O values of 3.6 to 6.6‰. This group is interpreted to be of igneous origin. A second group of frothy felsic xenoliths displays mineralogy and textural characteristics more similar to sedimentary rocks with frequent occurrence of quartz, a mineral usually not present as phenocrysts in magmatic rocks from the Canary Islands. This second group displays relatively high δ18O values (8.1 to 16.8‰), more typical for sedimentary lithologies, and is thus interpreted to represent material derived from the extensive pre-island sedimentary part of the ocean crust. The investigated xenoliths from North Gran Canaria thus provide a snapshot of pre-island sedimentary geology as well as the island's “magmatic” interior. These new data help constrain the available subsurface compositional variations within and below the Canary Islands and will hence be useful in interpreting magma evolution trends and magma storage levels.