Lawsonite Pseudomorphs Research Articles

Omphacitite formation and fluid-rock interaction processes in an intra-slab eclogite-facies shear zone

We document the formation of omphacitites in the Monviso Lago Superiore Unit (W. Alps) where eclogite-facies, serpentinite-bearing shear zones host ample evidence for intense intra-slab fluid flow. In the first locality studied, a serpentinite-hosted jadeitite block is rimmed by strained omphacitite (with lawsonite pseudomorphs and minor phengite). U-Th-Pb zircon dating yields a protolith age of c.150 Ma, thus pointing to a burial-related replacement of a former Tethyan seafloor material, and revealed a lack of alpine rims. Multi-mineral Rb-Sr dating of the minerals forming this omphacitite rind yields an isochron age of 41.6 ± 0.7 Ma, corresponding to the early exhumation path still within the eclogite-facies. In this case, omphacitization led to the nearly complete replacement of the former prograde jadeitite through solution-precipitation and was followed by crystal-plastic deformation processes.In various Monviso localities, Fe-Ti metagabbro blocks (commonly exhibiting brecciated garnetite fragments) display evidence for intense fluid-rock interactions leading to the formation of decimeter-thick, weakly strained omphacite-dominated rinds (with minor amounts of lawsonite, clinochlore and talc) around the blocks at the contact with the surrounding serpentinite. Partly dissolved zircon crystals separated from omphacitite rimming an eclogitic Fe-Ti metagabbro block only yielded middle-Jurassic protolith ages. This indicates that omphacitite rinds did not overgrow the eclogite blocks but rather replaced metasomatically the garnet-rich eclogitic assemblage. The omphacitization overprint occurred independently of the nature of the protolith (namely, forming after a jadeitite or after an Fe-Ti eclogite) as a consequence of infiltration of externally-derived fluids and subsequent element sequestration from the incoming fluid phase. These observations highlight the extraordinary ability of eclogite-facies metasomatic fluids to nearly totally overprint rocks as resistant and impermeable as Monviso eclogite breccias or jadeitites.

Cold deep subduction of Indian continental crust and release of ultrahigh‐pressure fluid during initial exhumation: Insights from coesite‐bearing eclogite‐vein systems in Kaghan Valley, Pakistan

AbstractThe ultrahigh‐pressure (UHP) eclogites from the Kaghan Valley in Pakistan, which formed by the deep subduction of the Indian plate beneath the Asian plate in the Eocene, contain complex metamorphic vein systems (including both isolated veins and vein networks), with mineral assemblages of epidote + quartz + kyanite + phengite ± omphacite ± garnet. The investigations on the Kaghan UHP eclogite‐vein systems provide important insights into the mechanism and timing of metamorphic dehydration, fluid flow, and fluid–rock interaction in the deeply subducted Indian continental slab as well as the chemical characteristics of slab‐derived, aqueous fluids. Abundant lawsonite pseudomorphs, characterized by prismatic aggregates of epidote, kyanite, and quartz porphyroblasts, are first recognized in the Kaghan eclogites. This observation, in combination with the occurrence of coesite pseudomorphs in epidote porphyroblasts as well as the coexistence of epidote and coesite in the eclogite zircon, indicates the previous existence of UHP lawsonite in these eclogites. Petrological studies and phase equilibrium modelling reveal clockwise P–T trajectories for the Kaghan eclogites that are featured by prograde vectors in lawsonite‐stability regions with peak conditions of 3.0–3.4 GPa/650–690°C, followed by isothermal decompression and lawsonite breakdown under UHP conditions during the initial exhumation stage. The results of metamorphic evolution, together with in situ epidote and bulk Sr isotopic analyses, indicate that the fluids responsible for vein systems are most likely derived from the breakdown of UHP lawsonite in the eclogites. SIMS U–Pb dating of metamorphic zircons from the eclogites, integrated with the Raman analysis of inclusions in zircons, indicates that the UHP dehydration of eclogites occurred at 46.4 ± 1.2 and 46.8 ± 0.9 Ma. Analyses of hydrothermal zircons from the veins yielded slightly younger ages of 44.7 ± 1.0 and 44.9 ± 1.4 Ma, which represent the timing of fluid flow and/or vein crystallization during exhumation of the UHP rocks. Mass‐balance calculation results, in combination with the vein compositions, show that the fluid flow and fluid‐eclogite interaction led to the transfer of Si, Al, Ca, K, and incompatible trace elements from the eclogites into the fluids, from which the vein systems crystallized. This study indicates cold deep subduction of Indian continental crust along low geothermal gradients (6–7°C/km). The UHP fluid liberation and channelized fluid flow occurred during the initial exhumation of the cold Indian slab and are expected to induce the transfer of H2O and incompatible trace elements from the Indian slab to the Asian lithosphere, which potentially contributes to the formation of post‐collisional magmas. Moreover, we suggest that metamorphic vein systems in UHP lawsonite eclogites offer important constraints on the occurrence and timing of fast slab exhumation in continental subduction‐collision zones.

Brittle Deformation During Eclogitization of Early Paleozoic Blueschist

The Tsäkkok Lens of the Scandinavian Caledonides represents the outermost Baltican margin that was subducted in late Cambrian/Early Ordovician time during closure of the Iapetus Ocean. The lens predominantly consists of metasedimentary rocks hosting eclogite bodies that preserve brittle deformation on the μm-to-m scale. Here, we present a multidisciplinary approach that reveals fracturing related to dehydration and eclogitization of blueschists. Evidence for dehydration is provided by relic glaucophane and polyphase inclusions in garnet consisting of clinozoisite + quartz ± kyanite ± paragonite that are interpreted as lawsonite pseudomorphs. X-Ray chemical mapping of garnet shows a network of microchannels that propagate outward from polyphase inclusions. These microchannels are healed by garnet with elevated Mg relative to the surrounding garnet. Electron backscatter diffraction mapping revealed that Mg-rich microchannels are also delimited by low angle (<3°) boundaries. X-ray computed microtomography demonstrates that some garnet is transected by up to 300 μm wide microfractures that are sealed by omphacite ± quartz ± phengite. Locally, mesofractures sealed either by garnet- or omphacite-dominated veins transect through the eclogites. The interstices within the garnet veins are filled with omphacite + quartz + rutile + glaucophane ± phengite. In contrast, omphacite veins are predominantly composed of omphacite with minor apatite + quartz. Omphacite grains are elongated along [001] crystal axis and are preferably oriented orthogonal to the vein walls, indicating crystallization during fracture dilation. Conventional geothermobarometry using omphacite, phengite and garnet adjacent to fractures, provides pressure-temperature conditions of 2.47 ± 0.32 GPa and 620 ± 60°C for eclogites. The same method applied to a mesoscale garnet vein yields 2.42 ± 0.32 GPa at 635 ± 60°C. Zirconium-in-rutile thermometry applied to the same garnet vein provides a temperature of ∼620°C. Altogether, the microchannels, microfractures and mesofractures represent migration pathways for fluids that were produced during glaucophane and lawsonite breakdown. The microfractures are likely precursors of the mesoscale fractures. These dehydration reactions indicate that high pore-fluid pressure was a crucial factor for fracturing. Brittle failure of the eclogites thus represents a mechanism for fluid-escape in high-pressure conditions. These features may be directly associated with seismic events in a cold subduction regime.

Boron isotope record of peak metamorphic ultrahigh-pressure and retrograde fluid\u2013rock interaction in white mica (Lago di Cignana, Western Alps)

This study presents boron (B) concentration and isotope data for white mica from (ultra)high-pressure (UHP), subduction-related metamorphic rocks from Lago di Cignana (Western Alps, Italy). These rocks are of specific geological interest, because they comprise the most deeply subducted rocks of oceanic origin worldwide. Boron geochemistry can track fluid–rock interaction during their metamorphic evolution and provide important insights into mass transfer processes in subduction zones. The highest B contents (up to 345 μg/g B) occur in peak metamorphic phengite from a garnet–phengite quartzite. The B isotopic composition is variable (δ11B = − 10.3 to − 3.6%) and correlates positively with B concentrations. Based on similar textures and major element mica composition, neither textural differences, prograde growth zoning, diffusion nor a retrograde overprint can explain this correlation. Modelling shows that B devolatilization during metamorphism can explain the general trend, but fails to account for the wide compositional and isotopic variability in a single, well-equilibrated sample. We, therefore, argue that this trend represents fluid–rock interaction during peak metamorphic conditions. This interpretation is supported by fluid–rock interaction modelling of boron leaching and boron addition that can successfully reproduce the observed spread in δ11B and [B]. Taking into account the local availability of serpentinites as potential source rocks of the fluids, the temperatures reached during peak metamorphism that allow for serpentine dehydration, and the high positive δ11B values (δ11B = 20 ± 5) modelled for the fluids, an influx of serpentinite-derived fluid appears likely. Paragonite in lawsonite pseudomorphs in an eclogite and phengite from a retrogressed metabasite have B contents between 12 and 68 μg/g and δ11B values that cluster around 0% (δ11B = − 5.0 to + 3.5). White mica in both samples is related to distinct stages of retrograde metamorphism during exhumation of the rocks. The variable B geochemistry can be successfully modelled as fluid–rock interaction with low-to-moderate (< 3) fluid/rock ratios, where mica equilibrates with a fluid into which B preferentially partitions, causing leaching of B from the rock. The metamorphic rocks from Lago di Cignana show variable retention of B in white mica during subduction-related metamorphism and exhumation. The variability in the B geochemical signature in white mica is significant and enhances our understanding of metamorphic processes and their role in element transfer in subduction zones.

Structural Evolution and Metasomatism of Subducted Metaophiolites in the Northwestern Alps

AbstractA subduction complex of the northwestern Alps consists of serpentinites, eclogitic metagabbros, flysch‐like metasediments, meta‐ophicarbonates, and gneissic slices. Unlike other subduction complexes, it contains unusual hybridized rocks described here for the first time in the northwestern Alps. They are preserved as patches interstitial in the metagabbro and as layers within metagabbros and serpentinites. The hybridized rocks are made of high modal zoisite/clinozoisite + white mica pseudomorphs of lawsonite, garnet, and amphibole associated with an Alpine eclogite‐facies fabric. While these eclogitic metagabbros are chemically comparable to oceanic oxide gabbros from the ultraslow Southwest Indian Ridge, the layers are extremely enriched in Al2O3 and CaO and depleted in TiO2, MgO, and SiO2 relative to metagabbros. Patches have a geochemical signature that is intermediate between that of layers and metagabbros. Trace element compositions of hybridized rocks suggest a contribution from a fluid derived from a mixed source made of sediments and serpentinites. Except for Ba, Rb, and K, layers are comparable to the global subducting sediments, indicating a sedimentary contribution, whereas the enrichment in Cr indicates a serpentinite contribution. Metasediment dehydration and chemical exchange of Ca and Sr have resulted in significant lawsonite crystallization in the subduction zone, as reflected by the ubiquitous presence of lawsonite pseudomorphs. In light of the unique textures and geochemical signature of the lawsonite pseudomorph‐bearing hybridized rocks, an origin by fluid‐rock interaction and Ca‐metasomatism in the subduction environment is inferred and considered in the Western Alps context.

Two epochs of eclogite metamorphism link ‘cold’ oceanic subduction and ‘hot’ continental subduction, the North Qaidam UHP belt, NW China

Abstract Eclogites in the high-pressure (HP) and ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) belts record subduction-zone processes; exhumed eclogites of seafloor protoliths record low-temperature (mostly &lt;600°C), high-pressure and ‘wet’ environments: that is, relatively ‘cold’ subduction with highly hydrous minerals such as lawsonite. In contrast, eclogites formed by the continental subduction record relatively ‘hot’ ( T &gt; 650°C) and ‘dry’ ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic (UHPM) conditions with syncollisional magmatism. Here, we investigate some eclogites from two ophiolite sequences that intercalated in the North Qaidam UHPM belt, which is genetically associated with continental subduction/collision. The observations of lawsonite pseudomorphs in garnets, garnet compositional zoning, mineral and fluid inclusions in zircons, and zircons with distinct trace-element patterns and U–Pb ages all suggest that these eclogites represent two exhumation episodes of subduction-zone metamorphic rocks: the early ‘cold’ and ‘wet’ lawsonite eclogite and the late ‘hot’ and ‘dry’ UHP kyanite eclogite. The early lawsonite-bearing eclogite gives metamorphic ages of 470–445 Ma and the later kysnite-bearing eclogite gives metamorphic ages of 438–420 Ma, with a time gap of c. 7–10 myr. This gap may represent the timescale for transition from oceanic subduction and continental subduction to depths greater than 100 km. We conclude that evolution from oceanic subduction to continental collision and subduction was a continuous process. In addition, we find that titanium contents in zircons have a positive correlation with U contents. Ti-in-zircon thermometry is likely to be invalid or limited for low-temperature eclogites.

Garnet–chloritoid–paragonite metapelite from the Chuac us Complex (Central Guatemala): new evidence for continental subduction in the North America–Caribbean plate boundary

We describe for the first time the presence of high-pressure metapelites in the northern Chuacus Complex of Central Guatemala. Garnet–chloritoid–paragonite-bearing pelitic schist occurs in a predominantly metasedimentary sequence consisting of intercalated garnet paragneisses, pelitic schists, impure marbles, granitic orthogneisses and minor garnet amphibolites, an association that denotes a passive continental margin origin. The metapelite we have studied is mainly composed of almandine-rich garnet porphyroblasts in a schistose matrix consisting of phengite, paragonite, quartz, chloritoid and rutile, with minor amounts of chlorite, epidote, Fe–Ti oxides and sporadic kyanite. The metapelite also includes fine-grained paragonite + quartz and paragonite + epidote aggregates, which resemble jadeite and lawsonite pseudomorphs, respectively. A late staurolite-bearing assemblage overprints the high-pressure paragenesis. We have used a phase-equilibria modeling approach to constrain the P–T conditions of metamorphism. Equilibrium phase diagrams were calculated in the system MnNCKFMASHTO (MnO–Na 2 O–CaO–K 2 O–FeO–MgO–Al 2 O 3 –SiO 2 –H 2 O–TiO 2 –Fe 2 O 3 ) for three hypothetical effective bulk-compositions. The compositions of garnet, chloritoid and phengite cores indicate they crystallized during an early stage of prograde high-pressure metamorphism at 20–21 kbar and 500–540 °C. The composition of garnet rims constrains the P–T peak conditions to ~19.5–20 kbar and 580–600 °C. Both the zoning pattern of the garnet and the calculated P–T path indicate that the studied metapelite could be formed during a single progressive metamorphic event along a subduction geothermal gradient of 7–9 °C/km. The retrograde path is less well constrained, although decreasing pressure coupled with a slight drop of temperature are indicated by the absence of biotite and the growth of post-peak chlorite and epidote. Moreover, a late-stage heating event is required, in order for the metapelite to reach the stability field of staurolite at 7–8 kbar and 590–620 °C. The occurrence of this high-pressure metapelite implies that high-pressure metamorphism in the Chuacus Complex must have extended at least 10 km further to the north than previously thought. We propose that both Chuacus Complex and Rabinal Granite show a succession of decreasing P–T peak conditions towards the north, which may preserve in part the original thermal structure of the subduction zone in the southern margin of North America during the Cretaceous.

Preservation of subduction‐related prograde deformation in lawsonite pseudomorph‐bearing rocks

AbstractLawsonite pseudomorphs are used to identify and distinguish the kinematic records of subduction and exhumation in blueschist‐facies rocks from Syros (Cyclades; Greece). Lawsonite is a hydrous mineral that crystallizes at high‐pressure and low‐temperature conditions. During decompression, lawsonite is typically pseudomorphed by an aggregate dominated by epidote and paragonite. Such aggregates are easily deformable and if deformation occurs after the lawsonite breakdown, the pseudomorphs are difficult to distinguish from the matrix. The preservation of the lawsonite crystal shape, despite complete retrogression, indicates therefore that the host blueschist rock has not been affected by penetrative deformation during exhumation, thus providing indication of strain‐free conditions. Therefore, tracking the lawsonite growth and destabilization along the P–T path followed by the rocks during a subduction/exhumation cycle provides information about the subduction/exhumation‐related deformation. Using microstructural observations and P–T pseudosections calculated with thermocalc, it is inferred that top‐to‐the‐south sense of shear preserved in lawsonite pseudomorph‐bearing blueschists on Syros occurred during the prograde metamorphic path within the lawsonite stability field, and is therefore associated with subduction. On the contrary, the deformation with a top‐to‐the‐north sense of shear is observed in surrounding rocks, where lawsonite pseudomorphs are deformed or apparently lacking. This deformation occurred after the lawsonite breakdown during exhumation. At the regional scale, exhumation‐related deformation is heterogeneous, allowing the preservation of lawsonite pseudomorphs in significant volumes of blueschists of the central and southern Cyclades. It is argued that such successive shearing deformation events with opposite senses more likely correspond to an exhumation process driven by slab rollback, in which subduction and exhumation are not synchronous.

Coexisting carbonate-bearing eclogite and blueschist in SW Tianshan, China: Petrology and phase equilibria

Carbonate-bearing eclogite and blueschist coexist in the same lithological sequence in the Tianshan (ultra-)high-pressure/low-temperature metamorphic belt, northwestern China. Both of them consist of the mineral assemblage garnet+omphacite+dolomite±magnesite+phengite±paragonite+epidote/clinozoisite+glaucophane±barroisite/(Mg-)katophorite+rutile/titanite+pyrite. The eclogite has an omphacite content of ca. 43vol.% and a glaucophane content of <1vol.%. In contrast, the blueschist has an omphacite content of <8vol.% and a glaucophane content of ca. 43vol.%. The blueschist occurs as bands or interlayers in the eclogite. Lawsonite pseudomorphs of epidote/clinozoisite+paragonite assemblages in garnet are commonly observed in the eclogite and blueschist. High carbonate contents in oceanic metabasalts suggest that the precursor basaltic crust has undergone significant hydrothermal alteration prior to subduction. Mineral assemblages and textures show that the omphacite–carbonate-bearing blueschist and the carbonate-bearing eclogite underwent an identical metamorphic evolution. Phase equilibrium modeling in the TiNCaKFMASCHO system further indicates that both the carbonate-bearing eclogite and the omphacite-bearing blueschist equilibrated at peak metamorphic conditions of 540–565°C and 21.8–23.1kbar. Under these conditions calculated XCO2 isopleths reveal the presence of a mainly aqueous fluid phase (XCO2⩽0.02) for the coexisting eclogite and omphacite-bearing blueschist. The stability of the high-pressure mineral assemblages in the eclogite and the omphacite-bearing blueschist is due to differences of the respective bulk-rock composition (the CaO content in particular). This study suggests that three different kinds of blueschist were formed during subduction and exhumation of the South Tianshan oceanic crust, including prograde blueschist formed prior to eclogitization, retrograde blueschist formed by rehydration of eclogite during exhumation in the subduction channel, and coexisting blueschist with eclogite under peak metamorphic conditions.

Fluid–rock interaction and element mobilization in UHP metabasalt: Constraints from an omphacite–epidote vein and host eclogites in the Dabie orogen

A petrological study is carried out for a high-pressure (HP) omphacite–epidote vein and its host ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) eclogites at Ganghe in the Dabie orogen. The UHP eclogite shows systematic changes toward the HP vein in mineral assemblage, mineral proportion and bulk-rock composition. The eclogite far away from the vein (>20cm) contains abundant lawsonite pseudomorphs indicated by the aggregates of epidote, kyanite and quartz porphyroblasts. The abundance and grain size of these porphyroblasts decrease gradually toward the vein in the nearby eclogite (<20cm), and they are almost absent in the eclogite in direct contact with the vein (<2.5cm). The omphacite–epidote vein contains high amounts of the components hosted in the minerals that were lost in the host eclogite, suggesting significant fluid–rock interaction and mass transfer in the eclogite–vein system during the fluid flow and vein formation. A detailed UHP fluid–eclogite interaction with various element mobilities is inferred from a combined study of metamorphic petrology, geochemistry and mass-balance calculations. The HP vein was formed by fluid liberation from the lawsonite breakdown in the host UHP eclogite at 2.8–3.0GPa and 650–680°C. The released UHP aqueous fluid reacted with the eclogite and dissolved kyanite, coesite, epidote, omphacite, rutile, zircon and apatite. This resulted in significant transfers of SiO2, Al2O3, CaO, Fe2O3, Na2O, TiO2, P2O5, LILE (Sr and Pb), REE and HFSE (Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf, U and Th) into the UHP vein-forming fluid. The solubilities of these minerals and relevant element mobilities gradually increase toward the fluid due to the increase of fluid/eclogite ratios. Fluid-mobile elements (e.g., Cs, Rb, K and Ba) were gained in the eclogite by the formation of late-stage phengite and amphibole, which consumed the interstitial fluid after the precipitation of vein minerals.Therefore, it is inferred that the UHP fluid is an efficient medium to transport not only fluid-mobile elements such as LILE and LREE but also nominally fluid-immobile elements such as HFSE and HREE. Local fluid–rock ratios and solubilities of the host minerals have largely controlled the mobilities of elements. In particular, the dissolution of minerals is a key mechanism to transfer the elements into the HP–UHP fluids released from the cold subducting slab.

Tectonics of the Syros blueschists (Cyclades, Greece): From subduction to Aegean extension

On Syros, high‐pressure metamorphism affects a lithological pile that is composed of, from base to top: (1) the Komito‐Vari granitic basement, (2) a margin sedimentary sequence that is predominantly made of marbles and schists (the Pyrgos and Kastri units), and (3) the Kambos metaophiolitic mélange. The tectonic history occurred in three main stages. During the first stage, in the mid‐Eocene, the Kambos oceanic unit was thrust southward on top of the sedimentary pile. Top‐to‐the‐south‐southwest ductile senses of shear are synchronous with prograde high‐pressure metamorphism and associated with this thrusting event. The second stage corresponds to a top‐to‐the‐northeast ductile shear that affects the whole metamorphic pile and is synchronous with the metamorphic retrogression from eclogite to greenschist facies. However, the Kambos oceanic unit remained partly undeformed, as shown by significant volumes containing undeformed lawsonite pseudomorphs. No major extensional detachment related to this exhumation event outcrops on the island. The localized semibrittle to brittle deformation of the third stage is associated with the postmetamorphic development of (1) a ramp‐flat extensional system at the island scale, whose southward minimum displacement is estimated at approximately 7 km, and (2) two sets of steeply dipping strike‐slip faults with a normal component, trending either east–west or around north–south, indicating that the mean stretching and shortening directions are trending NNE–SSW and ESE–WNW, respectively. This sequence of major tectonic events and their relationship to metamorphism are interpreted within the framework of the subduction of the Pindos Ocean and then of the Adria continental passive margin.

Kinematic records of subduction and exhumation in the Ile de Groix blueschists (Hercynian belt; Western France)

Deciphering between deformations related to subduction and exhumation in HP metamorphic rocks represents a challenge for the understanding of the dynamic processes involved and more particularly, the exhumation mechanisms. An analysis of shear criteria in the Ile de Groix blueschists in the Hercynian Belt of southern Brittany (Western France) is carried out in terms of relative chronology and in relation to lithology (mainly micaschists and glaucophane-bearing metabasites). Structural mapping shows that foliations are flat-lying, bearing stretching lineations oriented in a N150°E ± 30° direction. Associated shear criteria are dominantly top-to-northwest and locally, in the southeast part of the island, both top-to-northwest and -southeast. Both shearing deformations lead to intense finite strains as demonstrated by the occurrence of sheath folds and the general orientation of fold axes parallel to the stretching lineation. Detailed mapping in this area showing opposite senses of shear, demonstrates that only top-to-southeast shear is observed in rocks containing well-shaped lawsonite pseudomorphs. In rocks affected by top-to-northwest shear, the lawsonite pseudomorph shape is destroyed by intense stretching. The top-to-southeast shear is coeval with prograde HP metamorphism and precedes a top-to-northwest shear coeval with a retrograde metamorphic path. In the frame of the hercynian belt of southern Brittany, the southeast directed shear is attributed to thrusting related to a northward dipping subduction and the northwest directed shear to exhumation controlled by a northward dipping extensional detachment.

Eclogite and carpholite‐bearing metasedimentary rocks in the North Qilian suture zone, NW China: implications for Early Palaeozoic cold oceanic subduction and water transport into mantle

AbstractLow‐temperature eclogite and eclogite facies metapelite together with serpentinite and marble occur as blocks within foliated blueschist that was originated from greywacke matrix; they formed a high‐pressure low‐temperature (HPLT) subduction complex (mélange) in the North Qilian oceanic‐type suture zone, NW China. Phengite–eclogite (type I) and epidote–eclogite (type II) were recognized on the basis of mineral assemblage. Relic lawsonite and lawsonite pseudomorphs occur as inclusions in garnet from both types of eclogite. Garnet–omphacite–phengite geothermobarometry yields metamorphic conditions of 460–510 °C and 2.20–2.60 GPa for weakly deformed eclogite, and 475–500 °C and 1.75–1.95 GPa for strongly foliated eclogite. Eclogite facies metasediments include garnet–omphacite–phengite–glaucophane schist and various chloritoid‐bearing schists. Mg‐carpholite was identified in some high‐Mg chloritoid schists.P–Testimates yield 2.60–2.15 GPa and 495–540 °C for Grt–Omp–Phn–Gln schist, and 2.45–2.50 GPa and 525–530 °C for the Mg‐carpholite schist. Mineral assemblages andP–Testimates, together with isotopic ages, suggest that the oceanic lithosphere as well as pelagic to semi‐pelagic sediments have been subducted to the mantle depths (≥75 km) before 460 Ma. Blueschist facies retrogression occurred atc.454–446 Ma and led to eclogite deformation and dehydration of lawsonite during exhumation. The peakP–Tconditions for eclogite and metapelite in the North Qilian suture zone demonstrate the existence of cold subduction‐zone gradients (6–7 °C km−1), and this cold subduction brought a large amount of H2O to the deep mantle in the Early Palaeozoic times.

A cold Early Palaeozoic subduction zone in the North Qilian Mountains, NW China: petrological and U‐Pb geochronological constraints

AbstractThe north Qilian high‐pressure (HP)/low‐temperature (LT) metamorphic belt is composed mainly of blueschists, eclogites and greenschist facies rocks. It formed within an Early Palaeozoic accretionary wedge associated with the subduction of the oceanic crust and is considered to be one of the best preserved HP/LT metamorphic belts in China. Here we report new lawsonite‐bearing eclogites and eclogitic rocks enclosed within epidote blueschists in the North Qilian Mountains. Five samples contain unaltered lawsonite coexisting with omphacite and phengite as inclusions in garnet, indicating eclogite facies garnet growth and lawsonite pseudomorphs were observed in garnet from an additional 11 eclogites and eclogitic rocks. Peak pressure conditions estimated from lawsonite omphacite‐phengite‐garnet assemblages were 2.1–2.4 GPa at temperatures of 420–510 °C, in or near the stability field of lawsonite eclogite, and implying formation under an apparent geothermal gradient of 6–8 °C km−1, consistent with metamorphism in a cold subduction zone. SHRIMP U‐Pb dating of zircon from two lawsonite‐bearing eclogitic metabasites yields ages of 489 ± 7 Ma and 477 ± 16 Ma, respectively. CL images and mineral inclusions in zircon grains indicate that these ages reflect an eclogite facies metamorphism. An age of 502 ± 16 Ma is recorded in igneous cores of zircon grains from one lawsonite pseudomorph‐bearing eclogite, which is in agreement with the formation age of Early Ordovician for some ophiolite sequences in the North Qilian Mountains, and may be associated with a period of oceanic crust formation. The petrological and chronological data demonstrate the existence of a cold Early Palaeozoic subduction zone in the North Qilian Mountains.

Very-low-temperature record of the subduction process: A review of worldwide lawsonite eclogites

Lawsonite eclogites preserve a record of very-low-temperature conditions in subduction zones. All occur at active margin settings, typically characterized by accretionary complexes lithologies and as tectonic blocks within serpentinite-matrix mélange. Peak lawsonite-eclogite facies mineral assemblages (garnet + omphacite + lawsonite + rutile) typically occur in prograde-zoned garnet porphyroblasts. Their matrix is commonly overprinted by higher-temperature epidote-bearing assemblages; greenschist- or amphibolite-facies conditions erase former lawsonite-eclogite relics. Various pseudomorphs after lawsonite occur, particularly in some blueschist/eclogite transitional facies rocks. Coesite-bearing lawsonite-eclogite xenoliths in kimberlitic pipes and lawsonite pseudomorphs in some relatively low-temperature ultrahigh-pressure eclogites are known. Using inclusion assemblages in garnet, lawsonite eclogites can be classified into two types: L-type, such as those from Guatemala and British Columbia, contain garnet porphyroblasts that grew only within the lawsonite stability field and E-type, such as from the Dominican Republic, record maximum temperature in the epidote-stability field. Formation and preservation of lawsonite eclogites requires cold subduction to mantle depths and rapid exhumation. The earliest occurrences of lawsonite-eclogite facies mineral assemblages are Early Paleozoic in Spitsbergen and the New England fold belt of Australia; this suggests that since the Phanerozoic, secular cooling of Earth and subduction-zone thermal structures evolved the necessary high pressure/temperature conditions. Buoyancy of serpentinite and oblique convergence with a major strike-slip component may facilitate the exhumation of lawsonite eclogites from mantle depths.

Ile de Groix: retrogression and structural developments in an extensional régime

The Paleozoic metamorphic rocks of Ile de Groix, France, record a retrogressive metamorphism from eclogite facies through blueschist to greenschist facies, produced during progressive uplift and exhumation, and accompanied throughout by high extensional strain. Extension was accompanied by formation of a generally flat-lying foliation, the result of either pure shear or conjugate simple shearing, with top to the northwest and southeast shear senses equally important. The foliation is either wrapped around pods of relatively competent and/or higher grade rock, elongate in the direction of stretching, or folded on axes parallel to the stretching direction; these structures represent the effects of the intermediate strain axis which transiently and locally fluctuated between being one of extension or shortening. Large-scale open folds of foliation may represent a wrapping of foliation about two giant pods which define the entire island. We suggest the so-called lawsonite pseudomorphs might possibly be altered calcium-bearing plagioclase which indicates a simpler path of retrogression than would lawsonite. The plate tectonic setting of Groix might be solved by applying the concept of suspect tectonostratigraphic terranes to Gondwanan France and Iberia, and invoking large-scale displacements.

Geology and geodynamic evolution of the high-P/low-T Maksyutov Complex, southern Urals, Russia

The high-pressure/low-temperature Maksyutov Complex is situated in the southern Urals between the Silurian/Devonian Magnitogorsk island arc and the East European Platform. The elongated N-S-trending complex is made up of two contrasting tectono-metamorphic units. Unit 1 consists of a thick pile of Proterozoic clastic sediments suggested to represent the passive margin of the East European Platform. The overlying unit 2, composed of Paleozoic sediments, volcanic rocks, and a serpentinite melange with rodingites, is interpreted as a remnant of the Uralian Paleo-ocean. Devonian eastward subduction of oceanic crust beneath the Magnitogorsk island arc resulted in an incipient blueschist-facies metamorphism of unit 2 indicated by lawsonite pseudomorphs in the rodingites. While unit 2 was accreted to the upper plate, subduction of the continental passive margin caused the high-pressure metamorphism of unit 1. Buoyancy-driven exhumation of unit 1 into the forearc region led to its juxtaposition with unit 2 along a retrograde top-to-the-ENE shear zone. Further exhumation of the Maksyutov Complex into its present tectonic position was accomplished by later shear zones that were active as normal faults and are exposed along the margins of the complex. At the western margin a top-to-the-west shear zone juxtaposed a low-grade remnant of a Paleozoic accretionary prism (Suvanyak Complex) above the Maksyutov Complex. Along the eastern margin a top-to-the-east shear zone and the brittle Main Uralian Normal Fault emplaced the Maksyutov Complex against the Magnitogorsk island arc in the hanging wall.

High‐pressure‐low‐temperature metamorphism of granitic orthogneiss in the Brooks Range, northern Alaska

Abstract Granitic orthogneiss is widespread throughout the metamorphic core of the Brooks Range in both the ductilely deformed blueschist/greenschist facies Schist Belt and the lower grade Central Belt (= Skajit allochthon) to the north. Orthogneiss occurs as large metaplutonic massifs and in small bodies enclosed within metasedimentary rocks. Crystallization ages for the granitic protoliths range from Proterozoic through Devonian (U‐Pb zircon); the K‐Ar system was reset during Cretaceous metamorphism. Mineral assemblages of the orthogneisses reflect nearly complete re‐equilibration during Jurassic‐Cretaceous collisional orogenesis in northern Alaska. The most common metamorphic paragenesis in orthogneiss is: Qtz + Kfs + Ab + Phe + Bt ± Ep, Ttn, Rt, Ap, Chl, Cal.Constituent minerals from 16 Brooks Range orthogneiss samples were analysed with the electron microprobe. Phengite from the Schist Belt samples is highly enriched in Al‐celadonite, with Si values up to 3.50 per formula unit (on an 11‐oxygen basis). Central Belt samples contain phengite with lower Si content (±3.38 p.f.u.). In nearly all samples, Si content of phengite varies considerably, reflecting partial re‐equilibration to lower pressure and/or higher temperature conditions. Metamorphic conditions were estimated using the Phe‐Bt‐Kfs‐Qtz barometer and the two‐feldspar solvus thermometer. The results indicate that the Schist belt underwent high‐pressure/low‐temperature metamorphism (generally 9‐12 kbar at 375‐430° C), consistent with the widespread development of glaucophane + epidote/clinozoisite and lawsonite pseudomorphs in other rock types. The Central Belt also experienced a relatively high P‐T metamorphism, with most samples yielding pressure estimates in the range 5‐8 kbar (at 325‐415° C). These results confirm the existence of two metamorphic belts in the core of the Brooks Range that differ in metamorphic conditions by up to 5 kbar. The range in Si content in phengite from Schist Belt samples is consistent with isothermal decompression of up to 5 kbar.