Mafic Sills Research Articles

Neoarchean large igneous provinces on the Kaapvaal Craton in southern Africa re-define the formation of the Ventersdorp Supergroup and its temporal equivalents

Abstract U-Pb geochronology on baddeleyite is a powerful technique that can be applied effectively to chronostratigraphy. In southern Africa, the Kaapvaal Craton hosts a well-preserved Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic geological record, including the Neoarchean Ventersdorp Supergroup. It overlies the Witwatersrand Supergroup and its world-class gold deposits. The Ventersdorp Supergroup comprises the Klipriviersberg Group, Platberg Group, and Pniel Group. However, the exact timing of formation of the Ventersdorp Supergroup is controversial. Here we present 2789 ± 4 Ma and 2787 ± 2 Ma U-Pb isotope dilution-thermal ionization mass spectrometry (ID-TIMS) baddeleyite ages and geochemistry on mafic sills intruding the Witwatersrand Supergroup, and we interpret these sills as feeders to the overlying Klipriviersberg Group flood basalts. This constrains the age of the Witwatersrand Supergroup and gold mineralization to at least ca. 2.79 Ga. We also report 2729 ± 5 Ma and 2724 ± 7 Ma U-Pb ID-TIMS baddeleyite ages and geochemistry from a mafic sill intruding the Pongola Supergroup and on an east-northeast–trending mafic dike, respectively. These new ages distinguish two of the Ventersdorp Supergroup magmatic events: the Klipriviersberg and Platberg. The Ventersdorp Supergroup can now be shown to initiate and terminate with two large igneous provinces (LIPs), the Klipriviersberg and Allanridge, which are separated by Platberg volcanism and sedimentation. The age of the Klipriviersberg LIP is 2791–2779 Ma, and Platberg volcanism occurred at 2754–2709 Ma. The Allanridge LIP occurred between 2709–2683 Ma. Klipriviersberg, Platberg, and Allanridge magmatism may be genetically related to mantle plume(s). Higher heat flow and crustal melting resulted as a mantle plume impinged below the Kaapvaal Craton lithosphere, and this was associated with rifting and the formation of LIPs.

The Mid-Paleozoic and Mid-Triassic Pulses of Trap Magmatism in the East of the Siberian Platform: Evidence from the First 40Ar/39Ar Isotope Dating of Dolerite Sills

The paper presents the results from the first 40Ar/39Ar isotope dating of eleven mafic sills recovered by deep boreholes in the eastern Siberian Platform. Most of the dates are assigned to the Devonian magmatic stage (357–379 Ma). The two previously established pulses of dike magmatism in the Yakutsk-Vilyui large igneous province also fall within this range. The ages of 397.6 ± 4.3 and 406.2 ± 5.6 Ma obtained in this study imply one more pulse of magmatism at the Emsian-Eifelian boundary. The chemical composition of the dolerites corresponds to that of the derivatives of garnet peridotite. Estimates of the depth of the melting center suggest its location both inside the mantle lithosphere and at the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary. The Mid-Triassic age (232.6 ± 7.4 Ma) of the sill recovered by the Morkoka borehole implies the manifestation here of the second pulse of trap magmatism related to the Siberian plume.

Deep Origin of the Dome‐Shaped Hyblean Plateau, Southeastern Sicily: A New Tectono‐Magmatic Model

AbstractSoutheastern Sicily is characterized by a prominent topography known as the Hyblean Plateau. It is commonly considered as a flexural bulge formed by the northwest plunging of the Hyblean‐Malta platform beneath the Sicilian Fold and Thrust Belt. However its noncylindrical shape and multiphase uplift history correlated to the Late Miocene and Plio‐Pleistocene volcanism outline a possible magmatic control on the Hyblean Plateau topographic expression. We argue, using 2‐D flexural models, that the flexural bending alone is unlikely to explain the high anomalous elevation of the Hyblean Plateau. Moreover, topographic analysis show that the Hyblean Plateau has a dome shape composed of radially tilted preserved surfaces defining individual blocks. The block edges seem to be related to deep‐seated inherited faults. Using an analogue modeling approach, we show that magmatic intrusions beneath the thick Meso‐Cenozoic sedimentary cover can reproduce the first‐order morphology of the Hyblean Plateau when a structural inheritance is imposed. Accordingly, we propose a tectono‐magmatic model that favors mafic sill intrusions as the major uplift source for the topographic anomaly. However, to explain the strong positive Bouguer anomaly, a deeper high‐density intracrustal body is needed. Moho uprising related to Mesozoic rifting or mafic lower crust underplating/intraplating since the Late Cretaceous can be evoked. The small wavelength of the topography and the deep intracrustal mass anomaly makes the lithospheric elastic stresses sufficiently high to maintain a nonisostatic state over the geological time scales.

Episodic mafic magmatism in the Eyre Peninsula: Defining syn- and post-depositional BIF environments for iron deposits in the Middleback Ranges, South Australia

Banded iron formation (BIF)-derived iron ore deposits of the Middleback Ranges, Eyre Peninsula, South Australia, are hosted within Archean to Paleoproterozoic basement in the southeastern Gawler Craton. Mafic sills and dikes are associated with the orebodies throughout the belt and although described previously, have never been studied in detail. Two main types of mafic rocks, amphibolites and dolerites, are distinguishable from field occurrence and mineralogy. Amphibolites interbedded with BIFs from the southern Iron Magnet deposit are characterized by extensive overprinting. These amphibolites contain metamorphic assemblages of coexisting Mg-Fe- and Ca-amphiboles, garnet, corundum, biotite and relict titaniferous magnetite displaying ilmenite exsolution. Amphibolite petrography and geochemistry in the southern part of the belt indicate formation in a complex BIF depositional environment, with possible detrital input of titaniferous magnetite from igneous rocks. In contrast, NW-trending dolerite dikes occur throughout the belt and contain assemblages consisting of igneous magnesiohornblende and plagioclase. SHRIMP U–Pb zircon ages for amphibolites and dolerites yield two age groups. Amphibolite from Iron Magnet yields a 207Pb/206Pb weighted mean age of 2542 ± 15 Ma. The most robust 206Pb/238U weighted mean age of 782 ± 23 Ma for dolerites comes from the Iron Queen deposit in the central part of the Middleback Ranges. LA-ICP-MS U–Pb geochronology of U-bearing hematite from the Iron Knight South deposit yields ages of ~680 Ma. Taken together, these results suggest mafic magmatism contemporaneous with Archean BIF deposition followed by a high-grade metamorphic event (~2.47–2.41 Ga Sleafordian Orogeny). Dikes from Cape Donington, the southernmost point on the Eyre Peninsula are, instead, associated with the 1.73–1.69 Ga Kimban Orogeny, as evidenced by zircon from a pyroxene-rich dolerite, which yields a 206Pb/238U weighted mean age of 1711 ± 14 Ma. The dolerite ages from the Iron Queen deposit provide the first evidence for the presence of the ~800 Ma craton-scale Gairdner Large Igneous Province in the Middleback Ranges. The young U–Pb hematite age from Iron Knight South and post-emplacement alteration of dikes of Gairdner age from the central part of the Middleback Ranges belt provide additional support for multiple events leading to upgrading of iron ores.

Origin of mafic intrusions in the Micangshan Massif, Central China: Implications for the Neoproterozoic tectonic evolution of the northwestern Yangtze Block

The mafic intrusions exposed in the Micangshan Massif preserve important information pertaining to the Neoproterozoic tectonic evolution along the northwestern margin of the Yangtze Block. In this paper, we report new LA-ICP-MS zircon U–Pb ages, Lu–Hf isotopes and whole-rock compositions for mafic sills in the Micangshan Massif to understand their petrogenesis and supplement the regional tectonic evolution. Xenocrystic zircon grains from two mafic sill samples yield weighted mean ages of 860 ± 4 Ma and 858 ± 5 Ma, respectively, suggesting the maximum emplaced age of the mafic sills was at ca. 860 Ma. A granitic dyke sample which intruded into the mafic sills, yields a crystallization age of 799 ± 4 Ma, implying the minimum emplacement of the mafic sills was at ca. 800 Ma. These results indicate that the mafic sills were formed within the span of ca. 860–800 Ma. Geochemical results show that most of these mafic sills are tholeiitic in composition and are characterized by low to moderate FeOtotal and TiO2 contents, as well as moderate to high MgO contents and Mg# values. They display distinct enriched light rare earth element (LREE) patterns, variable remarkable enrichment in large-ion lithophile elements (LILEs; e.g., Cs and Ba), and evident depletion of high-field strength elements (HFSEs; e.g., Nb, Ta and P), resembling signatures of typical subduction-related basaltic rocks. In addition, these sills exhibit comparatively high Nb/Ta, moderate Nb/Yb, as well as low Nb/La, Th/Yb, and Nb/Y ratios, indicating that they probably originated from partial melting of a previously metasomatized mantle wedge source. These observations, together with regional tectonics, suggest that these mafic sills in the Micangshan Massif might be formed in a subduction-related continental arc setting. Therefore, combining our new data with available results from previous studies in the adjacent regions, our study supports the dominant subduction-related tectonics along the northwestern margin of the Yangtze Block during the Early Neoproterozoic time.

Preservation of carbon isotopes in kerogen from thermally altered Mesoproterozoic lacustrine microbialites

Stable carbon isotope geochemistry is a well-established and reliable tool for studying metabolisms of microbial communities in the Precambrian record; however, the isotopic effects of high-temperature alteration from igneous intrusions (i.e., contact metamorphism) have not been thoroughly explored. The Mesoproterozoic (∼1.4 Ga) Middlebrun Bay Member of the Rossport Formation, Sibley Group, in Ontario, Canada, is composed of carbonaceous stromatolites and microbial laminites preserved in an evaporitic, lacustrine chert–carbonate deposit and is cross-cut by an intrusive mafic sill at the studied locality. Sedimentary organic matter (kerogen) was investigated along two vertical stratigraphic transects to determine the spatial variability of its geochemical preservation. Thermal alteration of the preserved kerogen (as measured by Raman spectroscopy) increased toward the mafic sill, but the alteration was greater for kerogen preserved in carbonate mineralogies compared to that preserved in quartz (chert). Bulk δ13Corg values fluctuate throughout each vertical section, with a total average of −28.2‰ ± 0.8‰; however, values are unexpectedly lower for samples near the mafic sill, approaching −30‰, inconsistent with previously reported patterns. These measurements indicate that thermal alteration of sedimentary rocks does not universally result in 13C enrichment and increased δ13Corg values and suggests that ancient kerogen may be preferentially shielded from postdepositional heating effects due to micrometre-scale differences in mineralogy.

Paleoproterozoic ($$\sim$$1.88–1.89 Ga) ultramafic–mafic sills, Cuddapah basin, India—revisited: Implications for interaction between mantle plume and metasomatized subcontinental lithospheric mantle

A number of mafic–ultramafic sills, which are supposed to be part of the widespread ~1.88–1.89 Ga Hampi–Bastanar Large Igneous Province of the Indian shield, are reported to intrude into sedimentary/meta-sedimentary rocks of the Proterozoic Cuddapah basin. Mineral chemistry of chrome-spinel, olivine and pyroxene from the cumulate ultramafic rocks of the Pulivendla sills, emplaced at the base of Tadpatri Formation of the Cuddpaha basin, is presented for better understanding on their nature and genesis. The intermediate Cr#, low Mg#, high Fe3+# and Ti (apfu) coupled with relatively low Al (apfu) content of studied spinel indicate their Alaskan-type nature. Moreover, the Ca-rich clinopyroxene together with classic variations of Al2O3, TiO2 and SiO2 follow the trend of arc type of intrusions. The calculated Al2O3 content of parental melt of the studied rocks also suggests arc-type characteristics. Whole-rock geochemistry show fractionated chondrite-normalized REE patterns, higher Ba/Nb and low Nb/La that suggest contribution from an enriched mantle source, whereas higher Th/Yb and negative Ta–Nb–Ti anomaly on the primitive mantle-normalized multi-element spidergrams emphasize the involvement of a subducted component in the lithospheric mantle source. Although, the mineral chemistry and geochemistry is akin to Alaskan-type intrusion, lack of concentric zoning of lithologies (olivine-rich ultramafic rocks in centre surrounded by mafic rocks), rarity of primary hornblende and abundance of orthopyroxene contradict it to be an Alaskan-type intrusion. It is suggested that the mantle source region of the Pulivendla ultramafic–mafic rocks was modified by a fluid-induced metasomatism during an ancient subduction event. Further, Al-in-olivine thermometry suggests crystallization temperature between 1410° and 1484°C, which is 260°C higher than the average temperature of MORB. Similarly, the estimated mantle potential temperature is also significantly higher (>1600°C) than the different secular cooling models of the earth at ~1.88–1.89 Ga and consistent with the thermal regime of a mantle plume. The existence of mantle plume during 1.88–1.90 Ga, which has played an important role in the genesis of mafic–ultramafic sills of the Cuddapah basin, is also well supported by a radiating mafic dyke swarm, domal uplift and magmatic underplating.

Petrology, geochronology, and geophysical characterization of Mesoproterozoic rocks in central Illinois, USA

The Precambrian basement rocks of the Eastern Granite-Rhyolite Province (EGRP) in central Illinois (midcontinent region of North America) exhibit a complex history of early volcanism, granite emplacement, and intrusion of mafic rocks. A comprehensive suite of dedicated petrographic analyses, geophysical logs, and drill core from four basement-penetrating wells, two-dimensional and three-dimensional seismic reflection data, and U-Pb age data from the Illinois Basin–Decatur Project (IBDP) and Illinois Carbon Capture Storage (ICCS) Project site provide new constraints for interpreting the Precambrian basement of the Illinois Basin. These new data reveal the basement to be compositionally and structurally complex, having typical EGRP felsic volcanic rocks intruded by the first reported gabbro in the Precambrian basement in Illinois. Zircons (n ​= ​29) from rhyolite give a U-Pb weighted mean average age of 1467 ​± ​9 ​Ma. Zircons (n ​= ​3) from a gabbro dike that intrudes the rhyolite yield a concordia age of 1073 ​± ​12 ​Ma, which corresponds to Grenville-age extension and represents the first Grenville-age rock in Illinois and in the EGRP. A high-resolution three-dimensional seismic reflection volume, coincident with the four wells, provides a context for interpreting the petrological data and implies a high degree of heterogeneity for basement rocks at the IBDP–ICCS site, as also shown by the drill cores. The occurrence of Grenville-age gabbro is related to a prominent bowl-like structure observed on local two-dimensional seismic reflection profiles and the three-dimensional volume that is interpreted as a deep-seated mafic sill complex. Furthermore, heterogeneities such as the brecciated EGRP rhyolite and later gabbro intrusion observed in the basement lithology at the IBDP–ICCS may reflect previously unknown distal elements of the 1.1 ​Ga Midcontinent Rift in the EGRP and more likely Grenville-age extension.

New geochronologic and paleomagnetic results from early Neoproterozoic mafic sills and late Mesoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic successions in the eastern North China Craton, and implications for the reconstruction of Rodinia

Abstract The interval from the late Mesoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic is generally considered as a critical time for the amalgamation of Rodinia. The location of the North China Craton (NCC) in Rodinia remains contentious and demands greater paleomagnetic constraints. A combined geochronologic and paleomagnetic study was conducted on the late Mesoproterozoic to early Neoproterozoic rocks in the eastern NCC. Three sills were dated at ca. 945 Ma and one at ca. 920 Ma through use of the zircon U-Pb secondary ion mass spectroscopy method. Paleomagnetic investigation revealed no significant discrepancy between these sills. A positive baked-contact test, secular variation test and presence of reversals together support the primary origin interpretation for the remnant magnetization. A high-quality pole at (28.2 °S, 141.9 °E, A95 = 10.4°) was thus obtained by averaging our new results and a virtual geomagnetic pole previously reported for a ca. 920 Ma sill in the region. These Neoproterozoic sills intruded the successions that contain correlative strata that are named Nanfen, Xinxing, and Liulaobei formations in Liaoning, Jiangsu, and Anhui provinces, respectively. The Nanfen Formation and its equivalents are constrained between ca. 1120 and ca. 945 Ma by detrital zircons and the well-dated mafic sills. The paleomagnetic inclinations observed from the lower parts of the Nanfen, Xinxing, and Liulaobei formations are notably steep. The corresponding poles from these rock units are consistent and averaged at 38.6 °N, 136.7 °E (A95 = 3.2°). The quality of this pole is strengthened by a positive reversal test and its distinctiveness from the younger poles of the NCC. In the middle part of the Nanfen Formation, however, the paleomagnetic directions are characterized by moderate inclinations, being significantly different from those in the lower part of the Nanfen Formation and its equivalents. The calculated pole for the upper part of the Lower Member of the Nanfen Formation is at 8.0 °N, 128.5 °E (A95 = 7.9°). Another pole obtained from the Middle Member of the Nanfen Formation is at 11.2 °S, 127.7 °E (A95 = 8.5°). These two poles also differ from the younger poles of the NCC and likely represent the primary remanences. Our new results, together with the existing global paleomagnetic data and geological evidence, aided by the “right-way-up” connection model between Laurentia and Baltica in Rodinia, support a NCC–NW Laurentia connection between ca. 1120 and 890 Ma.

A new plumbing system framework for mantle plume-related continental Large Igneous Provinces and their mafic-ultramafic intrusions

The magmatic components of continental Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) include flood basalts and their plumbing system of giant mafic dyke swarms (radiating, linear, and the recently discovered circumferential type), mafic sill provinces, a lower crustal magmatic underplate, mafic-ultramafic (M–UM) intrusions, associated silicic magmatism, and associated carbonatites and kimberlites. This paper proposes a new plumbing system framework for mantle plume-related continental LIPs that incorporates all of these components, and provides a context for addressing key thematic aspects such as tracking magma batches “upstream” and “downstream” and their geochemical evolution, assessing the setting of M-UM intrusions and their economic potential, interpreting deep magmatic component identified by geophysical signatures, and estimating magnitudes of extrusive and intrusive components with climate change implications. This plumbing system model, and its associated implications, needs to be tested against the rapidly improving LIP record.

Geology, geochemistry and Re-Os geochronology of the Jurassic Zeybek volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit (Central Pontides, Turkey)

Located in the north of Anatolia, the Pontide Orogenic Belt hosts Turkey’s most important volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposits. Studies completed in the last ten years have discovered new massive sulfide deposits in the Central Pontide zone. The Zeybek VMS deposit is one of these newly-discovered deposits found in the Central Pontides. This deposit is associated with the Çangaldağ Metamorphic Complex occurring as east-west-striking tectonic slices. The Çangaldağ Metamorphic Complex is an allochthonous mass of metavolcanic, metavolcaniclastic and metaclastic rocks in the form of imbricated tectonic slices. Zeybek massive sulfide deposit is located within metaclastic rocks intercalated with mafic sills or lava flows in this complex.The major ore mineral paragenesis in the Zeybek VMS deposit comprises pyrite, chalcopyrite and sphalerite, with lower amounts of bornite, covelline, chalcocite and magnetite. With thirty thousand meters of drilling in the mineralized area, 20 million ton resources with 0.32 wt% Cu were determined. According to the wall-rock mineralization relationships, mineralization style and ore geochemistry of the Zeybek VMS mineralization, it is similar to a mafic-siliciclastic type volcanogenic massive sulfide formation. Re-Os geochronologic studies of chalcopyrites from the Cu-rich massive ore samples obtained a 178 ± 2.2 Ma (MSWD: 4.1) 187Re/188Os against 187Os/188Os isochron. Geochemical and isotopical age data associated with the Zeybek VMS deposit indicate that the mineralization occurred in an arc-back arc tectonic environment, which developed in Middle Jurassic age intra-ocean as a result of the closure of north-ward subduction that resulted the closure of the Tethys ocean.

The Upper Cretaceous intrusive rocks with extensive crustal contribution in Hacımahmutuşağı Area (Aksaray/Turkey)

Abstract The Hacımahmutuşağı area (Aksaray/Turkey) is located in the western part of the Central Anatolian Crystalline Complex (CACC). Gneiss and marble compose the basement units, while intrusive rocks are gabbros and granitoids. The pegmatitic hornblende gabbros contain pegmatitic to fine-grained hornblendes, plagioclase, clinopyroxene, and accessory opaque minerals. The fine-grained gabbros, on the other hand, are composed of plagioclase, hornblende, and biotite as major components whereas the apatite and opaque minerals are present in accessory content. Granitic– granodioritic rocks are the common intrusive rock types in the area, and constitute quartz, orthoclase, plagioclase and biotite, and accessory zircon and opaque minerals. Leucogranites, comprising quartz, orthoclase, plagioclase with minor biotite, hornblende, and with accessory apatite and opaque minerals, are found as dykes intruding the marble and the granitic–granodioritic rocks. Strontium–neodymium isotope data of gabbros and granitoids have high 87Sr/86Sr(i) ratios (0.7076 to 0.7117) and low ɛNd(i) values (−5.0 to −9.8) point out enriched source and pronounced crustal contribution in their genesis. In the Hacımahmutuşağı area, it is plausible that the heat increase caused by the hot zone, which was generated by underplating mafic magma along with the hydrous mafic sills in the lower crust, might have resulted in partial melts from crystallized mafic sills and older crustal rocks. It can be suggested that these hybrid melts adiabatically rose to the shallow crust, ponded and crystallized there and formed the magma source of the intrusive rocks within the Hacımahmutuşağı area and the other hybrid granitic rocks with crustal signatures in the CACC. Geochemical data indicate that granitoids and gabbros are collision to post-collision related sub-alkaline rocks derived from an enriched source with extensive crustal inputs.

The Origin and Evolution of Magnetic Fabrics in Mafic Sills

Studying extinct volcanoes where erosion has exposed dykes and sills provides direct access to the fossil remnants of magma movement, however linking crystallised magma to emplacement dynamics is challenging. This study investigates how magma flow varies across the thickness of a thin (6 metres thick) mafic sill. We use a high-resolution sampling regime to measure micro-scale variations in magnetic anisotropy, which is associated with the orientation of the magnetic particles present within the crystalline rock. Fieldwork was conducted on exposed sills of the British and Irish Palaeogene Igneous Province, Isle of Skye, Scotland. Here Jurassic sedimentary rocks have been intruded by a series of sills, of picrite to crinanite composition, from the Little Minch Sill Complex (c.60 Ma). Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) and anisotropy of anhysteretic remanent magnetisation (AARM) signals have been used to separate a crinanite sill into distinct magnetic groupings. We identified two AMS groups (the upper and lower sill margins, and the central region) and four AARM groups (the lower margin, the middle region, a region just below the upper margin, and the upper margin). Both AMS and AARM signals originate from titanomagnetite of multi-domain or vortex-state to single-domain sized grains, respectively. The AMS and AARM fabrics are aligned with each other in the margin regions preserving a history of magma flow towards the North during initial emplacement. However, in the sill interior the magnetic fabrics are oblique to each other, thus reflecting multiple origins. We suggest the AMS fabrics have recorded magma flow during sill growth, and AARM fabrics have recorded melt percolation flow as the interstitial melt migrated upwards through a solidifying crystal mush. We demonstrate that when AMS and AARM are used in combination they enable a detailed understanding of magma flow and solidification dynamics to be obtained, from initial emplacement to solidification. Overall, our detailed sampling and analysis indicates that magnetic fabrics can be highly variable over small distances, supporting the suggestion of horizontal flow restriction and propagation path migration within growing sills, and that previous reports of magma flow and solidification dynamics based on under-sampled bodies may require reconsideration.

Mineral chemistry and crystal size distributions of mafic dikes and sills on the eastern border of the Parnaíba Basin, NE Brazil

Crystal size distributions (CSDs) and mineral chemistry of plagioclase and clinopyroxene are used to quantify textures and estimate timescales of Mesozoic mafic sills and dikes exposed on the eastern margin of the Parnaíba Basin (NE Brazil). The diabases consist of plagioclase, clinopyroxene (augite and pigeonite) and FeTi oxides and show textures that vary from holocrystalline, to locally porphyritic, glomerophyric and hypocrystalline. Plagioclase and clinopyroxene CSDs are similar in sills and dikes, with clinopyroxene slopes systematically steeper than plagioclase slopes. Plagioclase usually records nearly log-linear negative slopes that tend to steepen approaching the wall rock contact. Plagioclase typically shows normal zoning with anorthite contents varying (An84-25) from the center to the grain margin. Calculated residence times for the log-linear segments vary from ca. one month (τ = 10−7 mm·s−1) for samples situated 20 cm from the contact to ca. four months for samples ~3 m away from the contact. Clinopyroxene consists of augite (dominant) and pigeonite and shows relatively uniform compositions. Unlike plagioclase, clinopyroxene CSDs tend to be flat or slightly positive towards the finer grains suggesting that the texture was modified during the crystallization of the residual melt. Plagioclase microlites (L < 0.5 mm), in contrast, show kinked CSDs with the steeper negative slopes including minute crystals of sanidine (orthoclase component) and alkali-sodic feldspar in addition to CaNa plagioclase. The modified textures and high nucleation density of microlites in mostly static, deep-seated magmatic reservoirs therefore resulted from chemical disequilibrium between largely solidified tholeiitic magma and late, highly fractionated alkali-rich residual melts. The estimated time for the full crystallization of the largest sills is one and one-half years.

Ga Mafic dikes and sills of Northern Fennoscandia: Petrology and Crustal evolution

New petrographic, geochemical, and Sm-Nd isotopic data provide constraints on the petrogenesis of ca. 2400 Ma gabbronorite, picrodolerite and dolerite mafic sills and dikes in the Liinakhamari and Sorvaranger areas, Kola–Norwegian terrane, Northern Fennoscandia. The sills are differentiated. Their chilled margins are composed of porphyritic picrodolerite with olivine (Fo92-81) and clinopyroxene (Mg# = 0.80–0.85) phenocrysts enclosed by quenched groundmass with intergrows of fan-shaped branched plagioclase grains and clinopyroxenes. The bottom of the sills are usually composed of cumulative olivine gabbronorite upsection followed by olivine gabbro, gabbro, and quartz-bearing dolerites. Picrodolerite and dolerite dikes are close to chilled margins and evolved quartz-bearing dolerites from the upper parts of picrodolerite sills, correspondingly, in terms of mineral and chemical composition. The distribution of trace elements in sills sections is caused by fractionation crystallization of picrodolerite magma with a leading role of gravity settling of olivine phenocrysts. Variations of neodymium isotopic composition in the cumulative gabbronorites in the lower (εNd from –0.25 to +0.82) and dolerites in the upper (εNd from –0.85 to –2.4) parts of the sills are probably related with an addition of crustal contaminant into the magma after phenocrysts crystallization. Doleritic dikes have more radiogenic neodymium isotopic composition (εNd = –0.10) in comparison with dolerites of sills that suggests lower degrees of crustal contamination in dikes. Evaluation of conditions of phenocrysts crystallization using mineral thermobarometers and modelling of crystallization using alphaMELTS indicate that the main stage of the evolution of ca. 2400 Ma mafic melts was probably related with high degrees of fractional crystallization and crustal contamination in the upper crust at P =1–4 kbar. Ca. 2400 Ma mafic intrusions in the Kola–Norwegian terrane are similar with coeval mafic dikes in Troms area in the Northern Fennoscandia, basaltic komatiites of Vetreny Belt and doleritic dikes of Kostomuksha area in the Karelian Craton in terms of petrographic, geochemical and Sm-Nd isotopic characteristics. It suggests that studied mafic sills and dikes in the Kola–Norwegian terrane could be considered as a component of ca. 2400 Ma large igneous province in the Fennoscandia.

Platinum group element geochemistry and whole‐rock systematics of the Vempalle sills, Cuddapah Basin, India: Implications on sulphur saturation history, mantle processes, and tectonic setting

The intracratonic Cuddapah Basin of southern peninsular India has multiple phases of magmatism exposed as mafic intrusives and extrusives in the Vempalle and Tadpatri formations. We report platinum group element geochemistry along with whole‐rock systematics of the mafic sills from the Vempalle Formation to understand their sulphur saturation history, source characteristics, and tectonic setting. These sills are medium‐ to fine‐grained dolerites with plagioclase and pyroxenes as essential minerals exhibiting sub‐ophitic to intergranular texture. Geochemically, they are characterized by moderate MgO (6.3–8.5 wt.%), Ni (55–105 ppm), Cr (20–130 ppm), and ∑PGE (22–61 ppb) contents and exhibit transitional to calc‐alkaline in nature. Primitive mantle‐ and chondrite‐normalized trace and rare earth element patterns display relative enrichment of LILE–LREE over HFSE, suggesting plume‐related intraplate magmatism with contributions from subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM), lithosphere–asthenosphere interaction, crustal contamination, and fractional crystallization. Their REE relationship indicates the generation of parent magma from a heterogeneous source marked by 10–25% polybaric partial melting within spinel and garnet lherzolite domain. Platinum group elements (PGE) geochemistry reveals their sulphur‐undersaturated nature, and sulphide fractionation played a key role in the distribution of PGEs, which is evidenced by their enriched character, moderate degrees of partial melting, and crustal contamination. Further, the negative platinum anomalies in these sills indicate its removal during fractional crystallization, and the enrichment of Pd over Pt endorses the decoupling nature of these elements prior to their emplacement. Diagnostic trace element signatures and their relationship corroborate a riftogenic intraplate tectonic regime for the emplacement of the Vempalle sills through an ocean–continent transition zone.

Lateral crustal variation and post-rift magmatism in the northeastern South China Sea determined by wide-angle seismic data

The northeastern margin of the South China Sea experienced continental rifting followed by magmatism in the Cenozoic. This evolution has strongly influenced the heterogeneity of its crustal structure. To gain insights into the spatial variation in crustal structure, data from 30 ocean bottom seismometers were used to forward model ten P-wave velocity models along both dip and strike directions. The Cenozoic strata (1.7–3.5 km/s), the Mesozoic strata (3.5–5.5 km/s), the crystalline crust (5.5–7.5 km/s) and high velocity lower crust (7.0–7.5 km/s) were identified based on P-wave velocities. Overall, the crust thins from ~25 km on the continental shelf to ~15 km on the slope, with thicker crust underneath the Dongsha Basin (a Mesozoic basin) but thinner crust underneath the pre-Cenozoic NW-trending fault zones. This difference in thickness is possibly controlled by different strength of inherited structures, i.e., the Dongsha Basin and the fault zones. Furthermore, a widespread high velocity lower crust layer, which resulted from the intrusion of a mafic sill complex, was observed over the shelf to slope. Mafic intrusions within the lower crust have uplifted the caprock on the shelf, and magma eruptions have formed many post-rift seamounts on the slope. The evidence suggests that post-rift magmatism overprinted the vertical crustal structure. We therefore propose that the heterogeneous crustal structures in this passive margin are an integrated result of segmental extension followed by magmatic overprinting.

2.4 Ga Mafic Dikes and Sills of Northern Fennoscandia: Petrology and Crustal Evolution

New petrographic, geochemical, and Sm-Nd isotopic data provide constraints on the petrogenesis of ca. 2400 Ma gabbronorite, picrodolerite and dolerite mafic sills and dikes in the Liinakhamari and Sorvaranger areas, Kola–Norwegian terrane, Northern Fennoscandia. The sills are differentiated. Their chilled margins are composed of porphyritic picrodolerite with olivine (Fo92-81) and clinopyroxene (Mg# = 85–80) phenocrysts enclosed by quenched groundmass with intergrows of fan-shaped branched plagioclase grains and clinopyroxenes. The bottom of the sills are usually composed of cumulative olivine gabbronorite upsection followed by olivine gabbro, gabbro, and quartz-bearing dolerites. Picrodolerite and dolerite dikes are close to chilled margins and evolved quartz-bearing dolerites from the upper parts of picrodolerite sills, correspondingly, in terms of mineral and chemical composition. The distribution of trace elements in sills sections is caused by fractionation crystallization of picrodolerite magma with a leading role of gravity settling of olivine phenocrysts. Variations of neodymium isotopic composition in the cumulative gabbronorites in the lower (eNd from –0.25 to +0.82) and dolerites in the upper (eNd from –0.85 to –2.4) parts of the sills are probably related with an addition of crustal contaminant into the magma after phenocrysts crystallization. Doleritic dikes have more radiogenic neodymium isotopic composition (eNd = –0.10) in comparison with dolerites of sills that suggests lower degrees of crustal contamination in dikes. Evaluation of conditions of phenocrysts crystallization using mineral thermobarometers and modelling of crystallization using alphaMELTS indicate that the main stage of the evolution of ca. 2400 Ma mafic melts was probably related with high degrees of fractional crystallization and crustal contamination of high-Mg (MgO ~ 18 wt %) primary melt in the upper crust at P =1–4 kbar. Ca. 2400 Ma mafic intrusions in the Kola–Norwegian terrane are similar with coeval mafic dikes in Troms area in the Northern Fennoscandia, basaltic komatiites of Vetreny Belt and doleritic dikes of Kostomuksha area in the Karelian Craton in terms of petrographic, geochemical and Sm-Nd isotopic characteristics. It suggests that studied mafic sills and dikes in the Kola–Norwegian terrane could be considered as a component of ca. 2400 Ma large igneous province in the Fennoscandia.

Contrasting TiO&amp;lt;sub&amp;gt;2&amp;lt;/sub&amp;gt; Compositions in Early Cenozoic Mafic Sills of the Faroe Islands: An Example of Basalt Formation from Distinct Melting Regimes

The Paleocene lava succession of the Faroe Islands Basalt Group (FIBG), which is a part of the North Atlantic Igneous Province (NAIP), is intruded by numerous basaltic sills. These can be grouped into three main categories according to their geochemical characteristics: A low-TiO₂ sill category (TiO₂ = 0.7-0.9), a relatively high-TiO₂ sill category (TiO₂ = 1.95-2.6) and an intermediate-TiO₂ sill that displays major element compositions lying between the other two categories. Mantle normalised plots for the high-TiO₂ and low-TiO₂ sills display relatively uniform flat LREE trends and slightly steeper HREE slopes for high-TiO₂ relative to low-TiO₂ sills. The intermediate-TiO₂ Morskranes Sill is LREE depleted. Mantle normalised trace elements of low-TiO₂ sill samples define positive Eu and Sr anomalies, whereas high-TiO₂ sill samples display negative anomalies for these same lements. Different Nb and Ta anomalies (positive versus negative) in many high-TiO₂ versus low-TiO₂ sill samples suggest various metasomatism of their sources prior to partial melting. The intermediate-TiO₂ sill displays noticeably lower ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb and ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios relative to both the high-TiO₂ and the low-TiO₂ sill samples. Pb isotope compositions displayed by local contaminated basaltic lavas imply that some of these assimilated distinct crustal material from E Greenland or basement from NW Britain, while others probably assimilated only distinct E Greenland type of crustal material. A third crustal source of E Greenland or Rockall-type basement could be required in order to explain some of the range in lead isotopes displayed by the intermediate-TiO₂ Morskranes Sill. Geochemical modelling suggest that Faroese high-TiO₂ sills, could have formed by ~4 to 7.5% batch melting of moderately fertile lherzolites, while 16 to 21% batch melting fertile mantle sources could explain geochemical compositions of Faroese low-TiO₂ sills. The intermediate-TiO₂ sill samples could have formed by a range of 6 to 7% batch melting of a depleted mantle source, probably with a composition comparable to sources that gave rise to local low-TiO₂ and intermediate-TiO₂ host-rocks. Most Faroese sill samples probably developed outside the garnet stabilitry field and probably formed by batch melting of mantle materials comparable in composition to those reported for the sub-continental lithospheric mantle (SCLM) previously at depths of ≤ 85 km. Relative enrichments in LREE (and LILE in general), and their varying Nb and Ta anomalies point to sources affected by metasomatism.

Understanding the isotopic and chemical evolution of Yellowstone hot spot magmatism using magmatic-thermomechanical modeling

Large-scale melting and reworking of the crust and the upper mantle occurs in areas of mantle plume-crust interaction, generating voluminous and bimodal basaltic and silicic magmatism. Continental hot spot track magmas preserve geochemical and temporal records of these processes. Here, we apply and further develop the large scale (crust and the upper mantle) I2VIS magmatic-thermomechanical modeling code to investigate the potential origins of chemical and isotopic trends in the Yellowstone hot spot track, perhaps the best studied and constrained subcontinental mantle plume system on Earth. We model the propagation of melt via dikes in solid crust and via percolation in partially molten crust by using Lagrangian markers which also track the chemical and isotopic compositions of the melts that eventually erupt at the surface. Confirming the results of earlier geophysical and geochemical studies, we show that the eruptive activity at Yellowstone is best explained in terms of the formation of a ~15 km-thick mid-crustal mafic sill complex with its top at a depth of ~8 km that develops over a period of ~3 Myr. This sill complex releases rhyolitic fractionates and creates additional rhyolites by melting the surrounding crust, driving the voluminous rhyolitic volcanism which characterizes the Yellowstone system.We recognize three key trends in the evolution of a continental hot spot volcanic center such as Yellowstone: (1) frequent, small eruptions results in in larger erupted rhyolite volumes compared to rare and large eruptions, (2) erupted magmas tend to be initially comprised of a large degree of crustal melt, and the relative contribution of fractionates of basalts from the mantle increases with time, and (3), the initial depth of the crust which melts to produce eruptible rhyolites becomes shallower with time. The first of these trends is simply a function of the continuous supply of new basalt to the crust from the mantle. The latter trend, which is responsible for low-δ18O rhyolites, is produced by a combination of progressive melting of shallower crust as the system becomes hotter, repeated caldera collapses advecting shallow crust to a depth where it can melt, and the overplating and burial of shallow crust by repeated intrusions of basalt. The mid- and lower crust is not a significant source of erupted rhyolitic melts, as both the crustal melting and basalt fractionation takes place in the sill complex which forms near the bottom of the upper crust. The resulting modeled isotopic evolution of erupted magmas are a good match with the actual stable and radiogenic isotopic record of Yellowstone hot spot track volcanism preserved in zircon phenocrysts, and further replicates the results of recent geophysical imaging campaigns, giving us confidence that the assumptions and results of these thermomechanical models are broadly correct.