Magnetite Exsolution Research Articles

Characterization and imaging magnetic minerals from ultramafic roots of a LIP: implication for deep crustal magnetic sources

SUMMARY Satellite magnetic surveys have revealed features consistent with magnetization at depth in the lithosphere. Previous studies have reported magnetic minerals preserved in mantle nodules and in some eclogite facies rocks. Deep crustal rocks are another possible source for these deep lithospheric signals, but have not been extensively studied, in many cases due to the difficulty in obtaining samples unaffected by later near-surface alteration processes. Here, we used a combined approach involving petrophysical, rock magnetic and scanning magnetic microscopy (SMM) analyses on unaltered pristine ultramafic samples from the Reinfjord Ultramafic Complex in northern Norway. The focus was to identify the magnetic carriers using SMM and link the magnetic anomalies mapped in thin section to distinct rock magnetic measurements. The dominant magnetic carriers are Cr-magnetite exsolved from grains of Al-chromite, and magnetite exsolution lamellae from clinopyroxene. In addition, some samples have exsolved magnetite from Al-Cr-spinel and Fe-rich exsolution from Cr-spinel as carriers. Rock magnetic measurements suggest that these primary magnetic carriers, could retain magnetization to considerable crustal depths.

Recovering P–T–t paths from ultra-high temperature (UHT) felsic orthogneiss: An example from the Southern Brasília Orogen, Brazil

Mineral assemblages that are diagnostic of ultrahigh-temperature (>900 °C) metamorphism are generally restricted to Mg- and Al-rich rocks. However, in many metamorphic terrains such compositions do not occur, and the rocks are dominated by orthogneisses that typically contain high-variance mineral assemblages that are not diagnostic of particular pressure–temperature (P–T) conditions. Here we use whole-rock and mineral chemistry, thermodynamic phase equilibrium modelling, and zircon U–Pb–Hf isotopic data to constrain the P–T–time history of granulites from the Socorro-Guaxupé Nappe of the Southern Brasília Orogen. These rocks occur as part of a stack of Neoproterozoic nappes that were assembled during the formation of West Gondwana. Based on phase equilibrium modelling, the peak assemblage in a garnet-bearing felsic granulite (ortho- and clinopyroxene, garnet, K-feldspar, plagioclase, quartz, ilmenite, and silicate melt) records pressures of around 11.5 kbar and temperatures of ~1000 °C, consistent with the high-Al content of orthopyroxene. The retrograde path records a small decrease in pressure to 9 kbar marked by orthopyroxene replacing garnet and the exsolution of magnetite from ilmenite followed by near-isobaric cooling that led to the development of coronas of hornblende around pyroxene due to crystallization of the last vestiges of melt. Zircon cores yielding U–Pb ages of ca. 625 Ma are interpreted as dating close-to-peak conditions during high-temperature metamorphism. In one sample, zircon rims and ‘soccer ball’ zircon neoblasts both have high U contents and yield ages of ca. 615 Ma, interpreted to mark the onset of melt crystallization. In two other samples, low-U rims and ‘soccer ball’ zircons grains yield ages of ca. 600–595 Ma, interpreted to date the end of melt crystallization. These data reveal a protracted regional metamorphic event in which the lower crust remained at granulite-facies conditions for at least 30 Myr during collision and assembly of West Gondwana.

Variation of Iron Species in Plagioclase Crystals by X‐ray Absorption Fine Structure Analysis

AbstractSpeciation analysis of Fe in single plagioclase crystals separated from two different gabbros was performed to understand the crystallization mechanisms of magnetite exsolution. Iron species in single crystals were measured using Fe K‐ and LIII‐edge X‐ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analysis. The K‐edge pre‐edge analysis showed variation in the averaged valence state of Fe in plagioclase crystals even if they had been separated from the same gabbro that was further confirmed by the LIII‐edge analysis. The K‐edge pre‐dedge analysis also suggests the various degrees of contribution from tetrahedral Fe. The mixing of tetrahedral and octahedral Fe leads to an underestimation of the averaged valence state of Fe for the K‐edge pre‐edge analysis; thus, we adopted the LIII‐edge result for the valence state of Fe in plagioclase crystals. Iron K‐edge extended XAFS (EXAFS) analysis of two plagioclase crystals separated from the same gabbro clearly showed different coordination environments. A weakening of EXAFS oscillation was recognized in one sample, because two Fe–O bonds (Fe3+–O1 and Fe2+–O2) cancelled out the oscillations of each other. The EXAFS spectrum of the other plagioclase crystal suggested a homogeneous distribution of Fe. The content of exsolved magnetite in these crystals is nearly identical, indicating that the exsolution of magnetite in plagioclase crystal had been completed before the temperature decrease that stopped the ordering of Fe ions in tetrahedral sites.

Paleomagnetism of the native copper mineralization, Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan

The age and genesis of Michigan’s world-class native copper deposits are poorly constrained. The copper is hosted by basaltic flow tops and conglomeratic interbeds of the 1095 ± 2 Ma Keweenawan Portage Lake Formation. Progressive thermal demagnetization isolates stable hematite remanent magnetization components at 28 paleomagnetic sites. Paleomagnetic tilt tests show that magnetite in massive flow interiors is primary (1095 ± 2 Ma) and that hematite throughout the formation is syntectonic. The altered cupriferous deposits contain primary ∼1095 Ma and secondary ∼1053 Ma hematite in various proportions. The Caledonia Mine’s basaltic mineralization carries the ∼1053 Ma hematite dominantly whereas the Delaware Mine’s conglomeratic interbed mineralization carries the ∼1095 Ma hematite dominantly. The ∼1095 Ma hematite is attributed mostly to magnetite exsolution during flow extrusion and to weathering oxidation between extrusion events. An infusion of epigenetic hydrothermal fluids emplaced the native copper with additional hematite and polarity self-reversing titanohematite at 1053 ± 7 Ma. Importantly, paleomagnetic evidence supports a 1053 ± 7 Ma age also for the White Pine stratiform sedimentary copper mineralization, for the oxidation of the Oronto Group clastic rocks to red beds, and for the time limits of major tectonic uplift and deformation on the Keweenaw Peninsula.

Nanoscale Study of Titanomagnetite from the Panzhihua Layered Intrusion, Southwest China: Multistage Exsolutions Record Ore Formation

Titanomagnetite from Fe-Ti-V ores of the Lanjiahuoshan deposit, Panzhihua layered intrusion, Southwest China, was investigated at the nanoscale. The objectives were to establish the composition of exsolution phases and their mutual relationships in order to evaluate the sequence of exsolution among oxide phases, and assess mechanisms of ore formation during magma emplacement. At the micron-scale, titanomagnetite shows crosscutting sets of exsolutions with ilmenite and Al-Mg-Fe-spinel (pleonaste), as well as overprint, both in terms of phase re-equilibration and remobilization of trace elements. Most complex textures were found in titanomagnetite surrounded by ilmenite and this was selected for high-angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF STEM) imaging and STEM energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS) spot analysis and mapping on a thin foil prepared in situ on a focused ion beam scanning electron microscope platform. Titanomagnetite revealed two sequential sets of exsolutions, {111} crosscutting {100}, which are associated with changes in phase speciation and trace element distribution patterns. Qandilite is the dominant spinel phase inside titanomagnetite; magnesioferrite is also identified. In contrast, Fe-poor, Al-rich, Mg-bearing spinel is present within ilmenite outside the grain. Vanadium enrichment in newly-formed magnetite lamellae is clear evidence for trace element remobilization. This V-rich magnetite shows epitaxial relationships with ilmenite at the contact with titanomagnetite. Two-fold super-structuring in ilmenite is evidence for non-redox re-equilibration between titanomagnetite and ilmenite, supporting published experimental data. In contrast, the transformation of cubic Ti-rich spinel into rhombohedral ilmenite imaged at the nanoscale represents the “oxy-exsolution” model of titanomagnetite–ilmenite re-equilibration via formation of a transient ulvöspinel species. Nanoscale disorder is encountered as vacancy layers in Ti-rich spinel, and lower symmetry in the Fe-poor, Al-Mg phase, suggesting that slow cooling rates can preserve small-scale phase equilibration. The cooling history of titanomagnetite ore can be reconstructed as three distinct stages, concordant with published models for the magma plumbing system: equilibrium crystallization of Al-rich, Mg-bearing titanomagnetite from cumulus melts at ~55 km, with initial exsolutions occurring above 800 °C at moderate fO2 conditions (Stage 1); crosscutting {111} exsolutions resulting in formation of qandilite, attributable to temperature increase due to emplacement of another batch of melt affecting the interstitial cumulus during uplift. Formation of 2-fold superstructure ilmenite + V-rich magnetite exsolution pairs representing non-redox equilibration indicates resetting of the cooling path at this stage (Stage 2); and ilmenite formation from pre-existing Ti-rich spinel and ulvöspinel, illustrative of redox-driven cooling paths at <10 km (Stage 3). HAADF STEM provides direct imaging of atomic arrangements, allowing recognition of processes not recognizable at the micron-scale, and can thus be used to constrain exsolution models during ore formation.

Magnetite exsolution in ilmenite from the Fe-Ti oxide gabbro in the Xinjie intrusion (SW China) and sources of unusually strong remnant magnetization

This study investigates magnetite exsolution in ilmenite from Fe-Ti oxide gabbro in the Xinjie intrusion, SW China. Exsolved magnetite lamellae in ilmenite contain nearly pure Fe3O4 with ~1 wt% TiO2. EBSD-based analyses indicate that the magnetite lamellae have close-packed oxygen planes and directions parallel to those in the host ilmenite with {111}Mag//(0001)Ilm and ![Formula][1] The Fe2+ in the magnetite lamellae is probably derived from adjacent titanomagnetite by sub-solidus inter-oxide cation repartitioning of Fe2+ + Ti4+ = 2Fe3+ during cooling. It is thus suggested that only Fe3+ cations in the magnetite lamellae should be included into the composition of the Ilm-Hemss precursor for the Fe-Ti oxide oxy-thermometer. The existence of magnetite exsolution in ilmenite also provides an alternative explanation for unusually strong natural remnant magnetization in natural ilmenite. [1]: /embed/mml-math-1.gif

Mineralogy and Origin of Exsolution In Ti-Rich Magnetite From Different Magmatic Fe-Ti Oxide-Bearing Intrusions

Abstract Titanium-rich magnetite from different magmatic Fe-Ti oxide-bearing intrusions consists of host magnetite (nearly pure Fe 3 O 4 ) and different types of exsolution. The exsolution of Ti-rich magnetite is indicative of the physical and chemical conditions at which the host intrusions formed. However, the mechanisms to form these types of exsolution have been debated. To examine the formation mechanisms of the different types of exsolution, multiple microanalytical techniques, such as electron microprobe analysis, micro Raman spectroscopy, and micro X-ray diffraction, were used to examine the chemical composition, morphology, and crystalline structure of exsolved minerals in Ti-rich magnetite from different Fe-Ti oxide-bearing intrusions in China. The characterization results indicate that pleonaste and ilmenite are the two dominant exsolution phases in the Ti-rich magnetite, whereas the ulvospinel phase is barely found. The ilmenite exsolution may have different origins: (1) the cloth-texture lamellae primarily exsolved as ulvospinel, which was oxidized to ilmenite later at 600 °C; (3) some ilmenite lamellae exsolved directly from cation-deficient solid solution due to the substitution of Ti 4+ + □ → 2Fe 2+ ; (4) sub-solidus re-equilibration of coexisting Fe-Ti oxides can also lead to ilmenite exsolution in Ti-rich magnetite and magnetite exsolution in ilmenite.

A new UHP metamorphic complex in the 1.8 Ga Nagssugtoqidian Orogen of West Greenland

The Nagssugtoqidian Orogen is a ca. 1.8 Ga belt of east-west trending, highly deformed rocks that bisects central Greenland. Although a variety of data have suggested this belt marks the location of a continent-continent collision zone, evidence of subduction has been lacking. We report here mineralogical evidence from four samples within a well-defined lithologic unit of metabasic and metasedimentary ocean floor rocks of a previously unrecognized UHP metamorphic episode. The UHP episode is recorded by remnants of orthopyroxene exsolved from majoritic garnet, graphitized diamond, exsolution of rutile from garnet and pyroxenes, exsolution of magnetite from olivine, and complex exsolution textures in ortho- and clinopyroxenes (including omphacite). Associated with these mineralogical features is an unusual occurrence of quartz needles in Mn-rich fayalite. From textural characteristics, we infer that the quartz needles exsolved from the fayalite. To our knowledge, olivine with exsolved silica has not been reported. We note, however, that experimental studies have shown that b-spinel can incorporate excess silica. We therefore speculate these quartz needles may be silica that exsolved from Mn-rich ahrensite, the Fe analog of ringwoodite, upon decompression and inversion to fayalite. If correct, this occurrence would be the first reported sample of naturally occurring olivine (fayalite) that inverted from ahrensite. Corroborating an early UHP history are reaction relationships that delineate a path through high-pressure and high-temperature conditions during decompression. P-T conditions inferred for the UHP episode are ~7 GPa at ~975 °C. The unusually low T for this UHP system at ~1.8 Ga may reflect either very rapid subduction rates at that time, or unexpectedly cool mantle conditions. Preservation of the UHP assemblages probably is due, in large part, to the exceptionally low a H2O during decompression and cooling. These UHP rocks establish that the location of the subduction and suture zones that must have existed prior to and during the collision of continents was along what is now the northern edge of the Nordre Strømfjord shear zone.

Magnetic petrology of high Fe‐Ti eclogites from the CCSD main hole: Implications for subduction‐zone magnetism

The high Fe‐Ti eclogites with exsolved lamellar in 530–600 m depths from the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling (CCSD) main hole in the Sulu Ultra‐High Pressure (UHP) metamorphic belt, eastern China, record an anomalously high susceptibility (κ), natural remanent magnetization (NRM) and Köenigsberger ratio Q (NRM/Ji, Ji is induced magnetization). This provides us with a good opportunity to study the effects of magnetic minerals and exsolution lamellae on the magnetic properties of deep rocks. In this paper, we have measured systematically magnetic properties and mineral assemblage and structure for three special samples (No. 83, No.86 and No.89). Results show that these Fe‐Ti‐rich eclogites are the result of the fine‐grained (titano)‐magnetite exsolution in pyroxene and lamellar structure consisting of finely interlayered ilmenite and hematite in exsolved hemo‐ilmenite. We found that the dominant Fe‐bearing oxide minerals in samples studied are ilmenite, hematite (Hem + Ilm up to 25%), little (titano)magnetite and pyrite. The ferromagnetic susceptibility is mainly controlled by fine grained (titano)magnetite and NRM is closely related to the exsolved lamellar structure. We hence propose that the anomalous magnetism of these eclogites observed in our samples is the result of exsolution from homogenous pyroxene and ilmeno‐hematite during cooling and decompression processes. These Fe‐Ti‐rich eclogites might be one of the sources of high‐magnetic anomalies observed in the Sulu subduction zone, eastern China.

Petrogenesis of Triassic post-collisional syenite plutons in the Sino-Korean craton: an example from North Korea

AbstractMore than ten Triassic syenite plutons are revealed to be distributed in North Korea along the boundary to South Korea. The Tokdal Complex is one of these but is unique in its incorporation of early pyroxenite cumulate in the clinopyroxene/amphibole/biotite/nepheline-bearing syenite main body. A SHRIMP U–Pb zircon age of 224 ± 4 Ma was obtained from a biotite syenite sample. Clinopyroxene in pyroxenite is zoned, with either phlogopite and apatite inclusion or ilmenite and magnetite exsolution, and may have resulted from crystallization at high pressure in an active continental margin arc environment followed by ascent and decompression. The pyroxenite and syenite are enriched in light REE and LILE, but strongly depleted in HFSE, with 87Sr/86Srt values of ~0.7115 and ϵNdt values of −14 to −20 (t = 224 Ma). The Tokdal Complex could have originated from an enriched lithospheric mantle and undergone assimilation of juvenile materials during differentiation. It indicates an extension of post-collisional magmatism in the Sino-Korean craton. This complex along with many other Triassic plutons in the Sino-Korean craton together constitute three syenite belts along the northern, southern and eastern margins of the craton, possibly resulting in its final configuration in eastern Asia.

Magnetic properties of olivine basalt: Application to Mars

The natural remanent magnetisation (NRM) of basalt lava containing (oxidised) magnetic phases is usually assumed to be proportional to the weight percent of magnetic phases. It is shown here that olivine basalt has a different behaviour. The NRM intensity increases at an increasing rate with the amount of magnetic phases. This is attributed to the oxidation of olivine during cooling of the basalt that leads to the exsolution of magnetite in a single domain state. In this way, olivine basalt is found to become an order of magnitude more magnetic than basalt that does not contain olivine. A simple explanation for the magnetic anomalies on Mars is offered, based upon these findings and Mössbauer spectroscopy data from Gusev crater on Mars.

Exsolution of ilmenite and Cr-Ti magnetite from olivine of garnet-wehrlite

Exsolution of rod-like ilmenite (Ilm) and Cr-Ti magnetite (Mt) have been found in olivine of garnet-wehrlite from the core of Chinese Continental Sciences Drilling (CCSD). Their composition, morphology, crystal structure and their topotaxies with host olivine have been studied in detail by the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electron probe microanalyis (EPMA) technique. It shows that rod-like Ilm exsolution reported in this paper has similar characteristic with that of Alpe Arami olivine, while Cr-Ti magnetite exsolution mentioned in this paper has large discrepancy with chromite exsolution in Alpe Arami olivine. These observations suggest that both of the exsolutions found in this paper should be solid solution phases in â-olivine at their first period, then experiencing decomposition of solid solution and therefore forming Ilm and Cr-Ti magnetite exsolution with the pressure decreasing. So, this garnet-wehrlite perhaps had been ever located in mantle transition zone with a minimum depth of 300 km.

Determination of Primary Magnetic Minerals of a Weathered Metapelite Xenolith from Zhouba Region, North China, by Combining Thermomagnetic Runs and Low-Temperature Measurements

We have combined low- and high-temperature measurements for identifying possible mineral transformations (e.g., maghemite to hematite, titanomaghemite to magnetite) in thermomagnetic runs (magnetic susceptibility vs. temperature) for a weathered metapelite xenolith sample from Zhouba, North China. The results show that lab-induced saturation isothermal remanence magnetization (SIRM) changes observed between room temperatures and 25°C, and between 280 and 380°C are caused by the remanence unblocking of titanomagnetite (a physical process) and the inversion from maghemite to hematite (a mineralogical phase transformation), respectively. Furthermore, the significant increase of susceptibility after 500°C is interpreted as the mineral exsolution of magnetite from titanomaghemite. Thus, the magnetite-like Curie temperature revealed by қ-T curves is caused by the neoformation of magnetite.

Effects of defect and pressure on the thermal expansivity of FexO

Pressure–volume–temperature measurements have been carried out using synchrotron X-ray diffraction for wustite at static pressures of 1.9, 2.6, and 5.4 GPa. Our results revealed that the composition change of wustite and, hence, rearrangements of defect structures are primarily caused by the magnetite (Fe3O4) exsolution at temperatures of 523–723 K. Based on the isobaric volume–temperature data collected during cooling, the contribution of compositional variations to the unit-cell volumes of wustite in the ranges of 300–673 K and 723–1073 K is negligibly small, within the experimental uncertainties. These observations suggest that the measured volume changes in the range of 300–673 K and 723–1,073 K can be attributed to the metal–oxygen bond expansion. Owing to the magnetite exsolution, thermal expansion data are obtained in each experiment at 1.9, 2.6, and 5.4 GPa for wustite of two different compositions, Fe0.987O and Fe0.942O. At all three pressures, Fe0.942O shows a thermal expansion that is about 30% larger than Fe0.987O. Such findings represent the first experimental evidence of a substantial effect of nonstoichiometry on thermal expansivity, and based on previous thermodynamic calculations of the defect formation and interaction, this effect is likely associated with the distinct defects arrangements in iron-rich and more iron-deficient wustite. This study also presents thermal equations of state for wustite of two different compositions. Such volume-related properties at high temperatures are experimentally difficult to obtain in wustite but important for thermodynamic studies in the binary Fe–O system.

Magnetic domain structures and stray fields of individual elongated magnetite grains revealed by magnetic force microscopy (MFM)

In order to clarify the relationship between microscopic and macroscopic magnetic features of a rock, we applied magnetic force microscopy (MFM) as a local probe on a sample with an intense natural remanent magnetisation, a norite from Heskestad, Norway. We studied in detail seven magnetite (Fe 3O 4) exsolution lamellae, five of them were about 30 μm long and a few micrometers wide, two were significantly shorter; all were located in their natural host, a grain of clinopyroxene. By combining MFM images of surface magnetisation with information about shape observed with optical microscopy (OM), the internal domain structure was determined for individual grains. In general, the lamellae were pseudo-single-domain grains with open-flux domain magnetisations parallel to their long axes. The domain sizes were, in cross-section, on the order of a micrometer for the longer lamellae and about 300 nm for the short lamellae. By increasing the separation between the MFM probe and the exposed end of the lamellae, information could be obtained about the decrease in stray fields for the individual grains. Close to the lamellae, stray fields were significant even for grains with multiple domains. The largest fields were found above the largest domains. A separation of approximately one domain width was found to be a characteristic distance, where stray fields from adjacent domains begin to cancel one another.

THE MELILITE (Gh50) SKARNS OF ORAVITA, BANAT, ROMANIA: TRANSITION TO GEHLENITE (Gh85) AND TO VESUVIANITE

Almost monomineralic Mg-rich gehlenite (similar toGh(50)Ak(46)Na-mel(4)) skarns occur in a very restricted area along the contact of a diorite intrusion at Oravita, Banat, in Romania, elsewhere characterized by more typical vesuvianite-garnet skarns. In the vein-like body of apparently unaltered gehlenite, the textural relations of the associated minerals (interstitial granditic garnet and, locally, monticellite, rare cases of exsolution of magnetite in the core zone of melilite grains) suggest that the original composition of the gehlenite may have been different, richer in Si, Mg, Fe (and perhaps Na), in accordance with the fact that skarns are the only terrestrial type of occurrence of gehlenite-dominant melilite. The same minerals, monticellite and a granditic garnet, appear in the retrograde evolution of the Mg-rich gehlenite toward compositions richer in Al, the successive stages of which are clearly displayed, along with the final transformation to vesuvianite. These changes include (1) the local development of small rounded patches with Al-rich compositions (Gh(60) to Gh(85)), accompanied by monticellite, spurrite (or tilleyite, afwillite, kilchoanite) and, at a later stage, a granditic garnet, and (2) the complete transformation of gehlenite to vesuvianite, associated with minor clintonite (+ monticellite and probably ellestadite), usually along a sharp front typically rimmed by a 0.5-mm-wide zone of Al-rich gehlenite (Gh(85)). The gehlenite rim, as well as the gehlenite in the local modifications, show a remarkable correlation between the akermanite and Na-melilite contents, probably of crystal-chemical origin. The local modifications (1) are interpreted as nearly closed-system (except for Na and Fe) retrograde reactions at moderate temperature (500-600degreesC), controlled by the localized presence of small amounts of fluid at low pressure, mainly involving the transformation of the akermanite component to monticellite. The silica released by this transformation resulted in the formation of spurrite (among others) and of the Na-melilite component at first, and garnet later. The subsequent transformation (2) of geldenite to vesuvianite and clintonite, which involved silica metasomatism, may result from the more pervasive infiltration of the same fluid, at higher pressure, probably related to the development of the garnet-vesuvianite skarns elsewhere along the intrusive contacts.

Magnetite lamellae in olivine and clinohumite from Dabie UHP ultramafic rocks, central China

Ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) minerals of the Maowu mafic-ultramafic complex in the Dabieshan, east-central China exhibit many exsolution textures. Magnetite lamellae are common in olivines and Ti clinohumites from harzburgite and garnet pyroxenite. Monazite-(Ce) lamellae occur in apatites from the garnet pyroxenite. Independent P-T estimates suggest that these ultramafic rocks formed at P > 5 GPa and T = 700 ± 50 °C. The lamellae-bearing minerals are believed to preserve an earlier, higher P-T record prior to exsolution. Compositions and unit-cell parameters of the magnetite and host olivine and intergrowth relations were determined using a newly developed X-ray diffraction microprobe technique employing synchrotron radiation. The host olivine and magnetite lamellae bear a topotaxial relation with [220] Mag | | [200] Ol, [111]Mag | | [3 3 1]Ol, [11 1] Mag | | [331] Ol, [242]Mag | | [2 2 0]Ol. The recalculated composition of primary olivine may contain up to 1.5 wt% Fe 2O3. Four hypotheses may explain the observed intergrowths of oriented magnetite lamellae in olivine: (1) oxidation of olivine; (2) decomposition of Fe 3+ -bearing olivine formed at >6 GPa; (3) exsolution of a spinel (wadsleyite) solid-solution Fe 3O4-(Fe,Mg)2SiO4 during decompression; and (4) breakdown of phase A [Mg7Si2(OH)6] + enstatite. The third hypothesis appears to be the most likely inasmuch as no additional silicate phase occurs as associated inclusions in the olivine host. However, the actual mechanism for exsolution of magnetite from olivine remains to be studied experimentally.

Models of corundum origin from alkali basaltic terrains: a reappraisal

Corundums from basalt fields, particularly in Australia and Asia, include a dominant blue-green-yellow zoned “magmatic” suite (BGY suite) and subsidiary vari-coloured “metamorphic” suites. The BGY corundums have distinctive trace element contents (up to 0.04 wt% Ga2O3 and low Cr/Ga and Ti/Ga ratios <1). Different melt origins for BGY corundums are considered here from their inclusion and intergrowth mineralogy, petrologic associations and tectonic setting. Analysed primary inclusion minerals (over 100 inclusions) cover typical feldspars, zircon and Nb-Ta oxides and also include hercynite-magnetite, gahnospinel, rutile-ilmenite solid solution, calcic plagioclase, Ni-rich pyrrhotite, thorite and low-Si and Fe-rich glassy inclusions. This widens a previous inclusion survey; New England, East Australia corundums contain the most diverse inclusion suite known from basalt fields (20 phases). Zircon inclusion, intergrowth and megacryst rare earth element data show similar patterns, except for Eu which shows variable depletion. Temperature estimates from magnetite exsolution, feldspar compositions and fluid inclusion homogenization suggest that some corundums crystallized between 685–900 °C. Overlap of inclusion Nb, Ta oxide compositions with new comparative data from niobium-yttrium-fluorine enriched granitic pegmatites favour a silicate melt origin for the corundums. The feasibility of crystallizing corundum from low-volume initial melting of amphibole-bearing mantle assemblages was tested using the MELTS program on amphibole-pyroxenite xenolith chemistry from basalts. Corundum appears in the calculations at 720–880 °C and 0.7–1.1 GPa with residual feldspathic assemblages that match mineral compositions found in corundums and their related xenoliths. A model that generates melts from amphibole-bearing lithospheric mantle during magmatic plume activity is proposed for BGY corundum formation.

Uplift structure of the southern Kapuskasing zone from 2.45 Ga dike swarm displacement

The ca. 2 Ga Kapuskasing zone, a 500-km-long belt of uplifted crust, cuts across the regional structural trend of the Archean Superior Province in Canada and disrupts the continuity of 2.45 Ga Matachewan dikes that form a major swarm in its vicinity. As expressed by positive gravity and magnetic anomalies, it appears to end about 100 km east of Lake Superior. Until now, the nature of this termination has remained obscure. Regional variations in paleomagnetic polarity and in the intensity of feldspar clouding caused by magnetite exsolution are two physical properties of the dike swarm that depend upon postemplacement erosion level. They show that the Kapuskasing zone, as a narrow, fault-bounded crustal uplift, continues, after sinistral offset, for a further 60 km to the southwest before terminating in a major cross fault. Dual magnetic polarity and variable levels of feldspar clouding are features found in many other Proterozoic dike swarms worldwide, and therefore, in principle, may be used to document other examples of craton response to tectonism.

The 3100 BP eruption of the Soufri�re of Guadeloupe

Fragments of unaltered andesite found at all levels in the deposits of the catastrophic flank-failure, directed-blast eruption of the Soufriere of Guadeloupe in 3100 bp are thought to be remnants of the cryptodome. They were observed in analytical transmission electron microscopy for clues to the evolution of the intrusion prior to the eruption. Several features that could potentially be used as temperature markers were identified, among which the angle between microexsolutions of magnetite in augite phenocrysts was used to find an upper boundary of the temperature of the intrusion before the eruption: 600–700° C. Calculation of the time a dyke or sphere-shaped intrusion may have taken to cool from the emplacement temperature down to the temperature of exsolution of the magnetite leads to an estimate of the time between emplacement of the intrusion and the eruption, which could not have been less than a few tens of years. It therefore seems probable that the emplacement of the magmatic intrusion was not the immediate cause of the flank destabilization and catastrophic eruption of the Soufriere in 3100 bp.