Mantle Sources Of Magmatism Research Articles

The role of island-arc oceanic, collisional and intraplate magmatism in the formation of continental crust in the Mongolia-Trasnbaikalia region: geostructural, geochronological and Sm-Nd isotope data

The formation of continental crust in the Mongolia-Transbaikalia region is researched to identify the mechanisms of interactions between the crust and the mantle in the development of the Neoarchean, Proterozoic and Paleozoic magmatic and sedimentary complexes in the study area. Using the results of his own studies conducted for many years and other published data on this vast region of Central Asia, the author have analysed compositions, ages and conditions for the formation of Karelian, Baikalian, Caledonian and Hercynian structure-formational complexes in a variety of geodynamic settings. Based on the geostructural, petrological, geochemical, geochronological and Sm-Nd isotope data, he determines the crustal and mantle sources of magmatism, conducts the identification and mapping of isotopic provinces, and reveals the role of island-arc oceanic, accretion-collision and intraplate magmatism in the formation of continental crust. Considering the formation of the bulk continental crust, three main stages are distinguished: (1) Neoarchean and Paleoproterozoic (Karelian) (almost 30% of the crust volume), (2) Meso-Neoproterozoic (Baikalian) (50%), and (3) Paleozoic (Caledonian and Hercynian) (over 20%). This sequence of the evolution stages shows the predominance of the ancient crustal material in igneous rocks sources at the early stage. During the subsequent stages, tectonic structures created earlier were repeatedly reworked, and mixed crustal-mantle and juvenile sources were widely involved in the formation of the bulk continental crust in the study area.

The evolution of volcanism in the Tugnui-Khilok sector of the western Transbaikalia rift area in the Late Mesozoic and Cenozoic

The Late Mesozoic-Cenozoic volcanism of the Tugnui-Khilok sector in the western Transbaikalia rift area is related to the development of the Tugnui, Tsolgin, Margentui, and Khilok grabens and is characterized by a north-south migration of magmatic centers. In these grabens, the igneous associations are composed of high-alkaline rocks: alkaline and subalkaline basalts, tephrites, phonolites, trachytes, trachyrhyolites, comendites and pantellerites, alkaline syenites and alkaline gabbroids. These associations are known to have formed during 10 stages: Late Jurassic (150–158 Ma), Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous (139–147 Ma), the beginning of the Early Cretaceous (133–145 Ma), mid-Early Cretaceous (115–134Ma), the end of the Early Cretaceous (104–114 Ma), the end of the Early-beginning of Late Cretaceous (99–102 Ma), Late Cretaceous (72–90 Ma), Eocene (38–48 Ma), Early Oligocene (30–35 Ma), and Late Oligocene (25–27 Ma). The composition of igneous associations was changing in such a way that the relative amount of salic rocks gradually decreased (occasionally even disappeared completely) in the later developmental stages. As well, the content of SiO2 in basic rocks also decreased with increasing Nb and Ta contents, and depletion occurred in the lithophylic elements Rb, K, Ba, Sr, and in light rare-earths relative to heavy ones. The geochemical and isotope-geochemical parameters of basaltoids change through time, probably due to successive changes in the mantle sources of magmatism. During Mesozoic time, the source composition was consistent, with OIB-EM-II sources enriched in radiogenic strontium, but since the second half of the Cretaceous, the isotope composition began to be modified toward moderately depleted sources of the OIB-PREMA type.