Olivine Crystallographic Preferred Orientation Research Articles

Dynamic Recrystallization of Olivine During Simple Shear: Evolution of Microstructure and Crystallographic Preferred Orientation From Full‐Field Numerical Simulations

AbstractUpper mantle deformation is mainly controlled by the mechanical behavior of olivine. Crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) develop in olivine due to crystal‐plastic deformation during mantle flow, where the a‐axes of olivine polycrystalline aggregates are aligned with the flow direction. Therefore, the observed CPO in olivine‐rich rocks is used as an indicator of the mantle flow direction. Experimental data show that olivine rheology is strongly controlled by the microstructure. While the influence of plastic deformation is in general well characterized, the role of dynamic recrystallization during deformation is not totally understood, limiting our ability to interpret the deformation history of naturally deformed rocks. This contribution presents microdynamic numerical simulations of olivine polycrystalline aggregates with different iron content (i.e., fayalite content) with the aim of exploring the CPO and grain size response to dynamic recrystallization. We use a full‐field approach with an explicit simulation of viscoplastic deformation and dynamic recrystallization processes under simple shear boundary conditions up to high strain. The simulations show that the CPOs are similar and practically reach the same maximum regardless of the iron content. CPOs are characterized by a single cluster of a‐axis and two‐clusters of b‐axis, reveling a joint activity of the easy glide [100](010) and the moderate strength [100](010) slip systems. High‐strain domains of our models are consistent with experimental results, showing an A‐type fabric with double maxima, and where the CPO is aligned with the shear direction. The model provides a deeper understanding of the dynamic recrystallization influence on olivine CPOs resulting from plastic deformation.

A Petrological and Microstructural Study of Ten Brachinites: A Cumulate Texture?

AbstractBrachinites are igneous, ultramafic and unbrecciated primitive achondrites mainly composed of olivine and pyroxene, with a partial melt residue or cumulate origin that is still debated. This study presents a petrological and microstructural study of 10 brachinite meteorites to identify igneous and deformation processes responsible for their formation. Detailed microstructural analyses were performed using secondary electron microscopy, electron probe microanalysis, and electron backscatter diffraction. The olivine‐spinel and two‐pyroxene closure temperatures of these brachinites ranged from 814 ± 27 to 909 ± 20°C. Olivine [001] axes coincide with the elongation of olivine grains and the crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO) of clinopyroxene [001] axes, which led us to infer lineation as olivine [001] axes parallel to X for all samples. Olivine CPO displays a strong or medium concentration of [001] axes parallel to X and [010] axes parallel to Z pointing to a B‐type fabric. Limited internal deformation of olivine grains and slip systems identified from low‐angle boundary misorientation analyses are inconsistent with the CPO and grain misorientation distributions are close to those found in untextured rocks. Olivine B‐type fabrics may therefore result not from plastic deformation but rather from rigid crystal rotation or preferential crystal growth during compaction. Olivine subgrain boundary misorientation axes imply limited activation of [001](100) and [100](001) slip systems, which could be due to primary plastic deformation during or after crystal settling. These new results reveal that brachinites developed a cumulate texture and accommodated only weak plastic deformation during early differentiation processes in the parent body.

Type‐B Crystallographic Preferred Orientation in Olivine Induced by Dynamic Dehydration of Antigorite in Forearc Regions

AbstractThe crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of olivine, specifically the type‐B characterized by c‐axes aligned parallel to lineation and b‐axes concentrated perpendicular to foliation, is essential for explaining the trench‐parallel seismic anisotropy in the forearc regions of subduction zones. However, its origin remains a subject of ambiguity and controversy. In this study, we present experimental findings on the formation of a type‐B olivine CPO through the dehydration of foliated serpentinite under a compressive stress at a pressure of 300 MPa and temperature of 700–750°C. Our results reveal a progressive evolution of olivine CPO, transitioning from a type‐C fabric to a type‐B fabric, with increasing grain size and dehydration level. The type‐B CPO observed in coarse‐grained olivine within fully dehydrated samples primarily arises from mechanisms involving anisotropic growth, grain rotation, and oriented coalescence of newly formed, small olivine grains following the decomposition of antigorite under a compressive stress. This study provides the first experimental evidence for a novel, low‐temperature dynamic dehydration mechanism, in contrast to the mechanism of high‐temperature plastic flow, for explaining the development of type‐B olivine CPO in forearc regions. Hence, it contributes significantly to our understanding of the formation of olivine CPO with implications for seismic anisotropy in subduction zone forearcs.

Variation in olivine crystal-fabrics and their seismic anisotropies in the Horoman Peridotite Complex, Hokkaido, Japan

We examined the microstructures and crystal-fabrics of peridotites within a large area (6×5km) of the Horoman Peridotite Complex in the Hidaka metamorphic belt of Hokkaido, Japan. Thirteen peridotite samples were analyzed for olivine and orthopyroxene grain sizes, fabric strength (J-index), and crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs). Mean grain sizes of olivine and orthopyroxene were ranged in 295–497µm and in 257–537µm, respectively. The olivine fabric strength values decreased from the lower to the upper part of the complex, whereas the orthopyroxene fabric strength values showed no systematic trends. The peridotites contained three different olivine CPOs, previously known as A, E, and AG types. Combined with a previous study, we found that olivine CPOs showed a transitional distribution from E to A to AG type from south to north. E type peridotites occur at the basement of the complex in the south, suggesting that local water infiltration might occur at the basement of the complex. The A type peridotites occurred mainly in the middle of the studied area and subsequently the AG type peridotites occurred towards the north. Moreover, we calculated the seismic properties of peridotite as olivine 100% aggregates and mixed (olivine and orthopyroxene) aggregates. It showed that orthopyroxene CPOs reduce P-wave anisotropies of peridotite (0.2–2.2%) without modification of the P-wave propagation patterns.

Microstructural Relationship between Olivine and Clinopyroxene in Ultramafic Rocks from the Red Hills Massif, Dun Mountain Ophiolite

The microstructural relationship between olivine and clinopyroxene is significant in recovering the mantle evolution under clinopyroxene-saturated melting conditions. This study focuses on olivine/clinopyroxene-related ultramafic rocks (dunite, wehrlite, olivine clinopyroxenite, and clinopyroxenite) in the Ells Stream Complex of the Red Hills Massif. (Olivine) clinopyroxenites have an A/D-type olivine crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) whereas peridotites have various olivine CPO types. B-type olivine CPO was newly discovered, which may have been generated under hydrous conditions. The discovery of B-type CPO means that all six olivine CPO types could exist in a single research area. Clinopyroxene CPOs also vary and have weaker deformation characteristics (e.g., lower M index and weaker intracrystalline deformation) than olivine; thus, they probably melted and the clinopyroxene-rich ultramafic bands existed as melt veins. Irregular clinopyroxene shapes in the peridotites and incoherent olivine and clinopyroxene CPOs ([100]OL and [001]CPX are not parallel) also indicate a melted state. The dominant orthorhombic and LS-type CPOs in olivine and clinopyroxene imply that simple shear was the main deformation mechanism. Such complicated microstructural characteristics result from the overprinted simple shear under high temperatures (>1000 °C) and hydrous melting environments until the melt-frozen period. This case study is helpful to better understand the olivine and clinopyroxene relationship.

The water-poor and reduced mantle beneath the Neo-Tethys Ocean: Tectonic setting of the western Yarlung-Tsangpo ophiolites

Water contents and deformation behaviors of minerals in mantle peridotites are diagnostic features to distinguish the physical conditions between mid-ocean ridges and subduction zones, which could serve as effective indicators for discriminating the tectonic setting of ophiolites. In this study, we report a systematic dataset of petrology, geochemistry, water contents and deformation behaviors for the mantle peridotites from the Cuobuzha ophiolite in the western Yarlung-Tsangpo suture zone (YTSZ), southern Tibet, to provide new insights into the long-standing debate for the tectonic setting of ophiolites therein. Geochemical data revealed that the Cuobuzha mantle peridotites experienced low to moderate degrees of partial melting (∼10–15%), although some harzburgites have been intensively modified by late-stage melt-rock interactions. The Cuobuzha peridotites, on the other hand, are characterized by low orthopyroxene water contents (46–95 wt ppm in average), clear olivine crystallographic preferred orientations of A- and E-types, and low oxygen fugacity (logfO2, QFM −2.55 to −0.81, where QFM means quartz-magnetite-fayalite buffer), thus indicative of the occurrence of high-temperature, water-depleted, and reduced mantle in this ophiolite. The features above of the Cuobuzha mantle peridotites are quite similar to those of abyssal peridotites at modern mid-ocean ridges and systematically different from the relatively refractory, water-rich, and oxidized characteristics typical of forearc peridotites in suprasubduction zones. Based on the data from this study and a compiled dataset for other ophiolites from the western YTSZ, we revealed that mantle peridotites with a water-poor and reduced nature are common in these ophiolites, thus providing strong evidence supporting for their origination from a mid-ocean ridge of a mature ocean basin. From the perspective of mantle peridotites, the ophiolites in the western YTSZ now geographically distributed in two branches (i.e., the northern and southern sub-belts) might have formed in a single ocean basin of the Neo-Tethys and were dismembered by late-stage tectonic events to their current locations.

Structural inheritance controlled by olivine viscous anisotropy in fossil mantle shear zones with different past kinematics

Geophysical and geological observations hint for the presence in the lithospheric mantle of both active and fossil shear zones with varied past kinematics. Shear in the lithospheric mantle produces olivine crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO), which lead to dependence of the viscous behavior on the direction of the load. Yet, the role of anisotropic viscosity in the mantle is seldom considered in models of structural reactivation. Here, we present 3-D geodynamic finite-element models that quantify the strain and viscosity distribution in a lithosphere containing a fossil thrust (or extensional) mantle shear zone with variable orientation relatively to a new extensional or compressional tectonics. The results were compared to that of a fossil strike-slip mantle shear zone. The fossil olivine CPO in the shear zone produces an anisotropic response of the lithospheric mantle, which is modelled using a parameterized description of viscous anisotropy derived from polycrystal plasticity simulations. We found that CPO-induced reactivation of fossil extensional or thrust mantle shear zones is favored for dips 30–60°, with maximum strain localization if the load is normal to the trend of a fossil shear zone dipping by 45°-50°. This represents a broader range of reactivation potential than in fossil strike-slip mantle shear zones. Both fossil shear zones trending at 45° to the imposed load are reactivated regardless of their dip. For a given viscous anisotropy in the lithospheric mantle (i.e., fossil shear zone orientation), the associated strain localization in the crust is always higher under extensional reactivation, where strain rates may be up to ∼100 times higher than those in the (isotropic) surrounding crust. These results imply that viscous anisotropy associated with fossil mantle shear zones plays a key role in large-scale structural reactivation during successive tectonic episodes, shaping the current lithospheric architecture, such as in the Pyrenees and Norwegian margin.

Effect of faceting on olivine wetting properties

Abstract Grain-scale pore geometry primarily controls the fluid distribution in rocks, affecting material transport and geophysical response. The dihedral angle (θ) in the olivine-fluid system is a key parameter determining pore fluid geometry in mantle wedges. In the system, curved and faceted olivine-fluid interfaces define θ, resulting in faceted-faceted (FF), faceted-curved (FC), and curved-curved (CC) angles. The effect of faceting on θ under various pressure and temperature (P-T) conditions and fluid compositions, however, has not been constrained, and mineralogical understanding remains unresolved. This study evaluated facet-bearing θ and their proportions in olivine-multicomponent aqueous fluid systems. Our results show that 1/3 of olivine-fluid θ are facet-bearing angles, regardless of the P-T conditions and fluid composition. Faceting produces larger dihedral angles than CC angles. The grain boundary plane (GBP) distribution reveals that the GBPs of faceted interfaces at triple junctions have low Miller index faces ({100}, {010}, and {101}). The misorientation angle/axis distributions of adjacent grain pairs are in accord with a theoretical distribution of random olivine aggregate. Moreover, the calculation of the FF angles for adjacent grain pairs with low Miller index GBPs reproduces measured angle values based on the olivine crystal habit. Therefore, our study suggests that the FF angle is strongly affected by olivine crystallography. The presence of faceting increases θ and a critical fluid fraction (φc) for percolation, lowering permeability. In the mantle wedge, where olivine crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) is expected owing to corner flow, increasing the FF angle proportion with associated changes in fluid pore morphology will lead to permeability anisotropy, and controlling the direction of the fluid flow, and it will result in geophysical anomalies such as seismic wave attenuation and high electrical conductivity.

Influence of Melt‐Peridotite Interactions on Deformation and Seismic Properties of the Upper Mantle Beneath a Destroyed Craton: A Case Study of the Damaping Peridotites From the North China Craton

AbstractExtensive melt‐peridotite interactions had been documented in the lithospheric mantle beneath the North China Craton (NCC), a prime example of destroyed cratons in the world. Yet the impacts of melt‐peridotite interactions on the deformation and seismic anisotropy of the NCC upper mantle remain unclear. Here we studied in detail the microstructure, crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of minerals, and seismic properties of 26 peridotite xenoliths from the Damaping area of the NCC. The studied samples can be classified into two groups: weakly to nonfoliated and strongly foliated. Petrographic and microstructural observations suggest that multiple melt‐peridotite interactions and at least two stages of deformation had influenced samples from both microstructural groups. Dislocation creep in response to a transpression deformation led to the [010]‐fiber type olivine CPOs in most samples. Variable degrees of annealing followed the last stage of deformation. Due to a higher degree of melt‐peridotite interactions, which had promoted nondislocation creep, and more extensive annealing, olivine and pyroxene in the strongly foliated samples developed weaker CPOs. This in turn leads to weaker maximum P wave propagation anisotropy and S wave polarization anisotropy for this microstructural group. Our data, therefore, cast light on a strong control of intensity of melt‐peridotite interactions on deformation and seismic properties of the upper mantle beneath the NCC. If foliation and lineation are vertical and horizontal, respectively, the measured SKS splitting parameters can be well explained by the “fossil” anisotropy frozen in the lithospheric mantle, with no need to invoke asthenospheric flow as a source of the anisotropy.

Mantle deformation during opening of the Japan Sea back-arc: Insights from peridotite xenoliths, Kawashimo, southwest Japan

For a better understanding of plate dynamics such as the opening of Japan Sea back-arc basins, it is critical to know why and how back-arc spreading/rifting occurs adjacent to convergent plate boundaries. Two models have been proposed for the formation of Japan Sea back-arc basins: the “slab rollback model” and the “plume model”. We report here on 12 spinel peridotite xenoliths in the alkali basalt of the Cenozoic Kawashimo volcano in southwest Japan. These xenoliths are dominantly harzburgite with some lherzolite. The harzburgites and lherzolites show coarse-grained or porphyroclastic textures that record variable degrees of deformation. Olivine and spinel compositions indicate the samples are residual mantle peridotites formed under various degrees of partial melting. Olivine crystallographic preferred orientations in the xenoliths have orthorhombic patterns characterized by a strong [010] maximum, and this orthorhombic pattern implies that the olivine deformed by dislocation creep on the (010)[100] slip system. Using a sub-grain size piezometer, the maximum differential stress varies from 3 to 13 MPa in the samples. We also found that the peridotite xenoliths deformed under relatively high strain-rates, such as 10−13 to 10−10 s−1, using olivine flow laws and the obtained stress and grain size. The range of high strain-rates is comparable to that predicted using a thermomechanical model of back-arc spreading/rifting. Therefore, it is probable that the peridotite xenoliths preserve textures that formed during the mantle deformation that accompanied the Japan Sea back-arc spreading/rifting. We estimated an equilibrium temperature of 1238 ± 20 °C using the two-pyroxene geothermometer, and this temperature is higher than any temperature reported previously for peridotite xenoliths in southwest Japan. The obtained equilibrium P–T condition for the xenoliths implies that the hot mantle plume hypothesis best explains the mechanism of formation of Japan Sea back-arc basins.

The Radial Anisotropy of the Continental Lithosphere From Analysis of Love and Rayleigh Wave Phase Velocities in Fennoscandia

AbstractRadial anisotropy (RA) in the upper mantle of the Fennoscandian Shield is analyzed by joint inversion of Love and Rayleigh wave phase velocities measured from recordings of teleseismic events at the ScanArray network. The phase velocities are measured by beamforming using three geographical subsets of the network as well as the full network. We analyze how different procedures for determining the phase velocities influence the final result and uncertainty. Joint inversion of the phase velocities in the period range 22–100 s reveals the presence of similar RA in the three subregions, with an average ξ value of about 1.05 in the subcrustal lithosphere down to at least 200 km depth. This corresponds to SH waves faster than SV by 2%–3%, a value very similar to those found in other continental regions. Considering this anisotropy together with other observables pertaining to seismic anisotropy in the area, we cannot propose a unique model satisfying all data. We can show, however, in which conditions different types of olivine crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) commonly observed in natural samples are compatible with the observations. CPO types associated with the preferred orientation of the a‐axis, in particular the common A‐type CPO, require a‐axes dipping not more than 25° from the horizontal plane to explain our observations. AG‐type CPO, characterized by preferred orientation of the b‐axis and occurring in particular in compressional settings, can be considered as an interesting alternative interpretation of continental lithospheric anisotropy, provided the olivine b‐axis is dipping by at least 60°.

Does second phase content control the evolution of olivine CPO type and deformation mechanisms? A case study of paired harzburgite and dunite bands in the Red Hills Massif, Dun Mountain Ophiolite

We have examined the microstructures and crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) of six “paired” harzburgite and dunite samples from a small (~ 1 km2) area in the Ellis Stream Complex, Red Hills Massif, Dun Mountain ophiolite belt in New Zealand. Here, banded peridotites with isoclinal folds, E-W striking vertical foliations and vertical lineations are inferred to result from shear on vertical planes that overprint previous mantle structures. The samples contain five different olivine CPOs: typically known as A, C, D, E and AG-types. The co-located harzburgite and dunite of each pair show different CPOs (e.g., A vs E type). In each pair, dunite generally has larger grain size and stronger CPO. At two localities, the dunite has layers with different CPOs (A and D/E types) and grain sizes, corresponding to variations in spinel content. Paired samples were collected from nearby (a few cm maximum) parallel layers with no pinch and swell structures to suggest strain partitioning and dynamically recrystallized grain long axes parallel to lineation in both. Thus we infer that the deformation conditions (e.g., temperature, pressure) and kinematics were the same for the harzburgite and dunite in each pair. It is most feasible that second phase content (orthopyroxene and/or spinel) is the primary factor controlling the CPO type at a single locality. Additionally, we observed a change of the CPO types and a decrease in CPO strength from the eastern to the western part of the Ellis Stream Complex. We infer this relates to decreasing strain. The different CPOs of harzburgites and dunites suggest that the second phase content exerts a significant control on olivine CPO development.

Effects of melt-percolation, refertilization and deformation on upper mantle seismic anisotropy: constraints from peridotite xenoliths, Marie Byrd Land, West Antarctica

Abstract We report on the petrology, microstructure and seismic properties of 44 peridotite xenoliths extracted from the upper mantle beneath Marie Byrd Land (MBL), West Antarctica. The aim of this work is to understand how melt-rock reaction, refertilization, and deformation affected the seismic properties (velocities, anisotropy) of the West Antarctic upper mantle, in the context of MBL tectonic evolution and West Antarctic Rift System formation. Modal compositions, mineral major element compositions, microstructures, and crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) provide evidence for diachronous reactive melt percolation and refertilization. Olivine shows three main CPO patterns, the A-type, axial-[010], and axial-[100] texture types. Average seismic properties of the MBL mantle lithosphere are mainly controlled by the strength of olivine crystallographic texture. Reactive melt percolation and refertilization likely modified seismic velocities and anisotropy, as is suggested by a systematic decrease in maximum P-wave and S-wave anisotropies with increasing modal abundance of pyroxene. At larger spatial scales, the seismic properties of the MBL mantle xenoliths are dominated by the anisotropy resulting from the A-type olivine CPO. Variations between individual volcanic centres, however, attest to spatial variations in the mantle structure, potentially related to 3D deformation and the prolonged tectonic history of MBL.

Microstructural Analysis of a Mylonitic Mantle Xenolith Sheared at Laboratory-like Strain Rates from the Edge of the Wyoming Craton

Combined observations from natural and experimental deformation microstructures are often used to constrain the rheological properties of the upper mantle. However, relating natural and experimental deformation processes typically requires orders of magnitude extrapolation in strain rate due to vastly different time scales between nature and the lab. We examined a sheared peridotite xenolith that was deformed under strain rates comparable to laboratory shearing time scales. Microstructure analysis using an optical microscope and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) was done to characterize the bulk crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO), intragrain misorientations, subgrain boundaries, and spatial distribution of grains. We found that the microstructure varied between monophase (olivine) and multiphase (i.e., olivine, pyroxene, and garnet) bands. Olivine grains in the monophase bands had stronger CPO, larger grain size, and higher internal misorientations compared with olivine grains in the multiphase bands. The bulk olivine CPO suggests a dominant (010)[100] and secondary activated (001)[100] that are consistent with the experimentally observed transition of the A to E-types. The bulk CPO and intragrain misorientations of olivine and orthopyroxene suggest that a coarser-grained initial fabric was deformed by dislocation creep coeval with the reduction of grain size due to dynamic recrystallization. Comparing the deformation mechanisms inferred from the microstructure with experimental flow laws indicates that the reduction of grain size in orthopyroxene promotes activation of diffusion creep and suggests a high activation volume for wet orthopyroxene dislocation creep.

Hydrostatic Dehydration Fabrics of Antigorite at High Pressure and High Temperature: Implications for Trench Parallel Seismic Anisotropy at Convergent Plate Boundaries

AbstractAntigorite dehydration is well known as a key process at convergent boundaries for the genesis of mantle wedge partial melting and intermediate‐depth earthquakes. However, the crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) of prograde minerals from antigorite dehydration and their effects on the seismic anisotropy of subducting slabs remain ambiguous and controversial. Here we report antigorite dehydration experiments on a foliated serpentinized peridotite at pressures of 0.3–6 GPa and temperatures of 700–900°C. Our results show that olivine CPO evolves from a fiber‐[100] type in fine grains to a type‐C like in coarse grains. We propose that the fiber‐[100] olivine CPO is developed by topotactic growth during incipient hydrostatic dehydration, while the orthorhombic type‐C like olivine CPO is developed by anisotropic growth resulting from an anisotropic fluid flow during later dehydration. The type‐C like olivine CPO in the antigorite‐rich layers after antigorite dehydration could contribute to the trench parallel fast shear wave seismic anisotropy at convergent plate boundaries.

The São Francisco cratonic root beneath the Neoproterozoic Brasilia belt (Brazil): Petrophysical data from kimberlite xenoliths

Petrostructural analysis of 31 mantle xenoliths from three kimberlitic pipes intruding the Neoproterozoic Brasilia belt close to the southwestern margin of the São Francisco craton (SFC) reveals microstructures and compositions similar to those observed in cratonic roots worldwide. (1) The spinel-peridotites sampling the upper section of the lithospheric mantle have dominantly refractory modal and mineral compositions, whereas garnet-peridotites sampling the deep lithospheric mantle have more fertile compositions, consistent with those observed in cratonic roots worldwide. (2) The spinel-peridotites present a variation in microstructure from coarse-granular to coarse-porphyroclastic, but similar olivine crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO). (3) The garnet-peridotites have fine-porphyroclastic microstructures. (4) Many coarse-porphyroclastic spinel-peridotites display Fe-enrichment in olivine and pyroxenes, often associated with Ti-enrichment in pyroxenes or spinel and occurrence of modal phlogopite. (5) Equilibrium temperatures and pressures of garnet-peridotites are consistent with a cratonic geotherm, but equilibrium conditions of spinel-peridotites require a warmer geotherm. We interpret these observations as indicating that the xenoliths sample the SFC mantle root, which extends beneath the Brasilia belt, but was modified by reactive transport of the magmas forming the Alto Parnaiba Igneous Province (APIP) between 120 and 90 Ma. The APIP magmatism resulted in heterogeneous modal metasomatism, Fe enrichment, development of coarse-porphyroclastic microstructures in spinel peridotites and fine-porphyroclastic microstructures in garnet-peridotites, and moderate heating of the cratonic mantle root. These changes may produce a decrease in seismic velocities explaining the local weak negative anomaly observed in the lithospheric mantle beneath the APIP, which contrasts with the positive velocity anomalies characterizing the SFC mantle root in P-wave tomography models. However, reactive magma transport did not erase the olivine CPO. Comparison of the average seismic properties of the xenoliths with seismological data implies dominantly subhorizontal fossil flow directions and a non-negligible contribution of the cratonic root to teleseismic S-waves splitting.

Transpressional deformation in the lithospheric mantle beneath the North Anatolian Fault Zone

We studied mantle xenoliths sampled from two late Miocene volcanic centers located immediately north of the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) in western Turkey. The spinel lherzolite and harzburgite xenoliths equilibrated at temperatures ranging from 757 to 1019 °C, estimated from two-pyroxene geothermometry. Pressures estimated from the Cr-in-clinopyroxene geobarometer and pseudosection modelling range from 1.0 to 2.1 GPa, which correspond to depths of 38–75 km. We used X-ray computed tomography to quantify the three-dimensional shape preferred orientation of spinel grains. Spinel displays dominantly oblate fabric ellipsoids, consistent with flattening strain. Olivine crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO), determined by electron backscatter diffraction, exhibits chiefly axial-[010] and A-type patterns. The axial-[010] CPO pattern is consistent with the spinel fabric that shows flattening strain, and is primarily developed in xenoliths from the volcanic center nearer to the NAFZ. Obliquity of olivine CPO to the spinel lineation decreases with proximity to the NAFZ, suggesting an increase in shear strain. Our results favor an interpretation of transpressional deformation in the upper mantle below the NAFZ. We attribute this pattern to a restraining bend in the mantle section of the NAFZ.

The competing effects of olivine and orthopyroxene CPO on seismic anisotropy

Orthopyroxene is the second most abundant mineral in the upper mantle and, like olivine, can form crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO) during mantle deformation that may influence mantle seismic anisotropy. Here we use a compilation of 21 peridotites in which both olivine and orthopyroxene CPOs are preserved to document the range of orthopyroxene CPO types and to explore their effects on seismic anisotropy of peridotites. In addition to four previously published orthopyroxene CPO types, this study establishes three new CPO types, two of which result in orthopyroxene fast axes aligned parallel to the lineation and the direction of mantle shear/flow. We calculate bulk elastic tensors for each sample from the measured olivine and orthopyroxene CPOs, and use those in turn to calculate Vp and Vs velocities and anisotropy percentages. In order to explore the relative influence of olivine and orthopyroxene on anisotropy, these properties were calculated for a range of possible modal percentages, from 100% olivine to 100% orthopyroxene. While the effect of orthopyroxene CPO appears to be a negligible influence on the orientation of bulk seismic fast axes, the presence of increasing orthopyroxene decreases the anisotropic signal overall. However, at very low olivine modal percentages, olivine and orthopyroxene can be mutually destructive, where the addition of olivine to a mostly orthopyroxene rock can actually decrease anisotropy.

Pre‐Alpine Fault Fabrics in Mantle Xenoliths From East Otago, South Island, New Zealand

AbstractWe present a quantitative microstructural and seismic property analysis of harzburgitic and lherzolitic xenoliths from East Otago, New Zealand. Olivine crystallographic preferred orientations (CPOs) are dominated by orthorhombic CPOs with a tight maxima of [100] orthogonal to (010). Orthopyroxene showed the [001] axes aligned (sub)parallel to the [100] axes of olivine and the (100) plane subparallel to the (010) plane of olivine. Misorientations of olivine subgrain boundaries indicate that dislocations with [100] slip vectors are common and CPOs are interpreted as olivine [100] representing the flow direction and (010) the shear plane. Olivine grains are coarse with lobate grain boundaries, indicative of grain boundary migration at high temperatures. Olivine contains numerous subgrains whilst orthopyroxene is mostly strain‐free and it is possible that orthopyroxene crystallized from melt during deformation. Clinopyroxene lamellae in orthopyroxene, relate to decompressional cooling prior to Alpine Fault movement. Seismic properties derived from the measured CPOs, indicate P‐wave and S‐wave anisotropies at mantle conditions of 4%–10% and 3%–9%, respectively. Calculated shear wave splitting delay times of 0.1–0.9 s, for the current lithospheric mantle thickness, fit seismological observations, suggesting that the xenoliths may be representative of the lithospheric mantle that lies below East Otago today. To explain the seismic data, olivine [100] needs to be subhorizontal and parallel to NNW‐SSE fast polarization directions with [010] subhorizontal and perpendicular to these directions. This is consistent with the East Otago lithospheric mantle containing a fossil vertical shear zone with NNW‐SSE strike slip motion.

Interplay between melt infiltration and deformation in the deep lithospheric mantle (External Liguride ophiolite, North Italy)

Mantle peridotites from the External Liguride Jurassic ophiolites (Northern Apennines, Italy) show diffuse occurrence of pyroxenite bands, recording melt migration and crystallization at the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary, during old, pre-Jurassic stages of their subcontinental lithospheric mantle evolution. We present coupled microstructural and geochemical study of profiles across various types of pyroxenite-peridotite layering in these ophiolites, aiming to constrain the relative timing and potential interplay between melt infiltration and mantle deformation. The mantle sequence is composed of lherzolite and harzburgite, occasionally interleaved with dunite, crosscut by centimeter- to decimeter-wide pyroxenite layers. The peridotites have a porphyroclastic texture and show a penetrative tectonic foliation subparallel to the pyroxenite layering. Peridotite-pyroxenite contacts are irregular at the grain scale. Olivine and pyroxenes in both peridotites and pyroxenites record moderate to strong crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO) with alignment of olivine [100] and pyroxenes [001] axes subparallel to the stretching lineation marked by olivine and pyroxenes elongation. This is compatible with coeval deformation of olivine and pyroxenes during a high-temperature, spinel lherzolite-facies deformation event. The major and trace element compositions of peridotites record a metasomatic imprint that decreases with distance from the pyroxenite layers, whereas the strength of the olivine CPO decreases from the country peridotites towards the pyroxenite layers. The parallelism between pyroxenite layers and the peridotite foliation, their irregular contacts, as well as the spatial correlation between CPO and geochemical changes, are consistent with syn- to late-kinematic emplacement of the pyroxenites. These observations point to a strong interplay between deformation and melt transport processes in the mantle, characterized by melt focusing in conduits parallel to the foliation and changes in the mantle deformation processes due to the presence of melts. Exhumation of this mantle section in the Jurassic resulted in partial replacement of the spinel-facies assemblage by a plagioclase-bearing assemblage. Topotaxial relationship between plagioclase and precursor spinel-facies minerals suggests that this exhumation was not associated with pervasive deformation of the peridotite, but rather accommodated by deformation localized in discrete shear zones, not sampled in the present study.