U-shaped Rare Earth Research Articles

Field and petrological characteristics of PGE-rich podiform chromitites: Implications for efficient exploration

Two distinct types of podiform chromitites have been extensively described within the mantle sections of Neoproterozoic ophiolites in Saudi Arabia and Phanerozoic ophiolites in Oman. The first type is concordant with the foliation plane of the harzburgite host, generally lensoidal in shape and is characterized by its low platinum-group elements (PGE) contents. The second type occurs as discordant or dike-like bodies and predominantly rich in PGE. In addition to their mode of occurrence, several lines of evidence can be employed to differentiate these two types of chromitites, both in the field and during laboratory investigations. Concordant PGE-poor chromitites are typically homogeneous in appearance (with regards to chromite grains distribution) and massive, featuring chromian spinel (Cr-spinel) with olivine as the dominant silicate inclusions. In contrast, discordant PGE-rich chromitites are often heterogeneous in appearance, exhibiting a semi-massive to disseminated, and are rich in both hydrous (amphiboles) and anhydrous (clinopyroxene) silicate inclusions. Discordant dunite veins, sharing similar petrological characteristics, are consistently associated with PGE-rich chromitites, with Cr-spinel containing a notable abundance of clinopyroxene inclusions. Compared to podiform chromitites found worldwide, concordant chromitites have lower to intermediate PGE contents (typically < 500 ppb), display a gently sloping negative trend in PGE patterns, contain very few platinum-group mineral (PGM) grains, and exhibit a wide compositional range of Cr-spinel (Cr# = Cr/(Cr + Al) atomic ratio, varying from 0.5 to 0.9). In contrast, discordant chromitites have higher PGE contents (commonly > 500 ppb), show a strong decoupling between the IPGE (Os, Ir, Ru) and PPGE (Rh, Pt, Pd) subgroups of the PGE distribution patterns, contain numerous PGM grains, and consist of high-Cr varieties (Cr# mostly > 0.6). In-situ analysis of clinopyroxene inclusions within Cr-spinel of discordant chromitites and associated dunite veins revealed characteristic U-shaped rare-earth elements (REE) patterns. This suggests the involvement of a hydrous SiO2-rich melt in the formation of PGE-rich chromitites and their associated discordant dunites. The wide range of Os-isotope composition of the Os-rich PGM, spanning from sub-chondritic to supra-chondritic 187Os/188Os values in the PGE-rich chromitites serves as further evidence for the heterogeneous hydrous melting process that led to the formation of these chromitites. These features, encompassing field and petrological characteristics, can be attributed to variations in the tectonic setting during the formation of podiform chromitites and can serve as valuable guidelines for PGE exploration.

Plate tectonics in action in the Mesoarchean: Implication from the Olondo greenstone belt on the Aldan Shield of Siberian Craton

The Archean Olondo greenstone belt (OGB) is located on the Aldan shield, the largest basement of the Siberia craton. With well-preserved abundant mafic-ultramafic rocks, ≥30% in volume, the OGB is unique among other greenstone belts in the world. In this study, we present the most up-to-date geochemical and isotopic data for the ultramafic-mafic rocks of the OGB, in order to better constrain their mantle sources and the plate tectonic process involved in the formation of OGB at ca. 3 Ga. The ultramafic rocks vary from fresh to serpentinized dunites, and are highly refractory as residual mantle phase as indicated by depletion in P-Platinum Group Elements (PGE) relative to I-PGEs for highly siderophile elements (HSE). Fresh dunites show U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns, with positive to negative Nb anomalies, indicative of late metasomatism in their mantle source. Rhenium-Osmium isotopic compositions of these dunites yield mantle model age (TMA) of 2960–3020 Ma, comparable to the formation age of the OGB at ca. 3 Ga. Together, the data suggest that, unlike mantle cumulate origin for most of the Archean ultramafic rocks, the OGB dunites were mantle residuals after a high degree of partial melting (>30%), which subsequently interacted with the subduction-related melt/fluid. On the other hand, the OGB mafic rocks including komatiitic and tholeiitic basalts show geochemical characteristics relative to the ultramafic residuals that reinforce a subduction-related regime as their formation setting, despite extra mid-ocean ridge and plume settings. Tholeiitic basalts yield variable REE patterns from depleted, chondritic, to enriched light rare earth elements (LREE) patterns, with variable Nb-Ta anomalies, indicating their similarities with modern N-MORB and boninites, comparable to mafic rocks in typical supra-subduction zone (SSZ) ophiolites. Such mafic rocks with combined lower εNd(t) and negative Nb-Ta anomalies were most likely the result of mixing with subducted components, consistent with the observed Nb depletion in the residual dunites. The Al-depleted komatiitic basalts may have originated from deep mantle source, corresponding to garnet stability field, confirmed by their depletion in HREE and requiring a mantle plume to transport and melt at such a depth. The OGB ultramafic-mafic rocks could be a record to witness plume-induced subduction initiation processes such that mantle plume, sea-floor spreading and subduction were all in operation in the Mesoarchean time.

Serpentinite as a tracer for tectonic setting and mantle metasomatism of ophiolites: A case study of the Aoyougou ophiolite in the Qilian Orogenic Belt, NW China

Serpentinites, particularly those transformed from mantle peridotites, are potential tracers for the petrogenesis and tectonic geodynamics of peridotitic protoliths and certain mantle processes (e.g., fluid/melt metasomatism). This study presents new petrographic observations, mineral chemistry, geochemistry, and Re-Os isotopic compositions of the serpentinites from the Aoyougou ophiolite, the most problematic ophiolite in the Qilian Orogenic Belt, NW China. Our data indicates that the protoliths are melting residues of oceanic lithospheric mantle in a forearc setting. The high Mg# values (90.49–93.06) of serpentinites confirm their refractory nature, which reflects multiple episodes of partial melting and melt extraction (13.86–18.90%). Moreover, the geochemical fingerprints (e.g., U-shaped rare earth element chondrite-normalized patterns, enrichments of fluid-mobile elements, positive Eu anomalies, extremely high 187Re/188Os ratios, high Re abundances) and the “future” model ages (TMA) of most of the serpentinites show that they had undergone intensive melt/fluid metasomatism. Metasomatism was probably triggered by the input of slab-derived melts/fluids in the forearc setting, which resulted in the introduction of a high abundance of Re. Moreover, the Re-Os isotopic ages record a two-stage evolutionary history of mantle residues that included Precambrian melt extraction and late-Cambrian Re input by mantle metasomatism. Combined with the geological context, an intra-oceanic subduction model was proposed to interpret the origin and evolution of the ophiolite. As a result of the intra-oceanic subduction of the North Qilian Ocean, the oceanic crust of the ophiolite was generated by decompressive melting of the previously depleted forearc mantle.

SIMS U-Pb dating of vein-hosted hydrothermal rutile and carbon isotope of fluids in the Wulong lode gold deposit, NE China: Linking gold mineralization with craton destruction

Wulong is the largest lode gold deposit in the Liaodong Peninsula, northeastern North China Craton (NCC). Gold mineralization mainly occurs in the quartz-sulfide veins, which are hosted in Jurassic monzogranite and Early Cretaceous diorite dikes. Here, rutile grains are firstly identified in the auriferous quartz-pyrite vein. The vein-hosted rutiles have textural associations with quartz, chlorite, pyrite and Bi-sulfosalts and host fluid inclusions, indicating that they are unequivocally of hydrothermal origin and co-precipitate with gold. The rutile grains are characterized by high W and V concentrations, and U-shaped rare earth elements pattern with the greatest depletion in MREE. Due to excess Zr incorporation during fast rutile crystal growth process from the F-rich ore-forming fluids, Zr-in-rutile thermometers provide unrealistic crystallization temperatures (>550 °C), which are much higher than the previous homogenization temperatures data of fluid inclusions (Yu et al., 2018). All these geochemical signatures also support that rutiles formed from the hydrothermal fluids. The δ13C values of CO2 gases in low-salinity, aqueous-carbonic fluid inclusions from the mineralized quartz range from –9.6‰ to –1.7‰ (average = –5.7‰), indicating mantle/magmatic sources for the ore-forming fluids. SIMS U-Pb dating yields a more precise and robust age of 122.3 ± 1.1 Ma (n = 23, MSWD = 0.82) for the gold mineralization at Wulong. This new date is roughly coeval with the ore-hosted diorite dikes and the Sanguliu granitic pluton (most in 125–120 Ma). Such close temporal association provides additional weights of evidence for a magmatic affinity to the gold formation. Regionally, the rutile U-Pb age indicates that the gold mineralization occurs in an extensional tectonic regime, caused by the thinning and destruction of the lithosphere beneath the NCC. Meanwhile, the timing of gold mineralization is the same as the peak age of NCC destruction. Therefore, we propose that the Wulong deposit has a genetic link with this craton destruction. This is similar to numerous other Early Cretaceous gold deposits across the NCC, such as those in the Xiaoqinling and Jiaodong districts. Our study indicates that rutile is a robust U-Pb chronometer for the lode gold deposit, but may be not a good geothermometer in the case of F-rich hydrothermal fluid system.

Geochemistry of peridotites from the Yap Trench, Western Pacific: implications for subduction zone mantle evolution

ABSTRACTThis study examines the major and trace elements of peridotites from the Yap Trench in the western Pacific to investigate mantle evolution beneath a subduction zone. Major element results show that the peridotites are low in Al2O3 (0.31–0.65 wt.%) and CaO (0.04–0.07 wt.%) contents and high in Mg# (Mg/(Mg+Fe)) (0.91–0.92) and have spinels with Cr# (Cr/(Cr+Al)) higher than 0.6 (0.61–0.73). Trace element results show that the peridotites have extremely low heavy rare earth element (HREE) contents compared with abyssal peridotites but have U-shaped chondrite-normalized rare earth element (REE) patterns. The degree of mantle melting estimated based on the major elements, HREEs, and spinel Cr# range from 19% to 25%, indicating that the Yap Trench peridotites may be residues of melting associated with the presence of water in the mantle source. In addition to light rare earth element (LREE) enrichment, the peridotites are characterized by high contents of highly incompatible elements, positive U and Sr anomalies, negative Ti anomalies, and high Zr/Hf ratios. The correlations between these elements and both the degree of serpentinization and high field strength element (HFSE) contents suggest that fluid alteration alone cannot account for the enrichment of the peridotites and that at least the enrichment of LREEs was likely caused by melt–mantle interaction. Comparison between the peridotites and the depletion trend defined by the primitive mantle (PM) and the depleted mantle (DM) suggests that the Yap Trench mantle was modified by subduction-related melt characterized by high contents of incompatible elements, high Zr/Hf ratios, and low HFSE contents. Hydrous melting may have been enhanced by tectonic erosion of the subducting Caroline Plate with complex tectonic morphostructures at the earliest stages of subduction initiation.

Formation of the Neoproterozoic ophiolites in southern China: New constraints from trace element and PGE geochemistry and Os isotopes

The South Anhui ophiolite (SAO) and the Northeast Jiangxi ophiolite (NJO) are the only two known Precambrian ophiolite suites within the eastern segment of the Jiangnan Orogen, South China. These ophiolites may provide significant insights into the convergence history of the South China Block during the Rodinia supercontinent cycle. SHRIMP zircon U–Pb dating indicates that the SAO formed at 831 ± 5 Ma whereas the NJO formed at ca. 1000 Ma. Modal mineral assemblages and the preservation of relict primary mineral assemblages indicate that serpentinized peridotites from both ophiolites were mainly harzburgite in protolith. Relict olivine and orthopyroxene fragments within both ophiolite suites yield similarly high Mg# values. The serpentinized peridotite samples yield U-shaped rare earth element patterns and contain high-Cr# spinel, both of which are indicative of supra-subduction zone ophiolites. However, serpentinized peridotites within the SAO contain olivine and clinopyroxene with slightly higher Mg# values, and have lower platinum-group element (PGE) and trace element concentrations than peridotites from the NJO. The SAO peridotites are also depleted in Ir, Pt, and Pd, in contrast to the flat and chondrite-like PGE patterns of the NJO peridotites. These observations indicate that compared with the NJO, SAO peridotites were subjected to a greater degree of melt extraction prior to emplacement.Furthermore, gabbro and basalt from the SAO have N-MORB- or arc-like geochemical characteristics that reflect the incorporation of crustal materials into the mantle source, suggesting that this ophiolite formed in a continental marginal back-arc basin setting. In comparison, the less pronounced depletions in trace elements and PGEs, as well as the restricted 187Os/188Os isotopic compositions of NJO serpentinized peridotites, suggest that they formed in a fore-arc setting. The contrasting geochemical characteristics of the two ophiolite suites indicate that they were generated during distinct stages of convergence along the southeastern margin of the Yangtze Block. Our results show that ophiolite suites produced within a single orogenic cycle could preserve diverse geochemical characteristics, and may provide insights into the initiation and cessation of continental amalgamation.

Petrology and geochemistry of peridotites and podiform chromitite in the Xigaze ophiolite, Tibet: Implications for a suprasubduction zone origin

The Xigaze ophiolite, which lies in the middle section of the Yarlung Zangbo suture zone (YZSZ) of southern Tibet, is composed from the base upward of tectonized harzburgites with minor dunites, and a magmatic sequence of wehrlites, pyroxenites, troctolites and gabbros. Both abundant high-Cr, metallurgical and sparse, dunites occur within the harzburgites. The peridotites show abundant evidence of mantle melt extraction at various scales as indicated by the Fo values of olivine (92.4–93.5) in the harzburgites and 92.8–94.0 in the dunites. Whole-rock MgO contents are 41–50wt%, similar in composition to forearc peridotites. Most of the chromitites have high Cr# numbers (61–81), although there are systematic changes in olivine and chromian spinel compositions from harzburgites, to dunites to chromitites, reflecting variable partial melting and melt-rock reaction. The primitive mantle U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns of the harzburgites indicate refertilization of depleted peridotites by suprasubduction melts. The PGE abundances in the Xigaze rocks provide additional constraints on their geochemical evolution and show multiple episodes of melt extraction from the mantle source, giving it a subchondritic character. Compositional zoning of minerals likewise attest to modification by migrating melts, formed in a suprasubduction zone mantle wedge.

Origin of adakite-like plutons in southern Korea

We present Sr–Nd–Pb isotopic compositions for two adakite-like intrusions in southern Korea (Jindong and Bongnae), including major and trace element concentrations, and the sensitive high-resolution ion microprobe (SHRIMP) zircon U–Pb age. Our aim is to constrain the origin and tectonomagmatic processes that gave rise to the plutons. A SHRIMP U–Pb zircon age of 88.7±0.7Ma was obtained from a Jindong granodiorite sample. The Jindong plutons belong to the medium-K calc-alkaline series, and have an overall enrichment in large ion lithophile elements (LILE), such as K, Rb, Ba, and Pb, and a relative depletion in high field strength elements, such as Nb, Ta, and Ti, compared with the neighboring elements in the primitive mantle-normalized multi-trace element variation diagram. It was found that (87Sr/86Sr)i=0.70475–0.70596, (143Nd/144Nd)i=0.512547–0.512604, [(εNd)i=+0.4 to 2.2], and (206Pb/204Pb)i=18.19–18.37, which fall within the field of the arc-type Cretaceous to Tertiary Bulguksa intrusive rocks in the Sr–Nd and Pb–Pb isotopic correlation diagrams. The elevated Sr/Y (17–40), but low La/Yb (3.7–8.8) ratios of the Jindong plutons, together with their coherent geochemical trends and U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns, indicate that they were not formed by slab melting, but by amphibole-dominated fractional crystallization of the Bulguksa-like arc magma. A SHRIMP U–Pb zircon age of 226.5±2.5Ma was obtained from a Bongnae tonalite sample. The Bongnae plutons belong to the shoshonitic series. Their trace element patterns resemble the Jindong samples, but are characterized by significantly negative U anomalies in mafic rocks. They also have elevated MgO, Ni, Co, Cr, Rb, Ba, Sr, and low Al2O3 and Na2O contents at a given SiO2 concentration compared with the Jindong plutons, and are typified by highly radiogenic Sr and unradiogenic Nd and Pb isotopic compositions: [(87Sr/86Sr)i=0.71096–0.71290, (143Nd/144Nd)i=0.511641–0.511681, (εNd)i=−13.0 to −13.8, and (206Pb/204Pb)i=17.53–17.45]. The Bongnae plutons have adakite-like elevated Sr/Y (36–56) and La/Yb (12.9–42.7) ratios, but are highly potassic compared with slab melts. The petrogenesis of the C-type Bongnae adakites is consistent with formation by the partial melting of two components (a lower crust and metasomatized lithospheric mantle) in a post-collisional tectonic setting. Asthenospheric upwelling induced by slab breakoff after continental collision between the north and south China blocks may be a heat source for melting of the continental lithosphere. The Paleo-Tethys subduction before continental collision in this area or lower crustal delamination and subsequent low fractions of melting may have induced metasomatic overprinting in LILE in the overlying lithospheric mantle.

Melt percolation in the Songshugou ultramafic massif of the Qinling orogenic belt, Central China

The Songshugou ultramafic massif in the Qinling orogenic belt is taken as the largest Alpine-type ultramafic body in China, covering an area of ~20 km2. This ultramafic massif consists mainly of dunite (~90%), harzburgite, and wehrlite, with abundant pods of chromitite in the dunite. All dunites in the ultramafic massif have similar mineral compositions, consisting mainly of olivine and enstatite. They are also similar in chemical compositions, including U-shaped chondrite-normalized rare earth element (REE) patterns. Whole rock analyses of the Songshugou ultramafic samples consistently show higher concentrations of highly incompatible elements, light REEs, Zr, and Hf, but lower Mg# (Mg# = Mg/(Mg + FeTotal)) compared to refractory peridotites. The platinum group element (PGE) concentrations of the Songshugou dunite are relatively low, with total PGE concentrations varying between 1.3 and 6.9 ppb, which are significantly lower than those of the Songshugou harzburgite (with total PGE concentrations of 7.8–24.3 ppb), as well as those of refractory mantle peridotites in general. Such low PGE concentrations in the dunite indicate that these dunites were not formed through partial melting or accumulation. We propose that the Songshugou dunite is formed by percolation of melt through harzburgite at high melt/rock ratios.

Platinum-group element (PGE) geochemistry of Mesoarchean ultramafic–mafic cumulate rocks and chromitites from the Nuasahi Massif, Singhbhum Craton (India)

The Mesoarchean Nuasahi Massif in eastern India comprises a lower ultramafic and an upper gabbro unit. The lower unit consists of orthopyroxenite, harzburgite, dunite and three chromitite bands. All these rocks are characterized by adcumulate textures. The upper unit consists of gabbro with magnetite layers. At the contact between the eastern orthopyroxenite and the lower part of the upper gabbro, a sulfide-rich breccia zone with platinum-group-element (PGE) mineralization is present. Detailed studies of major-, trace- and PGE abundances suggest that the ultramafic-mafic cumulate rocks, chromitites and breccias are genetically linked. The chondrite-normalized U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns of the harzburgite resemble those of Phanerozoic boninite. The overall U-shaped REE patterns of the ultramafic rocks indicate derivation of the parental magma from a metasomatized depleted mantle source. The upper gabbros have higher relative abundances of trace elements than the lower ultramafic rocks, due to crystallization from a fractionated magma. Whole-rock geochemistry suggests that the lower ultramafic cumulate rocks with chromitites crystallized from a boninitic parental magma, whereas the upper gabbros with magnetite bands may be formed from residual boninitic magma that was contaminated by more tholeiitic-like magmas. The boninitic parental magma that crystallized to form the lower ultramafic unit was most likely generated by second-stage melting of a depleted metasomatized mantle source in a supra-subduction zone (SSZ) setting and emplaced into crustal sequences. The PGE abundances in the Nuasahi rocks provide additional constraints on their geochemical evolution during the Mesoarchean. Primitive-mantle-normalized PGE diagrams show (1) Ru enrichment in chromitites (Pd/Ru = 0.17 - 0.64), (2) Pd/Pt fractionation in both chromitites (Pd/Pt = 3.1) and ultramafic rocks (Pd/Pt = 0.62), (3) marked Ir depletion in ultramafic rocks (Pd/Ir = 6.3) and (4) overall PGE enrichment in chromitites (PGEtotal = 142 – 502 ppb). The large Ir depletion in the ultramafic rocks, and the overall Ir-depleted character of other rocks from the Nuasahi Massif, may be related to multiple episodes of melt extraction from the mantle source, giving it a subchondritic character.

Rapid forearc spreading between 130 and 120 Ma: Evidence from geochronology and geochemistry of the Xigaze ophiolite, southern Tibet

The Cretaceous Xigaze ophiolite is best exposed at the central Yarlung Zangbo Suture Zone (YZSZ, Tibet) which also includes the Gangdese arc and the Xigaze forearc basin. This study reports new geochronological and geochemical data for this ophiolite to revisit its geodynamic and petrogenetic evolution. The Xigaze peridotites have low CaO and Al2O3 contents and U-shaped Rare Earth Element (REE) patterns, suggesting that they are residues after moderate to high degrees of partial melting and were modified by infiltration of Light Rare Earth Element (LREE)-enriched boninitic melts. The Xigaze crustal rocks belong to two groups: Mid-Ocean Ridge Basalt (MORB)-like rocks and boninitic rocks showing a uniform LREE depletion and flat to LREE enrichment on chondrite-normalized patterns, respectively. Geochemically, both groups show the influence of subducting oceanic slab-derived fluids. LA-ICPMS zircon U–Pb and Lu–Hf analyses from dolerite and quartz diorite dikes, which intruded into the mantle peridotite, and dolerite sheeted sills show that they were generated between 127 and 124Ma. The zircons possess positive εHf(t) values ranging from +7.5 to +17.3. Taking into account the geological and geochronological characteristics of the central-western YZSZ, we propose that ophiolites in this region formed in a forearc spreading setting through rapid slab rollback during subduction initiation between 130 and 120Ma. Following this stage of spreading, the forearc was stabilized and the zone of melting migrated beneath the Gangdese arc producing the voluminous Late Cretaceous granitoids displaying depleted mantle-type Hf isotopic compositions. Our model provides a new explanation for the generation and evolution of forearc-type ophiolites.

The metasomatic record in the shallow peridotite mantle beneath Grenada (Lesser Antilles arc)

The composition and geochemical signatures of the mantle wedge beneath the Lesser Antilles arc are documented by the ultramafic xenoliths included in alkali basalts (M-series) on Grenada. Xenoliths consist of harzburgites, lherzolites, dunites and subordinate wehrlites and pyroxenites. Primary minerals phases are olivine, low-Al and high-Al orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene and Cr-Spinel. In addition to the primary assemblage, Grenada xenoliths contain metasomatic phases such as Al-rich clinopyroxene, plagioclase, Al-rich spinel, pargasitic amphibole and Si- and Al-rich glasses. The trace-element signatures of pyroxenes and glasses have been determined on selected samples by LA-ICP-MS. Pyroxenes from both lherzolite and harzburgite xenoliths have U-shaped rare earth element (REE) profiles, unusually high Th, U and Sr concentrations and large negative Nb, Ta and Zr, and Hf anomalies. The geochemical signatures of metasomatic clinopyroxene are different from those reported for clinopyroxene from fluid-metasomatised mantle wedge, and are clearly distinct from those of clinopyroxene in equilibrium with host lavas. Si-rich glasses show a narrow compositional range, with trace-element characteristics closely similar to those of reacted pyroxenes. This, along with the general lack of chemical gradients of LILE and LREE over more compatible elements suggests dacitic glasses represent the products of in-situ melting caused by temperature increase before and during the uptake of xenoliths by host lavas. Dacitic melts are believed to represent local re-melts of regions metasomatically enriched by earlier arc magmas that had stalled, fractionated, and solidified in the upper mantle. These local re-melts thus reflect the metasomatic component formed by earlier arc-related metasomatic agents and liable to be re-mobilised. This also appears to be the easiest way to explain the compositional similarities between erupted arc lavas and the metasomatised peridotites. The results of this study suggest that the mantle wedge beneath the Lesser Antilles underwent complex peridotite–melt reaction processes operated by sub-arc melts and, later on, by magmas similar in compositions to the host alkali basalts. The majority of the compositional range of erupted Grenada magmas, but adakites found at surface, can be obtained by the interaction of basalts, possibly formed by hydrous melting of MORB-source mantle, with the overlying mantle wedge.

Geochemical and petrological evidence for a suprasubduction zone origin of Neoarchean (ca. 2.5 Ga) peridotites, central orogenic belt, North China craton

Research Article| July 01, 2006 Geochemical and petrological evidence for a suprasubduction zone origin of Neoarchean (ca. 2.5 Ga) peridotites, central orogenic belt, North China craton Ali Polat; Ali Polat 1Department of Earth Sciences, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario N9B 3P4, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Claude Herzberg; Claude Herzberg 2Department of Geological Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Carsten Münker; Carsten Münker 3Institut für Mineralogie, Universität Münster, Corrensstrasse 24, 48149 Münster, Germany, and Mineralogisch-Petrologisches Institut, Universität Bonn, Poppelsdorfer Schloss, 53115 Bonn, Germany Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Rebecca Rodgers; Rebecca Rodgers 4Department of Geological Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Tim Kusky; Tim Kusky 5Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri 63103, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jianghai Li; Jianghai Li 6Department of Geology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Brian Fryer; Brian Fryer 7Department of Earth Sciences, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario N9B 3P4, Canada, and Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research, University of Windsor, Windsor, Ontario N9B 3P4, Canada Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Jeremy Delaney Jeremy Delaney 8Department of Geological Sciences, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey 08903, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar GSA Bulletin (2006) 118 (7-8): 771–784. https://doi.org/10.1130/B25845.1 Article history received: 17 May 2005 rev-recd: 14 Nov 2005 accepted: 28 Feb 2006 first online: 08 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Ali Polat, Claude Herzberg, Carsten Münker, Rebecca Rodgers, Tim Kusky, Jianghai Li, Brian Fryer, Jeremy Delaney; Geochemical and petrological evidence for a suprasubduction zone origin of Neoarchean (ca. 2.5 Ga) peridotites, central orogenic belt, North China craton. GSA Bulletin 2006;; 118 (7-8): 771–784. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/B25845.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGSA Bulletin Search Advanced Search Abstract The 2.55–2.50 Ga Zunhua and Wutaishan belts within the central orogenic belt of the North China craton contain variably metamorphosed and deformed tectonic blocks of peridotites and amphibolites that occur in a sheared metasedimentary matrix. In the Zunhua belt, dunites comprise podiform chromitites with high and uniform Cr-numbers (88). Peridotites and associated picritic amphibolites are characterized by light rare earth element (LREE)–enriched patterns and negative high field strength element (HFSE: Nb, Zr, and Ti) anomalies. They have positive initial ϵHf values (+7.9 to +10.4), which are consistent with an extremely depleted mantle composition. Mass-balance calculations indicate that the composition of the 2.55 Ga mantle beneath the Zunhua belt was enriched in SiO2 and FeOT compared to modern abyssal peridotites. These geochemical signatures are consistent with a suprasubduction zone geodynamic setting. Metasomatism of the subarc mantle by slab-derived hydrous melts and/or fluids at ca. 2.55 Ga is likely to have been the cause of the subduction zone geochemical signatures in peridotites of the Zunhua belt.In the Wutaishan belt, chromitite-hosting harzburgites and dunites display U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns and have high Mg-numbers (91.1–94.5). These geochemical characteristics are similar to those of Phanerozoic forearc peridotites. The dunites might have formed by dissolution of orthopyroxene in reactive melt channels, similar to those in modern ophiolites. However, they differ in detail, and they might be residues of Archean komatiites. Following the initiation of an intra-oceanic subduction zone, they were trapped as a forearc mantle wedge between the subducting slab and magmatic arc. Slab-derived hydrous melts infiltrating through the mantle wedge metasomatized the depleted mantle residue, resulting in U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Geochemistry of Neoarchean (ca. 2.55–2.50 Ga) volcanic and ophiolitic rocks in the Wutaishan greenstone belt, central orogenic belt, North China craton: Implications for geodynamic setting and continental growth

Geological investigation of the Neoarchean (2.55–2.50 Ga) Wutaishan greenstone belt in the central orogenic belt of the North China craton has provided new information on the geodynamic origin of this belt and its mineral deposits. Structural, geochronological, and geochemical characteristics of the Wutaishan greenstone belt suggest that it formed in a forearc tectonic environment at ca. 2.55 Ga and accreted to the Eastern continental block at ca. 2.50 Ga. A ridge subduction model is proposed to explain several unique geological features of the Wutaishan greenstone belt, such as the generation of dunites and chromitite-hosting harzburgites with U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns, formation of volcanogenic massive sulphides (VMS) and banded iron formations (BIF), extrusion of mafic to felsic volcanic rocks, and intrusion of tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite plutons (TTG). Anomalously high geothermal gradients in the subarc mantle-wedge beneath the Wutaishan forearc may have increased its buoyancy, resulting in its accretion to the continental crust. We propose that ridge subduction also played an important role in the growth of Archean continental crust. In this model, the origin of Archean TTG is genetically linked to eclogites through partial melting of accreted and/or underplated oceanic plateaus and normal oceanic crust under amphibolite to eclogite metamorphic conditions by upwelling of an anomalously hot asthenospheric mantle window resulting from ridge subduction. TTG suites intruding Archean accretionary complexes formed the nuclei of intra-oceanic island arcs; subsequent juxtaposition of these arcs resulted in the lateral growth of Archean continental crust.

Hidden melting signatures recorded in the Troodos ophiolite plutonic suite: evidence for widespread generation of depleted melts and intra-crustal melt aggregation

The main plutonic complex of the Troodos ophiolite, north of the Arakapas Fault Zone, has been re-examined both from field and geochemical perspectives. Ion microprobe analyses of clinopyroxene crystal cores show that the range of melt compositions added to the lower crust far exceeds that of published lavas in the main Troodos massif. This suggests that the lower crust acted as a filter into which a large range of melt compositions were added and out of which a homogenised (and generally fractionated) derivative was extracted. This crustal-level aggregation homogenised diverse melt fractions from a broad range of degrees of melting. Depleted melts with U-shaped rare earth element (REE) patterns were a significant component of the melts added to the crust, but because of their low incompatible element abundances, mixing with less depleted melts prior to eruption masked their signature in the lavas. The discovery that highly depleted melts constituted a significant component of the melts added to the Troodos crust, but not of the lavas, demonstrates that the spatial distribution of lava-types is not necessarily a good indicator of where different parental melt compositions are generated within the mantle. Compared with normal mid-ocean ridge basalts, the Troodos parental melts were (1) generally depleted in immobile incompatible trace elements, (2) less depleted in light REE (LREE) than would be expected for the concomitant depletion in middle and heavy REE, (3) enriched in Sr with respect to the LREE and (4) more oxidised. Modelling of these characteristics suggests a mantle source that had previously lost a significant melt fraction under relatively reducing conditions. This was followed by remelting under more oxidising conditions in an environment in which Sr and LREE were added to the source consistent with previous models of a supra-subduction zone setting.

The origin of U-shaped rare earth patterns in ophiolite peridotites: assessing the role of secondary alteration and melt/rock reaction

Ten samples of serpentinized harzburgite and lherzolite from the Trinity ophiolite complex (California) can be classified into two groups using their REE patterns and initial neodymium and strontium isotopic ratios. Samples with the most refractory major element compositions (Al 2O 3 = 0.6–1.8%; CaO < 1.2%) have U-shaped REE patterns and show low to very low ε Nd(T) values (+2 to −7), but high to very high 87Sr/ 86Sr(T) ratios (up to 0.715), whereas rocks with more fertile major element compositions (Al 2O 3 = 2–3.2%; CaO = 2–2.6%) give REE patterns showing increasing depletion from Lu to La and have high ε Nd(T) values (+6 to +8), but low 87Sr/ 86Sr(T) ratios (0.703–0.704). The low neodymium and high strontium isotopic ratios of those peridotites having U-shaped REE patterns demonstrate that the LREE enrichments observed in these rocks are the result of contamination by continental crust and not the consequence of peculiar fractionation during melting or chromatographic effects during mantle ascent. A clinopyroxene concentrate prepared from a bulk sample of lherzolite with ε Nd(T) = −7 and 87Sr/ 86Sr(T) = 0.708 gives MORB-like isotopic signatures: ε Nd(T) = +14 and 87Sr/ 86Sr(T) = 0.7035. Furthermore, two highly serpentinized samples with U-shaped REE patterns show strongly negative δD values (−95 and −110‰) much typical of peridotites altered by continental metamorphic fluids or/and meteoritic waters. From these results, we conclude that the crustal contamination corresponds to a low-temperature alteration event which took place during or after obduction of the Trinity ophiolite complex onto the continent and is not the consequence of any high-temperature invasion of the ultramafic rocks by melts/fluids derived from subducted continental materials.

Peridotites from the Izu-Bonin-Mariana Forearc (ODP Leg 125): Evidence for Mantle Melting and Melt-Mantle Interaction in a Supra-Subduction Zone Setting

Ocean Drilling Program Leg 125 recovered serpentinized harzburgites and dunites from a total of five sites on the crests and flanks of two serpentinite seamounts, Conical Seamount in the Mariana forearc and Torishima Forearc Seamount in the Izu–Bonin forearc. These are some of the first extant forearc peridotites reported in the literature and they provide a window into oceanic, supra-subduction zone (SSZ) mantle processes. Harzburgites from both seamounts are very refractory with low modal clinopyroxene (<4%), chrome-rich spinels (cr-number = 0.40–0.80), very low incompatible element contents, and (with the exception of amphibole-bearing samples) U-shaped rare earth element (REE) profiles with positive Eu anomalies. Both sets of peridotites have olivine–spinel equilibration temperatures that are low compared with abyssal peridotites, possibly because of water-assisted diffusional equilibration in the SSZ environment. However, other features indicate that the harzburgites from the two seamounts have very different origins. Harzburgites from Conical Seamount are characterized by calculated oxygen fugacities between FMQ (fayalite–magnetite–quartz) – 1.1 (log units) and FMQ + 0.4 which overlap those of mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) peridotites. Dunites from Conical Seamount contain small amounts of clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene and amphibole and are light REE (LREE) enriched. Moreover, they are considerably more oxidized than the harzburgites to which they are spatially related, with calculated oxygen fugacities of FMQ – 0.2 to FMQ + 1.2. Using textural and geochemical evidence, we interpret these harzburgites as residual MORB mantle (from 15 to 20% fractional melting) which has subsequently been modified by interaction with boninitic melt within the mantle wedge, and these dunites as zones of focusing of this melt in which pyroxene has preferentially been dissolved from the harzburgite protolith. In contrast, harzburgites from Torishima Forearc Seamount give calculated oxygen fugacities between FMQ + 0.8 and FMQ + 1.6, similar to those calculated for other subduction-zone related peridotites and similar to those calculated for the dunites (FMQ + 1.2 to FMQ + 1.8) from the same seamount. In this case, we interpret both the harzburgites and dunites as linked to mantle melting (20–25% fractional melting) in a supra-subduction zone environment. The results thus indicate that the forearc is underlain by at least two types of mantle lithosphere, one being trapped or accreted oceanic lithosphere, the other being lithosphere formed by subduction-related melting. They also demonstrate that both types of mantle lithosphere may have undergone extensive interaction with subduction-derived magmas.

Multiple origins for mantle harzburgites: examples from the Lewis Hills, Bay of Islands ophiolite, Newfoundland

Harzburgite is a common rock type in ophiolites and alpine peridotites. It is considered to be typical of a residual mantle mineralogy, i.e., material left behind after periods of extensive mantle melting and melt–rock and fluid–rock interactions that produce a variety of basaltic melts. The processes by which these melts and residua are produced are complicated; therefore, to fully understand them, it is necessary to undertake detailed and integrated field, petrographic, and geochemical studies of large exposures of mantle material as part of the investigative process. Such a study in the Bay of Islands ophiolite exposed in the Lewis Hills of Newfoundland has enabled the identification of four major types of harzburgite, which represent examples of a complete spectrum of this rock type. Depleted, residual harzburgite and associated dunite, with positive-sloping rare earth element patterns, may develop U-shaped rare earth element patterns and a visible orthopyroxene enrichment by the introduction of a component of high-Mg, quartz-normative melt, or a hydrous fluid component with a high Si/Al ratio. Conversely, U-shaped rare earth element patterns and apparent orthopyroxene depletion may occur by the addition of low-Si/Al, hydrous fluid. Such enrichments and depletions of orthopyroxene by solution–precipitation reactions may result not only in the variety of harzburgite types, which on partial melting might produce a range of melt products, but also in fronts of harzburgite migrating through the mantle.

Rare earth element geochemistry of Thetford Mines ophiolite complex, Northern Appalachians, Canada

The Thetford Mines complex is a complete ophiolite which is part of an ultramafic-mafic belt within Quebec Appalachians. These allochtonous bodies were emplaced during the Early Ordovician. The Thetford Mines complex comprises a lower unit of metamorphic harzburgite (in which tabular, dyke-like, dunitic bodies occur) overlain successively by ultramafic cumulates, mafic cumulates, ophitic gabbros, diabase sills and dykes, and basaltic volcanic rocks. Field evidence, petrography and chemical data indicate that the tabular dunitic bodies formed when fractures in the metamorphic harzburgite (which constituted the floor of the magma chamber) filled with early cumulates (i.e., olivine±chromite). Representative rocks from all units were analyzed for major and rare earth elements (REE). Metamorphic harzburgite samples from Thetford Mines complex have U-shaped chondrite-normalized REE patterns. Pyroxenites and wehrlites of the cumulate sequence are all strongly light-REE depleted and have heavy REE ranging from 0.4 to 1.5 times chondrite. REE data from ultramafic and volcanic rocks of Thetford Mines complex and geochemical modelling indicate that the metamorphic harzburgite has the chemical characteristics of depleted upper mantle residues with U-shaped patterns, and that the ultramafic cumulates crystallized from magmas having different La/Yb ratios.