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SDLRC - Scientific Articles all years by Author - H-Hd
The Sheahan Diamond Literature Reference Compilation
The Sheahan Diamond Literature Reference Compilation is compiled by Patricia Sheahan who publishes on a monthly basis a list of new scientific articles related to diamonds as well as media coverage and corporate announcementscalled the Sheahan Diamond Literature Service that is distributed as a free pdf to a list of followers. Pat has kindly agreed to allow her work to be made available as an online digital resource at Kaiser Research Online so that a broader community interested in diamonds and related geology can benefit. The references are for personal use information purposes only; when available a link is provided to an online location where the full article can be accessed or purchased directly. Reproduction of this compilation in part or in whole without permission from the Sheahan Diamond Literature Service is strictly prohibited. Return to Diamond Resource Center
Sheahan Diamond Literature Reference Compilation - Scientific Articles by Author for all years
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Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, Vol. 20, 2, pp. 952-973.
United States, New Mexico
xenoliths
Abstract: Elemental and isotopic compositions of volatile species such as halogens, noble gases, hydrogen, and carbon can be used to trace the evolution of these species in the Earth. Halogens are important tracers of subduction recycling of surface volatiles into the mantle: however, there is only limited understanding of halogens in the mantle. Here we provide new halogen data of mantle xenoliths from intraplate settings. The mantle xenoliths show a wide range of halogen elemental ratios, which are expected to be related to later processes after the xenoliths formed. A similar primary halogen component is present in the xenoliths sampled from different localities. This suggests that the mantle has the uniform halogen composition over a wide scale. The halogen composition in the convecting mantle is expected to have remained constant over more than 2 billion years, despite subduction of iodine?rich halogens. We used mass balance calculations to gain understanding into evolution rate of I/Cl ratio in the mantle. Calculations suggest that, in order to maintain the I/Cl ratio of the mantle over 2 Gyr, the I/Cl ratio of the subducted halogens must be no more than several times higher than the present?day mantle value.
Abstract: Rare metals including Lithium (Li), Beryllium (Be), Rubidium (Rb), Cesium (Cs), Zirconium (Zr), Hafnium (Hf), Niobium (Nb), Tantalum (Ta), Tungsten (W) and Tin (Sn) are important critical mineral resources. In China, rare metal mineral deposits are spatially distributed mainly in the Altay and Southern Great Xingán Range regions in the Central Asian orogenic belt; in the Middle Qilian, South Qinling and East Qinling mountains regions in the Qilian-Qinling-Dabie orogenic belt; in the Western Sichuan and Bailongshan-Dahongliutan regions in the Kunlun-Songpan-Garze orogenic belt, and in the Northeastern Jiangxi, Northwestern Jiangxi, and Southern Hunan regions in South China. Major ore?forming epochs include Indosinian (mostly 200-240 Ma, in particular in western China) and the Yanshanian (mostly 120-160 Ma, in particular in South China). In addition, Bayan Obo, Inner Mongolia, northeastern China, with a complex formation history, hosts the largest REE and Nb deposits in China. There are six major rare metal mineral deposit types in China: Highly fractionated granite; Pegmatite; Alkaline granite; Carbonatite and alkaline rock; Volcanic; and Hydrothermal types. Two further types, namely the Leptynite type and Breccia pipe type, have recently been discovered in China, and are represented by the Yushishan Nb-Ta- (Zr-Hf-REE) and the Weilasituo Li-Rb-Sn-W-Zn-Pb deposits. Several most important controlling factors for rare metal mineral deposits are discussed, including geochemical behaviors and sources of the rare metals, highly evolved magmatic fractionation, and structural controls such as the metamorphic core complex setting, with a revised conceptual model for the latter.
Abstract: The Mengyin diamondiferous kimberlite cluster in Shandong province is one of the three major sources of natural diamond in China, where many brown diamonds are mined, but the genesis of their color is still controversial. In this paper, studies including microscopic examination, optical properties of orthogonal polarization, low temperature photoluminescence spectra, infrared spectra, Raman spectra, ultraviolet-visible absorption spectra, luminescence of cathodoluminescence, and transmission electron microscopy have been carried out on the uncut brown diamonds and their slice samples to constrain on the color genesis of brown diamond from the Mengyin deposit. The results show that the brown color is dominantly caused by plastic deformation, and some samples are also caused by non-deformation-related defects and inclusions.
Barry, P.H., de Moor, J.M., Giovannelli, D., Schrenk, M., Hummer, D.R., Lopez, T., Pratt, C.A., Alpizar Segua, Y., Battaglia, A., Beaudry, A., Bini, G., Cascante, M., d'Errico, G., di Carlo, M., Fattorini, D., Fullerton, K., H+Gazel, E., Gonzalez, G., Hal
Abstract: Carbon and other volatiles in the form of gases, fluids or mineral phases are transported from Earth’s surface into the mantle at convergent margins, where the oceanic crust subducts beneath the continental crust. The efficiency of this transfer has profound implications for the nature and scale of geochemical heterogeneities in Earth’s deep mantle and shallow crustal reservoirs, as well as Earth’s oxidation state. However, the proportions of volatiles released from the forearc and backarc are not well constrained compared to fluxes from the volcanic arc front. Here we use helium and carbon isotope data from deeply sourced springs along two cross-arc transects to show that about 91 per cent of carbon released from the slab and mantle beneath the Costa Rican forearc is sequestered within the crust by calcite deposition. Around an additional three per cent is incorporated into the biomass through microbial chemolithoautotrophy, whereby microbes assimilate inorganic carbon into biomass. We estimate that between 1.2 × 108 and 1.3 × 1010 moles of carbon dioxide per year are released from the slab beneath the forearc, and thus up to about 19 per cent less carbon is being transferred into Earth’s deep mantle than previously estimated.
A comparison of the uncompahgrite turjaite complex (phlogopite, melilite) of south Nayanza, western Kenya, with similar rock complexes in Asia, Australia, America
11th. Quadrennial Iagod Symposium And Geocongress 2002 Held Windhoek, Abstract p. 37.
Abstract: The causes for the formation of large igneous provinces and hotspot trails are still a matter of considerable dispute. Seismic tomography and other studies suggest that hot mantle material rising from the core-mantle boundary (CMB) might play a significant role in the formation of such hotspot trails. An important area to verify this concept is the South Atlantic region, with hotspot trails that spatially coincide with one of the largest low-velocity regions at the CMB, the African large low shear-wave velocity province. The Walvis Ridge started to form during the separation of the South American and African continents at ca. 130 Ma as a consequence of Gondwana breakup. Here, we present the first deep-seismic sounding images of the crustal structure from the landfall area of the Walvis Ridge at the Namibian coast to constrain processes of plume-lithosphere interaction and the formation of continental flood basalts (Paraná and Etendeka continental flood basalts) and associated intrusive rocks. Our study identified a narrow region (<100 km) of high-seismic-velocity anomalies in the middle and lower crust, which we interpret as a massive mafic intrusion into the northern Namibian continental crust. Seismic crustal reflection imaging shows a flat Moho as well as reflectors connecting the high-velocity body with shallow crustal structures that we speculate to mark potential feeder channels of the Etendeka continental flood basalt. We suggest that the observed massive but localized mafic intrusion into the lower crust results from similar-sized variations in the lithosphere (i.e., lithosphere thickness or preexisting structures).
Abstract: The causes for the formation of large igneous provinces and hotspot trails are still a matter of considerable dispute. Seismic tomography and other studies suggest that hot mantle material rising from the core-mantle boundary (CMB) might play a significant role in the formation of such hotspot trails. An important area to verify this concept is the South Atlantic region, with hotspot trails that spatially coincide with one of the largest low-velocity regions at the CMB, the African large low shear-wave velocity province. The Walvis Ridge started to form during the separation of the South American and African continents at ca. 130 Ma as a consequence of Gondwana breakup. Here, we present the first deep-seismic sounding images of the crustal structure from the landfall area of the Walvis Ridge at the Namibian coast to constrain processes of plume-lithosphere interaction and the formation of continental flood basalts (Paraná and Etendeka continental flood basalts) and associated intrusive rocks. Our study identified a narrow region (<100 km) of high-seismic-velocity anomalies in the middle and lower crust, which we interpret as a massive mafic intrusion into the northern Namibian continental crust. Seismic crustal reflection imaging shows a flat Moho as well as reflectors connecting the high-velocity body with shallow crustal structures that we speculate to mark potential feeder channels of the Etendeka continental flood basalt. We suggest that the observed massive but localized mafic intrusion into the lower crust results from similar-sized variations in the lithosphere (i.e., lithosphere thickness or preexisting structures).
Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 115, 19p. Doi.org/101007 /s00710-020- 00723-x pdf
South America, Colombia
REE
Abstract: A multi-methodological study was conducted in order to provide further insight into the structural and compositional complexity of rare earth element (REE) fluorcarbonates, with particular attention to their correct assignment to a mineral species. Polycrystals from La Pita Mine, Municipality de Maripí, Boyacá Department, Colombia, show syntaxic intergrowth of parisite-(Ce) with röntgenite-(Ce) and a phase which is assigned to B3S4 (i.e., bastnäsite-3-synchisite-4; still unnamed) fluorcarbonate. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images reveal well-ordered stacking patterns of two monoclinic polytypes of parisite-(Ce) as well as heavily disordered layer sequences with varying lattice fringe spacings. The crystal structure refinement from single crystal X-ray diffraction data - impeded by twinning, complex stacking patterns, sequential and compositional faults - indicates that the dominant parisite-(Ce) polytype M1 has space group Cc. Parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) show different BSE intensities from high to low. Raman spectroscopic analyses of parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) reveal different intensity ratios of the three symmetric CO3 stretching bands at around 1100 cm?1. We propose to non-destructively differentiate parisite-(Ce) and röntgenite-(Ce) by their 1092 cm?1 / 1081 cm?1 ?1(CO3) band height ratio.
Abstract: A multi-methodological study was conducted in order to provide further insight into the structural and compositional complexity of rare earth element (REE) fluorcarbonates, with particular attention to their correct assignment to a mineral species. Polycrystals from La Pita Mine, Municipality de Maripí, Boyacá Department, Colombia, show syntaxic intergrowth of parisite-(Ce) with röntgenite-(Ce) and a phase which is assigned to B3S4 (i.e., bastnäsite-3-synchisite-4; still unnamed) fluorcarbonate. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images reveal well-ordered stacking patterns of two monoclinic polytypes of parisite-(Ce) as well as heavily disordered layer sequences with varying lattice fringe spacings. The crystal structure refinement from single crystal X-ray diffraction data - impeded by twinning, complex stacking patterns, sequential and compositional faults - indicates that the dominant parisite-(Ce) polytype M1 has space group Cc. Parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) show different BSE intensities from high to low. Raman spectroscopic analyses of parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) reveal different intensity ratios of the three symmetric CO3 stretching bands at around 1100 cm-1. We propose to non-destructively differentiate parisite-(Ce) and röntgenite-(Ce) by their 1092 cm-1 / 1081 cm-1 ?1(CO3) band height ratio.
Abstract: The mantle section of Al'Ays ophiolite consists of heterogeneously depleted harzburgites, dunites and large-sized chromitite pods. Two chromitite-bearing sites (Site1 and Site2), about 10 km apart horizontally from one another, were examined for their upper mantle rocks. Cr-spinels from the two sites have different chemistry; Cr-rich in Site1 and Al-rich in Site2. The average Cr-ratio = (Cr/(Cr + Al) atomic ratio) of Cr-spinels in harzburgites, dunites and chromitites is remarkably high 0.78, 0.77 and 0.87, respectively, in Site1, compared with those of Site2 which have intermediate ratio averages 0.5, 0.56 and 0.6, respectively. The platinum-group elements (PGE) in chromitites also show contrasting patterns from Site1 to Site2; having elevated IPGE (Os, Ir, Ru) and strongly depleted in PPGE (Rh, Pt, Pd) with steep negative slopes in the former, and gentle negative slopes in the latter. The oxygen fugacity (?log fO2) values deduced from harzburgites and dunites of Site1 show a wide variation under reducing conditions, mostly below the FMQ buffer. The Site2 harzburgites and dunites, on the other hand are mostly above the FMQ buffer. Two magmatic stages are suggested for the lithospheric evolution of Al'Ays ophiolite in response to a switch of tectonic setting. The first stage produced a peridotites–chromitites suite with Al-rich Cr-spinels, possibly beneath a mid-ocean ridge setting, or most likely in back-arc rift of a supra-subduction zone setting. The second stage involved higher degrees of partial melting, produced a peridotites–chromitites suite with Cr-rich Cr-spinels, possibly in a fore-arc setting. The coexistence of compositionally different mantle suites with different melting histories in a restricted area of an ophiolite complex may be attributable to a mechanically juxtaposed by mantle convection during recycling. The mantle harzburgites and dunites are apt to be compositionally modified during recycling process; being highly depleted (Site1 case) than their original composition (Site2 case).
Ratschbacher, L., Franz, L., Enkelmann, E., Jonckheere, R., Porschke, A., Hacker, B.R., Dong, S., Zhang, Y.
The Sino-Korean Yangtze suture, the Huwan detachment and the Paleozoic Tertiary exhumation of ultra high pressure rocks along the Tongbai Xinxian Dabie Mtns.
Geological Society of America, Special Paper, No. 403, pp. 45-76.
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Vol. 43, pp. 167-205.
Mantle
Magmatism
Abstract: The composition of much of Earth's lower continental crust is enigmatic. Wavespeeds require that 10 -20% of the lower third is mafic, but the available heat-flow and wavespeed constraints can be satisfied if lower continental crust elsewhere contains anywhere from 49 to 62 wt% SiO2. Thus, contrary to common belief, the lower crust in many regions could be relatively felsic, with SiO2 contents similar to andesites and dacites. Most lower crust is less dense than the underlying mantle, but mafic lowermost crust could be unstable and likely delaminates beneath rifts and arcs. During sediment subduction, subduction erosion, arc subduction, and continent subduction, mafic rocks become eclogites and may continue to descend into the mantle, whereas more silica-rich rocks are transformed into felsic gneisses that are less dense than peridotite but more dense than continental upper crust. These more felsic rocks may rise buoyantly, undergo decompression melting and melt extraction, and be relaminated to the base of the crust. As a result of this refining and differentiation process, such relatively felsic rocks could form much of Earth's lower crust.
Abstract: Some of Earth's coldest mantle is found in subduction zones at the tip of the mantle wedge that lies between the subducting and overriding plates. This forearc mantle is isolated from the flow of hot material beneath the volcanic arc, and so is inferred to reach temperatures no more than 600 to 800 °C — conditions at which hydrous mantle minerals should be stable. The forearc mantle could therefore constitute a significant reservoir for water if sufficient water is released from the subducting slab into the mantle wedge. Such a reservoir could hydrate the plate interface and has been invoked to aid the genesis of megathrust earthquakes and slow slip events. Our synthesis of results from thermal models that simulate the conditions for subduction zones globally, however, indicates that dehydration of subducting plates is too slow over the life span of a typical subduction zone to hydrate the forearc mantle. Hot subduction zones, where slabs dehydrate rapidly, are an exception. The hottest, most buoyant forearcs are most likely to survive plate collisions and be exhumed to the surface, so probably dominate the metamorphic rock record. Analysis of global seismic data confirms the generally dry nature of mantle forearcs. We conclude that many subduction zones probably liberate insufficient water to hydrate the shallower plate boundary where great earthquakes and slow slip events nucleate. Thus, we suggest that it is solid-state processes and not hydration that leads to weakening of the plate interface in cold subduction zones.
Abstract: Some of Earth's coldest mantle is found in subduction zones at the tip of the mantle wedge that lies between the subducting and overriding plates. This forearc mantle is isolated from the flow of hot material beneath the volcanic arc, and so is inferred to reach temperatures no more than 600 to 800 °C - conditions at which hydrous mantle minerals should be stable. The forearc mantle could therefore constitute a significant reservoir for water if sufficient water is released from the subducting slab into the mantle wedge. Such a reservoir could hydrate the plate interface and has been invoked to aid the genesis of megathrust earthquakes and slow slip events. Our synthesis of results from thermal models that simulate the conditions for subduction zones globally, however, indicates that dehydration of subducting plates is too slow over the life span of a typical subduction zone to hydrate the forearc mantle. Hot subduction zones, where slabs dehydrate rapidly, are an exception. The hottest, most buoyant forearcs are most likely to survive plate collisions and be exhumed to the surface, so probably dominate the metamorphic rock record. Analysis of global seismic data confirms the generally dry nature of mantle forearcs. We conclude that many subduction zones probably liberate insufficient water to hydrate the shallower plate boundary where great earthquakes and slow slip events nucleate. Thus, we suggest that it is solid-state processes and not hydration that leads to weakening of the plate interface in cold subduction zones.
International Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 108, pp. 89-113.
Africa, Angola
thermochronology
Abstract: There are two main points of view regarding how continental margins evolve. The first one argues that the present-day margins have been developed by long-term denudation since a major exhumation episode, probably driven by rifting or another relevant tectonic event. The second one argues that continental margins underwent alternating burial and exhumation episodes related to crustal tectonic and surface uplift and subsidence. To demonstrate that the proximal domain of the southwestern Angolan margin has evolved in a polycyclic pattern, we present a review of geological and thermochronological information and integrate it with new combined apatite fission-track and (U-Th)/He data from Early Cretaceous volcanic and Precambrian basement samples. We also provide hypotheses on the possible mechanisms able to support the vertical crustal movements of this margin segment, which are also discussed based on some modern rifting models proposed for Central South Atlantic. The central apatite fission-track ages range from 120.6?±?8.9 to 272.9?±?21.6 Ma, with the mean track lengths of approximately 12 µm. The single-grain apatite (U-Th)/He ages vary between 52.2?±?1 and 177.2?±?2.6 Ma. The integration of the thermochronological data set with published geological constraints supports the following time-temperature evolution: (1) heating since the Carboniferous-Permian, (2) cooling onset in the Early Jurassic, (3) heating onset in the Early Cretaceous, (4) cooling onset in the Mid- to Late Cretaceous, (5) heating onset in the Late Cretaceous, and (6) cooling onset in the Oligocene-Miocene. The thermochronological data and the geological constraints, support that the proximal domain of the southwestern Angolan margin was covered in the past by pre-, syn-, and post-rift sediments, which were eroded during succeeding exhumation events. For this margin segment, we show that a development based on long-term denudation is less realistic than one based on burial and exhumation episodes during the last 130 Myr.
Abstract: Pyroclastic deposits of the Holocene Igwisi Hills kimberlite volcanoes, Tanzania, preserve unequivocal evidence for rapid, syn-eruptive agglutination. The unusual pyroclasts are composed of ash-sized particles agglutinated to each other by thin necks. The textures suggest the magma was disrupted into droplets during ascent. Collisions between particles occurred within a volcanic plume and on deposition within the conduit to form a weakly agglutinated, porous pyroclastic deposit. Theoretical considerations indicate that agglutination occurred over short timescales. Agglutinated clasts were entrained into weak volcanic plumes and deposited around the craters. Our results support the notion that agglutination can occur during kimberlite eruptions, and that some coherent, dense rocks in ancient kimberlite pipes interpreted as intrusive rocks could instead represent agglutinated pyroclastic rocks. Differentiating between agglutinated pyroclastic rocks and effusive or intrusive rocks in kimberlite pipes is important because of the potential effects that pyroclastic processes might have on diamond concentrations in deposits.
Abstract: Pyroclastic deposits of the Holocene Igwisi Hills kimberlite volcanoes, Tanzania, preserve unequivocal evidence for rapid, syn-eruptive agglutination. The unusual pyroclasts are composed of ash-sized particles agglutinated to each other by thin necks. The textures suggest the magma was disrupted into droplets during ascent. Collisions between particles occurred within a volcanic plume and on deposition within the conduit to form a weakly agglutinated, porous pyroclastic deposit. Theoretical considerations indicate that agglutination occurred over short timescales. Agglutinated clasts were entrained into weak volcanic plumes and deposited around the craters. Our results support the notion that agglutination can occur during kimberlite eruptions, and that some coherent, dense rocks in ancient kimberlite pipes interpreted as intrusive rocks could instead represent agglutinated pyroclastic rocks. Differentiating between agglutinated pyroclastic rocks and effusive or intrusive rocks in kimberlite pipes is important because of the potential effects that pyroclastic processes might have on diamond concentrations in deposits.
Abstract: The lithosphere and upper mantle of South America is investigated using multiple data sets, including the topography, crustal structure, regional seismic tomography, gravity, and mineral physics. These data are jointly inverted to estimate variations in temperature, density and composition in the lithospheric and sub-lithospheric upper mantle to a depth of 325 km. Our results show significant variations in lithospheric properties, including thick, depleted roots beneath large parts of the Amazon, São Francisco, and Paranapanema Cratons. However, portions of some cratons, such as the western Guyana Shield, lack a depleted root. We hypothesize that these regions either never developed a depleted root, or that the root was rejuvenated by lithospheric processes.
Abstract: It is widely assumed that mineral inclusions and their host diamonds are ‘syngenetic’ in origin, which means that they formed simultaneously and from the same chemical processes. Mineral inclusions that, instead, were formed earlier with respect to diamonds are termed protogenetic. However, minerals can have the same age as the diamonds in that they become enclosed in and isolated from any further isotopic exchange. But this is termed ‘synchronous’ not ‘syngenetic’. Here we demonstrate conclusively the protogenesis of inclusions in diamonds, based upon data from an exceptional fragment of a diamond-bearing peridotite, its clinopyroxene and a gem-quality diamond. Clinopyroxenes in the xenolith had the same chemistry and crystallographic orientation as those for inclusions in the diamond. With our results with garnets, olivines and sulfides, we can state that a major portion of the mineral inclusions in non-coated, monocrystalline-lithospheric diamonds are protogenetic. Our discovery here presented has implications for all genetic aspects of diamond growth, including their ages.
Diamond and Related Materials, https://doi.org/j. diamond.2019.02.024
Global
diamond morphology
Abstract: The incorporation of Eu into the diamond lattice is investigated in a combined theoretical-experimental study. The large size of the Eu ion induces a strain on the host lattice, which is minimal for the Eu-vacancy complex. The oxidation state of Eu is calculated to be 3+ for all defect models considered. In contrast, the total charge of the defect-complexes is shown to be negative: ?1.5 to ?2.3 electron. Hybrid-functional electronic-band-structures show the luminescence of the Eu defect to be strongly dependent on the local defect geometry. The 4-coordinated Eu substitutional dopant is the most promising candidate to present the typical Eu3+ luminescence, while the 6-coordinated Eu-vacancy complex is expected not to present any luminescent behaviour. Preliminary experimental results on the treatment of diamond films with Eu-containing precursor indicate the possible incorporation of Eu into diamond films treated by drop-casting. Changes in the PL spectrum, with the main luminescent peak shifting from approximately 614?nm to 611?nm after the growth plasma exposure, and the appearance of a shoulder peak at 625?nm indicate the potential incorporation. Drop-casting treatment with an electronegative polymer material was shown not to be necessary to observe the Eu signature following the plasma exposure, and increased the background luminescence.
Diamond & Related Materials, Vol. 94, pp. 233-241.
Global
luminescence
Abstract: The incorporation of Eu into the diamond lattice is investigated in a combined theoretical-experimental study. The large size of the Eu ion induces a strain on the host lattice, which is minimal for the Eu-vacancy complex. The oxidation state of Eu is calculated to be 3+ for all defect models considered. In contrast, the total charge of the defect-complexes is shown to be negative: ?1.5 to ?2.3 electron. Hybrid-functional electronic-band-structures show the luminescence of the Eu defect to be strongly dependent on the local defect geometry. The 4-coordinated Eu substitutional dopant is the most promising candidate to present the typical Eu3+ luminescence, while the 6-coordinated Eu-vacancy complex is expected not to present any luminescent behaviour. Preliminary experimental results on the treatment of diamond films with Eu-containing precursor indicate the possible incorporation of Eu into diamond films treated by drop-casting. Changes in the PL spectrum, with the main luminescent peak shifting from approximately 614?nm to 611?nm after the growth plasma exposure, and the appearance of a shoulder peak at 625?nm indicate the potential incorporation. Drop-casting treatment with an electronegative polymer material was shown not to be necessary to observe the Eu signature following the plasma exposure, and increased the background luminescence.
El Bahat, A., Ikenne, M., Soderlund, U., Cousens, B., Youbi, N., Ernst, R., Soulaimani, A., El Janati, M., Hafid, A.
U PB baddeleyite ages and geochemistry of dolerite dykes in the Bas Draa In lier of the Anti-Atlas of Morocco: newly identified Ma event in the West African craton.
Kouyate, D., Soderlund, U., Youbi, N., Ernst, R., Hafid, A., Ikeene, M., Soulaimani, A., Betrand, H., El Janati, M., Rkha, C.
U Pb baddeleyite and zircon ages of 2040 Ma, 1650 Ma and 885 Ma on dolerites in the West African Craton ( Anti-Atlas inliers) : possible links to break up of Precambrian supercontinents.
Youbi, N., Kouyate, D., Soderlund, U., Ernst, R.E., Soulaimani, A., Hafid, A., Ikenne, M., El Bahat, A., Betrand, H., Chaham, K.R., Ben Abbou, M., Mortaji, A., El Ghorfi, M., Zouhair, M., El Janati, M.
The 1750 Ma magmatic event of the West African Craton ( Anti-Atlas) Morocco.
Ikenne, M., Lahna, A.A., Soderlund, U., Tassinar, C.C.G., Ernst, R.E., Pin, Ch., Youbi, N., El Aouli, EH., Hafid, A., Admou, H., Mata, J., Bouougri, EH., Boumehdi, M.A.
New Mesoproterozoic age constraints for the Taghdout Group, Anti-Atlas ( Morocco): toward a new lithostratigra[hic framework for the Precambrian in the NW margin of the West African Craton.
The First West African Craton and Margins International Workshop WACMA, Held Apr. 24-29. 1p. Abstract
Abstract: Alluvial diamonds from the Kasai River, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are sourced from Cretaceous kimberlites of the Lucapa graben in Angola. Analysis of 40 inclusion-bearing diamonds provides new insights into the characteristics and evolution of ancient lithospheric mantle of the Congo craton. Silicate inclusions permitted us to classify diamonds as peridotitic, containing Fo91-95 and En92-94, (23 diamonds, 70% of the suite), and eclogitic, containing Cr-poor pyrope and omphacite with 11-27% jadeite (6 diamonds, 18% of the suite). Fluid inclusion compositions of fibrous diamonds are moderately to highly silicic, matching compositions of diamond-forming fluids from other DRC diamonds. Regional homogeneity of Congo fibrous diamond fluid inclusion compositions suggests spatially extensive homogenization of Cretaceous diamond forming fluids within the Congo lithospheric mantle. In situ cathodoluminescence, secondary ion mass spectrometry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy reveal large heterogeneities in N, N aggregation into B-centers (NB), and ?13C, indicating that diamonds grew episodically from fluids of distinct sources. Peridotitic diamonds contain up to 2962 ppm N, show 0-88% NB, and have ?13C isotopic compositions from ? 12.5‰ to ? 1.9‰ with a mode near mantle-like values. Eclogitic diamonds contain 14-1432 ppm N, NB spanning 29%-68%, and wider and lighter ?13C isotopic compositions of ? 17.8‰ to ? 3.4‰. Fibrous diamonds on average contain more N (up to 2976 ppm) and are restricted in ?13C from ? 4.1‰ to ? 9.4‰. Clinopyroxene-garnet thermobarometry suggests diamond formation at 1350-1375 °C at 5.8 to 6.3 GPa, whereas N aggregation thermometry yields diamond residence temperatures between 1000 and 1280 °C, if the assumed mantle residence time is 0.9-3.3 Ga. Integrated geothermobaromtery indicates heat fluxes of 41-44 mW/m2 during diamond formation and a lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB) at 190-210 km. The hotter-than-average cratonic mantle may be attributable to contemporaneous rifting of the southern Atlantic, multiple post-Archean reactivations of the craton, and/or proximal Cretaceous plumes.
Abstract: Limited field studies and sparse chronological constraints in the southwestern Great Slave Lake area creates uncertainties about the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) flow history and deglacial chronology. Improved understanding of the western LIS ice-margin morphology and retreat history is required to refine larger ice-sheet interpretations and timing for northwest drainage of glacial Lake McConnell. Using new field observations and geochronology we establish ice-flow history and better constrain regional deglaciation. Paleo-ice flow indicators (n = 66) show an oldest southwestern flow (230°), an intermediate northwesterly flow (305°), and a youngest westerly flow (250°). Till samples bulk sediment and matrix properties (n = 160) allowed identification of two till units. A lower grey till sourced mainly from local Paleozoic sediments produced clast fabrics indicating a southwesterly flow direction, overlain by a brown till that contained an increased Canadian Shield content with lodged elongate boulders a-axes and boulder-top striation orientations indicating a west to northwest ice-flow direction. Ice-flow results show a clockwise shift in direction interpreted as evidence for ice-divide migration followed by topographically controlled deglacial westward flow influenced by the Mackenzie River valley. Minimum deglacial timing estimates were constrained through optical dating of fine-sand deposits in a well-developed strandline (n = 2) and seven aeolian dunes; ages range from 9.9 ± 0.6 to 10.8 ± 0.7 ka BP. These ages are from dunes located below glacial Lake McConnell maximum water level and may thus provide new local lake level age constraints. Ice retreat is informed by a newly-mapped segment of the Snake River moraine, which is an understudied feature in the region. New ice-flow history and ice-margin retreat interpretations will be integrated into the larger body of work on the western LIS providing more confident conclusions on ice-sheet evolution and meltwater drainage pathways, specifically in the southwestern Great Slave Lake area.
Abstract: Fieldwork conducted since 2010 by the Geological Survey of Canada under the GEM programs has revealed a more complex glacial history of the southern Great Slave Lake region of the Northwest Territories than was previously reported. New reconstructions of the Laurentide Ice Sheet paleo-ice flow history have been established from field observations of erosional and/or depositional ice-flow indicators (e.g. striae, bedrock grooves, till clast fabrics, and streamlined landforms), new geochronological constraints, and interpretations of glacial stratigraphy. Three distinct ice-flow phases are consistently observed in areas proximal to the western margin of the Canadian Shield between the Slave River near Fort Smith and Hay River further west. These phases are: 1) an oldest southwest flow; 2) a long-term sustained ice flow to the northwest; and, 3) a youngest west-southwest flow during Late Wisconsin deglaciation, which includes extensions of the Great Slave Lake and Hay River ice streams further east than previous mapped. At Hay River approaching the eastern limit of soft Cretaceous bedrock of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin, the ice flow pattern no longer shows the aforementioned consistent chronology. From Hay River to the Liard River, near the zone where the Laurentide and Cordilleran ice sheet coalesced, a thinning ice profile, topographic highlands such as the Cameron Hills and Horn Plateau, and the deep basin that Great Slave Lake currently occupies, played a significant role on the dynamics of the Laurentide Ice Sheet during early ice advance, retreat during Marine Isotope Stage 3, Late Wisconsin advance and deglaciation. Other factors, such as increased sediment supply and clay content from Cretaceous shale bedrock were also significant in influencing ice-sheet behaviour. The role of elevated porewater pressures over subglacial clay-rich sediments controlled the extent and dynamics of several discordant ice streams in upland and lowland regions within the study area.
Geophysical Research Abstracts www.researchgate.net, Vol. 20, EGU2018-128291p. Abstract
Africa, South Africa
diamond inclusions
Abstract: Changing recycling budgets of surface materials and volatiles by subduction of tectonic plates influence the compositions of Earth’s major reservoirs and affect climate throughout geological time. Fluids play a key role in processes governing subduction recycling, but quantifying the exact fate of volatiles introduced into the mantle at ancient and recent destructive plate boundaries remains difficult. Here, we report on the role of fluids and the fate of volatiles and other elements at two very different tectonic settings: 1) at subduction settings, and 2) within the subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM). We will show how olivine-hosted melt inclusions from subduction zones and mineral inclusions in diamond from the SCLM are used to reveal how changing tectonic settings influence volatile cycles with time. Melt inclusions from the complex Italian post-collisional tectonic setting are used to identify changing subduction recycling through time. The use of CO2 in deeply trapped melt inclusions instead of in lavas or volcanic gases provides a direct estimate of deep recycling, minimizing possible effects of contamination during transfer through the crust. The aim is to distinguish if increased recycling of sediments from the down-going plate at continental subduction settings results in increased deep CO2 recycling or if the increased CO2 flux results from crustal degassing of the overriding plate. Both processes likely affected climate through Earth history but could thus far not be discriminated. The study of mineral inclusions and their host diamonds from the SCLM can link changes in the cycling of carbon-rich fluids and the time and process through which the carbon redistribution took place. We use Sm-Nd isotope techniques to date the mineral inclusions and use the carbon isotope data of the host diamonds to investigate the growth conditions. I will present case-studies of peridotitic and eclogitic diamonds from three mines in Southern Africa.
Abstract: Rare earth element (REE) ore-bearing carbonatite dikes and a stock at Mountain Pass, California, are spatially associated with a suite of ultrapotassic plutonic rocks, and it has been proposed that the two are genetically related. This hypothesis is problematic, given that existing geochronological constraints indicate that the carbonatite is ?15-25 Myr younger than the ultrapotassic rocks, requiring alternative models for the formation of the REE ore-bearing carbonatite during a separate event and/or via a different mechanism. New laser ablation split-stream inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LASS-ICP-MS) petrochronological data from ultrapotassic intrusive rocks from Mountain Pass yield titanite and zircon U-Pb dates from 1429?±?10 to 1385?±?18?Ma, expanding the age range of the ultrapotassic rocks in the complex by ?20 Myr. The ages of the youngest ultrapotassic rocks overlap monazite Th-Pb ages from a carbonatite dike and the main carbonatite ore body (1396?±?16 and 1371?±?10?Ma, respectively). The Hf isotope compositions of zircon in the ultrapotassic rocks are uniform, both within and between samples, with a weighted mean ?Hfi of 1•9?±?0•2 (MSWD?=?0•9), indicating derivation from a common, isotopically homogeneous source. In contrast, in situ Nd isotopic data for titanite in the ultrapotassic rocks are variable (?Ndi?=?-3•5 to -12), suggesting variable contamination by an isotopically enriched source. The most primitive ?Ndi isotopic signatures, however, do overlap ?Ndi from monazite (?Ndi?=?-2•8?±?0•2) and bastnäsite (?Ndi?=?-3•2?±?0•3) in the ore-bearing carbonatite, suggesting derivation from a common source. The data presented here indicate that ultrapotassic magmatism occurred in up to three phases at Mountain Pass (?1425, ?1405, and ?1380?Ma). The latter two stages were coeval with carbonatite magmatism, revealing previously unrecognized synchronicity in ultrapotassic and carbonatite magmatism at Mountain Pass. Despite this temporal overlap, major and trace element geochemical data are inconsistent with derivation of the carbonatite and ultrapotassic rocks by liquid immiscibility or fractional crystallization from common parental magma. Instead, we propose that the carbonatite was generated as a primary melt from the same source as the ultrapotassic rocks, and that although it is unique, the Mountain Pass ultrapotassic and carbonatite suite is broadly similar to other alkaline silicate-carbonatite occurrences in which the two rock types were generated as separate mantle melts.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 580, 11p. Pdf
Mantle
eclogites
Abstract: Zinc isotopic compositions (ZnJMC-Lyon) of low-MgO (<13 wt.%) and high-MgO (>16 wt.%) eclogites from the Koidu kimberlite complex, Sierra Leone, West African Craton, help constrain the origins of cratonic eclogites. The Zn of low-MgO eclogites range from MORB-like to significantly higher values (0.21‰ to 0.75‰), and correlate inversely with Zn concentrations. Since marine carbonates are characterized by higher Zn and lower Zn concentration than basaltic rocks, the low-MgO eclogites are suggested to originate from altered oceanic crustal protoliths that underwent isotopic exchange with carbonates within the crust during subduction. Compared to low-MgO eclogites, all but one of the high-MgO eclogites also have high Zn (0.35‰ to 0.95‰), but they have lower Zn concentrations and Zn/Fe ratios, both of which are negatively correlated with MgO contents. These features point to formation of high-MgO eclogites via metasomatic overprinting of low-MgO eclogites through addition of secondary clinopyroxenes crystallized from infiltrating ultramafic melts. Thus, both low-MgO and high-MgO eclogites bear the imprint of subducted carbonate-bearing oceanic crust. Our study shows that the distinctively high-Zn signatures of marine carbonates can be retained in deeply subducted oceanic crust that may contribute to mantle sources of intraplate alkali basalts with elevated Zn and Zn/Fe. Therefore, Zn isotopes provide a viable means to trace carbonate recycling in the mantle.
Coupled substitution of Hydrogen and minor elements in rutile and the implications of high OH contents in niobium and chromium rich rutile from the upper mantle.
American Mineralogist, Vol. 78, No. 11, 12, November-December pp. 1181-1191.
Smith, C.B., Haggerty, S.E., Chatterjee, B., Beard, A., Townend, R.
Kimberlite, lamproite, ultramafic lamprophyre, and carbonatite relationships on the Dharwar Craton, India: an example from the Khaderpet pipe, a Diamondiferous ultramafic with associated carbonatite intrusion.
Smith, C.B., Haggerty, S.E., Chatterjee, B., Beard, A., Townend, R.
Kimberlite, lamproite, ultramafic lamprophyre, carbonatite relationships on the Dharwar Craton, India; and example from the Khaderpet pipe, a Diamondiferous ultramafic with associated carbonatite intrusion.
Abstract: Spinel is ubiquitous as a rock-forming mineral in terrestrial, lunar, and planetary basalts and closely associated meteoritic equivalents. A major unknown is whether these rocks formed under similar conditions of partial melting of primary or modified mantle, whether redox environments played a role in evolutionary trends, and did mineral crystal chemistry have any influence on elemental partition between solids and liquids? In a novel approach by Papike et al. (2015), spinel is used as an informative, albeit complex indicator of oxygen fugacity, site occupancy of multiple valence elements, and spinel structural types. Planetary basalts may be reduced (IW-3), oxidized (Earth at FMQ), or of intermediate redox state (Mars). Taking an expansive view, the spinel approach holds enormous promise in understanding the magmatic differentiation of asteroids.
De Wit, M., Bhebhe, Z., Davidson, J., Haggerty, S.E., Hundt, P., Jacob, J., Lynn, M., Marshall, T.R., Skinner, C., Smithson, K., Stiefenhofer, J., Robert, M., Revitt, A., Spaggiari, R., Ward, J.
Abstract: From the discovery of diamonds in South Africa in 1866 until the end of 2013, Africa is estimated to have produced almost 3.2 Bct out of a total global production of 5.03 Bct, or 63.6% of all diamonds that have ever been mined. In 2013 African countries ranked 2nd (Botswana), 3rd (DRC), 6th (Zimbabwe), 7th (Angola), 8th (South Africa), and 9th (Namibia), in terms of carat production and 1st (Botswana), 4th (Namibia), 5th (Angola), 6th (South Africa), 7th (Zimbabwe), and 9th (DRC), in terms of value of the diamonds produced. In 2013 Africa produced 70.6 Mct out of a global total of 130.5 Mct or 54.1%, which was valued at US$ 8.7 billion representing 61.5% of the global value of US$ 14.1 billion.
Journal of Geochemical Exploration, Vol. 173, pp. 99-109.
Africa, Liberia
Kimberlite
Abstract: This report is brief in context and rich in unexpected discovery. With > 2 km of erosion, kimberlite models predict the near-complete removal of pipes with exposures to the pipe-root-zones of dikes. Exploration in NW Liberia has, indeed, uncovered eight kimberlite dikes (~ 10 m wide) but also an en echelon pipe, comparable in size to the Kimberley pipe and De Beers' pipe in South Africa. Discoveries are in a narrow 200-300 m wide valley of extraordinary thick bush, undergrowth, and organic overburden. Ilmenite and co-existing leucoxene were used as diagnostic tracers for detecting hard rock kimberlite in this tropical terrane. Micro-diamonds show that the redox state of ilmenite is a potentially useful proxy as an index for macro-diamond preservation. The tectonic control of kimberlites is complex, with diverse lithologies. Discoveries include a well-defined regional trend for kimberlite dikes along paleo-fracture zones, Precambrian in age (Liberia Trend), coupled with kimberlite dikes on the craton that are traced to Mesozoic oceanic transform faults (the Sierra Leone Trend). Although long predicted, this is the first report of kimberlite dike-trends in Liberia that are similar in orientation to those in Sierra Leone. An explosive blow on a Liberia-Trend dike demonstrates a similarity to the dynamics attendant in rich (50-500 cpht) diamond-bearing dikes in Sierra Leone, and in South Africa of comparable age. The potentially high grade dikes, along with the pipe (~ 500 × 50 m), now more reasonably accounts for the enormous number of alluvial diamonds (blood and non-conflict), recovered over more than seven decades, downstream from the discovery cluster. A neglected region since the classic work by Bardet (1974), and with few contributions on Liberia since then, an update is considered timely, particularly in the context of discoveries of diamond-bearing kimberlite.
South America, Brazil, Africa, Central African Republic
carbonado
Abstract: Carbonado diamond is found only in Brazil and the Central African Republic. These unusual diamond aggregates are strongly bonded and porous, with melt-like glassy patinas unlike any conventional diamond from kimberlites-lamproites, crustal collisional settings, or meteorite impact. Nearly two centuries after carbonado's discovery, a primary host rock compatible with the origin of conventional diamond at high temperatures and pressures has yet to be identified. Models for its genesis are far-reaching and range from terrestrial subduction to cosmic sources.
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South African Journal of Geology, Vol. 120, 1, pp. 1-20.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Jagersfontein
Abstract: Our earlier studies continued in a diligent search for rare ultradeep xenoliths in the kimberlite diatreme at Jagersfontein. The search has met with moderate success insofar as 20 majorite-bearing (decomposed to *gt + lamellar px) xenoliths are identified. Discrete gts (1 to 2 cm), gt-rich layers (2 to 3 cm) in lherzolites, and rare megacrystic gts (>3 cm) from xenoliths characterize the ultradeep suite. Pyroxene lamellae are crystallographically controlled along {111} gt planes, but px may also be prismatic, lensoidal, coarsely graphic, or annular to gt; jigsaw, rather than 120° dihedral textures, are typical. Gt ranges from Pyr68-74 mole% and CaO - Cr2O3 relations, with two exceptions, are distinctly lherzolitic. Cpx37-46 = Wo mole%, Jd 3-19 mole%, with 0.4 to 2.4 wt% Cr2O3; opx = 92 to 95 mole% en, and ol averages 92.5 mole% with maximum wt% 0.1 CaO, 0.4 NiO, and 0.1 Cr2 O3. A new class of 10 ultradeep xenoliths has lamellar spinel (Cr/Cr + Al = 0.74; Mg/Mg + Fe = 0.58) in addition to cpx with gt >3wt% Cr2O3 (c.f. 0.5 to 1.5 for sp-free types). Five samples are texturally linked but are compositional outliers to the central body of data: two are sp hosts (Cr# 0.69, Mg# 0.76) and (Cr# 0.74, Mg# 0.57) to gt (Pyr72) + cpx (Jd14); one is a gt megacryst (Pyr80) with sp (Cr# 57, Mg# 69); and the remaining two are unusually rich in chromium with gt = 7.3 to 8.2 wt% Cr2O3, rimmed by cpx (2.3 to 3.3 wt% Cr2O3). In addition, there are 17 xenoliths with compositional affinities to the ultradeep suite but lacking the texturally diagnostic lamellar intergrowths of cpx in gt are possibly completely equilibrated to gt + irregular cpx. Results from the new collection substantiate our earlier conclusions that the mantle was sampled by the Jagersfontein kimberlite from the lower lithosphere (250 to 350 km) and the transition zone (435 km) with diagnostic high P-T majorite in lherzolite that decomposed to gt + px at one or more interruptive stations (e.g. lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary), and at one or another time, en route to the surface. Homogeneous majorite occurs as diamond inclusions at Jagersfontein but these are eclogitic, leading to the proposition that the source region in the asthenosphere was an unassimilated mixture of lherzolite and eclogite in the Mid-Cretaceous at the time of kimberlite sampling. Important questions arise: Is majorite primordial; did majorite form exclusively from the transition of pyroxene; or did subsequent dissolution into coexisting garnet take place? Why has majorite not been identified in eclogite, nor diamonds of lherzolitic affinity? Does the formation of majorite and the crystallization of encapsulating diamond imply distinct high P-T events?
South African Journal of Geology, Vol. 120, 1, pp. 1-20.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Jagersfontein
Abstract: Our earlier studies continued in a diligent search for rare ultradeep xenoliths in the kimberlite diatreme at Jagersfontein. The search has met with moderate success insofar as 20 majorite-bearing (decomposed to *gt + lamellar px) xenoliths are identified. Discrete gts (1 to 2 cm), gt-rich layers (2 to 3 cm) in lherzolites, and rare megacrystic gts (>3 cm) from xenoliths characterize the ultradeep suite. Pyroxene lamellae are crystallographically controlled along {111} gt planes, but px may also be prismatic, lensoidal, coarsely graphic, or annular to gt; jigsaw, rather than 120° dihedral textures, are typical. Gt ranges from Pyr68-74 mole% and CaO - Cr2O3 relations, with two exceptions, are distinctly lherzolitic. Cpx = Wo37-46 mole%, Jd3-19 mole%, with 0.4 to 2.4 wt% Cr2O3; opx = 92 to 95 mole% en, and ol averages 92.5 mole% with maximum wt% 0.1 CaO, 0.4 NiO, and 0.1 Cr2O3. A new class of 10 ultradeep xenoliths has lamellar spinel (Cr/Cr + Al = 0.74; Mg/Mg + Fe = 0.58) in addition to cpx with gt >3wt% Cr2O3 (c.f. 0.5 to 1.5 for sp-free types). Five samples are texturally linked but are compositional outliers to the central body of data: two are sp hosts (Cr# 0.69, Mg# 0.76) and (Cr# 0.74, Mg# 0.57) to gt (Pyr72) + cpx (Jd14); one is a gt megacryst (Pyr80) with sp (Cr# 57, Mg# 69); and the remaining two are unusually rich in chromium with gt = 7.3 to 8.2 wt% Cr2O3, rimmed by cpx (2.3 to 3-3 wt% Cr2O3). In addition, there are 17 xenoliths with compositional affinities to the ultradeep suite but lacking the texturally diagnostic lamellar intergrowths of cpx in gt are possibly completely equilibrated to gt + irregular cpx. Results from the new collection substantiate our earlier conclusions that the mantle was sampled by thejagersfontein kimberlite from the lower lithosphere (250 to 350 km) and the transition zone (435 km) with diagnostic high P-T majorite in lherzolite that decomposed to gt + px at one or more interruptive stations (e.g. lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary), and at one or another time, en route to the surface. Homogeneous majorite occurs as diamond inclusions at Jagersfontein but these are eclogitic, leading to the proposition that the source region in the asthenosphere was an unassimilated mixture of lherzolite and eclogite in the Mid-Cretaceous at the time of kimberlite sampling. Important questions arise: Is majorite primordial; did majorite form exclusively from the transition of pyroxene; or did subsequent dissolution into coexisting garnet take place? Why has majorite not been identified in eclogite, nor diamonds of lherzolitic affinity? Does the formation of majorite and the crystallization of encapsulating diamond imply distinct high P-T events?
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, in press available, 43p.
Global
microdiamonds
Abstract: The origin of micro-diamonds is controversial and although the application to determine the grade and value of macro-diamonds in kimberlite/lamproite bodies continues to receive widespread usage there are several outstanding factors generally not considered, the most important of which is genesis. The issue is addressed in this study in the context that two classes of small diamonds (generally <0.5?mm and rarely <1?mm) are recognized. Micro-diamonds sensu-stricto (MDS) are typically sharp-edged octahedra, free of mineral inclusions and surface etching or corrosion, increase exponentially with decreasing size and are in overwhelming larger concentrations, by orders of magnitude, relative to macro-diamonds (>0.5?mm). The second class of small diamonds (SD <0.5?mm), used in industrial applications, may have modified solution-growth morphologies (e.g. dodecahedra, tetrahexahedra and related forms), and include loosely bonded polycrystalline diamonds (framesite), boart, fibrous cubes and broken fragments. There are large differences in volume to surface-area ratios between MDS and SD, demonstrating unequivocally that pristine and solution-modified forms could not have co-existed in equilibrium under the same P-T-t-fO2 conditions in the mantle. From detailed studies of N and C in diamond, and experimental results on the redox-partitioning of N in the presence of metallic Fe, it is concluded that MDS are plume-related from the D? core-mantle boundary, and are melt-derived in lower mantle proto-kimberlite. The lower mantle is expectedly saturated in metallic Fe, and is highly depleted in N which is siderophile under very low f O2 conditions, a setting in which excessively large (?100 to 3000 ct), but rare Type II mega-diamonds (but also MDS) are inferred to have originated. These diamonds (Type II, Ib, IaA) are distinct from the majority of N-rich Type Ia upper mantle macro-diamonds that grew slowly by metasomatic processes and annealed over long periods. Two crystal growth laws are possibly applicable to the size-distribution of diamonds encountered in kimberlites/lamproites. Gibrat’s Law of proportionate, short-term crystal growth in open systems by advection is applicable to magmatic MDS, whereas macro-diamonds bear some relation to McCabe’s Law of long-term, relatively constant crystal growth, by diffusion metasomatism. The range from small to large diamonds (SFD size-frequency-distribution) is lognormal but is composed of two segments: the smaller size (<0.5?mm) fraction has an overall linear distribution, whereas macro-diamonds (>0.5?mm) are quadratic. The two distributions meet or overlap in a marked discontinuity, implying but not proving distinct origins. The power law governing SFD lognormal distributions is fundamental and is widespread across an enormous number of disciplines (from biology to economics), and may be universal (e.g. it is applicable to planetary scale meteorite impact craters, and to the SFD of cosmic-diamonds from supernovae explosions). Industry applications in resource predictions are from mixtures of diamonds (MDS and SD), and extrapolation to larger stones is valid because the fundamental law is independent of origins.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 266, pp. 184-196.
Global
microdiamonds
Abstract: The origin of micro-diamonds is controversial and although the application to determine the grade and value of macro-diamonds in kimberlite/lamproite bodies continues to receive widespread usage there are several outstanding factors generally not considered, the most important of which is genesis. The issue is addressed in this study in the context that two classes of small diamonds (generally <0.5?mm and rarely <1?mm) are recognized. Micro-diamonds sensu-stricto (MDS) are typically sharp-edged octahedra, free of mineral inclusions and surface etching or corrosion, increase exponentially with decreasing size and are in overwhelming larger concentrations, by orders of magnitude, relative to macro-diamonds (>0.5?mm). The second class of small diamonds (SD <0.5?mm), used in industrial applications, may have modified solution-growth morphologies (e.g. dodecahedra, tetrahexahedra and related forms), and include loosely bonded polycrystalline diamonds (framesite), boart, fibrous cubes and broken fragments. There are large differences in volume to surface-area ratios between MDS and SD, demonstrating unequivocally that pristine and solution-modified forms could not have co-existed in equilibrium under the same P-T-t-fO2 conditions in the mantle. From detailed studies of N and C in diamond, and experimental results on the redox-partitioning of N in the presence of metallic Fe, it is concluded that MDS are plume-related from the D? core-mantle boundary, and are melt-derived in lower mantle proto-kimberlite. The lower mantle is expectedly saturated in metallic Fe, and is highly depleted in N which is siderophile under very low f O2 conditions, a setting in which excessively large (?100 to 3000 ct), but rare Type II mega-diamonds (but also MDS) are inferred to have originated. These diamonds (Type II, Ib, IaA) are distinct from the majority of N-rich Type Ia upper mantle macro-diamonds that grew slowly by metasomatic processes and annealed over long periods. Two crystal growth laws are possibly applicable to the size-distribution of diamonds encountered in kimberlites/lamproites. Gibrat’s Law of proportionate, short-term crystal growth in open systems by advection is applicable to magmatic MDS, whereas macro-diamonds bear some relation to McCabe’s Law of long-term, relatively constant crystal growth, by diffusion metasomatism. The range from small to large diamonds (SFD size-frequency-distribution) is lognormal but is composed of two segments: the smaller size (<0.5?mm) fraction has an overall linear distribution, whereas macro-diamonds (>0.5?mm) are quadratic. The two distributions meet or overlap in a marked discontinuity, implying but not proving distinct origins. The power law governing SFD lognormal distributions is fundamental and is widespread across an enormous number of disciplines (from biology to economics), and may be universal (e.g. it is applicable to planetary scale meteorite impact craters, and to the SFD of cosmic-diamonds from supernovae explosions). Industry applications in resource predictions are from mixtures of diamonds (MDS and SD), and extrapolation to larger stones is valid because the fundamental law is independent of origins.
Paragenetic sequence of pyrrhotite alterations to marcasite, pyrite, magnetite, hematite and goethite in pyroxene and pegmatitic carbonatites and fluorite ores.
11th. Quadrennial Iagod Symposium And Geocongress 2002 Held Windhoek, Abstract p. 26.
Abstract: The Okorusu Alkaline Igneous-Carbonatite Complex is located about 50 km north of Otjiwarongo in North-Central Namibia. The complex was intruded during early Cretaceous into late Precambrian Damaran Series metasedimentary rocks. It is nearly circular in plan view with a diameter of about 8 km. Coarse-grained nepheline syenites and foyaites are exposed in low hills near the northern edge of the complex. Early alkalie-rich fluids pervasively fenitized the metasedimentary rocks along the southern margin of the complex forming an east-west ridge of resistant hills that include Okorusu Mountain. The fenites were subsequently brecciated and intruded by several carbonatites, especially medium-grained iron-rich diopside pyroxene carbonitite and very coarse-grained pegmatitic carbonatite. In addition to predominant calcite, the carbonatites contain titaniferous vanadiferous magnetite crystals and diopside crystals as large as one-third meter and hexagonal pyrrhotite crystals as long as one meter. For the past two decades, Okoruru has been the leading carbonatite-related fluorspar producer in the world. Fluorspar has been mined from five separate ore deposits in open pits A, B, C, D, and E. The deposits formed principally by the replacement of carbonatite as shown by local unreplaced remnants of carbonatite in the fluorspar ores, goethite pseudomorphs in fluorspar ores after carbonatite magnetite, diopside, and pyrrhotite crystals, transitions of the ores into carbonatite, and by elevated phosphorus contents resulting from carbonatite apatite crystals that were incompletely replaced by fluorite. Locally, marbles also are replaced by fluorite to form fluorspar ores that are distinguished from carbonatite-replacement fluorspar ores by their finer grain size and lack of phosphorus contents. Fluid inclusions in the fluorite crystals indicate that the fluorspar ores were deposited from 166 to 128oC from fluids of low salinity with less than 5% NaCl equivalent. The genesis of the fluorspar ores is interpreted to have resulted from deeply circulated ground waters that dissolved fluorine from carbonatite at depth. The fluorine in those ore fluids combined with calcium released during the replacement of calcite in carbonatite and marbles at the sites of the fluorspar ore deposition.
Abstract: This study focuses on the causes, modalities and obstacles of sediment transfer in the longest cell of littoral sand drift documented on Earth so far. Sand derived from the Orange River is dragged by swell waves and persistent southerly winds to accumulate in four successive dunefields in coastal Namibia to Angola. All four dunefields are terminated by river valleys, where aeolian sand is flushed back to the ocean; and yet sediment transport continues at sea, tracing an 1800 km long submarine sand highway. Sand drift would extend northward to beyond the Congo if the shelf did not become progressively narrower in southern Angola, where drifting sand is funnelled towards oceanic depths via canyon heads connected to river mouths. Garnet-magnetite placers are widespread along this coastal stretch, indicating systematic loss of the low-density feldspatho-quartzose fraction to the deep ocean. More than half of Moçamedes Desert sand is derived from the Orange River, and the rest in similar proportions from the Cunene River and from the Swakop and other rivers draining the Damara Orogen in Namibia. The Orange fingerprint, characterized by basaltic rock fragments, clinopyroxene grains and bimodal zircon-age spectra with peaks at ca 0•5 Ga and ca 1•0 Ga, is lost abruptly at Namibe, and beach sands further north have abundant feldspar, amphibole-epidote suites and unimodal zircon-age spectra with a peak at ca 2•0 Ga, documenting local provenance from Palaeoproterozoic basement. Along with this oblique-rifted continental margin, beach placers are dominated by Fe-Ti-Cr oxides with more monazite than garnet and thus have a geochemical signature sharply different from beach placers found all the way along the Orange littoral cell. High-resolution mineralogical studies allow us to trace sediment dispersal over distances of thousands of kilometres, providing essential information for the correct reconstruction of ‘source to sink’ relationships in hydrocarbon exploration and to predict the long-term impact of man-made infrastructures on coastal sediment budgets.
43rd Annual Yellowknife Geoscience Forum Abstracts, abstract p. 43.
Canada, Northwest Territories
Geomorphology
Abstract: During the last glaciation, bedrock was eroded, transported and deposited by the Laurentide Ice Sheet across much of Canada. The complex ice and meltwater processes that resulted in sediment deposition are not completely understood. In the central Slave Craton, Northwest Territories, glacial sediments overly many diamond-bearing kimberlites. Diamond deposits in the Lac de Gras area were discovered in the early 1990s by drift prospecting. To better interpret drift prospecting datasets a more thorough understanding of the detailed glacial history of the area is required. We spent six weeks in the Lac de Gras area in summer 2015. Field mapping was complimented by a number of other techniques to elucidate the glacial history of the area. Enigmatic landforms were examined in detail and pits were dug to examine their sedimentology. Samples of matrix material were collected to compare grain size distribution between different sediment types. Pebble counts were done to consider sediment provenance. We also collected ground-penetrating radar profiles to look for stratified sediments within enigmatic mounds. High-resolution orthophotos and a one metre LiDAR digital elevation model of the area, obtained by Dominion Diamond Ekati Corporation, have also been used to investigate landform genesis and the glacial history of the area. In the Lac de Gras area many meltwater corridors can be identified in the high-resolution imagery. These corridors are typically 300-1500 m wide and form dendritic networks. Between the corridors, sandy till of varying thickness overlies bedrock. Within corridors, glaciofluvial landforms and scoured bedrock are common. Also associated with corridors are many mounds of enigmatic origin. These mounds commonly occur in groups and are typically 20-100 m wide and rise 5-15 m above the surrounding area. They are usually composed of an unstratified to poorly-stratified sandy diamicton containing no clay and minor silt. Matrix grain size distribution and pebble lithology results from some mounds are similar to those of nearby regional till. However, patches of well-stratified sediments, exhibiting laminated silts as well as climbing ripples in sand, do exist on parts of some mounds. GPR data suggests that these patches are discontinuous, and that the majority of mounds are composed largely of sandy diamicton. Variation in the sedimentology of the mounds does not appear to be related to variations in mound morphology. It is likely that the majority of the glaciofluvial sediments in the Lac de Gras area were deposited during the final stages of ice retreat across the area when meltwater volumes were high. We suggest that the corridors were formed by subglacial meltwater flow. This is because glaciofluvial deposition almost exclusively occurs within corridors, very little till is found within corridors and the corridors have an undulating elevation profile in the direction of ice flow. Water must have played a role in the deposition of the well-stratified patches of sediment found on some mounds, however, the mounds may not be solely the product of subglacial meltwater flow. A thorough understanding of sediment transport and depositional processes is critical if kimberlite indicator mineral data is to be accurately interpreted.
The dynamics of western North America: stress magnitudes and the relative role of gravitational potential energy, plate interaction, boundary and basal
Geophysical Journal International, Vol. 169, 3, pp. 866-896.
Koehm, D., Lindenfeld, M., Rumpker, G., Aanyu, K., Haines, S., Passchier, C.W., Sachu, T.
Active transgression faults in rift transfer zones: evidence for complex stress fields and implications for crustal fragmentation processes in the western branch
International Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 99, 7, pp. 1633-1642.
The Journal of Gemmology, Vol. 334, 6, pp. 518-522.
Technology
Synthetics
Abstract: During the March 2015 Diamond Show in Basel, Switzerland, a parcel of 6,000 melee-sized colourless diamonds was analysed using the GGTL Diamond Fluorescence Imaging (DFI) Laser+ fluorescence imaging and spectroscopy system. From the entire parcel, one sample stood out clearly with unusual fluorescence colours and distribution, combined with a photoluminescence spectrum that clearly indicated it was a synthetic diamond grown by chemical vapour deposition (CVD).
Applied Radiation and Isotopes, Vol. 126, 1, pp. 66-72.
Global
diamond - green
Abstract: Treated green diamonds can show residual radioactivity, generally due to immersion in radium salts. We report various activity measurements on two radioactive diamonds. The activity was characterized by alpha and gamma ray spectrometry, and the radon emanation was measured by alpha counting of a frozen source. Even when no residual radium contamination can be identified, measurable alpha and high-energy beta emissions could be detected. The potential health impact of radioactive diamonds and their status with regard to the regulatory policy for radioactive products are discussed.
Diamond and Related Materials, in press available, 19p. Pdf
Global
spectroscopy
Abstract: This study covers hydrogen-rich fancy color diamonds that exhibit complex spectra from the UV all the way to the mid-IR. The diamonds with such spectra that are included here show a large range of colors from brownish yellow to brown, yellow-green to olive and gray to violet. The color origin of such diamonds has always been stated as “hydrogen-related”, without much evidence pointing towards hydrogen actually causing absorptions in the visible spectral range, but only based on their unusually high IR active hydrogen content determined via their FTIR spectra. The diamonds analyzed during this work always showed a series of absorptions in the near-infrared at 7495, 7850, 8255, and 8615 cm?1. For the first time, this here presented study shows the results of low temperature near-infrared spectroscopy performed for a series of differently colored diamonds that all showed these NIR absorptions. When measured at 77 K, it became clear that these NIR bands are actually part of an electronic optical center with ZPLs at 1329.8 to 1330.2 nm (7520-7518 cm?1)/1331.8 to 1332.2 nm (7508-7506 cm?1) and 1341 to 1341.2 nm (7457-7456 cm?1). In this paper we will refer to this defect as the "1330 nm center" (which corresponds to 7519 cm?1) for the sake of brevity. The detailed analysis of the spectra has demonstrated that the colors of diamonds that exhibit the 1330 nm center spectra are caused partially by this same center, and by complex absorption bands associated to two series of ZPLs represented by a number of sharp bands between 965 and 1001 nm, referred to as the 990 nm series in this study. Of these, the 990 nm series was found only in diamonds with significant IR active hydrogen concentrations, while the 1330 nm center was determined to be independent from the concentration of IR active hydrogen. The 1330 nm center was found in spectra lacking the 990 nm series of ZPLs, but the 990 nm series has never been found in spectra without the 1330 nm center. We are suggesting that the defects involved in these absorptions are all nickel?nitrogen-related, with the 1330 nm center lacking hydrogen while it seems reasonable to assume that the 990 nm series includes hydrogen in its structure.
Gemmological Research Industries Inc. Vancouver B.C., isbn 978-1777369231 184p.
Global
Book - notice
Abstract: For those who have some portable and advanced instruments, this book will serve as a handbook with many useful spectra, cross polarised filters and fluorescence reactions to compare, plus an Appendix with results of tests conducted using 11 portable instruments on 64 samples, and suggestions as to what instruments to use depending on budget and needs. Even if you are not a diamond specialist but are merely interested in the science of diamond, or you trade in diamonds, the information in this book will make you more knowledgeable and confident to talk about this beautiful gem with friends and clients.
2.46 Ga kasilite and nepheline syenites from the Awsard plution, Reguibat Rise of the West African Craton, Morocco. Generation of extremely K-rich magmas at the Archean-Proterozoic transition.
Abstract: The Oulad Dlim Massif of the Western Reguibat Shield contains several carbonatite complexes of previously unknown age. The largest and best studied are Gleibat Lafhouda, composed of magnesiocarbonatites, and Twihinate, composed of calciocarbonatites. Gleibat Lafhouda is hosted by Archean gneisses and schists. It has a SHRIMP U-Th-Pb zircon crystallization age of 1.85 ± 0.03 Ga, a Nd model age of TCR = 1.89 ± 0.03 Ga, and a Sm-Nd age of 1.85 ± 0.39 Ga. It forms part of the West Reguibat Alkaline province. Twihinate, on the other hand, is much younger. It is hosted by Late Silurian to Early Devonian deformed granites and has a zircon crystallization age of 104 ± 4 Ma, which is within error of the age of the carbonatites of the famous Richat Structure in the southwest Reguibat Shield. Like these, the Twihinate carbonatites are part of the Mid-Cretaceous Peri-Atlantic Alkaline Pulse. The Twihinate carbonatites contain abundant inherited zircons with ages that peak at ca. 420 Ma, 620 Ma, 2050 Ma, 2466 Ma, and 2830 Ma. This indicates that their substratum has West African rather than, as previously suggested, Avalonian affinities. It has, however, a Paleoproterozoic component that is not found in the neighboring western Reguibat Shield. The 421 Ma to 410 Ma gneissic granites hosting Twihinate are epidote + biotite + Ca-rich garnet deformed I-type to A-type granites derived from magmas of deep origin compatible, therefore, with being generated in a subduction environment. These granites form a body of unknown dimensions and petrogenesis, the study of which will be of key importance for understanding the geology and crustal architecture of this region.
Haissen, F., Cambeses, A., Montero, P., Bea, F., Dilek, Y., Mouttaqi, A.
The Archean kaisilite nepheline syenites of the Awsard intrusive massif ( Reguibat Shield, West African craton, Morocco) and its relationship to alkaline magmatism of Africa.
Journal of African Earth Sciences, Vol. 127, pp. 16-50.
Abstract: The Neoproterozoic Bou Azzer ophiolite in the Moroccan Anti-Atlas Panafrican belt hosts numerous chromitite orebodies within the peridotite section of the oceanic mantle. The chromitites are strongly affected by serpentinization and metamorphism, although they still preserve igneous relicts amenable for petrogenetic interpretation. The major, minor and trace element composition of unaltered chromite cores reveal two compositional groups: intermediate-Cr (Cr# = 0.60 - 0.74) and high-Cr (Cr# = 0.79 - 0.84) and estimates of parental melt compositions suggest crystallization from pulses of fore-arc basalts (FAB) and boninitic melts, respectively, that infiltrated the oceanic supra-subduction zone (SSZ) mantle. A platinum group elements (PGE) mineralization dominated by Ir-Ru-Os is recognized in the chromitites, which has its mineralogical expression in abundant inclusions of Os-Ir alloys and coexisting magmatic laurite (RuS2) and their products of metamorphic alteration. Unusual mineral phases in chromite, not previously reported in this ophiolite, include super-reduced and/or nominally ultra-high pressure minerals moissanite (SiC), native Cu and silicates (oriented clinopyroxene lamellae), but “exotic” zircon and diaspore have also been identified. We interpret that clinopyroxene lamellae have a magmatic origin, whereas super-reduced phases originated during serpentinization processes and diaspore is linked to late circulation of low-silica fluids related to rodingitization. Zircon grains, on the other hand, with apatite and serpentine inclusions, could either have formed after the interaction of chromitite with mantle-derived melts or could represent subducted detrital sediments later incorporated into the chromitites. We offer a comparison of the Bou Azzer chromitites with other Precambrian ophiolitic chromitites worldwide, which are rather scarce in the geological record. The studied chromitites are very similar to the Neoproterozoic chromitites reported in the Arabian-Nubian shield, which are also related to the Panafrican orogeny. Thus, we conclude that the Bou Azzer chromitites formed in a subduction-initiation geodynamic setting with two-stages of evolution, with formation of FAB-derived intermediate-Cr chromitites in the early stage and formation of boninite-derived high-Cr chromitites in the late stage.
Tectonic framework of a Paleoproterozoic arc continent to continent continent collisional zone, Trans Hudson Orogen, from geological and seismic reflection studies.
Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 42, 4, April pp. 421-434.
An investigation of upper mantle heterogeneity beneath the Archean and Proterozoic crust of western Canada from lithoprobe controlled source seismic experiments.
Tectonophysics, Vol. 416, 1-4, April 5, pp. 187-207.
Tectonic structures and their importance for the possibility of localization of diamond bearing intrusions in the Mauritanian Craton and the Arabian shield
Arabian Mineralogy Journal, Vol.9, No. 1-2, pp. 60-64
Barry, P.H., de Moor, J.M., Giovannelli, D., Schrenk, M., Hummer, D.R., Lopez, T., Pratt, C.A., Alpizar Segua, Y., Battaglia, A., Beaudry, A., Bini, G., Cascante, M., d'Errico, G., di Carlo, M., Fattorini, D., Fullerton, K., H+Gazel, E., Gonzalez, G., Hal
Abstract: Carbon and other volatiles in the form of gases, fluids or mineral phases are transported from Earth’s surface into the mantle at convergent margins, where the oceanic crust subducts beneath the continental crust. The efficiency of this transfer has profound implications for the nature and scale of geochemical heterogeneities in Earth’s deep mantle and shallow crustal reservoirs, as well as Earth’s oxidation state. However, the proportions of volatiles released from the forearc and backarc are not well constrained compared to fluxes from the volcanic arc front. Here we use helium and carbon isotope data from deeply sourced springs along two cross-arc transects to show that about 91 per cent of carbon released from the slab and mantle beneath the Costa Rican forearc is sequestered within the crust by calcite deposition. Around an additional three per cent is incorporated into the biomass through microbial chemolithoautotrophy, whereby microbes assimilate inorganic carbon into biomass. We estimate that between 1.2 × 108 and 1.3 × 1010 moles of carbon dioxide per year are released from the slab beneath the forearc, and thus up to about 19 per cent less carbon is being transferred into Earth’s deep mantle than previously estimated.
Barium isotopic composition of the mantle constrained by carbonatites.
Goldschmidt Conference, 1p. Abstract
Africa, Tanzania, east Africa, Canada, Europe, Germany, Greenland
carbonatite
Abstract: Deep mantle origin and ultra-reducing conditions in podiform chromitite: diamonds, moissanite, and other unusual minerals in podiform chromitites from the Pozanti-Karsanti ophiolite, southern Turkey
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, in press available doi.org/10.1016 / j.gca.2019.06.041 36p.
Africa, Tanzania, Canada, East Africa, Europe, Germany, Greenland
deposit - Oldoinyo Lengai
Abstract: To investigate the behaviour of Ba isotopes during carbonatite petrogenesis and to explore the possibility of using carbonatites to constrain the Ba isotopic composition of the mantle, we report high-precision Ba isotopic analyses of: (1) carbonatites and associated silicate rocks from the only active carbonatite volcano, Oldoinyo Lengai, Tanzania, and (2) Archean to Cenozoic carbonatites from Canada, East Africa, Germany and Greenland. Carbonatites and associated phonolites and nephelinites from Oldoinyo Lengai have similar ?137/134Ba values that range from +0.01 to +0.03‰, indicating that Ba isotope fractionation during carbonatite petrogenesis is negligible. The limited variation in ?137/134Ba values from ?0.03 to +0.09‰ for most carbonatite samples suggests that their mantle sources have a relatively homogeneous Ba isotopic composition. Based on the carbonatites investigated in this work, the average ?137/134Ba value of their mantle sources is estimated to be +0.04?±?0.06‰ (2SD, n?=?16), which is similar to the average value of +0.05?±?0.06‰ for mid-ocean ridge basalts. The lower ?137/134Ba value of ?0.08‰ in a Canadian sample and higher ?137/134Ba values of +0.14‰ and?+?0.23‰ in two Greenland samples suggest local mantle isotopic heterogeneity that may reflect the incorporation of recycled crustal materials in their sources.
Abstract: To investigate the behaviour of Ba isotopes during carbonatite petrogenesis and to explore the possibility of using carbonatites to constrain the Ba isotopic composition of the mantle, we report high-precision Ba isotopic analyses of: (1) carbonatites and associated silicate rocks from the only active carbonatite volcano, Oldoinyo Lengai, Tanzania, and (2) Archean to Cenozoic carbonatites from Canada, East Africa, Germany and Greenland. Carbonatites and associated phonolites and nephelinites from Oldoinyo Lengai have similar ?137/134Ba values that range from +0.01 to +0.03‰, indicating that Ba isotope fractionation during carbonatite petrogenesis is negligible. The limited variation in ?137/134Ba values from ?0.03 to +0.09‰ for most carbonatite samples suggests that their mantle sources have a relatively homogeneous Ba isotopic composition. Based on the carbonatites investigated in this work, the average ?137/134Ba value of their mantle sources is estimated to be +0.04?±?0.06‰ (2SD, n?=?16), which is similar to the average value of +0.05?±?0.06‰ for mid-ocean ridge basalts. The lower ?137/134Ba value of ?0.08‰ in a Canadian sample and higher ?137/134Ba values of +0.14‰ and?+?0.23‰ in two Greenland samples suggest local mantle isotopic heterogeneity that may reflect the incorporation of recycled crustal materials in their sources.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 278, pp. 235-243.
Mantle
carbonatite
Abstract: To investigate the behaviour of Ba isotopes during carbonatite petrogenesis and to explore the possibility of using carbonatites to constrain the Ba isotopic composition of the mantle, we report high-precision Ba isotopic analyses of: (1) carbonatites and associated silicate rocks from the only active carbonatite volcano, Oldoinyo Lengai, Tanzania, and (2) Archean to Cenozoic carbonatites from Canada, East Africa, Germany and Greenland. Carbonatites and associated phonolites and nephelinites from Oldoinyo Lengai have similar ?137/134Ba values that range from +0.01 to +0.03‰, indicating that Ba isotope fractionation during carbonatite petrogenesis is negligible. The limited variation in ?137/134Ba values from ?0.03 to +0.09‰ for most carbonatite samples suggests that their mantle sources have a relatively homogeneous Ba isotopic composition. Based on the carbonatites investigated in this work, the average ?137/134Ba value of their mantle sources is estimated to be +0.04?±?0.06‰ (2SD, n?=?16), which is similar to the average value of +0.05?±?0.06‰ for mid-ocean ridge basalts. The lower ?137/134Ba value of ?0.08‰ in a Canadian sample and higher ?137/134Ba values of +0.14‰ and?+?0.23‰ in two Greenland samples suggest local mantle isotopic heterogeneity that may reflect the incorporation of recycled crustal materials in their sources.
Abstract: High-resolution P-wave velocity and anisotropy structure of the hitherto elusive uppermost mantle beneath the Indian shield and its surrounding regions are presented to unravel the tectonic imprints in the lithosphere. We inverted high quality 19,500 regional Pn phases from 172 seismological stations for 4780 earthquakes at a distance range of 2° to 15° with a mean apparent Pn velocity of 8.22 km/s. The results suggest that the Pn velocity anomalies with fast anisotropic directions are consistent with the collision environments in the Himalaya, Tibetan Plateau, Tarim Basin, and Burmese arc regions. The higher Pn anomalies along the Himalayan arc explicate the subducting cold Indian lithosphere. The cratonic upper mantle of the Indian shield is characterized by Pn velocity of 8.12-8.42 km/s, while the large part of the central Indian shield has higher mantle-lid velocity of ~8.42 km/s with dominant anisotropic value of 0.2-0.3 km/s (~7.5%) suggesting the presence of mafic ‘lava pillow’ related to the Deccan volcanism. The impressions of the rifts and the mobile belts are conspicuous in the velocity anomaly image indicating their deep seated origin. The Pn anisotropy in the Indian shield exhibits a complex pattern and deviates from the absolute plate motion directions derived from the SKS study, demonstrating the presence of frozen anisotropy in the Indian lithospheric uppermost mantle, due to the large scale tectonic deformation after its breakup from the Gondwanaland. Whereas, Pn and SKS anisotropic observations are well consistent in Tarim basin, Tibetan regions, eastern Himalayan syntaxis and the Burmese arc. The modeled anisotropic Pn clearly manifests a lower velocity anomaly bounded by 85°E and 90°E ridges in the southern Bay of Bengal. Further, 85°E ridge spatially separates the BoB lithosphere into faster and slower regions consistent with the body wave tomography and free-air gravity observation.
Chakhmouradian, A.R., Demeny, A., Reguir, E.P., Hegner, E., Halden, N.M., Yang, P.
'Kimberlite' from Wekusko Lake, Manitoba: re-assessment and implications for further exploration. Beforsite ( primary dolomite carbonatite)... 'notion' could be
Abstract: The alkaline rocks and carbonatites (ARCs) of the Great Indian Proterozoic belt bear the testimony of tectonic processes operating in the Proterozoic during the continental assembly and breakup of both Columbia and Rodinia. We present a comprehensive review, mainly focused on the petrology, geochemistry, and geochronology of 38 ARCs of Peninsular India, which are mostly concentrated within the Eastern Ghats Mobile Belt and Southern Granulite Terrain. Available geochronologic data reveals three distinct alkaline magmatic phases (2533-2340 Ma, 1510-1242 Ma, 833-572 Ma) and two metamorphic events (950-930 Ma and 570-485 Ma) that correlate with the Grenvillian and Pan-African orogeny events. Whereas clinopyroxene, amphibole, titanite and apatite fractionation seems to have affected the nephelinite, nepheline syenite and syenite, carbonatite is affected by fractionation of calcite, dolomite, ankerite, pyroxene, apatite, magnetite, mica, and pyrochlore. Trace elements and Sr-Nd-Pb-C-O isotopic compositions of these ARCs strongly suggest a subcontinental lithospheric mantle source, that is enriched either by distribution of subducted crustal material or by metasomatism of mantle-derived fluids, for the generation of ARCs. Despite some isotopic variability that can result from crustal contamination, a trend showing enrichment in 87Sr/86Sri (0.702 to 0.708) and depletion in ?Nd(i) (-1.3 to -14.1) over a 2 Gyr duration indicates temporal changes in the lithospheric/asthenospheric source of ARCs, due to periodic enrichment of the source by mantle-derived fluids. ARC generation starts in an intracontinental rift setting (beginning of Wilson cycle). These early-formed ARCs are carriedto 100 km depths during continental collision (termination stage of Wilson cycle) and undergo extensive melting because of renewed rifting along suture zones to form new generation of ARCs.
Compositional variations (major and trace elements) of clinopyroxene and Ti and radite from pyroxenite, ijolite and nepheline syenite, Alno Island, Sweden.
Eiler, J.M., Berquist, B., Bourg, I., Cartigny, P., Farquhar, J., Gagnon, A., Guo, W., Halevy, I., Hofman, A., larson, T.E., Levin, N., Schauble, E.A., Stolper, D.
Abstract: Over the past year, the Diavik Diamond Mine continued to make significant contributions through its mining operation on Lac de Gras, NWT. The mine is the second largest diamond mine in the NWT (and in Canada), but the largest producer of Canadian rough diamonds. Production has been augmented in 2018 with the official opening and start of mining from a new ore body called A-21.
Abstract: Recent advances in core scanning technologies allow for fast and non-destructive chemical and mineral profiling of rock samples for mineral services and oil and gas exploration. The aim of these automatic core scan methods is to obtain valuable information for profiling drill core cuttings with minimum sample preparation at relatively high speed. In the last decade, a core logging system using an automated infrared-based hyperspectral line-profiling system, Hylogger, has progressed to become an effective standard for the Australian mineral exploration industry. Its results are used to rapidly obtain mineralogical information allowing the characterisation of different geological formations in near real-time. The interpretation of Hylogger data can be challenging for certain complex mineral mixtures. Here we solve this issue by augmenting the Hylogger interpretation with elemental analysis using the Itrax core scanner equipped with an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer. The Itrax core scanner produces high-resolution elemental data of major, minor and trace elements in one dimension. We analyse and compare the Hylogger and Itrax data, with each dataset independently cross-checked using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thin-section petrology and propose a workflow harvesting the mutual strengths of each method. The recommended workflow consists of rapid screening using Hylogger and XRF analysis, providing new insights into the mineralogy based on comparative multiscale element-mineral analysis. The workflow is tested on four different types of volcanic rock samples, where infrared spectra of individual minerals overlap. We tested tuffaceous ash, basaltic, dolerite, and basaltic-andesitic rocks. Our study shows that embedding Itrax core scanner data into the workflow provides a solution to the challenges of interpreting Hylogger data in complex mineral samples. The proposed workflow provides a total system for multiscale, high-resolution petrophysical analyses and rock property modelling.
Society of Economic Geology Geoscience and Exploration of the Argyle, Bunder, Diavik, and Murowa Diamond Deposits, Special Publication no. 20, pp. 49-64.
Abstract: The Earth’s cratons are traditionally regarded as tectonically stable cores that were episodically buried by thin sedimentary covers. Cratonic crust in southern Finland holds seven post-1.7 Ga tiered unconformities, with remnants of former sedimentary covers. We use the geometries of the tiered unconformities, along with previously dated impact structures and kimberlite and carbonatite pipes, to reconstruct the erosion and burial history of the craton and to derive estimates of depths of erosion in basement and former sedimentary rocks. The close vertical spacing (<200 m) of the unconformities and the survival of small (D ? 5 km) Neoproterozoic and Early Palaeozoic impact structures indicate minor later erosion. Average erosion rates (<2.5 m/Ma) in basement and cover are amongst the lowest reported on Earth. Ultra-slow erosion has allowed the persistence in basement fractures of Phanerozoic fracture coatings and Palaeogene groundwater and microbiomes. Maximum thicknesses of foreland basin sediments in Finland during the Sveconorwegian and Caledonide orogenies are estimated as ~1.0 km and <0.68-1.0 km, respectively. Estimated losses of sedimentary cover derived from apatite fission track thermochronology are higher by factors of at least 2 to 4. A dynamic epeirogenic history of the craton in Finland, with kilometre-scale burial and exhumation, proposed in recent thermochronological models is not supported by other geological proxies. Ultra-slow erosion rates in southern Finland reflect long term tectonic stability and burial of the craton surface for a total of ~1.0 Ga beneath generally thin sedimentary cover.
Geochemistry, Exploration, Environment, Analysis, Vol. 16, pp. 62-84.
Canada, Northwest Territories
Kimberlite - Triple B mentioned
Abstract: In this study, results by direct portable XRF (‘pXRF’) on unsieved till samples were compared with those by established laboratory methods (aqua regia or fusion ICP-MS and ICP-ES) on the <0.063-mm fraction to determine if the application of direct pXRF in the field would serve as an acceptable guide for immediate follow-up work. Four test sites in Canada were chosen: the Halfmile Lake Cu-Pb-Zn VMS deposit; the intrusion-hosted W-Mo Sisson deposit; a Pb-Zn Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) deposit in the Pine Point district; and the Triple B kimberlite. Unsieved till samples from the GSC archive collection were used for this study and included samples from background areas, immediately overlying, and at various distances down-ice of each deposit. Ziploc® and Whirl-Pak® bags that were used to contain the samples in the field were tested for their properties of X-ray attenuation and contamination. In general, the performance of pXRF in the four test areas was very good where concentrations of elements of interest (indicator or pathfinder elements) were substantially above detection limits by this technique (in the low ppm range for many elements). The following elements, shown to be useful indicator elements (important constituents of the ore/commodity) or pathfinder elements (those associated with the commodity elements) by the established methodology, showed similar patterns by pXRF on the unsieved material: Zn, Cu, Pb, and As at Halfmile Lake; W, Mo, Cu, Zn, Pb, and As at the Sisson deposit; Zn, Pb, and Fe at Pine Point; and Ca, Sr, Cr, and Ni at Triple B. Pathfinder elements whose concentrations were too low for determination by pXRF include: Ag and Sb at Halfmile Lake; Ag and Cd at Sisson; Cd, S, and Se at Pine Point; and Co, Mg, P, U, and Th at Triple B. The high background for Bi by pXRF, equivalent to c. 50?ppm, and its noisy signal precluded its use at Halfmile Lake and Sisson. Elements which tended to show poor precision (three analyses each sample) by pXRF in some samples due to sample heterogeneity include Sn, V, and W. Mercury was erroneously reported for the majority of samples in the low ppm range by pXRF whereas its concentration in fact was in the low ppb range. Several Pb-, Zn- (c. 1% Pb, Zn) and Fe-rich (up to 16% Fe) samples demonstrated spectral interferences by: Pb on As, Th and Se; Zn on Cu; and Fe on Co. Results for six till samples analysed in Ziploc® and Whirl-Pak® bags showed that Ziploc® absorbs fewer low-energy photons and hence is preferable for determining light elements such as Si, K and Ca.
Schmitt, H.R., Cameron, E.M., Hall, G.E.M., Viave, J.
Mobilization of gold into lake sediments from acid and alkaline mineralized environments in the southern Canadian shield: gold in lake sediments andnat.waters
Journal of Geochemical Exploration, Vol. 48, No. 3, August pp. 329-358
Abstract: Gem-quality diamonds have been found in several alluvial deposits across central and southern Borneo. Borneo has been a known source of diamonds for centuries, but the location of their primary igneous source remains enigmatic. Many geological models have been proposed to explain their distribution, including: the diamonds were derived from a local diatreme; they were brought to the surface through ophiolite obduction or exhumation of UHP metamorphic rocks; they were transported long distances southward via major Asian river systems; or, they were transported from the Australian continent before Borneo was rifted from its northwestern margin in the Late Jurassic. To assess these models, we conducted a study of the provenance of heavy minerals from Kalimantan's Cempaka alluvial diamond deposit. This involved collecting U Pb isotopic data, fission track and trace element geochemistry of zircon as well as major element geochemical data of spinels and morphological descriptions of zircon and diamond. The results indicate that the Cempaka diamonds were likely derived from at least two sources, one which was relatively local and/or involved little reworking, and the other more distal which records several periods of reworking. The distal diamond source is interpreted to be diamond-bearing pipes that intruded the basement of a block that: (1) rifted from northwest Australia (East Java or SW Borneo) and the diamonds were recycled into its sedimentary cover, or: (2) were emplaced elsewhere (e.g. NW Australia) and transported to a block (e.g. East Java or SW Borneo). Both of these scenarios require the diamonds to be transported with the block when it rifted from NW Australia in the Late Jurassic. The local source could be diamondiferous diatremes associated with eroded Miocene high-K alkaline intrusions north of the Barito Basin, which would indicate that the lithosphere beneath SW Borneo is thick (~ 150 km or greater). The ‘local’ diamonds could also be associated with ophiolitic rocks that are exposed in the nearby Meratus Mountains.
N: Cycle Concepts in Plate Tectonics, editors Wilson and Houseman , Geological Society of London special publication 470, pp. 415-437.
Mantle
plate tectonics
Abstract: In the Wilson cycle, there is a change from an opening to a closing ocean when subduction begins. Subduction initiation is commonly identified as a major problem in plate tectonics and is said to be nowhere observable, yet there are many young subduction zones at the west Pacific margins and in eastern Indonesia. Few studies have considered these examples. Banda subduction developed by the eastwards propagation of the Java trench into an oceanic embayment by tearing along a former ocean-continent boundary. The earlier subducted slab provided the driving force to drag down unsubducted oceanic lithosphere. Although this process may be common, it does not account for young subduction zones near Sulawesi at different stages of development. Subduction began there at the edges of ocean basins, not at former spreading centres or transforms. It initiated at a point where there were major differences in elevation between the ocean floor and the adjacent hot, weak and thickened arc/continental crust. The age of the ocean crust appears to be unimportant. A close relationship with extension is marked by the dramatic elevation of land, the exhumation of deep crust and the spectacular subsidence of basins, raising questions about the time required to move from no subduction to active subduction, and how initiation can be identified in the geological record.
Rates of hornblende etching in soils in glacial deposits of the northern Rocky Mountains (Wyoming-Montana); United States (US): influence of climate/parent
Chemical Geology, Vol. 105, pp. 17-29
Wyoming, Montana
Geomorphology, Wind River Range, Tobacco Root Range
Canada Forum: Held Nov. 204, Joint Ventures-Joint Rewards. The resource industry and aboriginal development co, [email protected] 180p. binder $ 120.00
Provenance ages for the Witwatersrand supergroup: constrainst from uranium-lead (U-Pb) (U-Pb)ages of detrital zircons in the Orange Grove quartzite and the Ventersdorpcontac
Tectonics Division and Western Transvaal Branch of the Geological Society South, 1p. (abstract.)
Abstract: The hydrogen-isotope [deuterium/hydrogen (D/H)] ratio of Earth can be used to constrain the origin of its water. However, the most accessible reservoir, Earth’s oceans, may no longer represent the original (primordial) D/H ratio, owing to changes caused by water cycling between the surface and the interior. Thus, a reservoir completely isolated from surface processes is required to define Earth’s original D/H signature. Here we present data for Baffin Island and Icelandic lavas, which suggest that the deep mantle has a low D/H ratio (?D more negative than -218 per mil). Such strongly negative values indicate the existence of a component within Earth’s interior that inherited its D/H ratio directly from the protosolar nebula.
Abstract: Nitrogen is the main constituent of the Earth’s atmosphere, but its provenance in the Earth’s mantle remains uncertain. The relative contribution of primordial nitrogen inherited during the Earth’s accretion versus that subducted from the Earth’s surface is unclear1,2,3,4,5,6. Here we show that the mantle may have retained remnants of such primordial nitrogen. We use the rare 15N15N isotopologue of N2 as a new tracer of air contamination in volcanic gas effusions. By constraining air contamination in gases from Iceland, Eifel (Germany) and Yellowstone (USA), we derive estimates of mantle ?15N (the fractional difference in 15N/14N from air), N2/36Ar and N2/3He. Our results show that negative ?15N values observed in gases, previously regarded as indicating a mantle origin for nitrogen7,8,9,10, in fact represent dominantly air-derived N2 that experienced 15N/14N fractionation in hydrothermal systems. Using two-component mixing models to correct for this effect, the 15N15N data allow extrapolations that characterize mantle endmember ?15N, N2/36Ar and N2/3He values. We show that the Eifel region has slightly increased ?15N and N2/36Ar values relative to estimates for the convective mantle provided by mid-ocean-ridge basalts11, consistent with subducted nitrogen being added to the mantle source. In contrast, we find that whereas the Yellowstone plume has ?15N values substantially greater than that of the convective mantle, resembling surface components12,13,14,15, its N2/36Ar and N2/3He ratios are indistinguishable from those of the convective mantle. This observation raises the possibility that the plume hosts a primordial component. We provide a test of the subduction hypothesis with a two-box model, describing the evolution of mantle and surface nitrogen through geological time. We show that the effect of subduction on the deep nitrogen cycle may be less important than has been suggested by previous investigations. We propose instead that high mid-ocean-ridge basalt and plume ?15N values may both be dominantly primordial features.
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Vol. 49, pp. 37-70.
Mantle
subduction
Abstract: Volatile elements (water, carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, halogens, and noble gases) played an essential role in the secular evolution of the solid Earth and emergence of life. Here we provide an overview of Earth's volatile inventories and describe the mechanisms by which volatiles are conveyed between Earth's surface and mantle reservoirs, via subduction and volcanism. Using literature data, we compute volatile concentration and flux estimates for Earth's major volatile reservoirs and provide an internally balanced assessment of modern global volatile recycling. Using a nitrogen isotope box model, we show that recycling of N (and possibly C and S) likely began before 2 Ga and that ingassing fluxes have remained roughly constant since this time. In contrast, our model indicates recycling of H2O(and most likely noble gases) was less efficient in the past. This suggests a decoupling of major volatile species during subduction through time, which we attribute to the evolving thermal regime of subduction zones and the different stabilities of the carrier phases hosting each volatile. This review provides an overview of Earth's volatile inventory and the mechanisms by which volatiles are transferred between Earth reservoirs via subduction. The review frames the current thinking regarding how Earth acquired its original volatile inventory and subsequently evolved through subduction processes and volcanism.
Abstract: The hydrogen-isotope [deuterium/hydrogen (D/H)] ratio of Earth can be used to constrain the origin of its water. However, the most accessible reservoir, Earth’s oceans, may no longer represent the original (primordial) D/H ratio, owing to changes caused by water cycling between the surface and the interior. Thus, a reservoir completely isolated from surface processes is required to define Earth’s original D/H signature. Here we present data for Baffin Island and Icelandic lavas, which suggest that the deep mantle has a low D/H ratio (?D more negative than -218 per mil). Such strongly negative values indicate the existence of a component within Earth’s interior that inherited its D/H ratio directly from the protosolar nebula.
Paleomagnetic geochemical and U Pb geochronological study of Proterozoic dykes in Greenland and Arctic Canada and their role in plate tectonic reconstruction.
GAC Annual Meeting Halifax May 15-19, Abstract 1p.
Paleomagnetism and U Pb dating of Proterozoic dykes: a new radiation swarm and an increase in post Archean crustal rotation westwards from the Kapuskasing zone.
GAC Annual Meeting Halifax May 15-19, Abstract 1p.
Halls, H.C., Davis, D.W., Stott, G.M., Ernst, R.E., Hamilton, M.A.
The Paleoproterozoic Marathon large igneous province: new evidence for a 2.1 Ga long lived mantle plume event along the southern margin of the N.A. Superior Province
Porous sidewall and sloping flow crystallization experiments using a relative mush: implications for the self-channelization of residual melts incumulates
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 111, No. 2/4, July pp. 319-330
Guzmics, T., Zajacz, Z., Kodoenyi, J., Halter, W., Szabo, C.
LA ICP MS study of apatite and K feldspar hosted primary carbonatite melt inclusions in clinopyroxenite xenoliths from lamprophyres, Hungary: implications
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 72, 7, pp. 1864-1886.
Abstract: The breakup of Africa from South America is associated with the emplacement of the Paraná-Etendeka flood basalt province from around 134 Ma and the Tristan da Cunha plume. Yet many additional volcanic events occur that are younger than the main pulse of the Paraná-Etendeka and straddle the rift to drift phases of the main breakup. This contribution reports on new geochronological constraints from the Angolan part of the African Margin. Three coastal and one inland section have been sampled stretching across some 400 Km, with 39Ar/40Ar, U-Pb and Palaeontology used to provide age constraints. Ages from the new data range from ~100 to 81 Ma, with three main events (cr. 100, 91 and 82-81 Ma). Volcanic events are occurring within the Early to Late Cretaceous, along this part of the margin with a general younging towards Namibia. With the constraints of additional age information both onshore and offshore Angola, a clear younging trend at the early stages of rift to drift is recorded in the volcanic events that unzip from North to South. Similar age volcanic events are reported from the Brazilian side of the conjugate margin, and highlight the need to fully incorporate these relatively low volume volcanic pulses into the plate tectonic breakup models of the South Atlantic Margin.
Abstract: We report on the Lu-Hf and Re-Os isotope systematics of a well-characterized suite of spinel and garnet pyroxenites from the Gföhl Unit of the Bohemian Massif (Czech Republic, Austria). Lu-Hf mineral isochrons of three pyroxenites yield undistinguishable values in the range of 336-338 Ma. Similarly, the slope of Re-Os regression for most samples yields an age of 327 ± 31 Ma. These values overlap previously reported Sm-Nd ages on pyroxenites, eclogites and associated peridotites from the Gföhl Unit, suggesting contemporaneous evolution of all these HT-HP rocks. The whole-rock Hf isotopic compositions are highly variable with initial ?Hf values ranging from ? 6.4 to + 66. Most samples show a negative correlation between bulk rock Sm/Hf and ?Hf and, when taking into account other characteristics (e.g., high 87Sr/86Sr), this may be explained by the presence of recycled oceanic sediments in the source of the pyroxenite parental melts. A pyroxenite from Horní Kounice has decoupled Hf-Nd systematics with highly radiogenic initial ?Hf of + 66 for a given ?Nd of + 7.8. This decoupling is consistent with the presence of a melt derived from a depleted mantle component with high Lu/Hf. Finally, one sample from Be?váry plots close to the MORB field in Hf-Nd isotope space consistent with its previously proposed origin as metamorphosed oceanic gabbro. Some of the websterites and thin-layered pyroxenites have variable, but high Os concentrations paralleled by low initial ?Os. This reflects the interaction of the parental pyroxenitic melts with a depleted peridotite wall rock. In turn, the radiogenic Os isotope compositions observed in most pyroxenite samples is best explained by mixing between unradiogenic Os derived from peridotites and a low-Os sedimentary precursor with highly radiogenic 187Os/188Os. Steep increase of 187Os/188Os at nearly uniform 187Re/188Os found in a few pyroxenites may be connected with the absence of primary sulfides, but the presence of minor late stage sulfide-bearing veinlets likely associated with HT-HP metamorphism at crustal conditions.
Abstract: The terminal Mesoproterozoic was a period of widespread tectonic convergence globally, culminating in the amalgamation of the Rodinia supercontinent. However, in Laurentia, long-lived orogenesis on its eastern margin was punctuated by short-lived extension that generated the Midcontinent Rift ca. 1110-1090 Ma. Whereas this cratonic rift basin is typically considered an isolated occurrence, a series of new depositional ages demonstrate that multiple cratonic basins in northern Laurentia originated around this time. We present a Re-Os isochron date of 1087.1 ± 5.9 Ma from organic-rich shales of the Agu Bay Formation of the Fury and Hecla Basin, which is one of four closely spaced cratonic basins spanning from northeastern Canada to northwestern Greenland known as the Bylot basins. This age is identical, within uncertainty, to ages from the Midcontinent Rift and the Amundsen Basin in northwestern Canada. These ages imply that the late Mesoproterozoic extensional episode in Laurentia was widespread and likely linked to a common origin. We propose that significant thermal anomalies and mantle upwelling related to supercontinent assembly centered around the Midcontinent Rift influenced the reactivation of crustal weaknesses in Arctic Laurentia beginning ca. 1090 Ma, triggering the formation of a series of cratonic basins.
Earth Science Reviews , Vol. 219, 103616 231p. Pdf
Africa, Namibia
Craton - Congo
Abstract: Otavi Group is a 1.5-3.5-km-thick epicontinental marine carbonate succession of Neoproterozoic age, exposed in an 800-km-long Ediacaran?Cambrian fold belt that rims the SW cape of Congo craton in northern Namibia. Along its southern margin, a contiguous distally tapered foreslope carbonate wedge of the same age is called Swakop Group. Swakop Group also occurs on the western cratonic margin, where a crustal-scale thrust cuts out the facies transition to the platformal Otavi Group. Subsidence accommodating Otavi Group resulted from S?N crustal stretching (770-655?Ma), followed by post-rift thermal subsidence (655-600?Ma). Rifting under southern Swakop Group continued until 650-635?Ma, culminating with breakup and a S-facing continental margin. No hint of a western margin is evident in Otavi Group, suggesting a transform margin to the west, kinematically consistent with S?N plate divergence. Rift-related peralkaline igneous activity in southern Swakop Group occurred around 760 and 746?Ma, with several rift-related igneous centres undated. By comparison, western Swakop Group is impoverished in rift-related igneous rocks. Despite low paleoelevation and paleolatitude, Otavi and Swakop groups are everywhere imprinted by early and late Cryogenian glaciations, enabling unequivocal stratigraphic division into five epochs (period divisions): (1) non-glacial late Tonian, 770-717?Ma; (2) glacial early Cryogenian/Sturtian, 717-661?Ma; (3) non-glacial middle Cryogenian, 661-646?±?5?Ma; (4) glacial late Cryogenian/Marinoan, 646?±?5-635?Ma; and (5) non-glacial early Ediacaran, 635-600?±?5?Ma. Odd numbered epochs lack evident glacioeustatic fluctuation; even numbered ones were the Sturtian and Marinoan snowball Earths. This study aimed to deconstruct the carbonate succession for insights on the nature of Cryogenian glaciations. It focuses on the well-exposed southwestern apex of the arcuate fold belt, incorporating 585?measured sections (totaling >190?km of strata) and?>?8764 pairs of ?13C/?18Ocarb analyses (tabulated in Supplementary On-line Information). Each glaciation began and ended abruptly, and each was followed by anomalously thick ‘catch-up’ depositional sequences that filled accommodation space created by synglacial tectonic subsidence accompanied by very low average rates of sediment accumulation. Net subsidence was 38% larger on average for the younger glaciation, despite its 3.5-9.3-times shorter duration. Average accumulation rates were subequal, 4.0 vs 3.3-8.8?m Myr?1, despite syn-rift tectonics and topography during Sturtian glaciation, versus passive-margin subsidence during Marinoan. Sturtian deposits everywhere overlie an erosional disconformity or unconformity, with depocenters ?1.6?km thick localized in subglacial rift basins, glacially carved bedrock troughs and moraine-like buildups. Sturtian deposits are dominated by massive diamictite, and the associated fine-grained laminated sediments appear to be local subglacial meltwater deposits, including a deep subglacial rift basin. No marine ice-grounding line is required in the 110 Sturtian measured sections in our survey. In contrast, the newly-opened southern foreslope was occupied by a Marinoan marine ice grounding zone, which became the dominant repository for glacial debris eroded from the upper foreslope and broad shallow troughs on the Otavi Group platform, which was glaciated but left nearly devoid of glacial deposits. On the distal foreslope, a distinct glacioeustatic falling-stand carbonate wedge is truncated upslope by a glacial disconformity that underlies the main lowstand grounding-zone wedge, which includes a proximal 0.60-km-high grounding-line moraine. Marinoan deposits are recessional overall, since all but the most distal overlie a glacial disconformity. The Marinoan glacial record is that of an early ice maximum and subsequent slow recession and aggradation, due to tectonic subsidence. Terminal deglaciation is recorded by a ferruginous drape of stratified diamictite, choked with ice-rafted debris, abruptly followed by a syndeglacial-postglacial cap-carbonate depositional sequence. Unlike its Sturtian counterpart, the post-Marinoan sequence has a well-developed basal transgressive (i.e., deepening-upward) cap dolomite (16.9?m regional average thickness, n?=?140) with idiosyncratic sedimentary features including sheet-crack marine cements, tubestone stromatolites and giant wave ripples. The overlying deeper-water calci-rhythmite includes crystal-fans of former aragonite benthic cement ?90?m thick, localized in areas of steep sea-floor topography. Marinoan sequence stratigraphy is laid out over ?0.6?km of paleobathymetric relief. Late Tonian shallow-neritic ?13Ccarb records were obtained from the 0.4-km-thick Devede Fm (~770-760?Ma) in Otavi Group and the 0.7-km-thick Ugab Subgroup (~737-717?Ma) in Swakop Group. Devede Fm is isotopically heavy, +4-8‰ VPDB, and could be correlative with Backlundtoppen Fm (NE Svalbard). Ugab Subgroup post-dates 746?Ma volcanics and shows two negative excursions bridged by heavy ?13C values. The negative excursions could be correlative with Russøya and Garvellach CIEs (carbon isotope excursions) in NE Laurentia. Middle Cryogenian neritic ?13C records from Otavi Group inner platform feature two heavy plateaus bracketed by three negative excursions, correlated with Twitya (NW Canada), Taishir (Mongolia) and Trezona (South Australia) CIEs. The same pattern is observed in carbonate turbidites in distal Swakop Group, with the sub-Marinoan falling-stand wedge hosting the Trezona CIE recovery. Proximal Swakop Group strata equivalent to Taishir CIE and its subsequent heavy plateau are shifted bidirectionally to uniform values of +3.0-3.5‰. Early Ediacaran neritic ?13C records from Otavi Group inner platform display a deep negative excursion associated with the post-Marinoan depositional sequence and heavy values (??+?11‰) with extreme point-to-point variability (?10‰) in the youngest Otavi Group formation. Distal Swakop Group mimics older parts of the early Ediacaran inner platform ?13C records, but after the post-Marinoan negative excursion, proximal Swakop Group values are shifted bidirectionally to +0.9?±?1.5‰. Destruction of positive and negative CIEs in proximal Swakop Group is tentatively attributed to early seawater-buffered diagenesis (dolomitization), driven by geothermal porewater convection that sucks seawater into the proximal foreslope of the platform. This hypothesis provocatively implies that CIEs originating in epi-platform waters and shed far downslope as turbidites are decoupled from open-ocean DIC (dissolved inorganic carbon), which is recorded by the altered proximal Swakop Group values closer to DIC of modern seawater. Carbonate sedimentation ended when the cratonic margins collided with and were overridden by the Atlantic coast-normal Northern Damara and coast-parallel Kaoko orogens at 0.60-0.58?Ga. A forebulge disconformity separates Otavi/Swakop Group from overlying foredeep clastics. In the cratonic cusp, where the orogens meet at a right angle, the forebulge disconformity has an astounding ?1.85?km of megakarstic relief, and km-thick mass slides were displaced gravitationally toward both trenches, prior to orogenic shortening responsible for the craton-rimming fold belt.
Abstract: The major structures in the long, narrow tongue of a sub-polar valley glacier are described: namely, longitudinal foliation, crevasses, clear-ice layers related to crevasses, debris-rich layers (frequently referred to as thrust or shear planes in the past), and folds. The foliation is vertical, is as well-developed in the centre of the glacier as at the margins, and does not, apparently, form perpendicular to the principal compressive strain-rate axis, nor exactly parallel to a line of maximum shearing strain-rate, although it sometimes approximately coincides with the latter. The intensity of foliation development is not related to the magnitude of the strain-rates, but the structure consistently lies parallel to flow lines through the glacier. There is no critical extending strain-rate, as such, associated with the development of new crevasses. Some crevasses have formed where the principal extending strain-rate is as low as 0.004 a-1 while, in other areas, extending strain-rates of 0.163 a-1 have not always resulted in fracturing. Prominent clear-ice layers, referred to as crevasse traces as displayed at the glacier surface, have formed in crevasse belts parallel to the main fracture directions. These are interpreted either as tensional veins or as the result of the freezing of water in crevasses. Extension parallel to the layering occurs during flow and, near the snout, the surface dip decreases rapidly. The fact that the crevasse traces can be followed to the snout implies that fracture occurs almost to the bottom of the glacier in the source area of the traces. Near the snout, debris-rich layers have developed parallel to the crevasse traces; frequently these are marked by prominent ridge-like ice-cored moraines. It is suggested that these structures are formed by a combination of basal freezing and thrusting. Isoclinal and tight similar folds on all scales are present. Some may be formed by the passive deformation of clear-ice layers as a result of differential flow; others may arise from the lateral compression of the original stratification in areas where ice flow becomes constricted by the narrowing of the valley. An axial plane foliation sometimes is associated with these folds.
Abstract: Across much of North America, the contact between Precambrian basement and Paleozoic strata is the Great Unconformity, a surface that represents a >0.4 b.y.-long hiatus. A digital elevation model (DEM) of this surface visually highlights regional-scale variability in the character of basement topography across the United States cratonic platform. Specifically, it delineates Phanerozoic tectonic domains, each characterized by a distinct structural wavelength (horizontal distance between adjacent highs) and/or structural amplitude (vertical distance between adjacent lows and highs). The largest domain, the Midcontinent domain, includes long-wavelength epeirogenic basins and domes, as well as fault-controlled steps. The pronounced change in land-surface elevation at the Rocky Mountain Front coincides with the western edge of the Midcontinent domain on the basement DEM. In the Rocky Mountain and Colorado Plateau domains, west of the Rocky Mountain Front, structural wavelength is significantly shorter and structural amplitude significantly higher than in the Midcontinent domain. The Bordering Basins domain outlines the southern and eastern edges of the Midcontinent domain. As emphasized by the basement DEM, several kilometers of structural relief occur across the boundary between these two domains, even though this boundary does not stand out on ground-surface topography. A plot of epicenters on the basement DEM supports models associating intraplate seismicity with the Midcontinent domain edge. Notably, certain changes in crustal thickness also coincide with distinct changes in basement depth.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 481, pp. 223-235.
United States, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky
geophysics - seismics Reelfoot Rift
Abstract: Seismic discontinuities between the Moho and the inferred lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB) are known as mid-lithospheric discontinuities (MLDs) and have been ascribed to a variety of phenomena that are critical to understanding lithospheric growth and evolution. In this study, we used S-to-P converted waves recorded by the USArray Transportable Array and the OIINK (Ozarks-Illinois-Indiana-Kentucky) Flexible Array to investigate lithospheric structure beneath the central U.S. This region, a portion of North America's cratonic platform, provides an opportunity to explore how terrane accretion, cratonization, and subsequent rifting may have influenced lithospheric structure. The 3D common conversion point (CCP) volume produced by stacking back-projected Sp receiver functions reveals a general absence of negative converted phases at the depths of the LAB across much of the central U.S. This observation suggests a gradual velocity decrease between the lithosphere and asthenosphere. Within the lithosphere, the CCP stacks display negative arrivals at depths between 65 km and 125 km. We interpret these as MLDs resulting from the top of a layer of crystallized melts (sill-like igneous intrusions) or otherwise chemically modified lithosphere that is enriched in water and/or hydrous minerals. Chemical modification in this manner would cause a weak layer in the lithosphere that marks the MLDs. The depth and amplitude of negative MLD phases vary significantly both within and between the physiographic provinces of the midcontinent. Double, or overlapping, MLDs can be seen along Precambrian terrane boundaries and appear to result from stacked or imbricated lithospheric blocks. A prominent negative Sp phase can be clearly identified at 80 km depth within the Reelfoot Rift. This arrival aligns with the top of a zone of low shear-wave velocities, which suggests that it marks an unusually shallow seismic LAB for the midcontinent. This boundary would correspond to the top of a region of mechanically and chemically rejuvenated mantle that was likely emplaced during late Precambrian/early Cambrian rifting. These observations suggest that the lithospheric structure beneath the Reelfoot Rift may be an example of a global phenomenon in which MLDs act as weak zones that facilitate the removal of cratonic lithosphere that lies beneath.
Abstract: We present new data on the crystallization age of, and composition of olivine phenocrysts within, an alnöite and olivine melilitite of the Avon Alkalic Igneous Province (AAIP) of Missouri. The AAIP is an ultramafic igneous province consisting of more than 80 known lithologically and texturally diverse intrusions, cropping out in northeastern flank of the St. Francois Mtn. Terrane. 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of biotite phenocrysts constrains emplacement to 386 +/- 1 Ma. Xenocrystic biotite from one sample yields 40Ar/39Ar age spectra characteristic of episodic loss, indicating crystallization at ca. 1.3 Ga followed by partial loss in the ultramafic magma at 386 Ma. Olivines within the alnöite are subhedral, variably serpentinized, and embayed. Olivines within the melilitite are euhedral, but extensively serpentinized. Disequilibrium textures observed in alnöite olivine are consistent with resorption of magmatic olivine as a result of decompression during crystallization. Euhedral olivine within the melilitite appear to have remained in equilibrium with melt, suggesting derivation of alnöite and melilitite from unique magmas. Major and trace elemental abundances of olivine from the alnöite were characterized with electron probe microanalysis. Olivines are Mg-rich (Fo86.9-Fo89.9), and exhibit systematic variation in trace element (e.g., Ni (1627 to 3580 ppm), Cr (97 to 1603 ppm), Co (149 to 259 ppm), Ti (11 to 267 ppm), Al (undetectable to 923 ppm), and P (undetectable to 433 ppm)) abundances with decreasing forsterite content consistent with fractional crystallization. All geothermometers yield a range in temperature, e.g., the Al in olivine (De Hoog et al., 2009) yield temperatures of 1087° to 1313° C at depths of 80 km to 180 km (modern-day midcontinental LAB). Olivine trace element discrimination diagrams indicate AAIP magmas were derived from mantle sources with an alkalic affinity, similar to other continental alkaline rocks and kimberlite. A mantle origin via partial melting of carbonated peridotite mantle is suggested due to the high Mg content, results of geothermometric modeling, and high Ca and Ti abundance within olivine phenocrysts. Melting of the mantle may have ben triggered by "Acadian" tectonic events.
Abstract: The Late Cretaceous (ca. 100 Ma) diamondiferous Fort à la Corne (FALC) kimberlite field in the Saskatchewan (Sask) craton, Canada, is one of the largest known kimberlite fields on Earth comprising essentially pyroclastic kimberlites. Despite its discovery more than two decades ago, petrological, geochemical and petrogenetic aspects of the kimberlites in this field are largely unknown. We present here the first detailed petrological and geochemical data combined with reconnaissance Nd isotope data on drill-hole samples of five major kimberlite bodies. Petrography of the studied samples reveals that they are loosely packed, clast-supported and variably sorted, and characterised by the presence of juvenile lapilli, crystals of olivine, xenocrystal garnet (peridotitic as well as eclogitic paragenesis) and Mg-ilmenite. Interclast material is made of serpentine, phlogopite, spinel, carbonate, perovskite and rutile. The mineral compositions, whole-rock geochemistry and Nd isotopic composition (Nd: + 0.62 to ? 0.37) are indistinguishable from those known from archetypal hypabyssal kimberlites. Appreciably lower bulk-rock CaO (mostly < 5 wt%) and higher La/Sm ratios (12-15; resembling those of orangeites) are a characteristic feature of these rocks. Their geochemical composition excludes any effects of significant crustal and mantle contamination/assimilation. The fractionation trends displayed suggest a primary kimberlite melt composition indistinguishable from global estimates of primary kimberlite melt, and highlight the dominance of a kimberlite magma component in the pyroclastic variants. The lack of Nb-Ta-Ti anomalies precludes any significant role of subduction-related melts/fluids in the metasomatism of the FALC kimberlite mantle source region. Their incompatible trace elements (e.g., Nb/U) have OIB-type affinities whereas the Nd isotope composition indicates a near-chondritic to slightly depleted Nd isotope composition. The Neoproterozoic (~ 0.6-0.7 Ga) depleted mantle (TDM) Nd model ages coincide with the emplacement age (ca. 673 Ma) of the Amon kimberlite sills (Baffin Island, Rae craton, Canada) and have been related to upwelling protokimberlite melts during the break-up of the Rodinia supercontinent and its separation from Laurentia (North American cratonic shield). REE inversion modelling for the FALC kimberlites as well as for the Jericho (ca. 173 Ma) and Snap Lake (ca. 537 Ma) kimberlites from the neighbouring Slave craton, Canada, indicate all of their source regions to have been extensively depleted (~ 24%) before being subjected to metasomatic enrichment (1.3-2.2%) and subsequent small-degree partial melting. These findings are similar to those previously obtained on Mesozoic kimberlites (Kaapvaal craton, southern Africa) and Mesoproterozoic kimberlites (Dharwar craton, southern India). The striking similarity in the genesis of kimberlites emplaced over broad geological time and across different supercontinents of Laurentia, Gondwanaland and Rodinia, highlights the dominant petrogenetic role of the sub-continental lithosphere. The emplacement of the FALC kimberlites can be explained both by the extensive subduction system in western North America that was established at ca. 150 Ma as well as by far-field effects of the opening of the North Atlantic ocean during the Late Cretaceous.
Lithospheric structure, evolution and diamond prospectivity of the Rehoboth Terrane and western Kaapvaal Craton, southern Africa: constraints from broadband
Mineralogy and Petrology, 10.1007/ s00710-018- 0589-4, 14p.
Africa, South Africa, Canada, Northwest Territories, Ontario
deposit - Venetia, Voorspoed, Gahcho Kue, Victor, Snap Lake
Abstract: De Beers kimberlite mine operations in South Africa (Venetia and Voorspoed) and Canada (Gahcho Kué, Victor, and Snap Lake) have the potential to sequester carbon dioxide (CO2) through weathering of kimberlite mine tailings, which can store carbon in secondary carbonate minerals (mineral carbonation). Carbonation of ca. 4.7 to 24.0 wt% (average?=?13.8 wt%) of annual processed kimberlite production could offset 100% of each mine site’s carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions. Minerals of particular interest for reactivity with atmospheric or waste CO2 from energy production include serpentine minerals, olivine (forsterite), brucite, and smectite. The most abundant minerals, such as serpentine polymorphs, provide the bulk of the carbonation potential. However, the detection of minor amounts of highly reactive brucite in tailings from Victor, as well as the likely presence of brucite at Venetia, Gahcho Kué, and Snap Lake, is also important for the mineral carbonation potential of the mine sites.
Soderlund, U., Bleeker, W., Demirer, K., Srivastava, R.K., Hamilton, M., Nilsson, M., Personen, L.J., Samal, A.K., Jayananda, M., Ernst, R.E., Srinivas, M.
Abstract: Large igneous provinces (LIPs) and especially their dyke swarms are pivotal to reconstruction of ancient supercontinents. The Dharwar craton of southern Peninsular India represents a substantial portion of Archean crust and has been considered to be a principal constituent of Superia, Sclavia, Nuna/Columbia and Rodinia supercontinents. The craton is intruded by numerous regional-scale mafic dyke swarms of which only a few have robustly constrained emplacement ages. Through this study, the LIP record of the Dharwar craton has been improved by U-Pb geochronology of 18 dykes, which together comprise seven generations of Paleoproterozoic dyke swarms with emplacement ages within the 2.37-1.79 Ga age interval. From oldest to youngest, the new ages (integrated with U-Pb ages previously reported for the Hampi swarm) define the following eight swarms with their currently recommended names: NE-SW to ESE-WNW trending ca. 2.37 Ga Bangalore-Karimnagar swarm. N-S to NNE-SSW trending ca. 2.25 Ga Ippaguda-Dhiburahalli swarm. N-S to NNW-SSE trending ca. 2.22 Ga Kandlamadugu swarm. NW-SE to WNW-ESE trending ca. 2.21 Ga Anantapur-Kunigal swarm. NW-SE to WNW-ESE trending ca. 2.18 Ga Mahbubnagar-Dandeli swarm. N-S, NW-SE, and ENE-WSW trending ca. 2.08 Ga Devarabanda swarm. E-W trending 1.88-1.89 Ga Hampi swarm. NW-SE ca. 1.79 Ga Pebbair swarm. Comparison of the arcuate trends of some swarms along with an apparent oroclinal bend of ancient geological features, such as regional Dharwar greenstone belts and the late Archean (ca. 2.5 Ga) Closepet Granite batholith, have led to the hypothesis that the northern Dharwar block has rotated relative to the southern block. By restoring a 30° counter clockwise rotation of the northern Dharwar block relative to the southern block, we show that pre-2.08 Ga arcuate and fanning dyke swarms consistently become approximately linear. Two possible tectonic models for this apparent bending, and concomitant dyke rotations, are discussed. Regardless of which deformation mechanisms applies, these findings reinforce previous suggestions that the radial patterns of the giant ca. 2.37 Ga Bangalore-Karimnagar dyke swarm, and probably also the ca. 2.21 Ga Anantapur-Kunigal swarm, may not be primary features.
Abstract: We sampled the mid-Ediacaran Saint-Honoré alkali intrusion and related dykes in the Saguenay City region of Québec for paleomagnetic and U-Pb, 40Ar/39Ar geochonologic study. 40Ar/39Ar geochronology of phlogopite separates from carbonatite of the central intrusion return plateau ages with a weighted mean of 578.3 ± 3.5 Ma. Baddeleyite from a phoscorite dyke provides a concordant age of 580.25 ± 0.87 Ma for the crystallization of the dykes associated with the St-Honoré intrusive complex. Paleomagnetic results from the intrusion itself and related carbonatite and lamprophyre dykes exhibit some streaking between higher to moderate inclination directions, even at the site level, after screening to remove a steep, present-day viscous remanence. The predominant St-Honoré mean direction (13 sites), which is primary (baked contact test on the host Lac St-Jean anorthosite), is D = 119, I = 72.3°; ?95 = 9.5°, retained at higher coercivity and to high unblocking temperatures by titanomagnetite. Assuming a geocentric axial dipole, this result places the St. Honoré locality at 57° S at ~ 580 Ma, implying that Laurentia straddled mid-paleolatitudes at that time. Notably, the paleopole location at 27.2° N, 320.7 E (dp = 15°, dm = 17°) is consistent with similar mid-Ediacaran age paleopoles which place Laurentia at mid- to high paleolatitudes. The Saint-Honoré result implies that Laurentia had moved from low latitude in the early Ediacaran to higher southern paleolatitudes by 580-570 Ma, and then back to low paleolatitudes by as early as 564 Ma. Viewed as apparent polar wander (APW), this motion traces an 'Ediacaran loop' that can also be seen in similar-aged paleomagnetic results from at least two other paleocontinents. The similar APW loops suggest a role for true polar wander in Ediacaran geodynamics, and perhaps help to define a longitudinally-constrained global Ediacaran paleogeography.
Project 03-002. Synthesis of Archean geology and diamond bearing rocks in the Michipicoten Greenstone Belt: results from microdiamond extraction and geochronology.
Ontario Geological Survey Summary of Fieldwork 2005, O.F. 6172, pp. 8-1-13.
Paleomagnetism, U Pb geochronology and geochemistry of Lac Esprit and other dyke swarms, James Bay area, Quebec: implications for Paleoproterozoic deformation
Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 44, 5, pp. 643-664.
Halls, H.C., Davis, D.W., Stott, G.M., Ernst, R.E., Hamilton, M.A.
The Paleoproterozoic Marathon large igneous province: new evidence for a 2.1 Ga long lived mantle plume event along the southern margin of the N.A. Superior Province
Ernst, R.E., Pereira, E., Hamilton, M.A., Pisarevsky, S.A., Rodriques, J., Tasinari, C.C.G., Teixeira, W., Van-Dunem, V.
Mesoproterozoic intraplate magmatic 'barcode' record of the Angola portion of the Congo craton: newly dated magmatic events at 1505 and 1110 Ma and implications for Nuna ( Columbia) supercontinent reconstructions.
A 2169 Ma U-Pb baddeleyite age for the Otish gabbro, Quebec: implications for correlation of Proterozoic magmatic events and sedimentary seuences in the eastern Superior province.
Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 53, 2, pp. 119-128.
Abstract: Precambrian supercontinents Nuna-Columbia (1.7 to 1.3 billion years ago) and Rodinia (1.1 to 0.7 billion years ago) have been proposed. However, the arrangements of crustal blocks within these supercontinents are poorly known. Huge, dominantly basaltic magmatic outpourings and intrusions, covering up to millions of square kilometres, termed Large Igneous Provinces, typically accompany (super) continent breakup, or attempted breakup and offer an important tool for reconstructing supercontinents. Here we focus on the Large Igneous Province record for Siberia and Laurentia, whose relative position in Nuna-Columbia and Rodinia reconstructions is highly controversial. We present precise geochronology—nine U -Pb and six Ar -Ar ages—on dolerite dykes and sills, along with existing dates from the literature, that constrain the timing of emplacement of Large Igneous Province magmatism in southern Siberia and northern Laurentia between 1,900 and 720 million years ago. We identify four robust age matches between the continents 1,870, 1,750, 1,350 and 720 million years ago, as well as several additional approximate age correlations that indicate southern Siberia and northern Laurentia were probably near neighbours for this 1.2-billion-year interval. Our reconstructions provide a framework for evaluating the shared geological, tectonic and metallogenic histories of these continental blocks.
Abstract: U-Pb baddeleyite ages for key mafic dykes of the Amazonian Craton reveal four significant intraplate episodes that allow connections with global igneous activity through time and supercontinent cycles. The oldest dykes (Carajás-Rio Maria region) are diabases with ages of 1880.2 ± 1.5 Ma and 1884.6 ± 1.6 Ma, respectively, corresponding with the Tucumã swarm which crops out to the west and is age-equivalent. The magmatic activity has a genetic link with the ca. 1.88 Ga Uatumã Silicic Large Igneous Province (SLIP), characterized by felsic plutonic-volcanic rocks. There is an age correlation with LIP events (ca. 1880 Ma) in the Superior, Slave, Indian and other cratons. This magmatism could be derived from significant perturbations of the upper mantle during the partial assembly of Columbia. Gabbronorite of the Rio Perdido Suite (Rio Apa Terrane) crystallized at 1110.7 ± 1.4 Ma, and is identical to that of the Rincón del Tigre-Huanchaca LIP event of the Amazonian Craton. This event was synchronous with the initiation of Keweenawan magmatism of central Laurentia (Midcontinent Rift) and also with coeval units in the Kalahari, Congo and India cratons. The two youngest U-Pb dates (535 and 200 Ma) occur in the Carajás region. Diabase of the Paraupebas swarm yields an age of 535.1 ± 1.1 Ma, which may be correlative with the giant Piranhas swarm located ca. 900 km apart to the west. The Paraupebas swarm is correlative with post-collisional plutonism within the Araguaia marginal belt. Therefore, the Cambrian dykes may reflect reactivation of cooled lithosphere, due to crustal extension/transtension active along the craton’s margin during assembly of West Gondwana. This magmatism is also contemporaneous with the 539-530 Ma Wichita LIP of southern Laurentia. The youngest studied Carajás region dyke was emplaced at ca. 200 Ma, corresponding with 40Ar/39Ar ages for the Periquito dykes west of Carajás and with most K-Ar ages of the giant Cassiporé swarm, located north of the study area. The newly dated ca. 200 Ma dyke fits well into the known, brief span of ages for the CAMP Large Igneous Province event, around the present central and northern Atlantic Ocean.
Sader, J.A., Leybourne, M.I., McClenaghan, M.B., Hamilton, S.
Low temperature serpentinization processes and kimberlite groundwater signature Kirkland Lake and Lake Timiskaming kimberlite fields: implications diamond exploration.
Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis, Vol. 7, 1, pp. 3-21.
A comparison of selective leach signatures over kimberlites and other targets. B30,A4,A1.AM47,95-2,MR6, Seed, OPAP, Peddie carbonatites Firstbrook, Borden, Firesand,
Ontario Geological Survey Open File, No. 6142, 179p. $ 16.
Canada, Ontario, Kirkland Lake, New Liskeard, Wawa
Sader, J.S., Hamilton, S.M., Hattori, K.H., Braundedr, K.
Project unit: 07-32. Surface media geochemical sampling at the Victor kimberlite region, northern Ontario and the Kirkland Lake region northeastern Ontario.
Ontario Geological Survey Open File, No. 6213, pp. 19-1-6.
The Canadian Mineralogist, Vol. 59, pp. 1261-1276. doi:10.3749/canmin.2000048 pdf
Canada, Ontario
deposit - Kirkland Lake
Abstract: We report new isotopic data for H2 and CH4 gases and Sr for groundwater collected from Jurassic Kirkland Lake kimberlites in northern Ontario, Canada. Groundwaters interacting with kimberlites have elevated pH (up to 12.4), are reducing (Eh as low as the H2-H2O couple), are dominated by OH? alkalinity, and have non-radiogenic (mantle) 87Sr/86Sr values (?0.706-0.707). Most significantly, the highest pH groundwaters have low Mg, high K/Mg, and are associated with abundant reduced gases (H2 ± CH4). Open system conditions favor higher dissolved inorganic carbon and CH4 production, whereas under closed system conditions low DIC, elevated OH? alkalinity, and H2 production are enhanced. Hydrogen gas is isotopically depleted (?2HH2 = ?771 to ?801‰), which, combined with ?2HH2O, yields geothermometry temperatures of serpentinization of 5-25 °C. Deviation of H2-rich groundwaters (by up to 10‰) from the meteoric water line is consistent with Rayleigh fractionation during reduction of water to H2. Methane is characterized by ?13CCH4 = ?35.8 to ?68‰ and ?2HCH4 = ?434‰. The origin of CH4 is inconclusive and there is evidence to support both biogenic and abiogenic origins. The modeled groundwater-kimberlite reactions and production of elevated concentrations of H2 gas suggest uses for diamond-production tailings, as a source of H2 for fuel cells and as a carbon sink.
Abstract: The Earth's mantle has provided a ready redox gradient of sulfur compounds (SO2, H2S) since the stabilization of the crust and formation of the ocean over 4 billion years ago, and life has evolved a multitude of metabolic pathways to take advantage of this gradient. These transitions are recorded in the sulfur and carbon isotope signals preserved in the rock record, in the genomic records of extant microorganisms, and in the changing mantle and crust structure, composition and cycling. Here, we have assembled approximately 20,000 sulfur (?34S, ?33S, ?36S) and carbon (?13C) isotope data points from scientific publications spanning over five decades of geochemical analyses on rocks deposited from 4.0 to 1.5 Ga. We place these data in the context of molecular clock and tectonic and surface redox indicators to identify overarching trends and integrate them into a holistic narrative on the transition of the Earth's surface towards more oxidizing conditions. The greatest extreme in ?34S values of sulfide minerals (? 45.5 to 54.9‰) and sulfate minerals (? 13.6 to 46.6‰) as well as ?13C values in carbonate minerals (? 16.8 to 29.6‰) occurred in the period following the Great Oxidation Event (GOE), while the greatest extremes in organic carbon ?13C values (? 60.9 to 2.4‰) and sulfide and sulfate mineral ?33S and ?36S values (? 4.0 to 14.3‰ and ? 12.3 to 3.2‰, respectively) occurred prior to the GOE. From our observations, we divide transitions in Earth's history into four periods: Period 1 (4.00 to 2.80 Ga) during which geochemical cycles were initialized, Period 2 (2.80 to 2.45 Ga) during which S and C isotope systems exhibit changes as conditions build up to the GOE, Period 3 (2.45 to 2.00 Ga) encompassing the GOE, and Period 4 (after 2.00 Ga) after which S and C isotopic systems remained relatively constant marking a time of Earth system geochemical quiescence. Using these periods, we link changes in S and C isotopes to molecular clock work to aid in interpreting emerging metabolic functions throughout Earth's history while underscoring the need for better proxies for robust evolutionary analyses. Specifically, results indicate: 1) an early development of sulfide oxidation and dissimilatory sulfite reduction followed by disproportionation and then sulfate reduction to sulfite resulting in a fully biologically mediated sulfur cycle by ~ 3.25 Ga; 2) support for the acetyl coenzyme-A pathway as the most likely earliest form of biologically mediated carbon fixation following methanogenesis; 3) an increasingly redox-stratified ocean in the Neoarchean with largely oxic surface water and euxinic bottom water during the first half of the Paleoproterozoic; and 4) that secular changes in Earth system crustal cycling dynamics and continent formation likely played a key role in driving the timing of the GOE. Finally, based on geochemical data, we suggest that the Paleoproterozoic be divided into a new Era of the Eoproterozoic (from 2.45 to 2.00 Ga) and the Paleoproterozoic (from 2.00 to 1.60 Ga).
Abstract: Geological mapping and zircon U-Pb/Hf isotope data from 35 samples from the central Tanzania Craton and surrounding orogenic belts to the south and east allow a revised model of Precambrian crustal evolution of this part of East Africa. The geochronology of two studied segments of the craton shows them to be essentially the same, suggesting that they form a contiguous crustal section dominated by granitoid plutons. The oldest orthogneisses are dated at ca. 2820 Ma (Dodoma Suite) and the youngest alkaline syenite plutons at ca. 2610 Ma (Singida Suite). Plutonism was interrupted by a period of deposition of volcano-sedimentary rocks metamorphosed to greenschist facies, directly dated by a pyroclastic metavolcanic rock which gave an age of ca. 2725 Ma. This is supported by detrital zircons from psammitic metasedimentary rocks, which indicate a maximum depositional age of ca. 2740 Ma, with additional detrital sources 2820 and 2940 Ma. Thus, 200 Ma of episodic magmatism in this part of the Tanzania Craton was punctuated by a period of uplift, exhumation, erosion and clastic sedimentation/volcanism, followed by burial and renewed granitic to syenitic magmatism. In eastern Tanzania (Handeni block), in the heart of the East African Orogen, all the dated orthogneisses and charnockites (apart from those of the overthrust Neoproterozoic granulite nappes), have Neoarchaean protolith ages within a narrow range between 2710 and 2630 Ma, identical to (but more restricted than) the ages of the Singida Suite. They show evidence of Ediacaran "Pan-African" isotopic disturbance, but this is poorly defined. In contrast, granulite samples from the Wami Complex nappe were dated at ca. 605 and ca. 675 Ma, coeval with previous dates of the "Eastern Granulites" of eastern Tanzania and granulite nappes of adjacent NE Mozambique. To the south of the Tanzania Craton, samples of orthogneiss from the northern part of the Lupa area were dated at ca. 2730 Ma and clearly belong to the Tanzania Craton. However, granitoid samples from the southern part of the Lupa "block" have Palaeoproterozoic (Ubendian) intrusive ages of ca. 1920 Ma. Outcrops further south, at the northern tip of Lake Malawi, mark the SE continuation of the Ubendian belt, albeit with slightly younger ages of igneous rocks (ca. 1870-1900 Ma) which provide a link with the Ponte Messuli Complex, along strike to the SE in northern Mozambique. In SW Tanzania, rocks from the Mgazini area gave Ubendian protolith ages of ca. 1980-1800 Ma, but these rocks underwent Late Mesoproterozoic high-grade metamorphism between 1015 and 1040 Ma. One granitoid gave a crystallisation age of ca. 1080 Ma correlating with known Mesoproterozoic crust to the east in SE Tanzania and NE Mozambique. However, while the crust in the Mgazini area was clearly one of original Ubendian age, reworked and intruded by granitoids at ca. 1 Ga, the crust of SE Tanzania is a mixed Mesoproterozoic terrane and a continuation from NE Mozambique. Hence the Mgazini area lies at the edge of the Ubendian belt which was re-worked during the Mesoproterozoic orogen (South Irumide belt), providing a further constraint on the distribution of ca. 1 Ga crust in SE Africa. Hf data from near-concordant analyses of detrital zircons from a sample from the Tanzania Craton lie along a Pb-loss trajectory (Lu/Hf = 0), extending back to ?3.9 Ga. This probably represents the initial depleted mantle extraction event of the cratonic core. Furthermore, the Hf data from all igneous samples, regardless of age, from the entire study area (including the Neoproterozoic granulite nappes) show a shallow evolution trend (Lu/Hf = 0.028) extending back to the same mantle extraction age. This implies the entire Tanzanian crust sampled in this study represents over 3.5 billion years of crustal reworking from a single crustal reservoir and that the innermost core of the Tanzanian Craton that was subsequently reworked was composed of a very depleted, mafic source with a very high Lu/Hf ratio. Our study helps to define the architecture of the Tanzanian Craton and its evolution from a single age-source in the early Eoarchaean.
Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 175, 13p. pdf
Mantle
magmatism
Abstract: Magmatic superheating is a condition with relevance to natural systems as well as experimental studies of crystallization kinetics. Magmas on Earth and other planetary bodies may become superheated during adiabatic ascent from the mantle or as a consequence of meteorite impact-generated crustal melting. Experimental studies of igneous processes commonly employ superheating in the homogenization of synthetic starting materials. We performed 1-atmosphere dynamic crystallization experiments to study the effects of superliquidus thermal history on the morphologies and compositions of subsequently grown olivine crystals. An ultramafic volcanic rock with abundant olivine was fused above the experimentally determined liquidus temperature (1395 °C), held for 0, 3, or 12 h, cooled at 25 °C h?1, and quenched from 200 °C below the liquidus, all at constant fO2, corresponding to FMQ-2?±?0.2 log units. An increase in olivine morphologic instability is correlated with superheating magnitude, parameterized as the integrated time the sample is held above the liquidus (“TtL”; °C h). We infer that a delay in nucleation, which intensifies monotonically with increasing TtL, causes crystal growth to be increasingly rapid. This result indicates that the structural relaxation time scale controlling the formation of crystal nuclei is (a) far longer than the time scale associated with viscous flow and (b) exceeds the liquidus dwell times typically imposed in crystallization experiments. The influence of magmatic superheating on crystal morphology is similar in sense and magnitude to that of subliquidus cooling rate and thus, both factors should be considered when interpreting the thermal history of a volcanic rock containing anhedral olivine.
Abstract: Mafic rocks comprising tholeiitic pillow basalt, dolerite and minor gabbro form the basal stratigraphic unit in the ca. 2.8 to 2.6 Ga Geita Greenstone Belt situated in the NW Tanzania Craton. They outcrop mainly along the southern margin of the belt, and are at least 50 million years older than the supracrustal assemblages against which they have been juxtaposed. Geochemical analyses indicate that parts of the assemblage approach high Mg-tholeiite (more than 8 wt.% MgO). This suite of samples has a restricted compositional range suggesting derivation from a chemically homogenous reservoir. Trace element modeling suggests that the mafic rocks were derived by partial melting within the spinel peridotite field from a source rock with a primitive mantle composition. That is, trace elements maintain primitive mantle ratios (Zr/Hf = 32-35, Ti/Zr = 107-147), producing flat REE and HFSE profiles [(La/Yb)pm = 0.9-1.3], with abundances of 3-10 times primitive mantle and with minor negative anomalies of Nb [(Nb/La)pm = 0.6-0.8] and Th [(Th/La)pm = 0.6-0.9]. Initial isotope compositions (?Nd) range from 1.6 to 2.9 at 2.8 Ga and plot below the depleted mantle line suggesting derivation from a more enriched source compared to present day MORB mantle. The trace element composition and Nd isotopic ratios are similar to the mafic rocks outcropping ?50 km south. The mafic rocks outcropping in the Geita area were erupted through oceanic crust over a short time period, between ?2830 and ?2820 Ma; are compositionally homogenous, contain little to no associated terrigenous sediments, and their trace element composition and short emplacement time resemble oceanic plateau basalts. They have been interpreted to be derived from a plume head with a primitive mantle composition.
Abstract: The late Mesoproterozoic Ngualla carbonatite complex in southwest Tanzania comprises a central magnesiocarbonatite plug surrounded sequentially by an annular calcite carbonatite intrusion and fenitised felsic igneous country rocks. The calcite carbonatite contains phlogopite-rich (glimmerite) enclaves interpreted as fenitised wallrock xenoliths that have contributed silicate minerals, apatite and magnetite through dispersal and interaction, mainly within the calcite carbonatite magma. Ultramafic magmas were emplaced into the magnesiocarbonatite magma chamber before complete solidification of the magnesiocarbonatite. Contemporaneity allowed the two magmas to mingle. Rounded enclaves of hematite-barite in the magnesiocarbonatite are tentatively attributed to magma immiscibility. Following complete solidification of the calcite carbonatite, and overlapping late crystallization of the magnesiocarbonatite plug, late magnesiocarbonatite dikes and ultramafic dikes were emplaced, some of the latter as diatremes. Crystallization of ferroan dolomite in the magnesiocarbonatite plug resulted in residual magmatic concentration of Si, Ba, F and rare earth elements (REE), and crystallization of barite, quartz, calcite, fluorite and REE fluorocarbonates in miarolitic cavities. Concentrations of (total) rare earth oxides (TREO) in the unweathered magnesiocarbonatite are 1 to 2%. REE ore with 3 to 6% TREO resulted from weathering, during which CaCO3 and MgCO3 were leached from ferroan dolomite leaving a porous goethite-rich residue containing barite and bastnaesite, the latter having replaced primary synchesite. Other commodities with potential economic significance include phosphate and niobium, both of which were enriched by residual accumulation over the calcite carbonatite as a result of karstic weathering. Although weathering was a critical factor in the formation of REE ore at Ngualla, the primary proto-ore resulted mainly from in situ igneous processes. This genetic model is different from that used to account for many carbonatite-hosted ore bodies, which result from late-stage hydrothermal processes. Examples of hydrothermal rare earth deposits include those of the late Jurassic to early Cretaceous Chilwa Province, located 800?km south of Ngualla. The differences in ore-forming processes may reflect the relative ages of the carbonatites and a deeper level of erosion at Ngualla.
Abstract: The Cenozoic East African rift (EAR), Cameroon Volcanic Line (CVL), and Atlas Mountains formed on the slow-moving African continent, which last experienced orogeny during the Pan-African. We synthesize primarily geophysical data to evaluate the role of magmatism in shaping Africa's crust. In young magmatic rift zones, melt and volatiles migrate from the asthenosphere to gas-rich magma reservoirs at the Moho, altering crustal composition and reducing strength. Within the southernmost Eastern rift, the crust comprises ~20% new magmatic material ponded in the lower crust and intruded as sills and dikes at shallower depths. In the Main Ethiopian Rift, intrusions comprise 30% of the crust below axial zones of dike-dominated extension. In the incipient rupture zones of the Afar rift, magma intrusions fed from crustal magma chambers beneath segment centers create new columns of mafic crust, as along slow-spreading ridges. Our comparisons suggest that transitional crust, including seaward dipping sequences, is created as progressively smaller screens of continental crust are heated and weakened by magma intrusion into 15-20 km thick crust. In the 30 Ma Recent CVL, which lacks a hot spot age progression, extensional forces are small, inhibiting the creation and rise of magma into the crust. In the Atlas orogen, localized magmatism follows the strike of the Atlas Mountains from the Canary Islands hot spot toward the Alboran Sea. CVL and Atlas magmatism has had minimal impact on crustal structure. Our syntheses show that magma and volatiles are migrating from the asthenosphere through the plates, modifying rheology, and contributing significantly to global carbon and water fluxes.
Abstract: Over the last few decades, significant advances in using geophysical techniques to image the structure of magma plumbing systems have enabled the identification of zones of melt accumulation, crystal mush development, and magma migration. Combining advanced geophysical observations with petrological and geochemical data has arguably revolutionised our understanding of, and afforded exciting new insights into, the development of entire magma plumbing systems. However, divisions between the scales and physical settings over which these geophysical, petrological, and geochemical methods are applied still remain. To characterise some of these differences and promote the benefits of further integration between these methodologies, we provide a review of geophysical techniques and discuss how they can be utilised to provide a structural context for and place physical limits on the chemical evolution of magma plumbing systems. For example, we examine how Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), coupled with Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data, and seismicity may be used to track magma migration in near real-time. We also discuss how seismic imaging, gravimetry, and electromagnetic data can identify contemporary melt zones, magma reservoirs, and, or, crystal mushes. These techniques complement seismic reflection data and rock magnetic analyses that delimit the structure and emplacement of ancient magma plumbing systems. For each of these techniques, with the addition of full-waveform inversion (FWI), the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), and the integration of geophysics with numerical modelling, we discuss potential future directions. We show that approaching problems concerning magma plumbing systems from an integrated petrological, geochemical, and geophysical perspective will undoubtedly yield important scientific advances, providing exciting future opportunities for the volcanological community.
Harvey, J., Yoshikawa, M., Hammond, S.J., Burton, K.W.
Deciphering the trace element characteristics in Kilbourne Hole peridotite xenoliths: melt-rock interaction and metasomatism beneath the Rio Grande rift, SW USA.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 474, pp. 215-225.
Africa, Algeria
diamond inclusions
Abstract: Diamond-bearing UHP metamorphic rocks witness for subduction of lithospheric slabs into the mantle and their return to shallow levels. In this study we present U-Pb and trace elements analyses of zircon and rutile inclusions from a diamond-bearing garnet megacryst collected in a mélange unit exposed on the northern margin of Africa (Edough Massif, NE Algeria). Large rutile crystals (up to 300 ?m in size) analyzed in situ provide a U-Pb age of 32.4 ± 3.3 Ma interpreted as dating the prograde to peak subduction stage of the mafic protolith. Trace element analyses of minute zircons (?30 ?m) indicate that they formed in equilibrium with the garnet megacryst at a temperature of 740-810 °C, most likely during HP retrograde metamorphism. U-Pb analyses provide a significantly younger age of 20.7 ± 2.3 Ma attributed to exhumation of the UHP units. This study allows bracketing the age of UHP metamorphism in the Western Mediterranean Orogen to the Oligocene/early Miocene, thus unambiguously relating UHP metamorphism to the Alpine history. Exhumation of these UHP units is coeval with the counterclockwise rotation of the Corsica-Sardinia block and most likely resulted from subduction rollback that was driven by slab pull.
Role of iron and reducing conditions on the stability of dolomite + coesite between 4.25 and 6 GPa - a potential mechanism for diamond formation during subduction
European Journal of Mineralogy, Vol. 23, 1, pp. 5-16.
Martin, A.M., Laporte, D., Koga, K.T., Kawamoto, T., Hammouda, T.
Experimental study of the stability of a dolomite + coesite assemblage in contact with peridotite: implications for sediment-mantle interaction and diamond formation during subduction.
Martin, A.M., Laporte, D., Koga, K.T., Kawamoto, T., Hammouda, T.
Experimental stidy of the stability of a dolomite + coesite assembalge in contact with peridotite: implications for sediment-mantle interaction and diamond formation during subduction.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 413, March 1, pp. 158-166.
Mantle
Geochronology
Abstract: This study investigates the impact of Earth's core formation on the metal-silicate partitioning of Sm and Nd, two rare-earth elements assumed to be strictly lithophile although they are widely carried by the sulphide phases in reducing material (e.g. enstatite chondrites). The partition coefficients of Sm and Nd (DSmDSm and DNdDNd) between molten CI and EH chondrites model compositions and various Fe-rich alloys (in the Fe-Ni-C-Si-S system) have been determined in a multi-anvil between 3 and 26 GPa at various temperatures between 2073 and 2440 K, and at an oxygen fugacity ranging from 1 to 5 log units below the iron-wüstite (IW) buffer. The chemical compositions of the run products and trace concentrations in Sm and Nd elements were determined using electron microprobe and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Our results demonstrate the non-fractionation of Sm and Nd during the segregation of the metallic phases: the initial Sm/Nd ratio of about 1 in the starting materials yields precisely the same ratio in the recovered silicate phases after the equilibration with the metal phases at all conditions investigated in this study. In addition, DSmDSm and DNdDNd values range between 10?310?3 and 10?510?5 representing a low solubility in the metal. An increase of the partition coefficients is observed with decreasing the oxygen fugacity, or with an increase of S content of the metallic phase at constant oxygen fugacity. Thus, based on the actual Sm and Nd concentrations in the bulk Earth, the core should contain less than 0.4 ppb for Sm and less than 1 ppb for Nd. These estimates are three orders of magnitude lower than what would be required to explain the reported 142Nd excess in terrestrial samples relative to the mean chondritic value, using the core as a Sm-Nd complementary reservoir. In other words, the core formation processes cannot be responsible for the increase of the Sm/Nd ratio in the mantle early in Earth history.
Abstract: Carbon emission at volcanic centers requires a constant balance between output (mostly by volcanism, either at plate boundaries or intraplate) and input (mostly at trench settings) of carbon from and to the Earth's mantle. The form of carbon that resides in the mantle is controlled by depth (pressure) and oxygen fugacity, the latter in turn depending on the depth and the concentration of iron in the mantle. In the shallow, lithospheric mantle, carbon is likely to be present in the oxidized form of CO2 (except under cratons where carbon is reduced to graphite or diamond). Below approximately 90 km, in the asthenosphere, the oxidized form of carbon is carbonate, either mineral or melt, depending on the thermal regime. At depths greater than approximately 150 km, the asthenospheric mantle is too reducing for carbon to stay in its oxidized form and only diamond is present, unless there is sufficient hydrogen to form reduced C-H fluids. Hence, the region located in the depth range of 90 to 150 km deep is where carbonatitic melts can most likely be produced and impregnate the surrounding mantle through metasomatism. The upper bound of this region is called the carbonate ledge. This limit prevents carbonate (either solid or molten) from ascending because of degassing and CO2 liberation. The lower bound is a redox front where redox melting (that is, melting caused by oxidation) may take place in an ascending portion of carbon-containing mantle. Carbonatite eruptions and presence of carbonate mineral inclusions in deep-seated diamonds provide evidence that these boundaries can be trespassed in some cases.
An analysis of the experimental data that has bearing on silicate melting in the presence of carbon further shows that the carbonate ledge is a melting curve with a negative or flat Clapeyron (dP/dT) slope. In the carbonated ultrabasic (peridotite) systems, the carbonate ledge is located between ~ 2-3 GPa. The ledge divides the pressure-temperature space into a region of low-pressure silicate melt production, and a high-pressure region where carbonatites can be produced. Carbonatitic melts in equilibrium with mantle peridotite have compositions close to dolomitic (approximately equal amounts of Ca and Mg) with a general trend of becoming markedly more magnesian with increasing pressure. Calcic carbonatites may be stable at pressures < 2 GPa if clinopyroxene is absent. At mantle transition zone pressure range, there seems to be a melting temperature decrease (negative fusion slope), which may be caused by the stabilization of majoritic garnet.
The carbonated basic (broadly eclogitic) system is more complex than the peridotitic one, because of the strong control of bulk silicate composition on melting temperatures, and hence, on melt composition. In carbonated eclogite systems, we propose that the effect of bulk composition upon all observed features can perhaps be related to silica super-saturation, or lack thereof. In some cases, high calcium (> 80 mol% CaCO3) melts can be produced, making the melting of carbonated eclogites an appealing scenario for the genesis of calcio-carbonatites in the Earth's mantle. Comparison with modeled pressure-temperature paths of subducted oceanic lithosphere shows that fusion of carbonated eclogite at depths shallower than 200 km should be expected for hot (Cascadian-type) subduction thermal regimes. On the other hand, in the case of cooler thermal regimes (Honshu-type, for instance), subducted carbonates may be stable to greater depths in Earth at trench settings, depending on the bulk composition of the system.
Furthermore, high-pressure experiments show evidence of a continuum among carbonatitic, kimberlitic, melilititic, and basaltic liquids, for increasing melting degree of carbonated peridotite. This continuum has not been documented in the case of fusion of carbonated eclogite. It may be present, however, when certain sediments are fused, although the silicate melts are granitic to rhyodacitic instead of being kimberlitic in composition. Additional high-pressure work on phase relations in the simple binary system CaCO3-MgCO3 and specific focus on oxide solubility in the vapor phase have the potential to further clarify phase relations on complex silicate-carbonate systems at mantle conditions.
Abstract: Accretion from primordial material and its subsequent differentiation into a planet with core and mantle are fundamental problems in terrestrial and solar system. Many of the questions about the processes, although well developed as model scenarios over the last few decades, are still open and much debated. In the early Earth, during its formation and differentiation into rocky mantle and iron-rich core, it is likely that silicate melts played an important part in shaping the Earth's main reservoirs as we know them today. Here, we review several recent results in a deep magma ocean scenario that give tight constraints on the early evolution of our planet. These results include the behaviour of some siderophile elements (Ni and Fe), lithophile elements (Nb and Ta) and one volatile element (Helium) during Earth's core formation. We will also discuss the melting and crystallization of an early magma ocean, and the implications on the general feature of core-mantle separation and the depth of the magma ocean. The incorporation of Fe2 + and Fe3 + in bridgmanite during magma ocean crystallization is also discussed. All the examples presented here highlight the importance of the prevailing conditions during the earliest time of Earth's history in determining the composition and dynamic history of our planet.
Journal of African Earth Sciences, Vol. 149, pp. 207-214.
Global
geophysics - gravity
Abstract: In this article, the probability tomography imaging method is applied to airborne vertical gravity gradient data to detect anomalies and estimate their depths and locations. First, the subsurface is divided into a 3D regular grid. Then, the probability tomography function is calculated at each grid node, and the obtained grid values are plotted. The zones of the highest values are the most probable areas for the buried bodies. It is noted that the results fall in the range [-1, +1] that represents the mass excess or mass deficit of density relative to the density of the host volume. The approach is applied to a sphere model and a cube model at certain flight altitudes. The results demonstrate that the approximate mass distribution and depth estimation derived from the approach are reliable up to a certain flight altitude.
Sun, N., Wei, W., Han, S., Song, J., Li, X., Duan, Y., Prakapenka, V.B., Mao, Z.
Phase transition and thermal equations of state of (Fe, Al) -bridgmanite and post perovskite: implication for the chemical heterogeneity at the lowermost mantle.
Earth Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 490, pp. 161-169.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 490, 1, pp. 161-169.
Mantle
geothermometry
Abstract: In this study, we have determined the phase boundary between Mg0.735Fe0.21Al0.07Si0.965O3-Bm and PPv and the thermal equations of state of both phases up to 202 GPa and 2600 K using synchrotron X-ray diffraction in laser heated diamond anvil cells. Our experimental results have shown that the combined effect of Fe and Al produces a wide two-phase coexistence region with a thickness of 26 GPa (410 km) at 2200 K, and addition of Fe lowers the onset transition pressure to 98 GPa at 2000 K, consistent with previous experimental results. Furthermore, addition of Fe was noted to reduce the density (?) and bulk sound velocity () contrasts across the Bm-PPv phase transition, which is in contrast to the effect of Al. Using the obtained phase diagram and thermal equations of state of Bm and PPv, we have also examined the effect of composition variations on the ? and
profiles of the lowermost mantle. Our modeling results have shown that the pyrolitic lowermost mantle should be highly heterogeneous in composition and temperature laterally to match the observed variations in the depth and seismic signatures of the D? discontinuity. Normal mantle in a pyrolitic composition with ?10% Fe and Al in Bm and PPv will lack clear seismic signature of the D? discontinuity because the broad phase boundary could smooth the velocity contrast between Bm and PPv. On the other hand, Fe-enriched regions close to the cold slabs may show a seismic signature with a change in the velocity slope of the D? discontinuity, consistent with recent seismic observations beneath the eastern Alaska. Only regions depleted in Fe and Al near the cold slabs would show a sharp change in velocity. Fe in such regions could be removed to the outer core by strong core-mantle interactions or partitions together with Al to the high-pressure phases in the subduction mid ocean ridge basalts. Our results thus have profound implication for the composition of the lowermost mantle.
Abstract: The Bastar craton in central India, surrounded by cratonic blocks and Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts, is a window to investigate the Archean-Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution and tectonic processes. Here we propose a new tectonic classification of the craton into the Western Bastar Craton (WBC), Eastern Bastar Craton (EBC), and the intervening Central Bastar Orogen (CBO). We present petrologic, geochemical and zircon U-Pb, REE and Lu-Hf data from a suite of rocks from the CBO and along the eastern margin of the WBC Including: (1) volcanic successions comprising meta-andesite and fine-grained amphibolite, representing arc-related volcanics along a convergent margin; (2) ferruginous sandstone, in association with rhyolite, representing a volcano-sedimentary succession, deposited in an active trench; and (3) metamorphosed mafic-ultramafic suite including gabbro, pyroxenite and dunite invaded by trondhjemite representing the section of sub-arc mantle and arc root adjacent to a long-lasting subduction system. Petrologic studies indicate that the mafic-ultramafic suite crystallized from an island arc tholeiitic parental magma in a suprasubduction zone environment. The chondrite-normalized and primitive mantle normalized diagrams of the mafic and ultramafic rocks suggest derivation from MORB magma. The mixed characters from N-MORB to E-MORB of the studied samples are consistent with subduction modification of a MORB related magma, involving partial melting of the metasomatized mantle wedge. Our zircon U-Pb age data suggest that the cratonic nuclei was constructed as early as Paleoarchean. We present evidence for active subduction and arc magmatism through Mesoarchean to Neoarchean and early Paleoproterozoic, with the trench remaining open until at least 2.3?Ga. Two major crust building events are recognized in the Bastar craton: during Mesoarchean (recycled Paleoarchean subduction-related as well as juvenile/depleted mantle components) and Neoarchean (accretion of juvenile oceanic crust, arc magmatism including granite batholiths and related porphyry mineralization). The final cratonization occurred during latest Paleoproterozoic, followed by collisional assembly of the craton and its incorporation within the Peninsular Indian mosaic during Mesoproterozoic. In the global supercontinent context, the craton preserves the history of Ur, the earliest supercontinent, followed by the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia, as well as minor thermal imprints of the Neoproterozoic Rodinia and associated Grenvillian orogeny.
Abstract: Potassic and ultrapotassic magmatism from deep lithospheric sources in intra-cratonic settings can be the signal of subsequent voluminous mafic magmatism and the formation of Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) triggered by mantle plumes. Here we report for the first time, precise zircon U-Pb age data from a suite of lamproites in the Bastar Craton of central India that mark the onset of Paleoproterozoic rifting and culminating in the formation of extensive mafic dyke swarms as the bar codes of one of the major LIP events during the Precambrian evolution of the Indian shield. The lamproites from the Nuapada field occur as dismembered dykes and are composed of phenocrysts and microphenocrysts of altered olivine together with microphenocrysts of phlogopite and magnetite within a groundmass of chlorite and calcite with accessory rutile, apatite and zircon. The rocks compositionally correspond to olivine phlogopite lamproite and phlogopite lamproite. Geochemical features of the lamproites correlate with their counterparts in Peninsular India and other similar suites elsewhere in the world related to rift settings, and also indicate OIB-like magma source. The associated syenite shows subduction-related features, possibly generated in a post-collisional setting. Magmatic zircon grains with high Th/U ratios in the syenite from the Nuapada lamproite form a coherent group with an upper intercept age of 2473 ± 8 Ma representing the timing of emplacement of the magma. Zircon grains in three lamproite samples yield four distinct age groups at ca. 2.4 Ga, 2.2 Ga, 2.0 Ga and 0.8 Ga. The 2.4 Ga group corresponds to xenocrysts entrained from the syenite whereas the 2.2 Ga group is considered to represent the timing of emplacement of the lamproites. The ca. 2.0 Ga zircon grains correlate with the major thermal imprint associated with mafic magmatism and dyke emplacement in southern Bastar and the adjacent Dharwar Cratons. A few young zircon grains in the syenite and lamproites show a range of early to middle Neoproterozoic ages from 879 to 651 Ma corresponding to younger thermal event(s) as also represented by granitic veins cutting across these rocks and extensive silicification. Zircon Lu-Hf isotope data suggest magma derivation from a refertilized Paleo-Mesoarchean sub-continental lithospheric mantle, or OIB-type sources. The differences in Hf-isotope composition among the zircon grains from different age groups indicate that the mantle sources of the lamproite are heterogeneous at the regional scale. A combination of the features from geochemical and zircon Hf isotope data is consistent with asthenosphere-lithosphere interaction during the lamproite magma evolution. The timing of lamproite emplacement in central India correlates with the global 2.2 Ga record of LIPs. We link the origin of the related mantle plume to the recycling of subducted slabs associated with the prolonged subduction-accretion history prior to the Neoarchean cratonization, as well as the thermal blanket effect of the Earth’s oldest supercontinent. Pulsating plumes and continued rifting generated voluminous dyke swarms across the Bastar and Dharwar Cratons, forming part of a major global rifting and LIP event.
Abstract: Potassic and ultrapotassic magmatism from deep lithospheric sources in intra-cratonic settings can be the signal of subsequent voluminous mafic magmatism and the formation of Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) triggered by mantle plumes. Here we report for the first time, precise zircon U-Pb age data from a suite of lamproites in the Bastar Craton of central India that mark the onset of Paleoproterozoic rifting and culminating in the formation of extensive mafic dyke swarms as the bar codes of one of the major LIP events during the Precambrian evolution of the Indian shield. The lamproites from the Nuapada field occur as dismembered dykes and are composed of phenocrysts and microphenocrysts of altered olivine together with microphenocrysts of phlogopite and magnetite within a groundmass of chlorite and calcite with accessory rutile, apatite and zircon. The rocks compositionally correspond to olivine phlogopite lamproite and phlogopite lamproite. Geochemical features of the lamproites correlate with their counterparts in Peninsular India and other similar suites elsewhere in the world related to rift settings, and also indicate OIB-like magma source. The associated syenite shows subduction-related features, possibly generated in a post-collisional setting. Magmatic zircon grains with high Th/U ratios in the syenite from the Nuapada lamproite form a coherent group with an upper intercept age of 2473 ± 8 Ma representing the timing of emplacement of the magma. Zircon grains in three lamproite samples yield four distinct age groups at ca. 2.4 Ga, 2.2 Ga, 2.0 Ga and 0.8 Ga. The 2.4 Ga group corresponds to xenocrysts entrained from the syenite whereas the 2.2 Ga group is considered to represent the timing of emplacement of the lamproites. The ca. 2.0 Ga zircon grains correlate with the major thermal imprint associated with mafic magmatism and dyke emplacement in southern Bastar and the adjacent Dharwar Cratons. A few young zircon grains in the syenite and lamproites show a range of early to middle Neoproterozoic ages from 879 to 651 Ma corresponding to younger thermal event(s) as also represented by granitic veins cutting across these rocks and extensive silicification. Zircon Lu-Hf isotope data suggest magma derivation from a refertilized Paleo-Mesoarchean sub-continental lithospheric mantle, or OIB-type sources. The differences in Hf-isotope composition among the zircon grains from different age groups indicate that the mantle sources of the lamproite are heterogeneous at the regional scale. A combination of the features from geochemical and zircon Hf isotope data is consistent with asthenosphere-lithosphere interaction during the lamproite magma evolution. The timing of lamproite emplacement in central India correlates with the global 2.2 Ga record of LIPs. We link the origin of the related mantle plume to the recycling of subducted slabs associated with the prolonged subduction-accretion history prior to the Neoarchean cratonization, as well as the thermal blanket effect of the Earth's oldest supercontinent. Pulsating plumes and continued rifting generated voluminous dyke swarms across the Bastar and Dharwar Cratons, forming part of a major global rifting and LIP event.
Abstract: Petrological, geochemical, and zircon U-Pb geochronological features of Archean ultramafic-mafic complexes formed in subduction?related settings provide significant insights into mantle source and geodynamic processes associated with subduction-accretion?collision events in the early Earth. Here, we investigate a suite of serpentinized dunite, dunite, pyroxenite, and clinopyroxenite from an ultramafic complex along the collisional suture between the Western Dharwar Craton (WDC) and the Central Dharwar Craton (CDC) in southern India. We present petrology, mineral chemistry, zircon U-Pb geochronology, rare earth element (REE), Lu-Hf isotopes, and whole?rock geochemistry including major, trace element, and platinum?group element (PGE) data with a view to investigate the magmatic and metasomatic processes in the subduction zone. Mineral chemistry data from chromite associated with the serpentinised ultramafic rocks show distinct characteristics of arc?related melt. Zircon U-Pb data from the ultramafic suite define different age populations, with the oldest ages at 2.9 Ga, and the dominant age population showing a range of 2.8-2.6 Ga. The early Paleoproterozoic (ca. 2.4 Ga) metamorphic age is considered to mark the timing of collision of the two WDC and CDC. Zircon REE patterns suggest the involvement continental crust components in the magma source. Zircon Lu-Hf analysis yields both positive and negative ?Hf(t) values from ?3.9 to 1.5 with Hf?depleted model ages (TDM) of 3,041-3,366 Ma for serpentinised dunite and ?0.2-2.0 and 2,833-2,995 Ma for pyroxenite, suggesting that the magma was sourced from depleted mantle and was contaminated with the ancient continental crust. Geochemical data show low MgO/SiO2 values and elevated Al2O3/TiO2 ratios, implying subduction?related setting. The serpentinized dunites and dunites show mild LREE enrichment over HREE, with relatively higher abundance of LILE (Ba, Sr) and depletion in HFSE (Nb, Zr), suggesting fluid-rock interaction, melt impregnation, and refertilization processes. The PGE data suggest olivine, chromite, and sulphide fractionations associated with subduction processes. Our study on the Mesoarchean to Neoarchean ultramafic complex provides important insights to reconstruct the history of the crust-mantle interaction in an Archean suprasubduction zone mantle wedge.
Abstract: The Bastar craton in central India, surrounded by cratonic blocks and Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts, is a window to investigate the Archean-Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution and tectonic processes. Here we propose a new tectonic classification of the craton into the Western Bastar Craton (WBC), Eastern Bastar Craton (EBC), and the intervening Central Bastar Orogen (CBO). We present petrologic, geochemical and zircon U-Pb, REE and Lu-Hf data from a suite of rocks from the CBO and along the eastern margin of the WBC Including: (1) volcanic successions comprising meta-andesite and fine-grained amphibolite, representing arc-related volcanics along a convergent margin; (2) ferruginous sandstone, in association with rhyolite, representing a volcano-sedimentary succession, deposited in an active trench; and (3) metamorphosed mafic-ultramafic suite including gabbro, pyroxenite and dunite invaded by trondhjemite representing the section of sub-arc mantle and arc root adjacent to a long-lasting subduction system. Petrologic studies indicate that the mafic-ultramafic suite crystallized from an island arc tholeiitic parental magma in a suprasubduction zone environment. The chondrite-normalized and primitive mantle normalized diagrams of the mafic and ultramafic rocks suggest derivation from MORB magma. The mixed characters from N-MORB to E-MORB of the studied samples are consistent with subduction modification of a MORB related magma, involving partial melting of the metasomatized mantle wedge. Our zircon U-Pb age data suggest that the cratonic nuclei was constructed as early as Paleoarchean. We present evidence for active subduction and arc magmatism through Mesoarchean to Neoarchean and early Paleoproterozoic, with the trench remaining open until at least 2.3 Ga. Two major crust building events are recognized in the Bastar craton: during Mesoarchean (recycled Paleoarchean subduction-related as well as juvenile/depleted mantle components) and Neoarchean (accretion of juvenile oceanic crust, arc magmatism including granite batholiths and related porphyry mineralization). The final cratonization occurred during latest Paleoproterozoic, followed by collisional assembly of the craton and its incorporation within the Peninsular Indian mosaic during Mesoproterozoic. In the global supercontinent context, the craton preserves the history of Ur, the earliest supercontinent, followed by the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia, as well as minor thermal imprints of the Neoproterozoic Rodinia and associated Grenvillian orogeny.
Abstract: The Bastar craton in central India, surrounded by cratonic blocks and Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts, is a window to investigate the Archean-Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution and tectonic processes. Here we propose a new tectonic classification of the craton into the Western Bastar Craton (WBC), Eastern Bastar Craton (EBC), and the intervening Central Bastar Orogen (CBO). We present petrologic, geochemical and zircon U-Pb, REE and Lu-Hf data from a suite of rocks from the CBO and along the eastern margin of the WBC Including: (1) volcanic successions comprising meta-andesite and fine-grained amphibolite, representing arc-related volcanics along a convergent margin; (2) ferruginous sandstone, in association with rhyolite, representing a volcano-sedimentary succession, deposited in an active trench; and (3) metamorphosed mafic-ultramafic suite including gabbro, pyroxenite and dunite invaded by trondhjemite representing the section of sub-arc mantle and arc root adjacent to a long-lasting subduction system. Petrologic studies indicate that the mafic-ultramafic suite crystallized from an island arc tholeiitic parental magma in a suprasubduction zone environment. The chondrite-normalized and primitive mantle normalized diagrams of the mafic and ultramafic rocks suggest derivation from MORB magma. The mixed characters from N-MORB to E-MORB of the studied samples are consistent with subduction modification of a MORB related magma, involving partial melting of the metasomatized mantle wedge. Our zircon U-Pb age data suggest that the cratonic nuclei was constructed as early as Paleoarchean. We present evidence for active subduction and arc magmatism through Mesoarchean to Neoarchean and early Paleoproterozoic, with the trench remaining open until at least 2.3?Ga. Two major crust building events are recognized in the Bastar craton: during Mesoarchean (recycled Paleoarchean subduction-related as well as juvenile/depleted mantle components) and Neoarchean (accretion of juvenile oceanic crust, arc magmatism including granite batholiths and related porphyry mineralization). The final cratonization occurred during latest Paleoproterozoic, followed by collisional assembly of the craton and its incorporation within the Peninsular Indian mosaic during Mesoproterozoic. In the global supercontinent context, the craton preserves the history of Ur, the earliest supercontinent, followed by the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia, as well as minor thermal imprints of the Neoproterozoic Rodinia and associated Grenvillian orogeny.
Abstract: A 5.6-km-long line of refraction and reflection seismic data spanning the Pliocene-Pleistocene fill of the Olduvai Basin, Tanzania is presented. The line is oriented along a northwest-southeast profile through the position of Olduvai Gorge Coring Project (OGCP) Borehole 2A. Our aims are to (1) delineate the geometry of the basin floor by tracing bedrock topography of the metaquartzitic and gneissic basement, (2) map synsedimentary normal faults and trace individual strata at depth, and (3) provide context for the sequence observed in OGCP cores. Results with refraction tomography and poststack migration show that the maximum basin depth is around 405?m (±25?m) in the deepest portion, which quadruples the thickness of the basin-fill previously known from outcrops. Variations in seismic velocities show the positions of lower density lake claystones and higher density well-cemented sedimentary sequences. The Bed I Basalt lava is a prominent marker in the refraction seismic results. Bottom-most sediments are dated to >2.2?Ma near where Borehole 2A bottoms out at the depth of 245?m. However, the seismic line shows that the basin-fill reaches a maximum stratigraphic thickness of around 380?m deep at Borehole 2A, in the western basin where the subsidence was greatest. This further suggests that potential hominin palaeoenvironments were available and preserved within the basin-fill possibly as far back as around 4?Ma, applying a temporal extrapolation using the average sediment accretion rate.
Rooney, T.O., Nelson, W.R., Dosso, L., Furman, T., Hanan, B.
The role of continental lithosphere metasomes in the production of HIMU-like magmatism on the northeast African and Arabian plates, East African Rift zone.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 461, pp. 105-118.
Mantle
Metasomatism
Abstract: Peridotite constitutes most of the Earth's upper mantle, and it is therefore unsurprising that most mantle-derived magmas exhibit evidence of past equilibrium with an olivine-dominated source. Although there is mounting evidence for the role of pyroxenite in magma generation within upwelling mantle plumes, a less documented non-peridotite source of melts are metasomatic veins (metasomes) within the lithospheric mantle. Here we present major and trace element analyses of 66 lavas erupted from a small Miocene shield volcano located within the Ethiopian flood basalt province. Erupted lavas are intercalated with lahars and pyroclastic horizons that are overlain by a later stage of activity manifested in small cinder cones and flows. The lavas form two distinctive petrographic and geochemical groups: (A) an olivine-phyric, low Ti group (1.7-2.7 wt.% TiO2; 4.0-13.6 wt.% MgO), which geochemically resembles most of the basalts in the region. These low Ti lavas are the only geochemical units identified in the later cinder cones and associated lava flows; (B) a clinopyroxene-phyric high Ti group (3.1-6.5 wt.% TiO2; 2.8-9.2 wt.% MgO), which resembles the Oligocene HT-2 flood basalts. This unit is found intercalated with low Ti lavas within the Miocene shield. In comparison to the low Ti group, the high Ti lavas exhibit a profound depletion in Ni, Cr, Al, and Si, and significant enrichment in Ca, Fe, V, and the most incompatible trace elements. A characteristic negative K anomaly in primitive-mantle normalized diagrams, and Na2O > K2O, suggests a source rich in amphibole, devoid of olivine, and perhaps containing some carbonate and magnetite. While melt generation during rift development in Ethiopia is strongly correlated with the thermo-chemical anomalies associated with the African Superplume, thermobaric destabilization and melting of mantle metasomes may also contribute to lithospheric thinning. In regions impacted by mantle plumes, such melts may be critical to weakening of the continental lithosphere and the development of rifts.
Abstract: Observations of discordant ages, meaning that an age given by one mineral geochronometer is different from the age given by another geochronometer from the same rock, began in the early days of geochronology. In the late 1950s and 1960s, discordant U-Pb zircon ages were unquestioningly attributed to Pb diffusion at high temperature. Later, the mineralogical properties and the petrogenesis of the zircon crystals being dated was recognized as a key factor in obtaining concordant U-Pb ages. Advances in analytical methods allowed the analysis of smaller and smaller zircon multigrain fractions, then the analysis of individual grains, and even pieces of grains, with higher degrees of concordancy. Further advances allowed a higher analytical precision, a clearer perception of accuracy, and a better statistical resolution of age discordance. As for understanding the cause(s) of discordance, belief revision followed the coupling of imaging, cathodoluminescence (CL), and backscattered electrons (BSE), to in situ dating by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) or by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Discordant zircon and other accessory minerals (e.g., monazite, apatite, etc.) often consist of young rims accreted onto/into older cores. Age gradients are sharp, and no Pb diffusion gradients are observed. As U-Pb discordance in crystalline, non-radiation damaged grains is caused by diachronous, heterochemical mineral generations, interpretations of mineral ages, based on the exclusive role of diffusion, are superseded, and closure temperatures of zircon and monazite are irrelevant in geological reality. Other isotopic systems (Rb-Sr, K-Ar) were believed, since the 1960s, to be similarly controlled by the diffusivity of radiogenic daughters. When zircon and monazite discordance were recognized as zone accretion/reaction with sharp boundaries that showed little or no high-temperature diffusive re-equilibration, the other chronometric systems were left behind, and interpretations of mineral ages based on the exclusive role of diffusion survived. The evidence from textural-petrologic imaging (CL, BSE) and element mapping by electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA) or high spatial resolution SIMS or LA-ICP-MS provides the decisive constraints. All microcline and mica geochronometers that have been characterized in detail document patchy textures and evidence for mineral replacement reactions. It is important not to confuse causes and effects; hetero-chemical microstructures are not the cause of Ar and Sr loss; rather, they follow it. Ar and Sr loss by dissolution of the older mineral generation occurs first, heterochemical textures form later, when the replacive assemblage recrystallizes. Heterochemical mineral generations are identified and dated by their Ca/Cl/K systematics in 39Ar-40Ar. Replacive reactions adding or removing Cl, such as, e.g., sericite overgrowths on K-feldspar, retrograde muscovite intergrowths with phengite, etc. are detected by Cl/K vs. Ar/K isotope correlation diagrams. Ca-poor reaction products, such as, e.g., young biotite intergrown with older amphibole, adularia replacing microcline, etc., can be easily identified by Ca/K vs. Ar/K diagrams supported by EPMA analyses. Mixed mineral generations are observed to be the cause of discordant, staircase-shaped age spectra, while step-heating of crystals with age gradients produces concordant plateaus. Age gradients are therefore unrelated to staircase age spectra. There is a profound analogy between the U-Pb, Rb-Sr, and K-Ar systems. Pb and Ar diffusion rates are both much slower than mineral replacement rates for all T < 750 °C. Patchy retrogression textures are always associated with heterochemical signatures (U/Th ratios, REE patterns, Ca/Cl/K ratios). As a rule, single-generation minerals with low amounts of radiation damage give concordant ages, whereas discordance is caused by mixtures of heterochemical, resolvably diachronous, mineral generations in petrologic disequilibrium. This can also include (sub-)grains that have accumulated significant amounts of radiation damage. For accurate geochronology the petrologic characterization with the appropriate technique(s) of the minerals to be dated, and the petrologic context at large, are as essential as the mass spectrometric analyses.
Zircon zonation patterns as revealed by cathodluminescence and back scattered electron images: implications for interpretation of complex crustalhistories
Chemical Geology, Vol. 110, No. 1/3, November 25, pp. 1-14
Abstract: Mantle plumes, tubes of hot rock rising from Earth's core, have come into focus, ending a more than 40-year-long debate. The result comes from a sophisticated MRI-like tomographic model that used 273 large earthquakes to illuminate the interior of Earth. It revealed as many as 28 plumes, many of them underneath known volcanic hot spots at Earth's surface. The plumes are fatter than expected, which means that they carry more heat away from Earth's core, an indication that plumes are important for cooling the planet. The model also shows that the plumes bend at a depth of 1000 kilometers, which could indicate an undiscovered mineral phase transition in the lower mantle that makes it less stiff.
Abstract: Under high pressures, water can react with surrounding rock to make diamonds and oil. These are just two consequences of a new picture of water's versatile chemistry in the mantle. The Deep Earth Water model is showing that, under extreme pressures down to 200 kilometers, water can dissolve many ions and host unexpected new reactions. It is replacing a geochemical framework, published in 1981, which made predictions for water-rock interactions, but only down to 15 kilometers. The idea that oil can be made from water and rock in the mantle is controversial, because it has long been assumed that oil arises through the compaction and burial of organic matter.
Abstract: In the outback of Western Australia, researchers have shown that shocked rocks were forged 2.229 billion years ago, when an asteroid crashed into our planet. The finding makes Yarrabubba crater, the 70-kilometer-wide scar left by the collision, Earth's oldest. The geologists who reported the date last week, at the Goldschmidt geochemistry conference, also point out a conspicuous coincidence: The impact came at the tail end of a planetwide deep freeze known as Snowball Earth. They say the impact may have helped thaw Earth by vaporizing thick ice sheets and lofting steam into the stratosphere, creating a powerful greenhouse effect. Other researchers are skeptical that Yarrabubba—which is just one-third the size of the crater left by the dinosaur-killing impact 66 million years ago—could have had such a profound effect on the climate. Still, they say, paleoclimate studies should consider the possible role of such violent collisions.
Abstract: One of the first appearances of eclogite-facies mineral assemblages in the geological record occurs in the c. 2000 Ma Palaeoproterozoic Usagaran Belt in central Tanzania, where the extended margin of the Tanzanian Craton is interpreted to have been subducted. Mafic rocks are interpreted to have contained the mineral assemblage garnet + omphacite + rutile + quartz ± amphibole. This high-pressure assemblage has been overprinted by a secondary mineral assemblage containing clinopyroxene + plagioclase + hornblende + ilmenite ± orthopyroxene. Mineral equilibria forward modelling indicates that the eclogite-facies assemblages reached minimum peak pressure-temperature (P-T) conditions of ~17 kbar and ~700 °C. Inclusions in garnet document a prograde P-T history consistent with burial through upper amphibolite-facies conditions and possible partial melting. Petrological and compositional evidence from garnet suggests that following peak metamorphism, the eclogite-facies rocks were heated while stalled at approximate peak pressures. Temperature estimates derived from Zr concentrations in interpreted texturally retrograde rutile support a near-isothermal post-peak P-T evolution for the eclogite-facies rocks - an evolution that terminates at retrograde P-T conditions of approximately 7.6-8.2 kbar and 680-790 °C. The relict eclogite domains form part of a larger assemblage with enclosing migmatitic metapelitic lithologies (the Isimani Suite). The metapelitic gneisses contain garnet + kyanite + biotite + staurolite + hornblende + plagioclase + muscovite + rutile + quartz and preserve minimal evidence of a high-pressure history, conceivably due to post-peak mineralogical recrystallisation. P-T modelling, inclusion assemblages and compositional zonation patterns in porphyroblastic garnet suggests the metapelitic gneisses — similarly to the relict eclogites — experienced burial to minimum peak pressures of approximately 16.5-17 kbar. Compositional zoning patterns in eclogitic garnet suggest the Isimani system was buried, reached peak metamorphic conditions, and was subsequently exhumed within a timeframe of up to 20 Myr. A tectonic regime involving crustal thickening and subduction, followed by extensional exhumation of the entire Isimani Suite is our preferred model for the development of the c. 2000 Ma Usagaran Belt.
Abstract: Igneous and metamorphic rocks contain the mineralogical and geochemical record of thermally driven processes on Earth. The generally accepted thermal budget of the mantle indicates a steady cooling trend since the Archean. The geological record, however, indicates this simple cooling model may not hold true. Subduction-related eclogites substantially emerge in the rock record from 2.1 Ga to 1.8 Ga, indicating that average mantle thermal conditions cooled below a critical threshold for widespread eclogite preservation. Following this period, eclogite disappeared again until ca. 1.1 Ga. Coincident with the transient emergence of eclogite, global granite chemistry recorded a decrease in Sr and Eu and increases in yttrium and heavy rare earth element (HREE) concentrations. These changes are most simply explained by warming of the thermal regime associated with granite genesis. We suggest that warming was caused by increased continental insulation of the mantle at this time. Ultimately, secular cooling of the mantle overcame insulation, allowing the second emergence and preservation of eclogite from ca. 1.1 Ga until present.
Crustal electrical conductivity in north central Saskatchewan: the North American Central Plains anomaly and its relation to a Proterozoic plate margin.
Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 21, pp. 533-43.
Abstract: Precambrian supercontinents Nuna-Columbia (1.7 to 1.3 billion years ago) and Rodinia (1.1 to 0.7 billion years ago) have been proposed. However, the arrangements of crustal blocks within these supercontinents are poorly known. Huge, dominantly basaltic magmatic outpourings and intrusions, covering up to millions of square kilometres, termed Large Igneous Provinces, typically accompany (super) continent breakup, or attempted breakup and offer an important tool for reconstructing supercontinents. Here we focus on the Large Igneous Province record for Siberia and Laurentia, whose relative position in Nuna-Columbia and Rodinia reconstructions is highly controversial. We present precise geochronology—nine U -Pb and six Ar -Ar ages—on dolerite dykes and sills, along with existing dates from the literature, that constrain the timing of emplacement of Large Igneous Province magmatism in southern Siberia and northern Laurentia between 1,900 and 720 million years ago. We identify four robust age matches between the continents 1,870, 1,750, 1,350 and 720 million years ago, as well as several additional approximate age correlations that indicate southern Siberia and northern Laurentia were probably near neighbours for this 1.2-billion-year interval. Our reconstructions provide a framework for evaluating the shared geological, tectonic and metallogenic histories of these continental blocks.
Abstract: Shallow submarine volcanoes pose unique scientific and monitoring challenges. The interaction between water and magma can create violent explosions just below the surface, but the inaccessibility of submerged volcanoes means they are typically not instrumented. This both increases the risk to marine and aviation traffic and leaves the underlying eruption physics poorly understood. Here we use low-frequency sound in the atmosphere (infrasound) to examine the source mechanics of shallow submarine explosions from Bogoslof volcano, Alaska. We show that the infrasound originates from the oscillation and rupture of magmatic gas bubbles that initially formed from submerged vents, but that grew and burst above sea level. We model the low-frequency signals as overpressurized gas bubbles that grow near the water-air interface, which require bubble radii of 50-220?m. Bubbles of this size and larger have been described in explosive subaqueous eruptions for more than a century, but we present a unique geophysical record of this phenomenon. We propose that the dominant role of seawater during the effusion of gas-rich magma into shallow water is to repeatedly produce a gas-tight seal near the vent. This resealing mechanism leads to sequences of violent explosions and the release of large, bubble-forming volumes of gas—activity we describe as hydrovulcanian.
Cerantola, V., Bykova, E., Kupenko, I., Merlini, M., Ismailova, L., McCammon, C., Bykov, M., Chumakov, A.I., Petitgirard, S., Kantor, I., Svityk, V., Jacobs, J., Hanfland, M., Mezouar, M., Prescher, C., Ruffer, R., Prakapenka, V.B., Duvbovinsky, L.
Relationships between oxygen fugacity and metasomatism in the Kaapvaal subcratonic mantle, represented by garnet peridotite xenoliths in the Wesselton kimberlite, South Africa.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 481, pp. 143-153.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Wesselton
Abstract: Rare garnet crystals from a peridotite xenolith from the Wesselton kimberlite, South Africa, have distinct zones related to two separate episodes of mantle metasomatism. The garnet cores were firstly depleted through melt extraction, then equilibrated during metasomatism by a potentially diamond-forming carbonate-bearing or proto-kimberlitic fluid at 1100-1300?°C and 4.5-5.5 GPa. The garnet rim chemistry, in contrast, is consistent with later overgrowth in equilibrium with a kimberlite at around and . This suggests that the rock was physically moved upwards by up to tens of kilometres between the two metasomatic episodes. Preserved high Ca, Al and Cr contents in orthopyroxenes suggest this uplift was tectonic, rather than magmatic. Diffusion profiles were measured over the transitions between garnet cores and rims using electron microprobe (Mg, Ca, Fe for modelling, plus Cr, Mn, Ti, Na, Al) and nano Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (NanoSIMS; 89Y, along with 23Na, Ca, Cr, Fe, Mn and Ti) analyses. The short profile lengths (generally <10 ?m) and low Y concentrations (0.2-60 ppm) make the NanoSIMS approach preferable. Diffusion profiles at the interface between the zones yield constraints on the timescale between the second metasomatic event and eruption of the kimberlite magma that brought the xenolith to the surface. The time taken to form the diffusion profiles is on the order of 25 days to 400 yr, primarily based on modelling of Y diffusion along with Ca, Fe and Mg (multicomponent diffusion) profiles. These timescales are too long to be produced by the interaction of the mantle xenolith with the host kimberlite magma during a single-stage ascent to the crust (hours to days). The samples offer a rare opportunity to study metasomatic processes associated with failed eruption attempts in the cratonic lithosphere.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 481, 1, pp. 143-153.
Mantle
kimberlite
Abstract: Rare garnet crystals from a peridotite xenolith from the Wesselton kimberlite, South Africa, have distinct zones related to two separate episodes of mantle metasomatism. The garnet cores were firstly depleted through melt extraction, then equilibrated during metasomatism by a potentially diamond-forming carbonate-bearing or proto-kimberlitic fluid at 1100-1300?°C and 4.5-5.5 GPa. The garnet rim chemistry, in contrast, is consistent with later overgrowth in equilibrium with a kimberlite at around and . This suggests that the rock was physically moved upwards by up to tens of kilometres between the two metasomatic episodes. Preserved high Ca, Al and Cr contents in orthopyroxenes suggest this uplift was tectonic, rather than magmatic. Diffusion profiles were measured over the transitions between garnet cores and rims using electron microprobe (Mg, Ca, Fe for modelling, plus Cr, Mn, Ti, Na, Al) and nano Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (NanoSIMS; 89Y, along with 23Na, Ca, Cr, Fe, Mn and Ti) analyses. The short profile lengths (generally <10 ?m) and low Y concentrations (0.2-60 ppm) make the NanoSIMS approach preferable. Diffusion profiles at the interface between the zones yield constraints on the timescale between the second metasomatic event and eruption of the kimberlite magma that brought the xenolith to the surface. The time taken to form the diffusion profiles is on the order of 25 days to 400 yr, primarily based on modelling of Y diffusion along with Ca, Fe and Mg (multicomponent diffusion) profiles. These timescales are too long to be produced by the interaction of the mantle xenolith with the host kimberlite magma during a single-stage ascent to the crust (hours to days). The samples offer a rare opportunity to study metasomatic processes associated with failed eruption attempts in the cratonic lithosphere.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, in press available, doi.org/101016 /j.gca.2020.07.013 45p. Pdf
Canada, Northwest Territories
deposit - Lac de Gras
Abstract: Whether hydrogen incorporated in nominally anhydrous mantle minerals plays a role in the strength and longevity of the thick cratonic lithosphere is a matter of debate. In particular, the percolation of hydrogen-bearing melts and fluids could potentially add hydrogen to the mantle lithosphere, weaken its olivines (the dominant mineral in mantle peridotite), and cause delamination of the lithosphere's base. The influence of metasomatism on hydrogen contents of cratonic mantle minerals can be tested in mantle xenoliths from the Slave Craton (Canada) because they show extensive evidence for metasomatism of a layered cratonic mantle. Minerals from mantle xenoliths from the Diavik mine in the Lac de Gras kimberlite area located at the center of the Archean Slave craton were analyzed by FTIR for hydrogen contents. The 18 peridotites, two pyroxenites, one websterite and one wehrlite span an equilibration pressure range from 3.1 to 6.6 GPa and include samples from the shallow (? 145 km), oxidized ultra-depleted layer; the deeper (?145-180 km), reduced less depleted layer; and an ultra-deep (? 180 km) layer near the base of the lithosphere. Olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene and garnet from peridotites contain 30 - 145, 110 - 225, 105 - 285, 2 - 105 ppm H2O, respectively. Within each deep and ultra-deep layer, correlations of hydrogen contents in minerals and tracers of metasomatism (for example light over heavy rare-earth-element ratio (LREE/HREE), high-field-strength-element (HFSE) content with equilibration pressure) can be explained by a chromatographic process occurring during the percolation of kimberlite-like melts through garnet peridotite. The hydrogen content of peridotite minerals is controlled by the compositions of the evolving melt and of the minerals and by mineral/melt partition coefficients. At the beginning of the process, clinopyroxene scavenges most of the hydrogen and garnet most of the HFSE. As the melt evolves and becomes enriched in hydrogen and LREE, olivine and garnet start to incorporate hydrogen and pyroxenes become enriched in LREE. The hydrogen content of peridotite increases with decreasing depth, overall (e.g., from 75 to 138 ppm H2O in the deep peridotites). Effective viscosity calculated using olivine hydrogen content for the deepest xenoliths near the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary overlaps with estimates of asthenospheric viscosities. These xenoliths cannot be representative of the overall cratonic root because the lack of viscosity contrast would have caused basal erosion of lithosphere. Instead, metasomatism must be confined in narrow zones channeling kimberlite melts through the lithosphere and from where xenoliths are preferentially sampled. Such localized metasomatism by hydrogen-bearing melts therefore does not necessarily result in delamination of the cratonic root.
Abstract: Kimberlites are the deepest sourced magmas emplaced at the Earth's surface. They provide a “window” into the processes at the base of the subcratonic mantle. A better understanding of the origin, composition, and emplacement mechanisms of kimberlites is hampered by uncertainties in the contents of the two main volatiles, H2O and CO2. Diamond dissolution in H2O and in CO2 fluids produces distinct resorption features offering an opportunity to determine the composition of the magmatic fluid in kimberlites. Here we examined the relationship between H2O:CO2 ratio of the fluid and the style of diamond resorption by conducting experiments in C-O-H fluid saturated with silicates with variable H2O:CO2 ratios at the conditions of kimberlite ascent of 1-3 GPa and 1150-1350 °C. Our results showed that the geometry of etch pits on diamond and the resorption style evolve consistently as bulk CO2 content of the fluid changes from 0 to 50 to 50-90 and 90-100 mol%. The fluid composition at the run conditions was monitored by entrapment of synthetic fluid inclusions in olivine and quartz. The inclusions demonstrated the existence of a fluid miscibility gap at 1-3 GPa and 1250 °C with two fluid endmembers, an aqueous and a carbonic phase, which H2O:CO2 ratio at 1 GPa determined with confocal Raman microscopy is (H2O)0.62(CO2)0.38 and (H2O)0.12(CO2)0.88 respectively. Hence, diamond resorption morphology depends on the proportions of the end-member aqueous and carbonic fluids, which vary with the bulk composition of the fluid. The different density and ability of aqueous and carbonic fluids to dissolve silicates (olivine) would promote their separation in the rising magma column. Concentration of the lower density aqueous fluid towards the tip of the propagating dyke would facilitate more efficient fracturing of the country rocks and faster ascent of the kimberlite magma causing explosive eruption. We propose that preferential attachment of aqueous fluid bubbles would help to increase the buoyancy of olivine xenocrysts and possibly diamond in the kimberlite magma offering a mechanism for transporting the heavy mantle cargo.
Abstract: Mining the deep seabed is fraught with challenges. Untapped mineral potential under the shallow, more accessible continental shelf could add a new dimension to offshore mining and help meet future mineral demand.
Kleinhanns, I.C., Fullgraf, T., Wilsky, F., Nolte, N., Fliegel, D., Klemd, R., Hansen, B.T.
U-Pb zircon ages and (isotope) geochemical signatures of the Kamanjab In lier ( NW Namibia): constraints on Palaeoproterozoic crustal evolution along the southern Congo craton.
Geological Society of London Special Publication: Continent formation through time., No. 389, pp. 165-195.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 10.1029/ 2020GC009159 22p. Pdf
Mantle
olivine
Abstract: The uppermost layer of Earth's mantle, the asthenosphere, experiences large deformations due to a variety of tectonic processes. During deformation, grains of olivine, the main rock?forming mineral in the asthenosphere, rotate into a preferred direction parallel to the deformation, developing a texture that can affect the response of the asthenosphere to tectonic stresses. Laboratory measurements show that the deformation rate depends on the orientation of the shear stress relative to the olivine texture. We use numerical models to apply the findings of the laboratory measurements to geodynamic situations that are difficult to simulate in a laboratory. These models track the development of olivine texture and its directional response to shear stress, which are highly coupled. Our results suggest that anisotropic viscosity in the asthenosphere can significantly affect the motions of tectonic plates, as plate motion in a continuous direction should become faster, while abrupt changes in the direction of plate motion should meet high resistance in the underlying asthenosphere. We suggest that olivine textures in the asthenosphere play a critical role in upper mantle dynamics.
The Australian Gemmologist, Vol. 26, 9-10, pp. 205-208.
Australia, New South Wales
diamond - Ophir
Abstract: This article describes the first Australian diamond to reach the shores of Britain. Originally donated to the Museum of Practical Geology, it now resides in the Natural History Museum, London. The diamond came from the gold-mining district of Ophir, near Bathurst in New South Wales, and is possibly the earliest found and recognised as a diamond in Australia.
Mantle structure beneath Africa and Arabia from adaptively parameterized P-wave tomography: implications for the origin of Cenozoic Afro-Arabian tectonism.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 319-320, pp. 23-34.
A new method to simulate convection with strongly temperature and pressure dependent viscosity in a spherical shell: applications to the Earth's mantle.
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, in press available
Abstract: Earth was a completely different planet more than 2.5 billion years ago. Little is known about this critical time when cratonic continental seeds formed; life emerged; and precious mineral resources concentrated. Our knowledge is limited because plate tectonic processes destroyed most of this early record. In contrast, Earth's sister, Venus -- similar in size, density, bulk composition, and distance from the Sun -- never developed plate tectonics. Venus also lacks a water cycle. Like siblings, Venus and Earth were most similar in their youth; however, Venus preserves a more complete geological record of its infancy, including both exogenic and endogenic features. Applying clues from Venus, Vicky L. Hansen proposes a new hypothesis for the formation of Earth's cratons. Large bolides pierced early thin lithosphere causing massive partial melting in the ductile mantle; melt escaped upward, forming cratonic crust; meanwhile strong, dry, buoyant melt residue formed cratonic roots, serving as unique buoyant life preservers during future plate-tectonic recycling.
Abstract: Archean cratons consist of crustal granite-greenstone terrains (GGTs) coupled to roots of strong, buoyant cratonic lithospheric mantle (CLM). Although this association is unique to the Archean and formed from ca. 4.0 to 2.5 Ga, the origins of terrestrial cratons are debated. I propose that crustal plateaus, quasi-circular craton-like features (?1400-2400 km diameter, 0.5-4 km high), on Earth’s sister planet Venus might serve as analogs for Archean cratons. Crustal plateaus, which are isostatically supported by a compositionally controlled low-density root, host a distinctive surface called ribbon-tessera terrain. Ribbon-tessera also occurs as arcuate-shaped inliers in the Venus lowlands, widely interpreted as remnants of rootless crustal plateaus. Within each crustal plateau, surface ribbon-tessera terrain comprises a vast igneous province analogous to terrestrial GGTs, and the plateau root is analogous to CLM. Crustal plateaus and ribbon-tessera terrain collectively represent Venus’ oldest preserved features and surfaces, and they formed during an ancient period of globally thin lithosphere. To explain the linked features of crustal plateaus, a bolide impact hypothesis has been proposed in which a large bolide pierces ancient thin lithosphere, leading to massive partial melting in the sublithospheric mantle. In this model, melt escapes to the surface, forming an enormous lava pond, which evolves to form ribbon-tessera terrain; mantle melt residue forms a strong, resilient buoyant root, leading to plateau support and long-term stability of an individual crustal plateau. Building on the similarity of GGT-CLM and Venus crustal plateaus, I propose an exogenic hypothesis for Archean craton formation in which a large bolide pierces thin Archean lithosphere, causing localized high-temperature, high-fraction partial melting in the sublithospheric mantle; melt rises, forming an igneous province that evolves to form a GGT, and melt residue develops a complementary CLM. By this mechanism, Archean cratons may have formed in a spatially and temporally punctuated fashion at a time when large bolides showered Archean Earth.
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, Vol. 287, pp. 37-50.
Mantle
plate tectonics
Abstract: Is the present-day water-land ratio a necessary outcome of the evolution of plate tectonic planets with a similar age, volume, mass, and total water inventory as the Earth? This would be the case - largely independent of initial conditions - if Earth’s present-day continental volume were at a stable unique equilibrium with strong self-regulating mechanisms of continental growth steering the evolution to this state. In this paper, we question this conjecture. Instead we suggest that positive feedbacks in the plate tectonics model of continental production and erosion may dominate and show that such a model can explain the history of continental growth. We investigate the main mechanisms that contribute to the growth of the volume of the continental crust. In particular, we analyze the effect of the oceanic plate speed, depending on the area and thickness of thermally insulating continents, on production and erosion mechanisms. Effects that cause larger continental production rates for larger values of continental volume are positive feedbacks. In contrast, negative feedbacks act to stabilize the continental volume. They are provided by the increase of the rate of surface erosion, subduction erosion, and crustal delamination with the continental volume. We systematically analyze the strengths of positive and negative feedback contributions to the growth of the continental crust. Although the strengths of some feedbacks depend on poorly known parameters, we conclude that a net predominance of positive feedbacks is plausible. We explore the effect of the combined feedback strength on the feasibility of modeling the observed small positive net continental growth rate over the past 2-3 billion years. We show that a model with dominating positive feedbacks can readily explain this observation in spite of the cooling of the Earth’s mantle acting to reduce the continental production rate. In contrast, explaining this observation using a model with dominating negative feedbacks would require the continental erosion and production rates to both have the same or a sufficiently similar functional dependence on the thermal state of the mantle, which appears unreasonable considering erosion to be largely dominated by the surface relief and weathering. The suggested scenario of dominating positive feedbacks implies that the present volume of the continental crust and its evolution are strongly determined by initial conditions. Therefore, exoplanets with Earth-like masses and total water inventories may substantially differ from the Earth with respect to their relative land/surface ratios and their habitability.
Chrome spinel hosted melt inclusions in Paleoproterozoic primitive volcanic rocks, northern Finland: evidence for coexistence and mixing of komatiitic and picritic magmas.
Abstract: A large compilation of quality-curated major and trace element data has been assembled to investigate how trace element patterns of mafic and ultramafic magmas have varied with time through particular settings from the Archean to the Phanerozoic, the primary objective being to recognise at what times particular patterns of variation emerge, and how similar these are to baseline data sets representing tectonic settings in the modern Earth. The most informative element combinations involve Nb, Th and the REE, where REE are represented by ‘lambda’ parameters describing slope and shape of patterns. Combinations of the ratios of Th, Nb, La and lambda values from Archean and early Proterozoic basalts and komatiites reveal a distinctive pattern that is common in most well-sampled terranes, defining a roughly linear trend in multi-dimensional space from compositions intermediate between modern n-MORB and primitive mantle at one end, towards compositions approximating middle-to-upper continental crust at the other. We ascribe this ‘Variable Th/Nb’ trend in most instances to varying degrees of crustal contamination of magmas with similar compositions to modern oceanic plateau basalts. Komatiites had slightly more depleted sources than basalts, consistent with the hypothesis of derivation from plume tails and heads, respectively. The most significant difference between Precambrian and Phanerozoic plume-derived basalts is that the distinctive OIB-like enriched source component appears to be largely missing from the Archean and Proterozoic geologic record, although isolated examples of OIB-like trace element characteristics are evident in datasets from even the oldest preserved greenstones. Phanerozoic intra-cratonic LIPs, such as the 260?Ma Emeishan LIP in China, have fundamentally different geochemical characteristics to Archean and Paleoproterozoic assemblages; the oldest Proterozoic LIP we have identified that has this type of ‘modern’ signal is the Midcontinent Rift at 1100?Ma. The data are consistent with plume tail sources having changed from being dominantly depleted in the Archean Earth to dominantly enriched in the Phanerozoic Earth, while plume head sources have hardly changed at all. Trace element patterns considered to be diagnostic of subduction are locally present but rare in Archean terranes and become more prevalent through the Proterozoic, although this conclusion is tempered by the large degree of overlap in compositional space between continental arc magmas and continental flood basalts. This overlap reflects the difficulty of distinguishing the effects of supra-subduction metasomatizm and flux melting from those of crustal contamination. Additional factors must also be borne in mind, particularly that trace element partitioning systematics may have been different in all environments in a hotter planet, and large-scale asthenospheric overturns might have been predominant over modern-style plumes in the Archean Earth. Some basaltic suites in particular Archean terranes, notably the western parts of both the Yilgarn and Pilbara cratons in Western Australia and parts of the Superior Craton, have restricted, but locally predominant, suites of basalts with characteristics akin to modern oceanic arcs, suggesting that some process similar to modern subduction was preserved in these particular belts. Ferropicrite magmas with distinctive characteristics typical of modern OIBs and some continental LIPs (notably Emeishan) are rare but locally predominant in some Archean and early Proterozoic terranes, implying that plume sources were beginning to be fertilised by enriched, probably subducted, components as far back as the Mesoarchean. We see no evidence for discontinuous secular changes in mantle-derived magmatism with time that could be ascribed to major mantle reorganisation events. The Archean-Proterozoic transition appears to be entirely gradational from this standpoint. The transition from Archean-style to Phanerozoic-style plume magmatism took place somewhere between 1900?Ma (age of the Circum-Superior komatiitic basalt suites) and 1100?Ma (the age of the Midcontinent Rift LIP).
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 250, 1, pp. 49-75.
Mantle
picrites
Abstract: The oxygen fugacities of nine mantle-derived komatiitic and picritic systems ranging in age from 3.55?Ga to modern day were determined using the redox-sensitive partitioning of V between liquidus olivine and komatiitic/picritic melt. The combined set of the oxygen fugacity data for seven systems from this study and the six komatiite systems studied by Nicklas et al. (2018), all of which likely represent large regions of the mantle, defines a well-constrained trend indicating an increase in oxygen fugacity of the lavas of ?1.3 ?FMQ log units from 3.48 to 1.87?Ga, and a nearly constant oxygen fugacity from 1.87?Ga to the present. The oxygen fugacity data for the 3.55?Ga Schapenburg komatiite system, the mantle source region of which was previously argued to have been isolated from mantle convection within the first 30?Ma of the Solar System history, plot well above the trend and were not included in the regression. These komatiite’s anomalously high oxygen fugacity data likely reflect preservation of early-formed magma ocean redox heterogeneities until at least the Paleoarchean. The observed increase in the oxygen fugacity of the studied komatiite and picrite systems of ?1.3 ?FMQ log units is shown to be a feature of their mantle source regions and is interpreted to indicate secular oxidation of the mantle between 3.48 and 1.87?Ga. Three mechanisms are considered to account for the observed change in the redox state of the mantle: (1) recycling of altered oceanic crust, (2) venting of oxygen from the core due to inner core crystallization, and (3) convection-driven homogenization of an initially redox-heterogeneous primordial mantle. It is demonstrated that none of the three mechanisms alone can fully explain the observed trend, although mechanism (3) is best supported by the available geochemical data. These new data provide further evidence for mantle involvement in the dramatic increase in the oxygen concentration of the atmosphere leading up to the Great Oxidation Event at ?2.4?Ga.
Petrogenesis of mantle derived large-ion lithophile elements (LILE) enriched Archean monzodiorites and Trachy andesites (sanukitoids) in southwestern Superior Province
Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 26, No. 9, September pp. 1688-1712
Abstract: Mobilistic plate-tectonic interpretation of Precambrian orogens requires that two conjoined crustal blocks may derive from distant portions of the globe. Nonetheless, many proposed Precambrian cratonic juxtapositions are broadly similar to those of younger times (so-called “strange attractors”), raising the specter of bias in their construction. We evaluated the possibility that the Congo and Kalahari cratons (Africa) were joined together prior to their amalgamation along the Damara-Lufilian-Zambezi orogen in Cambrian time by studying diabase dikes of the Huila-Epembe swarm and sills in the southern part of the Congo craton in Angola and in Namibia. We present geologic, U-Pb geochronologic, and paleomagnetic evidence showing that these two cratons were directly juxtaposed at ca. 1.1 Ga, but in a slightly modified relative orientation compared to today. Recurring persistence in cratonic connections, with slight variations from one supercontinent to the next, may signify a style of supercontinental transition similar to the northward motion of Gondwana fragments across the Tethys-Indian oceanic tract, reuniting in Eurasia.
Abstract: Mobilistic plate-tectonic interpretation of Precambrian orogens requires that two conjoined crustal blocks may derive from distant portions of the globe. Nonetheless, many proposed Precambrian cratonic juxtapositions are broadly similar to those of younger times (so-called “strange attractors”), raising the specter of bias in their construction. We evaluated the possibility that the Congo and Kalahari cratons (Africa) were joined together prior to their amalgamation along the Damara-Lufilian-Zambezi orogen in Cambrian time by studying diabase dikes of the Huila-Epembe swarm and sills in the southern part of the Congo craton in Angola and in Namibia. We present geologic, U-Pb geochronologic, and paleomagnetic evidence showing that these two cratons were directly juxtaposed at ca. 1.1 Ga, but in a slightly modified relative orientation compared to today. Recurring persistence in cratonic connections, with slight variations from one supercontinent to the next, may signify a style of supercontinental transition similar to the northward motion of Gondwana fragments across the Tethys-Indian oceanic tract, reuniting in Eurasia.
Abstract: Mantle melting, which leads to the formation of oceanic and continental crust, together with crust recycling through plate tectonics, are the primary processes that drive the chemical differentiation of the silicate Earth. The present-day mantle, as sampled by oceanic basalts, shows large chemical and isotopic variability bounded by a few end-member compositions1. Among these, the HIMU end-member (having a high U/Pb ratio, ?) has been generally considered to represent subducted/recycled basaltic oceanic crust2, 3, 4, 5. However, this concept has been challenged by recent studies of the mantle source of HIMU magmas. For example, analyses of olivine phenocrysts in HIMU lavas indicate derivation from the partial melting of peridotite, rather than from the pyroxenitic remnants of recycled oceanic basalt6. Here we report data that elucidate the source of these lavas: high-precision trace-element analyses of olivine phenocrysts point to peridotite that has been metasomatized by carbonatite fluids. Moreover, similarities in the trace-element patterns of carbonatitic melt inclusions in diamonds7 and HIMU lavas indicate that the metasomatism occurred in the subcontinental lithospheric mantle, fused to the base of the continental crust and isolated from mantle convection. Taking into account evidence from sulfur isotope data8 for Archean to early Proterozoic surface material in the deep HIMU mantle source, a multi-stage evolution is revealed for the HIMU end-member, spanning more than half of Earth’s history. Before entrainment in the convecting mantle, storage in a boundary layer, upwelling as a mantle plume and partial melting to become ocean island basalt, the HIMU source formed as Archean-early Proterozoic subduction-related carbonatite-metasomatized subcontinental lithospheric mantle.
Abstract: The raw materials of some volcanic islands are shaped by some of the same processes that form diamonds deep under the continents, according to a new study. The study asserts that material from diamond-forming regions journeys nearly to Earth's core and back up to form such islands, a process that could take two and a half billion years or longer -- more than half of Earth's entire history.
www.minsocam.org /MSA/Centennial/ MSA_Centennial _Symposium.html The next 100 years of mineral science, June 20-21, p. 27. Abstract
Mantle
eclogites
Abstract: Omphacite is a clinopyroxene solid solution of Fe-bearing diopside and jadeite, and is stable up to about 500 km depth in the Earth’s interior. It is also a major mineral component of eclogite (up to 75 vol%). Basalt, which makes up most of the Earth’s oceanic crust, transforms into eclogite at the depth > ~60 km. Due to the ~20% higher density of eclogite, it is considered one of the main driving forces for the slab subduction. Subducted eclogite is also an important source of the chemical heterogeneities in the Earth’s mantle, which are the potential reservoirs for the enriched geochemical components. Thus, studying the geophysical properties of omphacite at elevated pressure-temperature conditions is of great interest for both the geophysical and geochemical community. Previous studies have proposed to utilize the unique anisotropic seismic properties of eclogite to identify possible subduction channels and eclogite-rich regions in the Earth’s interior. Due to the elastically isotropic nature of garnet and the relatively small proportion (< 10 vol%) of the silica minerals in eclogite, the seismic anisotropy of eclogite is primarily caused by the lattice preferred orientation of omphacite. Thus, in this study, in addition to determining the densities, and isotropic velocities of omphacite at the high pressuretemperature condition, we also paid special attention to the elastic anisotropy of omphacite. We combined the synchrotron single-crystal X-ray diffraction at Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory with offline Brillouin spectroscopy experiments at University New Mexico to investigate the anisotropic thermoelastic properties of omphacite. Incorporated with the preexisting thermoelastic database of other relevant mantle mineral phases, we compared the anisotropic seismic properties of eclogite (slab crust) with pyrolite (ambient mantle) along mantle geotherms down to 500 km depth. The maximum isotropic and anisotropic velocities contrast between pyrolite and eclogite is at 310-410 km, making it an optimal depth range for seismologists to search for eclogite-rich heterogeneities in the Earth’s interior. The ~5%-7% velocity difference between eclogite and pyrolite also needs to be taken into account when estimating the slab temperatures between 310-410 km depth. Otherwise, the slab temperature could be underestimated by a few hundred K without considering the possible lithology difference.
Abstract: The Bayan Obo REE-Nb-Fe deposit, which reserves the current largest REE resources globally, also hosts over 70% of China’s Nb resources. Unlike many world-class carbonatite-related Nb deposits (e.g. Morro dos Seis Lagos and Araxá, Brazil) with igneous or secondary origin, Nb was mainly stored in Nb-bearing minerals (aeschynite, ilmenorutile, baotite, fergusonite etc.) of hydrothermal origin at Bayan Obo, supported by evidence from petrography, element and isotopic geochemistry. Although igneous fersmite and columbite were occasionally discovered in local carbonatite dykes, the Mesoproterozoic and Paleozoic hydrothermal metasomatism occurred in the ore-hosting dolomite, related to carbonatite intrusion and the closure of Paleo-Asian Ocean respectively, has played a more significant role during the ultimate Nb enrichment. REE, however, was significantly enriched during both the carbonatite-related magmatic and hydrothermal processes. Consequently, there was differentiated mineralization between REE and Nb in the carbonatite dykes and the ores. Niobium mineralization at Bayan Obo is rather limited in Mesoproterozoic carbonatite, whereas more extensive in the metasomatized ore-hosting dolomite, and generally postdating the REE mineralization at the same stage. According to mineral geochemistry, Bayan Obo aeschynite was classified into 3 groups: aeschynite-(Nd) with convex REE patterns (Group 1); aeschynite-(Ce) (Group 2) and nioboaeschynite (Group 3) with nearly flat REE patterns. Aeschynite (Group 1), ilmenorutile and fergusonite precipitated from Paleozoic hydrothermal fluids with advanced fractionation of Ce-rich REE minerals. The Mesoproterozoic hydrothermal Nb mineralization, represented by aeschynite (Group 3) and baotite, occurred postdating REE mineralization at same stage. Besides, fersmite and aeschynite (Group 2) precipitated from the Mesoproterozoic REE-unfractionated melt and hydrothermal fluids, respectively. All above Nb-bearing minerals exhibit extreme Nb-Ta fractionation as a primary geochemical characteristic of mantle-derived carbonatite. The forming age of the aeschynite megacrysts (Group 1) has not been accurately determined. However, the potential age was constrained to ~430 Ma or alternatively ~270-280 Ma subjected to subduction and granite activity, respectively. These aeschynite crystals inherited REEs from multiphase former REE mineralization, with an intermediate apparent Sm-Nd isochron age between the Mesoproterozoic and the Paleozoic REE mineralization events.
Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, Vol. 159, pp. 109-129.
China, Tibet
chromitites
Abstract: The Purang harzburgite massif in SW Tibet (China) hosts abundant chrome ore deposits. Ores consist of 20 to >95% modal chromian spinel (Cr-spinel) with mylonitic fabric in imbricate shaped pods. The composition of Cr-spinel in these ores ranges from Al-rich [Cr#Sp or Cr/(Cr?+?Al)?×?100?=?47.60-57.56] to Cr-rich (Cr#Sp: 62.55-79.57). Bulk platinum-group element (PGE) contents of chromitites are also highly variable ranging from 17.5?ppb to ?2.5?ppm. Both metallurgical and refractory chromitites show a general enrichment in the IPGE (Os, Ir and Ru) with respect to the PPGE (Rh, Pt and Pd), resulting mostly in right-sloping primitive mantle (PM)-normalized PGE profiles. The platinum-group mineral (PGM) assemblages of both chromitite types are dominated by heterogeneously distributed, euhedral Os-bearing laurite inclusions in Cr-spinel. The Purang chromitites have quite inhomogeneous 187Os/188Os ratios (0.12289-0.13194) that are within the range of those reported for mantle-hosted chromitites from other peridotite massifs. Geochemical calculations demonstrate that the parental melts of high-Cr chromitites were boninitic, whereas those of high-Al chromitites had an arc-type tholeiitic affinity. Chromite crystallization was most likely stimulated by changes in magma compositions due to melt-peridotite interaction, leading to the establishment of a heterogeneous physicochemical environment during the early crystallization of the PGM. The highly variable PGE contents, inhomogeneous Os-isotopic compositions and varying Cr#Sp ratios of these chromitites imply a polygenetic origin for them from spatially distinct melt inputs. The generally low ?Os values (<1) of chromitites indicate that their parental melts originated within different sections of a heterogeneously depleted mantle source region. These melts were most likely produced in the mantle wedge above a downgoing lithospheric slab.
Abstract: Both mantle-derived clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene are generally homogeneous in water concentration, while water content in the coexisting olivine is affected by partial or complete loss during the ascent of the hosting magma. Here, we report the first record of water content profiles (higher water in the cores than in the rims) in natural orthopyroxene grains in peridotite xenoliths hosted by Cenozoic alkali basalts in Tianchang volcano, eastern China. The water contents of the coexisting clinopyroxene grains are homogeneous and are twice that measured in the cores of orthopyroxene grains, confirming previous chemical equilibrium between the two pyroxenes. The olivines (ol) are nearly dry (?0 ppm). These observations demonstrate that H diffusion in mantle orthopyroxene (opx) is faster than in clinopyroxene (cpx), and the relative mobility of H in each mineral phase could be quantified as: Graphic (where is the chemical diffusion coefficient of hydrogen). Combining this with experimental diffusion coefficients from the literature, we infer that (1) the xenoliths remained in contact with the magma below 900 °C for several months, and (2) clinopyroxene remains the more reliable recorder of water from depth, and orthopyroxene should be used more cautiously but can be considered with olivine for tracing slow transport and cooling of magma.
Abstract: Apatite fission track (AFT) and (U-Th)/He (AHe) thermochronometry data are reported and used to unravel the exhumation history of crystalline basement rocks from the elevated (>1000?m above sea level) but low-relief Tanzanian Craton. Coeval episodes of sedimentation documented within adjacent Paleozoic to Mesozoic basins of southern Tanzania and the Congo basin of the Democratic Republic of Congo indicate that most of the cooling in the basement rocks in Tanzania was linked to erosion. Basement samples were from an exploration borehole located within the craton and up to 2200?m below surface. Surface samples were also analyzed. AFT dates range between 317?±?33?Ma and 188?±?44?Ma. Alpha (Ft)-corrected AHe dates are between 433?±?24?Ma and 154?±?20?Ma. Modeling of the data reveals two important periods of cooling within the craton: one during the Carboniferous-Triassic (340-220?Ma) and a later, less well constrained episode, during the late Cretaceous. The later exhumation is well detected proximal to the East African Rift (70?Ma). Thermal histories combined with the estimated geothermal gradient of 9°C/km constrained by the AFT and AHe data from the craton and a mean surface temperature of 20°C indicate removal of up to 9?±?2?km of overburden since the end of Paleozoic. The correlation of erosion of the craton and sedimentation and subsidence within the Congo basin in the Paleozoic may indicate regional flexural geodynamics of the lithosphere due to lithosphere buckling induced by far-field compressional tectonic processes and thereafter through deep mantle upwelling and epeirogeny tectonic processes.
Nishiyama, T., Ohfuji, H., Fukuba, K., Terauchi, M., Nishi, U., Harada, K., Unoki, K., Moribe, Y., Yoshiasa, A., Ishimaru, S., Mori, Y., Shigeno, M., Arai, S.
Nature Scientific Reports, Vol. 10, 11645 11p. Pdf
Asia, Japan
microdiamond
Abstract: Microdiamonds in metamorphic rocks are a signature of ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphism that occurs mostly at continental collision zones. Most UHP minerals, except coesite and microdiamond, have been partially or completely retrogressed during exhumation; therefore, the discovery of coesite and microdiamond is crucial to identify UHP metamorphism and to understand the tectonic history of metamorphic rocks. Microdiamonds typically occur as inclusions in minerals such as garnet. Here we report the discovery of microdiamond aggregates in the matrix of a metapelite from the Nishisonogi unit, Nagasaki Metamorphic Complex, western Kyushu, Japan. The Nishisonogi unit represents a Cretaceous subduction complex which has been considered as an epidote-blueschist subfacies metamorphic unit, and the metapelite is a member of a serpentinite mélange in the Nishisonogi unit. The temperature condition for the Nishisonogi unit is 450 °C, based on the Raman micro-spectroscopy of graphite. The coexistence of microdiamond and Mg-carbonates suggests the precipitation of microdiamond from C-O-H fluid under pressures higher than 2.8 GPa. This is the first report of metamorphic microdiamond from Japan, which reveals the hidden UHP history of the Nishisonogi unit. The tectonic evolution of Kyushu in the Japanese Archipelago should be reconsidered based on this finding.
Abstract: First-principles calculations are performed to investigate vacancy formation and migration in the B2 phase of MgO. Defect energetics suggest the importance of intrinsic non-interacting vacancy pairs, even though the extrinsic vacancy concentration might govern atomic diffusion in the B2 phase of MgO. The enthalpies of ionic vacancy migration are generally found to decrease across the B1-B2 phase transition around a pressure of 500?GPa. It is shown that this enthalpy change induces a substantial increase in the rate of vacancy diffusion in MgO of almost four orders of magnitude (?104) when the B1 phase transforms into the B2 phase with increasing pressure. If plastic deformation is controlled by vacancy diffusion, mantle viscosity is expected to decrease in relation to this enhanced diffusion rate in MgO across the B1-B2 transition in the interior of Earth-like large exoplanets. Our results of atomic relaxations near the defects suggest that diffusion controlled creep viscosity may generally decrease across high-pressure phase transitions with increasing coordination number. Plastic flow and resulting mantle convection in the interior of these super-Earths may be therefore less sluggish than previously thought.
Diamond and Related Materials, in press available, 16p.
Technology
Synthetics
Abstract: Diamond synthesis and its morphology by in-liquid plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method are investigated in this study. Diamond films were grown on Si substrates from mixed alcohol solution. Very high growth rate of 170 ?m/h was achieved by this method. Microcrystalline and nanocrystalline diamond films were formed in different conditions. In the case of microcrystalline film, the shapes of diamond grains depend on the location in the film. All morphological differences in this study can be explained by the same mechanism of conventional gas phase CVD method. It means diamond morphology by in-liquid plasma CVD method can be controlled by process parameters as well as gas phase CVD method.
Physics and Chemistry of Minerals, Vol. 45, 3, pp. 237-247.
Technology
xenolths
Abstract: We determined elastic constants of a single-crystal chromian spinel at temperatures from ?15 to 45 °C through the Rectangular Parallelepiped Resonance method. The sample is a natural chromian spinel, which was separated from a mantle xenolith. Elastic constants at an ambient temperature (T = 24.0 °C) are C 11 = 264.8(1.7) GPa, C 12 = 154.5(1.8) GPa and C 44 = 142.6(0.3) GPa. All the elastic constants decrease linearly with increasing temperature. The temperature derivatives are dC 11/dT = ?0.049(2) GPa/°K, dC 12/dT = ?0.019(1) GPa/°K and dC 44/dT = ?0.020(1) GPa/°K. As an implication of the elastic constants, we applied them to the correction of a fluid inclusion geobarometry, which utilizes residual pressure of fluid inclusion as a depth scale. Before entrainment by a magma, the fluid inclusions must have the identical fluid density in constituent minerals of a xenolith. It has been, however, pointed out that fluid density of fluid inclusions significantly varies with host mineral species. The present study elucidates that elastic constants and thermal expansion coefficients cannot explain the difference in fluid density among mineral species. The density difference would reflect the difference in the degree of plastic deformation in the minerals.
Diamond & Related Materials, Vol. 83, pp. 104-108.
Technology
luminescence
Abstract: The luminescence of triboplasma during diamond polishing was investigated. The main luminescence in the ultraviolet range came from N2 molecules in the air. The colors of the visible range of triboplasma were the same as those observed in the photoluminescence images, excited by the ultraviolet light. The color of the triboplasma luminescence was green for type Ib diamond, which was mainly from the H3 center. The blue luminescence for type IIa diamond was mainly from Band A. The correlation between the diamond temperature and periphery speed indicate that that the mechanical abrasion component also increased linearly. However the polishing rate showed a threshold at the periphery speed of 26?km/h which corresponds well with the threshold of the triboplasma generation. These results imply that the electrical and optical energy of the triboplasma excited the defect level at the diamond surface and enhanced the chemical polishing rate of the diamond.
A new method to simulate convection with strongly temperature and pressure dependent viscosity in a spherical shell: applications to the Earth's mantle.
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, in press available
Geology and evaluation of the K2 kimberlite, Koidu mine, Sierra Leone, West Africa.
Proceedings of the 10th. International Kimberlite Conference, Vol. 2, Special Issue of the Journal of the Geological Society of India,, Vol. 2, pp. 191-208.
Scott Smith, B.H., Nowicki, T.E., Russell, J.K., Webb, K.J., Mitchell, R.H., Hetman, C.M., Harder, M., Skinner, E.M.W., Robey, Jv.A.
Kimberlite terminology and classification.
Proceedings of the 10th. International Kimberlite Conference, Vol. 2, Special Issue of the Journal of the Geological Society of India,, Vol. 2, pp. 1-17.
Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, Vol. 174, 7, pp. 6625-6652.
United States
geophysics - seismic
Abstract: The Southeastern United States is an ideal location to understand the interactions between mountain building, rifting, and magmatism. Line 2 of the Suwannee suture and Georgia Rift basin refraction seismic experiment in eastern Georgia extends 420 km from the Inner Piedmont to the Georgia coast. We model crustal and upper mantle VP and upper crustal VS. The most dramatic model transition occurs at the Higgins?Zietz magnetic boundary, north of which we observe higher upper crustal VP and VS and lower VP/VS. These observations support the interpretation of the Higgins?Zietz boundary as the Alleghanian suture. North of this boundary, we observe a low?velocity zone less than 2 km thick at ~5?km depth, consistent with a layer of sheared metasedimentary rocks that forms the Appalachian detachment. To the southeast, we interpret synrift sediments and decreasing crustal thickness to represent crustal thinning associated with the South Georgia Rift Basin and subsequent continental breakup. The correspondence of the northern limit of thinning with the interpreted suture location suggests that the orogenic suture zone and/or the Gondwanan crust to the south of the suture helped localize subsequent extension. Lower crustal VP and VP/VS preclude volumetrically significant mafic magmatic addition during rifting or associated with the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province. Structures formed during orogenesis and/or extension appear to influence seismicity in Georgia today; earthquakes localize along a steeply dipping zone that coincides with the northern edge of the South Georgia Basin and the change in upper crustal velocities at the Higgins?Zietz boundary.
Abstract: Earth’s mantle has cooled by 6-11?°C every 100 million years since the Archaean, 2.5 billion years ago. In more recent times, the surface heat loss that led to this temperature drop may have been enhanced by plate-tectonic processes, such as continental breakup, the continuous creation of oceanic lithosphere at mid-ocean ridges and subduction at deep-sea trenches. Here we use a compilation of marine seismic refraction data from ocean basins globally to analyse changes in the thickness of oceanic crust over time. We find that oceanic crust formed in the mid-Jurassic, about 170 million years ago, is 1.7?km thicker on average than crust produced along the present-day mid-ocean ridge system. If a higher mantle temperature is the cause of thicker Jurassic ocean crust, the upper mantle may have cooled by 15-20?°C per 100 million years over this time period. The difference between this and the long-term mantle cooling rate indeed suggests that modern plate tectonics coincide with greater mantle heat loss. We also find that the increase of ocean crustal thickness with plate age is stronger in the Indian and Atlantic oceans compared with the Pacific Ocean. This observation supports the idea that upper mantle temperature in the Jurassic was higher in the wake of the fragmented supercontinent Pangaea due to the effect of continental insulation.
Abstract: Earth’s mantle has cooled by 6-11?°C every 100 million years since the Archaean, 2.5 billion years ago. In more recent times, the surface heat loss that led to this temperature drop may have been enhanced by plate-tectonic processes, such as continental breakup, the continuous creation of oceanic lithosphere at mid-ocean ridges and subduction at deep-sea trenches. Here we use a compilation of marine seismic refraction data from ocean basins globally to analyse changes in the thickness of oceanic crust over time. We find that oceanic crust formed in the mid-Jurassic, about 170 million years ago, is 1.7?km thicker on average than crust produced along the present-day mid-ocean ridge system. If a higher mantle temperature is the cause of thicker Jurassic ocean crust, the upper mantle may have cooled by 15-20?°C per 100 million years over this time period. The difference between this and the long-term mantle cooling rate indeed suggests that modern plate tectonics coincide with greater mantle heat loss. We also find that the increase of ocean crustal thickness with plate age is stronger in the Indian and Atlantic oceans compared with the Pacific Ocean. This observation supports the idea that upper mantle temperature in the Jurassic was higher in the wake of the fragmented supercontinent Pangaea due to the effect of continental insulation.
43rd Annual Yellowknife Geoscience Forum Abstracts, abstract p. 47.
Canada, Northwest Territories
Garnet chemistry
Abstract: In diamond exploration, the use of compositional data to identify diamond-related peridotitic xenocrysts has long been a widely used and powerful tool. In contrast, the application of similar methods to eclogitic garnet chemistry remains a challenge. The inability to unequivocally classify certain “eclogitic” garnet compositions as either mantle- or crust-derived implies that a high abundance of lower-crustal garnets will increase diamond-exploration expenditures by introducing a number of “false positives.” Revising existing classification schemes (e.g., Schulze, 2003) to reduce the abundance of “false positives” may, however, increase the number of “false negatives” through the misclassification of mantle-derived garnets as crustal. This study presents new geochemical and petrographical data for garnet and clinopyroxene from 724 kimberlite-hosted, crust- and mantle-derived xenoliths from localities worldwide, with a focus on samples whose lithology is constrained petrographically, rather than single mineral grains from concentrate. Mantle samples are primarily eclogitic and pyroxenitic, as constrained by mineral assemblage and garnet and clinopyroxene mineral chemistry, while crustal samples are dominantly plagioclase-bearing garnet-granulites. For those localities where an established geothermal gradient is available from literature resources, garnet-clinopyroxene pairs are employed in the estimation of pressure-temperature conditions of equilibration through the iterative coupling of the Krogh (1988) geothermometer and the relevant geothermal gradient. Our preliminary results suggest that closure temperatures for Fe-Mg exchange exceed the temperatures of residence of many lower-crustal samples, as geotherm-based calculated pressures of equilibration exceed the apparent stability of plagioclase (see Green and Ringwood, 1972). Comparison of equilibration pressures with sodium contents in garnet for mantle-derived samples (the diamond-facies criterion of Gurney, 1984) shows a positive correlation at localities for which an adequate range of pressures is observed (e.g., the Diavik mine). Other populations, such as mantle eclogitic garnets from Roberts Victor, plot at a much more restricted range of pressures and hence fail to demonstrate this correlation; instead, these samples may reflect the influence of a broader range of bulk-compositions, providing varying amounts of sodium to their constituent garnets. The results presented here demonstrate clearly that garnets from mantle- and crust-derived samples show significant overlap in geochemical character, for example in garnet Ca# vs. Mg# space (discrimination diagram of Schulze, 2003), where approximately 66% of our crust-derived garnet analyses plot in the “mantle” field. This percentage varies among locations. A selection of particularly high-Mg#, low-Ca# garnets derived from crustal, plagioclase-bearing lithologies in this study highlights the potential for crust-mantle confusion, as these garnets have Mg# in-excess of many mantle-derived eclogitic/pyroxenitic garnets. As a consequence, Fe-Mg-Ca-based classifications alone cannot reliably discriminate mantle and crustal garnets. The next step in this project will be to obtain trace element data for the entire sample suite. This will allow us to test the Li-geobarometer of Hanrahan et al. (2009) for eclogites and to search for trace element signatures that can be used as robust indicators of a diamond-facies origin of eclogitic garnets. Trace element data will also be employed in the refinement of the crust/mantle division discussed above.
45th. Annual Yellowknife Geoscience Forum, p. 33 abstract
Canada, Northwest Territories
deposit - Darby
Abstract: New geological and geophysical research on Canada’s Rae craton are providing an increasingly good baseline for diamond exploration. This study uses mantle xenoliths and xenocrysts from the Darby property, located ~200 km southwest of the community of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, to provide new information on the lithospheric mantle and diamond potential of the western portion of the central Rae. Peridotite xenoliths containing enough fresh olivine have a median Mg# value of 92.5, indistinguishable from the median value of 92.6 typical of cratonic peridotites world-wide. Only of the 14 peridotitic xenoliths contain fresh garnet. Of these, garnet in one sample is classified as harzburgitic (G10), giving a minimum pressure of 4.7 GPa using the P38 geobarometer (38 mW/m2 model geothermal gradient), while garnets from three peridotites are classified as lherzolitic (G9). 52 garnets picked from concentrate have lherzolitic affinities. Lherzolitic diopsides from kimberlite heavy mineral concentrate yield a lithospheric thickness of ~ 200 km. The four garnet peridotite xenoliths and 49 peridotitic garnets from concentrate yield two distinct modes in mantle sampling depths using Ni thermometry, when projected to the Cpx geotherm. A cluster of samples from the higher Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets equilibrated at 765 to 920 °C with a group of peridotitic garnets (50 % of xenoliths and 28 % of concentrate) from the lower Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets with anomalously high Ti concentrations yielding super-adiabatic TNi values The aluminum-in-olivine thermometer applied to olivines filtered to be “garnet facies yielded a mantle sampling portion of the mantle cargo from the diamond stability field. A suite of pyroxenitic xenoliths are a feature of each Darby kimberlite target. New screening techniques indicate that these rocks likely originate close to the crust mantle boundary. Osmium isotope analyses of the Darby peridotites reveal whole-rock Re-depletion ages ranging from Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic. The pyroxenite xenoliths have very radiogenic Os isotope compositions and provide the first age information from pyroxenites/“eclogites” beneath the Rae craton. Their resulting Archean whole rock TMA ages are consistent with a Mesoarchean age of the western Central Rae lithosphere older than the lithosphere beneath the Repulse Bay block in the East section of the Rae craton (Liu et al., 2016. Precambrian Research 272). The highly depleted olivine compositions, thick cold lithosphere, and Archean ages of the Darby peridotite xenoliths clearly indicate the presence of 200 km thick cold cratonic lithospheric mantle beneath the western segment of the central Rae craton circa 540 Ma. The Archean model ages of most of the pyroxenites support this, notwithstanding the fact that some of these rocks could be sampling either crust or mantle lithologies very close to the crust-mantle boundary. Mantle sampling took place well into the diamond stability field at Darby.
Journal of Geochemical Exploration, Vol. 186, pp. 24-35.
Mantle
garnet diamond exploration
Abstract: In diamond exploration, the accurate distinction between garnets from the crust or mantle, or from those having a cognate origin with kimberlite (low-Cr megacrysts), is important for the assessment of indicator mineral samples; misclassifications potentially result in costly misdirection of exploration efforts. Existing literature databases and graphical classification schemes for garnets suffer from a paucity of craton-derived, lower-crustal garnets that - as shown here - are among the most difficult to distinguish from garnets of mantle origin. To improve this situation, a large database of new and literature garnet major element analyses has been compiled. Using this dataset, it is shown that the conventionally used Mg# (Mg/(Mg + Fe)) vs. Ca# (Ca/(Mg + Ca)) plot (Schulze, 2003) for discrimination of crust and mantle garnets results in significant overlap (39.2% crustal failure rate using our dataset). We propose a new graphical classification scheme that uses the parameters ln(Ti/Si) and ln(Mg/Fe) to discriminate low-Cr garnets of crust origin from those of a mantle eclogite-pyroxenite origin with an error rate of 10.1 ± 2.1% at the 95% confidence level (assessed via K-fold cross-validation with ten random test datasets), significantly lower than existing methods. Multivariate statistical solutions, which incorporate a wide selection of geochemical variables, represent additional possibilities for discrimination. Using our new database, logistic regression (LR) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) approaches are evaluated and new crust-mantle garnet discrimination schemes derived. The resulting solutions, using a wide variety of cations in garnet, provide lower misclassification rates than existing literature schemes. Both LR and LDA are successful discrimination techniques with error rates for the discrimination of crust from mantle eclogite-pyroxenite of 7.5 ± 1.9% and 8.2 ± 2.3%, respectively. LR, however, involves fewer stipulations about the distribution of training data (i.e., it is more "robust") and can return an estimate for probability of classification certainty for single garnets. New data from diamond exploration programs can be readily classified using these new graphical and statistical methods. As the discrimination of low-Cr megacrysts from mantle eclogite-pyroxenite is not the focus of this study, we recommend the method of Schulze (2003) or Grütter et al. (2004) for low-Cr megacryst discrimination to identify megacrysts in the "mantle" suite. Runstreams for our LDA and LR approaches using the freeware "R" are provided for quick implementation.
Mineralogy and Petrology, doi.org/10.1007/s00710-018-0609-4 14p.
Canada, Northwest Territories
deposit - Darby
Abstract: New geological and geophysical research on Canada’s Rae craton are providing an increasingly good baseline for diamond exploration. This study uses mantle xenoliths and xenocrysts from the Darby property, located ~200 km southwest of the community of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, to provide new information on the lithospheric mantle and diamond potential of the western portion of the central Rae. Peridotite xenoliths containing enough fresh olivine have a median Mg# value of 92.5, indistinguishable from the median value of 92.6 typical of cratonic peridotites world-wide. Only of the 14 peridotitic xenoliths contain fresh garnet. Of these, garnet in one sample is classified as harzburgitic (G10), giving a minimum pressure of 4.7 GPa using the P38 geobarometer (38 mW/m2 model geothermal gradient), while garnets from three peridotites are classified as lherzolitic (G9). 52 garnets picked from concentrate have lherzolitic affinities. Lherzolitic diopsides from kimberlite heavy mineral concentrate yield a lithospheric thickness of ~ 200 km. The four garnet peridotite xenoliths and 49 peridotitic garnets from concentrate yield two distinct modes in mantle sampling depths using Ni thermometry, when projected to the Cpx geotherm. A cluster of samples from the higher Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets equilibrated at 765 to 920 °C with a group of peridotitic garnets (50 % of xenoliths and 28 % of concentrate) from the lower Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets with anomalously high Ti concentrations yielding super-adiabatic TNi values The aluminum-in-olivine thermometer applied to olivines filtered to be “garnet facies yielded a mantle sampling portion of the mantle cargo from the diamond stability field. A suite of pyroxenitic xenoliths are a feature of each Darby kimberlite target. New screening techniques indicate that these rocks likely originate close to the crust mantle boundary. Osmium isotope analyses of the Darby peridotites reveal whole-rock Re-depletion ages ranging from Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic. The pyroxenite xenoliths have very radiogenic Os isotope compositions and provide the first age information from pyroxenites/“eclogites” beneath the Rae craton. Their resulting Archean whole rock TMA ages are consistent with a Mesoarchean age of the western Central Rae lithosphere older than the lithosphere beneath the Repulse Bay block in the East section of the Rae craton (Liu et al., 2016. Precambrian Research 272). The highly depleted olivine compositions, thick cold lithosphere, and Archean ages of the Darby peridotite xenoliths clearly indicate the presence of 200 km thick cold cratonic lithospheric mantle beneath the western segment of the central Rae craton circa 540 Ma. The Archean model ages of most of the pyroxenites support this, notwithstanding the fact that some of these rocks could be sampling either crust or mantle lithologies very close to the crust-mantle boundary. Mantle sampling took place well into the diamond stability field at Darby.
Mineralogy and Petrology, doi.org/10.1007/ s00710-018-0641-4 18p.
Canada, Northwest Territories
indicator minerals, geocthermobarometry
Abstract: The Central Mackenzie Valley (CMV) area of Northwest Territories is underlain by Precambrian basement belonging to the North American Craton. The potential of this area to host kimberlitic diamond deposits is relatively high judging from the seismologically-defined lithospheric thickness, age of basement rocks (2.2-1.7 Ga) and presence of kimberlite indicator minerals (KIMs) in Quaternary sediments. This study presents data for a large collection of KIMs recovered from stream sediments and till samples from two study areas in the CMV, the Horn Plateau and Trout Lake. In the processed samples, peridotitic garnets dominate the KIM grain count for both regions (> 25% each) while eclogitic garnet is almost absent in both regions (< 1% each). KIM chemistry for the Horn Plateau indicates significant diamond potential, with a strong similarity to KIM systematics from the Central and Western Slave Craton. The most significant issue to resolve in assessing the local diamond potential is the degree to which KIM chemistry reflects local and/or distal kimberlite bodies. Radiogenic isotope analysis of detrital kimberlite-related CMV ilmenite and rutile grains requires at least two broad age groups for eroded source kimberlites. Statistical analysis of the data suggests that it is probable that some of these KIMs were derived from primary and/or secondary sources within the CMV area, while others may have been transported to the area from the east-northeast by Pleistocene glacial and/or glaciofluvial systems. At this stage, KIM chemistry does not allow the exact location of the kimberlitic source(s) to be constrained.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 275, pp. 99-122.
Mantle
carbon
Abstract: Diamonds are unrivalled in their ability to record the mantle carbon cycle and mantle fO2 over a vast portion of Earth’s history. Diamonds’ inertness and antiquity means their carbon isotopic characteristics directly reflect their growth environment within the mantle as far back as ?3.5 Ga. This paper reports the results of a thorough secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) carbon isotope and nitrogen concentration study, carried out on fragments of 144 diamond samples from various locations, from ?3.5 to 1.4 Ga for P [peridotitic]-type diamonds and 3.0 to 1.0 Ga for E [eclogitic]-type diamonds. The majority of the studied samples were from diamonds used to establish formation ages and thus provide a direct connection between the carbon isotope values, nitrogen contents and the formation ages. In total, 908 carbon isotope and nitrogen concentration measurements were obtained. The total ?¹³C data range from ?17.1 to ?1.9 ‰ (P = ?8.4 to ?1.9 ‰; E = ?17.1 to ?2.1‰) and N contents range from 0 to 3073 at. ppm (P = 0 to 3073 at. ppm; E = 1 to 2661 at. ppm). In general, there is no systematic variation with time in the mantle carbon isotope record since > 3 Ga. The mode in ?¹³C of peridotitic diamonds has been at ?5 (±2) ‰ since the earliest diamond growth ?3.5 Ga, and this mode is also observed in the eclogitic diamond record since ?3 Ga. The skewness of eclogitic diamonds’ ?¹³C distributions to more negative values, which the data establishes began around 3 Ga, is also consistent through time, with no global trends apparent. No isotopic and concentration trends were recorded within individual samples, indicating that, firstly, closed system fractionation trends are rare. This implies that diamonds typically grow in systems with high excess of carbon in the fluid (i.e. relative to the mass of the growing diamond). Any minerals included into diamond during the growth process are more likely to be isotopically reset at the time of diamond formation, meaning inclusion ages would be representative of the diamond growth event irrespective of whether they are syngenetic or protogenetic. Secondly, the lack of significant variation seen in the peridotitic diamonds studied is in keeping with modeling of Rayleigh isotopic fractionation in multicomponent systems (RIFMS) during isochemical diamond precipitation in harzburgitic mantle. The RIFMS model not only showed that in water-maximum fluids at constant depths along a geotherm, fractionation can only account for variations of <1‰, but also that the principal ?¹³C mode of ?5 ± 1‰ in the global harzburgitic diamond record occurs if the variation in fO2 is only 0.4 log units. Due to the wide age distribution of P-type diamonds, this leads to the conclusion that the speciation and oxygen fugacity of diamond forming fluids has been relatively consistent. The deep mantle has therefore generated fluids with near constant carbon speciation for 3.5 Ga.
Journal of Petrology, doi.org/petrology/egab090 65p. Pdf
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Roberts Victor
Abstract: The origin of the eclogites that reside in cratonic mantle roots has long been debated. In the classic Roberts Victor kimberlite locality in South Africa, the strongly contrasting textural and geochemical features of two types of eclogites have led to different genetic models. We studied a new suite of 63 eclogite xenoliths from the former Roberts Victor Mine. In addition to major- and trace-element compositions for all new samples, we determined 18O/16O for garnet from 34 eclogites. Based on geochemical and textural characteristics we identify a large suite of Type I eclogites (n = 53) consistent with previous interpretations that these rocks originate from metamorphosed basaltic-picritic lavas or gabbroic cumulates from oceanic crust, crystallised from melts of depleted MORB mantle. We identify a smaller set of Type II eclogites (n = 10) based on geochemical and textural similarity to eclogites in published literature. We infer their range to very low ?18O values combined with their varied, often very low Zr/Hf ratios and LREE-depleted nature to indicate a protolith origin via low-pressure clinopyroxene-bearing oceanic cumulates formed from melts that were more depleted in incompatible elements than N-MORB. These compositions are indicative of derivation from a residual mantle source that experienced preferential extraction of incompatible elements and fractionation of Zr-Hf during previous melting.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 323, pp. 20-39.
Africa, Sierra Leone
deposit - Koidu
Abstract: Inclusion-bearing diamonds from the Koidu kimberlite complex, Sierra Leone (West African Craton) were analyzed in situ for carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions, nitrogen concentrations and nitrogen aggregation states. In a suite of 105 diamonds, 78% contain eclogitic mineral inclusions, 17% contain peridotitic mineral inclusions, and 5% - an unusually high proportion - contain co-occurring eclogitic and peridotitic mineral inclusions indicating a mixed paragenesis. Major and trace element compositions of mineral inclusions from two mixed paragenesis diamonds (one with omphacite + Mg-chromite, the other with eclogitic garnet + forsteritic olivine) were determined. The presence of positive Eu anomalies in centrally located omphacite and eclogitic garnet inclusions indicates derivation from subducted protoliths, formed as igneous cumulates in lower oceanic crust. Mg-chromite (Cr# 85.5; Mg# 65.2) and olivine (Mg# 94.5) inclusions, located in outer portions of the mixed paragenesis diamonds, have compositions indicative of derivation from strongly depleted cratonic peridotites. Given that the olivine Mg# of 94.5 is the highest reported to date for the West African Craton, the eclogitic and peridotitic inclusions in these mixed paragenesis diamonds cannot have precipitated during infiltration of peridotitic substrates by eclogite-derived fluids, as the consequent fluid-rock interaction should lead to Mg# lower than that for the original peridotitic diamond substrate. The different origins of eclogitic and peridotitic inclusions could be explained by physical transport of their host diamonds from eclogitic into peridotitic substrates, possibly along high-strain shear zones, before renewed diamond growth. Based on the ?¹³C-?¹?N systematics of the entire inclusion-bearing diamond suite from Koidu, three major compositional clusters are identified. Cluster 1 (eclogitic diamond cores; ?¹³C = -33.2 to -14.4 ‰ and ?¹?N = -5.3 to +10.1 ‰) bears the isotopic signature of recycled crustal material (± a mantle component). Cluster 2 (peridotitic diamonds and including the core of a diamond containing omphacite + Mg-chromite; ?¹³C = -6.0 to -1.1 ‰ and ?¹?N = -4.2 to +9.7 ‰) likely involves mixing of carbon and nitrogen from subducted and mantle sources. Cluster 3 (rims of eclogitic diamonds and including the eclogitic garnet + olivine included diamond and the rim of the omphacite + Mg-chromite included diamond; ?¹³C = -7.8 to -3.6 ‰ and ?¹?N = -7.9 to -2.1 ‰) matches convecting mantle-derived fluids/melts. The distinct isotopic signatures of the three diamond clusters, together with differences in nitrogen aggregation and cathodoluminescence response between diamond cores and rims, suggest episodic diamond growth during multiple fluid/melt pulses.
The Great Diamond Industry of South Africa. History of the Progress of de Beers, Premier and Other Diamond Producers, Dutoitspan, Wesselton, Bultfontein.
South African Mining Journal 21ST. ANNIVERSARY VOLUME., Vol. 21A, P. 251-259.
Discussion of a Paper by Draper Entitled "on the Occurrence of Diamonds Associated with the Chert Beds of the Dolomite Series in the Districts of Ventersdorp and Lichtenburg".
Geological Society of South Africa Proceedings, Vol. 30, PP. 39-44.
Abstract: The Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Zhongtiao aulacogen in the North China Craton and Cuddapah basin in the Indian Craton, have both been interpreted as intra-continental rift formed by a mantle plume that led to the breakup of Columbia supercontinent, but the mechanism has not been completely deciphered. In this paper, the mechanism of the Zhongtiao aulacogen and Cuddapah basin related to initial breakup of Columbia has been evaluated with 2D elastic finite element models of the North China Craton and the Indian Craton. The trajectories of the horizontal maximum principal compressive stress of the best-fit model fit well with the trends of dyke swarms in the North China Craton and the Indian Craton. When the other three models generated were compared with the best-fit model, it can be found that a mantle plume beneath the Zhongtiao and Cuddapah areas played the most vital role in developing the Zhongtiao aulacogen, Cuddapah basin and initial breakup of Columbia supercontinent. The boundary subduction forces, including the northern margin of the NCC, the northwest and southwest margins of the Indian Craton are indispensable factors for the rifting and breakup, whereas the mechanical properties have little influence on these modeling results. The initial breakup of Columbia supercontinent might have been resulted from the coupling between a mantle plume upwelling and some plate tectonic forces.
Abstract: Potassic and ultrapotassic magmatism from deep lithospheric sources in intra-cratonic settings can be the signal of subsequent voluminous mafic magmatism and the formation of Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) triggered by mantle plumes. Here we report for the first time, precise zircon U-Pb age data from a suite of lamproites in the Bastar Craton of central India that mark the onset of Paleoproterozoic rifting and culminating in the formation of extensive mafic dyke swarms as the bar codes of one of the major LIP events during the Precambrian evolution of the Indian shield. The lamproites from the Nuapada field occur as dismembered dykes and are composed of phenocrysts and microphenocrysts of altered olivine together with microphenocrysts of phlogopite and magnetite within a groundmass of chlorite and calcite with accessory rutile, apatite and zircon. The rocks compositionally correspond to olivine phlogopite lamproite and phlogopite lamproite. Geochemical features of the lamproites correlate with their counterparts in Peninsular India and other similar suites elsewhere in the world related to rift settings, and also indicate OIB-like magma source. The associated syenite shows subduction-related features, possibly generated in a post-collisional setting. Magmatic zircon grains with high Th/U ratios in the syenite from the Nuapada lamproite form a coherent group with an upper intercept age of 2473 ± 8 Ma representing the timing of emplacement of the magma. Zircon grains in three lamproite samples yield four distinct age groups at ca. 2.4 Ga, 2.2 Ga, 2.0 Ga and 0.8 Ga. The 2.4 Ga group corresponds to xenocrysts entrained from the syenite whereas the 2.2 Ga group is considered to represent the timing of emplacement of the lamproites. The ca. 2.0 Ga zircon grains correlate with the major thermal imprint associated with mafic magmatism and dyke emplacement in southern Bastar and the adjacent Dharwar Cratons. A few young zircon grains in the syenite and lamproites show a range of early to middle Neoproterozoic ages from 879 to 651 Ma corresponding to younger thermal event(s) as also represented by granitic veins cutting across these rocks and extensive silicification. Zircon Lu-Hf isotope data suggest magma derivation from a refertilized Paleo-Mesoarchean sub-continental lithospheric mantle, or OIB-type sources. The differences in Hf-isotope composition among the zircon grains from different age groups indicate that the mantle sources of the lamproite are heterogeneous at the regional scale. A combination of the features from geochemical and zircon Hf isotope data is consistent with asthenosphere-lithosphere interaction during the lamproite magma evolution. The timing of lamproite emplacement in central India correlates with the global 2.2 Ga record of LIPs. We link the origin of the related mantle plume to the recycling of subducted slabs associated with the prolonged subduction-accretion history prior to the Neoarchean cratonization, as well as the thermal blanket effect of the Earth’s oldest supercontinent. Pulsating plumes and continued rifting generated voluminous dyke swarms across the Bastar and Dharwar Cratons, forming part of a major global rifting and LIP event.
Abstract: Potassic and ultrapotassic magmatism from deep lithospheric sources in intra-cratonic settings can be the signal of subsequent voluminous mafic magmatism and the formation of Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) triggered by mantle plumes. Here we report for the first time, precise zircon U-Pb age data from a suite of lamproites in the Bastar Craton of central India that mark the onset of Paleoproterozoic rifting and culminating in the formation of extensive mafic dyke swarms as the bar codes of one of the major LIP events during the Precambrian evolution of the Indian shield. The lamproites from the Nuapada field occur as dismembered dykes and are composed of phenocrysts and microphenocrysts of altered olivine together with microphenocrysts of phlogopite and magnetite within a groundmass of chlorite and calcite with accessory rutile, apatite and zircon. The rocks compositionally correspond to olivine phlogopite lamproite and phlogopite lamproite. Geochemical features of the lamproites correlate with their counterparts in Peninsular India and other similar suites elsewhere in the world related to rift settings, and also indicate OIB-like magma source. The associated syenite shows subduction-related features, possibly generated in a post-collisional setting. Magmatic zircon grains with high Th/U ratios in the syenite from the Nuapada lamproite form a coherent group with an upper intercept age of 2473 ± 8 Ma representing the timing of emplacement of the magma. Zircon grains in three lamproite samples yield four distinct age groups at ca. 2.4 Ga, 2.2 Ga, 2.0 Ga and 0.8 Ga. The 2.4 Ga group corresponds to xenocrysts entrained from the syenite whereas the 2.2 Ga group is considered to represent the timing of emplacement of the lamproites. The ca. 2.0 Ga zircon grains correlate with the major thermal imprint associated with mafic magmatism and dyke emplacement in southern Bastar and the adjacent Dharwar Cratons. A few young zircon grains in the syenite and lamproites show a range of early to middle Neoproterozoic ages from 879 to 651 Ma corresponding to younger thermal event(s) as also represented by granitic veins cutting across these rocks and extensive silicification. Zircon Lu-Hf isotope data suggest magma derivation from a refertilized Paleo-Mesoarchean sub-continental lithospheric mantle, or OIB-type sources. The differences in Hf-isotope composition among the zircon grains from different age groups indicate that the mantle sources of the lamproite are heterogeneous at the regional scale. A combination of the features from geochemical and zircon Hf isotope data is consistent with asthenosphere-lithosphere interaction during the lamproite magma evolution. The timing of lamproite emplacement in central India correlates with the global 2.2 Ga record of LIPs. We link the origin of the related mantle plume to the recycling of subducted slabs associated with the prolonged subduction-accretion history prior to the Neoarchean cratonization, as well as the thermal blanket effect of the Earth's oldest supercontinent. Pulsating plumes and continued rifting generated voluminous dyke swarms across the Bastar and Dharwar Cratons, forming part of a major global rifting and LIP event.
Abstract: We estimate the mantle source compositions for mantle plumes, and by implication Earth’s lower mantle, by: (a) measuring trace (e.g, Sc, V, Cu) and minor (e.g., Ca, Mn, Ni) element concentrations of high forsterite olivine grains from several plume localities, (b) estimating the parent liquid compositions from which they crystallized, (c) calculating mantle potential temperatures and degrees of partial melting and (d) estimating trace element compositions of depleted and enriched mantle sources. Our sample set includes two continental flood basalt provinces (Emeishan and Deccan), a flood basalt that erupted in a continental rift setting (Baffin Island), our type example of a thermal mantle plume (Hawaii) and lavas from the Siqueiros Transform at the East Pacific Rise, which represent the mid-ocean ridge system. We also present olivine compositions for the peridotite xenoliths from Kilbourne Hole, New Mexico, USA, which are commonly used as primary and secondary analytical standards. We find that trace elements in lava-hosted olivine grains are too far removed from their mantle source to provided anything but greatly hindered views of such. Olivine compositions reflect not only evolving liquid compositions (including partial melting conditions and later fractionation), but also evolving Ol+liq partition coefficients, which mostly increase with decreasing T during crystallization. Mantle compositions, delimited by maximum forsterite contents and estimates of parental magmas (and experimentally determined partition coefficients) indicate that our selected plumes reflect some combination of (1) a depleted mantle source that is quite similar to that obtained by other methods, and (2) a variably enriched plume source that is more enriched than current estimates of pyrolite. The enriched plume mantle sources can be explained remarkably well as a mixture of subducted mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB; Gale et al. 2013) and depleted MORB mantle (DM; Salters and Stracke 2004), with MORB:DM ratios of 1:5 to 1:4. These ratios are most sensitive to estimates of melt fraction where plume parental magmas are last equilibrated with their mantle source, but are nonetheless consistent across a wide range of chemically very different elements, and estimates of MORB and DM obtained by very different means. Baffin Island is of particular interest. Like prior studies, we verify a high mantle potential temperature (Tp) of 1630oC (compared to Tp = 1320-1420oC for MORB from Cottrell and Kelley 2011 for Ol of Fo89.3-91.4). The Baffin source is also within error the same as DM with respect to trace elements, although still isotopically distinct; Baffin appears to be sourced in something that is akin to DM that lies at the base of the mantle, where plumes acquire their excess heat. Thus while part of our analysis supports the concept of a "slab graveyard" at the bottom of the lower mantle (e.g., Wyession 1996), that cemetery is by no means ubiquitous at the CMB: subducted slabs are either unevenly interred, or efficiently excavated by later upwellings.
Abstract: The Indian Shield is cross-cut by a number of distinct Paleoproterozoic mafic dyke swarms. The density of dykes in the Dharwar and Bastar Cratons is amongst the highest on Earth. Globally, boninitic dyke swarms are rare compared to tholeiitic dyke swarms and yet they are common within the Southern Indian Shield. Geochronology and geochemistry are used to constrain the petrogenesis and relationship of the boninitic dykes (SiO2?=?51.5 to 55.7?wt%, MgO?=?5.8 to 18.7?wt%, and TiO2?=?0.30?wt% to 0.77?wt%) from the central Bastar Craton (Bhanupratappur) and the NE Dharwar Craton (Karimnagar). A single U-Pb baddeleyite age from a boninitic dyke near Bhanupratappur yielded a weighted-mean 207Pb/206Pb age of 2365.6?±?0.9?Ma that is within error of boninitic dykes from the Dharwar Craton near Karimnagar (2368.5?±?2.6?Ma) and farther south near Bangalore (2365.4?±?1.0?Ma to 2368.6?±?1.3?Ma). Rhyolite-MELTS modeling indicates that fractional crystallization is the likely cause of major element variability of the boninitic dykes from Bhanupratappur whereas trace element modeling indicates that the primary melt may be derived from a pyroxenite mantle source near the spinel-garnet transition zone. The Nd isotopes (?Nd(t)?=??6.4 to +4.5) of the Bhanupratappur dykes are more variable than the Karimnagar dykes (?Nd(t)?=??0.7 to +0.6) but they overlap. The variability of Sr-Nd isotopes may be related to crustal contamination during emplacement or is indicative of an isotopically heterogeneous mantle source. The chemical and temporal similarities of the Bhanupratappur dykes with the dykes of the Dharwar Craton (Karimnagar, Penukonda, Chennekottapalle) indicate they are members of the same giant radiating dyke swarm. Moreover, our results suggest that the Bastar and Dharwar Cratons were adjacent but likely had a different configuration at 2.37?Ga than the present day. It is possible that the 2.37Ga dyke swarm was related to a mantle plume that assisted in the break-up of an unknown or poorly constrained supercontinent.
Abstract: The NNW trending tholeiitic Sonakhan mafic dyke swarm of the Northern Bastar Craton is comprised of basalt to basaltic andesite (SiO2?=?46.3?wt% to 55.3?wt%; Mg#?=?37 to 70) dykes. A single basaltic dyke yielded a weighted-mean 207Pb/206Pb baddeleyite age of 1851.1?±?2.6?Ma. The Sr and Nd isotopes (87Sr/86Sri?=?0.70396 to 0.70855; ?Nd(t)?=??5.7 to +2.0) are variable which is a consequence of crustal contamination. Trace element modeling suggests the dykes were likely derived by partial melting of a spinel-bearing mantle source. The Sonakhan dykes are 30 million years younger than the 1.88?Ga Bastar-Cuddapah dykes (Bastanar-Hampi swarm) of the southern and central Bastar Craton indicating they represent a distinct period of magmatism. However, much like the 1.88?Ga dykes, the Sonakhan dykes appear to be correlative with dykes from the Yilgarn Craton (Yalgoo dyke?=?1854?±?5?Ma) of Western Australia. The temporal and compositional similarity of the Sonakhan dykes with the Yalgoo dyke is evidence that they are petrologically related and may represent different branches of the same dyke swarm. The existence of two distinct Paleoproterozoic dyke swarms in the Bastar Craton that each have a correlative unit in the Yilgarn Craton is supportive of a link between India and Australia before 1.9?Ga. Moreover, it suggests that the break-up of India and Western Australia was protracted and lasted for at least 30 million years.
Abstract: The Bastar craton in central India, surrounded by cratonic blocks and Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts, is a window to investigate the Archean-Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution and tectonic processes. Here we propose a new tectonic classification of the craton into the Western Bastar Craton (WBC), Eastern Bastar Craton (EBC), and the intervening Central Bastar Orogen (CBO). We present petrologic, geochemical and zircon U-Pb, REE and Lu-Hf data from a suite of rocks from the CBO and along the eastern margin of the WBC Including: (1) volcanic successions comprising meta-andesite and fine-grained amphibolite, representing arc-related volcanics along a convergent margin; (2) ferruginous sandstone, in association with rhyolite, representing a volcano-sedimentary succession, deposited in an active trench; and (3) metamorphosed mafic-ultramafic suite including gabbro, pyroxenite and dunite invaded by trondhjemite representing the section of sub-arc mantle and arc root adjacent to a long-lasting subduction system. Petrologic studies indicate that the mafic-ultramafic suite crystallized from an island arc tholeiitic parental magma in a suprasubduction zone environment. The chondrite-normalized and primitive mantle normalized diagrams of the mafic and ultramafic rocks suggest derivation from MORB magma. The mixed characters from N-MORB to E-MORB of the studied samples are consistent with subduction modification of a MORB related magma, involving partial melting of the metasomatized mantle wedge. Our zircon U-Pb age data suggest that the cratonic nuclei was constructed as early as Paleoarchean. We present evidence for active subduction and arc magmatism through Mesoarchean to Neoarchean and early Paleoproterozoic, with the trench remaining open until at least 2.3 Ga. Two major crust building events are recognized in the Bastar craton: during Mesoarchean (recycled Paleoarchean subduction-related as well as juvenile/depleted mantle components) and Neoarchean (accretion of juvenile oceanic crust, arc magmatism including granite batholiths and related porphyry mineralization). The final cratonization occurred during latest Paleoproterozoic, followed by collisional assembly of the craton and its incorporation within the Peninsular Indian mosaic during Mesoproterozoic. In the global supercontinent context, the craton preserves the history of Ur, the earliest supercontinent, followed by the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia, as well as minor thermal imprints of the Neoproterozoic Rodinia and associated Grenvillian orogeny.
Abstract: The Bastar craton in central India, surrounded by cratonic blocks and Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts, is a window to investigate the Archean-Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution and tectonic processes. Here we propose a new tectonic classification of the craton into the Western Bastar Craton (WBC), Eastern Bastar Craton (EBC), and the intervening Central Bastar Orogen (CBO). We present petrologic, geochemical and zircon U-Pb, REE and Lu-Hf data from a suite of rocks from the CBO and along the eastern margin of the WBC Including: (1) volcanic successions comprising meta-andesite and fine-grained amphibolite, representing arc-related volcanics along a convergent margin; (2) ferruginous sandstone, in association with rhyolite, representing a volcano-sedimentary succession, deposited in an active trench; and (3) metamorphosed mafic-ultramafic suite including gabbro, pyroxenite and dunite invaded by trondhjemite representing the section of sub-arc mantle and arc root adjacent to a long-lasting subduction system. Petrologic studies indicate that the mafic-ultramafic suite crystallized from an island arc tholeiitic parental magma in a suprasubduction zone environment. The chondrite-normalized and primitive mantle normalized diagrams of the mafic and ultramafic rocks suggest derivation from MORB magma. The mixed characters from N-MORB to E-MORB of the studied samples are consistent with subduction modification of a MORB related magma, involving partial melting of the metasomatized mantle wedge. Our zircon U-Pb age data suggest that the cratonic nuclei was constructed as early as Paleoarchean. We present evidence for active subduction and arc magmatism through Mesoarchean to Neoarchean and early Paleoproterozoic, with the trench remaining open until at least 2.3?Ga. Two major crust building events are recognized in the Bastar craton: during Mesoarchean (recycled Paleoarchean subduction-related as well as juvenile/depleted mantle components) and Neoarchean (accretion of juvenile oceanic crust, arc magmatism including granite batholiths and related porphyry mineralization). The final cratonization occurred during latest Paleoproterozoic, followed by collisional assembly of the craton and its incorporation within the Peninsular Indian mosaic during Mesoproterozoic. In the global supercontinent context, the craton preserves the history of Ur, the earliest supercontinent, followed by the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia, as well as minor thermal imprints of the Neoproterozoic Rodinia and associated Grenvillian orogeny.
Abstract: The Bastar craton in central India, surrounded by cratonic blocks and Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic orogenic belts, is a window to investigate the Archean-Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution and tectonic processes. Here we propose a new tectonic classification of the craton into the Western Bastar Craton (WBC), Eastern Bastar Craton (EBC), and the intervening Central Bastar Orogen (CBO). We present petrologic, geochemical and zircon U-Pb, REE and Lu-Hf data from a suite of rocks from the CBO and along the eastern margin of the WBC Including: (1) volcanic successions comprising meta-andesite and fine-grained amphibolite, representing arc-related volcanics along a convergent margin; (2) ferruginous sandstone, in association with rhyolite, representing a volcano-sedimentary succession, deposited in an active trench; and (3) metamorphosed mafic-ultramafic suite including gabbro, pyroxenite and dunite invaded by trondhjemite representing the section of sub-arc mantle and arc root adjacent to a long-lasting subduction system. Petrologic studies indicate that the mafic-ultramafic suite crystallized from an island arc tholeiitic parental magma in a suprasubduction zone environment. The chondrite-normalized and primitive mantle normalized diagrams of the mafic and ultramafic rocks suggest derivation from MORB magma. The mixed characters from N-MORB to E-MORB of the studied samples are consistent with subduction modification of a MORB related magma, involving partial melting of the metasomatized mantle wedge. Our zircon U-Pb age data suggest that the cratonic nuclei was constructed as early as Paleoarchean. We present evidence for active subduction and arc magmatism through Mesoarchean to Neoarchean and early Paleoproterozoic, with the trench remaining open until at least 2.3?Ga. Two major crust building events are recognized in the Bastar craton: during Mesoarchean (recycled Paleoarchean subduction-related as well as juvenile/depleted mantle components) and Neoarchean (accretion of juvenile oceanic crust, arc magmatism including granite batholiths and related porphyry mineralization). The final cratonization occurred during latest Paleoproterozoic, followed by collisional assembly of the craton and its incorporation within the Peninsular Indian mosaic during Mesoproterozoic. In the global supercontinent context, the craton preserves the history of Ur, the earliest supercontinent, followed by the Paleo-Mesoproterozoic Columbia, as well as minor thermal imprints of the Neoproterozoic Rodinia and associated Grenvillian orogeny.
Abstract: Peridotites occur as lensoid bodies within the Mesoarchaean orthogneiss in the Akia terrane of Southern West Greenland. The Ulamertoq peridotite body is the largest of these peridotites hosted within the regional orthogneiss. It consists mainly of olivine, orthopyroxene, and amphibole-rich ultramafic rocks exhibiting metamorphic textural and chemical features. Chromitite layers from different localities in Ulamertoq show contrasting characteristics. In one locality, zoned chromites are hosted in orthopyroxene-amphibole peridotites. Compositional zonation in chromites is evident with decreasing Cr and Fe content from core to rim, while Al and Mg increase. Homogeneous chromites from another locality are fairly uniform and Fe-rich. The mineral chemistry of the major and accessory phases shows metamorphic signatures. Inferred temperature conditions suggest that the zoned chromites, homogeneous chromites, and their hosts are equilibrated at different metamorphic conditions. In this paper, various mechanisms during the cumulus to subsolidus stages are explored in order to understand the origin of the two contrasting types of chromites.
Abstract: Peridotites occur as lensoid bodies within the Mesoarchaean orthogneiss in the Akia terrane of Southern West Greenland. The Ulamertoq peridotite body is the largest of these peridotites hosted within the regional orthogneiss. It consists mainly of olivine, orthopyroxene, and amphibole-rich ultramafic rocks exhibiting metamorphic textural and chemical features. Chromitite layers from different localities in Ulamertoq show contrasting characteristics. In one locality, zoned chromites are hosted in orthopyroxene-amphibole peridotites. Compositional zonation in chromites is evident with decreasing Cr and Fe content from core to rim, while Al and Mg increase. Homogeneous chromites from another locality are fairly uniform and Fe-rich. The mineral chemistry of the major and accessory phases shows metamorphic signatures. Inferred temperature conditions suggest that the zoned chromites, homogeneous chromites, and their hosts are equilibrated at different metamorphic conditions. In this paper, various mechanisms during the cumulus to subsolidus stages are explored in order to understand the origin of the two contrasting types of chromites.
Abstract: Peridotites occur as lensoid bodies within the Mesoarchaean orthogneiss in the Akia terrane of Southern West Greenland. The Ulamertoq peridotite body is the largest of these peridotites hosted within the regional orthogneiss. It consists mainly of olivine, orthopyroxene, and amphibole-rich ultramafic rocks exhibiting metamorphic textural and chemical features. Chromitite layers from different localities in Ulamertoq show contrasting characteristics. In one locality, zoned chromites are hosted in orthopyroxene-amphibole peridotites. Compositional zonation in chromites is evident with decreasing Cr and Fe content from core to rim, while Al and Mg increase. Homogeneous chromites from another locality are fairly uniform and Fe-rich. The mineral chemistry of the major and accessory phases shows metamorphic signatures. Inferred temperature conditions suggest that the zoned chromites, homogeneous chromites, and their hosts are equilibrated at different metamorphic conditions. In this paper, various mechanisms during the cumulus to subsolidus stages are explored in order to understand the origin of the two contrasting types of chromites.
Abstract: A titanian clinohumite-bearing dunite was recently found in the Ulamertoq ultramafic body within the 3.0 Ga Akia Terrane of southern West Greenland. Titanian clinohumite occurs as disseminated and discrete grains. Titanian clinohumite contains relatively high amounts of fluorine, reaching up to 2.4 wt.%. The high-Fo content of olivine (Fo93) coupled with low Cr/(Cr + Al) ratio of orthopyroxene implies that the dunite host is not of residual origin after melt extraction by partial melting of the primitive mantle. Olivine grains are classified into two types based on abundances of opaque mineral inclusions: (1) dusty inclusion-rich and (2) clear inclusion-free olivines. Opaque inclusions in coarse-grained olivines are mainly magnetite. Small amounts of ilmenite are also present around titanian clinohumite grains. The observed mineral association indicates partial replacement of titanian clinohumite to ilmenite (+magnetite) and olivine following the reaction: titanian clinohumite = ilmenite + olivine + hydrous fluid. The coexistence of F-bearing titanian clinohumite, olivine, and chromian chlorite indicates equilibration at around 800-900 °C under garnet-free conditions (<2 GPa). Petrological and mineralogical characteristics of the studied titanian clinohumite-bearing dunite are comparable to deserpentinized peridotites derived from former serpentinites. This study demonstrates the importance of considering the effects of hydration/dehydration processes for the origin of ultramafic bodies found in polymetamorphic Archaean terranes.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 10.1029/2020G C009512 17p. Pdf
Europe, Greenland
geophysics - seismic
Abstract: Measurements of seismic anisotropy (the direction-dependent variation in seismic wavespeed) provide useful information about the orientation of deformation in the Earth. We measured seismic anisotropy using shear waves refracted through the outer core and recorded by stations in Greenland. Due to new stations and data, this study includes more measurements of the effects of anisotropy than previously possible. We show that a model with two layers of anisotropy explains dominant patterns in the fast vibration direction of the shear waves as a function of the angle at which they approach each station. We suggest that the shallow layer reflects coherent deformation in the continental lithosphere of Greenland due to its history of plate collisions and that the lower layer reflects deformation in the asthenospheric mantle induced by the motion of the plate above or a second layer of lithospheric anisotropy.
Electrical signatures due to thermal anomalies along mobile belts reactivated by the trail and outburst of mantle plume: evidences from the Indian subcontinent.
Electrical signatures due to thermal anomalies along mobile belts reactivated by the trail and outburst of mantle plume: evidence from the Indian subcontinent.
Journal of Applied Geophysics, Vol. 58, 4, April, pp. 313-320.
Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research, in press available
Technology
spectroscopy
Abstract: A broad suite of geological materials were studied a using a handheld laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument. Because LIBS is simultaneously sensitive to all elements, the full broadband emission spectrum recorded from a single laser shot provides a ‘chemical fingerprint’ of any material - solid, liquid or gas. The distinguishing chemical characteristics of the samples analysed were identified through principal component analysis (PCA), which demonstrates how this technique for statistical analysis can be used to identify spectral differences between similar sample types based on minor and trace constituents. Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLSDA) was used to distinguish and classify the materials, with excellent discrimination achieved for all sample types. This study illustrates through four selected examples involving carbonate minerals and rocks, the oxide mineral pair columbite-tantalite, the silicate mineral garnet and native gold how portable, handheld LIBS analysers can be used as a tool for real-time chemical analysis under simulated field conditions for element or mineral identification plus such applications as stratigraphic correlation, provenance determination and natural resources exploration.
40Ar 39 Ar dates from alkaline intrusions in the northern Crazy Mountains, Montana: implications for the timing and duration of alkaline magmatism .. central
Abstract: In-situ trace element analyses of fluorapatite, calcite, dolomite, olivine, and phlogopite have been undertaken on representative phoscorite and carbonatite rocks of the Palaeoproterozoic Phalaborwa Complex. Textural and compositional characterization reveals uniformity of fluorapatite and calcite among most of the intrusions, and seems to favor a common genetic origin for the phoscorite-carbonatite association. Representing major repositories for rare earth elements (REE), fluorapatite and calcite exhibit tightly correlated light REE (LREE) abundances, suggesting that partitioning of LREE into these rock forming minerals was principally controlled by simple igneous differentiation. However, light rare earth element distribution in apatite and calcite cannot be adequately explained by equilibrium and fractional crystallization and instead favors a complex crystallization history involving mixing of compositionally distinct magma batches, in agreement with previously reported mineral isotope variability that requires open-system behaviour.
Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 111, 4, pp. 431-433.
Technology
mineralogy
Abstract: Accessory minerals are a common species in igneous and metamorphic rocks that are not considered characteristic of the host rock and hence do not affect its root name. Accessories tend to be complex in terms of their chemical and isotopic composition and their structural state. In spite of not being major rock constituents, they are, however, of enormous petrologic interest as they contain a record of the formation and post-formation history of their host rock. The study of accessory minerals hence has increased continuously during the past years, and still increases (Fig. 1). Recent progress is driven by new analytical opportunities of (in situ) micro-techniques. More and more the internal textures, that is, elemental, isotopic, and/or structural distribution patterns within individual grains, have come into the focus of researchers; a few examples are compiled in Fig. 2.
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Vol. 43, pp. 105-138.
Mantle
Jadeites
Abstract: Jadeitite is a relatively rare, very tough rock composed predominantly of jadeite and typically found associated with tectonic blocks of high-pressure/low-temperature metabasaltic rocks (e.g., eclogite, blueschist) in exhumed serpentinite-matrix mélanges. Studies over the past ?20 years have interpreted jadeitite either as the direct hydrous fluid precipitate from subduction channel dewatering into the overlying mantle wedge or as the metasomatic replacement by such fluids of oceanic plagiogranite, graywacke, or metabasite along the channel margin. Thus, jadeitites directly sample and record fluid transport in the subduction factory and provide a window into this geochemical process that is critical to a major process in the Earth system. They record the remarkable transport of large ion lithophile elements, such as Li, Ba, Sr, and Pb, as well as elements generally considered more refractory, such as U, Th, Zr, and Hf. Jadeitite is also the precious form of jade, utilized since antiquity in the form of tools, adornments, and symbols of prestige.
Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 46, 3, pp. 1348-1356.
Mantle
UHP
Abstract: Iron oxides are important end?members of the complex materials that constitute the Earth's interior. Among them, FeO and Fe2O3 have long been considered as the main end?members of the ferrous (Fe2+) and ferric (Fe3+) states of iron, respectively. All geochemical models assume that high oxygen concentrations are systematically associated to the formation of ferric iron in minerals. The recent discovery of O22? peroxide ions in a phase of chemical formula FeO2Hx stable under high?pressure and high?temperature conditions challenges this general concept. However, up to now, the valences of iron and oxygen in FeO2Hx have only been indirectly inferred from a structural analogy with pyrite FeS2. Here we compressed goethite (FeOOH), an Fe3+?bearing mineral, at lower mantle pressure and temperature conditions by using laser?heated diamond?anvil cells, and we probed the iron oxidation state upon transformation of FeOOH in the pressure-temperature stability field of FeO2Hx using in situ X?ray absorption spectroscopy. The data demonstrate that upon this transformation iron has transformed into ferrous Fe2+. Such reduced iron despite high oxygen concentrations suggests that our current views of oxidized and reduced species in the lower mantle of the Earth should be reconsidered.
Isotope geochemistry of mid-Proterozoic carbonatite complexes from SouthAfrica: implications for the composition of the Proterozoic sub-continentalmantle
V.m. Goldschmidt Conference, Program And Abstract Volume, Held May, p. 46. Abstract
The Bulhoek carbonatite complex, South Africa: evidence for magmatic crystallization of dolomite at low pressures and the petogenetic implications.
Carbonatite-alkaline rocks and associated mineral deposits , Dec. 8-11, abstract p. 5-7.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Bulhoek
Abstract: In many plutonic carbonatite complexes the dominant carbonatite type is calcitic and there is a tendency to assume that dolomitic carbonatites are insignificant relative to calcitic types. While calcitic carbonatites dominate in regions of rifting, e.g. the East African Rift System, dolomitic carbonatites are more abundant in the Archaean Kaapvaal and Zimbabwean Cratons of southern Africa and the Archaean parts of the Canadian Shield (Harmer and Gittins, 1997). The ~1.4Ga Newania carbonatite, the only dolomite carbonatite complex described from India, is located within the Archaean Aravalli Craton (Ray et al., 2013). Increased exploration activity on carbonatites in response to the short-lived 2009-2012 REE boom has highlighted the importance of dolomitic carbonatites as targets for REE (and P) deposits: for example, of the 10 advanced African REE projects (i.e. deposits with a defined resource) associated with carbonatites, 7 are hosted within dolomite carbonatites (Harmer and Nex, 2016). This study reports a detailed petrological study of the Bulhoek Carbonatite Complex, one of a number of carbonatite and alkaline igneous complexes that were emplaced into the central Kaapvaal Craton at 1.4 Ma (Hanson et al., 2006). The Bulhoek Complex comprises three centres of intrusion of magnesian carbonatite into granitic and granophyric components of the 2.05Ga Bushveld Complex over a linear 20 km long zone. At all three centres, areas of fenitised granite enclose sheeted intrusions of dolomitic carbonatite of similar composition and intrusive style. No alkaline silicate magmatic rocks have been in the vicinity of the intrusive centres. Carbonatites were emplaced in three discrete intrusive episodes: initial intrusion was accompanied by significant shattering of the country rocks and produced a sequence of medium-grained, flow foliated dolomite carbonatites (C1) containing clasts of fenitised country rock granites along with xenoliths of fenitised ferrogabbro and magnetite transported from Bushveld Upper Zone cumulates underlying the granites. A second intrusive pulse produced cross-cutting sheets of medium- to coarse-grained dolomitic carbonatite free of xenoliths (C2) that make up the bulk of the carbonatite at each intrusive centre. Evidence that both C1 and C2 carbonatites intruded as crystal-rich mushes include strongly developed sub-vertical foliations, deflection of foliations around large fenite xenoliths and the common occurrence of folded foliations through drag effects at contacts with country rock and in C2 intrusions along contacts with C1 carbonatites.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, Vol. 20, 4, pp. 2091-2109.
Africa
geophysics
Abstract: In Ethiopia, the African Continent is rifting apart to slowly form a new ocean basin, which will expand the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. How and why this rifting is occurring remains an important unanswered question in earth science. We know tectonic forces are partly responsible, but magmatism also seems a key ingredient for breaking up Africa. Here we use seismic images obtained from signals pulled out of noise, to understand the crustal structure of the region; In particular, how and where magma is stored in the crust, and its relationship to the different stages of continental breakup visible in the region. We find evidence for long?term melt storage in places where rifting is just beginning in southern Ethiopia; whereas in regions where the crust is thinner due to extensive rifting, magma erupts more regularly. The long?term storage of magma in unrifted crust may help to heat and weaken it, allowing rifting to accelerate and propagate further south. We are also able to image regions with hydrothermal fluids in the shallow parts of the crust in inactive fault zones. These results provide insight into the breakup process and the role magma plays at different stages of rifting.
Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research, in press available
Technology
spectroscopy
Abstract: A broad suite of geological materials were studied a using a handheld laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) instrument. Because LIBS is simultaneously sensitive to all elements, the full broadband emission spectrum recorded from a single laser shot provides a ‘chemical fingerprint’ of any material - solid, liquid or gas. The distinguishing chemical characteristics of the samples analysed were identified through principal component analysis (PCA), which demonstrates how this technique for statistical analysis can be used to identify spectral differences between similar sample types based on minor and trace constituents. Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLSDA) was used to distinguish and classify the materials, with excellent discrimination achieved for all sample types. This study illustrates through four selected examples involving carbonate minerals and rocks, the oxide mineral pair columbite-tantalite, the silicate mineral garnet and native gold how portable, handheld LIBS analysers can be used as a tool for real-time chemical analysis under simulated field conditions for element or mineral identification plus such applications as stratigraphic correlation, provenance determination and natural resources exploration.
Abstract: Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is a simple, straightforward, and versatile form of atomic emission spectroscopy that focuses a rapidly-pulsed laser beam onto a sample to form a plasma containing its constituent elements and then uses spectral analysis of the emitted light to detect the elements present. In theory, LIBS is capable of qualitative, semi-quantitative, and quantitative analysis of all elements in the periodic table. LIBS can be performed in the laboratory or outside in the ambient environment for on-site analysis in situ; LIBS can also be used for rapid microscale compositional imaging. This review first presents a description of the LIBS technique and then discusses and illustrates through a historic literature review how LIBS has been used to analyze gases, natural waters, minerals, rocks, sediments, and soils. Given the persistent need of analytical instrumentation for the rapid chemical analysis of geologic materials in the field, and the capability of LIBS to analyze any type of sample in real time with little to no preparation, there is a vast potential for the routine application of LIBS across a broad spectrum of the geosciences that is as yet only minimally realized.
Abstract: Metasupracrustal sequences interlayered with quartzofeldspathic gneisses distinguish the Montana Metasedimentary terrane on the NW flank of the Wyoming Province (WP). Early thinking correlated marble-bearing suites and considered them younger than carbonate-absent sequences, promoting models of WP continental crust evolution toward thick lithosphere supporting a stable marine platform in the period ~ 3.5-2.5 Ga. Metasupracrustal suite depositional ages constrained by (1) detrital zircons; (2) times of metamorphism; and (3) cross-cutting meta-igneous rocks now indicate a more complex pattern of tectonic environments along the NW margin of the WP. Carbonate-bearing metasupracrustal suites in the Tobacco Root Mountains and Ruby Range include marble, amphibolite, orthoamphibolite, pelitic gneiss, quartzite, and iron formation. Detrital zircons constrain the protolith age to 2.45 Ga. Interlayered quartzofeldspathic gneiss with calc-alkaline geochemistry were previously interpreted as suggesting a continental fringing arc superimposed on Archean basement. An episode of metamorphism and anatexis followed at 2.45 Ga, demonstrated by metamorphic monazite and intrusive ages of cross-cutting mylonitic leucogneiss. We interpret this to be a time of collision along the NW WP. Cross-cutting mafic sills and dikes suggest continental rifting at 2.06 Ga. Diverse metasupracrustal suites whose protoliths must be 1.8 Ga occur in the Ruby, Tobacco Root, and Highland mountains. A carbonate-absent suite of amphibolite, orthoamphibolite, pelitic schist and quartzite in the Tobacco Root Mountains represents oceanic crust, while aluminous schist and interlayered amphibolite in the Highland Mountains are consistent with a back-arc basin setting. The Ruby Range suite includes prominent marble, amphibolite, orthoamphibolite, pelitic schist, quartzite and iron formation and may represent a second, post-rift carbonate platform facing that basin. These suites collapsed against the WP during the 1.78-1.72 Ga Big Sky orogeny as a consequence of subduction directed beneath the WP.
Abstract: Today's monocrystalline silicon solar cells have their throne on the roofs of our houses. In the past decade, however, perovskite solar cells (PSCs) show impressive advances with a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 25.2% (1) and low fabrication cost, which make this technology promising for further advances in decarbonization energy models (2). Yet the life cycle of PSCs needs to be increased for market integration. Poor stability is the main impediment to commercializing this technology. Thus, great effort has been focused on the causes and mechanisms of degradation, many of which can be mitigated or minimized with encapsulation. Various strategies have been proposed to increase PSCs' operational stability, which is affected by moisture, oxidation, heat, light, and other factors (3, 4). On page 1328 of this issue, Shi et al. (5) report a successful encapsulation procedure for hybrid PSCs.
Harper, C.T., Van Breeman, O., Wodick,N., Pehrsson, S., Heaman, L., Hartlaub, R.
The Paleoproterozoic lithostructural history and thermotectonic reactivation of the Archean basement in southern Hearne domain of northeastern Saskatchewan.
GAC Annual Meeting Halifax May 15-19, Abstract 1p.
Abstract: The Magnet Cove Alkaline Intrusive Complex contains several silica-undersaturated igneous rock types (e.g. nepheline syenite, ijolite, carbonatite) that form a concentric ring map pattern approximately 4.6 square miles in area. These rings, which are likely the result of several nearly contemporaneous magma injection events during the mid Cretaceous, become increasingly silica-undersaturated from rim to core, and have been previously mapped as separate geologic units. The outer ring contains nepheline syenite, the intermediate ring contains both garnet ijolite and garnet biotite ijolite, and the core contains carbonatite. Though the detailed modal mineralogy differs somewhat between the silicate (i.e. syenite and ijolite) rock types, they all have in common the presence of mica group minerals. The purpose of this study is to examine and characterize the diversity of mica group minerals found in the silica-undersaturated rocks of Magnet Cove. Syenite and ijolite rock samples were collected from several locations within the complex, and thin sections were prepared for petrographic and electron microscope analysis using facilities and equipment at the UALR Rock Preparation Laboratory. Overall mineralogy from these samples indicates the presence of potassium feldspar, plagioclase feldspar, several feldspathoid minerals (nepheline, sodalite, altered leucite), amphiboles, pyroxenes (primarily aegerine and aegerine-augite), black Ti-bearing garnets (melanite, schorlomite), and various opaque minerals (e.g. magnetite, pyrite). Previously, micas in these rocks have been labeled simply as “biotite”. However, the ranges of color (yellowish-brown to bluish-green), crystal size (millimeter to several centimeters in diameter), and crystal habit (clusters of euhedral grains) in hand sample and variable pleochroism, ranging interference colors, reaction coronas, and zoning in thin section indicate a more interesting and complex chemical history.
Aulbach, S., Stachel, T., Craeser, R.A., Heaman, L.M., Shirey, S.B., MUehlenbachs, K., Eichenberg, D., Harris
Sulphide survival and diamond genesis during formation and evolution of Archean subcontinental lithosphere: a comparison between the Slave and Kaapvaal cratons.
GSA Annual Meeting, Paper 131-14, 1p. Abstract only
Africa, South Africa
Carbonatite
Abstract: Petrologic and geochemical data for carbonatites and associated alkaline igneous rocks are presented for the Zandkopsdrift Carbonatite Complex, Namaqualand. The samples included in this study are relatively fresh, collected by coring at depths of >70 m below the weathered cap zone. The Zandkopsdrift complex is the only locality in the province known to contain significant carbonatite. The carbonatites studied are calico-, ferro- and silico- carbonatites, based on mineralogy, texture, and major element composition. They have low to moderate Mg-numbers (35-65), variable MgO contents (1.2-8.50 wt.%) and high atomic Ca/Ca+Mg (0.73-0.97), indicating that they are not likely simple mantle melts. The carbonatites contain significant apatite, magnetite, pyrochlore and phlogopite. Zandkopsdrift also contains significant amounts of aillikite and olivine melilitite. These rocks have relatively low SiO2 (25-31 wt.%) and Al2O3 (5.3- 6.1 wt.%), high K2O (6-6.3 wt.%) and TiO2 (5.6-9.5 wt.%) and moderate Mg numbers (51-58). ?18O and ?13C isotopes were measured for carbonatites and aillikites. ?13CPDB values are close to those expected for mantle-derived carbonatites (-3.9 to -8.83), while the ?18OSMOW values are significantly higher (+13. 25 to 21.84‰). The high ?18O value observed in carbonatites and aillikites is most likely attributable to secondary alteration by hydrous/hydrothermal fluids. This supports the inference that the Zandkopsdrift carbonatite is magmatic in origin but was later affected by secondary alteration which resulted in the elevated O stable isotopes. The ‘mantle-like’ ?13C is inconsistent with significant assimilation of C-bearing crustal rocks. Chondrite-normalised REE contents in the carbonatites are 2400 to 10,600 for La and 36 to 170 for Lu. The high REE contents of the carbonatites are most likely due to a combination of a source metasomatised by a highly LREE-enriched agent, as well as significant magmatic differentiation. The relatively fractionated composition of the Zandkopsdrift aillikites and melilitites is also consistent with this hypothesis. We propose that the Zandkopsdrift carbonatites were most likely formed by either immiscible liquid separation from or fractional crystallization of a moderately fractionated, carbonate-rich silicate parental magma.
Session No. 131--Booth# 338
Tectonic significance and redox state of Paleoproterozoic eclogite and pyroxenite components in the Slave cratonic mantle lithosphere, Voyageur kimberlite, Arctic Canada.
Abstract: Mantle-derived eclogite and pyroxenite xenoliths from the Jurassic Voyageur kimberlite on the northern Slave craton in Arctic Canada were studied for garnet and clinopyroxene major and trace element compositions, clinopyroxene Pb and garnet O isotopic compositions, and garnet Fe3 +/?Fe contents. The Voyageur xenoliths record a wide range of pressures, but are cooler compared to mantle xenoliths derived from the nearby, coeval Jericho kimberlite. The CaO, TiO2 and Zr contents of Voyageur eclogites increase with depth, which is also observed in northern Slave peridotite xenoliths, demonstrating ‘bottom-up’ metasomatic processes within cratonic mantle lithosphere. The Voyageur eclogites have positive Eu anomalies, flat HREEN patterns, and major element compositions that are consistent with ultimate origins from basaltic and gabbroic protoliths within oceanic lithosphere. Clinopyroxene Pb isotope ratios intercept the Stacey-Kramers two-stage terrestrial Pb evolution curve at ca. 2.1 Ga, and form an array towards the host kimberlite, indicating isotopic mixing. The 2.1 Ga eclogite formation age broadly overlaps with known Paleoproterozoic subduction and collision events that occurred along the western margin of the Slave craton. Unlike the eclogites, the Voyageur pyroxenites contain garnet with distinctive fractionated HREEN, sinusoidal REE patterns of calculated bulk rocks, and clinopyroxene with 206Pb/204Pb ratios that intercept the Stacey-Kramers curve at 1.8 Ga. This suggests a distinct origin as Paleoproterozoic high-pressure mantle cumulates. However, the pyroxenite Pb isotope ratios fall within the eclogite array and could also be explained by protoliths formation at ca. 2.1 Ga followed by minor isotopic mixing during mantle metasomatism. Thus, an alternative scenario involves pyroxenite formation within the mantle section of Paleoproterozoic oceanic lithosphere followed by variable metasomatism after incorporation into cratonic mantle lithosphere. This model allows for a linked petrogenesis of the Voyageur eclogites (crust) and pyroxenites (mantle) as part of the same subducting oceanic slab. Oxygen fugacity determinations for one pyroxenite and ten eclogite xenoliths show a range of 3 log units, from ? 4.6 to ? 1.6 ?FMQ, similar to the range observed for nearby Jericho and Muskox eclogites (?FMQ ? 4.2 to ? 1.5). Importantly, the northern Slave eclogite and pyroxenite mantle components are highly heterogeneous in terms of redox state provided that they range from reduced to oxidized relative to Slave peridotite xenoliths. Moreover, the Voyageur eclogites do not exhibit any trend between oxidation state and equilibration depth, which contrasts with the downward decrease in fO2 shown by Slave and worldwide cratonic peridotite xenoliths. Our investigation of mantle eclogite and pyroxenite fO2 reinforces the important influence of recycled mafic components in upper mantle processes, because their high and variable redox buffering capacity strongly controls volatile speciation and melting relations under upper mantle conditions.
Abstract: The 525 Ma Marinkas Quellen (MQ) Complex of southern Namibia, part of the Kuboos-Bremen Line (KBL) of alkaline igneous centers [1] consists of granites, nepheline syenites and carbonatites and is the only carbonatite locality in the KBL [1]. MQ carbonatite variteties include calciocarbonatites, magnesiocarbonatites and ferrocarbonatites. The enrichments in Ba, Nb and the REE vary widely in the carbonatites, with La ranging from 45 to 11154 ppm. All the carbonatites are characterised by large Zr, Hf, Ti depletions. Zr/Hf ratios ranges from 40 to 500, all greater than the chondritic value of 36. Such large Zr/Hf fractionations are often associated with carbonatite metasomatism. The values of carbon and oxygen isotope ratios of bulk carbonate in Marinkas Quellen carbonatites vary significantly (e.g., ?13C = -3.95 to -6.02‰; ?18 O = 8.84 to 22.22‰). The carbon isotope compositions are in the mantle range, while the oxygen isotope values extend to higher than typical mantle values, presumably due to interaction with hydrous fluids. All but two of the carbonatite samples have initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios falling in the range of 0.70236 to 0.70408. Of the remaining samples, one, a ferrocarbonatite, has a higher value of 0.70503 that is likely due to contamination by the surrounding rock or assimilation in the lower crust or Sr exchange with groundwater. The other, a magnesiocarbonatite, appears to have experienced an increase in its Rb/Sr ratio due to alteration, resulting in an over-corrected initial 87Sr/86Sr value. The relatively low Sr isotope ratios of most samples, plus their HNd(t) values (+3.9 to +4.8) values suggest that the carbonatite magma was generated from a long-lived low Rb/Sr, high Sm/Nd, relatively depleted mantle source. The radiogenic Pb isotope composition of the carbonatites (206Pb/204Pbi ratios from 18.06 to 22.38), suggests a high U/Pb source, akin to the HIMU mantle end member. This points to a sub-lithospheric (asthenospheric) source with only a relatively minor contribution from enriched lithospheric mantle
Abstract: Mantle-derived eclogite xenoliths are key for studying the evolution of the cratonic lithosphere, because geochemical evidence suggests that they typically represent fragments of Archean and Proterozoic oceanic lithosphere [1]. Recently, it has been suggested that eclogite xenoliths can serve as redox sensors of the Precambrian upper mantle using V/Sc as a redox proxy [2]. However, metasomatism can change the original oxidation state of the cratonic mantle [3], thereby limiting its use for monitoring mantle redox evolution. Circa 1.8–2.2 Ga eclogite xenoliths erupted with Jurassic kimberlites of the northern Slave craton have geochemical features that indicate oceanic crust protoliths [4, 5]. Such Paleoproterozoic ages are common for Slave craton mantle eclogites [6], linking eclogite formation with 1.9 Ga subduction-collision events at the western craton margin. The eclogites studied here have highly variable Fe3+/?Fe (0.019 – 0.076 ±0.01), with logfO2 (?FMQ-4 to +2 ±0.5) that are both relatively oxidized and reduced compared to Slave mantle peridotite xenoliths [3]. Also, eclogite fO2 positively correlates with some indicies of metasomatism, such as elevated TiO2 in garnet. In addition to considering the time gap between eclogite formation and kimberlite eruption, the highly variable fO2–depth systematics of the eclogites studied here illustrate the drawbacks of using averaged eclogite fO2 to define the redox evolution of the upper mantle. Despite this, the ca. 2 Ga northern Slave craton eclogites have an average depth-corrected logfO2 of ?FMQ-0.5±1.3 (1?) that overlaps with modern MORB, and complies with the upper mantle redox evolution trend predicted using V/Sc ratios of mantlederived melts [2]. However, given the debate around the secuarity of mantle redox [7], further research into the suitability of mantle eclogites as redox sensors is warranted.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 475, pp. 143-151.
Africa
peridotites
Abstract: Continental Flood Basalts (CFB) result from voluminous outpourings of magma that often precede continental break-up. Notwithstanding the petrogenetic importance of CFBs, the nature of the mantle source for such magmas is contentious, particularly with regard to picrites with Ni-rich olivine phenocrysts. Previous studies have suggested that Ni-rich olivines associated with plume volcanism in regions of thickened (>90 km) lithosphere are related to either source mineralogy differences (peridotite versus pyroxenite) or change in olivine-melt partitioning due to pressure increase. In order to evaluate these two hypotheses, we present trace element data for olivines from the Karoo CFB Tuli and Mwenezi picrites and the Etendeka CFB Horingbaai/LTZ-L type picrites, all of which erupted in regions of thickened (>90 km) lithosphere in southern Africa. Karoo picrite olivines are Ni-rich, Ca- and Mn-poor, and have low (<1.4) 100*Mn/Fe. These compositions are consistent with a pyroxenitic source. Etendeka Horingbaai/LTZ-L picrite olivines do not show Ni-enrichment, but are characterized by high Al and Cr, and high (>1.4) 100*Mn/Fe, which is more consistent with high temperature melting of a dominantly peridotitic source. We also show that the Karoo and Etendeka olivines are characterized by distinct Mn/Zn ratios of <13 and >15, respectively.In addition, bulk rock geochemical data compilations and previously reported olivine for Karoo and Etendeka CFBs are discussed in order to further constrain source components based on previously described pyroxenite melt geochemical indices such as MgO-CaO systematics, FeO/MnO, Zn/Fe, and FC3MS (FeO/CaO-3*MgO/SiO2). These geochemical indices suggest a pyroxenite-dominated source for Karoo CFBs as well as for Etendeka ferropicrites whereas a peridotite-dominated source is indicated for Etendeka Horingbaai/LTZ-L type picrites analyzed in this study. Based on our data, Ni-enrichment of olivine in plume-related magmas in regions of thickened lithosphere in southern Africa is not ubiquitous. We therefore suggest that mineralogical variation of the source is a more likely major control of olivine chemistry and parent melt variations for Karoo and Etendeka CFBs. We also show that olivine Mn-Zn correlations are a useful discriminator for source variation and recommend the use of olivine for a pyroxenite-dominated source relative to olivine for a peridotite-dominated source.
Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol 174, https://doi.org/ 10.1007/s00410-019-1552-z
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Roberts Victor, Jagersfontein
Abstract: Mantle eclogites are commonly accepted as evidence for ancient altered subducted oceanic crust preserved in the subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM), yet the mechanism and extent of crustal recycling in the Archaean remains poorly constrained. In this study, we focus on the petrological and geochemical characteristics of 58 eclogite xenoliths from the Roberts Victor and Jagersfontein kimberlites, South Africa. Non-metasomatized samples preserved in the cratonic root have variable textures and comprise bimineralic (garnet (gt)-omphacite (cpx)), as well as kyanite (ky)- and corundum (cor)-bearing eclogites. The bimineralic samples were derived from a high-Mg variety, corresponding to depths of ~ 100-180 km, and a low-Mg variety corresponding to depths of ~ 180-250 km. The high-Al (ky-, cor-bearing) eclogites originated from the lowermost part of the cratonic root, and have the lowest REE abundances, and the most pronounced positive Eu and Sr anomalies. On the basis of the strong positive correlation between gt and cpx ?18O values (r2 = 0.98), we argue that ?18O values are unaffected by mantle processes or exhumation. The cpx and gt are in oxygen isotope equilibrium over a wide range in ?18O values (e.g., 1.1-7.6‰ in garnet) with a bi-modal distribution (peaks at ~ 3.6 and ~ 6.4‰) with respect to mantle garnet values (5.1 ± 0.3‰). Reconstructed whole-rock major and trace element compositions (e.g., MgO variation with respect to Mg#, Al2O3, LREE/HREE) of bimineralic eclogites are consistent with their protolith being oceanic crust that crystallized from a picritic liquid, marked by variable degrees of partial melt extraction. Kyanite and corundum-bearing eclogites, however, have compositions consistent with a gabbroic and pyroxene-dominated protolith, respectively. The wide range in reconstructed whole-rock ?18O values is consistent with a broadly picritic to pyroxene-rich cumulative sequence of depleted oceanic crust, which underwent hydrothermal alteration at variable temperatures. The range in ?18O values extends significantly lower than that of present-day oceanic crust and Cretaceous ophiolites, and this might be due to a combination of lower ?18O values of seawater in the Archaean or a higher temperature of seawater-oceanic crust interaction.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, in press available 21p.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Bultfontein
Abstract: Current understanding of the fate of subducted material (and related fluids) in the deep Earth can be improved by combining major and trace element geochemistry with stable isotopic compositions of mantle rocks or minerals. Limited isotopic fractionation during high temperature processes means that significant deviations from mantle-like isotope ratios in mantle rocks probably result from recycling of surficial material. To determine the effects and origins of mantle metasomatic fluids/melts, new ?15N and ?18O data have been collected for thirteen mantle xenoliths - harzburgites, wehrlites, lherzolites, and MARID (Mica-Amphibole-Rutile-Ilmenite-Diopside) rocks - from the Bultfontein kimberlite (Kimberley, South Africa), which show varying degrees of metasomatism. The ?18O values of olivine and orthopyroxene in phlogopite-free harzburgites match the mantle composition (?18Oolivine?=?+5.2?±?0.3‰; ?18Oorthopyroxene?=?+5.7?±?0.3‰; 2?s.d.), consistent with previous inferences that harzburgites were formed by interaction with ancient silica-rich melts unrelated to subduction processes. Wehrlite samples display mineral compositional characteristics (e.g., low La/Zr in clinopyroxene) resembling those of other products of kimberlite melt metasomatism, such as PIC (Phlogopite-Ilmenite-Clinopyroxene) rocks. The inferred interaction with kimberlite melts may be responsible for O isotopic disequilibrium between clinopyroxene and olivine (?18O?=?+0.2‰) in the wehrlites of this study. In contrast with broadly mantle-like ?18O values, the ?15N value of phlogopite in a wehrlite sample (+5.9‰) differs from the mantle composition (?15N?=??5?±?2‰). This unusual N isotopic composition in kimberlite-related mantle products might indicate that a recycled crustal component occurred in the source of the Kimberley kimberlites, or was assimilated during interaction with the lithospheric mantle. Similar major and trace element characteristics in clinopyroxene from phlogopite-lherzolite and MARID samples suggest metasomatism by fluids of similar composition. Lherzolite and MARID clinopyroxene ?18O values (as low as +4.4‰) extend below those reported in mantle peridotites (i.e. ?18Oclinopyroxene?=?+5.6?±?0.3‰; 2?s.d.), and strong negative correlations are found between mineral ?18O values and major element compositions (e.g., Na2O contents in clinopyroxene). Furthermore, phlogopite ?15N values (+4 to +7‰) in the studied lherzolite and MARID samples are higher than mantle values. Combined, the low ?18O-high ?15N isotopic signatures of MARID and lherzolite samples suggest progressive mantle metasomatism by a melt containing a recycled oceanic crust (eclogitic) component. This study demonstrates that progressive enrichment of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle may be inextricably linked to plate tectonics via recycling of subducted crustal material into the deep mantle.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, in press available, 16p.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Kimberly region
Abstract: Carbonate-bearing assemblages in the mantle have been interpreted to be the source for Si-undersaturated, CO2-rich magmas, including kimberlites. However, direct evidence for carbonate in the mantle is rare in the contemporary literature. Here we present petrography, trace element, and C-O-Sr-Nd-Pb isotope composition for a suite of carbonate xenoliths from the Kimberley region kimberlites to ascertain their mantle or crustal origin and gain insight to the potential for the occurrence of carbonate in the mantle. Carbonate xenoliths were found in large kimberlite blocks from the Bultfontein kimberlite and Big Hole region. The xenoliths are characterised by pale green alteration margins made of fine-grained microlites of an unknown mineral as well as spherules surrounded by glassy material. They are generally 1–4?cm in size, coarse-grained (1–2?mm), and comprised entirely of calcite. Carbonate xenoliths from the Bultfontein kimberlite have low total REE concentrations (0.2–4.9?ppm), constant 87Sr/86Sri (0.7047–0.7049) combined with variable ?Ndi (?0.1 to ?26.2) and 206Pb/204Pbi, 207Pb/204Pbi, and 208Pb/204Pbi of 16.7–18.8, 15.3–15.6, 36.5–38.4, respectively. Xenoliths from the Big Hole sample have higher 87Sr/86Sri (0.7088–0.7095), lower ?Ndi (?24.5 to ?3.8), and 206Pb/204Pbi, 207Pb/204Pbi, and 208Pb/204Pbi of 18.9–19.9, 15.7–15.8, 38.4–38.8, respectively. The ?13C values for both Bultfontein (?5.7 to ?6.6‰) and Big Hole (?4.7 to ?5.4‰) carbonates are within the typical range expected for mantle-derived carbonate. The ?18O values (15.5–17.5‰) are higher than those of mantle silicate rocks, indicative of late-stage low-temperature interaction with fluids; a common feature of groundmass calcite in the Kimberley kimberlites. The Sr- and C- isotope composition of the Bultfontein xenoliths indicates a mantle origin whereas the Big Hole xenolith Sr- and C-isotopes are more ambiguous. Isotope mixing models are inconsistent with interaction between the host kimberlite and carbonate xenoliths. Correlation between ?Ndi and ?18O values for the Bultfontein xenoliths indicates late-stage interaction with low-temperature fluids, which may also be responsible for the large range in ?Ndi. This in turn indicates that the highest ?Ndi of ?0.1 represents the primary carbonate xenolith signature, and this value overlaps typical Group I kimberlites. We discuss two possible origins for the carbonate xenoliths. (1) Carbonate xenoliths from the sub-continental lithospheric mantle (SCLM), where quenched margins and the large range of ?Ndi are related to formation in the mantle. (2) Carbonate xenoliths from an earlier phase of carbonatite magmatism. The similarity of isotope signatures of the Bultfontein carbonates to Group I kimberlite may further suggest a link between kimberlite and carbonatite volcanism such as observed elsewhere in the world.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, doi.org/10.1016/ j.epsl.2020. 116720 19p. Pdf
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Bellsbank
Abstract: The nature of the deep calcium geochemical cycle through time is unresolved, in part due to the dearth of information about the calcium isotope composition of Archean recycled oceanic crust. Remnants of such ancient oceanic crust are preserved in the form of cratonic mantle eclogites, brought to surface as xenoliths in kimberlite magma eruptions. The ? 44 / 40Ca of fresh mantle-derived eclogite xenoliths (i.e., garnet and omphacite mineral separates) from the Bellsbank kimberlite on the Kaapvaal craton in South Africa are presented here in combination with their trace element compositions, garnet Fe3+ contents and ?18O values. The studied Bellsbank eclogite xenoliths have geochemical compositions that indicate oceanic crustal protoliths, with bulk Al2O3 from 15 to 27 wt.%, Eu anomalies from 0.8 to 2.6 and, significantly, garnet ?18O values from +2.7 to +6.2‰. Garnet Fe3+/?Fe contents yield logfO2(?FMQ) values between -4.0 and -1.2 for a depth range of 110-180 km, recording strong redox heterogeneity of the eclogite component within the Archean Kaapvaal mantle lithosphere. Reconstructed bulk eclogite MgO contents correlate negatively with fO2, suggesting that the redox compositions are related to magmatic differentiation during oceanic crust formation, excluding secondary metasomatic overprints. These data may thus emphasize that Archean basaltic oceanic crust had a similarly variable redox composition to modern MORB-type crust. Reconstructed bulk ? 44 / 40Ca values for the Bellsbank eclogites range from +0.28 to +1.56‰. Although some of the xenoliths have ? 44 / 40Ca values that overlap with the average mantle composition and modern MORB (+0.94 ± 0.1 and +0.83 ± 0.05‰), half of our dataset shows excursions to more extreme Ca isotopic compositions. Both higher and lower ? 44 / 40Ca relative to mantle compositions are recorded by the eclogites, with a general negative correlation with ?18O suggestive of seawater-alteration of oceanic crust. The combined low ? 44 / 40Ca (+0.28‰) and ?18O (+3.4‰) measured for one eclogite xenolith may record a subtle imprint by carbonate-rich mantle melts, which are known to contain isotopically light calcium contributed by recycled sediments. In contrast, the high ? 44 / 40Ca of up to +1.56‰ for some eclogite xenoliths, coupled with strong LREE depletion, can be explained by calcium isotope fractionation during partial melting. The protracted history of recycled oceanic crust as probed by cratonic mantle eclogites is recorded by their highly variable ? 44 / 40Ca-?18O-fO2 signatures. Whereas some of this heterogeneity can be linked to processes that operated on the Archean ocean floor such as seawater-alteration of basaltic crust, other sources of compositional variability are introduced by loss and addition of melts during subduction recycling and mantle residence. The observed ? 44 / 40Ca complexity of ancient recycled oceanic crust components at the scale of a single mantle-derived eclogite xenolith suite implies that mantle plume sourced intraplate magmas should reveal similarly strong calcium isotope variations contributed by apparently essential recycled crust components - as observed in the global oceanic island basalt record.
Abstract: From west to east along the Sunda-Banda arc, convergence of the Indo-Australian plate transitions from subduction of oceanic lithosphere to arc-continent collision. This region of eastern Indonesia and Timor-Leste provides an opportunity for unraveling the processes that occur during collision between a continent and a volcanic arc, and it can be viewed as the temporal transition of this process along strike. We collected a range of complementary geological and geophysical data to place constraints on the geometry and history of arc-continent collision. Utilizing ?4 yr of new broadband seismic data, we imaged the structure of the crust through the uppermost mantle. Ambient noise tomography shows velocity anomalies along strike and across the arc that are attributed to the inherited structure of the incoming and colliding Australian plate. The pattern of anomalies at depth resembles the system of salients and embayments that is present offshore western Australia, which formed during rifting of east Gondwana. Previously identified changes in geochemistry of volcanics from Pb isotope anomalies from the inner arc islands correlate with newly identified velocity structures representing the underthrusted and subducted Indo-Australian plate. Reconstruction of uplift from river profiles from the outer arc islands suggests rapid uplift at the ends of the islands of Timor and western Sumba, which coincide with the edges of the volcanic-margin protrusions as inferred from the tomography. These findings suggest that the tectonic evolution of this region is defined by inherited structure of the Gondwana rifted continental margin of the incoming plate. Therefore, the initial template of plate structure controls orogenesis.
Abstract: The Rae craton in Canada’s North contains several kimberlite fields and has been the subject of episodic diamond exploration, with proven diamond-bearing deposits. However, relatively little is known about the deep mantle lithosphere that underpins the architecturally complex crust of this craton. The Darby Kimberlite field, located ~120 km southwest of the community of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, provides an opportunity to study the mantle beneath the western portion of the central Rae craton via mantle xenoliths. The Darby kimberlite field contains eight kimberlite bodies erupted at circa 540 Ma. Five of the kimberlites have proven to be diamond-bearing including the 12 hectare ‘Iceberg’ kimberlite. Mantle xenoliths were collected from kimberlite float above proven kimberlite targets across the property. Most of the surface kimberlite is highly altered and hence the peridotite xenoliths they contain are generally serpentinized or deeply-weathered. Eclogites/pyroxenites were recovered from each locality visited. A total of 33 mantle xenoliths exceeding one cm in maximum dimension (14 peridotites and 19 “eclogites”) were selected for mineral chemistry and bulk analysis. Four peridotite xenoliths contain fresh garnet. Clinopyroxenes from kimberlite heavy mineral concentrate provide a preliminary geotherm for the West Central Rae lithosphere and indicate a lithospheric depth of ~200 km. Using Ni-in-garnet temperatures, four garnet peridotites and 49 peridotitic garnets from concentrate yield two distinct mantle sampling depths. Whole rock Re-depletion ages for Darby peridotites range from Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic. Archean whole rock TMA ages for the eclogites/pyroxenites are consistent with a Mesoarchean age for the western Central Rae lithosphere, older than the lithosphere beneath the Repulse Bay block to the East. The anomalously high abundance of eclogite/pyroxenite xenoliths and garnet concentrate found in the Darby field (58 % of xenoliths and 82 % of concentrate) is at odds with the abundance of eclogite thought to be present in cratonic lithospheric mantle from xenocryst studies (~one to five %). The high abundance may be related to the proximity of the field to the proposed suture between the Committee Block and the Queen Maud Block to the far West of the Rae craton
University of Alberta, Msc thesis https://doi.org /10.7939/R3NC5SV24 available
Canada, Nunavut
deposit - Darby
Abstract: The Rae Craton, northern Canada, contains several diamondiferous kimberlite fields that have been a focus of episodic diamond exploration. Relatively little is known about the deep mantle lithosphere underpinning the architecturally complex crust. We present bulk and mineral element and isotopic compositional data for peridotite and pyroxenite/eclogite xenoliths from the Darby kimberlites representing fragments of the west central Rae lithosphere, as well as the first kimberlite eruption age of 542.2±2.6 Ma (2 ?; phlogopite Rb-Sr isochron). Darby peridotites have low bulk Al2O3 contents with highly-depleted olivine (median Mg#?=?92.5) characteristic of cratonic lithosphere globally, but more depleted than peridotites from other Rae Craton localities. One peridotite xenolith contains a harzburgitic G10D garnet. Re-Os TRD model ages appear to be the oldest measured to date from peridotites of the Rae lithosphere, having a mode in the early Neoarchean and ranging to the Paleoproterozoic (~2.3 Ga). Concentrate clinopyroxene defines a well constrained mantle geotherm indicating the existence of a ~200 km thick lithosphere at the time of kimberlite eruption, greater than the lithospheric thickness beneath Somerset Island and in good agreement with modern seismic constraints. Nickel-in-garnet thermometry in grains that record temperatures below the mantle adiabat, indicates mantle sampling dominantly in the graphite stability field whereas Al-in-olivine thermometry shows a distinct mantle sampling mode in the diamond stability field. Abundant pyroxenite and eclogite xenoliths are recovered across the Darby property and low-Cr garnet (Cr2O3?1 wt%) is the most abundant garnet type recovered in kimberlite concentrate. Based on thermometry, these rocks range in likely depths of equilibration, from the lower crust into the shallow lithospheric mantle. They give variable Os model ages, with the oldest ages in the Mesoarchean. The abundance of this mafic material reflects derivation from a large mafic body possibly evident in the layered structure of the Rae Craton mantle root defined by new seismic studies.
Abstract: A suite of peridotite xenoliths from the Chidliak kimberlite province provides an ideal opportunity to assess the age of the mantle lithosphere beneath the eastern Hall Peninsula Block (EHPB) in southern Baffin Island, Nunavut and to provide constraints on the lithospheric architecture of this region. The new dataset comprises highly siderophile element (HSE) abundances and Re-Os isotopic compositions for 32 peridotite xenoliths sampled from four Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous kimberlite pipes (CH-1, -6, -7, and -44). These peridotites represent strongly depleted mantle residues, with bulk-rock and olivine chemistry denoting melt extraction extents of up to 40%. The vast majority of samples show PPGE (Pt and Pd) depletion relative to IPGE (Os, Ir, and Ru) ((Pt/Ir)N: 0.10-0.96, median = 0.57; (Pd/Ir)N: 0.03-0.79, median = 0.24), coupled with mostly unradiogenic Os isotopic compositions (187Os/188Os = 0.1084-0.1170). These peridotites display strong correlations between 187Os/188Os and melt depletion indicators (such as olivine Mg number and bulk-rock Al2O3, (Pd/Ir)N), suggesting that an ancient (~2.8 Ga) melt depletion event governed the formation of the Chidliak lithosphere. The prominent mode of TRDerupt model ages at ca. 2.8 Ga matches the main crust-building ages of the EHPB, demonstrating temporal crust-mantle coupled in the Meso-Neoarchean. These ancient melt-depletion ages are present throughout the depth of the ~ 200 km thick lithospheric mantle column beneath Chidliak. The Meso-Neoarchean formation age of the EHPB mantle broadly coincides with the timing of stabilization of the lithospheric mantle beneath the Greenlandic portion of the North Atlantic Craton (NAC). This, along with the similarity in modal mineralogy, chemical composition and evolutionary history, indicates that the EHPB, southern Baffin Island was once -contiguous with the Greenlandic NAC. The mantle lithosphere beneath both the EHPB and the NAC show a similar metasomatic history, modified by multiple pulses of metasomatism. These multiple metasomatic events combined to weaken and thin the lithospheric mantle, culminating in the formation of the Labrador Sea and Davis Strait separating the EHPB from the Greenlandic NAC in the Paleocene.
45th. Annual Yellowknife Geoscience Forum, p. 33 abstract
Canada, Northwest Territories
deposit - Darby
Abstract: New geological and geophysical research on Canada’s Rae craton are providing an increasingly good baseline for diamond exploration. This study uses mantle xenoliths and xenocrysts from the Darby property, located ~200 km southwest of the community of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, to provide new information on the lithospheric mantle and diamond potential of the western portion of the central Rae. Peridotite xenoliths containing enough fresh olivine have a median Mg# value of 92.5, indistinguishable from the median value of 92.6 typical of cratonic peridotites world-wide. Only of the 14 peridotitic xenoliths contain fresh garnet. Of these, garnet in one sample is classified as harzburgitic (G10), giving a minimum pressure of 4.7 GPa using the P38 geobarometer (38 mW/m2 model geothermal gradient), while garnets from three peridotites are classified as lherzolitic (G9). 52 garnets picked from concentrate have lherzolitic affinities. Lherzolitic diopsides from kimberlite heavy mineral concentrate yield a lithospheric thickness of ~ 200 km. The four garnet peridotite xenoliths and 49 peridotitic garnets from concentrate yield two distinct modes in mantle sampling depths using Ni thermometry, when projected to the Cpx geotherm. A cluster of samples from the higher Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets equilibrated at 765 to 920 °C with a group of peridotitic garnets (50 % of xenoliths and 28 % of concentrate) from the lower Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets with anomalously high Ti concentrations yielding super-adiabatic TNi values The aluminum-in-olivine thermometer applied to olivines filtered to be “garnet facies yielded a mantle sampling portion of the mantle cargo from the diamond stability field. A suite of pyroxenitic xenoliths are a feature of each Darby kimberlite target. New screening techniques indicate that these rocks likely originate close to the crust mantle boundary. Osmium isotope analyses of the Darby peridotites reveal whole-rock Re-depletion ages ranging from Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic. The pyroxenite xenoliths have very radiogenic Os isotope compositions and provide the first age information from pyroxenites/“eclogites” beneath the Rae craton. Their resulting Archean whole rock TMA ages are consistent with a Mesoarchean age of the western Central Rae lithosphere older than the lithosphere beneath the Repulse Bay block in the East section of the Rae craton (Liu et al., 2016. Precambrian Research 272). The highly depleted olivine compositions, thick cold lithosphere, and Archean ages of the Darby peridotite xenoliths clearly indicate the presence of 200 km thick cold cratonic lithospheric mantle beneath the western segment of the central Rae craton circa 540 Ma. The Archean model ages of most of the pyroxenites support this, notwithstanding the fact that some of these rocks could be sampling either crust or mantle lithologies very close to the crust-mantle boundary. Mantle sampling took place well into the diamond stability field at Darby.
Mineralogy and Petrology, doi.org/10.1007/s00710-018-0609-4 14p.
Canada, Northwest Territories
deposit - Darby
Abstract: New geological and geophysical research on Canada’s Rae craton are providing an increasingly good baseline for diamond exploration. This study uses mantle xenoliths and xenocrysts from the Darby property, located ~200 km southwest of the community of Kugaaruk, Nunavut, to provide new information on the lithospheric mantle and diamond potential of the western portion of the central Rae. Peridotite xenoliths containing enough fresh olivine have a median Mg# value of 92.5, indistinguishable from the median value of 92.6 typical of cratonic peridotites world-wide. Only of the 14 peridotitic xenoliths contain fresh garnet. Of these, garnet in one sample is classified as harzburgitic (G10), giving a minimum pressure of 4.7 GPa using the P38 geobarometer (38 mW/m2 model geothermal gradient), while garnets from three peridotites are classified as lherzolitic (G9). 52 garnets picked from concentrate have lherzolitic affinities. Lherzolitic diopsides from kimberlite heavy mineral concentrate yield a lithospheric thickness of ~ 200 km. The four garnet peridotite xenoliths and 49 peridotitic garnets from concentrate yield two distinct modes in mantle sampling depths using Ni thermometry, when projected to the Cpx geotherm. A cluster of samples from the higher Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets equilibrated at 765 to 920 °C with a group of peridotitic garnets (50 % of xenoliths and 28 % of concentrate) from the lower Ca/Cr lherzolitic garnets with anomalously high Ti concentrations yielding super-adiabatic TNi values The aluminum-in-olivine thermometer applied to olivines filtered to be “garnet facies yielded a mantle sampling portion of the mantle cargo from the diamond stability field. A suite of pyroxenitic xenoliths are a feature of each Darby kimberlite target. New screening techniques indicate that these rocks likely originate close to the crust mantle boundary. Osmium isotope analyses of the Darby peridotites reveal whole-rock Re-depletion ages ranging from Mesoarchean to Paleoproterozoic. The pyroxenite xenoliths have very radiogenic Os isotope compositions and provide the first age information from pyroxenites/“eclogites” beneath the Rae craton. Their resulting Archean whole rock TMA ages are consistent with a Mesoarchean age of the western Central Rae lithosphere older than the lithosphere beneath the Repulse Bay block in the East section of the Rae craton (Liu et al., 2016. Precambrian Research 272). The highly depleted olivine compositions, thick cold lithosphere, and Archean ages of the Darby peridotite xenoliths clearly indicate the presence of 200 km thick cold cratonic lithospheric mantle beneath the western segment of the central Rae craton circa 540 Ma. The Archean model ages of most of the pyroxenites support this, notwithstanding the fact that some of these rocks could be sampling either crust or mantle lithologies very close to the crust-mantle boundary. Mantle sampling took place well into the diamond stability field at Darby.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 507, pp. 175-186.
Mantle
peridotite
Abstract: To examine how the mantle lithosphere stabilises continents, we present a synthesis of the mantle beneath Zealandia in the SW Pacific Ocean. Zealandia, Earth's “8th continent”, occurs over 4.9 M km2 and comprises a fore-arc, arc and back-arc fragment rifted from the Australia-Antarctica Gondwana margin 85 Myr ago. The oldest extant crust is ?500 Ma and the majority is Permian-Jurassic. Peridotitic rocks from most known locations reveal the underpinning mantle to comprise regional domains varying from refractory (Al2O3 < 1 wt%, olivine Mg# > 92, spinel Cr# up to 80, Pt/Ir < 1) to moderately depleted (Al2O3 = 2-4 wt%, olivine Mg# ?90.5, spinel Cr# < ?60). There is no systematic distribution of these domains relative to the former arc configuration and some refractory domains underlie crust that is largely devoid of magmatic rocks. Re-depletion Os model ages have no correlation with depletion indices but do have a distribution that is very similar to global convecting mantle. Whole rock, mineral and isotopic data are interpreted to show that the Zealandia mantle lithosphere was constructed from isotopically heterogeneous convecting mantle fragments swept into the sub-arc environment, amalgamated, and variably re-melted under low-P hydrous conditions. The paucity of mafic melt volumes in most of the overlying crust that could relate to the depleted domains requires melting to have been followed by lateral accretion either during subduction or slab rollback. Recent Australia-Pacific convergence has thickened portions of the Zealandia mantle to >160 km. Zealandia shows that the generation of refractory and/or thick continental lithosphere is not restricted to the Archean. Since Archean cratons also commonly display crust-mantle age decoupling, contain spinel peridotites with extreme Cr# numbers that require low-P hydrous melting, and often have a paucity of mafic melts relative to the extreme depletion indicated by their peridotitic roots, they too may - in part - be compilations of peridotite shallowly melted and then laterally accreted at subduction margins.
Abstract: Nixonite (IMA 2018-133), ideally Na2Ti6O13, is a new mineral found within a heavily-metasomatized pyroxenite xenolith from the Darby kimberlite field, beneath the west central Rae Craton, Canada. It occurs as microcrystalline aggregates, 15 to 40 ?m in length. Nixonite is isostructural with jeppeite, K2Ti6O13, with a structure consisting of edge- and corner-shared titanium-centered octahedra that enclose alkali-metal ions. The Mohs hardness is estimated to be between 5 and 6 by comparison to jeppeite and the calculated density is 3.51(1) g/cm3. Electron microprobe wavelength-dispersive spectroscopic analysis (average of 6 points) yielded: Na2O 6.87, K2O 5.67 CaO 0.57, TiO2 84.99, V2O3 0.31, Cr2O3 0.04, MnO 0.01, Fe2O3 0.26, SrO 0.07, total 98.79 wt%. The empirical formula, based on 13 O atoms, is: (Na1.24K0.67Ca0.06)?1.97(Ti5.96V0.023Fe0.018)?6.00O13 with minor amounts of Cr and Mn. Nixonite is monoclinic, space group C2/m, with unit-cell parameters a = 15.3632(26) Å, b = 3.7782(7) Å, c = 9.1266(15) Å, ? = 99.35(15)º and V = 522.72(1) Å3, Z = 2. Based on the average of seven integrated multi-grain diffraction images, the strongest diffraction lines are [dobs in Å (I in %) (h k l)]: 3.02 (100) (3 1 0) , 3.66 (75) (1 1 0), 7.57 (73) (2 0 0), 6.31 (68) (2 0 -1), 2.96 (63) (3 1 -1), 2.96 (63) (2 0 -3) and 2.71 (62) (4 0 2). The five main Raman peaks of nixonite, in order of decreasing intensity, are at: 863, 280, 664, 135 and 113 cm-1. Nixonite is named after Peter H. Nixon, a renowned scientist in the field of kimberlites and mantle xenoliths. Nixonite occurs within a pyroxenite xenolith in a kimberlite, in association with rutile, priderite, perovskite, freudenbergite and ilmenite. This complex Na-K-Ti rich metasomatic mineral assemblage may have been produced by a fractionated Na-rich kimberlitic melt that infiltrated a mantle-derived garnet pyroxenite and reacted with rutile during kimberlite crystallization.
Burgess, R., Cartigny, P., Harrison, D., Hobson, E., Harris, J.
Volatile composition of Micro inclusions in diamonds from the PAnd a kimberlite, Canada: implications for chemical and isotopic heterogeneity in the mantle.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 73, 6, pp. 1779-1794.
Trace element chemistry of mineral inclusions in eclogitic diamonds from the Premier ( Cullinan) and Finsch kimberlites: implications for evolution mantle
Abstract: In recent years, several studies have focused on the growth conditions of the diamonds through the analysis of the mineral inclusions trapped in them. In these studies, it is crucial to distinguish between protogenetic, syngenetic and epigenetic inclusions. X-ray topography (XRDT) can be a helpful tool to verify, in a non-destructive way, the genetic nature of inclusions in diamond. With this aim, a diamond from the Udachnaya kimberlite, Siberia, was investigated. The diamond, previously studied by Nestola et al. (2011), has anomalous birefringence and the two largest olivines have typical “diamond-imposed” shapes. The study of the topographic images shows that the diamond exhibits significant deformation fields related to post growth plastic deformation. The absence of dislocations starting from the olivine inclusions, and the dark contrasts around them represent the main results obtained by XRDT, contributing to the elucidation of the relationships between the diamond and the olivines at the micron-meter scale. The dark halo surrounding the inclusions was likely caused by the effect of different thermo-elastic properties between the diamond and the inclusions. The absence of dislocations indicates that the diamond-imposed morphology did not produce the volume distortion commonly associated with the entrapment of the full-grown inclusions and, thus, only based on such evidence, a syngenetic origin could be proposed. In addition, stepped figures optically observed at the interface between diamond and one of the olivines suggest processes of selective partial dissolution that would contribute to a change in the final morphology of inclusions. These results show that a diamond morphology may be imposed to a full-grown (protogenetic) olivine during their encapsulation, suggesting that the bulk of the inclusion is protogenetic, whereas its more external regions, close to the diamond-inclusion interface, could be syngenetic.
European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2017, Vienna April 23-28, 1p. 12200 Abstract
Russia
Deposit - Udachnaya
Abstract: The correct determination of the relative crystallographic orientations of single crystals has many applications. When single crystals undergo phase transitions, especially at high pressures, the relative orientations of the two phases yields insights into transition mechanisms (Dobson et al 2013). On the other hand, determination of the crystallographic orientations of minerals included in diamonds can provide insights into the mechanisms of their entrapment and the timing of their formation relative to the host diamond (e.g. Nestola et al. 2014, Milani et al. 2016). The reported occurrence of non-trivial orientations for some minerals in diamonds, suggesting an epitaxial relationship, has long been considered to reflect contemporaneous growth of the diamond and the inclusion (e.g. syngenesis). Correct interpretation of such orientations requires (i) a statistically significant crystallographic data set for single and multiple inclusions in a large number of diamonds, and (ii) a robust data-processing method, capable of removing ambiguities derived from the high symmetry of the diamond and the inclusion. We have developed a software to perform such processing (OrientXplot, Angel et al. 2015), starting from crystallographic orientation matrixes obtained by X-ray diffractometry or EBSD data. Previous studies of inclusions in lithospheric diamonds, by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and EBSD, indicate a wide variety in the orientations of different inclusion phases with respect to their diamond host (Futergendler & Frank-Kamenetsky 1961; Frank-Kamenetsky 1964; Wiggers de Vries et al. 2011; Nestola et al. 2014, Milani et al. 2016). For example, olivine inclusions in lithospheric diamonds from Udachnaya do not show any preferred orientations with respect to their diamond hosts, but multiple inclusions in a single diamond often show very similar orientations within few degrees. In the present work on magnesiochromite inclusions in diamonds from Udachnaya, there is a partial orientation between inclusion and host. A (111) plane of each inclusion is sub-parallel to a {111} plane of their diamond host, but with random orientations of the magnesiochromite [100], [010] and [001] relative to the diamond. In one case, where a single inclusion comprised a magnesiochromite-olivine touching pair, the magnesiochromite was oriented as noted above and the olivine showed a random orientation. The implications of these observations for the mechanisms of diamond growth will be explored and the results will be compared and combined with previous work.
Regier, M.E., Pearson, D.G., Stachel, T., Stern, R.A., Harris, J.
Tracing the formation and abundance of superdeep diamonds.
2018 Yellowknife Geoscience Forum , p. 63. abstract
Africa, Guinea
deposit - Kankan
Abstract: Super-deep diamonds from the transition zone and lower mantle are valuable targets for mining, as they are often large, gem-quality1 or ultra-valuable type IIb stones2. Hence, in mine prospects, it may become important to determine the various populations of sub-lithospheric diamonds. Unambiguously identifying a diamond’s depth of formation is difficult as some minerals can be indicative of various depth regimes (e.g., ferropericlase, Ca-walstromite, enstatite, clinopyroxene, coesite). Here, we use the oxygen isotope compositions of inclusions in Kankan diamonds from Guinea to distinguish between the various diamond-forming processes that happen at lithospheric, asthenospheric to transition zone, and lower mantle depths. In this way, we hope to establish a process by which isotope geochemistry can better constrain the populations of superdeep diamonds in kimberlites, and can assist in estimating a pipe’s propensity for large, valuable stones. Oxygen isotopic analysis by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is a high-precision technique that can track hydrothermal alteration that occurred at or close below the ocean floor. Our analyses of inclusions from Kankan diamonds demonstrate that garnets with 3-3.03 Si cations (pfu) have ?18O that are well-constrained within the normal values expected for peridotitic and eclogitic inclusions, but that garnets with ?3.04 Si cations (pfu) have consistently high ?18O (median: 10‰) that slightly decreases with increasing Cr2O3. We interpret this signal as the reaction between a melted carbonate-rich oceanic slab and normal convecting asthenosphere3. In contrast, retrogressed, or former, bridgmanite has ?18O values similar to primitive mantle, suggesting little involvement of slab melts. In contrast to the worldwide suite of lithospheric inclusions of eclogitic paragenesis (median ?18O of 7.03‰)4,5, diamonds derived from ~250 to 500 km have inclusions with consistent, extremely high oxygen isotopes (median: 9.32‰)6,7, due to the melting of extremely enriched carbonated oceanic crust. Diamonds from the lower mantle, however, have inclusions with primitive mantle oxygen isotopes, suggesting a different formation process. The clear distinction in inclusion ?18O between lithospheric, asthenospheric to transition zone, and lower mantle diamond populations is useful in informing the depth regime of a suite of stones, especially those with inclusions of ambiguous depths (e.g., clinopyroxene, coesite, Ca-walstromite, enstatite, ferropericlase, etc.). For instance, we are currently searching for exotic oxygen isotopes in ferropericlase that indicate asthenospheric diamond growth, rather than the primitive mantle values expected for lower mantle ferropericlase. In conclusion, oxygen isotopic analyses of diamond inclusions can identify various sublithsopheric diamond populations, and may benefit the assessment of a mine’s potential for large gem-quality, or type IIb diamonds.
Abstract: Diamonds containing fluid and mineral inclusions that were trapped during formation are the only natural samples capable of probing the deepest portions of the Earth’s mantle (down to ~800 km depth). In order to precisely interpret the mineralogical and geochemical information they provide, the growth relationships between diamonds and inclusions (i.e., whether they formed before or during diamond formation) and the depth at which the inclusions were trapped need to be determined. Ferropericlase [(Mg,Fe)O] is the most abundant inclusion within super-deep diamonds (i.e., those forming between ~300 and more than 800 km depth). Experiments and numerical models using a pyrolitic bulk composition indicate that ferropericlase, comprising 16-20% of the mantle phase assemblage, is stable at depths between 660 and 2900 km and is Mg-rich with XFe ranging from 0.10 to 0.27 (1,2). However, ferropericlase represents 48-53% of the inclusions reported within super-deep diamonds and has a more variable Fe content, with XFe between 0.10 and 0.64 (3). In spite of different efforts explanations of these discrepancies, the precise origin of ferropericlase-bearing diamonds remains unclear. In this study we performed in-situ single-crystal X-ray diffraction analyses on a set of ferropericlase inclusions in super-deep diamonds from Juina (Brazil) and Kankan (Guinea), to determine inclusion-host crystallographic orientation relationships. These analyses were coupled with synchrotron X-ray tomographic microscopy in order to apply elastic and elasto-plastic geobarometry and determine the diamond depth of formation. Electron microprobe analyses on a set of inclusions that were released from the diamond hosts were also conducted to investigate possible relationships between crystallographic data and chemical composition. We assess the most likely scenario for the genesis of ferropericlase inclusions in super-deep diamonds, their depth distribution in the Earth’s mantle and their implications for mantle geochemistry.
Harris, J.R., Ponomarev, P., Shang, S., Budkewitsch, P., Rogge, D.
A comparison of automatic and supervised methods for extracting lithological end members from hyper spectral data: application to southern Baffin Island, Nunavut.
Geological Survey of Canada Current Research, 2006-C4 19p.
Abstract: Data- and knowledge-driven techniques are used to produce regional Au prospectivity maps of a portion of Melville Peninsula, Northern Canada using geophysical and geochemical data. These basic datasets typically exist for large portions of Canada's North and are suitable for a "greenfields" exploration programme. The data-driven method involves the use of the Random Forest (RF) supervised classifier, a relatively new technique that has recently been applied to mineral potential modelling while the knowledge-driven technique makes use of weighted-index overlay, commonly used in GIS spatial modelling studies. We use the location of known Au occurrences to train the RF classifier and calculate the signature of Au occurrences as a group from non-occurrences using the basic geoscience dataset. The RF classification outperformed the knowledge-based model with respect to prediction of the known Au occurrences. The geochemical data in general were more predictive of the known Au occurrences than the geophysical data. A data-driven approach such as RF for the production of regional Au prospectivity maps is recommended provided that a sufficient number of training areas (known Au occurrences) exist.
The American Mineralogist, Vol. 106, pp. 38-43. pdf
Mantle
perovskites, mineral inclusions
Abstract: Earth's lower mantle most likely mainly consists of ferropericlase, bridgmanite, and a CaSiO3- phase in the perovskite structure. If separately trapped in diamonds, these phases can be transported to Earth's surface without reacting with the surrounding mantle. Although all inclusions will remain chemically pristine, only ferropericlase will stay in its original crystal structure, whereas in almost all cases bridgmanite and CaSiO3-perovskite will transform to their lower-pressure polymorphs. In the case of perovskite structured CaSiO3, the new structure that is formed is closely related to that of walstromite. This mineral is now approved by the IMA commission on new minerals and named breyite. The crystal structure is triclinic (space group: P1) with lattice parameters a0 = 6.6970(4) Å, b0 = 9.2986(7) Å, c0 = 6.6501(4) Å, ? = 83.458(6)°, ? = 76.226(6)°, ? = 69.581(7)°, and V = 376.72(4) Å. The major element composition found for the studied breyite is Ca3.01(2)Si2.98(2)O9. Breyite is the second most abundant mineral inclusion after ferropericlase in diamonds of super-deep origin. The occurrence of breyite has been widely presumed to be a strong indication of lower mantle (=670 km depth) or at least lower transition zone (=520 km depth) origin of both the host diamond and the inclusion suite. In this work, we demonstrate through different formation scenarios that the finding of breyite alone in a diamond is not a reliable indicator of the formation depth in the transition zone or in the lower mantle and that accompanying paragenetic phases such as ferropericlase together with MgSiO3 are needed.
Carbon isotope composition, nitrogen content and inclusion composition Of diamonds from the Roberts Victor kimberlite, South Africa- evidence for C 13depletion in t
Geochem. Cosmochem.Acta, Vol. 51, No. 5, May pp. 1227-1243
A subduction wedge origin for Paleoarchean peridotitic diamonds and harzburgites from the PAnd a kimberlite, Slave Craton: evidence from Re Os isotope systematics.
Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 152, 3, pp. 275-294.
Caro, G., Bennett, V.C., Bourdon, B., Harrison, T.M., Von Quadt, A., Mojzsis, S.J., Harris, J.W.
Application of precise 142 Nd 144 Nd analysis of small samples to inclusions in diamonds ( Finsch SA ) and Hadean zircons ( Jack Hills, Western Australia).
Cartigny, P., Farquar, J., Thomassot, E., Harris, J.W., Wing, B., Masterson, A., McKeegan, K., Stachel, T.
A mantle origin for Paleoarchean peridotite diamonds from the PAnd a kimberlite, Slave Province: evidence from 13C, 15N and 34,34S stable isotope systematics.
Viljoen, K.S., Harris, J.W., Ivanic, T., Richardson, S.H., Whitehead, K.
Trace element geochemistry and Ni thermometry of garnet inclusions in peridotitic diamonds from Premier and Finsch, South Africa: implications - diamond formation
International Mineralogical Association meeting August Budapest, abstract p. 187.
Honda, M., Phillips, D., Harris, J.W., Matsumoto, T.
He, Ne and Ar in peridotitic and eclogitic paragenesis diamonds from the Jwaneng kimberlite, Botswana - implications for mantle evolution and diamond formation ages.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 301, 1-2, pp. 43-51.
Eclogitic and peridotitic diamond formation(Kimberley Pool kimberlites, South Africa), as evidenced from C, N stable isotope: a main mantle derived source.
10th. International Kimberlite Conference Feb. 6-11, Bangalore India, Abstract
Palot, M., Pearson, D.G., Stern, R.A., Stachel, T., Harris, J.W.
Multiple growth events, processes and fluid sources involved in diamond genesis: a micro-analytical study of sulphide bearing diamonds from Finsch mine, RSA.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 106, pp. 51-70.
Palot, M., Pearson, D.G., Stern, R.A., Stachel, T., Harris, J.W.
Isotopic constraints on the nature and circulation of deep mantle C-H-O-N fluids: Carbon and nitrogen systematics within ultra-deep diamonds from Kankan ( Guinea).
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 139, pp. 26-46.
Viljoen, K.S., Harris, J.W., Richardson, S.H., Gray, K.
Trace element chemistry of peridotitic garnets in diamonds from the Premier ( Cullinan) and Finsch kimberlites, South Africa: contrasting styles of mantle metasomatism.
Novella, D., Bolfan-Casanova, N., Nestola, F., Harris, J.W.
H2O in olivine and garnet inclusions still trapped in diamonds from the Siberian craton: implications for the water content of cratonic lithosphere peridotites.
Abstract: In this work we report for the first time the crystallographic orientations of olivine inclusions trapped in diamonds from the Kaapvaal craton (South Africa) determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, and analyze them together with all available data in the literature. The overall data set indicates no preferred orientation of the olivine inclusions with respect to their diamond hosts. However, diamonds containing multiple olivine inclusions sometimes show clusters of olivines with the same orientation in the same diamond host. We conclude that such clusters can only be interpreted as the remnants of single olivine crystals pre-dating the growth of the host diamonds.
Abstract: We describe a new methodology to collect energy domain Mössbauer spectra of inclusions in natural diamonds using a Synchrotron Mössbauer Source (SMS). Measurements were carried out at the Nuclear Resonance beamline ID18 at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (Grenoble, France). We applied this non-destructive approach to collect SMS spectra of a ferropericlase inclusion still contained within its diamond host from Juina (Brazil). The high spatial resolution of the measurement (~ 15 ?m) enabled multiple regions of the 190 × 105 ?m2 inclusion to be sampled and showed that while Fe3 +/Fetot values in ferropericlase were below the detection limit (0.02) overall, there was a magnetic component whose abundance varied systematically across the inclusion. Hyperfine parameters of the magnetic component are consistent with magnesioferrite, and the absence of superparamagnetism allows the minimum particle size to be estimated as ~ 30 nm. Bulk Fe3 +/Fetot values are similar to those reported for other ferropericlase inclusions from Juina, and their variation across the inclusion can provide constraints on its history.
Abstract: Diamonds form from fluids or melts circulating at depth in the Earth's mantle. Analysis of these fluids is possible if they remain entrapped in the diamond during its growth, but this is rarely observed in gem-quality stones. We provide the first evidence that typical mineral inclusions in gem-quality diamonds from the Siberian and Kaapvaal cratons are surrounded by a thin film of hydrous silicic fluid of maximum thickness 1.5 ?m. The fluid contains Si2O(OH)6, Si(OH)4, and molecular H2O and was identified using confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy and synchrotron-based X-ray tomographic microscopy. As the solid mineral inclusions have both peridotitic and eclogitic affinities and occur in two cratonic regions, our results demonstrate the strong connection between water-rich fluids and the growth of gem-quality lithospheric diamonds. The presence of the fluid films should be taken into account for a proper evaluation of H2O contents in the mantle based on H2O contents in solid inclusions and for a robust assessment of diamond formation pressures based on the residual pressures of the inclusions.
Abstract: In this study, we report the first direct evidence for water-bearing fluids in the uppermost lower mantle from natural ferropericlase crystal contained within a diamond from São Luíz, Brazil. The ferropericlase exhibits exsolution of magnesioferrite, which places the origin of this assemblage in the uppermost part of the lower mantle. The presence of brucite-Mg(OH)2 precipitates in the ferropericlase crystal reflects the later-stage quenching of H2O-bearing fluid likely in the transition zone, which has been trapped during the inclusion process in the lower mantle. Dehydration melting may be one of the key processes involved in transporting water across the boundary between the upper and lower mantle.
Abstract: "Super-deep" diamonds are thought to crystallize between 300 and 800 km depth because some of the inclusions trapped within them are considered to be the products of retrograde transformation from lower mantle or transition zone precursors. In particular, single inclusion CaSiO3-walstromite is believed to derive from CaSiO3-perovskite, although its real depth of origin has never been proven. Our aim is therefore to determine for the first time the pressure of formation of the diamond-CaSiO3-walstromite pair by “single-inclusion elastic barometry” and to determine whether CaSiO3-walstromite derives from CaSiO3-perovskite or not. We investigated several single phases and assemblages of Ca-silicate inclusions still trapped in a diamond coming from Juina (Brazil) by in-situ analyses (single-crystal X-ray diffraction and micro-Raman spectroscopy) and we obtained a minimum entrapment pressure of ~ 5.7 GPa (? 180 km) at 1500 K. However, the observed coexistence of CaSiO3-walstromite, larnite (?-Ca2SiO4) and CaSi2O5-titanite in one multiphase inclusion within the same diamond indicates that the sample investigated is sub-lithospheric with entrapment pressure between ~ 9.5 and ~ 11.5 GPa at 1500 K, based on experimentally-determined phase equilibria. In addition, thermodynamic calculations suggested that, within a diamond, single inclusions of CaSiO3-walstromite cannot derive from CaSiO3-perovskite, unless the diamond around the inclusion expands by ~ 30% in volume.
European Geosciences Union General Assembly 2017, Vienna April 23-28, 1p. 16340 Abstract
South America, Brazil
Deposit - Juina
Abstract: We describe a new methodology to collect energy domain Mössbauer spectra of inclusions in natural diamonds using a Synchrotron Mössbauer Source (SMS). Measurements were carried out at the Nuclear Resonance beamline ID18 at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (Grenoble, France). We applied this non-destructive approach to collect SMS spectra of a ferropericlase inclusion still contained within its diamond host from Juina (Brazil). The high spatial resolution of the measurement (~ 15 ?m) enabled multiple regions of the 190 × 105 ?m2 inclusion to be sampled and showed that while Fe3 +/Fetot values in ferropericlase were below the detection limit (0.02) overall, there was a magnetic component whose abundance varied systematically across the inclusion. Hyperfine parameters of the magnetic component are consistent with magnesioferrite, and the absence of superparamagnetism allows the minimum particle size to be estimated as ~ 30 nm. Bulk Fe3 +/Fetot values are similar to those reported for other ferropericlase inclusions from Juina, and their variation across the inclusion can provide constraints on its history.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, available in press 23p.
Africa, Botswana
deposit - Orapa
Abstract: Base metal sulphide (BMS) inclusions in diamonds provide a unique insight into the chalcophile and highly siderophile element composition of the mantle. Entombed within their diamond hosts, these provide a more robust (closed system) sample, from which to determine the trace element, Re-Os and S-isotopic compositions of the mantle than mantle xenoliths or orogenic peridotites, as they are shielded from alteration during ascent to the Earth’s crust and subsequent surface weathering. However, at temperatures below 1100 °C some BMS inclusions undergo subsolidus re-equilibration from an original monosulphide solid solution (Mss) and this causes fractionation of the major and trace elements within the inclusions. Thus to study the subjects noted above, current techniques require the entire BMS inclusion to be extracted for analyses. Unfortunately, ‘flaking’ of inclusions during break-out is a frequent occurrence and hence the risk of accidentally under-sampling a portion of the BMS inclusion is inherent in current practices. This loss may have significant implications for Re-Os isotope analyses where incomplete sampling of a Re-rich phase, such as chalcopyrite that typically occurs at the outer margins of BMS inclusions, may induce significant bias in the Re-Os and 187Os/188Os measurements and resulting model and isochron ages. We have developed a method for the homogenisation of BMS inclusions in diamond prior to their break-out from the host stone. Diamonds are heated to 1100 °C and then quenched to chemically homogenise any sulphide inclusions for both major and trace elements. Using X-ray Computed Microtomography (µCT) we determine the shape and spatial setting of multiple inclusions within a host stone and crucially show that the volume of a BMS inclusion is the same both before and after homogenisation. We show that the homogenisation process significantly reduces the inherent variability of in situ analysis when compared with unhomogenised BMS, thereby widening the scope for multiple methods for quantitative analysis, even on ‘flakes’ of single BMS inclusions. Finally we show that the trace elements present in peridotite (P-type) and eclogitic (E-type) BMS are distinct, with P-type diamonds having systematically higher total platinum-group element (particularly Os, Ir, Ru) and Te and As concentrations. These distinctions suggest that the PGE and semi-metal budgets of mantle-derived partial melts will be significantly dependent upon the type(s) and proportions of sulphides present in the mantle source.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, in press available, 23p.
Technology
diamond inclusions
Abstract: Base metal sulphide (BMS) inclusions in diamonds provide a unique insight into the chalcophile and highly siderophile element composition of the mantle. Entombed within their diamond hosts, these provide a more robust (closed system) sample, from which to determine the trace element, Re-Os and S-isotopic compositions of the mantle than mantle xenoliths or orogenic peridotites, as they are shielded from alteration during ascent to the Earth’s crust and subsequent surface weathering. However, at temperatures below 1100 °C some BMS inclusions undergo subsolidus re-equilibration from an original monosulphide solid solution (Mss) and this causes fractionation of the major and trace elements within the inclusions. Thus to study the subjects noted above, current techniques require the entire BMS inclusion to be extracted for analyses. Unfortunately, ‘flaking’ of inclusions during break-out is a frequent occurrence and hence the risk of accidentally under-sampling a portion of the BMS inclusion is inherent in current practices. This loss may have significant implications for Re-Os isotope analyses where incomplete sampling of a Re-rich phase, such as chalcopyrite that typically occurs at the outer margins of BMS inclusions, may induce significant bias in the Re-Os and 187Os/188Os measurements and resulting model and isochron ages. We have developed a method for the homogenisation of BMS inclusions in diamond prior to their break-out from the host stone. Diamonds are heated to 1100 °C and then quenched to chemically homogenise any sulphide inclusions for both major and trace elements. Using X-ray Computed Microtomography (µCT) we determine the shape and spatial setting of multiple inclusions within a host stone and crucially show that the volume of a BMS inclusion is the same both before and after homogenisation. We show that the homogenisation process significantly reduces the inherent variability of in situ analysis when compared with unhomogenised BMS, thereby widening the scope for multiple methods for quantitative analysis, even on ‘flakes’ of single BMS inclusions. Finally we show that the trace elements present in peridotite (P-type) and eclogitic (E-type) BMS are distinct, with P-type diamonds having systematically higher total platinum-group element (particularly Os, Ir, Ru) and Te and As concentrations. These distinctions suggest that the PGE and semi-metal budgets of mantle-derived partial melts will be significantly dependent upon the type(s) and proportions of sulphides present in the mantle source.
Abstract: Based on the mineral inclusion content, diamonds from the Argyle Mine, Western Australia, derive primarily (~90%) from eclogitic sources with a minor peridotitic contribution from both harzburgitic and lherzolitic lithologies. The eclogitic inclusions cover a large compositional range and show in part unusually high concentrations of mantle incompatible elements (P, Ti, Na and K). Coherent trends in major elements (e.g., of Ti or Na versus Mg-number) suggest that the eclogitic diamond source was created by a single process, namely igneous fractionation. Calculated bulk rock REEN patterns match a section of oceanic crust reaching from lavas and sheeted dykes to upper gabbros. Positive Eu anomalies for garnet and clinopyroxene, with calculated bulk rock REEN patterns similar to upper (non-layered) gabbros, are strong evidence for plagioclase accumulation, which is characteristic for the gabbroic portions of oceanic crust. Linking previously published oxygen isotope analyses of eclogitic garnet inclusions with their major element composition reveals a correlation between ?18O (mean of +7.2‰) and Na content, consistent with coupled 18O and Na enrichment during low temperature alteration of oceanic crust. The carbon isotopic composition of Argyle eclogitic diamonds forms a normal distribution around a ?13C value of -11‰, indicative of mixing and homogenization of mantle and crustal (organic matter) derived carbon prior to diamond precipitation. Previously published noble gas data on Argyle diamonds support this two component model. Inclusion and nitrogen-in-diamond based thermometry indicate an unusually hot origin of the eclogitic diamond suite, indicative of derivation from the lowermost 25 km (about 180-205 km depth) of the local lithospheric mantle. This is consistent with emplacement of an oceanic protolith during subduction along the Kimberley Craton margin, likely during the Halls Creek Orogeny (about 1.85 Ga). For Argyle eclogitic diamonds the relationship between the rate of platelet degradation and mantle residence temperature indicates that both temperature and strain play an important role in this process. Therefore, ubiquitous platelet degradation and plastic deformation of Argyle diamonds are consistent with derivation from a high temperature environment (softening the diamond lattice) close to the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (inducing strain). In combination, the Argyle data set represents a uniquely strong case for a subduction origin of an eclogitic diamond source followed by mixing of mantle and crustal components during diamond formation. Some lherzolitic inclusions show a similarity in incompatible element enrichments (elevated P, Na and K) to the eclogitic suite. The presence of a mildly majoritic lherzolitic garnet further supports a link to eclogitic diamond formation, as very similar majoritic components were found in two eclogitic garnet inclusions. The carbon isotopic composition of peridotitic diamonds shows a mode between -5 to -4 ‰ and a tail extending towards the eclogitic mode (-11 ‰). This suggests the presence of multiple generations of peridotitic diamonds, with indications for an origin linked to the eclogitic suite being restricted to diamonds of lherzolitic paragenesis.
Argyle diamonds – how subduction along the Kimberley Craton edge generated the world's biggest diamond deposit.
Abstract: Precise dating of diamond growth is required to understand the interior workings of the early Earth and the deep carbon cycle. Here we report Sm-Nd isotope data from 26 individual garnet inclusions from 26 harzburgitic diamonds from Venetia, South Africa. Garnet inclusions and host diamonds comprise two compositional suites formed under markedly different conditions and define two isochrons, one Archaean (2.95?Ga) and one Proterozoic (1.15?Ga). The Archaean diamond suite formed from relatively cool fluid-dominated metasomatism during rifting of the southern shelf of the Zimbabwe Craton. The 1.8 billion years younger Proterozoic diamond suite formed by melt-dominated metasomatism related to the 1.1?Ga Umkondo Large Igneous Province. The results demonstrate that resolving the time of diamond growth events requires dating of individual inclusions, and that there was a major change in the magmatic processes responsible for harzburgitic diamond formation beneath Venetia from the Archaean to the Proterozoic.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 216, pp. 335-357.
Technology
diamond inclusions - microtomography
Abstract: Base metal sulphide (BMS) inclusions in diamonds provide a unique insight into the chalcophile and highly siderophile element composition of the mantle. Entombed within their diamond hosts, these provide a more robust (closed system) sample, from which to determine the trace element, Re-Os and S-isotopic compositions of the mantle than mantle xenoliths or orogenic peridotites, as they are shielded from alteration during ascent to the Earth’s crust and subsequent surface weathering. However, at temperatures below 1100 °C some BMS inclusions undergo subsolidus re-equilibration from an original monosulphide solid solution (Mss) and this causes fractionation of the major and trace elements within the inclusions. Thus to study the subjects noted above, current techniques require the entire BMS inclusion to be extracted for analyses. Unfortunately, ‘flaking’ of inclusions during break-out is a frequent occurrence and hence the risk of accidentally under-sampling a portion of the BMS inclusion is inherent in current practices. This loss may have significant implications for Re-Os isotope analyses where incomplete sampling of a Re-rich phase, such as chalcopyrite that typically occurs at the outer margins of BMS inclusions, may induce significant bias in the Re-Os and 187Os/188Os measurements and resulting model and isochron ages. We have developed a method for the homogenisation of BMS inclusions in diamond prior to their break-out from the host stone. Diamonds are heated to 1100 °C and then quenched to chemically homogenise any sulphide inclusions for both major and trace elements. Using X-ray Computed Microtomography (µCT) we determine the shape and spatial setting of multiple inclusions within a host stone and crucially show that the volume of a BMS inclusion is the same both before and after homogenisation. We show that the homogenisation process significantly reduces the inherent variability of in situ analysis when compared with unhomogenised BMS, thereby widening the scope for multiple methods for quantitative analysis, even on ‘flakes’ of single BMS inclusions. Finally we show that the trace elements present in peridotite (P-type) and eclogitic (E-type) BMS are distinct, with P-type diamonds having systematically higher total platinum-group element (particularly Os, Ir, Ru) and Te and As concentrations. These distinctions suggest that the PGE and semi-metal budgets of mantle-derived partial melts will be significantly dependent upon the type(s) and proportions of sulphides present in the mantle source.
Earth Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 491, pp. 134-147.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - De Beers-Pool
Abstract: Fluid/melt inclusions in diamonds, which were encapsulated during a metasomatic event and over a short period of time, are isolated from their surrounding mantle, offering the opportunity to constrain changes in the sub-continental lithospheric mantle (SCLM) that occurred during individual thermo-chemical events, as well as the composition of the fluids involved and their sources. We have analyzed a suite of 8 microinclusion-bearing diamonds from the Group I De Beers Pool kimberlites, South Africa, using FTIR, EPMA and LA-ICP-MS. Seven of the diamonds trapped incompatible-element-enriched saline high density fluids (HDFs), carry peridotitic mineral microinclusions, and substitutional nitrogen almost exclusively in A-centers. This low-aggregation state of nitrogen indicates a short mantle residence times and/or low mantle ambient temperature for these diamonds. A short residence time is favored because, elevated thermal conditions prevailed in the South African lithosphere during and following the Karoo flood basalt volcanism at ?180 Ma, thus the saline metasomatism must have occurred close to the time of kimberlite eruptions at ?85 Ma. Another diamond encapsulated incompatible-element-enriched silicic HDFs and has 25% of its nitrogen content residing in B-centers, implying formation during an earlier and different metasomatic event that likely relates to the Karoo magmatism at ca. 180 Ma. Thermometry of mineral microinclusions in the diamonds carrying saline HDFs, based on Mg-Fe exchange between garnet-orthopyroxene (Opx)/clinopyroxene (Cpx)/olivine and the Opx-Cpx thermometer, yield temperatures between 875-1080?°C at 5 GPa. These temperatures overlap with conditions recorded by touching inclusion pairs in diamonds from the De Beers Pool kimberlites, which represent the mantle ambient conditions just before eruption, and are altogether lower by 150-250?°C compared to P-T gradients recorded by peridotite xenoliths from the same locality. Oxygen fugacity differs as well. The calculated for the saline HDF compositions (to ?1.34) are higher by about a log unit compared with that recorded by xenoliths at 4-7 GPa. We conclude that enriched saline HDFs mediated the metasomatism that preceded Group I kimberlite eruptions in the southwestern Kaapvaal craton, and that their ‘cold and oxidized’ nature reflects their derivation from a deep subducting slab. This event had little impact on the temperature and redox state of the Kaapvaal lithosphere as a reservoir, however, it likely affected its properties along limited metasomatized veins and their wall rock. To reconcile the temperature and oxygen fugacity discrepancy between inclusions in diamonds and xenoliths, we argue that xenoliths did not equilibrate during the last saline metasomatic event or kimberlite eruption. Thus the P-T-gradients they record express pre-existing lithospheric conditions that were likely established during the last major thermal event in the Kaapvaal craton (i.e. the Karoo magmatism at ca. 180 Ma).
Geophysical Research Abstracts www.researchgate.net, Vol. 20, EGU2018-128291p. Abstract
Africa, South Africa
diamond inclusions
Abstract: Changing recycling budgets of surface materials and volatiles by subduction of tectonic plates influence the compositions of Earth’s major reservoirs and affect climate throughout geological time. Fluids play a key role in processes governing subduction recycling, but quantifying the exact fate of volatiles introduced into the mantle at ancient and recent destructive plate boundaries remains difficult. Here, we report on the role of fluids and the fate of volatiles and other elements at two very different tectonic settings: 1) at subduction settings, and 2) within the subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM). We will show how olivine-hosted melt inclusions from subduction zones and mineral inclusions in diamond from the SCLM are used to reveal how changing tectonic settings influence volatile cycles with time. Melt inclusions from the complex Italian post-collisional tectonic setting are used to identify changing subduction recycling through time. The use of CO2 in deeply trapped melt inclusions instead of in lavas or volcanic gases provides a direct estimate of deep recycling, minimizing possible effects of contamination during transfer through the crust. The aim is to distinguish if increased recycling of sediments from the down-going plate at continental subduction settings results in increased deep CO2 recycling or if the increased CO2 flux results from crustal degassing of the overriding plate. Both processes likely affected climate through Earth history but could thus far not be discriminated. The study of mineral inclusions and their host diamonds from the SCLM can link changes in the cycling of carbon-rich fluids and the time and process through which the carbon redistribution took place. We use Sm-Nd isotope techniques to date the mineral inclusions and use the carbon isotope data of the host diamonds to investigate the growth conditions. I will present case-studies of peridotitic and eclogitic diamonds from three mines in Southern Africa.
Mineralogy and Petrology, in press available, 10p.
South America, Brazil, Juina
deposit - Sao Luiz
Abstract: The most remarkable feature of the inclusion suite in ultradeep alluvial and kimberlitic diamonds from Sao Luiz (Juina area in Brazil) is the enormous range in Mg# [100xMg/(Mg?+?Fe)] of the ferropericlases (fper). The Mg-richer ferropericlases are from the boundary to the lower mantle or from the lower mantle itself when they coexist with ringwoodite or Mg- perovskite (bridgmanite). This, however, is not an explanation for the more Fe-rich members and a lowermost mantle or a “D” layer origin has been proposed for them. Such a suggested ultra-deep origin separates the Fe-rich fper-bearing diamonds from the rest of the Sao Luiz ultradeep diamond inclusion suite, which also contains Ca-rich phases. These are now thought to have an origin in the uppermost lower mantle and in the transition zone and to belong either to a peridotitic or mafic (subducted oceanic crust) protolith lithology. We analysed a new set of more Fe-rich ferropericlase inclusions from 10 Sao Luiz ultradeep alluvial diamonds for their Li isotope composition by solution MC-ICP-MS (multi collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry), their major and minor elements by EPMA (electron probe micro-analyser) and their Li-contents by SIMS (secondary ion mass spectrometry), with the aim to understand the origin of the ferropericlase protoliths. Our new data confirm the wide range of ferropericlase Mg# that were reported before and augment the known lack of correlation between major and minor elements. Four pooled ferropericlase inclusions from four diamonds provided sufficient material to determine for the first time their Li isotope composition, which ranges from ?7Li?+?9.6 ‰ to ?3.9 ‰. This wide Li isotopic range encompasses that of serpentinized ocean floor peridotites including rodingites and ophicarbonates, fresh and altered MORB (mid ocean ridge basalt), seafloor sediments and of eclogites. This large range in Li isotopic composition, up to 5 times higher than ‘primitive upper mantle’ Li-abundances, and an extremely large and incoherent range in Mg# and Cr, Ni, Mn, Na contents in the ferropericlase inclusions suggests that their protoliths were members of the above lithologies. This mélange of altered rocks originally contained a variety of carbonates (calcite, magnesite, dolomite, siderite) and brucite as the secondary products in veins and as patches and Ca-rich members like rodingites and ophicarbonates. Dehydration and redox reactions during or after deep subduction into the transition zone and the upper parts of the lower mantle led to the formation of diamond and ferropericlase inclusions with variable compositions and a predominance of the Ca-rich, high-pressure silicate inclusions. We suggest that the latter originated from peridotites, mafic rocks and sedimentary rocks as redox products between calcite and SiO2.
Mineralogy and Petrology, 10.1007/ s710-018-0576 -9, 10p.
South America, Brazil
deposit - Sao Luiz
Abstract: Three diamonds from Sao Luiz, Brazil carrying nano- and micro-inclusions of molecular ?-N2 that exsolved at the base of the transition zone were studied for their C and N isotopic composition and the concentration of N utilizing SIMS. The diamonds are individually uniform in their C isotopic composition and most spot analyses yield ?13C values of ?3.2?±?0.1‰ (ON-SLZ-390) and???4.7?±?0.1‰ (ON-SLZ-391 and 392). Only a few analyses deviate from these tight ranges and all fall within the main mantle range of ?5?±?3‰. Most of the N isotope analyses also have typical mantle ?15N values (?6.6?±?0.4‰, ?3.6?±?0.5‰ and???4.1?±?0.6‰ for ON-SLZ-390, 391 and 392, respectively) and are associated with high N concentrations of 800-1250 atomic ppm. However, some N isotopic ratios, associated with low N concentrations (<400 ppm) and narrow zones with bright luminescence are distinctly above the average, reaching positive ?15N values. These sharp fluctuations cannot be attributed to fractionation. They may reflect arrival of new small pulses of melt or fluid that evolved under different conditions. Alternatively, they may result from fractionation between different growth directions, so that distinct ?15N values and N concentrations may form during diamond growth from a single melt/fluid. Other more continuous variations, in the core of ON-SLZ-390 or the rim of ON-SLZ-392 may be the result of Rayleigh fractionation or mixing.
Mineralogy and Petrology, 10.1007/ s00710-018- 0568-9, 15p.
Africa, South Africa
geochronology
Abstract: The West Coast of Namaqualand in South Africa hosts extensive detrital diamond deposits, but considerable debate exists as to the provenance of these diamonds. Some researchers have suggested derivation of the diamonds from Cretaceous-Jurassic kimberlites (also termed Group I kimberlites) and orangeites (also termed Group II kimberlites) located on the Kaapvaal Craton. However, others favour erosion of diamonds from the ca.300 Ma Dwyka Group sediments, with older, pre-Karoo kimberlites being the original source(s). Previous work has demonstrated that 40Ar/39Ar analyses of clinopyroxene inclusions, extracted from diamonds, yield ages approaching the time(s) of source kimberlite emplacement, which can be used to constrain the provenance of placer diamond deposits. In the current study, 40Ar/39Ar analyses were conducted on clinopyroxene inclusions from two similar batches of Namaqualand detrital diamonds, yielding (maximum) ages ranging from 117.5?±?43.6 Ma to 3684?±?191 Ma (2?) and 120.6?±?15.4 Ma to 688.8?±?4.9 Ma (2?), respectively. The vast majority of inclusions (88%) produced ages younger than 500 Ma, indicating that most Namaqualand diamonds originated from Cretaceous-Jurassic kimberlites/orangeites, with few, if any, derived from the Dwyka tillites. The provenance of the Namaqualand diamonds from ca.115-200 Ma orangeites is consistent with Late Cretaceous paleo-drainage reconstructions, as these localities could have been sampled by the ‘paleo-Karoo’ River and transported to the West Coast via an outlet close to the current Olifants River mouth. At ca.90 Ma, this drainage system appears to have been captured by the ‘paleo-Kalahari’ River, a precursor to the modern Orange River system. This latter drainage is considered to have transported diamonds eroded from both ca.80-90 Ma kimberlites and ca.115-200 Ma orangeites to the West Coast, which were subsequently reworked along the Namibian coast, forming additional placer deposits.
Mineralogy and Petrology, 10.1007/ s710-018- 0603-x 15p.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Finsch, De Beers Pool, Koffiefontein
Abstract: Fibrous diamond growth zones often contain abundant high-density fluid (HDF) inclusions and these provide the most direct information on diamond-forming fluids. Noble gases are incompatible elements and particularly useful in evaluating large-scale mantle processes. This study further constrains the evolution and origin of the HDFs by combining noble gas systematics with ?¹³C, N concentrations, and fluid inclusion compositions for 21 individual growth zones in 13 diamonds from the Finsch (n = 3), DeBeers Pool (n = 7), and Koffiefontein (n = 3) mines on the Kaapvaal Craton. C isotope compositions range from ?2.8 to ?8.6‰ and N contents vary between 268 and 867 at.ppm, except for one diamond with contents of <30 at.ppm N. Nine of the thirteen studied diamonds contained saline HDF inclusions, but the other four diamonds had carbonatitic or silicic HDF inclusions. Carbonatitic and silicic HDFs yielded low He concentrations, R/Ra (³He/?Hesample/³He/?Heair) values of 3.2–6.7, and low ??Ar/³?Ar ratios of 390–1940. Noble gas characteristics of carbonatitic-silicic HDFs appear consistent with a subducted sediment origin and interaction with eclogite. Saline HDFs are characterised by high He concentrations, with R/Ra mostly between 3.9 and 5.7, and a wide range in ??Ar/³?Ar ratios (389–30,200). The saline HDFs likely originated from subducted oceanic crust with low He but moderate Ar contents. Subsequent interaction of these saline HDFs with mantle peridotite could explain the increase in He concentrations and mantle-like He isotope composition, with the range in low to high ??Ar/³?Ar ratios dependent on the initial ³?Ar content and extent of lithosphere interaction. The observed negative correlation between ?He contents and R/Ra values in saline HDFs indicates significant in situ radiogenic ?He production.
Noble gas geochemistry of fluid inclusions in South African diamonds: implications for the origin of diamond-forming fluids.
Mineralogy and Petrology, doi.org/10.1007/s00710-018-0604-9 12p.
Africa, Botswana
deposit - Karowe
Abstract: Mineral inclusions in diamonds play a critical role in constraining the relationship between diamonds and mantle lithologies. Here we report the first major and trace element study of mineral inclusions in diamonds from the Karowe Mine in north-east Botswana, along the western edge of the Zimbabwe Craton. From a total of 107 diamonds, 134 silicate, 15 oxide, and 22 sulphide inclusions were recovered. The results reveal that 53% of Karowe inclusion-bearing diamonds derived from eclogitic sources, 44% are peridotitic, 2% have a sublithospheric origin, and 1% are websteritic. The dominant eclogitic diamond substrates sampled at Karowe are compositionally heterogeneous, as reflected in wide ranges in the CaO contents (4-16 wt%) of garnets and the Mg# (69-92) and jadeite contents (14-48 mol%) of clinopyroxenes. Calculated bulk rock REEN patterns indicate that both shallow and deep levels of the subducted slab(s) were sampled, including cumulate-like protoliths. Peridotitic garnet compositions largely derive from harzburgite/dunite substrates (~90%), with almost half the garnets having CaO contents <1.8 wt%, consistent with pyroxene-free (dunitic) sources. The highly depleted character of the peridotitic diamond substrates is further documented by the high mean and median Mg# (93.1) of olivine inclusions. One low-Ca garnet records a very high Cr2O3 content (14.7 wt%), implying that highly depleted cratonic lithosphere at the time of diamond formation extended to at least 220 km depth. Inclusion geothermobarometry indicates that the formation of peridotitic diamonds occurred along a 39-40 mW/m2 model geotherm. A sublithospheric inclusion suite is established by three eclogitic garnets containing a majorite component, a feature so far unique within the Orapa cluster. These low- and high-Ca majoritic garnets follow pyroxenitic and eclogitic trends of majoritic substitution, respectively. The origin of the majorite-bearing diamonds is estimated to be between 330 to 420 km depth, straddling the asthenosphere-transition zone boundary. This new observation of superdeep mineral inclusions in Karowe diamonds is consistent with a sublithospheric origin for the exceptionally large diamonds from this mine.
deposit - Argyle, De Beers Pool, Jwaneng, Orapa, Udachnaya, Venetia, Wawa, Diavik
Abstract: Earth’s mantle is by far the largest silicate-hosted reservoir of carbon. Diamonds are unrivalled in their ability to record the cycle of mantle carbon and other volatiles over a vast portion of the Earth’s history. They are the product of ascending, cooling, carbon-saturated, metasomatic fluidsmelts and/or redox reactions, predominantly within peridotitic and eclogitic domains in the mantle lithosphere. This paper reports the results of a major secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) carbon isotope study, carried out on 127 diamond samples, spanning a large range of geological time. Detailed transects across the incremental growth zones within each diamond were measured for C isotopes, N abundances and, for samples with N >~200 at.ppm, N isotopes. Given that all of the samples are fragments, recovered when the original crystals were broken to liberate their inclusions, 81 of the analytical traverses have confirmed growth direction context. 98 samples are from studies that have confirmed the dates of the individual diamonds through analysis of their silicate or sulphide inclusions, from source localities including Argyle, De Beers Pool, Jwaneng, Orapa, Udachnaya & Venetia. Additional samples come from Wawa (a minimum age) and Diavik where the samples are tied via inclusion paragenesis to published ages. The peridotitic dataset covers the age range of ~3.3 - 2.0 Ga, with the eclogitic data from 2.9 - 1.0 Ga. In total, 751 carbon isotope and nitrogen concentration measurements have been obtained (425 on peridotitic diamonds, and 326 on eclogitic diamonds) with 470 nitrogen isotope measurements (190 P, 280 E). We attempt to constrain the diamond carbon isotope record through time and its implications for (i) the mantle carbon reservoir, (ii) its oxygen fugacity, (iii) the fluid / melt growth environment of diamonds, (iv) fractionation trends recorded in individual diamonds, and (v) diamond population studies using bulk combustion carbon isotope analysis.
Africa, South Africa, Guinea, South America, Brazil
deposit - Kankan, Jagersfontein, Juina
Abstract: Inclusions in super-deep diamonds provide a unique window to the sublithospheric mantle (e.g. [1-4]). Here we present oxygen isotopes for Kankan majoritic garnet and former bridgmanite inclusions. The clustering of Kankan majorites around a ?18O of +9‰ is nearly identical to those reported from Jagersfontein [1]. This elevated and nearly constant ?18O signal indicates homogenization of partial melts from the uppermost part of altered basaltic slabs. Conversely, ?18O values in Juina majorites are highly variable [2] due to crystallization from small, discrete melt pockets in a heterogeneous eclogitic source. While all these majorites have eclogitic/pyroxenitic Cr2O3 and CaO contents, charge-balance for Si[VI] is achieved very differently, with Jagersfontein [3], Kankan [4], and Juina [2] majorites transitioning from eclogitic Na[VIII]Si[VI] to peridotitic-pyroxenitic [5] Mg[VI]Si[VI] substitutions. We interpret this shift as the result of homogenized eclogitic partial melts infiltrating and reacting with adjacent pyrolitic mantle at Kankan and Jagersfontein. Increases in Mg# and Cr2O3 with reductions in ?18O support this reaction. This model is in agreement with recent experiments in which majorites and diamonds form from a reaction of slab-derived carbonatite with reduced pyrolite at 300-700 km depth [6]. The Kankan diamonds also provide an opportunity to establish the chemical environment of the lower mantle. Four inclusions of MgSiO3, inferred to be former bridgmanite [4], provide the first-measured ?18O values for lower mantle samples. These values suggest derivation from primitive mantle, or unaltered subducted oceanic lithospheric mantle. The Kankan super-deep inclusions thus provide a cross-section of deep mantle that highlights slab-pyrolite reactions in the asthenosphere and primitive compositions in the lower mantle.
Abstract: Mineral and fluid/melt inclusions in diamonds, which are encapsulated and isolated during a metasomatic event, offer the opportunity to constrain changes in the sub-continental lithospheric mantle that occurred during individual thermochemical events. Fibrous diamonds from the Group I De Beers Pool kimberlites, South Africa (SA), trapped incompatibleelement enriched saline high-density fluids (HDFs) and peridotitic mineral microinclusions. Their substitutional nitrogen resides almost exclusively in A-centers. With regard to the elevated thermal conditions that prevailed in the SA lithosphere during and following Karoo volcanism at ~180 Ma, this low-aggregation state of nitrogen suggests a short mantle residence time, constraining the time of saline metasomatism to be close to the eruption of the kimberlites at ~85 Ma. Thermometry of mineral microinclusions yield temperatures between 875-1080 ºC (at 5 GPa). These temperatures overlap with conditions recorded by touching inclusion pairs, which represent the mantle ambient conditions just before eruption, and are altogether lower by 150-250°C compared to P-T gradients recorded by peridotite xenoliths from the same locality. In addition, the oxygen fugacity calculated for the saline HDF compositions (?log??O2(FMQ) = -2.5 to -1.3) are higher by about a log unit compared with that recorded by xenoliths at 4-7 GPa. We conclude that enriched saline HDFs mediated the metasomatism that preceded Group I kimberlite eruptions in the southwestern Kaapvaal craton, and that their ‘cold and oxidized’ nature reflects their derivation from a deep subducting slab. To reconcile the temperature and oxygen fugacity discrepancy between inclusions in diamonds and xenoliths, we argue that xenoliths did not equilibrate during the last saline metasomatic event or kimberlite eruption. Thus the P-T-??O2 gradients they record express pre-existing lithospheric conditions that were likely established during the last major thermal event in the Kaapvaal craton (i.e. the Karoo magmatism at ca. 180 Ma).
Mineralogy and Petrology, doi:10.1007/ s00710-018-0568-9 15p.
Africa, South Africa
deposit - Group I, orangeites Group II
Abstract: The West Coast of Namaqualand in South Africa hosts extensive detrital diamond deposits, but considerable debate exists as to the provenance of these diamonds. Some researchers have suggested derivation of the diamonds from Cretaceous-Jurassic kimberlites (also termed Group I kimberlites) and orangeites (also termed Group II kimberlites) located on the Kaapvaal Craton. However, others favour erosion of diamonds from the ca.300 Ma Dwyka Group sediments, with older, pre-Karoo kimberlites being the original source(s). Previous work has demonstrated that 40Ar/39Ar analyses of clinopyroxene inclusions, extracted from diamonds, yield ages approaching the time(s) of source kimberlite emplacement, which can be used to constrain the provenance of placer diamond deposits. In the current study, 40Ar/39Ar analyses were conducted on clinopyroxene inclusions from two similar batches of Namaqualand detrital diamonds, yielding (maximum) ages ranging from 117.5?±?43.6 Ma to 3684?±?191 Ma (2s) and 120.6?±?15.4 Ma to 688.8?±?4.9 Ma (2s), respectively. The vast majority of inclusions (88%) produced ages younger than 500 Ma, indicating that most Namaqualand diamonds originated from Cretaceous-Jurassic kimberlites/orangeites, with few, if any, derived from the Dwyka tillites. The provenance of the Namaqualand diamonds from ca.115-200 Ma orangeites is consistent with Late Cretaceous paleo-drainage reconstructions, as these localities could have been sampled by the ‘paleo-Karoo’ River and transported to the West Coast via an outlet close to the current Olifants River mouth. At ca.90 Ma, this drainage system appears to have been captured by the ‘paleo-Kalahari’ River, a precursor to the modern Orange River system. This latter drainage is considered to have transported diamonds eroded from both ca.80-90 Ma kimberlites and ca.115-200 Ma orangeites to the West Coast, which were subsequently reworked along the Namibian coast, forming additional placer deposits.
Society of Economic Geology Geoscience and Exploration of the Argyle, Bunder, Diavik, and Murowa Diamond Deposits, Special Publication no. 20, pp. 145-168.
Abstract: The oxidation state of iron in Earth’s mantle is well known to depths of approximately 200?km, but has not been characterized in samples from the lowermost upper mantle (200-410?km depth) or the transition zone (410-660?km depth). Natural samples from the deep (>200?km) mantle are extremely rare, and are usually only found as inclusions in diamonds. Here we use synchrotron Mössbauer source spectroscopy complemented by single-crystal X-ray diffraction to measure the oxidation state of Fe in inclusions of ultra-high pressure majoritic garnet in diamond. The garnets show a pronounced increase in oxidation state with depth, with Fe3+/(Fe3++ Fe2+) increasing from 0.08 at approximately 240?km depth to 0.30 at approximately 500?km depth. The latter majorites, which come from pyroxenitic bulk compositions, are twice as rich in Fe3+ as the most oxidized garnets from the shallow mantle. Corresponding oxygen fugacities are above the upper stability limit of Fe metal. This implies that the increase in oxidation state is unconnected to disproportionation of Fe2+ to Fe3+ plus Fe0. Instead, the Fe3+ increase with depth is consistent with the hypothesis that carbonated fluids or melts are the oxidizing agents responsible for the high Fe3+ contents of the inclusions.
Abstract: Super-deep diamonds (SDDs) are those that form at depths between ?300 and ?1000 km in Earth’s mantle. They compose only 1% of the entire diamond population but play a pivotal role in geology, as they represent the deepest direct samples from the interior of our planet. Ferropericlase, (Mg,Fe)O, is the most abundant mineral found as inclusions in SDDs and, when associated with low-Ni enstatite, which is interpreted as retrogressed bridgmanite, is considered proof of a lower-mantle origin. As this mineral association in diamond is very rare, the depth of formation of most ferropericlase inclusions remains uncertain. Here we report geobarometric estimates based on both elasticity and elastoplasticity theories for two ferropericlase inclusions, not associated with enstatite, from a single Brazilian diamond. We obtained a minimum depth of entrapment of 15.7 (±2.5) GPa at 1830 (±45) K (?450 [±70] km depth), placing the origin of the diamond-inclusion pairs at least near the upper mantle-transition zone boundary and confirming their super-deep origin. Our analytical approach can be applied to any type of mineral inclusion in diamond and is expected to allow better insights into the depth distribution and origin of SDDs.
Abstract: Diamonds are the deepest accessible “fragments” of Earth, providing records of deep geological processes. Absolute ages for diamond formation are crucial to place these records in the correct time context. Diamond ages are typically determined by dating inclusions, assuming that they were formed simultaneously with their hosts. One of the most widely used mineral inclusions for dating diamond is garnet, which is amenable to Sm-Nd geochronology and is common in lithospheric diamonds. By investigating worldwide garnet-bearing diamonds, we provide crystallographic evidence that garnet inclusions that were previously considered to be syngenetic may instead be protogenetic, i.e., they were formed before the host diamond, raising doubts about the real significance of many reported diamond “ages.” Diffusion modeling at relevant pressures and temperatures, however, demonstrates that isotopic resetting would generally occur over geologically short time scales. Therefore, despite protogenicity, the majority of garnet-based ages should effectively correspond to the time of diamond formation. On the other hand, our results indicate that use of large garnet inclusions (e.g., >100 ?m) and diamond hosts formed at temperatures lower than ?1000 °C is not recommended for diamond age determinations.
Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 174, p. 29- 13p.
Russia, Siberia
deposit - Udachnaya
Abstract: We have studied by X-ray diffractometry the crystallographic orientation relationships (CORs) between magnesiochromite (mchr) inclusions and their diamond hosts in gem-quality stones from the mines Udachnaya (Siberian Russia), Damtshaa (Botswana) and Panda (Canada); in total 36 inclusions in 23 diamonds. In nearly half of the cases (n?=?17), [111]mchr is parallel within error to [111]diamond, but the angular misorientation for other crystallographic directions is generally significant. This relationship can be described as a case of rotational statistical COR, in which inclusion and host share a single axis (1 df). The remaining mchr-diamond pairs (n?=?19) have a random COR (2 df). The presence of a rotational statistical COR indicates that the inclusions have physically interacted with the diamond before their final incorporation. Of all possible physical processes that may have influenced mchr orientation, those driven by surface interactions are not considered likely because of the presence of fluid films around the inclusions. Mechanical interaction between euhedral crystals in a fluid-rich environment is therefore proposed as the most likely mechanism to produce the observed rotational COR. In this scenario, neither a rotational nor a random COR can provide information on the relative timing of growth of mchr and diamond. Some multiple, iso-oriented inclusions within single diamonds, however, indicate that mchr was partially dissolved during diamond growth, suggesting a protogenetic origin of these inclusions.
Abstract: Six diamonds with a fibrous core, intermediate zone and monocrystalline outer zone (“cloudy diamonds”) from the Koffiefontein mine, South Africa, were investigated for N concentrations, carbon isotope compositions and micro-inclusion compositions along core to rim traverses. This study evaluates the nature of the change from fibrous to gem diamond growth and the relation between major element composition of high density fluid inclusions and N ? ?¹³C in fibrous growth zones. Three diamonds contain saline to carbonatitic fluid micro-inclusions with constant or increasing carbon isotope values which are inferred to have formed by varying amounts of Rayleigh fractionation in a closed system of a carbonate-bearing fluid. Continuous N ? ?¹³C fractionation trends from the fibrous to gem growth zone in two of the diamonds and equally low nitrogen aggregation states indicate formation of diamond shortly before kimberlite eruption from a single fluid without a time gap between fibrous and gem diamond growth. High major element/CO32- ratios in the growth media resulted in a constant major element composition of the fluid inclusions found in the studied fibrous diamonds. The transition from fibrous to gem diamond growth is likely caused by the precipitation of diamond reducing the degree of oversaturation of carbon in the fluid and hence decreasing the rate of diamond growth. Two other diamonds have inclusions that change from silicate minerals in the inner fibrous growth zones towards pure saline fluid compositions in the outer fibrous growth zones. This decrease in Si, Mg and Ca and increase in K and Cl in the inclusions is accompanied by a decrease in ?¹³C values and N contents. These trends are suggested to be the result from gradually mixing in more saline fluids with lower ?¹³C values. One diamond with silicic inclusions has significant N aggregation into B-centres, suggesting this fluid is different and that diamond formation occurred significantly (e.g. 1250 °C gives ?10 Ma) before the kimberlite eruption.
Abstract: Isotope compositions of basalts provide information about the chemical reservoirs in Earth’s interior and play a critical role in defining models of Earth’s structure. However, the helium isotope signature of the mantle below depths of a few hundred kilometers has been difficult to measure directly. This information is a vital baseline for understanding helium isotopes in erupted basalts. We measured He-Sr-Pb isotope ratios in superdeep diamond fluid inclusions from the transition zone (depth of 410 to 660 kilometers) unaffected by degassing and shallow crustal contamination. We found extreme He-C-Pb-Sr isotope variability, with high 3He/4He ratios related to higher helium concentrations. This indicates that a less degassed, high-3He/4He deep mantle source infiltrates the transition zone, where it interacts with recycled material, creating the diverse compositions recorded in ocean island basalts.
Abstract: Goldschmidtite is a new perovskite-group mineral (IMA No. 2018-034) with the ideal formula (K,REE,Sr)(Nb,Cr)O3. A single grain of goldschmidtite with a maximum dimension of ?100 ?m was found as an inclusion in a diamond from the Koffiefontein pipe in South Africa. In addition to the dark green and opaque goldschmidtite, the diamond contained a Cr-rich augite (websteritic paragenesis) and an intergrowth of chromite, Mg-silicate, and unidentified K-Sr-REE-Nb-oxide. Geothermobarometry of the augite indicates that the depth of formation was ?170 km. The chemical composition of gold-schmidtite determined by electron microprobe analysis (n = 11, WDS, wt%) is: Nb2O5 44.82, TiO2 0.44, ThO2 0.10, Al2O3 0.35, Cr2O3 7.07, La2O3 11.85, Ce2O3 6.18, Fe2O3 1.96, MgO 0.70, CaO 0.04, SrO 6.67, BaO 6.82, K2O 11.53, total 98.53. The empirical formula (expressed to two decimal places) is (K0.50La0.15Sr0.13Ba0.09Ce0.08)?0.95(Nb0.70Cr0.19Fe0.05Al0.01Mg0.04Ti0.01)?1.00O3. Goldschmidtite is cubic, space group Pm3m, with unit-cell parameters: a = 3.9876(1) Å, V = 63.404(6) Å3, Z = 1, resulting in a calculated density of 5.32(3) g/cm3. Goldschmidtite is the K-analog of isolueshite, (Na,La)NbO3. Raman spectra of goldschmidtite exhibit many second-order broad bands at 100 to 700 cm-1 as well as a pronounced peak at 815 cm-1, which is possibly a result of local ordering of Nb and Cr at the B site. The name goldschmidtite is in honor of the eminent geochemist Victor Moritz Goldschmidt (1888-1947), who formalized perovskite crystal chemistry and identified KNbO3 as a perovskite-structured compound.
Abstract: Diamonds and their inclusions are unique fragments of deep Earth, which provide rare samples from inaccessible portions of our planet. Inclusion-free diamonds cannot provide information on depth of formation, which could be crucial to understand how the carbon cycle operated in the past. Inclusions in diamonds, which remain uncorrupted over geological times, may instead provide direct records of deep Earth’s evolution. Here, we applied elastic geothermobarometry to a diamond-magnesiochromite (mchr) host-inclusion pair from the Udachnaya kimberlite (Siberia, Russia), one of the most important sources of natural diamonds. By combining X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy data with a new elastic model, we obtained entrapment conditions, Ptrap?=?6.5(2) GPa and Ttrap?=?1125(32)-1140(33) °C, for the mchr inclusion. These conditions fall on a ca. 35?mW/m2 geotherm and are colder than the great majority of mantle xenoliths from similar depth in the same kimberlite. Our results indicate that cold cratonic conditions persisted for billions of years to at least 200?km in the local lithosphere. The composition of the mchr also indicates that at this depth the lithosphere was, at least locally, ultra-depleted at the time of diamond formation, as opposed to the melt-metasomatized, enriched composition of most xenoliths.
Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 174, 28p. Pdf
Africa, Ghana
deposit - Akwatia
Abstract: Trace-element concentrations in olivine and coexisting garnets included in diamonds from the Akwatia Mine (Ghana, West African Craton) were measured to show that olivine can provide similar information about equilibration temperature, diamond paragenesis and mantle processes as garnet. Trace-element systematics can be used to distinguish harzburgitic olivines from lherzolite ones: if Ca/Al ratios of olivine are below the mantle lherzolite trend (Ca/Al?2.2), they are derived from a harzburgitic mantle source, and syngenetic garnets are without exception subcalcic G10 garnets. For harzburgitic olivines that cannot be identified this way, Na and Ca contents can be used: olivine inclusions with?60 µg/g Na and Na/Al?0.7 are all harzburgitic, whereas those with?>?300 µg/g Ca or?>?60 µg/g Na are lherzolitic. Conventional geothermobarometry indicates that Akwatia diamonds formed and resided close to a 39 mW/m2 conductive geotherm. A similar value can be derived from Al in olivine geothermometry, with TAl-ol ranging from 1020 to 1325 °C. Ni in garnet temperatures is on average somewhat higher (TNi-grt?=?1115-1335 °C) and the correlation between the two thermometers is weak, which may be not only due to the large uncertainties in the calibrations, but also due to disequilibrium between inclusions from the same diamond. Calcium in olivine should not be used as a geothermobarometer for harzburgitic olivines, and often gives unrealistic P-T estimates for lherzolitic olivine as well. Diamond-hosted olivine inclusions indicate growth in an extremely depleted (low Ti, Ca, Na, high Cr#) environment with no residual clinopyroxene. They are distinct from olivines from mantle xenoliths which show higher, more variable Ti contents and lower Cr#. Hence, most olivine inclusions in Akwatia diamonds escaped the refertilisation processes that have affected most mantle xenoliths. Lherzolitic inclusions are probably the result of refertilisation after undergoing high-degree melting first. Trivalent cations appear to behave differently in harzburgitic diamond-hosted olivine inclusions than lherzolitic inclusions and olivine from mantle xenoliths. Some divalent chromium is predicted to be present in most olivine inclusions, which may explain high concentrations up to 0.16 wt% Cr2O3 observed in some diamond inclusions. Strong heterogeneity of Cr, V and Al in several inclusions may also result in apparent high Cr contents, and is probably due to late-stage processes during exhumation. However, in general, diamond-hosted olivine inclusions have lower Cr and V than expected compared to mantle xenoliths. Reduced Na activity in depleted harzburgites limits the uptake of Cr, V and Sc via Na-M3+ exchange. In contrast, Al partitioning in harzburgites is not significantly reduced compared to lherzolites, presumably due to uptake of Al in olivine by Al-Al exchange.
Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 174, (12) doi: 10.1007/s00410-019-1634-y
Africa, Ghana
deposit - Akwatia
Abstract: Trace-element concentrations in olivine and coexisting garnets included in diamonds from the Akwatia Mine (Ghana, West African Craton) were measured to show that olivine can provide similar information about equilibration temperature, diamond paragenesis and mantle processes as garnet. Trace-element systematics can be used to distinguish harzburgitic olivines from lherzolite ones: if Ca/Al ratios of olivine are below the mantle lherzolite trend (Ca/Al?2.2), they are derived from a harzburgitic mantle source, and syngenetic garnets are without exception subcalcic G10 garnets. For harzburgitic olivines that cannot be identified this way, Na and Ca contents can be used: olivine inclusions with?60 µg/g Na and Na/Al?0.7 are all harzburgitic, whereas those with?>?300 µg/g Ca or?>?60 µg/g Na are lherzolitic. Conventional geothermobarometry indicates that Akwatia diamonds formed and resided close to a 39 mW/m2 conductive geotherm. A similar value can be derived from Al in olivine geothermometry, with TAl-ol ranging from 1020 to 1325 °C. Ni in garnet temperatures is on average somewhat higher (TNi-grt?=?1115-1335 °C) and the correlation between the two thermometers is weak, which may be not only due to the large uncertainties in the calibrations, but also due to disequilibrium between inclusions from the same diamond. Calcium in olivine should not be used as a geothermobarometer for harzburgitic olivines, and often gives unrealistic P-T estimates for lherzolitic olivine as well. Diamond-hosted olivine inclusions indicate growth in an extremely depleted (low Ti, Ca, Na, high Cr#) environment with no residual clinopyroxene. They are distinct from olivines from mantle xenoliths which show higher, more variable Ti contents and lower Cr#. Hence, most olivine inclusions in Akwatia diamonds escaped the refertilisation processes that have affected most mantle xenoliths. Lherzolitic inclusions are probably the result of refertilisation after undergoing high-degree melting first. Trivalent cations appear to behave differently in harzburgitic diamond-hosted olivine inclusions than lherzolitic inclusions and olivine from mantle xenoliths. Some divalent chromium is predicted to be present in most olivine inclusions, which may explain high concentrations up to 0.16 wt% Cr2O3 observed in some diamond inclusions. Strong heterogeneity of Cr, V and Al in several inclusions may also result in apparent high Cr contents, and is probably due to late-stage processes during exhumation. However, in general, diamond-hosted olivine inclusions have lower Cr and V than expected compared to mantle xenoliths. Reduced Na activity in depleted harzburgites limits the uptake of Cr, V and Sc via Na-M3+ exchange. In contrast, Al partitioning in harzburgites is not significantly reduced compared to lherzolites, presumably due to uptake of Al in olivine by Al-Al exchange.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 275, pp. 99-122.
Mantle
carbon
Abstract: Diamonds are unrivalled in their ability to record the mantle carbon cycle and mantle fO2 over a vast portion of Earth’s history. Diamonds’ inertness and antiquity means their carbon isotopic characteristics directly reflect their growth environment within the mantle as far back as ?3.5 Ga. This paper reports the results of a thorough secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) carbon isotope and nitrogen concentration study, carried out on fragments of 144 diamond samples from various locations, from ?3.5 to 1.4 Ga for P [peridotitic]-type diamonds and 3.0 to 1.0 Ga for E [eclogitic]-type diamonds. The majority of the studied samples were from diamonds used to establish formation ages and thus provide a direct connection between the carbon isotope values, nitrogen contents and the formation ages. In total, 908 carbon isotope and nitrogen concentration measurements were obtained. The total ?¹³C data range from ?17.1 to ?1.9 ‰ (P = ?8.4 to ?1.9 ‰; E = ?17.1 to ?2.1‰) and N contents range from 0 to 3073 at. ppm (P = 0 to 3073 at. ppm; E = 1 to 2661 at. ppm). In general, there is no systematic variation with time in the mantle carbon isotope record since > 3 Ga. The mode in ?¹³C of peridotitic diamonds has been at ?5 (±2) ‰ since the earliest diamond growth ?3.5 Ga, and this mode is also observed in the eclogitic diamond record since ?3 Ga. The skewness of eclogitic diamonds’ ?¹³C distributions to more negative values, which the data establishes began around 3 Ga, is also consistent through time, with no global trends apparent. No isotopic and concentration trends were recorded within individual samples, indicating that, firstly, closed system fractionation trends are rare. This implies that diamonds typically grow in systems with high excess of carbon in the fluid (i.e. relative to the mass of the growing diamond). Any minerals included into diamond during the growth process are more likely to be isotopically reset at the time of diamond formation, meaning inclusion ages would be representative of the diamond growth event irrespective of whether they are syngenetic or protogenetic. Secondly, the lack of significant variation seen in the peridotitic diamonds studied is in keeping with modeling of Rayleigh isotopic fractionation in multicomponent systems (RIFMS) during isochemical diamond precipitation in harzburgitic mantle. The RIFMS model not only showed that in water-maximum fluids at constant depths along a geotherm, fractionation can only account for variations of <1‰, but also that the principal ?¹³C mode of ?5 ± 1‰ in the global harzburgitic diamond record occurs if the variation in fO2 is only 0.4 log units. Due to the wide age distribution of P-type diamonds, this leads to the conclusion that the speciation and oxygen fugacity of diamond forming fluids has been relatively consistent. The deep mantle has therefore generated fluids with near constant carbon speciation for 3.5 Ga.
Abstract: Because of their robust nature, diamonds survive mantle processes and protect occluded minerals since the time of diamond formation. For the Kaapvaal Craton - the archetype for craton formation and evolution - the geochemical signatures of inclusions in Koffiefontein diamonds tell a story from craton formation to evolution and from lithospheric (below about 160 km) to lower mantle (>660 km) environs. We analysed a suite of 94 lithospheric to lower mantle diamonds and their silicate and oxide inclusions. Geochemical results confirm that the diamond substrates are very depleted, with Mg#OL of 91.5-95.0 and a dominance of low-Ca (<1.8 wt% CaO), presumably dunite-derived garnet. The Si-rich nature and preserved high Mg# of the peridotitic diamond substrates beneath Koffiefontein and the formation of KNbO3 (goldschmidtite) from an extremely fractionated melt/fluid indicate that potentially both mantle- and subduction-related fluids are the cause of metasomatism in the Kaapvaal cratonic root. Mantle-like, restricted carbon isotopic compositions of both P- and E-type diamonds (avg. ?13C -5.7 ‰ and -6.6 ‰, respectively) indicate that an abundant, mantle-derived CHO fluid is responsible for diamond formation. Diamonds have a large range in nitrogen concentrations and isotopic compositions, suggesting decoupling from carbon and heterogeneous sources. ?18O of former bridgmanite and ?13C of its host diamond document a purely mantle-derived lower mantle component. Combined, these results reveal a complex and multistage evolution of the Kaapvaal Craton whereby multiple episodes of fluid and melt metasomatism re-enriched the craton already, prior to diamond formation, followed by diamond entrainment in a kimberlite possibly derived from the lower mantle.
Abstract: Majoritic garnet has been predicted to be a major component of peridotite and eclogite in Earth's deep upper mantle (>250 km) and transition zone. The investigation of mineral inclusions in diamond confirms this prediction, but there is reported evidence of other majorite-bearing lithologies, intermediate between peridotitic and eclogitic, present in the mantle transition zone. If these lithologies are derived from olivine-free pyroxenites, then at mantle transition zone pressures majorite may form monomineralic or almost monomineralic garnetite layers. Since majoritic garnet is presumably the seismically fastest major phase in the lowermost upper mantle, the existence of such majorite layers might produce a detectable seismic signature. However, a test of this hypothesis is hampered by the absence of sound wave velocity measurements of majoritic garnets with relevant chemical compositions, since previous measurements have been mostly limited to synthetic majorite samples with relatively simple compositions. In an attempt to evaluate the seismic signature of a pyroxenitic garnet layer, we measured the sound wave velocities of three natural majoritic garnet inclusions in diamond by Brillouin spectroscopy at ambient conditions. The chosen natural garnets derive from depths between 220 and 470 km and are plausible candidates to have formed at the interface between peridotite and carbonated eclogite. They contain elevated amounts (12-30%) of ferric iron, possibly produced during redox reactions that form diamond from carbonate. Based on our data, we model the velocity and seismic impedance contrasts between a possible pyroxenitic garnet layer and the surrounding peridotitic mantle. For a mineral assemblage that would be stable at a depth of 350 km, the median formation depth of our samples, we found velocities in pyroxenite at ambient conditions to be higher by 1.9(6)% for shear waves and 3.3(5)% for compressional waves compared to peridotite (numbers in parentheses refer to uncertainties in the last given digit), and by 1.3(13)% for shear waves and 2.4(10)% for compressional waves compared to eclogite. As a result of increased density in the pyroxenitic layer, expected seismic impedance contrasts across the interface between the monomineralic majorite layer and the adjacent rocks are about 5-6% at the majorite-eclogite-interface and 10-12% at the majoriteperidotite-boundary. Given a large enough thickness of the garnetite layer, velocity and impedance differences of this magnitude could become seismologically detectable.
Abstract: The transport of carbon into Earth’s mantle is a critical pathway in Earth’s carbon cycle, affecting both the climate and the redox conditions of the surface and mantle. The largest unconstrained variables in this cycle are the depths to which carbon in sediments and altered oceanic crust can be subducted and the relative contributions of these reservoirs to the sequestration of carbon in the deep mantle1. Mineral inclusions in sublithospheric, or ‘superdeep’, diamonds (derived from depths greater than 250 kilometres) can be used to constrain these variables. Here we present oxygen isotope measurements of mineral inclusions within diamonds from Kankan, Guinea that are derived from depths extending from the lithosphere to the lower mantle (greater than 660 kilometres). These data, combined with the carbon and nitrogen isotope contents of the diamonds, indicate that carbonated igneous oceanic crust, not sediment, is the primary carbon-bearing reservoir in slabs subducted to deep-lithospheric and transition-zone depths (less than 660 kilometres). Within this depth regime, sublithospheric inclusions are distinctly enriched in 18O relative to eclogitic lithospheric inclusions derived from crustal protoliths. The increased 18O content of these sublithospheric inclusions results from their crystallization from melts of carbonate-rich subducted oceanic crust. In contrast, lower-mantle mineral inclusions and their host diamonds (deeper than 660 kilometres) have a narrow range of isotopic values that are typical of mantle that has experienced little or no crustal interaction. Because carbon is hosted in metals, rather than in diamond, in the reduced, volatile-poor lower mantle2, carbon must be mobilized and concentrated to form lower-mantle diamonds. Our data support a model in which the hydration of the uppermost lower mantle by subducted oceanic lithosphere destabilizes carbon-bearing metals to form diamond, without disturbing the ambient-mantle stable-isotope signatures. This transition from carbonate slab melting in the transition zone to slab dehydration in the lower mantle supports a lower-mantle barrier for carbon subduction.
Abstract: Chemical events involving deep carbon- and water-rich fluids impact the continental lithosphere over its history. Diamonds are a by-product of such episodic fluid infiltrations, and entrapment of these fluids as microinclusions in lithospheric diamonds provide unique opportunities to investigate their nature. However, until now, direct constraints on the timing of such events have not been available. Here we report three alteration events in the southwest Kaapvaal lithosphere using U-Th-He geochronology of fluid-bearing diamonds, and constrain the upper limit of He diffusivity (to D???1.8?×?10?19 cm2 s?1), thus providing a means to directly place both upper and lower age limits on these alteration episodes. The youngest, during the Cretaceous, involved highly saline fluids, indicating a relationship with late-Mesozoic kimberlite eruptions. Remnants of two preceding events, by a Paleozoic silicic fluid and a Proterozoic carbonatitic fluid, are also encapsulated in Kaapvaal diamonds and are likely coeval with major surface tectonic events (e.g. the Damara and Namaqua-Natal orogenies).
Elsevier Publisher , isbn978-0-12-409548-9. 12083-4 pp. 455-472.
Global
Book - notice
Abstract: Encyclopedia of Geology, Second Edition presents in six volumes state-of-the-art reviews on the various aspects of geologic research, all of which have moved on considerably since the writing of the first edition. New areas of discussion include extinctions, origins of life, plate tectonics and its influence on faunal provinces, new types of mineral and hydrocarbon deposits, new methods of dating rocks, and geological processes. Users will find this to be a fundamental resource for teachers and students of geology, as well as researchers and non-geology professionals seeking up-to-date reviews of geologic research.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 323, pp. 20-39.
Africa, Sierra Leone
deposit - Koidu
Abstract: Inclusion-bearing diamonds from the Koidu kimberlite complex, Sierra Leone (West African Craton) were analyzed in situ for carbon and nitrogen isotope compositions, nitrogen concentrations and nitrogen aggregation states. In a suite of 105 diamonds, 78% contain eclogitic mineral inclusions, 17% contain peridotitic mineral inclusions, and 5% - an unusually high proportion - contain co-occurring eclogitic and peridotitic mineral inclusions indicating a mixed paragenesis. Major and trace element compositions of mineral inclusions from two mixed paragenesis diamonds (one with omphacite + Mg-chromite, the other with eclogitic garnet + forsteritic olivine) were determined. The presence of positive Eu anomalies in centrally located omphacite and eclogitic garnet inclusions indicates derivation from subducted protoliths, formed as igneous cumulates in lower oceanic crust. Mg-chromite (Cr# 85.5; Mg# 65.2) and olivine (Mg# 94.5) inclusions, located in outer portions of the mixed paragenesis diamonds, have compositions indicative of derivation from strongly depleted cratonic peridotites. Given that the olivine Mg# of 94.5 is the highest reported to date for the West African Craton, the eclogitic and peridotitic inclusions in these mixed paragenesis diamonds cannot have precipitated during infiltration of peridotitic substrates by eclogite-derived fluids, as the consequent fluid-rock interaction should lead to Mg# lower than that for the original peridotitic diamond substrate. The different origins of eclogitic and peridotitic inclusions could be explained by physical transport of their host diamonds from eclogitic into peridotitic substrates, possibly along high-strain shear zones, before renewed diamond growth. Based on the ?¹³C-?¹?N systematics of the entire inclusion-bearing diamond suite from Koidu, three major compositional clusters are identified. Cluster 1 (eclogitic diamond cores; ?¹³C = -33.2 to -14.4 ‰ and ?¹?N = -5.3 to +10.1 ‰) bears the isotopic signature of recycled crustal material (± a mantle component). Cluster 2 (peridotitic diamonds and including the core of a diamond containing omphacite + Mg-chromite; ?¹³C = -6.0 to -1.1 ‰ and ?¹?N = -4.2 to +9.7 ‰) likely involves mixing of carbon and nitrogen from subducted and mantle sources. Cluster 3 (rims of eclogitic diamonds and including the eclogitic garnet + olivine included diamond and the rim of the omphacite + Mg-chromite included diamond; ?¹³C = -7.8 to -3.6 ‰ and ?¹?N = -7.9 to -2.1 ‰) matches convecting mantle-derived fluids/melts. The distinct isotopic signatures of the three diamond clusters, together with differences in nitrogen aggregation and cathodoluminescence response between diamond cores and rims, suggest episodic diamond growth during multiple fluid/melt pulses.
Society of Economic Geology Geoscience and Exploration of the Argyle, Bunder, Diavik, and Murowa Diamond Deposits, Special Publication no. 20, pp. 359-378.
The Canadian Mineralogist, Vol. 59, pp. 1261-1276. doi:10.3749/canmin.2000048 pdf
Canada, Ontario
deposit - Kirkland Lake
Abstract: We report new isotopic data for H2 and CH4 gases and Sr for groundwater collected from Jurassic Kirkland Lake kimberlites in northern Ontario, Canada. Groundwaters interacting with kimberlites have elevated pH (up to 12.4), are reducing (Eh as low as the H2-H2O couple), are dominated by OH? alkalinity, and have non-radiogenic (mantle) 87Sr/86Sr values (?0.706-0.707). Most significantly, the highest pH groundwaters have low Mg, high K/Mg, and are associated with abundant reduced gases (H2 ± CH4). Open system conditions favor higher dissolved inorganic carbon and CH4 production, whereas under closed system conditions low DIC, elevated OH? alkalinity, and H2 production are enhanced. Hydrogen gas is isotopically depleted (?2HH2 = ?771 to ?801‰), which, combined with ?2HH2O, yields geothermometry temperatures of serpentinization of 5-25 °C. Deviation of H2-rich groundwaters (by up to 10‰) from the meteoric water line is consistent with Rayleigh fractionation during reduction of water to H2. Methane is characterized by ?13CCH4 = ?35.8 to ?68‰ and ?2HCH4 = ?434‰. The origin of CH4 is inconclusive and there is evidence to support both biogenic and abiogenic origins. The modeled groundwater-kimberlite reactions and production of elevated concentrations of H2 gas suggest uses for diamond-production tailings, as a source of H2 for fuel cells and as a carbon sink.
Burgess, R., Cartigny, P., Harrison, D., Hobson, E., Harris, J.
Volatile composition of Micro inclusions in diamonds from the PAnd a kimberlite, Canada: implications for chemical and isotopic heterogeneity in the mantle.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 73, 6, pp. 1779-1794.
Proceedings National Academy of Science, Vol. 116, pp. 407-412.
Australia
paleomagnetism
Abstract: Zircon crystals from the Jack Hills, Western Australia, are one of the few surviving mineralogical records of Earth’s first 500 million years and have been proposed to contain a paleomagnetic record of the Hadean geodynamo. A prerequisite for the preservation of Hadean magnetization is the presence of primary magnetic inclusions within pristine igneous zircon. To date no images of the magnetic recorders within ancient zircon have been presented. Here we use high-resolution transmission electron microscopy to demonstrate that all observed inclusions are secondary features formed via two distinct mechanisms. Magnetite is produced via a pipe-diffusion mechanism whereby iron diffuses into radiation-damaged zircon along the cores of dislocations and is precipitated inside nanopores and also during low-temperature recrystallization of radiation-damaged zircon in the presence of an aqueous fluid. Although these magnetites can be recognized as secondary using transmission electron microscopy, they otherwise occur in regions that are indistinguishable from pristine igneous zircon and carry remanent magnetization that postdates the crystallization age by at least several hundred million years. Without microscopic evidence ruling out secondary magnetite, the paleomagnetic case for a Hadean-Eoarchean geodynamo cannot yet been made.
Structural geology and geochronology of subduction complexes along the margin of Gondwanaland: new dat a from the Antarctic Peninsula and southernmostAndes
Geological Society of America (GSA) Bulletin, Vol. 104, No. 11, November pp. 1497-1514
Caro, G., Bennett, V.C., Bourdon, B., Harrison, T.M., Von Quadt, A., Mojzsis, S.J., Harris, J.W.
Application of precise 142 Nd 144 Nd analysis of small samples to inclusions in diamonds ( Finsch SA ) and Hadean zircons ( Jack Hills, Western Australia).
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 191, pp. 187-202.
Australia
Jack Hills REE
Abstract: Despite the robust nature of zircon in most crustal and surface environments, chemical alteration, especially associated with radiation damaged regions, can affect its geochemistry. This consideration is especially important when drawing inferences from the detrital record where the original rock context is missing. Typically, alteration is qualitatively diagnosed through inspection of zircon REE patterns and the style of zoning shown by cathodoluminescence imaging, since fluid-mediated alteration often causes a flat, high LREE pattern. Due to the much lower abundance of LREE in zircon relative both to other crustal materials and to the other REE, disturbance to the LREE pattern is the most likely first sign of disruption to zircon trace element contents. Using a database of 378 (148 new) trace element and 801 (201 new) oxygen isotope measurements on zircons from Jack Hills, Western Australia, we propose a quantitative framework for assessing chemical contamination and exchange with fluids in this population. The Light Rare Earth Element Index is scaled on the relative abundance of light to middle REE, or LREE-I = (Dy/Nd) + (Dy/Sm). LREE-I values vary systematically with other known contaminants (e.g., Fe, P) more faithfully than other suggested proxies for zircon alteration (Sm/La, various absolute concentrations of LREEs) and can be used to distinguish primary compositions when textural evidence for alteration is ambiguous. We find that zircon oxygen isotopes do not vary systematically with placement on or off cracks or with degree of LREE-related chemical alteration, suggesting an essentially primary signature. By omitting zircons affected by LREE-related alteration or contamination by mineral inclusions, we present the best estimate for the primary igneous geochemistry of the Jack Hills zircons. This approach increases the available dataset by allowing for discrimination of on-crack analyses (and analyses with ambiguous or no information on spot placement or zircon internal structures) that do not show evidence for chemical alteration. It distinguishes between altered and unaltered samples in ambiguous cases (e.g., relatively high Ti), identifying small groups with potentially differing provenance from the main Jack Hills population. Finally, filtering of the population using the LREE-I helps to more certainly define primary correlations among trace element variables, potentially relatable to magmatic compositional evolution.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 191, pp. 187-202.
Australia
Geochemistry
Abstract: Despite the robust nature of zircon in most crustal and surface environments, chemical alteration, especially associated with radiation damaged regions, can affect its geochemistry. This consideration is especially important when drawing inferences from the detrital record where the original rock context is missing. Typically, alteration is qualitatively diagnosed through inspection of zircon REE patterns and the style of zoning shown by cathodoluminescence imaging, since fluid-mediated alteration often causes a flat, high LREE pattern. Due to the much lower abundance of LREE in zircon relative both to other crustal materials and to the other REE, disturbance to the LREE pattern is the most likely first sign of disruption to zircon trace element contents. Using a database of 378 (148 new) trace element and 801 (201 new) oxygen isotope measurements on zircons from Jack Hills, Western Australia, we propose a quantitative framework for assessing chemical contamination and exchange with fluids in this population. The Light Rare Earth Element Index is scaled on the relative abundance of light to middle REE, or LREE-I = (Dy/Nd) + (Dy/Sm). LREE-I values vary systematically with other known contaminants (e.g., Fe, P) more faithfully than other suggested proxies for zircon alteration (Sm/La, various absolute concentrations of LREEs) and can be used to distinguish primary compositions when textural evidence for alteration is ambiguous. We find that zircon oxygen isotopes do not vary systematically with placement on or off cracks or with degree of LREE-related chemical alteration, suggesting an essentially primary signature. By omitting zircons affected by LREE-related alteration or contamination by mineral inclusions, we present the best estimate for the primary igneous geochemistry of the Jack Hills zircons. This approach increases the available dataset by allowing for discrimination of on-crack analyses (and analyses with ambiguous or no information on spot placement or zircon internal structures) that do not show evidence for chemical alteration. It distinguishes between altered and unaltered samples in ambiguous cases (e.g., relatively high Ti), identifying small groups with potentially differing provenance from the main Jack Hills population. Finally, filtering of the population using the LREE-I helps to more certainly define primary correlations among trace element variables, potentially relatable to magmatic compositional evolution.
Proceedings National Academy of Science, Vol. 116, pp. 407-412.
Australia
paleomagnetism
Abstract: Zircon crystals from the Jack Hills, Western Australia, are one of the few surviving mineralogical records of Earth’s first 500 million years and have been proposed to contain a paleomagnetic record of the Hadean geodynamo. A prerequisite for the preservation of Hadean magnetization is the presence of primary magnetic inclusions within pristine igneous zircon. To date no images of the magnetic recorders within ancient zircon have been presented. Here we use high-resolution transmission electron microscopy to demonstrate that all observed inclusions are secondary features formed via two distinct mechanisms. Magnetite is produced via a pipe-diffusion mechanism whereby iron diffuses into radiation-damaged zircon along the cores of dislocations and is precipitated inside nanopores and also during low-temperature recrystallization of radiation-damaged zircon in the presence of an aqueous fluid. Although these magnetites can be recognized as secondary using transmission electron microscopy, they otherwise occur in regions that are indistinguishable from pristine igneous zircon and carry remanent magnetization that postdates the crystallization age by at least several hundred million years. Without microscopic evidence ruling out secondary magnetite, the paleomagnetic case for a Hadean-Eoarchean geodynamo cannot yet been made.
Symposium on critical and strategic materials, British Columbia Geological Survey Paper 2015-3, held Nov. 13-14, pp. 231-240.
Technology
Rare earths
Abstract: Biogeochemical exploration is an effective but underutilized method for delineating covered mineralization. Plants are capable of accumulating rare earth elements (REEs) in their tissue, and ferns (pteridophytes) are especially adept because they are one of the most primitive land plants, therefore lack the barrier mechanisms developed by more evolved plants. The Norra Kärr Alkaline Complex, located in southern Sweden approximately 300km southwest of Stockholm, is a peralkaline nepheline syenite enriched in heavy rare earth elements (HREEs). The deposit, roughly 300m wide, 1300m long, and overlain by up to 4 m of Quaternary sediments, has been well-defined by diamond drilling. The inferred REE mineral resource, over 60 million tonnes averaging 0.54% Total Rare Earth Oxide (TREO), is dominantly hosted within the pegmatitic “grennaite” unit, a eudialyte-catapleiite-aegerine nepheline syenite. Vegetation and soil samples were collected from the surficial environment above Norra Kärr to address four key questions: which plant species is the most effective biogeochemical exploration medium; what are the annual and seasonal REE variations in that plant; how do the REEs move through the soil profile; and into which part of the plant are they concentrated. Athyrium filix-femina (lady fern) has the highest concentration of LREEs and HREEs (up to 125.17ppm Ce and 1.03ppm Dy) in its dry leaves; however, there is better contrast between background and anomalous areas in Dryopteris filix-mas (wood fern), which makes it the preferred biogeochemical sampling medium. The REE content in all fern species was shown to decrease from root > frond > stem, and chondrite normalized REE patterns within the plant displayed preferential fractionation of the LREEs in the fronds relative to the roots. Samples collected from an area directly overlying the deposit had up to five times greater HREE content (0.74ppm Dy) in August than the same plants did in June (0.14ppm Dy). The elevated REE content and distinct contrast to background demonstrate that biogeochemical sampling is an effective method for REE exploration in this environment.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 446, pp. 137-148.
Mantle
Coesite, subduction
Abstract: The ability to accurately constrain the secular record of high- and ultra-high pressure metamorphism on Earth is potentially hampered as these rocks are metastable and prone to retrogression, particularly during exhumation. Rutile is among the most widespread and best preserved minerals in high- and ultra-high pressure rocks and a hitherto untested approach is to use mineral inclusions within rutile to record such conditions. In this study, rutiles from three different high- and ultrahigh-pressure massifs have been investigated for inclusions. Rutile is shown to contain inclusions of high-pressure minerals such as omphacite, garnet and high silica phengite, as well as diagnostic ultrahigh-pressure minerals, including the first reported occurrence of exceptionally preserved monomineralic coesite in rutile from the Dora -Maira massif. Chemical comparison of inclusion and matrix phases show that inclusions generally represent peak metamorphic assemblages; although rare prograde phases such as titanite, omphacite and corundum have also been identified implying that rutile grows continuously during prograde burial and traps mineralogic evidence of this evolution. Pressure estimates obtained from mineral inclusions, when used in conjunction with Zr-in-rutile thermometry, can provide additional constraints on the metamorphic conditions of the host rock. This study demonstrates that rutile is an excellent repository for high- and ultra-high pressure minerals and that the study of mineral inclusions in rutile may profoundly change the way we investigate and recover evidence of such events in both detrital populations and partially retrogressed samples.
Nature Scientific Reports, doi.org/10.1038/ s41598-019-46556-3 8p. Pdf
Global
diamond morphology, impact craters
Abstract: Diamond is a material of immense technological importance and an ancient signifier for wealth and societal status. In geology, diamond forms as part of the deep carbon cycle and typically displays a highly ordered cubic crystal structure. Impact diamonds, however, often exhibit structural disorder in the form of complex combinations of cubic and hexagonal stacking motifs. The structural characterization of such diamonds remains a challenge. Here, impact diamonds from the Popigai crater were characterized with a range of techniques. Using the MCDIFFaX approach for analysing X-ray diffraction data, hexagonality indices up to 40% were found. The effects of increasing amounts of hexagonal stacking on the Raman spectra of diamond were investigated computationally and found to be in excellent agreement with trends in the experimental spectra. Electron microscopy revealed nanoscale twinning within the cubic diamond structure. Our analyses lead us to propose a systematic protocol for assigning specific hexagonality attributes to the mineral designated as lonsdaleite among natural and synthetic samples.
Abstract: Diamond is a material of immense technological importance and an ancient signifier for wealth and societal status. In geology, diamond forms as part of the deep carbon cycle and typically displays a highly ordered cubic crystal structure. Impact diamonds, however, often exhibit structural disorder in the form of complex combinations of cubic and hexagonal stacking motifs. The structural characterization of such diamonds remains a challenge. Here, impact diamonds from the Popigai crater were characterized with a range of techniques. Using the MCDIFFaX approach for analysing X-ray diffraction data, hexagonality indices up to 40% were found. The effects of increasing amounts of hexagonal stacking on the Raman spectra of diamond were investigated computationally and found to be in excellent agreement with trends in the experimental spectra. Electron microscopy revealed nanoscale twinning within the cubic diamond structure. Our analyses lead us to propose a systematic protocol for assigning specific hexagonality attributes to the mineral designated as lonsdaleite among natural and synthetic samples.
Andreoli, M.A.G., Hart, R.J., Ashwal, L.D., Coetzee, H.
Correlations between U, Th content and metamorphic grade in the Western Namaqualand Belt, South Africa: with implications for radioactive heating of the crust.
Late Archean to Early Proterozoic lithospheric mantle beneath the western North Chin a craton: Sr Nd Os isotopes of peridotite xenoliths from Yangyuan and Fansi
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 435, 1, pp. 55-63.
Mantle
Plume
Abstract: In order to link the geochemical signature of hot spot basalts to Earth's deep interior, it is first necessary to understand how plumes sample different regions of the mantle. Here, we investigate the relative amounts of deep and shallow mantle material that are entrained by an ascending plume and constrain its source region. The plumes are generated in a viscous syrup using an isolated heater for a range of Rayleigh numbers. The velocity fields are measured using stereoscopic Particle-Image Velocimetry, and the concept of the ‘vortex ring bubble’ is used to provide an objective definition of the plume geometry. Using this plume geometry, the plume composition can be analysed in terms of the proportion of material that has been entrained from different depths. We show that the plume composition can be well described using a simple empirical relationship, which depends only on a single parameter, the sampling coefficient, scsc. High-scsc plumes are composed of material which originated from very deep in the fluid domain, while low-scsc plumes contain material entrained from a range of depths. The analysis is also used to show that the geometry of the plume can be described using a similarity solution, in agreement with previous studies. Finally, numerical simulations are used to vary both the Rayleigh number and viscosity contrast independently. The simulations allow us to predict the value of the sampling coefficient for mantle plumes; we find that as a plume reaches the lithosphere, 90% of its composition has been derived from the lowermost 260–750 km in the mantle, and negligible amounts are derived from the shallow half of the lower mantle. This result implies that isotope geochemistry cannot provide direct information about this unsampled region, and that the various known geochemical reservoirs must lie in the deepest few hundred kilometres of the mantle.
Speculations concerning the importance of metasomatic melt migration In the formation of pyroxenite sheets in garnet peridotite xenoliths from MatsokuLes
Proceedings of the Fourth International Kimberlite Conference, Held Perth, Australia, No. 16, pp. 184-186
Diffusion gradients in an eclogite xenolith from theRoberts Victorkimberlite pipe: 1. Mechanism- Evolution of garnet exsolution in Al2O3 richclinopyroxene
Journal of Petrology, Vol. 29, No. 6, December pp. 1325-1352
Mineral associations in diamonds from the lowermost upper mantle and uppermost lower mantle.
Proceedings of the 10th. International Kimberlite Conference, Vol. 1, Special Issue of the Journal of the Geological Society of India,, Vol. 1, pp. 235-254.
Harper, C.T., Van Breeman, O., Wodick,N., Pehrsson, S., Heaman, L., Hartlaub, R.
The Paleoproterozoic lithostructural history and thermotectonic reactivation of the Archean basement in southern Hearne domain of northeastern Saskatchewan.
GAC Annual Meeting Halifax May 15-19, Abstract 1p.
Earths Oldest Rocks, researchgate.com Chapter 28, 20p. Pdf available
Canada, Manitoba
craton
Abstract: This chapter describes the Assean Lake Complex (ALC) at ancient crust at the Northwestern margin of the Superior Craton, Manitoba, and Canada. An initial tectonic model for the Assean Lake area indicated that a regionally extensive high-strain zone running through the lake marks the suture between Archean high-grade crustal terranes of the Superior Craton to the southeast and Paleoproterozoic rocks of the Trans-Hudson Orogen to the northwest. Detailed geologic remapping combined with isotopic and geochemical studies led to a re-interpretation of the crust immediately north of the Assean Lake high-strain zone as Mesoarchean. The study area straddles the boundary between the Archean Superior Craton and the ca.1.90-1.84 Ga arc and marginal basin rocks of the Trans-Hudson Orogen, which represent the remains of ca. 1.83-1.76 Ga ocean closure and orogeny. It is indicated that the gneisses of the Split Lake Block consist primarily of meta-igneous protoliths of gabbroic to granitic composition. Tonalite and granodiorite are the most volumetrically dominant, but an anorthosite dome is also present in the northeast. Mapping, isotopic, and age data combined with high-resolution aero-magnetic data indicate that the Mesoarchean ALC is a crustal slice up to 10 km wide, and has a strike length of at least 50 km.
An integrated approach to marketing (multi products/multi- markets)
American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers (AIME) Preprint held Las Vegas Feb. 27-March 2, 1989, No. 89-113 3p. Database # 17680
Abstract: Over the past 541 million years (the Phanerozoic eon), Earth's climate has been relatively stable compared to preceding eons. However, there have been periods of longer glaciations, which have been attributed to changes in the balance between CO2 sources and sinks. The major CO2 sources are thought to be mantle degassing at hotspot volcanoes, mid-ocean ridges, and rifts; subduction zone volcanoes; metamorphosis of carbonate rocks into silicate rocks; and oxidative weathering (see the figure) (1). The main CO2 sink is chemical weathering and the subsequent transfer of carbon to the ocean, where carbonate sediments lock up CO2 for long periods of time. During arc-continent collisions, rocks from volcanic arcs are accreted to continents. On page 181 of this issue, Macdonald et al. (2) propose that weathering can rise after the accreted rocks are exposed at Earth's surface. This mechanism may explain the glaciations seen during the Phanerozoic.
Uplift, Faulting, Seismicity, Thermal Spring and Possible Incipient Volcanic Activity in the Lesotho-natal Region, Southeast Africa: the Quathlamba hotspot Hyopthesis.
Abstract: The Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia represents one of the largest pieces of Precambrian crust on Earth, and a key repository of information on the Meso-Neoarchean period. Understanding the crustal, tectonic, thermal, and chemical evolution of the craton is critical in placing these events into an accurate geological context, as well as developing holistic tectonic models for the Archean Earth. Here, we present a large U-Pb (420 collated samples) and Hf isotopic (2163 analyses) dataset on zircon, and apply it to constrain the evolution of the craton. These data provide strong evidence for a Hadean-Eoarchean origin for the Yilgarn Craton from mafic crust at ca. 4000?Ma, in a proto-craton consisting of the Narryer and north-central Southern Cross Domain. This ancient cratonic nucleus was subsequently rifted, expanded and reworked by successive crustal growth events at ca. 3700?Ma, ca. 3300?Ma, 3000-2900?Ma, 2825-2800?Ma, and ca. 2730-2620?Ma. The <3050?Ma crustal growth events correlate broadly with known komatiite events, and patterns of craton evolution, revealed by Hf isotope time-slice mapping, image the periodic break-up of the Yilgarn proto-continent and the formation of rift-zones between the older crustal blocks. Crustal growth and new magmatic pulses were focused into these zones and at craton margins, resulting in continent growth via internal (rift-enabled) expansion, and peripheral (crustal extraction at craton margins) magmatism. Consequently, we interpret these major geodynamic processes to be analogous to plume-lid tectonics, where the majority of tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) felsic crust, and later granitic crust, was formed by reworking of hydrated mafic rocks and TTGs, respectively, via a combination of infracrustal and/or drip-tectonic settings. We argue that subduction-like processes formed a minor tectonic component, re-docking the Narryer Terrane to the craton at ca. 2740?Ma. Overall, these processes led to an intra-cratonic architecture of younger, juvenile terranes located internal and external to older, long-lived, reworked crustal blocks. This framework provided pathways that localized later magmas and fluids, driving the exceptional mineral endowment of the Yilgarn Craton.
Abstract: The jigsaw fit of Earth’s continents, which long intrigued map readers and inspired many theories, was explained about 60 years ago when the foundational processes of plate tectonics came to light. Topographic and magnetic maps of the ocean floor revealed that the crust—the thin, rigid top layer of the solid Earth—is split into plates. These plates were found to shift gradually around the surface atop a ductile upper mantle layer called the asthenosphere. Where dense oceanic crust abuts thicker, buoyant continents, the denser crust plunges back into the mantle beneath. Above these subduction zones, upwelling mantle melt generates volcanoes, spewing lava and creating new continental crust.
Abstract: Zircon crystals precipitated from granitoid magmas contain a robust record of the age and chemistry of continental magmatism spanning some 4.375 Ga of Earth history, a record that charts initiation of plate tectonics. However, constraining when exactly plate tectonics began to dominate crustal growth processes is challenging as the geochemical signatures of individual rocks may reflect local subduction processes rather than global plate tectonics. Here we apply counting statistics to a global database of coupled U-Pb and Hf isotope analyses on magmatic zircon grains from continental igneous and sedimentary rocks to quantify changes in the compositions of their source rocks. The analysis reveals a globally significant change in the sources of granitoid magmas between 3.2 and 2.7 Ga. These secular changes in zircon chemistry are driven by a coupling of the deep (depleted mantle) and shallow (crustal) Earth reservoirs, consistent with a geodynamic regime dominated by Wilson cycle style plate tectonics.
Earth and planetary Science Letters, Vol. 578, 117319, 9p. Pdf
Mantle
geochronolgy
Abstract: The formation of stable buoyant continental crust during the Archaean Eon was fundamental in establishing the planet's geochemical reservoirs. However, the processes that created Earth's first continents and the timescales over which they formed are debated. Here, we report the Pb isotope compositions of K-feldspar grains from 52 Paleoarchaean to Neoarchaean granites from the Pilbara Craton in Western Australia, one of the world's oldest and best-preserved granite-greenstone terranes. The Pb isotope composition of the Pilbara K-feldspars is variable, implying the granites were derived from crustal precursors of different age and/or variable time-integrated 238U/204Pb and 232Th/204Pb compositions. Trends to sub-mantle 207Pb/206Pb ratios preclude the influence of 4.3 Ga crustal precursors. In order to estimate crustal residence times we derive equations to calculate source model ages in a linearized Pb isotope evolution system. The best agreement between the feldspar Pb two-stage source model ages and those derived from zircon initial Hf isotope compositions requires crustal precursors that separated from a chondritic mantle source between 3.2 and 3.8 Ga, and rapidly differentiated to continental crust with 238U/204Pb and 232Th/238U ratios of ?14 and 4.2-4.5, respectively. The preservation of Pb isotope variability in the Pilbara Paleoarchaean granites indicates their early continental source rocks were preserved for up to 500 Ma after their formation. The apparent longevity of these early continental nuclei is consistent with the incipient development of buoyant melt-depleted cratonic lithosphere during the Eoarchaean to Paleoarchaean.
Abstract: During the Cretaceous, the CO2 content of the global atmosphere drastically increased in response to volcanism associated with the disintegration of the former continents. This increase in the global atmospheric CO2 level subsequently led to a considerable rise in global temperatures. The interaction among the high levels of atmospheric CO2, extreme global warmth, and humidity witnessed in the Cretaceous implies extreme environmental conditions, which involved a possibly more acidic and chemically destructive atmosphere than at present; these conditions are believed to have favoured widespread deep weathering at that time. Economically important minerals were reworked from their primary sources during these Cretaceous weathering events. The extreme global warmth witnessed in the Cretaceous also caused the melting of most of the polar ice caps, resulting in the expansion of the volume of Cretaceous seawaters, which subsequently led to a significant rise in the global sea level. Extensive palaeo-seaways played a vital role in transporting and depositing the huge volume of sediments generated during the Cretaceous weathering events, which included economically important minerals (e.g., gold, diamond, and platinum). These mineral deposits are now preserved in Cretaceous sands as placer deposits. Three categories of Cretaceous placer deposits can be distinguished: those occurring in Cretaceous sands resting unconformably on the Precambrian basement, those occurring in Cretaceous sands resting unconformably on the Palaeozoic rocks, and those occurring in Cretaceous sands that unconformably overlay Mesozoic strata.
Harvey, J., Yoshikawa, M., Hammond, S.J., Burton, K.W.
Deciphering the trace element characteristics in Kilbourne Hole peridotite xenoliths: melt-rock interaction and metasomatism beneath the Rio Grande rift, SW USA.
The effects of melt depletion and metasomatism on highly siderophile and strongly chalcophile elements: S-Se-Te-Re-PGE systematics of peridotite xenoliths from Kilbourne Hole, New Mexico.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 166, pp. 210-233.
The influence of depositional setting and fluctuating accommodation space on kimberlite edifice preservation: implications for volcanological models Fort a la Corne.
Geological Society of America Annual Meeting 2007, Denver Oct. 28, 1p. Abstract
Harvey, S., Read, G., DesGagnes, B., Shimell, M., Danoczi, J., Van Breugel, B., Fourie, L., Stilling, A.
Utilization of olivine macrocryst grain size and abundance dat a as a proxy for diamond size and grade in pyroclastic deposits of the Orion South kimberlite Fort a la Corne, Sasakatchewan, Canada.
10th. International Kimberlite Conference Feb. 6-11, Bangalore India, Abstract
Utilization of olivine macrocryst grain size and abundance dat a as a proxy for diamond size and grade in pyroclastic deposits of the Orion South kimberlite, Fort a la Corne, Saskatchewan, Canada.
Proceedings of the 10th. International Kimberlite Conference, Vol. 2, Special Issue of the Journal of the Geological Society of India,, Vol. 2, pp. 79-95.
Harvey, S., Read, G., DesGagnes, B., Shimell, M., van Breugel, B., Fourie, L.
Utilization of olivine macrocryst grain size and abundance dat a as a proxy for diamond size and grade in pyroclastic deposits of the Orion South kimberlite, Fort a la Corne, Saskatchewan, Canada.
Proceedings of the 10th. International Kimberlite Conference, Vol. 2, pp. 79-96.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 547, 9p. Pdf
Mantle
perovskite
Abstract: The thermal conductivity of post-perovskite (ppv), the highest-pressure polymorph of MgSiO3 in the Earth's mantle, is one of the most important transport properties for providing better constraints on the temperature profile and dynamics at the core-mantle boundary (CMB). Incorporation of Fe into ppv can affect its conductivity, which has never been experimentally investigated. Here we determined the lattice thermal conductivities of ppv containing 3 mol% and 10 mol% of Fe at high P-T conditions - of pressures up to 149 GPa and 177 GPa, respectively, and temperatures up to 1560 K - by means of the recently developed pulsed light heating thermoreflectance technique combining continuous wave heating lasers. We found that the incorporation of Fe into ppv moderately reduces its lattice thermal conductivity as it increases the Fe content. The bulk conductivity of ppv dominant pyrolite is estimated as 1.5 times higher than that of pyrolite consisting of bridgmanite and ferropericlase in the lower mantle, which agrees with the traditional view that ppv acts as a better heat conductor than bridgmanite in the Earth's lowermost mantle.
Abstract: Volcanic hotspot tracks featuring linear progressions in the age of volcanism are typical surface expressions of plate tectonic movement on top of narrow plumes of hot material within Earth’s mantle1. Seismic imaging reveals that these plumes can be of deep origin2=probably rooted on thermochemical structures in the lower mantle3, 4, 5, 6. Although palaeomagnetic and radiometric age data suggest that mantle flow can advect plume conduits laterally7, 8, the flow dynamics underlying the formation of the sharp bend occurring only in the Hawaiian-Emperor hotspot track in the Pacific Ocean remains enigmatic. Here we present palaeogeographically constrained numerical models of thermochemical convection and demonstrate that flow in the deep lower mantle under the north Pacific was anomalously vigorous between 100 million years ago and 50 million years ago as a consequence of long-lasting subduction systems, unlike those in the south Pacific. These models show a sharp bend in the Hawaiian-Emperor hotspot track arising from the interplay of plume tilt and the lateral advection of plume sources. The different trajectories of the Hawaiian and Louisville hotspot tracks arise from asymmetric deformation of thermochemical structures under the Pacific between 100 million years ago and 50 million years ago. This asymmetric deformation waned just before the Hawaiian-Emperor bend developed, owing to flow in the deepest lower mantle associated with slab descent in the north and south Pacific.
Abstract: Volcanic hotspot tracks featuring linear progressions in the age of volcanism are typical surface expressions of plate tectonic movement on top of narrow plumes of hot material within Earth’s mantle1. Seismic imaging reveals that these plumes can be of deep origin2—probably rooted on thermochemical structures in the lower mantle3, 4, 5, 6. Although palaeomagnetic and radiometric age data suggest that mantle flow can advect plume conduits laterally7, 8, the flow dynamics underlying the formation of the sharp bend occurring only in the Hawaiian–Emperor hotspot track in the Pacific Ocean remains enigmatic. Here we present palaeogeographically constrained numerical models of thermochemical convection and demonstrate that flow in the deep lower mantle under the north Pacific was anomalously vigorous between 100 million years ago and 50 million years ago as a consequence of long-lasting subduction systems, unlike those in the south Pacific. These models show a sharp bend in the Hawaiian–Emperor hotspot track arising from the interplay of plume tilt and the lateral advection of plume sources. The different trajectories of the Hawaiian and Louisville hotspot tracks arise from asymmetric deformation of thermochemical structures under the Pacific between 100 million years ago and 50 million years ago. This asymmetric deformation waned just before the Hawaiian–Emperor bend developed, owing to flow in the deepest lower mantle associated with slab descent in the north and south Pacific.
Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, Vol. 306, 106509, 18p. Pdf
Mantle
geothermometry
Abstract: Thermal structure of the lithosphere exerts a primary control on its strength and density and thereby its dynamic evolution as the outer thermal and mechanic boundary layer of the convecting mantle. This contribution focuses on continental lithosphere. We review constraints on thermal conductivity and heat production, geophysical and geochemical/petrological constraints on thermal structure of the continental lithosphere, as well as steady-state and non-steady state 1D thermal models and their applicability. Commonly used geotherm families that assume that crustal heat production contributes an approximately constant fraction of 25-40% to surface heat flow reproduce the global spread of temperatures and thermal thicknesses of the lithosphere below continents. However, we find that global variations in seismic thickness of continental lithosphere and seismically estimated variations in Moho temperature below the US are more compatible with models where upper crustal heat production is 2-3 times higher than lower crustal heat production (consistent with rock estimates) and the contribution of effective crustal heat production to thermal structure (i.e. estimated by describing thermal structure with steady-state geotherms) varies systematically from 40 to 60% in tectonically stable low surface heat flow regions to 20% or lower in higher heat flow tectonically active regions. The low effective heat production in tectonically active regions is likely partly the expression of a non-steady thermal state and advective heat transport.
Abstract: Igneous and metamorphic rocks contain the mineralogical and geochemical record of thermally driven processes on Earth. The generally accepted thermal budget of the mantle indicates a steady cooling trend since the Archean. The geological record, however, indicates this simple cooling model may not hold true. Subduction-related eclogites substantially emerge in the rock record from 2.1 Ga to 1.8 Ga, indicating that average mantle thermal conditions cooled below a critical threshold for widespread eclogite preservation. Following this period, eclogite disappeared again until ca. 1.1 Ga. Coincident with the transient emergence of eclogite, global granite chemistry recorded a decrease in Sr and Eu and increases in yttrium and heavy rare earth element (HREE) concentrations. These changes are most simply explained by warming of the thermal regime associated with granite genesis. We suggest that warming was caused by increased continental insulation of the mantle at this time. Ultimately, secular cooling of the mantle overcame insulation, allowing the second emergence and preservation of eclogite from ca. 1.1 Ga until present.
Abstract: The growth and recycling of continental crust has resulted in the chemical and thermal modification of Earth's mantle, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere for ?4.0 b.y. However, knowledge of the protolith that gave rise to the first continents and whether the environment of formation was a subduction zone still remains unknown. Here, tonalite melts are formed in high P-T experiments in which primitive oceanic plateau starting material is used as an analogue for Eoarchean (3.6-4.0 Ga) oceanic crust generated at early spreading centers. The tonalites are produced at 1.6-2.2 GPa and 900-950 °C and are mixed with slab-derived aqueous fluids to generate melts that have compositions identical to that of Eoarchean continental crust. Our data support the idea that the first continents formed at ca. 4 Ga and subsequently, through the subduction and partial melting of ?30-45-km-thick Eoarchean oceanic crust, modified Earth's mantle and Eoarchean environments and ecosystems.
Abstract: Lamprophyres represent hydrous alkaline mantle melts that are a unique source of information about the composition of continental lithosphere. Throughout southwest Britain, post-Variscan lamprophyres are (ultra)potassic with strong incompatible element enrichments. Here we show that they form two distinct groups in terms of their Sr and Nd isotopic compositions, occurring on either side of a postulated, hitherto unrecognized terrane boundary. Lamprophyres emplaced north of the boundary fall on the mantle array with ?Nd ?1 to +1.6. Those south of the boundary are enriched in radiogenic Sr, have initial ?Nd values of ?0.3 to ?3.5, and are isotopically indistinguishable from similar-aged lamprophyres in Armorican massifs in Europe. We conclude that an Armorican terrane was juxtaposed against Avalonia well before the closure of the Variscan oceans and the formation of Pangea. The giant Cornubian Tin-Tungsten Ore Province and associated batholith can be accounted for by the fertility of Armorican lower crust and mantle lithosphere.
Alleghanian (Appalachian) Orogeny, a product of zipper tectonics: rotational transpressive continent continent collision and closing of ancient oceans along irregula
Geological Society of America Special Paper, No. 364, pp. 199-208.
Geological Society of America Special Paper, No. 514, pp. SPE514-08.
Mantle
Hotspots
Abstract: Thorne et al. (2004), Torsvik et al. (2010; 2006) and Burke et al. (2008) have suggested that the locations of melting anomalies ("hot spots") and the original locations of large igneous provinces ("LIPs") and kimberlite pipes, lie preferentially above the margins of two "large lower-mantle shear velocity provinces", or LLSVPs, near the bottom of the mantle, and that the geographical correlations have high confidence levels (> 99.9999%) (Burke et al., 2008, Fig. 5). They conclude that the LLSVP margins are "Plume-Generation Zones", and that deep-mantle plumes cause hot spots, LIPs, and kimberlites. This conclusion raises questions about what physical processes could be responsible, because, for example, the LLSVPs are apparently dense and not abnormally hot (Trampert et al., 2004). The supposed LIP-hot spot-LLSVP correlations probably are examples of the "Hindsight Heresy" (Acton, 1959), of performing a statistical test using the same data sample that led to the initial formulation of a hypothesis. In this process, an analyst will consider and reject many competing hypotheses, but will not adjust statistical assessments correspondingly. Furthermore, an analyst will test extreme deviations of the data, , but not take this fact into account. "Hindsight heresy" errors are particularly problematical in Earth science, where it often is impossible to conduct controlled experiments. For random locations on the globe, the number of points within a specified distance of a given curve follows a cumulative binomial distribution. We use this fact to test the statistical significance of the observed hot spot-LLSVP correlation using several hot-spot catalogs and mantle models. The results indicate that the actual confidence levels of the correlations are two or three orders of magnitude smaller than claimed. The tests also show that hot spots correlate well with presumably shallowly rooted features such as spreading plate boundaries. Nevertheless, the correlations are significant at confidence levels in excess of 99%. But this is confidence that the null hypothesis of random coincidence is wrong. It is not confidence about what hypothesis is correct. The correlations probably are symptoms of as-yet-unidentified processes.
Lithospheric structure, evolution and diamond prospectivity of the Rehoboth Terrane and western Kaapvaal Craton, southern Africa: constraints from broadband
Maier, W.D., Peltonen, P., McDonald, I., Barnes, S.J., Barnes, S-J., Hatton, C., Viljoen, F.
The concentration of platinum group elements and gold in southern African and Karelian kimberlite hosted mantle xenoliths: implications for the noble metal content of the Earth's mantle.
The eminent eight. IKC and history of conference and the prominent delegates ( ones who initiated the idea and followed through attending all 10 conferences to date).
Abstract: Fluorine (50-650 ppm), bromine (0.03-0.3 ppm), iodine (0.03-0.4 ppm), boron (20-100 ppm) and nitrogen (5-45 ppm) concentrations are elevated in antigorite-serpentinites associated with the Tso Morari ultrahigh-pressure unit (Himalayas) exhumed from >100 km depth in the mantle wedge. These fluid-mobile elements are likely released with fluids from subducted marine sediments on the Indian continental margin to hydrate overlying forearc serpentinites at shallow depths. Of these, F and B appear to remain in serpentinites during the lizardite-antigorite transition. Our results demonstrate serpentinites as transient reservoirs of halogens, B, and N to at least 100 km depth in the mantle wedge, and likely deeper in colder slabs, providing a mechanism for their transport to the deeper mantle.
Abstract: Serpentinized oceanic mantle lithosphere is considered an important carrier of water and fluid-mobile elements, including halogens, into subduction zones. Seafloor serpentinite compositions indicate Cl, Br and I are sourced from seawater and sedimentary pore fluids, while F may be derived from hydrothermal fluids. Overall, the heavy halogens are expelled from serpentinites during the lizardite-antigorite transition. Fluorine, on the other hand, appears to be retained or may be introduced from dehydrating sediments and/or igneous rocks during early subduction. Mass balance calculations indicate nearly all subducted F is kept in the subducting slab to ultrahigh-pressure conditions. Despite a loss of Cl, Br and I from serpentinites (and other lithologies) during early subduction, up to 15% of these elements are also retained in the deep slab. Based on a conservative estimate for serpentinite thickness of the metamorphosed slab (500 m), antigorite serpentinites comprise 37% of this residual Cl, 56% of Br and 50% of I, therefore making an important contribution to the transport of these elements to the deep mantle.
Sader, J.S., Hamilton, S.M., Hattori, K.H., Braundedr, K.
Project unit: 07-32. Surface media geochemical sampling at the Victor kimberlite region, northern Ontario and the Kirkland Lake region northeastern Ontario.
Ontario Geological Survey Open File, No. 6213, pp. 19-1-6.
Earth and Planteray Science Letters, Vol. 487, pp. 1-17.
Mantle
Core
Abstract: The conventional view of Earth's inner core is that it began to crystallize at Earth's center when the temperature dropped below the melting point of the iron alloy and has grown steadily since that time as the core continued to cool. However, this model neglects the energy barrier to the formation of the first stable crystal nucleus, which is commonly represented in terms of the critical supercooling required to overcome the barrier. Using constraints from experiments, simulations, and theory, we show that spontaneous crystallization in a homogeneous liquid iron alloy at Earth's core pressures requires a critical supercooling of order 1000 K, which is too large to be a plausible mechanism for the origin of Earth's inner core. We consider mechanisms that can lower the nucleation barrier substantially. Each has caveats, yet the inner core exists: this is the nucleation paradox. Heterogeneous nucleation on a solid metallic substrate tends to have a low energy barrier and offers the most straightforward solution to the paradox, but solid metal would probably have to be delivered from the mantle and such events are unlikely to have been common. A delay in nucleation, whether due to a substantial nucleation energy barrier, or late introduction of a low energy substrate, would lead to an initial phase of rapid inner core growth from a supercooled state. Such rapid growth may lead to distinctive crystallization texturing that might be observable seismically. It would also generate a spike in chemical and thermal buoyancy that could affect the geomagnetic field significantly. Solid metal introduced to Earth's center before it reached saturation could also provide a nucleation substrate, if large enough to escape complete dissolution. Inner core growth, in this case, could begin earlier and start more slowly than standard thermal models predict.
Abstract: The ~545 Ma-old syn-collisional Otjimbingwe alkaline complex is composed of pyroxene-amphibole-biotite-bearing, mildly nepheline-normative to quartz-normative rocks ranging in composition from monzogabbro to monzonite, syenite and granite. The alkaline rocks have moderate to high SiO2 (50.5-73.0 wt%) and Na2O + K2O (5.1-11.5 wt%) and moderate to low MgO (6.6-0.2 wt%) concentrations. All samples have high large ion lithophile element (LILE: Ba up to 4600 ppm) and high-field-strength element contents (HFSE; Zr: 155-1328 ppm; Nb: 16-110 ppm; Ta: 1.4-7.1 ppm and Hf: 4-24 ppm) and have strongly fractionated LREE patterns ((La/Yb)N = 14-51). The most primitive members lack significant negative Eu anomalies. Mantle-normalized multi-element diagrams show depletion in Ba, Rb, Nb (Ta), P and Ti. The alkaline rocks have moderate radiogenic initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.7061-0.7087) and unradiogenic initial ?Nd values (?3.9 to ?6.1). This isotope signature, associated with high LREE/HFSE ratios indicates that the parental melts were generated in enriched portions of the shallow lithospheric mantle, which was probably affected by previous subduction zone processes. In addition, correlations between Sr and Nd isotopes indicate that some of these variations result from combined crustal assimilation and fractional crystallization (AFC) processes. A new model of flat subduction is presented that explains most of the unsolved problems in the orogenic evolution of the Damara orogen, namely (i) the absence of early intrusive rocks with a clear subduction zone setting, (ii) the absence of high-pressure rocks such as blueschists and eclogites, (iii) the unusual distribution of igneous rocks with a clear predominance of granite and granodiorite and (iv) the need for a asthenospheric window during a classical subduction to explain the high T/moderate P granulite facies conditions in the overriding plate.
Abstract: The ~545 Ma-old syn-collisional Otjimbingwe alkaline complex is composed of pyroxene-amphibole-biotite-bearing, mildly nepheline-normative to quartz-normative rocks ranging in composition from monzogabbro to monzonite, syenite and granite. The alkaline rocks have moderate to high SiO2 (50.5-73.0 wt%) and Na2O + K2O (5.1-11.5 wt%) and moderate to low MgO (6.6-0.2 wt%) concentrations. All samples have high large ion lithophile element (LILE: Ba up to 4600 ppm) and high-field-strength element contents (HFSE; Zr: 155-1328 ppm; Nb: 16-110 ppm; Ta: 1.4-7.1 ppm and Hf: 4-24 ppm) and have strongly fractionated LREE patterns ((La/Yb)N = 14-51). The most primitive members lack significant negative Eu anomalies. Mantle-normalized multi-element diagrams show depletion in Ba, Rb, Nb (Ta), P and Ti. The alkaline rocks have moderate radiogenic initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.7061-0.7087) and unradiogenic initial ?Nd values (?3.9 to ?6.1). This isotope signature, associated with high LREE/HFSE ratios indicates that the parental melts were generated in enriched portions of the shallow lithospheric mantle, which was probably affected by previous subduction zone processes. In addition, correlations between Sr and Nd isotopes indicate that some of these variations result from combined crustal assimilation and fractional crystallization (AFC) processes. A new model of flat subduction is presented that explains most of the unsolved problems in the orogenic evolution of the Damara orogen, namely (i) the absence of early intrusive rocks with a clear subduction zone setting, (ii) the absence of high-pressure rocks such as blueschists and eclogites, (iii) the unusual distribution of igneous rocks with a clear predominance of granite and granodiorite and (iv) the need for a asthenospheric window during a classical subduction to explain the high T/moderate P granulite facies conditions in the overriding plate.
Graphical abstract
Abstract: Oceanic basalts reflect the heterogeneities in the earth's mantle, which can be explained by five mantle end members. The HIMU end member, characterized by high time-integrated ? (238U/204Pb), is defined by the composition of lavas from the ocean islands of St. Helena, South Atlantic Ocean and Mangaia and Tubuai (Cook-Austral Islands), South Pacific Ocean. It is widely considered to be derived from a mantle reservoir that is rarely sampled and not generally involved in mixing with the other mantle components. On the other hand, the FOZO end member, located at the FOcal ZOne of oceanic volcanic rock arrays on isotope diagrams, is considered to be a widespread common component with slightly less radiogenic 206Pb/204Pb and intermediate Sr-Nd-Hf isotopic compositions. Here we present new major and trace element, Sr-Nd-Pb-Hf isotope and geochronological data from the Walvis Ridge and Richardson Seamount in the South Atlantic Ocean and the Manihiki Plateau and Eastern Chatham Rise in the southwest Pacific Ocean. Our new data, combined with literature data, document a more widespread (nearly global) distribution of the HIMU end member than previously postulated. Our survey shows that HIMU is generally associated with low-volume alkaline, carbonatitic and/or kimberlitic intraplate volcanism, consistent with derivation from low degrees of melting of CO2-rich sources. The majority of end member HIMU locations can be directly related to hotspot settings. The restricted trace element and isotopic composition (St. Helena type HIMU), but near-global distribution, point to a deep-seated, widespread reservoir, which most likely formed in the Archean. In this context we re-evaluate the origin of a widespread HIMU reservoir in an Archean geodynamic setting. We point out that the classic ocean crust recycling model cannot be applied in a plume-lid dominated tectonic setting, and instead propose that delamination of carbonatite-metasomatized subcontinental lithospheric mantle could be a suitable HIMU source.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 510, pp. 161-172.
Mantle
Magmatism
Abstract: Tabular intrusions are common features in the Earth's brittle crust. They exhibit a broad variety of shapes, ranging from thin sheet intrusions (sills, saucer-shaped sills, cone sheets), to more massive intrusions (domed and punched laccoliths, stocks). Such a diversity of intrusion shapes reflects different emplacement mechanisms caused by contrasting host rock and magma rheologies. Most current models of tabular intrusion emplacement assume that the host rock behaves purely elastically, whereas numerous observations show that shear failure plays a major role. In this study, we investigate the effects of the host rock's Coulomb properties on magma emplacement by integrating (1) laboratory models using dry Coulomb granular model hosts of variable strength (cohesion) and (2) limit analysis numerical models. Our results show that both sheet and massive tabular intrusions initiate as a sill, which triggers shear failure of its overburden along an inclined shear damage zone at a critical sill radius, which depends on the emplacement depth and the overburden's cohesion. Two scenarios are then possible: (1) if the cohesion of the overburden is significant, opening of a planar fracture along the precursory weakened shear damage zones to accommodate magma flow, leads to the formation of inclined sheets, or (2) if the cohesion of the overburden is negligible, the sill inflates and lifts up the overburden, which is dissected by several faults that control the growth of a massive intrusion. Finally, we derive a theoretical scaling that predicts the thickness-to-radius aspect ratios of the laboratory sheet intrusions. This theoretical prediction shows how sheet intrusion morphologies are controlled by a mechanical equilibrium between the flowing viscous magma and Coulomb shear failure of the overburden. Our study suggests that the emplacement of sheet and massive tabular intrusions are parts of the same mechanical regime, in which the Coulomb behavior of the Earth's brittle crust plays an essential role.
Abstract: Komatiitic magmatism is a characteristic feature of Archean cratons, diagnostic of the addition of juvenile crust, and a clue to the thermal evolution of early Earth lithosphere. The Slave craton in northwest Canada contains >20 greenstone belts but no identified komatiite. The reason for this dearth of komatiite, when compared to other Archean cratons, remains enigmatic. The Central Slave Cover Group (ca. 2.85 Ga) includes fuchsitic quartzite with relict detrital chromite grains in heavy-mineral laminations. Major and platinum group element systematics indicate that the chromites were derived from Al-undepleted komatiitic dunites. The chromites have low 187Os/188Os ratios relative to chondrite with a narrow range of rhenium depletion ages at 3.19 ± 0.12 Ga. While these ages overlap a documented crust formation event, they identify an unrecognized addition of juvenile crust that is not preserved in the bedrock exposures or the zircon isotopic data. The documentation of komatiitic magmatism via detrital chromites indicates a region of thin lithospheric mantle at ca. 3.2 Ga, either within or at the edge of the protocratonic nucleus. This study demonstrates the applicability of detrital chromites in provenance studies, augmenting the record supplied by detrital zircons.
Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research, in press available, 21p.
Asia, Mongolia
olivine
Abstract: A new olivine reference material - MongOL Sh11?2 - for in situ analysis has been prepared from the central portion of a large (20 × 20 × 10 cm) mantle peridotite xenolith from a ~ 0.5 My old basaltic breccia at Shavaryn?Tsaram, Tariat region, central Mongolia. The xenolith is a fertile mantle lherzolite with minimal signs of alteration. Approximately 10 g of 0.5-2 mm gem quality olivine fragments were separated under binocular microscope and analysed by EPMA, LA?ICP?MS, SIMS and bulk analytical methods (ID?ICP?MS for Mg and Fe, XRF, ICP?MS) for major, minor and trace elements at six institutions world?wide. The results show that the olivine fragments are sufficiently homogeneous with respect to major (Mg, Fe, Si), minor and trace elements. Significant inhomogeneity was revealed only for phosphorus (homogeneity index of 12.4), whereas Li, Na, Al, Sc, Ti and Cr show minor inhomogeneity (homogeneity index of 1-2). The presence of some mineral and fluid?melt micro?inclusions may be responsible for the inconsistency in mass fractions obtained by in situ and bulk analytical methods for Al, Cu, Sr, Zr, Ga, Dy and Ho. Here we report reference and information values for twenty?seven major, minor and trace elements.
Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, Vol. 398, 106872 17p. Pdf
United States, Hawaii
melting
Abstract: The syneruptive decompression rate of basaltic magma in volcanic conduits is thought to be a critical control on eruptive vigor. Recent efforts have constrained decompression rates using models of diffusive water loss from melt embayments (Lloyd et al. 2014; Ferguson et al. 2016), olivine-hosted melt inclusions (Chen et al. 2013; Le Voyer et al. 2014), and clinopyroxene phenocrysts (Lloyd et al. 2016). However, these techniques are difficult to apply because of the rarity of melt embayments and clinopyroxene phenocrysts suitable for analysis and the complexities associated with modeling water loss from melt inclusions. We are developing a new magma ascent chronometer based on syneruptive diffusive water loss from olivine phenocrysts. We have found water zonation in every olivine phenocryst we have measured, from explosive eruptions of Pavlof, Seguam, Fuego, Cerro Negro and Kilauea volcanoes. Phenocrysts were polished to expose a central plane normal to the crystallographic `b' axis and volatile concentration profiles were measured along `a' and `c' axes by SIMS or nanoSIMS. Profiles are compared to 1D and 3D finite-element models of diffusive water loss from olivine, with or without melt inclusions, whose boundaries are in equilibrium with a melt undergoing closed-system degassing. In every case, we observe faster water diffusion along the `a' axis, consistent with the diffusion anisotropy observed by Kohlstedt and Mackwell (1998) for the so-called `proton-polaron' mechanism of H-transport. Water concentration gradients along `a' match the 1D diffusion model with a diffusivity of 10-10 m2/s (see Plank et al., this meeting), olivine-melt partition coefficient of 0.0007-0.002 (based on melt inclusion-olivine pairs), and decompression rates equal to the best-fit values from melt embayment studies (Lloyd et al. 2014; Ferguson et al. 2016). Agreement between the melt embayment and water-in-olivine ascent chronometers at Fuego, Seguam, and Kilauea Iki demonstrates the potential of this new technique, which can be applied to any olivine-bearing mafic-intermediate eruption using common analytical tools (SIMS and FTIR). In theory, each crystal is a clock, with the potential to record variable ascent in the conduit, over the course of an eruption, and between eruptions.
Journal of Geophysical Research,, Vol. 120, 12, pp. 8259-8280.
Mantle
Ringwoodite
Abstract: Review of recent mineral physics literature shows consistent trends for the influence of Fe and H2O on the bulk modulus (K0) of wadsleyite and ringwoodite, the major phases of Earth's mantle transition zone (410-660?km). However, there is little consensus on the first pressure derivative, K0??=?(dK/dP)P=0, which ranges from about 4 to >5 across experimental studies and compositions. Here we demonstrate the importance of K0? in evaluating the bulk sound velocity of the transition zone in terms of water content and provide new constraints on the effect of H2O on K0? for wadsleyite and ringwoodite by conducting a comparative compressibility study. In the experiment, multiple crystals of hydrous Fo90 wadsleyite containing 2.0 and 0.25?wt?% H2O were loaded into the same diamond anvil cell, along with hydrous ringwoodite containing 1.4?wt?% H2O. By measuring their pressure-volume evolution simultaneously up to 32?GPa, we constrain the difference in K0? independent of the pressure scale, finding that H2O has no effect on K0?, whereas the effect of H2O on K0 is significant. The fitted K0? values of hydrous wadsleyite (0.25 and 2.0?wt?% H2O) and hydrous ringwoodite (1.4?wt?% H2O) examined in this study were found to be identical within uncertainty, with K0? ~3.7(2). New secondary-ion mass spectrometry measurements of the H2O content of these and previously investigated wadsleyite samples shows the bulk modulus of wadsleyite is reduced by 7.0(5)?GPa/wt?% H2O, independent of Fe content for upper mantle compositions. Because K0? is unaffected by H2O, the reduction of bulk sound velocity in very hydrous regions of transition zone is expected to be on the order of 1.6%, which is potentially detectible in high-resolution, regional seismology studies.
Abstract: Concentrations of H2O, F, Cl, C, P, and S have been measured by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) in experimentally produced peridotite phases (including clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene, olivine, garnet, amphibole, and mica) and coexisting basanitic glasses. Because only two experiments produced glasses on quenching (with the melt phase in others reverting to felt-like crystallite masses) H2O concentrations in melts were also separately determined from mass-balance relationships and by assuming constant H2O/La in melts and starting materials. The resulting values were used to calculate mineral/melt partition coefficients (D values) for H2O [where DH2Ocrystal/melt = (mass fraction of H2O in crystal)/(mass fraction of H2O in melt)] for conditions of 1025-1190 °C and 1.0-3.5 GPa. These gave 0.0064-0.0164 for clinopyroxene, 0.0046-0.0142 for orthopyroxene, 0.0015-0.0016 for olivine, and 0.0016-0.0022 for garnet. Although less information was obtained for the other volatiles, F was found to be significantly more compatible than H2O during peridotite melting, whereas Cl is significantly less compatible. S also has small but appreciable solubilities in amphiboles and micas, but not in pyroxenes or olivine. The solubility of C in silicate minerals appears to be negligible, although C was present in coexisting melts (~0.5 wt% as CO2) and as residual graphite during experiments. The D values for H2O in clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene are positively correlated with ivAl but negatively correlated with the H2O concentrations of melts (when considered as wt%). These relationships are consistent with the broad trends of previously published partitioning data. Although some of the concentration dependence can be related to cross-correlation between ivAl in pyroxenes and H2O concentrations in melts (via the latter’s control of liquidus temperatures) this relationship is too inconsistent to be a complete explanation. A concentration dependence for DH2Omineral/melt can also be independently predicted from speciation models for H2O in silicate melts. Thus it is likely that DH2Opyx/melt is influenced by both ivAl and the absolute concentration of H2O in melts. DH2O/DCe for clinopyroxene is inversely correlated with M2 site radii. Because the latter decrease with increasing pressure and temperature, relatively hot and/or deeply derived melts should be enriched in Ce relative to H2O when compared to melts from cooler and shallower mantle sources. Conversely, melts from H2O-rich settings (e.g., subduction zones) should have higher H2O/Ce than their source rocks. When combined with previously obtained partitioning data for non-volatile elements (from the same experiments), our data are consistent with the enrichment of intraplate basalt sources in both volatile and non-volatile incompatible elements by small-degree melts derived from local mid-ocean ridge basalt sources. In this way, volatiles can be seen to play an active role (via their promotion of partial-melting and metasomatic processes) in the auto-regulation of incompatible element concentrations in the depleted upper mantle.
Abstract: Decompression of hot mantle rock upwelling beneath oceanic spreading centers causes it to exceed the melting point (solidus), producing magmas that ascend to form basaltic crust ~6 to 7 kilometers thick. The oceanic upper mantle contains ~50 to 200 micrograms per gram of water (H2O) dissolved in nominally anhydrous minerals, which -relative to its low concentration-has a disproportionate effect on the solidus that has not been quantified experimentally. Here, we present results from an experimental determination of the peridotite solidus containing known amounts of dissolved hydrogen. Our data reveal that the H2O-undersaturated peridotite solidus is hotter than previously thought. Reconciling geophysical observations of the melting regime beneath the East Pacific Rise with our experimental results requires that existing estimates for the oceanic upper mantle potential temperature be adjusted upward by about 60°C.
Canada, Northwest Territories, Quebec, United States, Colorado
deposit, A54, Lynx, Kelsey Lake
Abstract: Eighteen diamond samples from the A154 South kimberlite pipe (Diavik Mine), Slave Craton, Northwest Territories (Canada); sixteen diamond samples from the Lynx kimberlite dyke, Superior Craton, Quebec (Canada) and twelve diamond samples from the Kelsey Lake kimberlite pipe, Wyoming Craton, Colorado (USA), were cut through the core-zones, polished, imaged by cathodoluminescence (CL), and analyzed by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) for carbon isotope composition and nitrogen abundance. Twenty Kelsey Lake diamond plates, including the twelve crystals analyzed by SIMS, were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) for nitrogen concentration and aggregation state. Diamond samples from Diavik and Kelsey Lake have average ?13CPDB and nitrogen contents (atomic ppm) similar to those found by earlier studies: averaging between ? 3.9‰ and 486 ppm, and ? 7‰ and 308 ppm, respectively. Samples from the Lynx dyke, investigated for the first time, are substantially different, having ?13C = ?1.2‰ and nitrogen content = 32 ppm (averages). All three localities have examples of significant variations in nitrogen content (> 100 ppm) within single stones. Carbon isotope variation within individual stones is relatively minor (< 2‰). In terms of nitrogen aggregation, samples from the Kelsey Lake kimberlite are dominated by zones of Type IaA, but mixed-type and Type IaB (less common) stones also occur. For the majority of samples, overall intra-diamond zonations of nitrogen abundances and carbon isotope ratios are not in agreement with modeled trends for single-event Rayleigh fractionation of diamond from fluid under nitrogen-compatible conditions at 1100 °C. The involvement of fluids from subducted crustal reservoirs with exceptionally light, and in the case of Lynx samples, exceptionally heavy ?13CPDB values is necessary to explain the observed growth histories of all the samples studied here.
IN: Deep carbon: past to present, Orcutt, Daniel, Dasgupta eds., pp. 237-275.
Mantle
carbon
Abstract: This chapter provides a summary of the flux of carbon through various oceanic volcanic centers such as mid-ocean ridges and intraplate settings, as well as what these fluxes indicate about the carbon content of the mantle. By reviewing methods used to measure the carbon geochemistry of basalts and then to estimate fluxes, the chapter provides insight into how mantle melting and melt extraction processes are estimated. The chapter discusses how the flux of carbon compares with other incompatible trace elements and gases. From there, the chapter discusses whether the budget of carbon in the ocean mantle can be explained by primordial carbon or whether carbon recycling is required to balance the budget.
Geocimica et Cosmochimica Acta , Vol. 260, pp. 29-48.
Mantle
melting
Abstract: Carbon content in the Earth's depleted upper mantle has been estimated in previous studies using CO2/Ba ratios of CO2 undersaturated depleted mid-ocean ridge basalt (D-MORB) glasses and melt inclusions. However, CO2/Ba ratios in CO2 undersaturated MORB may not necessarily record those of the mantle source, as they may be affected by (1) assimilation of Ba-rich plagioclase-bearing rocks in the oceanic crust and (2) CO2 degassing through partial degassing and mixing. In this study, we evaluate these effects on the CO2/Ba ratios as well as other volatile to refractory trace element ratios (H2O/Ce, F/Nd, Cl/K, and S/Dy) in D-MORBs using the compositions of olivine-hosted melt inclusions and glasses from the Siqueiros and Garrett transform faults. The Siqueiros and Garrett melt inclusions are CO2 undersaturated and highly depleted in incompatible trace elements, and their average CO2/Ba ratios show relatively large ranges of 90?±?34 and 144?±?53 respectively. A subset of melt inclusions in lavas from both transform faults show potential signatures of contamination by plagioclase-rich rocks, such as correlations between major elements contents (e.g., FeO, Al2O3, and MgO), and trace element ratios (e.g., Sr/Nd). We find that (1) assimilation fractional crystallization (AFC) of gabbro into D-MORB and (2) mixing between partial melts of gabbro and D-MORB can reproduce the observed range in Sr/Nd ratios as well as the general trends between major elements. However, we find that these processes had limited effects on the CO2/Ba ratio of the melt inclusions and it is unlikely that they can account for the observed range in the CO2/Ba ratio. On the other hand, while a partial degassing and mixing model can generate melts with large range of CO2/Ba ratios (as proposed by Matthews et al. (2017)), it cannot reproduce the Pearson correlation coefficients between CO2/trace element and 1/trace element ratios observed in the Siqueiros and Garrett melt inclusions. Instead, when analytical uncertainties on the elemental concentrations are considered, a model without partial degassing can adequately reproduce the majority of the observed range in CO2/Ba ratio and Pearson correlation coefficients. Hence, we postulate that the Siqueiros and Garrett melt inclusions are undegassed and use their average CO2/Ba ratios to estimate the Siqueiros and Garrett mantle source CO2 contents (21?±?2?ppm and 33?±?6?ppm respectively). We also evaluate the effects of shallow level crustal processes on H2O/Ce, F/Nd, Cl/K, and S/Dy ratios, and after which we filter those effects, we estimate the H2O, F, Cl and S contents in the mantle sources of the Siqueiros (40?±?8?ppm, 8?±?1?ppm, 0.22?±?0.04?ppm, and 113?±?3?ppm) and Garrett (51?±?9?ppm, 6?±?1?ppm, 0.27?±?0.07?ppm, and 128?±?7?ppm) melt inclusions.
IN: Deep carbon: past to present, Orcutt, Daniel, Dasgupta eds., pp. 89-128.
Mantle
geodynamics
Abstract: The science of studying diamond inclusions for understanding Earth history has developed significantly over the past decades, with new instrumentation and techniques applied to diamond sample archives revealing the stories contained within diamond inclusions. This chapter reviews what diamonds can tell us about the deep carbon cycle over the course of Earth’s history. It reviews how the geochemistry of diamonds and their inclusions inform us about the deep carbon cycle, the origin of the diamonds in Earth’s mantle, and the evolution of diamonds through time.
IN: Deep Carbon: past to present. Editors Orcutt, Danielle, Dasgupta, pp. 89-128.
Mantle
geodynamics
Abstract: The science of studying diamond inclusions for understanding Earth history has developed significantly over the past decades, with new instrumentation and techniques applied to diamond sample archives revealing the stories contained within diamond inclusions. This chapter reviews what diamonds can tell us about the deep carbon cycle over the course of Earth’s history. It reviews how the geochemistry of diamonds and their inclusions inform us about the deep carbon cycle, the origin of the diamonds in Earth’s mantle, and the evolution of diamonds through time.
Abstract: Xenoliths play a crucial role in interpretation of mantle deformation and geochemistry. The classic work of Mercier and Nicolas (1975) introduced the concept of the peridotite deformation cycle, which connected observed microstructures to a physical sequence of deformation. We revisit Mercier and Nicolas' original concept, bringing in new constraints using large area EBSD maps and associated microstructural datasets, analysis of water contents in nominally anhydrous minerals, and trace element chemistry of pyroxenes and garnets. We apply these techniques to a well-characterized suite of peridotite xenoliths from the Eocene-age Homestead and Williams kimberlites in the northwestern Wyoming Craton. Pyroxene water content and trace element mineral chemistries reveal ubiquitous hydrous metasomatism beneath the craton, most likely linked to the Cenozoic Laramide Orogeny. Homestead xenoliths primarily exhibit coarse protogranular and equigranular textures, B-type olivine fabrics, and generally elevated mineral water contents compared to Williams. Xenoliths from Williams are strongly deformed, with porphyroclastic and transitional textures containing annealed olivine tablets, mostly A-type olivine fabrics, and generally lower mineral water contents. As a whole, mantle from Homestead to Williams reflects a cratonic scale deformation cycle that likely initiated in Laramide times and lasted until the end of orogeny in the Eocene. At Williams, evidence for a rapid deformation “sub-cycle” within the main deformation cycle is preserved in the tablet-bearing xenoliths, corresponding to the enigmatic “transitional” texture of Mercier and Nicolas (1975). Our results suggest that this texture reflects interruption of the main deformation cycle by processes possibly related to a rapidly forming lithospheric instability and generation of the kimberlite magma - offering a new interpretation of this ambiguous peridotite texture. Collectively, our results incorporate typically disparate geochemical and textural datasets on xenoliths to shed new insights into how metasomatism, volatiles, and deformation are connected in the deep cratonic lithosphere.
Temporal distribution of the ultramafic-alkalic and alkalic rocks withIn the Russian, Siberian and North American ancient platforms and theirsurroundings
Geological Survey of Wyoming Open File Report, No. 89-9, 33p
Diamonds, kimberlites and lamproites in the Wyoming Craton, Western USA
Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME)/American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers (AIME) PHoenix, Arizona, March 14th., p. 49. Abstract
Layered Proterozoic rocks and a Proterozoic angular unconformity beneath the U.S. midcontinent on Cocorp and reprocessed industry seismic reflectiondata
Geological Society of America Annual Meeting Abstract Volume, Vol. 23, No. 5, San Diego, p. A 315
Hauser, N., Matteini, M., Omarini, R.H., Pimentel, M.M.
Constraints on metasomatized mantle under central South America: evidence from Jurassic alkaline lamprophyre dykes from the eastern Cordillera, NM Argentina.
Chemie der Erde, doi.org/10.1016/j ,chemer.2018.09.002 30MB
South America, Brazil
meteorite
Abstract: In the first part of this review of the impact record of South America, we have presented an up-to-date introduction to impact processes and to the criteria to identify/confirm an impact structure and related deposits, as well as a comprehensive examination of Brazilian impact structures. The current paper complements the previous one, by reviewing the impact record of other countries of South America and providing current information on a number of proposed impact structures. Here, we also review those structures that have already been discarded as not being formed by meteorite impact. In addition, current information on impact-related deposits is presented, focusing on impact glasses and tektites known from this continent, as well as on the rare K-Pg boundary occurrences revealed to date and on reports of possible large airbursts. We expect that this article will not only provide systematic and up-to-date information on the subject, but also encourage members of the South American geoscientific community to be aware of the importance of impact cratering and make use of the criteria and tools to identify impact structures and impact deposits, thus potentially contributing to expansion and improvement of the South American impact record.
Abstract: In the first part of this review of the impact record of South America, we have presented an up-to-date introduction to impact processes and to the criteria to identify/confirm an impact structure and related deposits, as well as a comprehensive examination of Brazilian impact structures. The current paper complements the previous one, by reviewing the impact record of other countries of South America and providing current information on a number of proposed impact structures. Here, we also review those structures that have already been discarded as not being formed by meteorite impact. In addition, current information on impact-related deposits is presented, focusing on impact glasses and tektites known from this continent, as well as on the rare K-Pg boundary occurrences revealed to date and on reports of possible large airbursts. We expect that this article will not only provide systematic and up-to-date information on the subject, but also encourage members of the South American geoscientific community to be aware of the importance of impact cratering and make use of the criteria and tools to identify impact structures and impact deposits, thus potentially contributing to expansion and improvement of the South American impact record.
Abstract: The Cenozoic East African rift (EAR), Cameroon Volcanic Line (CVL), and Atlas Mountains formed on the slow-moving African continent, which last experienced orogeny during the Pan-African. We synthesize primarily geophysical data to evaluate the role of magmatism in shaping Africa's crust. In young magmatic rift zones, melt and volatiles migrate from the asthenosphere to gas-rich magma reservoirs at the Moho, altering crustal composition and reducing strength. Within the southernmost Eastern rift, the crust comprises ~20% new magmatic material ponded in the lower crust and intruded as sills and dikes at shallower depths. In the Main Ethiopian Rift, intrusions comprise 30% of the crust below axial zones of dike-dominated extension. In the incipient rupture zones of the Afar rift, magma intrusions fed from crustal magma chambers beneath segment centers create new columns of mafic crust, as along slow-spreading ridges. Our comparisons suggest that transitional crust, including seaward dipping sequences, is created as progressively smaller screens of continental crust are heated and weakened by magma intrusion into 15-20 km thick crust. In the 30 Ma Recent CVL, which lacks a hot spot age progression, extensional forces are small, inhibiting the creation and rise of magma into the crust. In the Atlas orogen, localized magmatism follows the strike of the Atlas Mountains from the Canary Islands hot spot toward the Alboran Sea. CVL and Atlas magmatism has had minimal impact on crustal structure. Our syntheses show that magma and volatiles are migrating from the asthenosphere through the plates, modifying rheology, and contributing significantly to global carbon and water fluxes.
Sommer, H., Regenauer Lieb, K., Hauzenberger, C., Gasharova, B.
Rapid uplift of the Jwaneng kimberlite, south Botswana: caused by mantle metasomatism and documented by OH diffusion profiles in garnet from eclogitic xenoliths.
Konzett, J., Wirth, R., Hauzenberger, C., Whitehouse, M.
Two episodes of fluid migration in the Kaapvaal Craton lithospheric mantle associated with Cretaceous kimberlite activity: evidence from a harzburgite containing a unique assemblage of metasomatic zirconium-phases.
Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 112, 5, pp. 603-616.
Europe, Austria
subduction
Abstract: Mafic layers displaying transition between clinopyroxenite and eclogite within peridotite from felsic granulite in the Bohemian Massif (Lower Austria) have been investigated. The mafic-ultramafic bodies shared a common granulite facies metamorphism with its hosting felsic rocks, but they still preserve evidence of eclogite facies metamorphism. The selected mafic layer for this study is represented by garnet with omphacite in the core of coarse-grained clinopyroxene, while fine-grained clinopyroxene in the matrix is diopside. In addition, garnet contains inclusions of omphacite, alkali feldspars, hydrous and other phases with halogens and/or CO2. Textural relations along with compositional zoning in garnet from the clinopyroxenite-eclogite layers favour solid-state recrystallization of the precursor minerals in the inclusions and formation of garnet and omphacite during subduction. Textures and major and trace element distribution in garnet indicate two stages of garnet growth that record eclogite facies and subsequent granulite facies overprint. The possible model explaining the textural and compositional changes of minerals is that the granulite facies overprint occurred after formation and exhumation of the eclogite facies rocks.
Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 115, 19p. Doi.org/101007 /s00710-020- 00723-x pdf
South America, Colombia
REE
Abstract: A multi-methodological study was conducted in order to provide further insight into the structural and compositional complexity of rare earth element (REE) fluorcarbonates, with particular attention to their correct assignment to a mineral species. Polycrystals from La Pita Mine, Municipality de Maripí, Boyacá Department, Colombia, show syntaxic intergrowth of parisite-(Ce) with röntgenite-(Ce) and a phase which is assigned to B3S4 (i.e., bastnäsite-3-synchisite-4; still unnamed) fluorcarbonate. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images reveal well-ordered stacking patterns of two monoclinic polytypes of parisite-(Ce) as well as heavily disordered layer sequences with varying lattice fringe spacings. The crystal structure refinement from single crystal X-ray diffraction data - impeded by twinning, complex stacking patterns, sequential and compositional faults - indicates that the dominant parisite-(Ce) polytype M1 has space group Cc. Parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) show different BSE intensities from high to low. Raman spectroscopic analyses of parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) reveal different intensity ratios of the three symmetric CO3 stretching bands at around 1100 cm?1. We propose to non-destructively differentiate parisite-(Ce) and röntgenite-(Ce) by their 1092 cm?1 / 1081 cm?1 ?1(CO3) band height ratio.
Abstract: A multi-methodological study was conducted in order to provide further insight into the structural and compositional complexity of rare earth element (REE) fluorcarbonates, with particular attention to their correct assignment to a mineral species. Polycrystals from La Pita Mine, Municipality de Maripí, Boyacá Department, Colombia, show syntaxic intergrowth of parisite-(Ce) with röntgenite-(Ce) and a phase which is assigned to B3S4 (i.e., bastnäsite-3-synchisite-4; still unnamed) fluorcarbonate. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) images reveal well-ordered stacking patterns of two monoclinic polytypes of parisite-(Ce) as well as heavily disordered layer sequences with varying lattice fringe spacings. The crystal structure refinement from single crystal X-ray diffraction data - impeded by twinning, complex stacking patterns, sequential and compositional faults - indicates that the dominant parisite-(Ce) polytype M1 has space group Cc. Parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) show different BSE intensities from high to low. Raman spectroscopic analyses of parisite-(Ce), the B3S4 phase and röntgenite-(Ce) reveal different intensity ratios of the three symmetric CO3 stretching bands at around 1100 cm-1. We propose to non-destructively differentiate parisite-(Ce) and röntgenite-(Ce) by their 1092 cm-1 / 1081 cm-1 ?1(CO3) band height ratio.
A structural analysis of the geophysical signature relationship between linear features and plug like bodies of sheets 2229AB and 2229AD in the Limpopo province, South Africa.
Abstract: The Earth's mantle has provided a ready redox gradient of sulfur compounds (SO2, H2S) since the stabilization of the crust and formation of the ocean over 4 billion years ago, and life has evolved a multitude of metabolic pathways to take advantage of this gradient. These transitions are recorded in the sulfur and carbon isotope signals preserved in the rock record, in the genomic records of extant microorganisms, and in the changing mantle and crust structure, composition and cycling. Here, we have assembled approximately 20,000 sulfur (?34S, ?33S, ?36S) and carbon (?13C) isotope data points from scientific publications spanning over five decades of geochemical analyses on rocks deposited from 4.0 to 1.5 Ga. We place these data in the context of molecular clock and tectonic and surface redox indicators to identify overarching trends and integrate them into a holistic narrative on the transition of the Earth's surface towards more oxidizing conditions. The greatest extreme in ?34S values of sulfide minerals (? 45.5 to 54.9‰) and sulfate minerals (? 13.6 to 46.6‰) as well as ?13C values in carbonate minerals (? 16.8 to 29.6‰) occurred in the period following the Great Oxidation Event (GOE), while the greatest extremes in organic carbon ?13C values (? 60.9 to 2.4‰) and sulfide and sulfate mineral ?33S and ?36S values (? 4.0 to 14.3‰ and ? 12.3 to 3.2‰, respectively) occurred prior to the GOE. From our observations, we divide transitions in Earth's history into four periods: Period 1 (4.00 to 2.80 Ga) during which geochemical cycles were initialized, Period 2 (2.80 to 2.45 Ga) during which S and C isotope systems exhibit changes as conditions build up to the GOE, Period 3 (2.45 to 2.00 Ga) encompassing the GOE, and Period 4 (after 2.00 Ga) after which S and C isotopic systems remained relatively constant marking a time of Earth system geochemical quiescence. Using these periods, we link changes in S and C isotopes to molecular clock work to aid in interpreting emerging metabolic functions throughout Earth's history while underscoring the need for better proxies for robust evolutionary analyses. Specifically, results indicate: 1) an early development of sulfide oxidation and dissimilatory sulfite reduction followed by disproportionation and then sulfate reduction to sulfite resulting in a fully biologically mediated sulfur cycle by ~ 3.25 Ga; 2) support for the acetyl coenzyme-A pathway as the most likely earliest form of biologically mediated carbon fixation following methanogenesis; 3) an increasingly redox-stratified ocean in the Neoarchean with largely oxic surface water and euxinic bottom water during the first half of the Paleoproterozoic; and 4) that secular changes in Earth system crustal cycling dynamics and continent formation likely played a key role in driving the timing of the GOE. Finally, based on geochemical data, we suggest that the Paleoproterozoic be divided into a new Era of the Eoproterozoic (from 2.45 to 2.00 Ga) and the Paleoproterozoic (from 2.00 to 1.60 Ga).
Abstract: On Earth, broken, rigid tectonic plates lie atop slowly flowing mantle rock (over millions to billions of years). A basic understanding of the global variation in thickness of this rigid lid provides the foundation to many geodynamical predictions. However, using different techniques to estimate its thickness, for example, seismic wave propagation (acting on timescales of seconds), to the warping of plates under the weight of volcanoes (acting on timescales of millions of years) reveals many inconsistencies. At the heart of these inconsistencies is the fact that rock deforms differently to forces acting on different timescales. At very fast timescales rock deforms like an elastic solid, but at much longer timescales, rock flows. To resolve these inconsistencies, we attempt to coherently tie these disparate observations together to reach a more holistic understanding of plate thickness, accounting for these timescale effects. By incorporating current understanding on rock deformation from laboratory experiments, we demonstrate that on fast timescales (of the seismic waves used to image the Earth's interior), tectonic plates appear significantly thicker than the true thickness at million? to billion?year timescales of plate tectonics. This demonstration involves a new theoretical and conceptual framework for interpreting distinct observations acting on vastly different timescales.
Proceedinds of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 117, 19, 9p. Pdf
United States, Colorado
geothermometry
Abstract: The Great Unconformity marks a major gap in the continental geological record, separating Precambrian basement from Phanerozoic sedimentary rocks. However, the timing, magnitude, spatial heterogeneity, and causes of the erosional event(s) and/or depositional hiatus that lead to its development are unknown. We present field relationships from the 1.07-Ga Pikes Peak batholith in Colorado that constrain the position of Cryogenian and Cambrian paleosurfaces below the Great Unconformity. Tavakaiv sandstone injectites with an age of ?676 ± 26 Ma cut Pikes Peak granite. Injection of quartzose sediment in bulbous bodies indicates near-surface conditions during emplacement. Fractured, weathered wall rock around Tavakaiv bodies and intensely altered basement fragments within unweathered injectites imply still earlier regolith development. These observations provide evidence that the granite was exhumed and resided at the surface prior to sand injection, likely before the 717-Ma Sturtian glaciation for the climate appropriate for regolith formation over an extensive region of the paleolandscape. The 510-Ma Sawatch sandstone directly overlies Tavakaiv-injected Pikes granite and drapes over core stones in Pikes regolith, consistent with limited erosion between 717 and 510 Ma. Zircon (U-Th)/He dates for basement below the Great Unconformity are 975 to 46 Ma and are consistent with exhumation by 717 Ma. Our results provide evidence that most erosion below the Great Unconformity in Colorado occurred before the first Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth and therefore cannot be a product of glacial erosion. We propose that multiple Great Unconformities developed diachronously and represent regional tectonic features rather than a synchronous global phenomenon.
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Vol. 45, pp. 169-198.
Mantle
tectonics
Abstract: The record of the continental lithosphere is patchy and incomplete; no known rock is older than 4.02 Ga, and less than 5% of the rocks preserved are older than 3 Ga. In addition, there is no recognizable mantle lithosphere from before 3 Ga. We infer that there was lithosphere before 3 Ga and that ?3 Ga marks the stabilization of blocks of continental lithosphere that have since survived. This was linked to plate tectonics emerging as the dominant tectonic regime in response to thermal cooling, the development of a more rigid lithosphere, and the recycling of water, which may in turn have facilitated plate tectonics. A number of models, using different approaches, suggest that at 3 Ga the volume of continental crust was ?70% of its present day volume and that this may be a minimum value. The continental crust before 3 Ga was on average more mafic than that generated subsequently, and this pre-3 Ga mafic new crust had fractionated Lu/Hf and Sm/Nd ratios as inferred for the sources of tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite and later granites. The more intermediate composition of new crust generated since 3 Ga is indicated by its higher Rb/Sr ratios. This change in composition was associated with an increase in crustal thickness, which resulted in more emergent crust available for weathering and erosion. This in turn led to an increase in the Sr isotope ratios of seawater and in the drawdown of CO2. Since 3 Ga, the preserved record of the continental crust is marked by global cycles of peaks and troughs of U-Pb crystallization ages, with the peaks of ages appearing to match periods of supercontinent assembly. There is increasing evidence that the peaks of ages represent enhanced preservation of magmatic rocks in periods leading up to and including continental collision in the assembly of supercontinents. These are times of increased crustal growth because more of the crust that is generated is retained within the crust. The rates of generation of continental crust and mantle lithosphere may have remained relatively constant at least since 3 Ga, yet the rates of destruction of continental crust have changed with time. Only relatively small volumes of rock are preserved from before 3 Ga, and so it remains difficult to establish which of these are representative of global processes and the extent to which the rock record before 3 Ga is distorted by particular biases.
Abstract: There is much discussion of the timing of the onset of plate tectonics, yet there is increasing evidence that magma types similar to those from recent within plate and subduction related settings were generated in different areas at broadly similar times in the early Archaean. It may therefore be helpful to consider when plate tectonics became the dominant mechanism associated with the generation of continental crust, rather than just when it started. To do this we discuss the geochemical and mechanical characteristics of the lithosphere in the search to discern differences between Early Archaean and younger tectonic environments. Seismic tomography allows increasingly detailed mapping of the lithosphere, and it provides some evidence that the degree of anisotropy is different in different Archaean terrains. Structural styles also appear to vary from basin and swell, or vertical tectonics, as in the Australia Pilbara and southern Africa, to those with more strongly developed regional fabrics and greater seismic anisotropy, as in North America. These terrains tend to be characterized by inferred within-plate and subduction-related magmatism respectively, and we consider possible links between the degree of crustal and mantle anisotropy and the nature of the magmatic record. At least in some areas, terrains with stronger regional fabrics may be younger than those in which such fabrics are less well developed. A model is developed for the generation and stabilization of continental lithosphere in the Archaean. It seeks to reconcile evidence for hot shallow melting with melt fractions up to 40% to generate residual peridotites now preserved as mantle xenoliths, and the lower degrees of melting required to generate the mafic sources of TTGs (fractionated Lu/Hf and Sm/Nd, and perhaps not Rb/Sr).
Phlogophite in the generation of olivine melilitites from Namaqualand, South Africa and implications for element fractionation processes in the uppermantle.
In: Ore deposits of an evolving Earth, Geological Society of London,, Special Publication no. 393, pp. 9-21.
Global
Tectonics
Abstract: Mineral deposits are heterogeneously distributed in both space and time, with variations reflecting tectonic setting, evolving environmental conditions, as in the atmosphere and hydrosphere, and secular changes in the Earth’s thermal history. The distribution of deposit types whose settings are tied to plate margin processes (e.g. orogenic gold, volcanic-hosted massive sulphide, Mississippi valley type Pb-Zn deposits) correlates well with the supercontinent cycle, whereas deposits related to intra-cratonic settings and mantle-driven igneous events, such as Ni-Cu-PGE deposits, lack a clear association. The episodic distribution of deposits tied to the supercontinent cycle is accentuated by selective preservation and biasing of rock units and events during supercontinent assembly, a process that encases the deposit within the assembled supercontinent and isolates it from subsequent removal and recycling at plate margins.
Abstract: The continental crust is the archive of Earth’s history. Its rock units record events that are heterogeneous in time with distinctive peaks and troughs of ages for igneous crystallization, metamorphism, continental margins, and mineralization. This temporal distribution is argued largely to reflect the different preservation potential of rocks generated in different tectonic settings, rather than fundamental pulses of activity, and the peaks of ages are linked to the timing of supercontinent assembly. Isotopic and elemental data from zircons and whole rock crustal compositions suggest that the overall growth of continental crust (crustal addition from the mantle minus recycling of material to the mantle) has been continuous throughout Earth’s history. A decrease in the rate of crustal growth ca. 3.0 Ga is related to increased recycling associated with the onset of plate tectonics. We recognize five stages of Earth’s evolution: (1) initial accretion and differentiation of the core/mantle system within the first few tens of millions of years; (2) generation of crust in a pre-plate tectonic regime in the period prior to 3.0 Ga; (3) early plate tectonics involving hot subduction with shallow slab breakoff over the period from 3.0 to 1.7 Ga; (4) Earth’s middle age from 1.7 to 0.75 Ga, characterized by environmental, evolutionary, and lithospheric stability; (5) modern cold subduction, which has existed for the past 0.75 b.y. Cycles of supercontinent formation and breakup have operated during the last three stages. This evolving tectonic character has likely been controlled by secular changes in mantle temperature and how that impacts on lithospheric behavior. Crustal volumes, reflecting the interplay of crust generation and recycling, increased until Earth’s middle age, and they may have decreased in the past ~1 b.y.
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Vol. 45, pp. 169-198.
Mantle
Geochronology
Abstract: The record of the continental lithosphere is patchy and incomplete; no known rock is older than 4.02 Ga, and less than 5% of the rocks preserved are older than 3 Ga. In addition, there is no recognizable mantle lithosphere from before 3 Ga. We infer that there was lithosphere before 3 Ga and that ?3 Ga marks the stabilization of blocks of continental lithosphere that have since survived. This was linked to plate tectonics emerging as the dominant tectonic regime in response to thermal cooling, the development of a more rigid lithosphere, and the recycling of water, which may in turn have facilitated plate tectonics. A number of models, using different approaches, suggest that at 3 Ga the volume of continental crust was ?70% of its present-day volume and that this may be a minimum value. The continental crust before 3 Ga was on average more mafic than that generated subsequently, and this pre-3 Ga mafic new crust had fractionated Lu/Hf and Sm/Nd ratios as inferred for the sources of tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite and later granites. The more intermediate composition of new crust generated since 3 Ga is indicated by its higher Rb/Sr ratios. This change in composition was associated with an increase in crustal thickness, which resulted in more emergent crust available for weathering and erosion. This in turn led to an increase in the Sr isotope ratios of seawater and in the drawdown of CO2. Since 3 Ga, the preserved record of the continental crust is marked by global cycles of peaks and troughs of U-Pb crystallization ages, with the peaks of ages appearing to match periods of supercontinent assembly. There is increasing evidence that the peaks of ages represent enhanced preservation of magmatic rocks in periods leading up to and including continental collision in the assembly of supercontinents. These are times of increased crustal growth because more of the crust that is generated is retained within the crust. The rates of generation of continental crust and mantle lithosphere may have remained relatively constant at least since 3 Ga, yet the rates of destruction of continental crust have changed with time. Only relatively small volumes of rock are preserved from before 3 Ga, and so it remains difficult to establish which of these are representative of global processes and the extent to which the rock record before 3 Ga is distorted by particular biases.
Abstract: The oxygen fugacity of the upper mantle is 3-4 orders of magnitude higher than that of the lower mantle and this has been attributed to Fe2 + disproportionating into Fe3 + plus Fe0 at pressures > 24 GPa. The upper mantle might therefore have been expected to have evolved to more oxidizing compositions through geological time, but it appears that the oxygen fugacity of the upper mantle has remained constant for the last 3.5 billion years. Thus, it indicates that the mantle has been actively buffered from the accumulation of Fe3 +, and that this is linked to oxidation of diamond to carbonate coupled with reduction of Fe3 + to Fe2 +. When subducted plates penetrate into the lower mantle, compensational upwelling transports bridgmanite into the transition zone, where it breaks down to ringwoodite and majorite, releasing the ferric iron. The system returns to equilibrium through oxidation of diamond. Early in Earth history, diamond may have been enriched at the base of the transition zone in the Magma Ocean, because it is denser than peridotite melts at depths shallower than 660 km, and it is more buoyant below. Ongoing oxidation of diamond forms carbonate, leading to relatively high carbonate concentrations in the source of ocean island basalts.
Philosophical Transactions Royal Society A, Vol. A376: doi://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2018.0228 5p.
Mantle
plate tectonics
Abstract: "Why does Earth have plate tectonics?" stands among the top research questions in the Earth Sciences. Plate tectonics developed in the last 4 billion years. This meeting will explore the evidence for the development of plate tectonics, contrast the terrestrial record with those from neighbouring planets, evaluate the conditions required for plate tectonics, and discuss implications for environmental conditions and development of the biosphere.
Abstract: Models of the volume of continental crust through Earth history vary significantly due to a range of assumptions and data sets; estimates for 3?Ga range from <10% to >120% of present day volume. We argue that continental area and thickness varied independently and increased at different rates and over different periods, in response to different tectonic processes, through Earth history. Crustal area increased steadily on a pre-plate tectonic Earth, prior to ca. 3?Ga. By 3?Ga the area of continental crust appears to have reached a dynamic equilibrium of around 40% of the Earth's surface, and this was maintained in the plate tectonic world throughout the last 3?billion?years. New continental crust was relatively thin and mafic from ca. 4-3?Ga but started to increase substantially with the inferred onset of plate tectonics at ca. 3?Ga, which also led to the sustained development of Earth's bimodal hypsometry. Integration of thickness and area data suggests continental volume increased from 4.5?Ga to 1.8?Ga, and that it remained relatively constant through Earth's middle age (1.8-0.8?Ga). Since the Neoproterozoic, the estimated crustal thickness, and by implication the volume of the continental crust, appears to have decreased by as much as 15%. This decrease indicates that crust was destroyed more rapidly than it was generated. This is perhaps associated with the commencement of cold subduction, represented by low dT/dP metamorphic assemblages, resulting in higher rates of destruction of the continental crust through increased sediment subduction and subduction erosion.
Philosphical Transactions of the Royal Society, rsta.royalsociety publishing.org 30p. Available
Mantle
tectonics, geochemistry
Abstract: Plate tectonics, involving a globally linked system of lateral motion of rigid surface plates, is a characteristic feature of our planet, but estimates of how long it has been the modus operandi of lithospheric formation and interactions range from the Hadean to the Neoproterozoic. In this paper, we review sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic proxies along with palaeomagnetic data to infer both the development of rigid lithospheric plates and their independent relative motion, and conclude that significant changes in Earth behaviour occurred in the mid- to late Archaean, between 3.2?Ga and 2.5?Ga. These data include: sedimentary rock associations inferred to have accumulated in passive continental margin settings, marking the onset of sea-floor spreading; the oldest foreland basin deposits associated with lithospheric convergence; a change from thin, new continental crust of mafic composition to thicker crust of intermediate composition, increased crustal reworking and the emplacement of potassic and peraluminous granites, indicating stabilization of the lithosphere; replacement of dome and keel structures in granite-greenstone terranes, which relate to vertical tectonics, by linear thrust imbricated belts; the commencement of temporally paired systems of intermediate and high dT/dP gradients, with the former interpreted to represent subduction to collisional settings and the latter representing possible hinterland back-arc settings or ocean plateau environments. Palaeomagnetic data from the Kaapvaal and Pilbara cratons for the interval 2780-2710?Ma and from the Superior, Kaapvaal and Kola-Karelia cratons for 2700-2440?Ma suggest significant relative movements. We consider these changes in the behaviour and character of the lithosphere to be consistent with a gestational transition from a non-plate tectonic mode, arguably with localized subduction, to the onset of sustained plate tectonics.
Philosphical Transactions of the Royal Society, http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1098/rsta .2017.0403 12p. Available
Mantle
plate tectonics
Abstract: Less than 25% of the volume of the juvenile continental crust preserved today is older than 3?Ga, there are no known rocks older than approximately 4?Ga, and yet a number of recent models of continental growth suggest that at least 60-80% of the present volume of the continental crust had been generated by 3?Ga. Such models require that large volumes of pre-3?Ga crust were destroyed and replaced by younger crust since the late Archaean. To address this issue, we evaluate the influence on the rock record of changing the rates of generation and destruction of the continental crust at different times in Earth's history. We adopted a box model approach in a numerical model constrained by the estimated volumes of continental crust at 3?Ga and the present day, and by the distribution of crust formation ages in the present-day crust. The data generated by the model suggest that new continental crust was generated continuously, but with a marked decrease in the net growth rate at approximately 3?Ga resulting in a temporary reduction in the volume of continental crust at that time. Destruction rates increased dramatically around 3 billion years ago, which may be linked to the widespread development of subduction zones. The volume of continental crust may have exceeded its present value by the mid/late Proterozoic. In this model, about 2.6-2.3 times of the present volume of continental crust has been generated since Earth's formation, and approximately 1.6-1.3 times of this volume has been destroyed and recycled back into the mantle.
Abstract: Models of the volume of continental crust through Earth history vary significantly due to a range of assumptions and data sets; estimates for 3?Ga range from <10% to >120% of present day volume. We argue that continental area and thickness varied independently and increased at different rates and over different periods, in response to different tectonic processes, through Earth history. Crustal area increased steadily on a pre-plate tectonic Earth, prior to ca. 3?Ga. By 3?Ga the area of continental crust appears to have reached a dynamic equilibrium of around 40% of the Earth's surface, and this was maintained in the plate tectonic world throughout the last 3?billion?years. New continental crust was relatively thin and mafic from ca. 4-3?Ga but started to increase substantially with the inferred onset of plate tectonics at ca. 3?Ga, which also led to the sustained development of Earth's bimodal hypsometry. Integration of thickness and area data suggests continental volume increased from 4.5?Ga to 1.8?Ga, and that it remained relatively constant through Earth's middle age (1.8-0.8?Ga). Since the Neoproterozoic, the estimated crustal thickness, and by implication the volume of the continental crust, appears to have decreased by as much as 15%. This decrease indicates that crust was destroyed more rapidly than it was generated. This is perhaps associated with the commencement of cold subduction, represented by low dT/dP metamorphic assemblages, resulting in higher rates of destruction of the continental crust through increased sediment subduction and subduction erosion.
Abstract: Carbonatite is a magmatic rock with high carbonate and low silicate contents, which mostly originate in the mantle. It is therefore of critical importance to understand the behavior of carbon in the mantle, and consequently deep carbon recycling. However, the formation of carbonatite is largely unresolved. In particular, the source of carbonatite the carbonate remains obscure. Previous studies showed that the solidus of carbonated mantle peridotite was lower than the Earth’s geotherm in the Archean and the Early Proterozoic era, before ~1.4 Ga ago. Therefore, the mantle should have been severely decarbonated early in Earth’s history. This is consistent with the low carbon abundance in the asthenospheric mantle (~100 ppm), as indicated by low carbonate concentrations in mid-ocean ridge basalts. Consequently, carbonate in young mantle must have been mostly obtained in the post-Archean era by two processes. These are either oxidation of diamond in the mantle or recycling of sedimentary carbonates through plate subduction. Here we show that the Sr and Nd isotope variations in carbonatite may be plausibly explained by mixing of three endmembers, (1) recycled sedimentary carbonates, (2) depleted mantle, and (3) a low Sr and Nd isotopes endmember. The low Sr, Nd carbonate reservoirs for carbonatites of different ages plot roughly on the evolution line of the primitive mantle, suggesting that they were successively released from a well-preserved, non-carbonate mantle source. The preferred candidate for this endmember is carbonate formed through oxidation of diamond by ferric ion released through decomposition of bridgmanite, which is carried up from the lower mantle via background upwelling, compensational to the volume of oceanic slabs penetrating into the lower mantle1.
Geophysical Research Letters, Vol. 43, 23, pp. 12,054-62.
United States
Geophysics - seismics
Abstract: To constrain crustal structures in the southern Appalachians and the suture zone with the Gondwanan-affinity Suwannee terrane, we applied the 2-D generalized Radon transform wavefield migration method to the scattered incident P wavefield recorded by the EarthScope Southeastern Suture of the Appalachian Margin Experiment and adjacent Transportable Array stations. We resolve the root of thickened crust beneath the high topography of the Blue Ridge Mountains and estimate its density contrast with the mantle to be only 104?±?20?kg/m3. A weak velocity contrast across the crustal root Moho is observed and may be related to an ongoing crustal delamination event, possibly contributing to local tectonic rejuvenation. Beneath the Suwannee terrane, we confirm prior observations of a gently south-southeastward dipping crustal suture, indicating the terminal collision of Laurentia and Gondwana involved several hundred kilometers of overthrusting.
Kazanskyite, Ba Ti Nb Na3 Ti (Si207) 202 (OH) 2 (H20)4, a group III Ti disilicate mineral from the Khibiny alkaline massif, Kola Peninsula, Russia: description and crystal structure.
Camara, F., Skolova, E., Abdu, Y.A., Hawthorne, F.C.
Nafertisite Na3Fe2 10Ti2(Si6017)02(OH)6F(H2))2 from Mt. Kukisvumchorr Khibiny alkaline massif, Kola Peninsula, Russia: refinement of the crystal structure and revision of the chemical formula.
European Journal of Mineralogy, Vol. 26, pp. 689-700.
Abstract: The crystal structure of betalomonosovite, ideally Na6?4Ti4(Si2O7)2[PO3(OH)][PO2(OH)2]O2(OF), a 5.3331(7), b 14.172(2), c 14.509(2) Å, ? 103.174(2), ? 96.320(2), ? 90.278(2)°, V 1060.7(4) Å3, from the Lovozero alkaline massif, Kola peninsula, Russia, has been refined in the space group PFormula to R = 6.64% using 3379 observed (Fo > 4?F) reflections collected with a single-crystal APEX II ULTRA three-circle diffractometer with a rotating-anode generator (MoK?), multilayer optics, and an APEX-II 4K CCD detector. Electron-microprobe analysis gave the empirical formula (Na5.39Ca0.36Mn0.04Mg0.01)?5.80 (Ti2.77Nb0.48Mg0.29Fe3+0.23Mn0.20Zr0.02Ta0.01)?4(Si2.06O7)2[P1.98O5(OH)3]O2[O0.82F0.65(OH)0.53]?2, Dcalc. = 2.969 g cm?3, Z = 2, calculated on the basis of 26 (O + F) apfu, with H2O determined from structure refinement. The crystal structure of betalomonosovite is characterized by extensive cation and anion disorder: more than 50% of cation sites are partly occupied. The crystal structure of betalomonosovite is a combination of a titanium silicate (TS) block and an intermediate (I) block. The TS block consists of HOH sheets (H-heteropolyhedral, O-octahedral) and exhibits linkage and stereochemistry typical for Group IV (Ti + Mg + Mn = 4 apfu) of the TS-block minerals. The I block is a framework of Na polyhedra and P tetrahedra which ideally gives {Na2?4[PO3(OH)][PO2(OH)2]} pfu. Betalomonosovite is an Na-poor OH-bearing analogue of lomonosovite, Na10Ti4(Si2O7)2(PO4)2O4. In the betalomonosovite structure, there is less Na in the I block and in the TS block when compared to the lomonosovite structure. The OH groups occur mainly in the I block where they coordinate P and Na atoms and in the O sheet of the TS block (minor). The presence of OH groups in the I block and in the TS block is supported by IR spectroscopy and bond-valence calculations on anions. High-resolution TEM of lomonosovite shows the presence of pervasive microstructural intergrowths, accounting for the presence of signals from H2O in the infrared spectrum of anhydrous lomonosovite. More extensive lamellae in betalomonosovite suggest a topotactic reaction from lomonosovite to betalomonosovite.
Abstract: Mountain Pass is one of the largest and most economically important REE deposits in the world. The ore body is a carbonatite stock within a shonkinite and syenite plutonic complex, which is part of a ~130 km long trend of Mesoproterozoic alkaline igneous rocks in the southeast Mojave Desert [1]. Zircons from a suite of shonkinite and syenite rocks at Mountain Pass were analyzed by SHRIMP-RG (207Pb/206Pb ages and trace elements) and SIMS (O isotopes) to elucidate their petrogenesis and potential relationship to ore-forming carbonatite. Concordant 207Pb/206Pb dates define multimodal distributions from ~1370-1435 Ma and ~1530-1780 Ma. The youngest 207Pb/206Pb dates of ~1370-1380 Ma and ~1390-1400 Ma overlap published Th-Pb monazite ages of 1371 ± 10 Ma and 1396 ± 16 Ma for the carbonatite ore body and a smaller carbonatite dike at Mountain Pass [2]. The youngest (<1435 Ma) zircons, interpreted to be magmatic (autocrystic), have REE up to ~10,000x chondrite values, subtle (~0.8) Eu/Eu* anomalies, generally low U (<500 ppm), moderate Hf (<11,000 ppm), and Ti-in-zircon temperatures that cluster at ~800 °C. Paleoproterozoic zircon xenocrysts have larger Eu/Eu* anomalies (~0.1- 0.5) and extend to higher Hf contents (>11,000 ppm). Zircon ?18O values in the <1435 Ma grains span from mantle (~5‰) to supracrustal (~7‰), and are mostly in the higher supracrustal end of the range. Paleoproterozoic zircons overlap this range as well as extend to higher ?18O values (~9‰). Our new data support coeval and longlived (20 Myr+) alkaline and carbonatite magmatism and underscore the relative importance of the crust in generating magmas associated with the world-class Mountain Pass REE deposit.
Abstract: Mountain Pass is the site of the most economically important rare earth element (REE) deposit in the United States. Mesoproterozoic alkaline intrusions are spatiotemporally associated with a composite carbonatite stock that hosts REE ore. Understanding the genesis of the alkaline and carbonatite magmas is an essential scientific goal for a society in which critical minerals are in high demand and will continue to be so for the foreseeable future. We present an ion microprobe study of zircon crystals in shonkinite and syenite intrusions to establish geochronological and geochemical constraints on the igneous underpinnings of the Mountain Pass REE deposit. Silicate whole-rock compositions occupy a broad spectrum (50-72 wt % SiO2), are ultrapotassic (6-9 wt % K2O; K2O/Na2O = 2-9), and have highly elevated concentrations of REEs (La 500-1,100× chondritic). Zircon concordia 206Pb/238U-207Pb/235U ages determined for shonkinite and syenite units are 1409 ± 8, 1409 ± 12, 1410 ± 8, and 1415 ± 6 Ma (2?). Most shonkinite dikes are dominated by inherited Paleoproterozoic xenocrysts, but there are sparse primary zircons with 207Pb/206Pb ages of 1390-1380 ± 15 Ma for the youngest grains. Our new zircon U-Pb ages for shonkinite and syenite units overlap published monazite Th-Pb ages for the carbonatite orebody and a smaller carbonatite dike. Inherited zircons in shonkinite and syenite units are ubiquitous and have a multimodal distribution of 207Pb/206Pb ages that cluster in the range of 1785-1600 ± 10-30 Ma. Primary zircons have generally lower Hf (<11,000 ppm) and higher Eu/Eu* (>0.6), Th (>300 ppm), Th/U (>1), and Ti-in-zircon temperatures (>800°C) than inherited zircons. Oxygen isotope data reveals a large range in ?18O values for primary zircons, from mantle (5-5.5‰) to crustal and supracrustal (7-9‰). A couple of low-?18O outliers (2‰) point to a component of shallow crust altered by meteoric water. The ?18O range of inherited zircons (5-10‰) overlaps that of the primary zircons. Our study supports a model in which alkaline and carbonatite magmatism occurred over tens of millions of years, repeatedly tapping a metasomatized mantle source, which endowed magmas with elevated REEs and other diagnostic components (e.g., F, Ba). Though this metasomatized mantle region existed for the duration of Mountain Pass magmatism, it probably did not predate magmatism by substantial geologic time (>100 m.y.), based on the similarity of 1500 Ma zircons with the dominantly 1800-1600 Ma inherited zircons, as opposed to the 1450-1350 Ma primary zircons. Mountain Pass magmas had diverse crustal inputs from assimilation of Paleoproterozoic and Mesoproterozoic igneous, metaigneous, and metasedimentary rocks. Crustal assimilation is only apparent from high spatial resolution zircon analyses and underscores the need for mineral-scale approaches in understanding the genesis of the Mountain Pass system.
A new approach to kimberlite facies terminology using a revised general approach to the nomenclature of all volcanic rocks and deposits: description to genetic.
Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, Vol. 174, 1-3, pp. 226-240.
An unusual example of coherent kimberlite from the Muskox kimberlite ( Nunavut) Canada: a re-evaluation of the criteria for recognizing coherent kimberlite.
GAC/MAC/AGU Meeting held May 23-27 Toronto, Abstract only
Bulletin of Volcanology, Vol. 79, 2 in press available
South America, Mexico
Diatremes
Abstract: Felsic maar-diatreme volcanoes host major ore deposits but have been largely ignored in the volcanology literature, especially for the diatreme portion of the system. Here, we use two Mexican tuff rings as analogs for the maar ejecta ring, new observations from one diatreme, and the economic geology literature on four other mineralized felsic maar-diatremes to produce an integrated picture of this type of volcano. The ejecta rings are up to 50 m+ thick and extend laterally up to ?1.5 km from the crater edge. In two Mexican examples, the lower part of the ejecta ring is dominated by pyroclastic surge deposits with abundant lithic clasts (up to 80% at Hoya de Estrada). These deposits display low-angle cross-bedding, dune bedforms, undulating beds, channels, bomb sags, and accretionary lapilli and are interpreted as phreatomagmatic. Rhyolitic juvenile clasts at Tepexitl have only 0-25% vesicles in this portion of the ring. The upper parts of the ejecta ring sequences in the Mexican examples have a different character: lithic clasts can be less abundant, the grain size is typically coarser, and the juvenile clasts can be different in character (with some more vesicular fragments). Fragmentation was probably shallower at this stage. The post-eruptive maar crater infill is known at Wau and consists of reworked pyroclastic deposits as well as lacustrine and other sediments. Underneath are bedded upper diatreme deposits, interpreted as pyroclastic surge and fall deposits. The upper diatreme and post-eruptive crater deposits have dips larger than 30° at Wau, with approximately centroclinal attitudes. At still lower structural levels, the diatreme pyroclastic infill is largely unbedded; Montana Tunnels and Kelian are good examples of this. At Cerro de Pasco, the pyroclastic infill seems bedded despite about 500 m of post-eruptive erosion relative to the pre-eruptive surface. The contact between the country rocks and the diatreme is sometimes characterized by country rock breccias (Kelian, Mt. Rawdon). Pyroclastic rocks in the diatreme are typically poorly sorted, and ash-rich. They contain a heterolithic mix of juvenile clasts and lithic clasts from various stratigraphic levels. Megablocks derived from the ejecta ring or the country rocks are often found in the diatremes. Evidence for multiple explosions is in the form of steep crosscutting pyroclastic bodies within some diatremes and fragments of pyroclastic rocks within other pyroclastic facies. Pyroclastic rocks are cut by coherent felsic dikes and plugs which may have been feeders to lava domes at the surface. Allowing for the difference in magma composition, felsic maar-diatreme volcanoes have many similarities with their ultramafic to mafic equivalents. Differences include a common association with felsic domes, inside the crater or just outside (Wau), although the domes within the crater may be destroyed during the eruption (Hoya de Estrada, Tepexitl); the dikes and plugs feeding and invading felsic diatremes seem larger; the processes of phreatomagmatic explosions involving felsic magmas may be different.
Oxygen isotope contamination of carbonates, silicates and oxides in selected carbonatites: constraints on crystallization temperatures of carbonatitic magmas.