scholarly journals Geochemical, isotopic, and U–Pb zircon study of the central and southern portions of the 780 Ma Gunbarrel Large Igneous Province in western Laurentia

2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (7) ◽  
pp. 738-755 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alana Mackinder ◽  
Brian L. Cousens ◽  
Richard E. Ernst ◽  
Kevin R. Chamberlain

Spanning 2500 km along the western margin of North America are 780 Ma dykes, sills, and minor volcanic packages of the Gunbarrel Large Igneous Province. This study focuses on southern (northwestern United States) and central (northern British Columbia) Gunbarrel intrusions and metavolcanics rocks of the Irene and Huckleberry formation (Washington State). Southern Gunbarrel U–Pb ages range from 780 to 769 Ma and new U–Pb zircon dates for the Turah and Rogers Pass sills are 778.6 ± 0.7 and 778.7 ± 0.9 Ma, respectively. Southern Gunbarrel intrusions are medium- to coarse-grained diabases that are moderately evolved basaltic, continental tholeiites. Intrusions display negative Nb–Ta and positive Pb anomalies in normalized multielement plots, and εNd780 values vary from +3.6 to +1.5. The Irene and Huckleberry volcanic rocks are E-MORB in composition with higher εNd780 (+5 to +6) and likely represent partial melts of a mantle plume responsible for the Gunbarrel event. Assuming an Irene and Huckleberry parental magma, mixing models indicate that the southern Gunbarrel magmas were crustally contaminated, but local host rocks are not appropriate crustal contaminants. The modeling points to average upper crust as the crustal contaminant, with an εNd780 of approximately –2. This crustal contaminant likely resides on the craton impinged upon by the mantle plume. The remarkable geochemical homogeneity of Gunbarrel intrusions from the Yukon to Wyoming is best explained if primary, plume-derived E-MORB magmas were contaminated in large magma reservoirs near the plume centre and were then injected laterally into the crust 100s to 1000s of kilometres from the reservoir.

Minerals ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 545 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Donskaya ◽  
D. Gladkochub ◽  
R. Ernst ◽  
S. Pisarevsky ◽  
A. Mazukabzov ◽  
...  

We present new geochemical and Nd isotopic data on two Mesoproterozoic Listvyanka (1350 ± 6 Ma) and Goloustnaya (1338 ± 3 Ma) mafic dyke swarms located in the Irkutsk Promontory of the southern part of the Siberian craton. Listvyanka dykes are sub-vertical with NNE trend, while Goloustnaya dykes are characterized by prevailing W trend. Listvyanka and Goloustnaya dykes are composed of medium to coarse grained dolerites. All dolerites correspond to sub-alkaline tholeiitic basalts according to their major-element compositions with lower to moderate mg#, varying from 36 to 54. The trace and rare earth element abundances in Listvyanka and Goloustnaya dolerites are generally close to basalts of the oceanic island basalts (OIB) type. The Listvyanka dolerites demonstrate slightly positive εNd(t) values varying from +1.1 to +1.5, while the Goloustnaya dolerites are characterized by lower εNd(t) values ranging from −0.9 to +0.1. Geochemical and isotopic affinities of the Listvyanka dolerites suggest their enrichment by a mantle plume related source. For the Goloustnaya dolerites, we assume also some additional lithospheric input to their mantle plume-related source. The emplacement of both studied dolerites took place in intracontinental extensional setting, caused by a single rising mantle plume. Listvyanka and Goloustnaya dolerites are coeval to several mafic magmatic events in northern Laurentia and likely represent part of the Mesoproterozoic plumbing system of a Siberian–Laurentian Large Igneous Province.


2019 ◽  
Vol 131 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 1837-1856 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bei Zhu ◽  
Zhaojie Guo ◽  
Shaonan Zhang ◽  
Ingrid Ukstins ◽  
Wei Du ◽  
...  

Abstract The formation of the Emeishan large igneous province is widely regarded as being related to a mantle plume, but plate tectonics may also have played an important role. We analyzed the regional facies architecture of the early-stage subaqueous volcanic rocks of the central Emeishan large igneous province. The results suggest that these rocks were emplaced in a N-S–striking subaqueous rift, which existed immediately before the onset of volcanism and was persistently maintained during the early eruption stage. By linking this conclusion with the background information indicating that (1) the basaltic geochemistry in this section is indicative of a subcontinental lithospheric mantle source rather than a mantle plume source, and (2) the western Yangtze plate, where the Emeishan large igneous province was developed, was located in the back-arc region of the Permian Paleo-Tethys subduction system, we propose a new view that the early-stage eruptions of the Emeishan large igneous province were triggered by back-arc extension. The dominant functioning of the mantle plume occurred shortly after this process and inherited it, as evidenced by the following: (1) The subaqueous volcanic architecture showing back-arc geochemical affinity is laterally restricted in the presumed rift, but the overlying subaerial lavas showing plume-related geochemical features overwhelmingly flooded the whole province; (2) vertically, the source of the basaltic component in these intrarift sequences underwent a gradual transition from lithospheric origin to mantle plume origin along the stratigraphic order, as evidenced by an intercalated basaltic succession showing mixed geochemical features from the two contextual origins.


2019 ◽  
Vol 486 (4) ◽  
pp. 460-465
Author(s):  
E. V. Sharkov ◽  
A. V. Chistyakov ◽  
M. M. Bogina ◽  
O. A. Bogatikov ◽  
V. V. Shchiptsov ◽  
...  

Tiksheozero ultramafic-alkaline-carbonatite intrusive complex, like numerous carbonatite-bearing complexes of similar composition, is a part of large igneous province, related to the ascent of thermochemical mantle plume. Our geochemical and isotopic data evidence that ultramafites and alkaline rocks are joined by fractional crystallization, whereas carbonatitic magmas has independent origin. We suggest that origin of parental magmas of the Tiksheozero complex, as well as other ultramafic-alkaline-carbonatite complexes, was provided by two-stage melting of the mantle-plume head: 1) adiabatic melting of its inner part, which produced moderately-alkaline picrites, which fractional crystallization led to appearance of alkaline magmas, and 2) incongruent melting of the upper cooled margin of the plume head under the influence of CO2-rich fluids  that arrived from underlying zone of adiabatic melting gave rise to carbonatite magmas.


Minerals ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenheng Liu ◽  
Xiaodong Liu ◽  
Jiayong Pan ◽  
Kaixing Wang ◽  
Gang Wang ◽  
...  

The Qingshanbao complex, part of the uranium metallogenic belt of the Longshou-Qilian mountains, is located in the center of the Longshou Mountain next to the Jiling complex that hosts a number of U deposits. However, little research has been conducted in this area. In order to investigate the origin and formation of mafic enclaves observed in the Qingshanbao body and the implications for magmatic-tectonic dynamics, we systematically studied the mineralogy, petrography, and geochemistry of these enclaves. Our results showed that the enclaves contain plagioclase enwrapped by early dark minerals. These enclaves also showed round quartz crystals and acicular apatite in association with the plagioclase. Electron probe analyses showed that the plagioclase in the host rocks (such as K-feldspar granite, adamellite, granodiorite, etc.) show normal zoning, while the plagioclase in the mafic enclaves has a discontinuous rim composition and shows instances of reverse zoning. Major elemental geochemistry revealed that the mafic enclaves belong to the calc-alkaline rocks that are rich in titanium, iron, aluminum, and depleted in silica, while the host rocks are calc-alkaline to alkaline rocks with enrichment in silica. On Harker diagrams, SiO2 contents are negatively correlated with all major oxides but K2O. Both the mafic enclaves and host rock are rich in large ion lithophile elements such as Rb and K, as well as elements such as La, Nd, and Sm, and relatively poor in high field strength elements such as Nb, Ta, P, Ti, and U. Element ratios of Nb/La, Rb/Sr, and Nb/Ta indicate that the mafic enclaves were formed by the mixing of mafic and felsic magma. In terms of rare earth elements, both the mafic enclaves and the host rock show right-inclined trends with similar weak to medium degrees of negative Eu anomaly and with no obvious Ce anomaly. Zircon LA-ICP-MS (Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry) U-Pb concordant ages of the mafic enclaves and host rock were determined to be 431.8 5.2 Ma (MSWD (mean standard weighted deviation)= 1.5, n = 14) and 432.8 4.2 Ma (MSWD = 1.7, n = 16), respectively, consistent with that for the zircon U-Pb ages of the granite and medium-coarse grained K-feldspar granites of the Qingshanbao complex. The estimated ages coincide with the timing of the late Caledonian collision of the Alashan Block. This comprehensive analysis allowed us to conclude that the mafic enclaves in the Qingshanbao complex were formed by the mixing of crust-mantle magma with mantle-derived magma due to underplating, which caused partial melting of the ancient basement crust during the collisional orogenesis between the Alashan Block and Qilian rock mass in the early Silurian Period.


2021 ◽  
pp. SP518-2020-253
Author(s):  
Thuy Thanh Pham ◽  
J. Gregory Shellnutt ◽  
Tuan-Anh Tran ◽  
Steven W. Denyszyn ◽  
Yoshiyuki Iizuka

AbstractThe Permian silicic rocks in the Phan Si Pan (PSP) uplift area and Tu Le (TL) basin of NW Vietnam (collectively the PSP-TL region) are associated with the Emeishan Large Igneous Province (ELIP). The Permian Muong Hum, Phu Sa Phin, and Nam Xe - Tam Duong granites, and Tu Le rhyolites are alkali ferroan A1-type granitic rocks, which likely formed by fractional crystallization of high-Ti basaltic magma that was contaminated by melts derived from the Neoproterozoic host rocks. Zircon U-Pb LA-ICP-MS geochronology yielded weighted-mean 206Pb/238U ages of 246 ± 3 Ma to 259 ± 3 Ma for granites, and 249 ± 3 Ma and 254 ± 2 Ma for rhyolites. This is contrasted with previously-published high precision U-Pb ages, obtained using CA-ID-TIMS method applied on the same zircon grains, which suggest that the calculated LA-ICP-MS U-Pb ages are variably inaccurate by up to 10 Ma, though at the single-grain level dates generally agree within uncertainty. The similarity of rock texture, whole-rock geochemistry, emplacement ages, and fractionation phases between the PSP-TL region and silicic rocks in the Inner Zone ELIP (i.e., Panzhihua, Binchuan) suggests they were spatially proximal before being sinistrally displaced along the Ailao Shan-Red River shear zone.


Author(s):  
T.V. Naber ◽  
S.E. Grasby ◽  
J.P. Cuthbertson ◽  
N. Rayner ◽  
C. Tegner

The High Arctic Large Igneous Province (HALIP) represents extensive Cretaceous magmatism throughout the circum-Arctic borderlands and within the Arctic Ocean (e.g., the Alpha-Mendeleev Ridge). Recent aeromagnetic data shows anomalies that extend from the Alpha Ridge onto the northern coast of Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada. To test this linkage we present new bulk rock major and trace element geochemistry, and mineral compositions for clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and olivine of basaltic dykes and sheets and rhyolitic lavas for the stratotype section at Hansen Point, which coincides geographically with the magnetic anomaly at northern Ellesmere Island. New U-Pb chronology is also presented. The basaltic and basaltic-andesite dykes and sheets at Hansen Point are all evolved with 5.5−2.5 wt% MgO, 48.3−57.0 wt% SiO2, and have light rare-earth element enriched patterns. They classify as tholeiites and in Th/Yb vs. Nb/Yb space they define a trend extending from the mantle array toward upper continental crust. This trend, also including a rhyolite lava, can be modeled successfully by assimilation and fractional crystallization. The U-Pb data for a dacite sample, that is cut by basaltic dykes at Hansen Point, yields a crystallization age of 95.5 ± 1.0 Ma, and also shows crustal inheritance. The chronology and the geochemistry of the Hansen Point samples are correlative with the basaltic lavas, sills, and dykes of the Strand Fiord Formation on Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut, Canada. In contrast, a new U-Pb age for an alkaline syenite at Audhild Bay is significantly younger at 79.5 ± 0.5 Ma, and correlative to alkaline basalts and rhyolites from other locations of northern Ellesmere Island (Audhild Bay, Philips Inlet, and Yelverton Bay West; 83−73 Ma). We propose these volcanic occurrences be referred to collectively as the Audhild Bay alkaline suite (ABAS). In this revised nomenclature, the rocks of Hansen Point stratotype and other tholeiitic rocks are ascribed to the Hansen Point tholeiitic suite (HPTS) that was emplaced at 97−93 Ma. We suggest this subdivision into suites replace the collective term Hansen Point volcanic complex. The few dredge samples of alkali basalt available from the top of the Alpha Ridge are akin to ABAS in terms of geochemistry. Our revised dates also suggest that the HPTS and Strand Fiord Formation volcanic rocks may be the hypothesized subaerial large igneous province eruption that drove the Cretaceous Ocean Anoxic Event 2.


Author(s):  
Sheng-Sheng Chen ◽  
Wei-Ming Fan ◽  
Ren-Deng Shi ◽  
Ji-Feng Xu ◽  
Yong-Min Liu

Abstract The Kerguelen large igneous province (LIP) has been related to mantle plume activity since at least 120 Ma. There are some older (147–130 Ma) magmatic provinces on circum-eastern Gondwana, but the relationship between these provinces and the Kerguelen mantle plume remains controversial. Here we present petrological, geochronological, geochemical, and Sr–Nd–Hf–Pb–Os isotopic data for high-Ti mafic rocks from two localities (Cuona and Jiangzi) in the eastern Tethyan Himalaya igneous province (147–130 Ma). Zircon grains from these two localities yielded concordant weighted mean 206Pb/238U ages of 137.25 ± 0.98 and 131.28 ± 0.78 Ma (2σ), respectively. The analyzed mafic rocks are enriched in high field strength elements and have positive Nb–Ta anomalies relative to Th and La, which have ocean island basalt-like characteristics. The Cuona basalts were generated by low degrees of melting (3–5%) of garnet lherzolites (3–5 vol.% garnet), and elsewhere the Jiangzi diabases were formed by relatively lower degrees of melting (1–3%) of garnet lherzolite (1–5 vol.% garnet). The highly radiogenic Os and Pb isotopic compositions of the Jiangzi diabases were produced by crustal contamination, but the Cuona basalts experienced the least crustal contamination given their relatively low γOs(t), 206Pb/204Pbi, 207Pb/204Pbi, and 208Pb/204Pbi values. Major and trace element geochemical and Sr–Nd–Hf–Pb–Os isotope data for the Cuona basalts are similar to products of the Kerguelen mantle plume head. Together with high mantle potential temperatures (>1500°C), this suggests that the eastern Tethyan Himalaya igneous province (147–130 Ma) was an early magmatic product of the Kerguelen plume. A mantle plume initiation model can explain the temporal and spatial evolution of the Kerguelen LIP, and pre-continental break-up played a role in the breakup of eastern Gondwana, given the >10 Myr between initial mantle plume activity (147–130 Ma) and continental break-up (132–130 Ma). Like studies of Re-Os isotopes in other LIPs, the increasing amount of crustal assimilation with distance from the plume stem can explain the variations in radiogenic Os.


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