Petrogenesis of Archaean granites in the Barberton region of South Africa as a guide to early crustal evolution

2021 ◽  
Vol 124 (1) ◽  
pp. 111-140
Author(s):  
L.J. Robb ◽  
F.M. Meyer ◽  
C.J. Hawkesworth ◽  
N.J. Gardiner
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Continental Crust ◽  
Lower Crust ◽  
Plate Tectonics ◽  
Sedimentary Basins ◽  
Crustal Thickening ◽  
Gravity Inversion ◽  
Crustal Evolution ◽  
Broad Variety ◽  
Parallel Arrays

ABSTRACT The Barberton region of South Africa is characterized by a broad variety of granite types that range in age from ca. 3.5 Ga to 2.7 Ga and reflect the processes involved in the formation of Archaean continental crust on the Kaapvaal Craton. These granites are subdivided into three groups, as follows: A tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) suite diapirically emplaced at 3 450 Ma and 3 250 Ma into pre-existing metamorphosed greenstone belt material. TTG melts were derived from melting amphibolite in the lower crust, with individual plutons being emplaced at various crustal levels. The dome-and-keel geometry that characterizes the TTG-greenstone dominated crust at this time is inconsistent with a plate tectonic domain and reworking was likely controlled by gravity inversion or ‘sagduction’; Regionally extensive potassic batholiths (the GMS suite) were emplaced at 3 110 Ma during a period of crustal thickening and melting of a TTG-dominated lower crust. Subsequent to emplacement of the voluminous GMS granites, the thickened continental crust had stabilized sufficiently for large sedimentary basins to form; Late granite plutons were emplaced along two distinct linear and sub-parallel arrays close to what might have been the edge of a Kaapvaal continent at 2 800 to 2 700 Ma. They are subdivided into high-Ca and low-Ca granites that resemble the I- and S-type granites of younger orogenic episodes. The high-Ca granites are consistent with derivation from older granitoids in the lower crust, whereas the low-Ca granites may have been derived by melting metasedimentary precursors in the lower-mid crust. Granites with similar characteristics are associated with a subduction zone in younger terranes, although the recognition of such a feature at Barberton remains unclear. The petrogenesis of granites in the Barberton region between 3.5 Ga and 2.7 Ga provides a record of the processes of Archaean crustal evolution and contributes to discussions related to the onset of plate tectonics.

scholarly journals No evidence for high-pressure melting of Earth’s crust in the Archean

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert H. Smithies ◽  
Yongjun Lu ◽  
Tim E. Johnson ◽  
Christopher L. Kirkland ◽  
Kevin F. Cassidy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Pressure ◽  
Continental Crust ◽  
Small Proportion ◽  
Lithospheric Mantle ◽  
Plate Tectonics ◽  
Crustal Evolution ◽  
Average Thickness ◽  
Dominant Group ◽  
Chemical Signatures ◽  
Pressure Melting

AbstractMuch of the present-day volume of Earth’s continental crust had formed by the end of the Archean Eon, 2.5 billion years ago, through the conversion of basaltic (mafic) crust into sodic granite of tonalite, trondhjemite and granodiorite (TTG) composition. Distinctive chemical signatures in a small proportion of these rocks, the so-called high-pressure TTG, are interpreted to indicate partial melting of hydrated crust at pressures above 1.5 GPa (>50 km depth), pressures typically not reached in post-Archean continental crust. These interpretations significantly influence views on early crustal evolution and the onset of plate tectonics. Here we show that high-pressure TTG did not form through melting of crust, but through fractionation of melts derived from metasomatically enriched lithospheric mantle. Although the remaining, and dominant, group of Archean TTG did form through melting of hydrated mafic crust, there is no evidence that this occurred at depths significantly greater than the ~40 km average thickness of modern continental crust.

Geochemical constraints on the evolution of the early continental crust

1981 ◽  
Vol 301 (1461) ◽  
pp. 423-442 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Trace Element ◽  
Continental Crust ◽  
Lower Crust ◽  
Plate Tectonics ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Mantle Plumes ◽  
Element Abundances ◽  
Ocean Island ◽  
Rock Types ◽  
Greenstone Belts

The most important process affecting both major and trace-element concentrations in the mantle and crust is melting producing silicate liquids which then migrate. Another process whose effects are becoming more apparent is the transport of elements by CO 2 - and H 2 O-rich fluids. Due to the relatively small amounts of fluids involved they have but little effect on the major-element abundances but may severely affect minor- and trace-element abundances in their source and the material through which they travel. The Archaean crust was a density filter which reduced the possibility of komatiite or high FeO melts with relative densities greater than about 3.0 from reaching the surface. Those melts retained in the lower crust or at the crust-mantle boundary would have enhanced the possibility of melting in the lower crust. The high FeO melts may have included the Archaean equivalents of alkali basalt whose derivatives may form an important component in the Archaean crust. The occurrence of ultramafic to basic to alkaline magmas in some Archaean greenstone belts is an assemblage most typical of modern ocean-island suites in continental environments. The rock types in the assemblage were modified by conditions of higher heat production during the Archaean and thus greater extents of melting and melting at greater depths. If modern ocean-island suites are associated with mantle plumes, which even now may be an important way to transport heat upward from the deeper mantle, it is suggested that during the Archaean mantle plumes were an important factor in the evolution of the continental crust. It appears that the Archaean continental crust was of comparable thickness to that of the present based on geobarometeric data. If the freeboard concept applied then, this would suggest that plate tectonics was also an active process during the Archaean. If so, it is probably no more realistic to assume that all Archaean greenstone belts had a similar tectonic setting than to assume that all modern occurrences of basic rocks have a common tectonic setting.

Evolution of crust vs. mantle contributions to continental arc granitoids within a few Myr: evidence from zircon Hf-O isotopes and high-precision U-Pb dating in the Famatinian Arc, Argentina

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Cornet ◽  
Oscar Laurent ◽  
Jörn-Frederik Wotzlaw ◽  
Juan Otamendi ◽  
Olivier Bachmann
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
High Precision ◽  
Lower Crust ◽  
Plate Tectonics ◽  
Complex Function ◽  
Mafic Magma ◽  
Isotopic Signatures ◽  
Mafic Intrusions ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Lower Crustal

<p>The presence of a thick continental crust makes Earth a unique planet in the solar system. During post-Archaean times, with the onset of plate tectonics, processes by which continents form is a complex function of juvenile growth and recycling of pre-existing crust. Indeed, post-Archean mantle-derived magmas commonly intrude pre-existing, felsic continental crust. As a result, the origin of upper crustal granitoids, the most accessible products of planetary differentiation, is either accounted for by the melting of the pre-existing mid- to lower crust or the differentiation of mantle-derived mafic magmas. It is therefore critical to identify the relative contribution of these two different granite-forming processes in a given magmatic province, as well as how this relative contribution evolves over time, to assess crustal growth and/or recycling. To shed some light on this question, we used the combination of oxygen, hafnium and uranium-lead isotopic systems in zircons from granitoids of the Ordovician Famatinian Arc (Argentina) representing a typical crust-forming geotectonic setting. While the lower crustal section of Valle Fertíl, representing the basal level of the Famatinian crust, is already well studied, little is known on the timing and nature of igneous processes that built up the mid- and upper crust. </p><p>From our study, we observe a systematic co-variation of the O and Hf isotopic signatures of zircon in the mid- to upper crustal rocks, from a clearly crustal footprint (granodiorites with zircon δ<sup>18</sup>O of ca. +8 ‰; εHf<sub>t</sub> of ca. –3) to a mantle-like signature (granites and rhyolites: zircon δ<sup>18</sup>O of ca. +5 ‰; εHf<sub>t</sub> of ca. +5). Moreover, the high-precision (ID-TIMS) U-Pb dating obtained from the same zircons seem to record a progressive building of the Ordovician continental crust lasting for ca. 13Myrs from 483 to 470 Myrs ago. The results overlap with published ID-TIMS U-Pb data for the Famatinian lower crust, clustering at 470 Myrs, which confirms that the Famatinian Arc was a transcrustal magmatic system ultimately fed by mantle-derived magmas. In details, the oldest granitoids (483 Myrs) show the strongest crustal Hf-O isotopic fingerprint while the younger ones define a continuous range from this end-member towards the mantle signature. These results could be explained by (i) continuous ingrowth and “self-shielding” of lower crustal mafic intrusions progressively decreasing crustal melting or contamination of ascending mafic magma from a homogenous mantle source; (ii) progressive defertilization of an enriched lithospheric mantle or a strongly slab-enriched mantle wedge. The fact that the earliest (483 Myr-old) granitoids also show a more significant crustal contribution (ASI >1.1, inherited zircon cores) supports the first scenario. In this case, the combination of Hf-O isotopic studies as well as high precision U-Pb dating for the Famatinian arc comply with a progressive building of a magmatic column where a certain amount of time is needed for the system to mature and eventually reach mantle dominated processes in the formation of granites and so, new continental crust.</p>

Quantifying the growth of continental crust through crustal thickness and zircon Hf-O isotopic signatures: A case study from the southern Central Asian Orogenic Belt

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yujian Wang ◽  
Dicheng Zhu ◽  
Chengfa Lin ◽  
Fangyang Hu ◽  
Jingao Liu
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Crustal Thickness ◽  
Orogenic Belt ◽  
Central Asian Orogenic Belt ◽  
Crustal Thickening ◽  
Crustal Growth ◽  
Isotopic Signatures ◽  
Central Asian ◽  
Southern Central ◽  
Juvenile Crust

Accretionary orogens function as major sites for the generation of continental crust, but the growth model of continental crust remains poorly constrained. The Central Asian Orogenic Belt, as one of the most important Phanerozoic accretionary orogens on Earth, has been the focus of debates regarding the proportion of juvenile crust present. Using published geochemical and zircon Hf-O isotopic data sets for three belts in the Eastern Tianshan terrane of the southern Central Asian Orogenic Belt, we first explore the variations in crustal thickness and isotopic composition in response to tectono-magmatic activity over time. Steady progression to radiogenic zircon Hf isotopic signatures associated with syn-collisional crustal thickening indicates enhanced input of mantle-derived material, which greatly contributes to the growth of the continental crust. Using the surface areas and relative increases in crustal thickness as the proxies for magma volumes, in conjunction with the calculated mantle fraction of the mixing flux, we then are able to determine that a volume of ∼14−22% of juvenile crust formed in the southern Central Asian Orogenic Belt during the Phanerozoic. This study highlights the validity of using crustal thickness and zircon isotopic signatures of magmatic rocks to quantify the volume of juvenile crust in complex accretionary orogens. With reference to the crustal growth pattern in other accretionary orogens and the Nd-Hf isotopic record at the global scale, our work reconciles the rapid crustal growth in the accretionary orogens with its episodic generation pattern in the formation of global continental crust.

scholarly journals Reconnaissance P,T studies of Proterozoic crustal evolution of the Ammassalik area, East Greenland

1989 ◽  
Vol 146 ◽  
pp. 48-53
Author(s):  
A.P Nutman ◽  
C.R.L Friend
Keyword(s):  
Regional Metamorphism ◽  
Crustal Thickening ◽  
Mobile Belt ◽  
Crustal Evolution ◽  
Intrusive Complex ◽  
East Greenland ◽  
Early Proterozoic ◽  
Northern Half

The Ammassalik area of East Greenland lies in the centre of a 300 km wide early Proterozoic mobile belt, dominated by Archaean gneisses and early Proterozoic metasediments. Regional Proterozoic synkinematic metamorphism was associated with crustal thickening by southerly-directed thrusting and isoclinal folding. Maximum P, T conditions recorded during the regional metamorphism are found in the northern half of the mobile belt and are 9.5 kbar (equivalent to 30 km burial) and c. 700°C. Following some erosion and uplift, the late kinematic 1885 Ma Ammassalik Intrusive Complex (AIC) was intruded at pressures of c. 7 kbar (equivalent to a depth of 20 km). Temperatures in the metamorphic aureole of the AIC reached 800°C. Following further erosion and uplift, post kinematic, c. 1575 Ma granite-diorite-gabbro complexes were intruded, under pressures of 2.5 kbar (equivalent to a depth of 8 km).

scholarly journals An anticlockwise metamorphic P-T path and nappe stacking in the Reisa Nappe Complex in the Scandinavian Caledonides, northern Norway: evidence for weakening of lower continental crust before and during continental collision

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carly Faber ◽  
Holger Stünitz ◽  
Deta Gasser ◽  
Petr Jeřábek ◽  
Katrin Kraus ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Partial Melting ◽  
Continental Crust ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Structural Data ◽  
Geothermal Gradient ◽  
Continental Collision ◽  
Crustal Thickening ◽  
Northern Norway ◽  
Nappe Complex ◽  
T Path

Abstract. This study investigates the Caledonian metamorphic and tectonic evolution in northern Norway, examining the structure and tectonostratigraphy of the Reisa Nappe Complex (RNC; from bottom to top, Vaddas, Kåfjord and Nordmannvik nappes). Structural data, phase equilibrium modelling, and U-Pb zircon and titanite geochronology are used to constrain the timing and P-T conditions of deformation and metamorphism that formed the nappes and facilitated crustal thickening during continental collision. Five samples taken from different parts of the RNC reveal an anticlockwise P-T path attributed to the effects of early Silurian heating followed by thrusting. An early Caledonian S1 foliation in the Nordmannvik Nappe records kyanite-grade partial melting at ~ 760–790 °C and ~ 9.4–11 kbar. Leucosomes formed at 439 ± 2 Ma (U-Pb zircon) in fold axial planes in the Nordmannvik Nappe indicate that compressional deformation initiated while the rocks were still partially molten. This stage was followed by pervasive solid-state shearing as the rocks cooled and solidified, forming the S2 foliation at 680–730 °C and 9.5–10.9 kbar. Multistage titanite growth in the Nordmannvik Nappe records this extended metamorphism between 444 and 427 Ma. In the underlying Kåfjord Nappe, garnet cores record lower P-T (590–610 °C and 5.5–6.8 kbar) but a similar geothermal gradient as the S1 migmatitic event in the Nordmannvik Nappe, indicating formation at a higher relative position in the crust. S2 shearing in the Kåfjord Nappe occurred at 580–605 °C and 9.2–10.1 kbar, indicating a considerable pressure increase during nappe stacking. Gabbro intruded in the Vaddas Nappe at 439 ± 1 Ma, synchronously with migmatization in the Nordmannvik Nappe. In the Vaddas Nappe S2 shearing occurred at 630–640 ºC and 11.7–13 kbar. Titanite growth along the lower RNC boundary records S2-shearing at 432 ± 6 Ma. It emerges that early Silurian heating (~ 440 Ma), probably resulting from large-scale magma underplating, initiated partial melting that weakened the lower crust, which facilitated dismembering of the crust into individual nappe units. This tectonic style contrasts subduction of mechanically strong continental crust to great depths.

Metal Sources in the Proterozoic Vazante-Paracatu Sediment-Hosted Zn District, Brazil: Constraints from Pb Isotope Compositions of Meta-Siliciclastic Units

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil A Fernandes ◽  
Gema R. Olivo ◽  
Daniel Layton-Matthews ◽  
Alexandre Voinot ◽  
Donald Chipley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Isotopic Signature ◽  
Pb Isotope ◽  
Metal Sources ◽  
Upper Continental Crust ◽  
Basement Rocks ◽  
Siliciclastic Rocks ◽  
Brasiliano Orogeny ◽  
Isotope System ◽  
Parallel Arrays

ABSTRACT Different types of sediment-hosted whole-rock Pb isotope (206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb, 208Pb/204Pb) compositions were determined from phyllites, carbonaceous phyllites (>1% TOC), and meta-litharenites belonging to the Serra do Garrote Formation, which is part of the Proterozoic Vazante Group, Brazil. Results were integrated with lithogeochemistry in order to identify the Pb isotopic signature of Zn enrichment (up to 0.24 wt.% Zn) associated with meta-siliciclastic-hosted sulfide mineralization that formed prior to the Brasiliano Orogeny (850 to 550 Ma) in order to (1) understand the nature of siliciclastic sediment sources, (2) identify possible metal sources in pre-orogenic meta-siliciclastic-hosted Zn mineralization, and (3) evaluate the genetic links between the Zn enrichment in the relatively reduced phyllite package, and different styles of syn-orogenic Zn ± Pb mineralization (hypogene Zn-silicate and Zn-Pb sulfide) in overlying dolomitic carbonates throughout the Vazante-Paracatu Zn District, Brazil. The whole-rock 206Pb/204Pb and 207Pb/204Pb isotope ratios of meta-siliciclastic rocks plot as positively sloping, sub-parallel arrays with radiogenic, upper continental crust compositions, which could represent a detrital contribution from at least two upper continental crust sources. However, the 206Pb/204Pb versus 207Pb/204Pb isotope system does not distinguish between Zn-enriched samples and un-mineralized samples. In the whole-rock 206Pb/204Pb–208Pb/204Pb plot, Zn-enriched samples form a flat trend of lower 208Pb/204Pb values (38.3 to 39.5) compared to the Zn-poor ones that follow common upper crustal trends. Zinc-enriched samples have low whole-rock Th/U values (<4) and higher whole-rock U concentrations compared to unmineralized samples. These support the hypothesis that U (± Pb) was added by pre-orogenic metalliferous fluids, which were in turn derived from underlying Paleoproterozoic and Archean basement rocks. Due to U addition, the original whole-rock thorogenic and uranogenic Pb isotope systems were decoupled in mineralized samples. Pre-orogenic metalliferous fluids have similar present-day first-order characteristics, including: (1) relatively high U/Pb and (2) low Th/U values, when compared to galena in the major carbonate-hosted Zn ± Pb deposits (Vazante, Morro Agudo, Ambrosia, Fagundes) in the Vazante Group. These results support the hypothesis that Zn-rich layers and veins in mineralized carbonaceous phyllites could be linked to the same origins as carbonate-hosted mineral deposits throughout the Vazante Basin, but further data are warranted. We suggest that the tectonic evolution of the Vazante Basin saw multiple phases of Zn-rich mineralization over protracted time periods from around 1200 to 550 Ma.

French and Belgian Uplands

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernard Etlicher
Keyword(s):  
Continental Crust ◽  
Rift Valley ◽  
Sedimentary Basins ◽  
Shear Zones ◽  
Metamorphic Complex ◽  
French Massif Central ◽  
Massif Central ◽  
Montagne Noire ◽  
Oceanic And Continental Crust ◽  
Moderate Elevation

The French Uplands were built by the Hercynian orogenesis. The French Massif Central occupies one-sixth of the area of France and shows various landscapes. It is the highest upland, 1,886 m at the Sancy, and the most complex. The Vosges massif is a small massif, quite similar to the Schwarzwald in Germany, from which it is separated by the Rhine Rift Valley. Near the border of France, Belgium, and Germany, the Ardennes upland has a very moderate elevation. The largest part of this massif lies in Belgium. Though Brittany is partly made up of igneous and metamorphic rocks, it cannot be truly considered as an upland; in the main parts of Brittany, altitudes are lower than in the Parisian basin. Similarities of the landscape in the French and Belgian Uplands derive from two major events: the Oligocene rifting event and the Alpine tectonic phase. The Vosges and the Massif Central are located on the collision zone of the Variscan orogen. In contrast, the Ardennes is in a marginal position where primary sediments cover the igneous basement. Four main periods are defined during the Hercynian orogenesis (Bard et al. 1980; Autran 1984; Ledru et al. 1989; Faure et al. 1997). The early Variscan period corresponds to a subduction of oceanic and continental crust and a highpressure metamorphism (450–400 Ma) The medio- Variscan period corresponds to a continent–continent collision of the chain (400–340 Ma). Metamorphism under middle pressure conditions took place and controlled the formation of many granite plutons: e.g. red granites (granites rouges), porphyroid granite, and granodiorite incorporated in a metamorphic complex basement of various rocks. The neo-Variscan period (340–320 Ma) is characterized by a strong folding event: transcurrent shear zones affected the units of the previous periods and the first sedimentary basins appeared. At the end of this period, late-Variscan (330–280 Ma), autochthonous granites crystallized under low-pressure conditions related to a post-collision thinning of the crust. Velay and Montagne Noire granites are the main massifs generated by this event. Sediment deposition in tectonic basins during Carboniferous and Permian times occurred in the Massif Central and the Vosges: facies are sandstone (Vosges), shale, coal, and sandstone in several Stephanian basins of the Massif Central, with red shale and clay ‘Rougier’ in the south-western part of the Massif Central.

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