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Eclogite
Terms modified by Eclogite Selected AbstractsExperimental Investigation of Eclogite Rheology and Its Fabrics at High Temperature and PressureJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2007J. ZHANG Abstract Eclogite plays an important role in mantle convection and geodynamics in subduction zones. An improved understanding of processes in the deeper levels of subduction zones and collision belts requires information on eclogite rheology. However, the deformation processes and associated fabrics in eclogite are not well understood. Incompatible views of deformation mechanism have been proposed for both garnet and omphacite. We present here deformation behaviour of eclogite at temperatures of 1027,1427 °C, confining pressures of 2.5,3.5 GPa, and strain rates of 1 × 10,5 s,1 to 5 × 10,4 s,1. We obtained a power-law creep for the high temperature and pressure deformation of a ,dry' eclogite (50 vol.% garnet, 40% omphacite and 10% quartz) with A = 103.3 ± 1.0, n = 3.5 ± 0.4, ,E =403 ± 30 KJ mol,1 and ,V = 27.2 cm3 mol,1. The two principal minerals of eclogite have greatly different strengths. Progressive increase of garnet results in a smooth increase in strength. Analysis by electron back-scattered diffraction shows that: (1) garnet displays pole figures with near random distributions of misorientation angle under both dry and wet conditions; (2) omphacite shows pronounced lattice preferred orientations (LPOs), suggesting a dominant dislocation creep mechanism. Further investigation into the water effects on eclogite show: (3) water content does not influence the style of omphacite fabric but increases slightly the fabric strength; (4) grain boundary processes dominate the deformation of garnet under high water fugacity or high shear-strain conditions, yielding a random LPO similar to that of non-deforming garnet, despite the strong shape preferred orientation (SPO) observed. {110} [001] slip may dominate the deformation of rutile. Quartz displays complicated and inconsistent LPOs in eclogite. These results are remarkably similar to observations from deformed eclogites in nature. [source] Phase Equilibria of Hornblende-Bearing Eclogite in the Western Dabie Mountain, Central ChinaACTA GEOLOGICA SINICA (ENGLISH EDITION), Issue 1 2009Jingsen ZHANG Abstract: The high-pressure (HP) eclogite in the western Dabie Mountain encloses numerous hornblendes, mostly barroisite. Opinions on the peak metamorphic P-T condition, PT path and mineral paragenesis of it are still in dispute. Generally, HP eclogite involves garnet, omphacite, hornblendes and quartz, with or without glaucophane, zoisite and phengite. The garnet has compositional zoning with XMg increase, XCa and XMn decrease from core to rim, which indicates a progressive metamorphism. The phase equilibria of the HP eclogite modeled by the P-T pseudosection method developed recently showed the following: (1) the growth zonation of garnet records a progressive metamorphic PT path from pre-peak condition of 1.9,2.1 GPa at 508°C-514°C to a peak one of 2.3,2.5 GPa at 528°C-531°C for the HP eclogite; (2) the peak mineral assemblage is garnet+omphacite+glaucophane+quartz±phengite, likely paragenetic with lawsonite; (3) the extensive hornblendes derive mainly from glaucophane, partial omphacite and even a little garnet due to the decompression with some heating during the post-peak stage, mostly representing the conditions of about 1.4,1.6 GPa and 580°C-640°C, and their growth is favored by the dehydration of lawsonite into zoisite or epidote, but most of the garnet, omphacite or phengite in the HP eclogite still preserve their compositions at peak condition, and they are not obviously equilibrious with the hornblendes. [source] Petrographic and SHRIMP Studies of Zircons from the Caledonian Xiongdian Eclogite, Northwestern Dabie MountainsACTA GEOLOGICA SINICA (ENGLISH EDITION), Issue 4 2000JIAN Ping Abstract The Xiongdian eclogite occurring in the Sujiahe tectonic mélange zone at Luoshan County, Henan Province, in the western Dabie Mountains, is typical high-pressure (HP)-ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) and medium-temperature eclogite. The occurrence, internal texture and surface characteristics of zircons in eclogite were studied rather systematically petrographically combined with the cathodoluminescence (CL) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) methods. Zircons are mainly hosted in garnet and other metamorphic minerals with sharp boundaries, have a multifaceted morphology and are homogeneous or exhibit a metamorphic growth texture in the interior, thus indicating that they are the product of metamorphism. SHRIMP analyses give zircon 206Pb/238U ages of 335 to 424 Ma and show a certain degree of radiogenic Pb loss; therefore it may be inferred that the age of 424±5 Ma represents the minimum age of a HP-UHP metamorphic age. From the above analyses coupled with previous Sm-Nd, 40Ar- 39Ar, U-Pb and 207Pb/206Pb age data, it is suggested that the peak metamorphic age of the Xiongdian eclogite should be between 424 and 480 Ma. This study further validate the view of the existence of a Caledonian HP-UHP metamorphic event in the western Dabie Mountains. [source] Jadeite and eclogite: Peculiar raw materials of Neolithic stone implements in Slovakia and their possible sourcesGEOARCHAEOLOGY: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL, Issue 3 2005Ján Spi In this paper, we describe Neolithic/Aeneolithic implements made from high-pressure metabasites: jadeites and eclogites. As such rocks are unknown in the Western Carpathians mountain system, we presume distant source areas for the described raw material types. We present the morphology, cultural association, and the results of petrographic research (microprobe analyses of rock-forming minerals) on implements made from these raw materials found at two sites in the Slovak Republic. We propose that the raw materials of these implements crop out hundreds of kilometers from the sites on which they were discovered. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Deformation history of the eclogite- and jadeitite-bearing mélange from North Motagua Fault Zone, Guatemala: insights in the processes of a fossil subduction channelGEOLOGICAL JOURNAL, Issue 2 2009Michele Marroni Abstract In Guatemala, along the northern side of the Motagua Valley, a mélange consisting of blocks of eclogite and jadeitite set in a metaserpentinitic and metasedimentary matrix crops out. The metasedimentary rocks display a complex deformation history that includes four tectonic phases, from D1 to D4. The D1 phase occurs only as a relic and is characterized by a mineral assemblage developed under pressure temperature (P,T) conditions of 1.00,1.25,GPa and 206,263°C. The D2 phase, characterized by isoclinal folds, schistosity and mineral/stretching lineation, developed at P,T conditions of 0.70,1.20,GPa and 279,409°C. The following D3 and D4 phases show deformations developed at shallower structural levels. Whereas the D1 phase can be interpreted as the result of underplating of slices of oceanic lithosphere during an intraoceanic subduction, the following phases have been acquired by the mélange during its progressive exhumation through different mechanisms. The deformations related to the D2 and D3 phases can be regarded as acquired by extrusion of the mélange within a subduction channel during a stage of oblique subduction. In addition, the structural evidences indicate that the coupling and mixing of different blocks occurred during the D2 phase, as a result of flow reverse and upward trajectory in the subduction channel. By contrast, the D4 phase can be interpreted as related to extension at shallow structural levels. In this framework, the exhumation-related structures in the mélange indicate that this process, probably long-lived, developed through different mechanisms, active in the subduction channel through time. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] High-Si phengite, mineral chemistry and P,T evolution of ultra-high-pressure eclogites and calc-silicates from the Dabie Shan, eastern ChinaGEOLOGICAL JOURNAL, Issue 3-4 2000Robert Schmid Abstract A suite of coesite,eclogites and associated calc-silicate rocks from the ultra-high-pressure (UHP) belt in the Dabie Shan (eastern China) was investigated petrologically. Field relations and the presence of UHP minerals such as coesite, omphacite and high-Si phengite in the eclogites and the enclosing calc-silicates testify to a common metamorphic evolution for these two lithologies. Except for one sample, all bear phengite with unusually high silica contents (Si up to 3.7 per formula unit). Phengite occupies various textural positions indicating that different metamorphic stages are reflected by these white micas, which correlate with distinct mineral zonation patterns. Using the latest thermobarometric calibrations for eclogite-facies rocks, maximum pressure,temperature (P,T) conditions of 40,48 kbar at <,750°C were estimated for the peak-metamorphic mineral assemblages. These P,T conditions were calculated for both eclogitic garnet porphyroblasts with diffusion-controlled zoning as well as garnet porphyroblasts with prograde growth zonation patterns. Most samples were affected by a strong retrograde overprint mainly under eclogite- and amphibolite-facies conditions. Thermobarometry using mineral sets from different textural positions reveals cooling and decompression of the UHP rocks down to <,20 kbar at <,600°C for the bulk of the samples. Decompression and heating indicated by a few samples is interpreted to result from mineral chemical disequilibrium or late thermal influence. These new data show that subduction of continental crust in the Dabie Shan was deeper than previously thought, and also that some cooling and decompression took place at upper-mantle depths. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Overview of the geology, petrology and tectonic framework of the high-pressure,ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic belt of the Kokchetav Massif, KazakhstanISLAND ARC, Issue 3 2000S. Maruyama Abstract High- to ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic (HP,UHPM) rocks crop out over 150 km along an east,west axis in the Kokchetav Massif of northern Kazakhstan. They are disposed within the Massif as a 2 km thick, subhorizontal pile of sheet-like nappes, predominantly composed of interlayered pelitic and psammitic schists and gneisses, amphibolite and orthogneiss, with discontinuous boudins and lenses of eclogite, dolomitic marble, whiteschist and garnet pyroxenite. On the basis of predominating lithologies, we subdivided the nappe group into four north-dipping, fault-bounded orogen-parallel units (I,IV, from base to top). Constituent metabasic rocks exhibit a systematic progression of metamorphic grades, from high-pressure amphibolite through quartz,eclogite and coesite,eclogite to diamond,eclogite facies. Coesite, diamond and other mineral inclusions within zircon offer the best means by which to clarify the regional extent of UHPM, as they are effectively sequestered from the effects of fluids during retrogression. Inclusion distribution and conventional geothermobarometric determinations demonstrate that the highest grade metamorphic rocks (Unit II: T = 780,1000°C, P = 37,60 kbar) are restricted to a medial position within the nappe group, and metamorphic grade decreases towards both the top (Unit III: T = 730,750°C, P = 11,14 kbar; Unit IV: T = 530°C, P = 7.5,9 kbar) and bottom (Unit I: T = 570,680°C; P = 7,13.5 kbar). Metamorphic zonal boundaries and internal structural fabrics are subhorizontal, and the latter exhibit opposing senses of shear at the bottom (top-to-the-north) and top (top-to-the-south) of the pile. The orogen-scale architecture of the massif is sandwich-like, with the HP,UHPM nappe group juxtaposed across large-scale subhorizontal faults, against underlying low P,T metapelites (Daulet Suite) at the base, and overlying feebly metamorphosed clastic and carbonate rocks (Unit V). The available structural and petrologic data strongly suggest that the HP,UHPM rocks were extruded as a sequence of thin sheets, from a root zone in the south toward the foreland in the north, and juxtaposed into the adjacent lower-grade units at shallow crustal levels of around 10 km. The nappe pile suffered considerable differential internal displacements, as the 2 km thick sequence contains rocks exhumed from depths of up to 200 km in the core, and around 30,40 km at the margins. Consequently, wedge extrusion, perhaps triggered by slab-breakoff, is the most likely tectonic mechanism to exhume the Kokchetav HP,UHPM rocks. [source] Amphibolite facies retrograde metamorphism of the Zhujiachong eclogite, SE Dabieshan: 40Ar/39Ar age constraints from argon extraction using UV-laser microprobe, in vacuo crushing and stepwise heatingJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 5 2010H.-N. QIU Abstract The Zhujiachong eclogite in the south-eastern Dabieshan ultra-high- P terrane has been overprinted during retrograde metamorphism, with the development of garnet-amphibolite mineral assemblages in most rocks in the outcrop. This study is focused on providing age constraints for the retrograde amphibolite facies and greenschist facies mineralogy by 40Ar/39Ar dating. By applying a novel approach of combining three different techniques for extracting argon: laser stepwise heating of single grains and small separates, a spot fusion technique by UV-laser ablation microprobe on polished sections and an in vacuo crushing technique for liberating radiogenic argon from fluid inclusions, it is demonstrated that an internally consistent thermal history can be derived. The 40Ar/39Ar ages indicate that phengite formed before 265 Ma, probably during the ultra-high- P event. Ages associated with amphibolite facies retrograde metamorphism range from 242 to 217 Ma by the analyses of amphibole. Ages of c. 230 Ma were found for the symplectite matrix that formed during retrogression from eclogite pyroxene. Late stage hydrothermal activity leading to the formation of coarse-grained paragonite and fluid inclusions in vein amphibole was dated at c. 200 Ma. These age results agree well with the mineral crystallization sequence observed from thin-sections of the retrograded eclogite: phengite , paragonite and amphibole in matrix , amphibole in the corona. [source] Cold subduction and the formation of lawsonite eclogite , constraints from prograde evolution of eclogitized pillow lava from CorsicaJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 4 2010E. J. K. RAVNA Abstract A new discovery of lawsonite eclogite is presented from the Lancône glaucophanites within the Schistes Lustrés nappe at Défilé du Lancône in Alpine Corsica. The fine-grained eclogitized pillow lava and inter-pillow matrix are extremely fresh, showing very little evidence of retrograde alteration. Peak assemblages in both the massive pillows and weakly foliated inter-pillow matrix consist of zoned idiomorphic Mg-poor (<0.8 wt% MgO) garnet + omphacite + lawsonite + chlorite + titanite. A local overprint by the lower grade assemblage glaucophane + albite with partial resorption of omphacite and garnet is locally observed. Garnet porphyroblasts in the massive pillows are Mn rich, and show a regular prograde growth-type zoning with a Mn-rich core. In the inter-pillow matrix garnet is less manganiferous, and shows a mutual variation in Ca and Fe with Fe enrichment toward the rim. Some garnet from this rock type shows complex zoning patterns indicating a coalescence of several smaller crystallites. Matrix omphacite in both rock types is zoned with a rimward increase in XJd, locally with cores of relict augite. Numerous inclusions of clinopyroxene, lawsonite, chlorite and titanite are encapsulated within garnet in both rock types, and albite, quartz and hornblende are also found included in garnet from the inter-pillow matrix. Inclusions of clinopyroxene commonly have augitic cores and omphacitic rims. The inter-pillow matrix contains cross-cutting omphacite-rich veinlets with zoned omphacite, Si-rich phengite (Si = 3.54 apfu), ferroglaucophane, actinolite and hematite. These veinlets are seen fracturing idiomorphic garnet, apparently without any secondary effects. Pseudosections of matrix compositions for the massive pillows, the inter-pillow matrix and the cross-cutting veinlets indicate similar P,T conditions with maximum pressures of 1.9,2.6 GPa at temperatures of 335,420 °C. The inclusion suite found in garnet from the inter-pillow matrix apparently formed at pressures below 0.6,0.7 GPa. Retrogression during initial decompression of the studied rocks is only very local. Late veinlets of albite + glaucophane, without breakdown of lawsonite, indicate that the rocks remained in a cold environment during exhumation, resulting in a hairpin-shaped P,T path. [source] Microfabric characteristics and rheological significance of ultra-high-pressure metamorphosed jadeite-quartzite and eclogite from Shuanghe, Dabie Mountains, ChinaJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2010L. WANG Abstract Quantitative analysis of the structural evolution of jadeite-quartzite, a rare ultra-high pressure (UHP) rock type from the Dabie Mountains of eastern China, sheds light on the formation and evolution of UHP orogenic belts worldwide. Geological mapping of the Shuanghe area, where jadeite-quartzites crop out, was carried out to determine the spatial relationships between different UHP rocks within this orogen. The deformation mechanisms of jadeite-quartzite, geodynamical parameters (stress, strain, strain rate), and microstructure including lattice preferred orientation (LPO) were determined from six jadeite-quartzite samples from the Shuanghe area. LPOs of clinopyroxene (jadeite and omphacite), garnet, rutile and quartz from these jadeite-quartzite samples are compared with those of three eclogites preserving different degrees of deformation from the Shuanghe area. Microstructural LPOs of jadeite, omphacite, garnet, rutile and quartz were determined using electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) analysis. Quartz fabrics were largely recrystallized during late, low-grade stages of deformation, whereas garnet shows no strong LPO patterns. Rutile fabrics show a weak LS fabric along [001]. Jadeite and omphacite show the strongest eclogite facies LPO patterns, suggesting that they may provide important information about mantle deformation patterns and control the rheology of deeply subducted continental crust. Microstructural data show that the jadeite LPO patterns are similar to those of omphacite and vary between L- and S-types, which correlate with prolate and oblate grain shape fabrics (SPO); quartz LPOs are monoclinic. Microstructural analysis using TEM shows that the dominant slip systems of jadeite in one sample are (100)[001], (110)[001] and (1 1 0)1/2[110], while in another sample, no dislocations are observed. Abundant dislocations in quartz were accommodated by the dominant slip system (0001)[110], indicating basal glide and represents regional shearing during the exhumation process. This suggests that dislocation creep is the dominant fundamental deformation mechanism in jadeite under UHP conditions. The protoliths of jadeite-quartzite, metasedimentary rocks from the northern passive continental margin of the Yangtze craton, experienced the same deep subduction and were deformed under similar rheological conditions as other UHP eclogite, marble and paragneiss. Experimental UHP deformation of quartzo-feldspathic gneiss with a chemical composition similar to the bulk continental crust has shown that the formation of a jadeite,stishovite rock is associated with a density increase of the host rock similar to the eclogite conversion from basaltic protoliths. The resulting rock can be denser than the surrounding mantle pyrolite up to depths of 660 km (24 GPa). Thus, processes of deep continental subduction may be better-understood through understanding the rheology and mechanical behaviour of jadeite. Jadeite-quartzites such as those from the Shuanghe may be exhumed remnants of deeply-subducted slabs of continental crust, other parts of which subducted past the ,depth of no return', and remain in the deep mantle. [source] Petrology of coesite-bearing eclogite from Habutengsu Valley, western Tianshan, NW China and its tectonometamorphic implicationJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 9 2009Z. LÜ Abstract Coesite inclusions in garnet have been found in eclogite boudins enclosed in coesite-bearing garnet micaschist in the Habutengsu Valley, Chinese western Tianshan, which are distinguished from their retrograde quartz by means of optical characteristics, CL imaging and Raman spectrum. The coesite-bearing eclogite is mainly composed of porphyroblastic garnet, omphacite, paragonite, glaucophane and barroisite, minor amounts of rutile and dotted (or banded) graphite. In addition to coesite and quartz, the zoned porphyroblastic garnet contains inclusions of omphacite, Na-Ca amphibole, calcite, albite, chlorite, rutile, ilmenite and graphite. Multi-phase inclusions (e.g. Czo + Pg ± Qtz, Grt II + Qtz and Chl + Pg) can be interpreted as breakdown products of former lawsonite and possibly chloritoid. Coesite occurs scattered within a compositionally homogenous but narrow domain of garnet (outer core), indicative of equilibrium at the UHP stage. The estimate by garnet-clinopyroxene thermometry yields peak temperatures of 420,520 °C at 2.7 GPa. Phase equilibrium calculations further constrain the P,T conditions for the UHP mineral assemblage Grt + Omp + Lws + Gln + Coe to 2.4,2.7 GPa and 470,510 °C. Modelled modal abundances of major minerals along a 5 °C km,1 geothermal gradient suggests two critical dehydration processes at ,430 and ,510 °C respectively. Computed garnet composition patterns are in good agreement with measured core-rim profiles. The petrological study of coesite-bearing eclogite in this paper provides insight into the metamorphic evolution in a cold subduction zone. Together with other reported localities of UHP rocks from the entire orogen of Chinese western Tianshan, it is concluded that the regional extent of UHP-LT metamorphism in Chinese western Tianshan is extensive and considerably larger than previously thought, although intensive retrogression has erased UHP-LT assemblages at most localities. [source] Age and early metamorphic history of the Sanbagawa belt: Lu,Hf and P,T constraints from the Western Iratsu eclogiteJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 5 2009S. ENDO Abstract Two distinct age estimates for eclogite-facies metamorphism in the Sanbagawa belt have been proposed: (i) c. 120,110 Ma based on a zircon SHRIMP age for the Western Iratsu unit and (ii) c. 88,89 Ma based on a garnet,omphacite Lu,Hf isochron age from the Seba and Kotsu eclogite units. Despite the contrasting estimates of formation ages, petrological studies suggest the formation conditions of the Western Iratsu unit are indistinguishable from those of the other two units,all ,20 kbar and 600,650 °C. Studies of the associated geological structures suggest the Seba and Western Iratsu units are parts of a larger semi-continuous eclogite unit. A combination of geochronological and petrological studies for the Western Iratsu eclogite offers a resolution to this discrepancy in age estimates. New Lu,Hf dating for the Western Iratsu eclogite yields an age of 115.9 ± 0.5 Ma that is compatible with the zircon SHRIMP age. However, petrological studies show that there was significant garnet growth in the Western Iratsu eclogite before eclogite facies metamorphism, and the early core growth is associated with a strong concentration of Lu. Pre-eclogite facies garnet (Grt1) includes epidote,amphibolite facies parageneses equilibrated at 550,650 °C and ,10 kbar, and this is overgrown by prograde eclogite facies garnet (Grt2). The Lu,Hf age of c. 116 Ma is strongly skewed to the isotopic composition of Grt1 and is interpreted to reflect the age of the pre-eclogite phase. The considerable time gap (c. 27 Myr) between the two Lu,Hf ages suggests they may be related to separate tectonic events or distinct phases in the evolution of the Sanbagawa subduction zone. [source] Coupled Lu,Hf and Sm,Nd geochronology constrains garnet growth in ultra-high-pressure eclogites from the Dabie orogenJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 7 2008H. CHENG Abstract Ultra-high-pressure eclogites from the Dabie orogen that formed over a range in temperatures (,600 to > 700 °C) have been investigated with combined Lu,Hf and Sm,Nd geochronology. Three eclogites, sampled from Zhujiachong, Huangzhen and Shima, yield Lu,Hf ages of 240.0 ± 5.0, 224.4 ± 1.9 and 230.8 ± 5.0 Ma and corresponding Sm,Nd ages of 222.5 ± 5.0, 217.6 ± 6.1 and 224.2 ± 2.1 Ma respectively. Well-preserved prograde major- and trace-element zoning in garnet in the Zhujiachong eclogite suggests that the Lu,Hf age mostly reflects an early phase of garnet growth that continued over a time interval of c. 17.5 Myr. For the Huangzhen eclogite, despite preserved elemental growth zoning in garnet, textural study reveals that the Lu,Hf age is biased towards a later garnet growth episode rather than representing early growth. The narrow time interval of <6.6 Myr defined by the difference between Lu,Hf and Sm,Nd ages indicates a short final garnet growth episode and suggests a rapid cooling stage. By contrast, the rather flat element zoning in garnet in the Shima eclogite suggests that Lu,Hf and Sm,Nd ages for this sample have been reset by diffusion and are cooling ages. The new Lu,Hf ages point to an initiation of prograde metamorphism prior to c. 240 Ma for the Dabie orogen, while the exact peak metamorphic timing experienced by specific samples ranges between c. 230 to c. 220 Ma. [source] Contrasting metamorphic histories of lenses of high-pressure rocks and host migmatites with a flat orogenic fabric (Bohemian Massif, Czech Republic): a result of tectonic mixing within horizontal crustal flow?JOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 6 2008TÍPSKÁ Abstract Migmatites with sub-horizontal fabrics at the eastern margin of the Variscan orogenic root in the Bohemian Massif host lenses of eclogite, kyanite-K-feldspar granulite and marble within a matrix of migmatitic paragneiss and amphibolite. Petrological study and pseudosection modelling have been used to establish whether the whole area experienced terrane-wide exhumation of lower orogenic crust, or whether smaller portions of higher-pressure lower crust were combined with a lower-pressure matrix. Kyanite-K-feldspar granulite shows peak conditions of 16.5 kbar and 850 °C with no clear indications of prograde path, whereas in the eclogite the prograde path indicates burial from 10 kbar and 700 °C to a peak of 18 kbar and 800 °C. Two contrasting prograde paths are identified within the host migmatitic paragneiss. The first path is inferred from the presence of staurolite and kyanite inclusions in garnet that contains preserved prograde zoning that indicates burial with simultaneous heating to 11 kbar and 800 °C. The second path is inferred from garnet overgrowths of a flat foliation defined by sillimanite and biotite. Garnet growth in such an assemblage is possible only if the sample is heated at 7,8 kbar to around 700,840 °C. Decompression is associated with strong structural reworking in the flat fabric that involves growth of sillimanite in paragneiss and kyanite-K-feldspar granulite at 7,10 kbar and 750,850 °C. The contrasting prograde metamorphic histories indicate that kilometre-scale portions of high-pressure lower orogenic crust were exhumed to middle crustal levels, dismembered and mixed with a middle crustal migmatite matrix, with the simultaneous development of a flat foliation. The contrasting P,T paths with different pressure peaks show that tectonic models explaining high-pressure boudins in such a fabric cannot be the result of heterogeneous retrogression during ductile rebound of the whole orogenic root. The P,T paths are compatible with a model of heterogeneous vertical extrusion of lower crust into middle crust, followed by sub-horizontal flow. [source] Formation of eclogite, and reaction during exhumation to mid-crustal levels, Snowbird tectonic zone, western Canadian ShieldJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 9 2007J. A. BALDWIN Abstract A re-evaluation of the P,T history of eclogite within the East Athabasca granulite terrane of the Snowbird tectonic zone, northern Saskatchewan, Canada was undertaken. Using calculated pseudosections in combination with new garnet,clinopyroxene and zircon and rutile trace element thermometry, peak metamorphic conditions are constrained to ,16 kbar and 750 °C, followed by near-isothermal decompression to ,10 kbar. Associated with the eclogite are two types of occurrences of sapphirine-bearing rocks preserving a rich variety of reaction textures that allow examination of the retrograde history below 10 kbar. The first occurs as a 1,2 m zone adjacent to the eclogite body with a peak assemblage of garnet,kyanite,quartz interpreted to have formed during the eclogite facies metamorphism. Rims of orthopyroxene and plagioclase developed around garnet, and sapphirine,plagioclase and spinel,plagioclase symplectites developed around kyanite. The second variety of sapphirine-bearing rocks occurs in kyanite veins within the eclogite. The veins involve orthopyroxene, garnet and plagioclase layers spatially organized around a central kyanite layer that are interpreted to have formed following the eclogite facies metamorphism. The layering has itself been modified, with, in particular, kyanite being replaced by sapphirine,plagioclase, spinel,plagioclase and corundum,plagioclase symplectites, as well as the kyanite being replaced by sillimanite. Petrological modelling in the CFMAS system examining chemical potential gradients between kyanite and surrounding quartz indicates that these vein textures probably formed during further essentially isothermal decompression, ultimately reaching ,7 kbar and 750 °C. These results indicate that the final reaction in these rocks occurred at mid-crustal levels at upper amphibolite facies conditions. Previous geochronological and thermochronological constraints bracket the time interval of decompression to <5,10 Myr, indicating that ,25 km of exhumation took place during this interval. This corresponds to minimum unroofing rates of ,2,5 mm year,1 following eclogite facies metamorphism, after which the rocks resided at mid-crustal levels for 80,100 Myr. [source] Ultrahigh-pressure eclogite transformed from mafic granulite in the Dabie orogen, east-central ChinaJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 9 2007Y.-C. LIU Abstract Although ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic rocks are present in many collisional orogenic belts, almost all exposed UHP metamorphic rocks are subducted upper or felsic lower continental crust with minor mafic boudins. Eclogites formed by subduction of mafic lower continental crust have not been identified yet. Here an eclogite occurrence that formed during subduction of the mafic lower continental crust in the Dabie orogen, east-central China is reported. At least four generations of metamorphic mineral assemblages can be discerned: (i) hypersthene + plagioclase ± garnet; (ii) omphacite + garnet + rutile + quartz; (iii) symplectite stage of garnet + diopside + hypersthene + ilmenite + plagioclase; (iv) amphibole + plagioclase + magnetite, which correspond to four metamorphic stages: (a) an early granulite facies, (b) eclogite facies, (c) retrograde metamorphism of high-pressure granulite facies and (d) retrograde metamorphism of amphibolite facies. Mineral inclusion assemblages and cathodoluminescence images show that zircon is characterized by distinctive domains of core and a thin overgrowth rim. The zircon core domains are classified into two types: the first is igneous with clear oscillatory zonation ± apatite and quartz inclusions; and the second is metamorphic containing a granulite facies mineral assemblage of garnet, hypersthene and plagioclase (andesine). The zircon rims contain garnet, omphacite and rutile inclusions, indicating a metamorphic overgrowth at eclogite facies. The almost identical ages of the two types of core domains (magmatic = 791 ± 9 Ma and granulite facies metamorphic zircon = 794 ± 10 Ma), and the Triassic age (212 ± 10 Ma) of eclogitic facies metamorphic overgrowth zircon rim are interpreted as indicating that the protolith of the eclogite is mafic granulite that originated from underplating of mantle-derived magma onto the base of continental crust during the Neoproterozoic (c. 800 Ma) and then subducted during the Triassic, experiencing UHP eclogite facies metamorphism at mantle depths. The new finding has two-fold significance: (i) voluminous mafic lower continental crust can increase the average density of subducted continental lithosphere, thus promoting its deep subduction; (ii) because of the current absence of mafic lower continental crust in the Dabie orogen, delamination or recycling of subducted mafic lower continental crust can be inferred as the geochemical cause for the mantle heterogeneity and the unusually evolved crustal composition. [source] Zircon U,Pb age and Hf isotope evidence for contrasting origin of bimodal protoliths for ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic rocks from the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling projectJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 8 2007R.-X. CHEN Abstract A combined study of zircon morphology, U,Pb ages and Hf isotopes as well as whole-rock major and trace elements was carried out for ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) eclogite and felsic gneiss from the main hole (MH) of the Chinese Continental Scientific Drilling (CCSD) project in the Sulu orogen. The results show contrasting Hf isotope compositions for bimodal UHP metaigneous rocks, pointing to contrasting origins for their protoliths (thus dual-bimodal compositions). The samples of interest were from two continuous core segments from CCSD MH at depths of 734.21,737.16 m (I) and 929.67,932.86 m (II) respectively. Zircon U,Pb dating for four samples from the two core segments yields two groups of ages at 784 ± 17 and 222 ± 3 Ma, respectively, corresponding to protolith formation during supercontinental rifting and metamorphic growth during continental collision. Although the Triassic UHP metamorphism significantly reset the zircon U,Pb system of UHP rocks, the Hf isotope compositions of igneous zircon can be used to trace their protolith origin. Contrasting types of initial Hf isotope ratios are, respectively, correlated with segments I and II, regardless of their lithochemistry. The first type shows positive ,Hf(t) values of 7.8 ± 3.1 to 6.0 ± 3.0, with young Hf model age of 1.03 and 1.11 Ga. The second type exhibits negative ,Hf(t) values of ,6.9 ± 1.6 to ,9.1 ± 1.1, with old Hf model ages of 2.11 and 2.25 Ga. It appears that the UHP rocks from the two segments have protoliths of contrasting origin. Consistent results are also obtained from their trace element compositions suggesting that mid-Neoproterozoic protoliths of bimodal UHP metaigneous rocks formed during supercontinental rifting at the northern margin of the South China Block. Thus, the first type of bimodal magmatism formed by rapid reworking of juvenile crust, whereas the second type of bimodal magmatism was principally generated by rift anatexis of Paleoproterozoic crust. Melting of orogenic lithosphere has potential to bring about bimodal magmatism with contrasting origins. Because arc,continent collision zones are the best place to accumulate both juvenile and ancient crusts, the contrasting types of bimodal magmatism are proposed to occur in an arc,continent collision orogen during the supercontinental rifting, in response to the attempted breakup of the supercontinent Rodinia at c. 780 Ma. [source] Experimental Investigation of Eclogite Rheology and Its Fabrics at High Temperature and PressureJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2007J. ZHANG Abstract Eclogite plays an important role in mantle convection and geodynamics in subduction zones. An improved understanding of processes in the deeper levels of subduction zones and collision belts requires information on eclogite rheology. However, the deformation processes and associated fabrics in eclogite are not well understood. Incompatible views of deformation mechanism have been proposed for both garnet and omphacite. We present here deformation behaviour of eclogite at temperatures of 1027,1427 °C, confining pressures of 2.5,3.5 GPa, and strain rates of 1 × 10,5 s,1 to 5 × 10,4 s,1. We obtained a power-law creep for the high temperature and pressure deformation of a ,dry' eclogite (50 vol.% garnet, 40% omphacite and 10% quartz) with A = 103.3 ± 1.0, n = 3.5 ± 0.4, ,E =403 ± 30 KJ mol,1 and ,V = 27.2 cm3 mol,1. The two principal minerals of eclogite have greatly different strengths. Progressive increase of garnet results in a smooth increase in strength. Analysis by electron back-scattered diffraction shows that: (1) garnet displays pole figures with near random distributions of misorientation angle under both dry and wet conditions; (2) omphacite shows pronounced lattice preferred orientations (LPOs), suggesting a dominant dislocation creep mechanism. Further investigation into the water effects on eclogite show: (3) water content does not influence the style of omphacite fabric but increases slightly the fabric strength; (4) grain boundary processes dominate the deformation of garnet under high water fugacity or high shear-strain conditions, yielding a random LPO similar to that of non-deforming garnet, despite the strong shape preferred orientation (SPO) observed. {110} [001] slip may dominate the deformation of rutile. Quartz displays complicated and inconsistent LPOs in eclogite. These results are remarkably similar to observations from deformed eclogites in nature. [source] Fluid flow during exhumation of deeply subducted continental crust: zircon U-Pb age and O-isotope studies of a quartz vein within ultrahigh-pressure eclogiteJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2007Y.-F. ZHENG Abstract Quartz veins in high-pressure to ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic rocks witness channelized fluid flow that transports both mass and heat during collisional orogenesis. This flow can occur in the direction of changing temperature/pressure during subduction or exhumation. SHRIMP U-Pb dating of zircon from a kyanite-quartz vein within ultrahigh-pressure eclogite in the Dabie continental collision orogen yields two age groups at 212 ± 7 and 181 ± 13 Ma, which are similar to two groups of LA-ICPMS age at 210 ± 4 and 180 ± 5 Ma for the same sample. These ages are significantly younger than zircon U-Pb ages of 224 ± 2 Ma from the host eclogite. Thus the two age groups from the vein date two episodes of fluid flow involving zircon growth: the first due to decompression dehydration during exhumation, and the second due to heating dehydration in response to a cryptic thermal event after continental collision. Laser fluorination O-isotope analyses gave similar ,18O values for minerals from both vein and eclogite, indicating that the vein-forming fluid was internally derived. Synchronous cooling between the vein and eclogite is suggested by almost the same quartz,mineral fractionation values, with regularly decreasing temperatures that are in concordance with rates of O diffusion in the minerals. While the quartz veining was caused by decompression dehydration at 700,650 °C in a transition from ultrahigh-pressure to high-pressure eclogite-facies retrogression, the postcollisional fluid flow was retriggered by heating dehydration at ,500 °C without corresponding metamorphism. In either case, the kyanite,quartz vein formed later than the peak ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic event at the Middle Triassic, pointing to focused fluid flow during exhumation rather than subduction. The growth of metamorphic zircon in the eclogite appears to have depended on fluid availability, so that their occurrence is a type of geohygrometer besides geochronological applicability to dating of metamorphic events in orogenic cycles. [source] Excess silica in omphacite and the formation of free silica in eclogiteJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 1 2007H. W. DAY Abstract Silica lamellae in eclogitic clinopyroxene are widely interpreted as evidence of exsolution during decompression of eclogite. However, mechanisms other than exsolution might produce free silica, and the possible mechanisms depend in part on the nature and definition of excess silica. ,Excess' silica may occur in both stoichiometric and non-stoichiometric pyroxene. Although the issue has been debated, we show that all common definitions of excess silica in non-stoichiometric clinopyroxene are internally consistent, interchangeable, and therefore equivalent. The excess silica content of pyroxene is easily illustrated in a three-component, condensed composition space and may be plotted directly from a structural formula unit or recalculated end-members. In order to evaluate possible mechanisms for the formation of free silica in eclogite, we examined the net-transfer reactions in model eclogites using a Thompson reaction space. We show that there are at least three broad classes of reactions that release free silica in eclogite: (i) vacancy consumption in non-stoichiometric pyroxene; (ii) dissolution of Ti-phases in pyroxene or garnet; (iii) reactions between accessory phases and either pyroxene or garnet. We suggest that reliable interpretation of the significance of silica lamellae in natural clinopyroxene will require the evaluation not only of silica solubility, but also of titanium solubility, and the possible roles of accessory phases and inclusions on the balance of free silica. [source] Petrogenesis of lawsonite and epidote eclogite and blueschist, Sivrihisar Massif, TurkeyJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 9 2006P. B. DAVIS Abstract The Sivrihisar Massif, Turkey, is comprised of blueschist and eclogite facies metasedimentary and metabasaltic rocks. Abundant metre- to centimetre-scale eclogite pods occur in blueschist facies metabasalt, marble and quartz-rich rocks. Sivrihisar eclogite contains omphacite + garnet + phengite + rutile ± glaucophane ± quartz + lawsonite and/or epidote. Blueschists contain sodic amphibole + garnet + phengite + lawsonite and/or epidote ± omphacite ± quartz. Sivrihisar eclogite and blueschist have similar bulk composition, equivalent to NMORB, but record different P,T conditions: ,26 kbar, 500 °C (lawsonite eclogite); 18 kbar, 600 °C (epidote eclogite); 12 kbar, 380 °C (lawsonite blueschist); and 15,16 kbar, 480,500 °C (lawsonite-epidote blueschist). Pressures for the Sivrihisar lawsonite eclogite are among the highest reported for this rock type, which is rarely exposed at the Earth's surface. The distribution and textures of lawsonite ± epidote define P,T conditions and paths. For example, in some lawsonite-bearing rocks, epidote inclusions in garnet and partial replacement of matrix epidote by lawsonite suggest an anticlockwise P,T path. Other rocks contain no epidote as inclusions or as a matrix phase, and were metamorphosed entirely within the lawsonite stability field. Results of the P,T study and mapping of the distribution of blueschists and eclogites in the massif suggest that rocks recording different maximum P,T conditions were tectonically juxtaposed as kilometre-scale slices and associated high- P pods, although all shared the same exhumation path from ,9,11 kbar, 300,400 °C. Within the tectonic slices, alternating millimetre,centimetre-scale layers of eclogite and blueschist formed together at the same P,T conditions but represent different extents of prograde reaction controlled by strain partitioning or local variations in fO2 or other chemical factors. [source] Separate or shared metamorphic histories of eclogites and surrounding rocks?JOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 3 2006An example from the Bohemian Massif Abstract Eclogite boudins occur within an orthogneiss sheet enclosed in a Barrovian metapelite-dominated volcano-sedimentary sequence within the Velké Vrbno unit, NE Bohemian Massif. A metamorphic and lithological break defines the base of the eclogite-bearing orthogneiss nappe, with a structurally lower sequence without eclogite exposed in a tectonic window. The typical assemblage of the structurally upper metapelites is garnet,staurolite,kyanite,biotite,plagioclase,muscovite,quartz,ilmenite ± rutile ± silli-manite and prograde-zoned garnet includes chloritoid,chlorite,paragonite,margarite, staurolite,chlorite,paragonite,margarite and kyanite,chlorite,rutile. In pseudosection modelling in the system Na2O,CaO,K2O,FeO,MgO,Al2O3,SiO2,H2O (NCKFMASH) using THERMOCALC, the prograde path crosses the discontinuous reaction chloritoid + margarite = chlorite + garnet + staurolite,+,paragonite (with muscovite + quartz + H2O) at 9.5 kbar and 570 °C and the metamorphic peak is reached at 11 kbar and 640 °C. Decompression through about 7 kbar is indicated by sillimanite and biotite growing at the expense of garnet. In the tectonic window, the structurally lower metapelites (garnet,staurolite,biotite,muscovite,quartz ± plagioclase ± sillimanite ± kyanite) and amphibolites (garnet,amphibole,plagioclase ± epidote) indicate a metamorphic peak of 10 kbar at 620 °C and 11 kbar and 610,660 °C, respectively, that is consistent with the other metapelites. The eclogites are composed of garnet, omphacite relicts (jadeite = 33%) within plagioclase,clinopyroxene symplectites, epidote and late amphibole,plagioclase domains. Garnet commonly includes rutile,quartz,epidote ± clinopyroxene (jadeite = 43%) ± magnetite ± amphibole and its growth zoning is compatible in the pseudosection with burial under H2O-undersaturated conditions to 18 kbar and 680 °C. Plagioclase + amphibole replaces garnet within foliated boudin margins and results in the assemblage epidote,amphibole,plagioclase indicating that decompression occurred under decreasing temperature into garnet-free epidote,amphibolite facies conditions. The prograde path of eclogites and metapelites up to the metamorphic peak cannot be shared, being along different geothermal gradients, of about 11 and 17 °C km,1, respectively, to metamorphic pressure peaks that are 6,7 kbar apart. The eclogite,orthogneiss sheet docked with metapelites at about 11 kbar and 650 °C, and from this depth the exhumation of the pile is shared. [source] Mineral evolution of a garnet-pyroxenite nodule within eclogite, eastern Sulu ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic terrane, East ChinaJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 8 2005T. N. YANG Abstract Detailed microtextural observations and bulk chemical analysis were undertaken on a garnet-pyroxenite nodule within retrograde eclogites from the NE Sulu ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic (UHPM) terrane. The results suggest that the protolith was a cumulate from a gabbroic body. The nodule consists primarily of coarse clinopyroxene grains with a very high content of the Ca-Tschermakite molecule. Microscopic observations and back-scattered electron images (BSE) demonstrate a complicated intergrowth of clinopyroxene, garnet and ilmenite, which represents the peak metamorphic assemblage. The primary clinopyroxene grains are armoured with a thin garnet corona up to 0.5 mm wide that forms an interconnected network. Within the clinopyroxene grains, four sets of garnet lamellae are distributed along crystallographic planes; locally, a vermicular intergrowth of garnet and diopside is developed. Besides the garnet, parallel arrays of ilmenite blebs are common within the clinopyroxene. Hydrous minerals such as amphibole, zoisite and titanite formed at later stages, and replaced diopside, garnet and ilmenite respectively. The P,T conditions determined for the formation of the garnet lamellae indicate that the garnet pyroxenite experienced UHP metamorphism at the same peak P,T condition as its host eclogite. The very high Ca-Tschermakite content (31,34 mol.%) of the primary clinopyroxene indicates crystallization at about 9,17 kbar and 1250,1450 °C, and together with the microtextural observations, suggests that the protolith of the garnet pyroxenite was a cumulate from a former gabbroic body, in which case, the host eclogite might represent the gabbroic body. [source] A counter-clockwise P,T path for the Voltri Massif eclogites (Ligurian Alps, Italy)JOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 7 2005G. VIGNAROLI Abstract Integrated petrological and structural investigations of eclogites from the eclogite zone of the Voltri Massif (Ligurian Alps) have been used to reconstruct a complete Alpine P,T deformation path from burial by subduction to subsequent exhumation. The early metamorphic evolution of the eclogites has been unravelled by correlating garnet zonation trends with the chemical variations in inclusions found in the different garnet domains. Garnet in massive eclogites displays typical growth zoning, whereas garnet in foliated eclogites shows rim-ward resorption, likely related to re-equilibration during retrogressive evolution. Garnet inclusions are distinctly different from core to rim, consisting primarily of Ca-, Na/Ca-amphibole, epidote, paragonite and talc in garnet cores and of clinopyroxene ± talc in the outer garnet domains. Quantitative thermobarometry on the inclusion assemblages in the garnet cores defines an initial greenschist-to-amphibolite facies metamorphic stage (M1 stage) at c. 450,500 °C and 5,8 kbar. Coexistence of omphacite + talc + katophorite inclusion assemblage in the outer garnet domains indicate c. 550 °C and 20 kbar, conditions which were considered as minimum P,T estimates for the M2 eclogitic stage. The early phase of retrograde reactions is polyphase and equilibrated under epidote,blueschist facies (M3 stage), characterized by the development of composite reaction textures (garnet necklaces and fluid-assisted Na-amphibole-bearing symplectites) produced at the expense of the primary M2 garnet-clinopyroxene assemblage. The blueschist retrogression is contemporaneous with the development of a penetrative deformation (D3) that resulted in a non-coaxial fabric, with dominant top-to-the-N sense of shear during rock exhumation. All of that is overprinted by a texturally late amphibolite/greenschist facies assemblages (M4 & M5 stages), which are not associated with a penetrative structural fabric. The combined P,T deformation data are consistent with an overall counter-clockwise path, from the greenschist/amphibolite, through the eclogite, the blueschist to the greenschist facies. These new results provide insights into the dynamic evolution of the Tertiary oceanic subduction processes leading to the building up of the Alpine orogen and the mechanisms involved in the exhumation of its high-pressure roots. [source] Eclogites from the south Tianshan, NW China: petrological characteristic and calculated mineral equilibria in the Na2O,CaO,FeO,MgO,Al2O3,SiO2,H2O systemJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2003C. J. Wei Abstract Eclogites from the south Tianshan, NW China are grouped into two types: glaucophane and hornblende eclogites, composed, respectively, of garnet + omphacite + glaucophane + paragonite + epidote + quartz and garnet + omphacite + hornblende (sensu lato) + paragonite + epidote + quartz, plus accessory rutile and ilmenite. These eclogites are diverse both in mineral composition and texture not only between the two types but also among the different selected samples within the glaucophane eclogite. Using thermocalc 3.1 and recent models of activity,composition relation for minerals, a P,T projection and a series of P,T pseudosections for specific samples of eclogite have been calculated in the system Na2O,CaO,FeO,MgO,Al2O3,SiO2,H2O (NCFMASH) with quartz and water taken to be in excess. On the basis of these phase diagrams, the phase relations and P,T conditions are well delineated. The three selected samples of glaucophane eclogite AK05, AK11 and AK17 are estimated to have peak P,T conditions, respectively, of 540,550 °C at c. 16 kbar, c. 560 °C at 15,17 kbar and c. 580 °C at 15,19 kbar, and two samples of hornblende eclogite AK10 and AK30 of 610,630 °C and 17,18 kbar. Together with H2O-content contours in the related P,T pseudosections and textural relations, both types of eclogite are inferred to show clockwise P,T paths, with the hornblende eclogite being transformed from the glaucophane eclogite assemblage dominantly through increasing temperature. [source] Discovery of eclogite facies carbonate rocks from the Lindås Nappe, Caledonides, Western NorwayJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 7 2002T. M. Boundy Abstract Eclogite facies carbonate rocks have been discovered associated with the granulite,eclogite transitional rocks within Bergen Arc system, Caledonian Orogen of western Norway. The local occurrences of marbles and calc-silicates are found subparallel to the mafic eclogite facies shear zones on Holsnøy Island. Marbles contain the assemblage calcite (Ca0.99Sr0.01CO3), calcian strontianite (Ca0.18,0.44Sr0.53,0.84CO3), clinopyroxene (Jd7,32), epidote/allanite (Ps0,33), titanite, garnet (Alm52,56Grs28,33Pyp11,16), barite (Ba0.90,0.99Sr0.01,0.10SO4), celestine (Sr0.67,0.98Ba0.01,0.23Ca0.01,0.11SO4), and one apparently homogeneous grain of intermediate composition (Ba0.49Ca0.01Sr0.50SO4). Adjacent eclogites have clinopyroxene with similar jadeite contents (Jd14,34) and similar garnet (Alm51,60Grs26,36Pyp8,14) compositions. The marbles have high contents of Sr (9500,11000 p.p.m) and Y (115,130 p.p.m). However, low concentrations of some key trace elements (110,160 p.p.m. Ba and <5 p.p.m. Nb) appear to indicate that the marble is not a metamorphosed carbonatite. The 87Sr/86Sr ratios range from 0.7051 to 0.7059. Field and petrological relationships suggest that metasomatic reactions and fluids played a significant role in producing and/or modifying the marbles. The breakdown of scapolite in the granulite into carbonates and sulphates during eclogite facies metamorphism may have contributed to the metasomatic formation of the marbles along shear zones. Fluids involved during subduction are an important catalyst for metamorphism and are recognized to have played a critical role in the localized transformation from granulite to eclogite in the Holsnøy Island area. Thermobarometry indicates 640,690 °C and 18,20 kbar for adjacent eclogites and temperatures of 580,650 °C for the calc-silicates. The marble assemblages are consistent with fluid that is dominantly comprised of H2O (XCO2 < 0.03) under high-pressure conditions. Phase equilibria of the marbles constrain the fO2 of the fluids and imply oxidizing conditions of the deep crustal fluids. At present the source of the fluids remains unresolved. The results provide additional insights into the variable and evolving nature of fluids related to subduction and high-pressure metamorphism. [source] Silica precipitates in omphacite from eclogite at Alpe Arami, Switzerland: evidence of deep subductionJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 5 2002L. F. Dobrzhinetskaya Abstract Observations of oriented SiO2 precipitates in omphacite from eclogite with tholeiitic basalt protolith bordering the Alpe Arami garnet peridotite massif, Ticino, Switzerland, and petrological studies of the eclogitic mineral assemblages, suggest that this rock was subjected to higher-pressure metamorphism than previously realized. We employed various calibrations of the Fe2+ , Mg exchange thermometer and calculations of equilibria with thermodynamic data, considering the calcium,Tschermak's component (CaAl2SiO6), of garnet-pyroxene pairs. From these calculations, it is concluded that the eclogitic lenses have recorded at least four stages of mineral growth corresponding to the following: Stage I (prograde) c. 2.4 GPa; 700 °C; Stage IIa (maximum recorded grade) c. 7.0 GPa; 1100 °C; Stage IIb (retrograde) c. 3.7 GPa; 900 °C; Stage III (retrograde) c. 2.1 GPa; 750 °C. Because of the preservation of Stage I, a relatively rapid subduction and exhumation of Alpe Arami eclogite is suggested. The exhumation path of the eclogitic rock is in good agreement with most exhumation paths inferred for the Alpe Arami garnet lherzolite proposed previously by several authors based upon a variety of different observations, although the eclogite and peridotite exhumation paths may diverge at depths greater than 120 km. [source] P,T evolution of glaucophane,omphacite bearing HP,LT rocks in the western Tianshan Orogen, NW China:new evidence for ,Alpine-type' tectonicsJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 2 2002R. Klemd Abstract The late Palaeozoic western Tianshan high-pressure /low-temperature belt extends for about 200 km along the south-central Tianshan suture zone and is composed mainly of blueschist, eclogite and epidote amphibolite/greenschist facies rocks. P,T conditions of mafic garnet omphacite and garnet,omphacite blueschist, which are interlayered with eclogite, were investigated in order to establish an exhumation path for these high-pressure rocks. Maximum pressure conditions are represented by the assemblage garnet,omphacite,paragonite,phengite,glaucophane,quartz,rutile. Estimated maximum pressures range between 18 and 21 kbar at temperatures between 490 and 570 °C. Decompression caused the destabilization of omphacite, garnet and glaucophane to albite, Ca-amphibole and chlorite. The post-eclogite facies metamorphic conditions between 9 and 14 kbar at 480,570 °C suggest an almost isothermal decompression from eclogite to epidote,amphibolite facies conditions. Prograde growth zoning and mineral inclusions in garnet as well as post-eclogite facies conditions are evidence for a clockwise P,T path. Analysis of phase diagrams constrains the P,T path to more or less isothermal cooling which is well corroborated by the results of geothermobarometry and mineral textures. This implies that the high-pressure rocks from the western Tianshan Orogen formed in a tectonic regime similar to ,Alpine-type' tectonics. This contradicts previous models which favour ,Franciscan-type' tectonics for the southern Tianshan high-pressure rocks. [source] Geochemical constraints of the eclogite and granulite facies metamorphism as recognized in the Raobazhai complex from North Dabie Shan, ChinaJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 1 2001Y. L. Xiao Abstract A combined study of major and trace elements, fluid inclusions and oxygen isotopes has been carried out on garnet pyroxenite from the Raobazhai complex in the North Dabie Terrane (NDT). Well-preserved compositional zoning with Na decreasing and Ca and Mg increasing from the core to rim of pyroxene in the garnet pyroxenite indicates eclogite facies metamorphism at the peak metamorphic stage and subsequent granulite facies metamorphism during uplift. A P,T path with substantial heating (from c. 750 to 900 °C) after the maximum pressure reveals a different uplift history compared with most other eclogites in the South Dabie Terrane (SDT). Fluid inclusion data can be correlated with the metamorphic grade: the fluid regime during the peak metamorphism (eclogite facies) was dominated by N2 -bearing NaCl-rich solutions, whereas it changed into CO2 -dominated fluids during the granulite facies retrograde metamorphism. At a late retrograde metamorphic stage, probably after amphibolite facies metamorphism, some external low-salinity fluids were involved. In situ UV-laser oxygen isotope analysis was undertaken on a 7 mm garnet, and impure pyroxene, amphibole and plagioclase. The nearly homogeneous oxygen isotopic composition (,18OVSMOW = c. 6.7,) in the garnet porphyroblast indicates closed fluid system conditions during garnet growth. However, isotopic fractionations between retrograde phases (amphibole and plagioclase) and garnet show an oxygen isotopic disequilibrium, indicating retrograde fluid,rock interactions. Unusual MORB-like rare earth element (REE) patterns for whole rock of the garnet pyroxenite contrast with most ultra-high-pressure (UHP) eclogites in the Dabie-Sulu area. However, the age-corrected initial ,Nd(t) is ,,2.9, which indicates that the protolith of the garnet pyroxenite was derived from an enriched mantle rather than from a MORB source. Combined with the present data of oxygen isotopic compositions and the characteristic N2 content in the fluid inclusions, we suggest that the protolith of the garnet pyroxenite from Raobazhai formed in an enriched mantle fragment, which has been exposed to the surface prior to the Triassic metamorphism. [source] Evolution of Caledonian deformation fabrics under eclogite and amphibolite facies at Vårdalsneset, Western Gneiss Region, NorwayJOURNAL OF METAMORPHIC GEOLOGY, Issue 3 2000Engvik The Vårdalsneset eclogite situated in the Western Gneiss Region, SW Norway, is a well preserved tectonite giving information about the deformation regimes active in the lower crust during crustal thickening and subsequent exhumation. The eclogite constitutes layers and lenses variably retrograded to amphibolite and is composed of garnet and omphacite with varying amounts of barroisite, actinolite, clinozoisite, kyanite, quartz, paragonite, phengite and rutile. The rocks record a five-stage evolution connected to Caledonian burial and subsequent exhumation. (1) A prograde evolution through amphibolite facies (T =490±63 °C) is inferred from garnet cores with amphibole inclusions and bell-shaped Mn profile. (2) Formation of L>S-tectonite eclogite (T =680±20 °C, P=16±2 kbar) related to the subduction of continental crust during the Caledonian orogeny. Lack of asymmetrical fabrics and orientation of eclogite facies extensional veins indicate that the deformation regime during formation of the L>S fabric was coaxial. (3) Formation of sub-horizontal eclogite facies foliation in which the finite stretching direction had changed by approximately 90°. Disruption of eclogite lenses and layers between symmetric shear zones characterizes the dominantly coaxial deformation regime of stage 3. Locally occurring mylonitic eclogites (T =690±20 °C, P=15±1.5 kbar) with top-W kinematics may indicate, however, that non-coaxial deformation was also active at eclogite facies conditions. (4) Development of a widespread regional amphibolite facies foliation (T =564±44 °C, P<10.3,8.1 kbar), quartz veins and development of conjugate shear zones indicate that coaxial vertical shortening and sub-horizontal stretching were active during exhumation from eclogite to amphibolite facies conditions. (5) Amphibolite facies mylonites mainly formed under non-coaxial top-W movement are related to large-scale movement on the extensional detachments active during the late-orogenic extension of the Caledonides. The structural and metamorphic evolution of the Vårdalsneset eclogite and related areas support the exhumation model, including an extensional detachment in the upper crust and overall coaxial deformation in the lower crust. [source] | ||||||||||