Mantle melting beneath the Southwest Indian Ridge: signals from clinopyroxene in abyssal peridotites

The mineral chemistry and texture of clinopyroxenes in peridotite from the Kingkong tectonic zone of the Southwest Indian Ridge segment in an effort to constrain mantle melting beneath this slow-spreading ridge are reported. There are three types of clinopyroxenes in the abyssal peridotites： coarse-grained, intergranu- lar and exsolved. The compositional variations among these three types suggest that the coarse-grained clinopyroxene is a mantle-derived source. The A1, Na and Ti contents and the Na/Ti ratio of the coarse- grained clinopyroxene may be used to monitor the degree of partial melting, combined with the contradis- tinction with Spinel Cr#, which is calculated to be between 7.9% and 14.9%, and may represent low degrees of melting in the global ocean ridge system. The along-axis compositional variations in the coarse-grained clinopyroxene suggest that the degree of partial melting is primarily controlled by the transform faults on both sides of the ridge. Nonetheless, the northwestern side of the ridge may be affected by a hypothesised detachment fault as documented by the calculated P-T conditions. Simultaneously high Na and low Ti con- tents in the coarse-grained clinoovroxene points to mantle heterogeneities along the ridge axis.

Multi-stage formation of the Feragen ophiolite,Norway:Implication from petrology and geochemistry of peridotites and chromitites and its potential for prospecting

The ultramafic massif of Feragen,which belongs to the eastern ophiolitic belt of Norway,has abundant amounts of chromite ores.Recent studies have revealed a complex melt evolution in a supra-subduction zone(SSZ)environment.This study presents new whole-rock major element,trace element,and platinum-group element chemistry to evaluate their petrogenesis and tectonic evolution.Harzburgites have high CaO,Al_(2)O_(3),TiO_(2),MgO,and REE contents corresponding to abyssal peridotites,whereas dunites have low CaO,Al_(2)O_(3),TiO_(2),MgO,and REE contents corresponding to SSZ peridotites.The Cr^(#)and TiO_(2) of chromian spinels in the harzburgites suggest as much as about 15%–20%melting and the dunites are more depleted with>40%melting.The harzburgites and the dunites and high-Cr chromitites represent,respectively,the products of low-degree partial melting in a back-arc setting,and the products of melt-rock interaction in a SSZ environment.The calculated fO_(2) values for dunites and high-Cr chromitites(-0.17–+0.23 and+2.78–+5.65,respectively and generally above the FMQ buffer)are also consistent with the interaction between back-arc ophiolites with oxidized boninitic melts in a SSZ setting.

Altered Spinel as a Petrotectonic Indicator in Abyssal Peridotite from the Easternmost Part of Southwest Indian Ridge

The easternmost part of Southwest Indian Ridge（SWIR） has special crustal structure, magmatic and tectonic processes. Abyssal peridotite from the easternmost part of Southwest Indian Ridge（63.5oE/28oS） is serpentinized spinel lherzolite. The accessory spinel has zoned texture, which was studied by petrography, electron probe micro-analysis（EPMA）, and backscattered electron（BSE） imaging to reconstruct the petrotectonic and hydrothermal metamorphic history of the host abyssal peridotite. The fresh core is magmatic Al-spinel with low Cr~#. The average extent of melting of the abyssal peridotite is about 5.9%. The composition of fresh magmatic spinel core indicates the studied area to be an anomalously thin crust with a melt-poor system. Hydrothermal reaction modifies the chemical composition of magmatic spinel. Ferritchromit is the first product forming the inner rim during pre-serpentinization. The abyssal ferritchromit crystalized as micro- to nano-sized particle with no triple grain boundary, indicating they crystalized in a rapid cooling process during hydrothermal alteration. Chemical compositions of ferritchromit indicate a hydrothermal metamorphism in amphibolite facies. Magnetite in the outer rim was formed by replacement of ferritchromit during syn- or post-serpentinization. Authigenic chlorites crystallized in two events：（1） after formation of ferritchromit crystallized as vein in fracture-zone near the core of spinel and （2） after formation of magnetite crystallized at outermost rim. They are different in compositions, indicating their formation temperature was about 289 oC and declined to 214 oC. These results show that the abyssal peridotite had undergone amphibolite to lower-greenschist facies hydrothermal events during pre- to syn-serpentinization or post-serpentinization.