Anatexis,Deformation and Exhumation Mechanism for UHP Metamorphic Rocks:A Case Study in the North Qaidam and South Altyn UHP Terrane,Western China

Objective In recent years,hydrous silicate melts by dehydrationdriven in situ partial melting constrained from experiments and natural rocks have been increasingly recognized in UHP rocks,indicating partial melting of UHP slab.Partial melting of UHP metamorphic rocks can dramatically affect the rheology of deeply subducted crust and thus play a crucial role in accelerating the exhumation of UHP slabs.

Deep-seated large-scale toppling failure in metamorphic rocks：a case study of the Erguxi slope in southwest China

Deep-seated large-scale toppling failure presents unique challenges in the study of natural slope deformation process in mountainous regions.An active deep-seated toppling process was identified in the Erguxi slope located in southwest China,which affected a large area and damaged critical transportation infrastructure with the volume of the deforming rock mass exceeding 24×10~6 m^3.It poses significant risks to the downstream Shiziping Hydropower Station by damming the Zagunao River.Field investigation and monitoring results indicate that the deformation of the Erguxi slope is in the advanced stage of deep-seated toppling process,with the formation of a disturbed belt but no identifiable master failure surface.It was postulated that the alternating tensile and shear strength associated with the hard/soft laminated rock strata of metasandstone and phyllite layers preclude the development of either a tensile or shear failure surface,which resulted in the continuous deformation and displacement without a catastrophic mass movement.The slope movement is in close association with the unfavorable geological conditions of the study area in addition to the construction of transportation infrastructure and the increase of the reservoir level.On the basis of the mechanism and intensity of the ongoing toppling deformation,a qualitative grading system was proposed to describe the toppling process and toevaluate the slope stability.This paper summarized the field observation and monitoring data on the toppling deformation for better characterizing its effect on the stability of the Erguxi slope.The qualitative grading system intends to provide a basis for quantitative study of large-scale deep-seated toppling process in metamorphic rocks.

Precise Timing of Caledonian Structural Deformation Chronology and Its Implications in Southeast Qilian Mountains, China

The middle Qilian orogenic belt and Lajishan orogenic belt, both of which were formed in the Caledonian, strike NW-SE direction across southeast Qilian Mountains and their basement consists of pre-Caledonian metamorphic rocks with lozenge-shaped ductile shear zones in the crystalline basement. The blunt angle between the conjugated ductile shear zones ranges from 104° to 114°, indicating approximate 210° of the maximum principal stress. The plateau ages of muscovite ^40Ar/^39Ar obtained from the mylonitized rocks in the ductile shear zones of Jinshaxia-Hualong-Keque massif within the middle Qilian massif are （405.1±2.4） Ma and （418.3±2.8） Ma, respectively. The chronology data confirm the formation of ductile shear zones in the Caledonian basement metamorphic rocks during the Caledonian orogeny. Furthermore, on the basis of basement rock study, precise timing for the closing of the Late Paleozoic volcanic basin （or island-arc basin） and Lajishan ocean basin is determined. This provides us a new insight into the closing of ocean basin in the structural evolution of orogenic belt.

Two Fresh Types of Eclogites in the Dabie-Sulu UHP Metamorphic Belt,China:Implications for the Deep Subduction and Earliest Stages of Exhumation of the Continental Crust

Two fresh types of eclogites, namely the massive eclogite and foliated eclogite, are dis- cernible in large eclogite bodies surrounded by country rock gneisses from the Dabie Sulu UHP metamorphic zone. They are different in mineral assemblage, texture and structure at various scales. The massive eclogite has a massive appearance with a metamorphic inequigranular and grano- blastic texture, which consists mainly of nominally anhydrous minerals such as garnet, omphacite, rutile with inclusions of coesite and rare microdiamond. Massive eclogites which formed at the peak UHP metamorphic conditions （~3.1-4.0 GPa, 800~50 ） within the coesite to diamond stability field recorded the deep continental subduction to mantle depths greater than 100 km during the Triassic （-250-230 Ma）. The diagnostic UHP minerals, mineral assemblages and absence of notable macro- scopic deformation indicate the peak metamorphic ＇forbidden-zone＇ P-T conditions, an extremely low geothermal gradient （〈7 ＂C＇kma） and low differential stress. The foliated eclogite is composed of garnet＋omphacite＋rutile＋phengite＋kyanite＋zoisite＋talc＋nybtite^coesite/quartz pseudomorphs after coesite. It is quite clear that the foliated eclogite bears relatively abundant hydrous mineral, and shows well-developed penetrative foliation carrying mineral and stretching lineation reflecting intense plastic deformation or flow of eclogite minerals. The foliatcd eclogite occurred at mantle levels and recorded the earliest stages of exhumation of UHP metamorphic rocks. At a map scale, the foliated eclogites de- fine UHP eclogite-facies shear zones or high-strain zones. Asymmetric structures are abundant in the zones, implying bulk plane strain or dominant non-coaxial deformation within the coesite stability field. The earliest stages of exhumation, from mantle depths to the Moho or mantle-crust boundary layering, were characterized by a sub-vertical tectonic wedge extrusion, which occurred around 230-210 Ma. The three- dimensional relationship between the massive and foliated eclogites is well displayed a typical ＇block-in-matrix＇ rheological fabric pattern in- dicating the partitioning of deformation and metamorphism in the UHP petrotectonic unit. The existing data support the now widely accepted con- cept of deep continental subduction/collision and subsequent exhumation between the Yangtze and Sino-Korean cratons. The pressure is a constitutive geological variable. The influence of tectonic over- presure on UHP metamorphism is rather limited.