Mechanisms of Ar release from Himalayan metamorphic hornblende

Changes in hornblende samples that occur during stepwise 39Ar/40Ar analysis were studied experimentally and mineralogically. A complex succession of reactions was seen (hornblende ~ oxyhornblende ~ clinopyroxene-structured phase ~ fine-grained reaction products ~ glasses) in the temperature range 750-1300 °C. The release of Ar from hornblende in the vacuum furnace appeared to occur by fundamentally different processes from those resulting in Ar loss during metamorphism. Simple diffusional interpretations of the release patterns are, therefore, not capable of revealing the thermal history of samples. In principle, some useful information may be obtained if long-standing fractures andother defects control both natural Ar loss and mineral reactions within the laboratory

Constraints on the tectonic and landscape evolution of the Bhutan Himalaya from thermochronometry

The observed geomorphology and calculated thermal histories of the Bhutan Himalaya provide an excellent platform to test ideas regarding the influence of tectonics and climate on the evolution of a convergentmountain range. However, little consensus has been reached regarding the late Cenozoic history of the Bhutan Himalaya. Some researchers have argued that observed geologic relationships show slowing deformation rates, such that the range is decaying from a geomorphic perspective, while others see the range as growing and steepening. We suggest that a better understanding is possible through the integrated interpretation of geomorphic and thermochronometric data from the comparison of predictions from models of landscape evolution and thermal-kinematic models of orogenic systems. New thermochronometric data throughout Bhutan aremost consistent with a significant decrease in erosion rates, from2 to 3 km/Ma down to 0.1–0.3 km/Ma, around 6–4Ma. We interpret this pattern as a decrease in rock uplift rates due to the activation of contractional structures of the Shillong Plateau, an uplifted region approximately 100 km south of Bhutan. However, low-relief, fluvial landscapes throughout the Bhutanese hinterland record a late pulse of surface uplift likely due to a recent increase in rock uplift rates. Constraints from our youngest thermochronometers suggest that this increase in rock uplift and surface uplift occurred within the last 1.75Ma. These results imply that the dynamics of the Bhutan Himalaya and Shillong Plateau have been linked during the late Cenozoic, with structural elements of both regions active in variable ways and times over that interval

Apparent argon diffusive loss 40Ar/39Ar age spectra in amphiboles

Detailed investigations have been made of two amphibole samples where 40Ar/39Ar age spectra have been interpreted to show argon diffusive loss. Both samples display complex compositional zoning that reflects partial major and minor element chemical re-equilibration during later thermal events that is associated with the loss of radiogenic 40Ar. The apparent diffusive loss age spectra in these samples are an artefact of this chemical re-equilibration process. One sample additionally shows the effect of potassium gain and contamination with a potassium-rich phase (biotite). The resulting ages in this sample are geologically meaningless and the apparent fit to a theoretical diffusive loss curve is coincidental. This study shows that volume diffusive loss of argon appears to operate at slower rates than argon loss by chemical re-equilibration in amphiboles

40Ar/39Ar ages in mantle xenolith phlogopites: determining the ages of multiple lithospheric mantle events and diatreme ascent rates in southern Africa and Malaita, Solomon Islands

Kimberlites are extraordinary natural phenomena, ascending through the Earth’s lithosphere, entraining xenoliths, to erupt at the surface within hours to days of their inception deep within the lithospheric mantle. With the realization that some Ar/Ar phlogopite grain core ages may be indicative of geological events, we have undertaken high spatial resolution Ar/Ar dating of phlogopites in xenoliths and megacrysts from Kimberley, Monastery and Letseng in southern Africa, and Malaita, in the Solomon Islands, to est whether other mantle phlogopite cores may yield meaningful ages. Modelling of Ar diffusive loss profiles from phlogopite grain boundaries to cores provides information on both the eruption age and the duration of outgassing within the kimberlite magma, and hence yields estimates on diatreme ascent rates. The ascent durations are very similar for all of the southern African pipes studied, yielding durations of 0.9–6.9 days, assuming an average kimberlite magma temperature of 1000 °C. These can be compared to estimates from phlogopite xenoliths from Siberian diamond-bearing kimberlites yielding ascent durations of 2–15 hours (assuming the same magma temperature)

Ar and K partitioning between clinopyroxene and silicate melt to 8 GPa

The relative incompatibility of Ar and K are fundamental parameters in understanding the degassing history of the mantle. Clinopyroxene is the main host for K in most of the upper mantle, playing an important role in controlling the K/Ar ratio of residual mantle and the subsequent time-integrated evolution of 40Ar/36Ar ratios. Clinopyroxene also contributes to the bulk Ar partition coefficient that controls the Ar degassing rate during mantle melting. The partitioning of Ar and K between clinopyroxene and quenched silicate melt has been experimentally determined from 1 to 8 GPa for the bulk compositions Ab80Di20 (80 mol% albite-20 mol% diopside) and Ab20Di80 with an ultraviolet laser ablation microprobe (UVLAMP) technique for Ar analysis and the ion microprobe for K. Data for Kr (UVLAMP) and Rb (ion probe) have also been determined to evaluate the role of crystal lattice sites in controlling partitioning. By excluding crystal analyses that show evidence of glass contamination, we find relatively constant Ar partition coefficients (DAr) of 2.6 × 10−4 to 3.9 × 10−4 for the Ab80Di20 system at pressures from 2 to 8 GPa. In the Ab20Di80 system, DAr shows similar low values of 7.0 × 10−5 and 3.0 × 10−4 at 1 to 3 GPa. All these values are several orders of magnitude lower than previous measurements on separated crystal-glass pairs. DK is 10 to 50 times greater than DRb for all experiments, and both elements follow parallel trends with increasing pressure, although these trends are significantly different in each system studied. The DK values for clinopyroxene are at least an order of magnitude greater than DAr under all conditions investigated here, but DAr appears to show more consistent behavior between the two systems than K or Rb. The partitioning behavior of K and Rb can be explained in terms of combined pressure, temperature, and crystal chemistry effects that result in changes for the size of the clinopyroxene M2 site. In the Ab20Di80 system, where clinopyroxene is diopside rich at all pressures, DK and DRb increase with pressure (and temperature) in an analogous fashion to the well-documented behavior of Na. For the Ab80Di20 system, the jadeite content of the clinopyroxene increases from 22 to 75 mol% with pressure resulting in a contraction of the M2 site. This has the effect of discriminating against the large K+ and Rb+ ions, thereby countering the effect of increasing pressure. As a consequence DK and DRb do not increase with pressure in this system. In contrast to the alkalis (Na, K, and Rb), DKr values are similar to DAr despite a large difference in atomic radius. This lack of discrimination (and the constant DAr over a range of crystal compositions) is also consistent with incorporation of these heavier noble gases at crystal lattice sites and a predicted consequence of their neutrality or “zero charge.” Combined with published DAr values for olivine, our results confirm that magma generation is an efficient mechanism for the removal of Ar from the uppermost 200 km of the mantle, and that K/Ar ratios in the residuum are controlled by the amount of clinopyroxene. Generally, Ar is more compatible than K during mantle melting because DAr for olivine is similar to DK for clinopyroxene. As a result, residual mantle that has experienced variable amounts of melt extraction may show considerable variability in time-integrated 36Ar/40Ar

Rapid Kimberlite Ascent and the Significance of Ar-Ar Ages in Xenolith Phlogopites

Kimberlite eruptions bring exotic rock fragments and minerals, including diamonds, from deep within the mantle up to the surface. Such fragments are rapidly absorbed into the kimberlite magma so their appearance at the surface implies rapid transport from depth. High spatial resolution Ar-Ar age data on phlogopite grains in xenoliths from Malaita in the Solomon Islands, southwest Pacific, and Elovy Island in the Kola Peninsula, Russia, indicate transport times of hours to days depending upon the magma temperature. In addition, the data show that the phlogopite grains preserve Ar-Ar ages recorded at high temperature in the mantle, 700°C above the conventional closure temperature

Magmatic Evolution and Ascent History of the Aries Micaceous Kimberlite, Central Kimberley Basin, Western Australia: Evidence from Zoned Phlogopite Phenocrysts, and UV Laser 40Ar/39Ar Analysis of Phlogopite-Biotite

The Neoproterozoic Aries kimberlite was emplaced in the central Kimberley Basin, Western Australia, as a N–NNE-trending series of three diatremes infilled by lithic-rich kimberlite breccias. The breccias are intruded by hypabyssal macrocrystic phlogopite kimberlite dykes that exhibit differentiation to a minor, high-Na–Si, olivine–phlogopite–richterite kimberlite, and late-stage macrocrystic serpentine–diopside ultramafic dykes. Mineralogical and geochemical evidence suggests that the high-Na–Si, olivine–phlogopite–richterite kimberlite was derived from the macrocrystic phlogopite kimberlite as a residual liquid following extended phlogopite crystallization and the assimilation of country rock sandstone, and that the macrocrystic serpentine–diopside ultramafic dykes formed as mafic cumulates from a macrocrystic phlogopite kimberlite. Chemical zonation of phlogopite–biotite phenocrysts indicates a complex magmatic history for the Aries kimberlite, with the early inheritance of a range of high-Ti phlogopite–biotite xenocrysts from metasomatized mantle lithologies, followed by the crystallization of a population of high-Cr phlogopite phenocrysts within the spinel facies lithospheric mantle. A further one to two phlogopite–biotite overgrowth rims of distinct composition formed on the phlogopite phenocrysts at higher levels during ascent to the surface. Ultra-violet laser 40Ar/39Ar dating of mica grain rims yielded a kimberlite eruption age of 815·4 ± 4·3 Ma (95% confidence). 40Ar/39Ar laser profiling of one high-Ti phlogopite-biotite macrocryst revealed a radiogenic 40Ar diffusive loss profile, from which a kimberlite magma ascent duration from the spinel facies lithospheric mantle was estimated (assuming an average kimberlite magma temperature of 1000°C), yielding a value of ∼0·23–2·32 days for the north extension lobe of the Aries kimberlite

Estimates of Ar diffusion and solubility in leucite and nepheline: Electron microprobe imaging of Ar distribution in a mineral

Leucite is unique among minerals that have been exploited for K-Ar and Ar-Ar dating, in that it exhibits a major phase change at 645-665 degrees C, across which Ar diffusion and solubility can be studied. In addition, well-developed twinning occurs only in the low temperature form, offering further opportunity to examine the effects of crystallographic change upon Ar diffusion. Nepheline was studied to compare the effect of its I-dimensional c-axis oriented lattice channels with the 3-dimensional channels of leucite. The amounts of Ar introduced into leucite were far higher than those observed in feldspars, allowing its analysis by electron microprobe spot traverses and X-ray maps. This has provided the first high spatial resolution 2-dimensional study of Ar distribution in a K-bearing mineral. Extreme changes in Ar solubility were observed across the leucite phase transition, with Ar solubilities jumping from similar to 70 ppm (at 1 kbar) in the tetragonal (low-temperature) form to similar to 750 ppm (at I kbar) in the cubic (high-temperature) form. Argon penetration profiles were complex and estimates of the diffusion rates show that they are more rapid than in K-feldspar. In addition, spikes of high Ar concentration were observed in both forms, suggesting extended defects or micro-inclusions formed argon traps in the structure. No concentration changes could be correlated to leucite twin planes, suggesting that twin planes did not act as fast pathways for Ar movement. Nepheline yielded a much lower Ar solubility of 0.15-0.31 ppm at 1 kbar

Post Pan-African thermo-tectonic evolution of the north Mozambican basement and its implication for the Gondwana rifting. Inferences from 40Ar/39Ar hornblende, biotite and titanite fission-track dating

This research paper investigates the thermo-tectonic history of the north Mozambican basement subsequent to the Pan-African metamorphism. Six 40Ar/39Ar hornblende, three 40Ar/39Ar biotite and 25 titanite fission-track data place new constraints on the earliest timing of rifting in the central sector of Gondwana, and demonstrate a close linkage between the geometric rift configuration and the ductile metamorphic basement fabrics during the initial dispersal of the supercontinent. The 40Ar/39Ar hornblende and biotite ages range from c. 542 to 456 Ma and from c. 448 to 428 Ma, respectively. These data record slow basement cooling after the latest Pan-African metamorphism at rates of c. 7–11 °C Ma−1 between Early and Late Ordovician times. Locally, syn- to post-tectonic granitoid emplacements around 500–450 Ma delayed basement cooling to Late Ordovician–Early Silurian times. The titanite fission-track (TFT) ages fall into two age groups of c. 378–327 Ma and c. 284–219 Ma. The older TFT ages record very slow cooling from the Late Ordovician–Early Silurian to below 275±25 °C in the Late Devonian–Early Carboniferous at slow rates of less than 1 °C Ma−1. This slow cooling is related to decreasing denudation in association with the establishment of pre-Karoo peneplains in central Gondwana. The younger TFT ages record denudation due to rift flank uplift in the context of initial Gondwana disintegration in the Mozambican sector. Corresponding Early–Late Permian crustal extension proceeded obliquely to a NW–SE tensional palaeo-stress field and was associated with a brittle reactivation of easterly trending ductile basement fabrics. In total, up to ≤9–12 km of denudation is deduced from the TFT results since Permo-Carboniferous times