Interpreting granulite facies events through rare earth element partitioning arrays

The use of rare earth element (REE) partition coefficients is an increasingly common tool in metamorphic studies, linking the growth or modification of accessory mineral geochronometers to the bulk silicate mineral assemblage. The most commonly used mineral pair for the study of high-grade metamorphic rocks is zircon and garnet. The link from U–Pb ages provided by zircon to the P–T information recorded by garnet can be interpreted in relation to experimental data. The simplistic approach of taking the average REE abundances for zircon and garnet and comparing them directly to experimentally derived partition coefficients is imperfect, in that it cannot represent the complexity of a natural rock system. This study describes a method that uses all the zircon analyses from a sample, and compares them to different garnet compositions in the same rock. Using the most important REE values, it is possible to define zircon–garnet equilibrium using an array rather than an average. The array plot describes partitioning between zircon and garnet using DYb and DYb/DGd as the defining features of the relationship. This approach provides far more sensitivity to mineral reactions and diffusional processes, enabling a more detailed interpretation of metamorphic history of the sample

Plutonism in three dimensions: Field and geochemical relations on the southeast face of El Capitan, Yosemite National Park, California

Detailed geologic mapping on the ~1-km-tall, vertical southeast face of El Capitan was completed to determine the chronology and geometry of emplacement. Field relations reveal a complex intrusive history at the boundary between two intrusive suites involving interaction between several granitic units. No resolvable faulting or other postemplacement deformation was observed. New U-Pb zircon geochronologic data (laser ablation and isotope dilution) demonstrate assembly of the El Capitan Granite and diorites of the Rockslides and North America between ca. 106 and 103 Ma. New ages for the Taft (106.6 ± 0.7 Ma), Leaning Tower (104.1 ± 0.10 Ma), and Bridalveil (103.4 ± 0.4 Ma) plutons reveal that they intruded over the same interval as the other plutonic rocks exposed on the face of El Capitan, although field relations and geochronology suggest a distinct order of emplacement. Two sets of aplite dikes are also exposed. Their whole-rock compositions suggest segregation at depths of 5-6 km and derivation from the intrusive suites of Yosemite Valley or Buena Vista Crest. Chemical analysis of samples collected along ~1-km-tall vertical transects through the El Capitan and Taft Granites reveals no systematic variations in major or trace elements. Analysis of 78 photographs within the El Capitan Granite also shows no systematic variations in texture or mineralogy with elevation. Lack of resolvable vertical variations in both field and petrologic observations is consistent with incremental assembly, and is hard to reconcile with models that envision magma chambers as large fractionating bodies

Crystal plasticity and fluid availability govern the ability of titanite to record the age of deformation

Here, we study the relationships of titanite-hosting microdomains, intragrain chemical variations, microstructure and fluids with the aim of deciphering the reliability of titanite U–Pb dating to constrain the age of deformation in mylonitic rocks. We investigate these relationships in a postVariscan amphibolite-facies shear zone developed in the mid-low continental crust (Ivrea-Verbano Zone, Southern Alps, Italy). Quantitative orientation analyses along with textural imaging of titanite are combined with trace-element analyses and U–Pb age dating. Titanite is studied in mm- to cmscale layered rocks showing compositional variation consisting of alternating ‘amphibole-rich’ (i.e., amphibolites) and ‘clinopyroxene/plagioclase-rich’ domains (i.e., calc-silicates). Titanite from amphibolerich domains shows predominance of crystal–plastic deformation features, as abrupt or progressive coreto-rim structures characterized by increasing lattice distortion and local dislocation density, associated with the development of abundant subgrains and rare newly nucleated grains. We suggest that these microstructures form while interacting with small amounts of fluids circulating along the grain boundaries. Consequently, locally the chemistry of titanite is changing. In the clinopyroxene/plagioclaserich domains, titanite is mostly undeformed and rarely shows bending localized in discontinuous narrow rims/tips. In these domains, fluid-mediated replacement reactions are either rare or absent, as also indicated by weak chemical variations across and among grains. These observations suggest different reactivities with respect to the same P-T-fluid conditions of the two compositional domains, which coexist within the same sample at the thin section scale. U–Pb data show correlations with chemical and microstructural domains that differ as function of the composition of the microdomain. This correlation is more apparent within amphibole-rich domains where microstructures characterized by high lattice distortion/dislocations and/or subgrains show significant variations of REE, Zr, Y, Nb, U with respect to the low deformed portion of grains. These titanite domains define an isotopic population providing the youngest (Jurassic) lower intercept age. A less clear correlation between titanite chemistry and microstructures is observed in clinopyroxene/plagioclase-rich domains. Here, the rare titanites showing lattice distortion and minor Sr depletion define a population providing a similar Jurassic lower intercept age. Therefore, our results demonstrate that microstructurally and chemical calibrated U–Pb dating of titanite provides realistic ages of shear zone activity, only in case of predominance of crystal-plastic processes and of local interaction of titanite with small amounts of fluids focused along grain boundaries. Finally, the different footprints recorded by titanite grains strongly depend on the composition of cm- or mm-scale interlayered domains in which titanite occurs

The geochemical and geochronological implications of nanoscale trace-element clusters in rutile

© 2020. All rights reserved. The geochemical analysis of trace elements in rutile (e.g., Pb, U, and Zr) is routinely used to extract information on the nature and timing of geological events. However, the mobility of trace elements can affect age and temperature determinations, with the controlling mecha-nisms for mobility still debated. To further this debate, we use laser-ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry and atom probe tomography to characterize the micro- to nanoscale distribution of trace elements in rutile sourced from the Capricorn orogen, Western Australia. At the >20 pm scale, there is no significant trace-element variation in single grains, and a concordant U-Pb crystallization age of 1872 ± 6 Ma (2a) shows no evidence of isotopic disturbance. At the nanoscale, clusters as much as 20 nm in size and enriched in trace ele-ments (Al, Cr, Pb, and V) are observed. The 207Pb/206Pb ratio of 0.176 ± 0.040 (2a) obtained from clusters indicates that they formed after crystallization, potentially during regional metamorphism. We interpret the clusters to have formed by the entrapment of mobile trace elements in transient sites of radiation damage during upper amphibolite facies metamor-phism. The entrapment would affect the activation energy for volume diffusion of elements present in the cluster. The low number and density of clusters provides constraints on the time over which clusters formed, indicating that peak metamorphic temperatures are short-lived, <10 m.y. events. Our results indicate that the use of trace elements to estimate volume diffusion in rutile is more complex than assuming a homogeneous medium

Timescales of subduction initiation and evolution of subduction thermal regimes

International audienceSubduction zones are first-order features of plate tectonics on Earth, yet the mechanisms by which subduction initiates remain enigmatic and controversial. Here, we reappraise the timing of metamorphism of the rock units first detached from the leading edge of the downgoing slab during initiation of the Neotethys subduction, now preserved in the metamorphic sole of the Semail ophiolite (Oman–United Arab Emirates). Using petrochronology and phase equilibrium modeling, we demonstrate that subduction initiated prior to 102–100 Ma at a slow rate ( 5 Myr before evolving into a faster (≥ 2–5 cm/yr) and colder (∼7 °C/km) self-sustained regime. Subduction acceleration (i.e. “unlocking” stage) triggered the onset of slab retreat, large-scale corner flow and fast ocean spreading in the overriding plate at 96–95 Ma, through the progressive change of thermo-mechanical structure of the plate interface. This study reconciles conflicting analogue and numerical subduction initiation models, shedding light on the thermal, mechanical and kinematic complexity of subduction initiation