Confirmation of pelitic granulite in the Altai orogen and its geological significance

The existence of pelitic granulite in the Altai orogen was confirmed for the first time by detailed petrographic research and P-Tpseudosection modeling. The pelitic granulite has the assemblage of garnet ＋ cordierite ＋ K-feldspar ＋ biotite ＋ sillimanite ＋ plagioclase ＋ quartz with some samples containing the paragenesis of cordierite ＋ spinel. Peak conditions of the pelitic granuUte determined from the P-T pseudosection involved P = 0.5-0.6 GPa, T= 780-800℃ belonging to medium- to low-pressure type. SHRIMP U-Pb dating of zircon presented a metamorphic age of 292.8 ± 2.3 Ma. The discovery of pelitic granulite reflects an extensional environment with high heat flow in the southern margin of the Altai orogen during the Early Permian, which provides an important petrological constraint on the evolution of the Altai orogen.     

Discovery of the eclogite and its petrography in the Northern Dabie Mountain

Eclogite from the Northern Dabie Mountain is a new finding by the authors. These eclogites in foliated perdotite are enveloped by banded gneiss and occur in the mafic-ultramafic rock belt. They are mainly composed of omphacite, garnet, diopside, orthopyroxene, amphibole, plagioclase and magnetite, and a small amount of rutile, spinel, olivin and 鏾rundum. The mineral association of peak metamorphism of the eclogite is omphacite+garnet+rutile. The existence of eclogite in the Northern Dabie Mountain implies that there was an eclogitic metamorphism prior to the granulitic facies one in the mafic-ultramafic rock belt.     

Confirmation of ultrahigh-temperature metapelitic granulite in the Altay orogen and its geological significance

Through petrography, mineral compositions and P-T estimate results, an ultrahigh-temperature(UHT) metapelitic granulite has recently been identified from near Kalasu in the east of Altay city, with an assemblage gt-opx-silcd-sp-bt-pl-qtz. The orthopyroxene has a high-Al feature, and its Al2O3 content is as high as 8.7 wt%, indicating a UHT metamorphic condition. Its peak metamorphic condition is estimated as: P = *0.80 GPa, T = *960 °C. Metamorphic textural relations and P-T estimate results show a post-peak near-isobaric cooling anticlockwise P-T path. Zircon U-Pb age results(271 ± 5 Ma) support that the UHT metamorphic event in the region occurred in the Permian. The identification of the UHT metapelitic granulite from near Kalasu confirms the existence of the Permian UHT metamorphism in the Altay orogen, implying that the Permian extensional tectonic setting of a high-heat flow in the southern part of the Altay orogen may be closely associated with the Permian Tarim mantle plume activity.     

Petrology, geochemistry and geodynamics of basic granulite from the Altay area, North Xinjiang, China

The basic granulite of the Altay orogenic belt occurs as tectonic lens in the Devonian medium- to lower-grade metamorphic beds through fault contact. The Altay granulite (AG) is an amphibole plagioclase two-pyroxene granulite and is mainly composed of two pyroxenes, plagioclase, amphibole and biotite. Its melano-minerals are rich in Mg/(Mg Fe^2 ),and its amphibole and biotite are rich in TiO2. The AG is rich in Mg/(Mg Fe^2 ), Al2O3 and depletion of U, Th and Rbcontents. The AG has moderate ∑REE and LREE-enriched with weak positive Eu anomaly. The AG shows island-arc pattern with negative Nb, P and Ti anomalies, reflecting that formation of the AG may be associated with subduction. Geochemical and mineral composition data reflect that the protolith of the AG is calc-alkaline basalt and formed by granulite facies metamorphism having peak P-T conditions of 750℃-780℃ and 0.6-0.7 Gpa. The AG formation underwent two stages was suggested. In the early stage of oceanic crustal subduction, calc-alkaline basalt with island-arc environment underwent granulite facies metamorphism to form the AG in deep crust, and in the late stage, the AG was thrust into the upper crust.     

Daughter minerals in fluid inclusions of garnet and diopside from Tongguanshan Copper Deposit by SEM/EDS and LRM

Tongguanshan copper deposit of Tongling large ore belt is one of the typical skarn copper deposits. Based on careful observation under microscope many daughter minerals including transparent ones and opaque ones have been distinguished in the fluid inclusions of garnet and diopside. The results of SEM/EDS (scanning electron microscope/energy dispersive spectrometer) and LRM (laser Raman microprobe) analysis show that these daughter minerals in garnet are sylvite, halite, sphalerite, chalcopyrite and carbonate. Sylvite daughter mineral is very popular in garnet and diopside. The existence of so much sylvite daughter mineral and other daughter minerals in the fluid inclusions indicates that the ore-forming fluid is of supper-high salinity and high potassium concentration. High potassium concentration in the fluid inclusions agrees with K-rich mesotype-acid rock and K-silicate alteration that occurred widely in this area. The daughter mineral assemblage in garnet and diopside is similar to the mineral assemblage of oreforming stage that followed skarn stage.     

Discovery of granulite from the Fuping area in southern Qinling Mountains and its geological significance

Two-pyroxene-bearing granulites were discovered for the first time in the Hercynian-Indosinian metamorphic belt of the southern Qinling Mountains. The granulites occur in the lower part of the Fuping complex and are dominated by intermediate-acidic rocks intercalated with a small amount of bands and lenses of basic granulites. The main metamorphic minerals include orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, biotite, plagioclase and quartz, and orthopyroxenes are often retrogressively transformed into amphiboles. The metamorphic conditions have been estimated to be %T%=720-780℃ and %P%=0.6 GPa. The granulite-bearing Fuping complex probably belongs to early Proterozoic in age. Whether it occurs as the crystalline basement of the southern Qinling Hercynian-Indosinian orogenic belt or as a thrusted slice in the collisional process needs further study.     

Precipitation of rutile needles in garnet from sillimanite-bearing pelitic granulite from the Khondalite Belt,North China Craton

Pelitic granulite from the Khondalite Belt, North China Craton, is composed of garnet, sillimanite, perthite, biotite and quartz. Oriented rutile needles in gar- net are reported for the first time from the granulite. The rutile needles have been identified by optical microscopy and confirmed by in situ Raman spectroscopy, where they show the characteristic bands at 446-448 and 610 cm-1. Because of their very strong shape preferred orientation in 3-4 easily observable directions, these futile needles are interpreted to have formed by precipitation during exhu- mation and cooling following peak metamorphism. The ternary feldspar geothermometer gives a peak metamorphic temperature of ,- 980 ℃ at 10 kbar. The presence of oriented rutile needles in garnet is suggested to be a valuable indicator of ultrahigh-temperature （UHT） metamorphism in the Khondalite Belt and therefore likely in other UHT terrains.     

Discovery of ultrahighpressure magnesite-bearing garnet lherzolite (>3.8 GPa) in the Altyn Tagh,Northwest China

Magnesite-bearing garnet lherzolite from the Altyn Tagh, associated with garnet pyroxenite, and garnet-bearing felsic gneiss, crops out as lenses in Proterozoic gneiss about 100 km east of the Jianggelasayi River. The garnet lherzolite, together with the eclogite in western Jianggelasayi, composes a high-pressure to ultrahigh- pressure metamorphic belt in the southern margin of the Altyn Tagh. Parageneses of minerals from magnesite-bearing garnet lherzolite indicate that the rock evolved a multi-stage metamorphism. The peak-stage metamorphism produces an assemblage of Grt+Ol+Opx+Cpx±Mgs, in which Al₂O₃ content of Opx is very low (0.30 — 0.66wt%). The calculated P-T condition of the peak stage is 3.8—5.1GPa and 880—970℃, some exsolution rods of clinopyroxene and rutile occur in the Grt and magnesite is rimed by dolomite and orthopyroxene, all implying that the peak stage was a UHP metamorphic process. Together with regional geological studies, isotopic dating and the discovery of coesite inclusions in zircon separates from felsic gneiss from the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin, the presence of a very long UHP metamorphic belt in northwest China is suggested.     

Water contents and hydrogen isotopes in nominally anhydrous minerals from UHP metamorphic rocks in the Dabie-Sulu orogenic belt

A continuous flow method, by a combination of thermal conversion elemental analyzer （TC/EA） with isotope ratio mass spec- trometry （MS）, was developed to determine both H isotope composition and H2O concentration of ultrahigh-pressure （UHP） metamorphic rocks in the Dabie-Sulu orogenic belt. By using the developed step-heating technique, we have studied H2O concen- tration and H isotope composition of the different forms of water （structural OH and molecular H2O） in garnet. The quantitative measurements of HzO concentration and H isotope composition of minerals in UHP metamorphic rocks from several typical out- crops indicate that the gneisses can release more amounts of water than the eclogites during exhumation of the deeply subducted continental crust. Therefore, by decompression dehydration at the contact between eclogite and gneiss, the released water could flow from the gneiss to the eclogite and result in significant hydration of the eclogite adjacent to the gneiss. The measured maxi- mum water contents of minerals in eclogites indicate that garnet and omphacite have the maximum water solubilities of 2500 and 3500 ppm, respectively, under the peak UHP metamorphic conditions.     

Characteristics and geological significance of the eclogites from the Tongbai Mountains, Henan Province

Some eclogites and the related high-P metamorphic belt have been found for the first time from the Tongbai Mountains, Henan Province, where the eclogites and their probable retrogressive products ——garnet amphibolites——occur as lenses in mica-schists. The fresh eclogites comprise garnet, omphacite, quartz, rutile, phengite, barroisite, etc. The compositional features of garnet and available geothermobarometers indicated that the eclogites belong to the low-T type. The mica-schists contain phengite, quartz, garnet and rutile that are also attributed to high-P assemblage. The eclogites and related high-P belt probably belong to the Early Paleozoic in age, which is distinct from the Indosinian Dabie high- and ultrahigh-P metamorphic belt.     

新疆白干湖钨锡矿流体包裹体特征及成因

白干湖钨锡矿床位于新疆祁漫塔格加里东褶皱带的转折部位,是东昆仑西段1个较好的钨锡(金)矿区,对白干湖矿区主成矿阶段形成的含黑钨矿石英脉中发育的包裹体进行岩相学及测温研究.研究结果表明:矿区主要发育3类包裹体:气液两相水溶液包裹体(I)、水溶液-CO2三相包裹体(Ⅱ)以及纯CO2两相包裹体(Ⅲ);Ⅰ型包裹体液相组分主要为NaCl水溶液,含少量KCl,其均一温度变化范围为160-310℃,盐度为1.82％～16.43％;Ⅱ型水溶液-CO2三相包裹体气相组分含有CO2及CH4等组分,均一温度为247～320℃,w(NaCl)为2.8％～9.4％;Ⅲ型CO2两相包裹体含量较少,均一温度为19.8～27.7℃;白干湖钨锡矿床成矿流体为中低盐度、中高温的NaCl-H2O-CO2体系.在成矿过程中,由于温度及压力降低,流体发生相分离成为较高盐度的水溶液流体和较低盐度的富CO2流体,钨锡成矿物质趋向于富集在中高盐度水溶液相中,并导致白干湖钨锡矿的成矿作用.     

辽西太古代“建平变质杂岩”的变质作用演化

“建平变质杂岩”是辽宁省西部太古代的最下部的地体,它由连续性很差的表壳岩、TTG岩石及其它深成侵入岩构成。基本岩石类型有镁铁质岩石(包括角闪岩、辉石岩、斜长角闪岩等)、麻粒岩、紫苏花岗岩、片麻岩及少量的超镁铁质岩和磁铁石英岩。常见且主要的矿物相是斜方辉石、单斜辉石、石榴石、角闪石、斜长石和石英。岩相学研究确定了指示变质作用不同阶段的三个变质反应的存在,并且它们与推测的矿物相的转化关系吻合,结合地质温压的限定,本文得出了本区太古代末期的强烈的变质热事件的反时针的P-T-t演化轨迹,并推测出此变质热事件与大量的岩浆增聚密切相关。     

New chronological evidence for Yanshanian diagenetic mineralization in China's Altay orogenic belt

Granitoids and related pegmatitic rare-metal deposits are widespread in China's Altay region, they used to be considered as Hercynian rocks and mineral deposits. Reported here are the 40Ar-39Ar ages of potassium-rich minerals (muscovite and microcline) in the Koktokay pegmatitic rare-metal orefield and whole-rock as well as quartz fluid-inclusion Rb-Sr isochron ages of granite and ores in the Shangkelan pegmatite rare-metal orefield. The ages indicate that there are Yanshanian Diagenetic Mineralization events happening in China's Altay orogenic belt and that formation of the famous Koktokay No.3 pegmatitic rare-metal deposit endured about 30 Ma of magmatic crystallization differentiation.     

Finding of high-pressure mafic granulites in the Amdo basement,central Tibet

High-pressure mafic granulites with a peak mineral assemblage of garnet + clinopyroxene + rutile + quartz were found in the Amdo basement, central Tibet. Two kinds of symplectites were identified that are composed of orthopyroxene + plagioclase ± spinel and hornblende + plagioclase around garnet, which were interpreted to develop during the retrogressing stages in the granulites. P-T estimates suggested that peak metamorphic conditions were about 860–920°C and 1.46–1.56 GPa, which retrogressed from post-peak phase at 820–890°C and 0.88–1.15 GPa to amphibolite facies at 550–670°C and 0.52–0.65 GPa. These three stages define a clockwise P-T path with near-isothermal decompression and cooling following the peak high-pressure metamorphism. This suggests that the Amdo granulites underwent an initial subduction to a deep crustal level of ~50 km and then were rapidly exhumed to a shallow crustal level (~20 km). The formation of Amdo granulites is considered to result from the arc-continent collision between the Amdo basement and the Qiangtang terrane in the middle Jurassic, which is a crucial step to the tectonic evolution of the Tibetan Plateau.