Granulite facies metamorphism and the rheology of the lower crust

Lithos ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 124 (1-2) ◽  
pp. vii-ix
Author(s):  
Karel Schulmann ◽  
Richard W. White
Keyword(s):  
Lower Crust ◽  
Granulite Facies ◽  
Granulite Facies Metamorphism ◽  
Facies Metamorphism

scholarly journals Building a continental arc section: Constraints from Paleozoic granulite-facies metamorphism, anatexis, and magmatism in the northern margin of the Qilian Block, northern Tibet Plateau

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yinbiao Peng ◽  
Shengyao Yu ◽  
Jianxin Zhang ◽  
Yunshuai Li ◽  
Sanzhong Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Pressure ◽  
Partial Melting ◽  
Lithospheric Mantle ◽  
Lower Crust ◽  
Granulite Facies ◽  
Granulite Facies Metamorphism ◽  
Northern Margin ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Continental Arc ◽  
Facies Metamorphism

Continental arcs in active continental margins (especially deep-seated arc magmatism, anatexis, and metamorphism) can be extremely significant in evaluating continent building processes. In this contribution, a Paleozoic continental arc section is constructed based on coeval granulite-facies metamorphism, anatexis, and magmatism on the northern margin of the Qilian Block, which record two significant episodes of continental crust growth. The deeper layer of the lower crust mainly consists of medium-high pressure mafic and felsic granulites, with apparent peak pressure-temperature conditions of 11−13 kbar and 800−950 °C, corresponding to crustal depths of ∼35−45 km. The high-pressure mafic granulite and local garnet-cumulate represent mafic residues via dehydration melting involving breakdown of amphibole with anatectic garnet growth. Zircon U-Pb geochronology indicates that these high-grade metamorphic rocks experienced peak granulite-facies metamorphism at ca. 450 Ma. In the upper layer of the lower crust, the most abundant rocks are preexisting garnet-bearing metasedimentary rocks, orthogneiss, and local garnet amphibolite, which experienced medium-pressure amphibolite-facies to granulite-facies metamorphism at depths of 20−30 km at ca. 450 Ma. These metasedimentary rocks and orthogneiss have also experienced partial melting involving mica and rare amphibole at 457−453 Ma. The shallow to mid-crust is primarily composed of diorite-granodiorite batholiths and volcanic cover with multiple origin, which were intruded during 500−450 Ma, recording long-term crustal growth and differentiation episode. As a whole, two episodes of continental crust growth were depicted in the continental arc section on the northern margin of the Qilian Block, including: (a) the first episode is documented in a lithological assemblage composing of coeval mafic-intermediate intrusive and volcanic rocks derived from partial melting of modified lithospheric mantle and subducted oceanic crust during southward subduction of the North Qilian Ocean at 500−480 Ma; (b) the second episode is recorded in mafic rocks derived from partial melting of modified lithospheric mantle during transition from oceanic subduction to initial collision at 460−450 Ma.

A Discussion on global tectonics in Proterozoic times - Late Proterozoic cratonization in southwest Saudi Arabia

1976 ◽  
Vol 280 (1298) ◽  
pp. 517-527 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Sedimentary Rocks ◽  
Granulite Facies ◽  
Greenschist Facies ◽  
Arabian Shield ◽  
Granulite Facies Metamorphism ◽  
Quartz Monzonite ◽  
Facies Metamorphism ◽  
Global Tectonics

Early cratonal development of the Arabian Shield of southwestern Saudi Arabia began with the deposition of calcic to calc-alkalic, basaltic to dacitic volcanic rocks, and immature sedimentary rocks that subsequently were moderately deformed, metamorphosed, and intruded about 960 Ma ago by dioritic batholiths of mantle derivation (87Sr/86Sr = 0.7029). A thick sequence of calc-alkalic andesitic to rhyodacitic volcanic rocks and volcanoclastic wackes was deposited unconformably on this neocraton. Regional greenschistfacies metamorphism, intensive deformation along north-trending structures, and intrusion of mantle-derived (87Sr/86Sr = 0.7028) dioritic to granodioritic batholiths occurred about 800 Ma. Granodiorite was emplaced as injection gneiss about 785 Ma (87Sr/86Sr = 0.7028- 0.7035) in localized areas of gneiss doming and amphibolite to granulite facies metamorphism. Deposition of clastic and volcanic rocks overlapped in time and followed orogeny at 785 Ma. These deposits, together with the older rocks, were deformed, metamorphosed to greenschist facies, and intruded by calc-alkalic plutons (87Sr/86Sr = 0.7035) between 600 and 650 Ma. Late cratonal development between 570 and 550 Ma involved moderate pulses of volcanism, deformation, metamorphism to greenschist facies, and intrusion of quartz monzonite and granite. Cratonization appears to have evolved in an intraoceanic, island-arc environment of comagmatic volcanism and intrusion.

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