Showing papers on "Petrography published in 2017"

Zircon: The Metamorphic Mineral

Abstract: A mineral that forms under conditions as variable as diagenesis to deep subduction, melt crystallization to low temperature alteration, and that retains information on time, temperature, trace element and isotopic signatures is bound to be a useful petrogenetic tool. The variety of conditions under which zircon forms and reacts during metamorphism is a great asset, but also a challenge as interpretation of any geochemical data obtained from zircon must be placed in pressure–temperature–deformation–fluid context. Under which condition and by which process zircon forms in metamorphic rocks remains a crucial question to answer for the correct interpretation of its precious geochemical information. In the last 20 years there has been a dramatic evolution in the use of zircon in metamorphic petrology. With the advent of in situ dating techniques zircon became relevant as a mineral for age determinations in high-grade metamorphic rocks. Since then, there has been incredible progress in our understanding of metamorphic zircon with the documentation of growth and alteration textures, its capacity to protect mineral inclusions, zircon thermometry, trace element patterns and their relation to main mineral assemblages, solubility of zircon in melt and fluids, and isotopic systematics in single domains that go beyond U–Pb age determinations. Metamorphic zircon is no longer an impediment to precise geochronology of protolith rocks, but has become a truly indispensable mineral in reconstructing pressure–temperature–time–fluid-paths over a wide range of settings. An obvious consequence of its wide use, is the rapid increase of literature on metamorphic zircon and any attempt to summarize it can only be partial: in this chapter, reference to published works are intended as examples and not as a compilation. This chapter approaches zircon as a metamorphic mineral reporting on its petrography and texture, deformation structure and mineral chemistry, including trace element and isotopic systematics. Linking this information together highlights the potential of zircon as a key mineral in petrochronology.

Deep burial diagenesis and reservoir quality evolution of high-temperature, high-pressure sandstones: Examples from Lower Cretaceous Bashijiqike Formation in Keshen area, Kuqa depression, Tarim basin of China

Abstract: The deep high-temperature, high-pressure Lower Cretaceous Bashijiqike sandstone (buried to depths as great as 6.5-7.1km) is an important natural gas reservoir in Keshen gas field, Kuqa depression of the Tarim Basin. Reservoir quality is a critical risk factor in the development of these ultradeep reservoirs. Integrated approaches incorporating routine core analyses, mineralogical, petrographic, and geochemical analyses have been used to investigate the diagenetic history of these rocks and their impact on reservoir quality with the aim to unravel the mechanisms for maintaining anomalously high porosities in sandstones that are buried to such a great depth. These sandstones are dominantly fine to medium-grained, moderately to good sorted lithic arkoses and feldspathic litharenite. Most primary pores have been lost by mechanical compaction or carbonate cementation, and the reduction of porosity by mechanical compaction was more significant than by cementation. Dissolution of framework grains contributed to the enhancement of reservoir quality. Eogenetic diagenetic alterations mainly include mechanical compaction, precipitation of calcite cements and grain-coating clays; mesogenetic diagenesis is characterized by dissolution of framework grain by organic acids and subsequent precipitation of clay minerals and quartz; infiltration of meteoric water related to teleodiagenesis would result in dissolution of the framework grains. The meteoric leaching events during teleodiagenesis are of great importance for the Bashijiqike sandstones. Grain-coating clay minerals (mixed-layer illite/smectite clays) help to preserve porosity at depth by retarding quartz cementation and pressure solution. The unique burial regime as early-stage shallow burial with late-stage rapid deep burial contributes to porosity preservation in eodiagenesis. Fluid overpressure caused by intense structural compression in the middle Himalayan movement retarded compaction and helped preserve porosity in the late rapid deep burial stage. Anomalously high porosities are mainly found in medium-grained, good sorted sandstones with grain-coating clays, but with low clay and carbonate cement content, of which the porosity is preserved primarily and enhanced secondarily. The lowest porosities are associated with sandstones that are tightly compacted or cemented with carbonates or rich in detrital matrix. Porosity-depth trends may vary significantly with lithofacies due to its differences in textural and compositional attributes. Five lithofacies are defined in terms of detrital composition and texture, type and degree of diagenesis. The reservoir quality prediction models of various lithofacies are constructed, and the results of this study provide insights into mechanisms for maintaining anomalously high porosity and permeability in high-temperature, high-pressure sandstone reservoirs, and may help explain hydrocarbon distribution.

Petrography and geochemistry of the siliciclastic Araba Formation (Cambrian), east Sinai, Egypt: implications for provenance, tectonic setting and source weathering

Abstract: Combined petrographic and geochemical methods are utilized to investigate the provenance, tectonic setting, palaeo-weathering and climatic conditions of the Cambrian Araba clastic sediments of NE Egypt. The ~ 60 m thick Araba Formation consists predominantly of sandstone and mudstone interbedded with conglomerate. Petrographically the Araba sandstones are mostly sub-mature and classified as subarkoses with an average framework composition of Q80F14L6. The framework components are dominated by monocrystalline quartz with subordinate K-feldspar, together with volcanic and granitic rock fragments. XRD analysis demonstrated that clay minerals comprise mixed-layer illite/smectite (I/S), illite and smectite, with minor kaolinite. Diagenetic features of the sandstone include mechanical infiltration of clay, mechanical and chemical compaction, cementation, dissolution and replacement of feldspars by carbonate cements and clays. The modal composition and geochemical parameters (e.g. Cr/V, Y/Ni, Th/Co and Cr/Th ratios) of the sandstones and mudstones indicate that they were derived from felsic source rocks, probably from the crystalline basement of the northern fringe of the Arabian–Nubian Shield. The study reveals a collisional tectonic setting for the sediments of the Araba Formation. Palaeo-weathering indices such as the chemical index of alteration (CIA), chemical index of weathering (CIW) and plagioclase index of alteration (PIA) of the clastic sediments suggest that the source area was moderately chemically weathered. On the northern margin of Gondwana, early Palaeozoic weathering occurred under fluctuating climatic conditions.

Petrography, fluid inclusion analysis, and geochronology of the End uranium deposit, Kiggavik, Nunavut, Canada

Abstract: The End deposit is one of several uranium deposits in the Kiggavik area near the Proterozoic Thelon Basin, which is geologically similar to the Athabasca Basin known for its unconformity-related uranium deposits. The mineralization occurs as uraninite and coffinite in quartz veins and wall rocks (psammopelitic gneisses) in the sub-Thelon basement and is associated with clay- and hematite-altered fault zones. Fluid inclusions were studied in quartz cementing unmineralized breccias formed before mineralization (Q2), quartz veins that were formed before mineralization but spatially associated with uranite (Q4), and calcite veins that were formed after mineralization. Four types of fluid inclusions were recognized, namely liquid-dominated biphase (liquid + vapor), vapor-dominated biphase (vapor + liquid), monophase (vapor-only), and triphase (liquid + vapor + halite) inclusions. The first three types were found in Q2, whereas all four types were found in Q4 and calcite. The coexistence of these different types of inclusions within individual fluid inclusion assemblages is interpreted to indicate fluid immiscibility and heterogeneous trapping. Based on microthermometry, the fluids associated with Q2 are characterized by low salinities (0.4 to 6.6 wt%) and moderate temperatures from 148 to 261 °C, and the fluids associated with calcite show high salinities (26.8 to 29.3 wt%) and relatively low temperatures from 146 to 205 °C, whereas the fluids associated with Q4 have a wide range of salinities from 0.7 to 38.8 wt% and temperatures from 80 to 332 °C. Microthermometric and cryogenic Raman spectroscopic studies indicate that the high-salinity fluids in Q4 and calcite belong to the H2O-NaCl-CaCl2 ± MgCl2 system, with some dominated by NaCl and others by CaCl2. The fluid inclusions in Q2 are interpreted to be unrelated to mineralization, whereas those in Q4 and calcite reflect the mineralizing fluids. The fluid inclusion data are consistent with a genetic link of mineralization with basinal brines derived from the Thelon Basin. However, unlike the conventional deep-burial (>5 km) diagenetic-hydrothermal model proposed for the unconformity-related uranium deposits, the uranium mineralization in the End deposit is inferred to have formed in a shallow environment (probably <2 km), based on fluid immiscibility and low fluid pressures obtained in this study. The U-Pb age of uraninite (1295 ± 12 Ma) is interpreted to reflect isotopic resetting after the primary mineralization.

Evidence for Residual Melt Extraction in the Takidani Pluton, Central Japan

Abstract: The Takidani pluton represents one of a few locations where melt extraction from a crystal mush is preserved in the natural rock record, making it an extremely good case study for investigating the generation of evolved melt reservoirs in the upper crust. Located in the Japan Alps, the Takidani pluton shows a clear vertical zonation consisting of granite and granodiorite in the lower and mid- dle section, a fine-grained porphyritic granitic unit in the upper section and a marginal granodiorite at the roof contact with the host-rock. We present a detailed petrographic and geochemical study using samples collected along a section that traverses the entire vertical section of the pluton. No sharp contacts are found between units. Instead, gradual changes in rock fabric and mineralogy are observed between the lower granodiorite and overlying porphyritic unit. Major and trace elem- ent bulk-rock compositions show sigmoidal variations from the bottom to top of the pluton. Incompatible elements and silica contents increase roofwards within the porphyritic unit. Plagioclase chemistry reveals three main crystal populations (P1, P2 and P3) with Fe contents increasing towards the base of the pluton. Comparison with existing crystallization experiments, thermobarometry and hygrometry indicate that the magmas were emplaced at around 200 MPa, 850–900 C and bulk water contents of 3–4wt %. Whole-rock major and trace element analyses to- gether with mineral chemistry and textural observations suggest that the fine-grained porphyritic unit was extracted from the underlying granodiorite at temperatures between 800 and 740 C and crystallinities of 45–65 wt %. Radiogenic isotopes indicate only minor assimilation (2–6 wt %) and support melt evolution through crystal fractionation. The fine-grained matrix of the porphyritic unit may have been the result of pressure quenching associated with a volcanic eruption.

Ferruginous Seawater Facilitates the Transformation of Glauconite to Chamosite: An Example from the Mesoproterozoic Xiamaling Formation of North China

Abstract: Berthierine and chamosite are iron-rich clay minerals that share similar chemical compositions. Berthierine forms at low temperature (25–45 °C) during early diagenesis and may transfer to chamosite at temperatures of ≥70 °C. Because the formation of berthierine and chamosite requires significant amount of Fe 2+ supply, their presence in marine sediments is often used as a mineral proxy for ferruginous conditions in porewater. Recent studies reveal that the Precambrian oceans were characterized by pervasive ferruginous water-column conditions that may favor the formation of iron-rich clay minerals like berthierine and chamosite. To evaluate if ferruginous water-column conditions in the Precambrian ocean played a role on iron-rich clay mineral formation, we conducted an integrated petrographic, mineralogical, and geochemical study on the chamosite- and glauconite-bearing strata of the Mesoproterozoic Xiamaling Formation (~1.40–1.35 Ga) in North China. Petrographic, XRD, SEM, and EDS analyses show that the chamosites of the Xiamaling Formation was transferred from glauconite, with berthierine as an intermediate mineral phase during early diagenesis. Geochemical analyses indicate that a complete transformation from glauconite-dominated to chamosite-dominated end-members (samples) requires an addition of a large amount of Fe (16.9 wt%), Mg (2.4 wt%), and a small amount of Al (1.4 wt%), but a simultaneous release of Si (11.8 wt%) and K (6.0 wt%). Considering that the glauconite- and chamosite-bearing strata are devoid of iron-rich detrital minerals (e.g., biotite and iron oxides) and lack evidence of hydrothermal alteration, the required Fe 2+ for glauconite-berthierine-chamosite transformation was most likely from Fe 2+ -rich (ferruginous) seawater, which may have promoted glauconite-berthierine transformation at the very early diagenetic stage when Fe 2+ exchange between porewater and seawater was still available. This interpretation is consistent with the high Fe HR /Fe T (but low Fe py /Fe HR ), Fe/Al, and V/Al ratios from the hosting strata that support ferruginous depositional environments. Because most Precambrian strata have passed the oil window temperature (>50–150 °C), the preservation of berthierine would be rare and chamosite should be the representative iron-rich clay mineral. Thus, the abundance of chamosite in fine-grained, marine siliciclastic sediments may be used as a mineral indicator of ferruginous water-column conditions.

Sheared peridotite xenolith from the V. Grib kimberlite pipe, Arkhangelsk Diamond Province, Russia: Texture, composition, and origin

Abstract: The petrography and mineral composition of a mantle-derived garnet peridotite xenolith from the V. Grib kimberlite pipe (Arkhangelsk Diamond Province, Russia) was studied. Based on petrographic characteristics, the peridotite xenolith reflects a sheared peridotite. The sheared peridotite experienced a complex evolution with formation of three main mineral assemblages: (1) a relict harzburgite assemblage consist of olivine and orthopyroxene porphyroclasts and cores of garnet grains (Gar1) with sinusoidal rare earth elements (REE) chondrite C1 normalized patterns; (2) a neoblastic olivine and orthopyroxene assemblage; (3) the last assemblage associated with the formation of clinopyroxene and garnet marginal zones (Gar2). Major and trace element compositions of olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene and garnet indicate that both the neoblast and clinopyroxene-Gar2 mineral assemblages were in equilibrium with a high Fe-Ti carbonate-silicate metasomatic agent. The nature of the metasomatic agent was estimated based on high field strength elements (HFSE) composition of olivine neoblasts, the garnet-clinopyroxene equilibrium condition and calculated by REE-composition of Gar2 and clinopyroxene. All these evidences indicate that the agent was a high temperature carbonate-silicate melt that is geochemically linked to the formation of the protokimberlite melt.

The earliest Jurassic A-type granite in the Nanling Range of southeastern South China: petrogenesis and geological implications

Abstract: The tectonic transition from the palaeo-Tethyan to palaeo-Pacific dynamic domains in the South China Block (SCB) is still a matter of debate. The A-type granites collected from the southeastern SCB offered an opportunity to illustrate this tectonic transition. This article records a set of petrographic, geochronological, and geochemical data for the Wengong granitic pluton from the eastern Nanling Range. LA-ICP-MS zircon U–Pb dating shows a crystallization age of 196.9 ± 4.4 Ma with eHf(t) values ranging from +2.1 to +7.7. The samples have high SiO2, Zr+Nb+Ce+Y, FeOt/MgO, Ga/Al, and Y/Nb and are depleted in Nb–Ta, Zr–Hf, Ba, Sr, Ti, and Eu, similar to those of the A2-type granite. Their initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios range from 0.70885 to 0.70983 and the eNd(t) values range from −2.9 to −1.1, close to those of the Early Palaeozoic mafic rocks in the southeastern SCB. The Wengong A2-type granite was derived from partial melting of the mafic rocks underplated into the lower crust during the Early Palaeozo...

Host rock geochemistry, texture and chemical composition of magnetite in iron ore in the Neoarchaean Nyong unit in southern Cameroon

Abstract: A combination of petrography, whole-rock geochemistry, geochronology and compositional variation in magnetite is employed in this study to elucidate the nature and origin of enigmatic magnetite min...