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1. Thermoelasticity of tremolite amphibole: Geophysical implications

   https://doi.org/10.2138/am-2020-7189  

   Peng, Ye ; Mookherjee, Mainak ( June 2020 , American Mineralogist)

   null (Ed.)

   Abstract We investigated the structure, equation of state, thermodynamics, and elastic properties of tremolite amphibole [Ca2Mg5Si8O22(OH)2] up to 10 GPa and 2000 K, using first principles simulations based on density functional perturbation theory. We found that at 300 K, the pressure-volume results can be adequately described by a third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state with bulk moduli K0 of 78.5 and 66.3 GPa based on local density approximation (LDA) and generalized gradient approximation (GGA), respectively. We also derived its coefficients of the elastic tensor based on LDA and GGA and found that the LDA result is in good agreement with the experimental results. At 300 K, the shear modulus G0 is 58.0 GPa based on LDA. The pressure derivative of the bulk modulus K′ is 5.9, while that of the shear modulus G′ is 1.3. The second Grüneisen parameter, or δT = [–1/(αKT)](∂KT/∂T)P, is 3.3 based on LDA. We found that at ambient conditions, tremolite is elastically anisotropic with the compressional wave velocity anisotropy AVP being 34.6% and the shear wave velocity anisotropy AVS being 27.5%. At higher pressure corresponding to the thermodynamic stability of tremolite, i.e., ~3 GPa, the AVP reduces to 29.5%, whereas AVS increases to 30.8%. To evaluate whether the presence of hydrous phases such as amphibole and phlogopite could account for the observed shear wave velocity (VS) anomaly at the mid-lithospheric discontinuity (MLD), we used the thermoelasticities of tremolite (as a proxy for other amphiboles), phlogopite, and major mantle minerals to construct synthetic velocity profiles. We noted that at depths corresponding to the mid-lithosphere, the presence of 25 vol% amphibole and 1 vol% phlogopite could account for a VS reduction of 2.3%. Thus based on our thermoelasticity results on tremolite amphibole, it seems that mantle metasomatism could partly explain the MLD. 

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2. Expedition 357 Preliminary Report: Atlantis Massif Serpentinization and Life

   https://doi.org/10.14379/iodp.pr.357.2016  

   Früh-Green, G.L. ; Orcutt, B.N. ; Green, S. ; Cotterill, C. ( May 2016 , Preliminary report)

   null (Ed.)

   International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 357 successfully cored an east–west transect across the southern wall of Atlantis Massif on the western flank of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge to study the links between serpentinization processes and microbial activity in the shallow subsurface of highly altered ultramafic and mafic sequences that have been uplifted to the seafloor along a major detachment fault zone. The primary goals of this expedition were to (1) examine the role of serpentinization in driving hydrothermal systems, sustaining microbial communities, and sequestering carbon; (2) characterize the tectonomagmatic processes that lead to lithospheric heterogeneities and detachment faulting; and (3) assess how abiotic and biotic processes change with variations in rock type and progressive exposure on the seafloor. To accomplish these objectives, we developed a coring and sampling strategy based around the use of seabed rock drills—the first time that such systems have been used in the scientific ocean drilling programs. This technology was chosen in hopes of achieving high recovery of the carbonate cap sequences and intact contact and deformation relationships. The expedition plans also included several engineering developments to assess geochemical parameters during drilling; sample bottom water before and after drilling; supply synthetic tracers during drilling for contamination assessment; gather downhole electrical resistivity and magnetic susceptibility logs for assessing fractures, fluid flow, and extent of serpentinization; and seal boreholes to provide opportunities for future experiments. Seventeen holes were drilled at nine sites across Atlantis Massif, with two sites on the eastern end of the southern wall (Sites M0068 and M0075), three sites in the central section of the southern wall north of the Lost City hydrothermal field (Sites M0069, M0072, and M0076), two sites on the western end (Sites M0071 and M0073), and two sites north of the southern wall in the direction of the central dome of the massif and Integrated Ocean Drilling Program Site U1309 (Sites M0070 and M0074). Use of seabed rock drills enabled collection of more than 57 m of core, with borehole penetration ranging from 1.3 to 16.44 meters below seafloor and core recoveries as high as 75% of total penetration. This high level of recovery of shallow mantle sequences is unprecedented in the history of ocean drilling. The cores recovered along the southern wall of Atlantis Massif have highly heterogeneous lithologies, types of alteration, and degrees of deformation. The ultramafic rocks are dominated by harzburgites with intervals of dunite and minor pyroxenite veins, as well as gabbroic rocks occurring as melt impregnations and veins, all of which provide information about early magmatic processes and the magmatic evolution in the southernmost portion of Atlantis Massif. Dolerite dikes and basaltic rocks represent the latest stage of magmatic activity. Overall, the ultramafic rocks recovered during Expedition 357 revealed a high degree of serpentinization, as well as metasomatic talc-amphibole-chlorite overprinting and local rodingitization. Metasomatism postdates an early phase of serpentinization but predates late-stage intrusion and alteration of dolerite dikes and the extrusion of basalt. The intensity of alteration is generally lower in the gabbroic and doleritic rocks. Chilled margins in dolerite intruded into talc-amphibole-chlorite schists are observed at the most eastern Site M0075. Deformation in Expedition 357 cores is variable and dominated by brecciation and formation of localized shear zones; the degree of carbonate veining was lower than anticipated. All types of variably altered and deformed ultramafic and mafic rocks occur as components in sedimentary breccias and as fault scarp rubble. The sedimentary cap rocks include basaltic breccias with a carbonate sand matrix and/or fossiliferous carbonate. Fresh glass on basaltic components was observed in some of the breccias. The expedition also successfully applied new technologies, namely (1) extensively using an in situ sensor package and water sampling system on the seabed drills for evaluating real-time dissolved oxygen and methane, pH, oxidation-reduction potential, temperature, and conductivity during drilling; (2) deploying a borehole plug system for sealing seabed drill boreholes at four sites to allow access for future sampling; and (3) proving that tracers can be delivered into drilling fluids when using seabed drills. The rock drill sensor packages and water sampling enabled detection of elevated dissolved methane and hydrogen concentrations during and/or after drilling, with “hot spots” of hydrogen observed over Sites M0068–M0072 and methane over Sites M0070–M0072. Shipboard determination of contamination tracer delivery confirmed appropriate sample handling procedures for microbiological and geochemical analyses, which will aid all subsequent microbiological investigations that are part of the science party sampling plans, as well as verify this new tracer delivery technology for seabed drill rigs. Shipboard investigation of biomass density in select samples revealed relatively low and variable cell densities, and enrichment experiments set up shipboard reveal growth. Thus, we anticipate achieving many of the deep biosphere–related objectives of the expedition through continued scientific investigation in the coming years. Finally, although not an objective of the expedition, we were serendipitously able to generate a high-resolution (20 m per pixel) multibeam bathymetry map across the entire Atlantis Massif and the nearby fracture zone, Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and eastern conjugate, taking advantage of weather and operational downtime. This will assist science party members in evaluating and interpreting tectonic and mass-wasting processes at Atlantis Massif. 

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3. Strong Physical Contrasts Across Two Mid‐Lithosphere Discontinuities Beneath the Northwestern United States: Evidence for Cratonic Mantle Metasomatism

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2023AV001014  

   Liu, Tianze ; Chin, Emily J. ; Shearer, Peter ( December 2023 , AGU Advances)

   Mid‐lithosphere discontinuities are seismic interfaces likely located within the lithospheric mantle of stable cratons, which typically represent velocities decreasing with depth. The origins of these interfaces are poorly understood due to the difficulties in both characterizing them seismically and reconciling the observations with thermal‐chemical models of cratons. Metasomatism of the cratonic lithosphere has been reported by numerous geochemical and petrological studies worldwide, yet its seismic signature remains elusive. Here, we identify two distinct mid‐lithosphere discontinuities at ∼87 and ∼117 km depth beneath the eastern Wyoming craton and the southwestern Superior craton by analyzing seismic data recorded by two longstanding stations. Our waveform modeling shows that the shallow and deep interfaces represent isotropic velocity drops of 2%–8% and 4%–9%, respectively, depending on the contributions from changes in radial anisotropy and density. By building a thermal‐chemical model including the regional xenolith thermobarometry constraints and the experimental phase‐equilibrium data of mantle metasomatism, we show that the shallow interface probably represents the metasomatic front, below which hydrous minerals such as amphibole and phlogopite are present, whereas the deep interface may be caused by the onset of carbonated partial melting. The hydrous minerals and melts are products of mantle metasomatism, with CO₂‐H₂O‐rich siliceous melt as a probable metasomatic reagent. Our results suggest that mantle metasomatism is probably an important cause of mid‐lithosphere discontinuities worldwide, especially near craton boundaries, where the mantle lithosphere may be intensely metasomatized by fluids and melts released by subducting slabs.

    

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4. Halogen Bearing Amphiboles, Aqueous Fluids, and Melts in Subduction Zones: Insights on Halogen Cycle From Electrical Conductivity

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2020JB021339  

   Manthilake, G. ; Koga, K. T. ; Peng, Y. ; Mookherjee, M. ( March 2021 , Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth)

   Amphiboles are hydrous minerals that are formed in the oceanic crust via hydrothermal alteration. The partial substitution of halogens for OH⁻makes amphibole one of the principal hosts of Cl and F in the subducting slab. In this study, we investigated the electrical conductivity of a suite of halogen bearing amphibole minerals at 1.5 GPa up to 1,400 K. The discontinuous electrical behavior indicates dehydration of amphibole at ∼915 K. This is followed by dehydration induced hydrous melting at temperatures above 1,070 K. We find that the released aqueous fluids have an electrical conductivity of ∼0.1 S/m. This high electrical conductivity is likely to explain anomalously high electrical conductivity observed in certain subduction zone settings. This high electrical conductivity of an order of magnitude greater than the electrical conductivity of pure aqueous fluids at similar conditions is likely due to the partitioning of the F and Cl into the aqueous fluids. We also noted that subsequent to the dehydration, secondary phases form due to the breakdown of the primary halogen bearing amphibole. Chemical analyses of these secondary phases indicate that they are repositories of F and Cl. Hence, we infer that upon dehydration of the primary halogen bearing amphibole, first the F and Cl are partitioned into the aqueous fluids and then the halogens are partitioned back to the secondary mineral phases. These secondary minerals are likely to transport the halogen to the deep Earth and may in part explain the halogen concentration observed in ocean island basalt.

    

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5. Experimental study of metamorphic reactions and dehydration processes at the blueschist–eclogite transition during warm subduction

   https://doi.org/10.1111/jmg.12560  

   Cheng, Nanfei ; Jenkins, David M. ( August 2020 , Journal of Metamorphic Geology)

   The transition between blueschist and eclogite plays an important role in subduction zones via dehydration and densification processes in descending oceanic slabs. There are a number of previous petrological studies describing potential mineral reactions taking place at the transition. An experimental determination of such reactions could help constrain the pressure–temperature conditions of the transition as well as the processes of dehydration. However, previous experimental contributions have focused on the stability of spontaneously formed hydrous minerals in basaltic compositions rather than on reactions among already formed blueschist facies minerals. Therefore, this study conducted three groups of experiments to explore the metamorphic reactions among blueschist facies minerals at conditions corresponding to warm subduction, where faster reaction rates are possible on the time scale of laboratory experiments. The first group of experiments was to establish experimental reversals of the reaction glaucophane+paragonite to jadeite+pyrope+quartz+H₂O over the range of 2.2–3.5 GPa and 650–820°C. This reaction has long been treated as key to the blueschist–eclogite transition. However, only the growth of glaucophane+paragonite was observed at the intersectional stability field of both paragonite and jadeite+quartz, confirming thermodynamic calculations that the reaction is not stable in the system Na₂O–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂–H₂O. The second set of experiments involved unreversed experiments using glaucophane+zoisite ±quartz in low‐Fe and Ca‐rich systems and were run at 1.8–2.4 GPa and 600–780°C. These produced omphacite+paragonite/kyanite+H₂O accompanied by compositional shifts in the sodium amphibole, glaucophane, towards sodium–calcium amphiboles such as winchite (☐(CaNa)(Mg₄Al)Si₈O₂₂(OH)₂) and barroisite (☐(CaNa)(Mg₃Al₂)(AlSi₇)O₂₂(OH)₂). This suggests that a two‐step dehydration occurs, first involving the breakdown of glaucophane+zoisite towards a paragonite‐bearing assemblage, then the breakdown of paragonite to release H₂O. It also indicates that sodium–calcium amphibole can coexist with eclogite phases, thereby extending the thermal stability of amphibole to greater subduction zone depths. The third set of experiments was an experimental investigation at 2.0–2.4 GPa and 630–850°C involving a high‐Fe (Fe#=Fe_total/(Fe_total+Mg)≈0.36) natural glaucophane, synthetic paragonite and their eclogite‐forming reaction products. The results indicated that garnet and omphacite grew over most of these pressure–temperature conditions, which demonstrates the importance of Fe‐rich glaucophane in forming the key eclogite assemblage of garnet+omphacite, even under warm subduction zone conditions. Based on the experiments of this study, reaction between glaucophane+zoisite is instrumental in controlling dehydration processes at the blueschist–eclogite transition during warm subduction.

    

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