Title: Garnet zoning patterns record multiple processes of chemical transfer during subduction
In garnets from eclogites and blueschists formed within the subduction setting, fine-scale, oscillatory elemental zoning is a common feature, sometimes considered to record open-system fluid exchange during prograde metamorphism. We present oxygen isotope data for garnets with such zoning from five exhumed subduction zone complexes. Short length scale fluctuations in elemental and oxygen isotope zoning (which are themselves spatially decoupled) cannot be linked to open-system fluid exchange during garnet crystallization in all samples; these data do not provide evidence for a genetic relationship between elemental oscillations and fluid fluxing. However, garnets from one setting do provide clear evidence for syn-growth ingress of elementally and isotopically buffering fluids, a process that operated simultaneously with the formation of elemental oscillations. Our findings indicate multiple mechanisms of chemical transfer operate at the grain–rock scale during subduction, and that some subduction zone rocks may experience only limited interaction with external prograde fluids. These results are consistent with a picture of highly heterogenous volatile transfer during subduction, and suggest that some proportion of the fluid inventory inherited at shallow depths may be transferred to sub-arc depths.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1831766
PAR ID:
10501133
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
Elsevier
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Earth and Planetary Science Letters
Volume:
631
ISSN:
0012-821X
Page Range / eLocation ID:
118634
Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
Oscillatory zoning Garnet Subduction fluids Oxygen isotopes
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. null (Ed.)
    Abstract The Colorado Plateau has undergone as much as 1·8 km of uplift over the past 80 Myr, but never underwent the pervasive deformation common in the neighboring tectonic provinces of the western USA. To understand the source, timing and distribution of mantle hydration, and its role in plateau uplift, garnets from four eclogite xenoliths of the Moses Rock diatreme (Navajo Volcanic Field, Utah, USA) were analyzed in situ for δ18O by secondary ion mass spectrometry. These garnets have the largest reported intra-crystalline oxygen isotope zoning to date in mantle-derived xenoliths with core-to-rim variations of as much as 3 ‰. All samples have core δ18O values greater than that of the pristine mantle (∼5·3 ‰, mantle garnet as derived from mantle zircon in earlier work) consistent with an altered upper oceanic crust protolith. Oxygen isotope ratios decrease from core to rim, recording interaction with a low-δ18O fluid at high temperature, probably derived from serpentinite in the foundering Farallon slab. All zoned samples converge at a δ18O value of ∼6 ‰, regardless of core composition, suggesting that fluid infiltration was widely distributed. Constraints on the timing of this fluid influx, relative to diatreme emplacement, can be gained from diffusion modeling of major element zoning in garnet. Modeling using best estimates of peak metamorphic conditions (620 °C, 3·7 GPa) yields durations of <200 kyr, suggesting that fluid influx and diatreme emplacement were temporally linked. These eclogite xenoliths from the Colorado Plateau record extensive fluid influx, pointing to complex hydration–dehydration processes related to flat-slab subduction and foundering of the Farallon plate. Extensive hydration of the lithospheric mantle during this fluid influx may have contributed to buoyancy-driven uplift of the Colorado Plateau and melt-free emplacement of Navajo Volcanic Field diatremes. 
    more » « less
  2. Abstract Mafic eclogites of the Tauern Window in the Eastern Alps preserve vein networks associated with eclogite‐facies mineral assemblages. The structural and mineralogical diversity of these veins is encapsulated by Type I veins, which resemble deformed tension gashes, and Type II quartz segregates with non‐planar morphologies. Within host eclogites, garnet growth occurred along a progradeP‐Tpath between 2.05 ± 0.10 GPa, 580 ± 15°C and 2.50 ± 0.10 GPa, 630 ± 15°C, consistent with conditions on the slab‐wedge interface of modern subduction zones. The dehydration of lawsonite and Na‐amphibole released ∼5 wt.% H2O over 20–35°C, creating ∼11% transient porosity. In situ oxygen isotope analysis of quartz‐rutile pairs constrains formation temperatures to between 460°C and 610°C for Type I and II vein structures. Individual veins preserve records of protracted crystallization over ∼100°C, suggesting that fluids remained undrained in the oceanic crust for 105–106 years during subduction to ∼90 km. A simple petrological‐mechanical model for the blueschist‐to‐eclogite transition shows that under extremely low permeability (10−22to 10−34 m2), Type I veins may form by tensile failure during periods of high pore fluid pressure, whereas Type II quartz segregates represent accumulations of derived fluids during periods of lower fluid pressure. These findings imply that domains of oceanic crust with extreme low permeability may retain fluids released during the blueschist‐to‐eclogite past the depths of arc magma genesis. 
    more » « less
  3. Oxygen and hydrogen stable isotope analyses of quartz and muscovite veins from the footwall of the Raft River detachment shear zone (Utah) provide insight into the hydrology and fluid‐rock interactions during ductile deformation. Samples were collected from veins containing 90%–100% quartz with orientations either at a high angle or sub‐parallel to the surrounding quartzite mylonite foliation. Stable isotope analysis was performed on 10 samples and compared with previous quartzite mylonite isotope data sets. The results indicate that the fluid present during deformation of the shear zone was meteoric in origin, with a δ2H value of approximately −100‰ and a δ18O value of approximately −13.7‰. Oxygen stable isotope O18O depletion correlates with the muscovite content of the analyzed rocks. Many of the analyzed samples in this and other studies show an apparent lack of equilibrium between the oxygen and hydrogen isotope systems, which can be explained by hydrogen and oxygen isotope exchange at varying fluid‐rock ratios. Our results suggest that the Raft River detachment shear zone had a low static fluid‐rock ratio (<0.1), yet experienced episodic influxes of fluids through semi‐brittle structures. This fluid was then expelled out into the surrounding mylonite following progressive shearing, causing further18O‐depletion and fluid‐related embrittlement. 
    more » « less
  4. Abstract Tectonic mélanges, characterized by conditions reflective of modern subduction fault zones, preserve mineral veins formed through mass transfer, a mechanism influencing the slip behavior of subduction megathrusts. In this study, we apply secondary ion mass spectrometry quartz‐calcite oxygen isotope thermometry and clumped isotope thermometry to examine the temperatures of vein formations in six mélange units in the Cretaceous Shimanto belt and one mélange in the Kodiak accretionary prism. Calcite in the veins exhibits δ13CPDBvalues ranging from −17.2‰ to −6.8‰, indicative of a carbon source mixing with sedimentary carbonate and organic matter. δ18OSMOWvalues of calcite range from +11.1‰ to +17.2‰; quartz yields δ18OSMOWvalues of +14.9‰ to +21.7‰. Oxygen isotopic signatures in minerals reveal that most vein‐forming fluids are significantly affected by rock buffering, while some retain isotopic compositions of seawater and meteoric water. Temperature estimates, derived from both thermometers, fall within the range of 100–250°C. Notably, vein temperatures remain constant across diverse vein types and mélange units with distinct maximum temperatures. The combined temperature records and fluid isotopic compositions imply vein formations at shallower depths linked to the incorporation of seawater, meteoric water, and fluid released from early dehydration reactions. At greater depths, vein formations are associated with fluid released from clay dehydration and long‐distance fluid flow. Reduced vein formations between 250 and 350°C may correlate with a shift to fluid‐unsaturated conditions resulting from clay hydration reactions. Our study highlights potential mechanical and hydraulic variations within the thermal conditions of 100–350°C along the plate boundary driven by fluid‐mineral interactions. 
    more » « less
  5. ABSTRACT Microanalysis of trace elements in garnet can yield new and important insights into the kinetics of garnet growth, metamorphic reactions and fluid–rock interaction in subduction zones; however, differentiating the effects of these processes on a garnet‐by‐garnet basis can be challenging. In this study, we couple microanalyses of trace elements and stable oxygen isotopes in garnet to isolate the causes of trace element variation in mineralogically banded blueschists and eclogites from the Franciscan Complex. Trace element variations in garnet are not apparently driven by interaction with externally derived fluids as recorded by rimward decreases in δ18O and can be best explained by local mineral reactions. Intrasample heterogeneity in garnet trace element zoning patterns can be attributed to localized differences in mineral assemblages, which impact the availability of trace elements to growing garnets. These mineralogical heterogeneities also control the extent of reaction with externally derived fluid and resulting δ18O zoning patterns through differences in reaction‐induced porosity. Our study highlights the importance of linking petrography to advanced microanalysis and has important implications for understanding the chemical composition and physical pathways of fluids in the eclogitized downgoing slab. 
    more » « less