An overview of adakite petrogenesis

Petrogenesis and geodynamic implication of the newly recorded Cryogenian Suwaj adakitic magmatism at the eastern Arabian-Shield

Recent reconnaissance geochemical investigations have unveiled Cryogenian magmatism linked to the compressional accretionary phase, contributing to the growth of the Afif Terrane in the eastern Arabian Shield. The Cryogenian Suwaj intrusive suite, within the Afif Terrane, displays a compositional range from gabbro-diorite to tonalite-granodiorite. The uniform compositional variation is primarily due to magmatic differentiation within parental magma across multiple pulses. The I-type calc-alkaline Suwaj granitoids represent arc-related juvenile materials resulting from the partial melting of a metabasaltic source. The geochemical characteristics of the Suwaj granitoids suggest typical adakite formation resulting from the melting of the basaltic portion of the young, hot oceanic slab. The age correlation between the Halaban ophiolite and the Suwaj Suite aligns with adakite formation in convergent margins. Tectonically, the Suwaj suite's origin is attributed to the subduction of the Paleo-Ad-Dawadmi oceanic slab during microplate amalgamation, reflecting an integral part of the Arabian-Nubian Shield's evolution, underscoring crustal thickening after arc collision.

Genesis and Metallogenic Characteristics of the Zhunsujihua Granitic Intrusions in Sonid Left Banner, Inner Mongolia, China

The Zhunsujihua porphyry Mo-Cu deposit is located in the Erenhot–East Ujimqin metallogenic belt in northeastern China. Granodioritic intrusions in the mining area are dominated by granodiorite and granodiorite porphyry, but the Mo mineralization is limited within the granodiorite. Zircon LA-ICP-MS U-Pb dating yields crystallization ages of 301.5 ± 3.0 Ma for granodiorite and 296.0 ± 3.0 Ma for granodiorite porphyry. These ages constrain the magmatic activity at the Zhunsujihua deposit that took place during the subduction of the Paleo-Asian oceanic plate. Whole-rock geochemical data suggest that the granodioritic intrusions belong to calc-alkaline and high-K calc-alkaline series, and are characterized by enrichment in K, Rb, U, Th, and Pb, and depletion in Nb, Ta, Ti, and P. The negative Eu, Ba, and Sr anomalies suggest that they have experienced extensive fractionation of plagioclase. Trace element compositions of zircons from the Zhunsujihua deposit provide constraints on the oxygen fugacity (ƒO2) of the magma, which is shown to high values with ∆FMQ = +0.5 to +5.6. The wide range of zircon εHf (t) (+1.3~+9.4) values, positive whole-rock εNd (t) (+2.5~+3.9) values, and relatively low initial (87Sr/86Sr)i (0.70367~0.70561) ratios indicate that the magmas mainly originated from a juvenile lower crust source derived from depleted mantle, but mixed with pre-existing crustal components. Moreover, the juvenile lower crust represents the main source of Mo for the Zhunsujihua deposit. A high magmatic oxygen fugacity and fractional crystallization played key roles in forming the Zhunsujihua deposit.

Petrogenesis of Early Cretaceous High-Mg Adakitic Pluton in the North Lhasa Block, Tibet Plateau: Implications for the Tethyan Orogeny

Late Mesozoic igneous rocks from the north Lhasa block record the Neo-Tethyan orogeny in the southern Tibet Plateau. This study presents geochronological and geochemical data of Bieruozecuo quartz diorite pluton in the northern margin of the Lhasa block to constrain its petrogenesis and tectonic implications. The LA–ICP–MS zircon U–Pb geochronology of quartz diorites shows that the emplacement occurs at ca. 114–116 Ma, belonging to the products of Early Cretaceous magmatic activities. The high concentrations of TiO2, MgO, and MnO, together with SiO2 vs K2O and A/NK vs A/CNK diagrams, all suggest that the Bieruozecuo quartz diorites are meta-aluminous and high-potassium calc-alkaline rocks. Their high Sr and low Y and Yb contents, as well as high Sr/Y and La/Yb ratios, are consistent with the typical adakitic rocks. The REE patterns show a large distribution of compositions, which have LREE, while HREE are buffered, along with large ratios of (La/Yb)N, as well as high values of K2O/Na2O, Mg#, Cr, and Ni, all of which imply the partial melting of a delaminated lower crust, without obvious fractional crystallization during the magma ascending and emplacement. This study suggests that, with the closure of the Bangonghu–Nujiang Tethys Ocean Basin, the post-collisional extension of the north Lhasa block will have started no later than ca. 114–116 Ma. Combined with the previous studies, our new data demonstrates that the partial melting of the delaminated lower crust, in a post-collisional setting, may be the main mechanism responsible for the ca. 116–82 Ma adakitic magmatism in the north Lhasa block.

Adakites, High-Nb Basalts and Copper–Gold Deposits in Magmatic Arcs and Collisional Orogens: An Overview

Adakites are Y- and Yb-depleted, SiO2- and Sr-enriched rocks with elevated Sr/Y and La/Yb ratios originally thought to represent partial melts of subducted metabasalt, based on their association with the subduction of young (<25 Ma) and hot oceanic crust. Later, adakites were found in arc segments associated with oblique, slow and flat subduction, arc–transform intersections, collision zones and post-collisional extensional environments. New models of adakite petrogenesis include the melting of thickened and delaminated mafic lower crust, basalt underplating of the continental crust and high-pressure fractionation (amphibole ± garnet) of mantle-derived, hydrous mafic melts. In some cases, adakites are associated with Nb-enriched (10 ppm < Nb < 20 ppm) and high-Nb (Nb > 20 ppm) arc basalts in ancient and modern subduction zones (HNBs). Two types of HNBs are recognized on the basis of their geochemistry. Type I HNBs (Kamchatka, Honduras) share N-MORB-like isotopic and OIB-like trace element characteristics and most probably originate from adakite-contaminated mantle sources. Type II HNBs (Sulu arc, Jamaica) display high-field strength element enrichments in respect to island-arc basalts coupled with enriched, OIB-like isotopic signatures, suggesting derivation from asthenospheric mantle sources in arcs. Adakites and, to a lesser extent, HNBs are associated with Cu–Au porphyry and epithermal deposits in Cenozoic magmatic arcs (Kamchatka, Phlippines, Indonesia, Andean margin) and Paleozoic-Mesozoic (Central Asian and Tethyan) collisional orogens. This association is believed to be not just temporal and structural but also genetic due to the hydrous (common presence of amphibole and biotite), highly oxidized (>ΔFMQ > +2) and S-rich (anhydrite in modern Pinatubo and El Chichon adakite eruptions) nature of adakite magmas. Cretaceous adakites from the Stanovoy Suture Zone in Far East Russia contain Cu–Ag–Au and Cu–Zn–Mo–Ag alloys, native Au and Pt, cupriferous Ag in association witn barite and Ag-chloride. Stanovoy adakites also have systematically higher Au contents in comparison with volcanic arc magmas, suggesting that ore-forming hydrothermal fluids responsible for Cu–Au(Mo–Ag) porphyry and epithermal mineralization in upper crustal environments could have been exsolved from metal-saturated, H2O–S–Cl-rich adakite magmas. The interaction between depleted mantle peridotites and metal-rich adakites appears to be capable of producing (under a certain set of conditions) fertile sources for HNB melts connected with some epithermal Au (Porgera) and porphyry Cu–Au–Mo (Tibet, Iran) mineralized systems in modern and ancient subduction zones.

Petrogenesis and Tectonic Setting of Early Cretaceous Intrusive Rocks in the Northern Ulanhot Area, Central and Southern Great Xing’an Range, NE China

Abundant Early Cretaceous magmatism is conserved in the central and southern Great Xing’an Range (GXR) and has significant geodynamic implications for the study of the Late Mesozoic tectonic framework of northeast China. In this study, we provide new high-precision U–Pb zircon geochronology, whole-rock geochemistry, and zircon Hf isotopic data for representative intrusive rocks from the northern part of the Ulanhot area to illustrate the petrogenesis types and magma source of these rocks and evaluate the tectonic setting of the central-southern GXR. Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) zircon U–Pb dating showed that magmatism in the Ulanhot area (monzonite porphyry: 128.07 ± 0.62 Ma, quartz monzonite porphyry: 127.47 ± 0.36, quartz porphyry: 124.85 ± 0.34, and granite porphyry: 124.15 ± 0.31 Ma) occurred during the Early Cretaceous. Geochemically, monzonite porphyry belongs to the metaluminous and alkaline series rocks and is characterized by high Al2O3 (average 17.74 wt.%) and TiO2 (average 0.88 wt.%) and low Ni (average 4.63 ppm), Cr (average 6.69 ppm), Mg# (average 31.11), Y (average 15.16 ppm), and Yb (average 1.62 ppm) content with enrichment in Ba, K, Pb, Sr, Zr, and Hf and depletion in Ti, Nb, and Ta. The granitic rocks (e.g., quartz monzonite porphyry, quartz porphyry, and granite porphyry) pertain to the category of high-K calc-alkaline rocks and are characterized by high SiO2 content (>66 wt.%) and low MgO (average 0.69 wt.%), Mg# (average 31.49 ppm), Ni (average 2.78 ppm), and Cr (average 8.10 ppm) content, showing an affinity to I-type granite accompanied by Nb, Ta, P, and Ti depletion and negative Eu anomalies (δEu = 0.57–0.96; average 0.82). The Hf isotopic data suggest that these rocks were the product of the partial melting of juvenile crustal rocks. Notably, fractionation crystallization plays a crucial role in the process of magma emplacement. Combining our study with published ones, we proposed that the Early Cretaceous intrusive rocks in the Ulanhot area were formed in an extensional tectonic background and compactly related to the subduction of the Paleo-Pacific Ocean plate.

Identification and Geological Significance of Early Jurassic Adakitic Volcanic Rocks in Xintaimen Area, Western Liaoning

The Western Liaoning area, where a large number of Jurassic-Cretaceous volcanic rocks are exposed, is one of the typical areas for studying the Mesozoic Paleo-Pacific and Mongolia-Okhotsk subduction process, and lithospheric destruction of North China Craton. The identification and investigation of Early Jurassic adakitic volcanic rocks in the Xintaimen area of Western Liaoning is of particular significance for exploring the volcanic magma source and its composition evolution, tracking the crust-mantle interaction, and revealing the craton destruction and the subduction of oceanic plates. Detailed petrography, zircon U–Pb dating, geochemistry, and zircon Hf isotope studies indicate that the Early Jurassic intermediate-acidic volcanic rocks are mainly composed of trachydacites and a few rhyolites with the formation ages of 178.6–181.9 Ma. Geochemical characteristics show that they have a high content of SiO2, MgO, Al2O3, and total-alkali, typical of the high-K calc-alkaline series. They also show enrichment of light rare earth elements (LREEs) and large ion lithophile elements (LILEs), depletion of heavy rare earth elements (HREEs) and high field strength elements (HFSEs), and have a high content of Sr and low content of Y and Yb, suggesting that they were derived from the partial melting of the lower crust. The εHf(t) values of dated zircons and two-stage model ages (TDM2) vary from −11.6 to −7.4 and from 1692 to 1958 Ma, respectively. During the Early Jurassic, the study area was under long-range tectonic effects with the closure of the Mongolia-Okhotsk Ocean and the subduction of the Paleo-Pacific plate, which caused the basaltic magma to invade the lower crust of the North China Craton. The mantle-derived magma was separated and crystallized while heating the Proterozoic lower crust, and part of the thickened crust melted to form these intermediate-acidic adakitic volcanic rocks.

Petrogenesis of the Early Cretaceous Aolunhua Adakitic Monzogranite Porphyries, Southern Great Xing’an Range, NE China: Implication for Geodynamic Setting of Mo Mineralization

This paper reports on whole-rock major- and trace-elemental and Sr–Nd isotopic compositions of the Aolunhua adakitic monzogranite porphyries from the Xilamulun district in the southern Great Xing’an Range, Northeast (NE) China. The high-K calc-alkaline Aolunhua monzogranite porphyries are characterized by high Sr/Y ratios (34.59–91.02), Sr (362–809 ppm), and low Y contents (7.66–10.5 ppm), respectively. These rocks also show slightly enriched Sr and Nd isotopes ((87Sr/86Sr)i = 0.7051–0.7058; εNd(t) = −2.98–0.92), with young two-stage model ages (T2DM = 0.84–1.16 Ga). Such a signature indicates that these rocks were most likely formed by partial melting of juvenile mafic lower crust. Based on equilibrium melting and batch-melting equations, we performed incompatible trace elements modeling. Low FeOT/(FeOT + MgO) values indirectly reflect these adakitic rocks were derived from an oxidizing source related to magnesian granitoids. The decreasing content of TiO2, Fe2O3, Nb/Ta ratio, and moderately negative Eu anomalies suggest that minimal fractionation of Fe–Ti oxides and plagioclase may have occurred in their evolutionary history. The result shows that the Aolunhua adakitic porphyries and coeval adakitic intrusive rocks in this area had not experienced extensive fractional crystallization and were derived from 20%–40% partial melting of lower continental crust, which was composed of ~25%–40% and 5%–20% garnet-bearing amphibolite, respectively. Integrating with rock assemblages and regional tectonic evolutionary history in this regime, high (Sm/Yb)SN (SN—source normalized data, normalized to mafic lower continental crust with Yb = 1.5 ppm and Sm/Yb = 1.87 for continental adakite) and low YbSN ratios suggest that these rocks were generated in an extensional environment related to lithospheric delamination without crustal thickening. The collision between North China and Siberian cratons around 160 Ma blocked the westward movement of the lithosphere as a result of the subduction of Pacific plate, which then led to lithospheric delamination induced by asthenospheric upwelling and underplating. Subsequently, partial melting of mafic lower crust caused by mantle upwelling resulted in the Early Cretaceous magmatic activities of adakitic rocks and associated Mo mineralization in the southern Great Xing’an Range.

Geochronology and Geochemistry of Archean TTG and Tremolite Schist Xenoliths in Yemadong Complex: Evidence for ≥3.0 Ga Archean Continental Crust in Kongling High-Grade Metamorphic Terrane, Yangtze Craton, China

The origin and significance of the tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite (TTG) units and the familiar metabasite xenoliths they host in the Yangtze Craton, China, remain controversial, and resolving these issues is important if we are to understand the evolution of the early Yangtze Craton. We focused on biotite–tremolite schist xenoliths in the Archean TTG units of the Kongling high-grade metamorphic terrane, and U–Pb dating of their zircons yielded 207Pb/206Pb ages of ca. 3.00 Ga, which provides a minimum age for the formation of the pre-metamorphic basic igneous rock. The host TTGs and late intrusive granitic dikes yield three groups of upper intercept ages at 2.87–2.88, 2.91–2.94, and 3.07 Ga, and a concordant age at 2.94 Ga, which suggest that the Yangtze continental nucleus underwent three important metamorphic–magmatic events in the Mesoarchean at ca. 3.00, 2.94, and 2.87 Ga. The biotite–tremolite schists have high ratios of K2O/Na2O and high contents of CaO, Cr, and Ni, thus showing the characteristics of high-K calc-alkaline island-arc volcanic rocks (basalt–andesite) that form by the partial melting of subducted oceanic crust. The data also provide further proof that a Mesoarchean metamorphic basement exists in the Yangtze Plate. Derivation of the magmatic protoliths of the biotite–tremolite schist enclaves from an oceanic crust during slab subduction, and the presence of these xenoliths within the TTG suite, indicate the existence of the initiation of plate tectonics during the Mesoarchean (≤2.94 Ga).

Magnesium isotope geochemistry in arc volcanism

Incorporation of subducted slab in arc volcanism plays an important role in producing the geochemical and isotopic variations in arc lavas. The mechanism and process by which the slab materials are incorporated, however, are still uncertain. Here, we report, to our knowledge, the first set of Mg isotopic data for a suite of arc lava samples from Martinique Island in the Lesser Antilles arc, which displays one of the most extreme geochemical and isotopic ranges, although the origin of this variability is still highly debated. We find the δ(26)Mg of the Martinique Island lavas varies from -0.25 to -0.10, in contrast to the narrow range that characterizes the mantle (-0.25 ± 0.04, 2 SD). These high δ(26)Mg values suggest the incorporation of isotopically heavy Mg from the subducted slab. The large contrast in MgO content between peridotite, basalt, and sediment makes direct mixing between sediment and peridotite, or assimilation by arc crust sediment, unlikely to be the main mechanism to modify Mg isotopes. Instead, the heavy Mg isotopic signature of the Martinique arc lavas requires that the overall composition of the mantle wedge is buffered and modified by the preferential addition of heavy Mg isotopes from fluids released from the altered subducted slab during fluid-mantle interaction. This, in turn, suggests transfer of a large amount of fluid-mobile elements from the subducting slab to the mantle wedge and makes Mg isotopes an excellent tracer of deep fluid migration.