A Disequilibrium Melting Spectrum: Partially Melted Crustal Xenoliths from the Wudalianchi Volcanic Field, NE China.

Abstract:

Disequilibrium melting has been established as a common process occurring during crustal anatexis and thus demonstrates that crustal assimilation by ascending mantle-derived magmas is likley not a closed system. Observations of extreme compositional heterogeneity within partial melts derived from crustal xenoliths have been documented in several recent examples, however, the retention or transfer of elements to and from residues and glasses, and their relative contributions to potential crustal contaminants warrants further investigation. Sampled lavas from the Huoshaoshan volcano in the Holocene Wudalianchi volcanic field of Northeast China contain crustal xenoliths which preserve a spectrum of partial melting both petrographically and geochemically, thus providing an excellent, natural example of crustal anatexis. Correlations exist between the volume of silicic glass preserved within the xenoliths and bulk rock SiO₂ (70-83 wt%), Al₂O₃ (16-8 wt%), glass ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr (0.715-0.908), abundances of elements common in feldspars and micas (Sr, Ba, Rb) and elements common in accessory minerals (Y, Zr, Nb). These correlations are likely associated with the consumption of feldspars and micas and the varying retention of accessory phases during partial melting. The xenoliths which contain the greater volumes of silicic glass and residual quartz (interpreted as being the most melted) were found within pahoehoe lava, whilst the least melted xenoliths were found within scoria of the summit cone of Huoshaoshan; thus it is interpreted that the extent of melting is linked to the immersion time in the lava. Small-scale (mm) mingling and transfer of material from the enclosing lava to the xenolith is observed, however, modelling of potential contaminant compositions is inconsistent with crustal contamination during lava petrogenesis. It is inferred that crustal contamination in sampled lavas is localized within the open magmatic system and most likely occurs at the contact zone between the xenolith and host lava. We suggest that it is not only disequilibrium melting that occurs during crustal anatexis, but also ‘disequilibrium extraction’ of anatectic melt(s).