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Geodynamics & Tectonophysics

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Vol 10, No 2 (2019)

PALEOGEODYNAMICS

197-245 1961
Abstract
We have studied variations in the structure and composition of minerals from the pipes of the Yakutian kimberlite province (YKP) in different mantle terranes of the Siberian craton. The study was based on an extensive database, including the microprobe analysis datasets consolidated by IGM, IG, IEC and IGDNM SB RAS and ALROSA and geochemical analysis of minerals performed by LA‐ICP‐MS (Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry). The reconstruction shows layering under the tubes, including 6–7 slab that were probably formed due to subduction; the slabs are separated by pyroxenitic, eclogitic and metasomatic layers and dunite lenses. Transects and mantle profiles across kimberlite fields are constructed. Within the limits of the revealed tectonic terranes, we assume a collage of microplates formed in the early – middle Archean. Extended submeridional structures of the tectonic terranes are not always confirmed at the mantle level. Beneath the Anabar and Aldan shields, the mantle sections show more coarse layers and 3–4 large horizons of dunites with garnet and pyroxene nests separated by ilmenite‐ phlogopite metasomatites and pyroxenites. Terranes representing the suture zones between the protocratons (e.g. Khapchan) are often saturated with eclogites and pyroxenites that may occur as leghthy ascending bodies of magmatic eclogites penetrating through the mantle lithosphere structure (ML). A nearly ubiquitous pyroxenite layer at the level of 3.5–4.5 GPa formed probably in the early Archean with a high heat flux during melting of eclogites and was subsequently traced by plume melts. Within the early Archean protocratons – granite‐greenstone terranes (Tungus, Markha, Berekta, and Sharyzhalgai, ~3.8–3.0 Gyr [Gladkochub et al., 2019], the mantle lithosphere is less depleted and largely metasomatized. The ML structure of the Daldyn and Magan granulite‐orthogneiss terranes is layered with folding revealed in the north‐to‐south sections from the Udachnaya pipe to the Krasnopresnenskaya pipe, which is less pronounced in the latitudinal direction. From the Daldyn field to the Alakit field, there is an increase in the degree of metasomatism, and higher alkalinity of pyroxenes and larger amounts of phlogopite are noted. The most productive Aikhal and Yubileinaya pipes are confined to a dunite core, which is accompanied by a change in the specialization of high‐charge elements Ta‐Nb to Zr‐Hf. Within the limits of the Magan terrane, the thin‐layer structure of the middle and upper parts of the craton keel is replaced with a sharply depleted productive horizon at its base. The mantle of the granite‐greenstone Markha terrrein comprises eclogite (often pelitic) horizons, which suggests subduction of the continental lithosphere or sediments. In the central and northern parts of the Siberian craton, most structures in the mantle are sinking to the west at small angles. The geochemistry features of garnets and pyroxenes from various mantle terranes are considered in detail.
247-263 800
Abstract

We consider thermochemical mantle plumes with thermal power 1.6·1010 W<N<2.7·1010 W (relative thermal power 1.15<Ka<1.9) as plumes with an intermediate thermal power. Such plumes are formed at the core–mantle boundary beneath cratons in the absence of horizontal free‐convection mantle flows beneath them, or in the presence of weak horizontal mantle flows. A proposed scheme of convection flows in the conduit of a plume with an intermediate thermal power is based on laboratory and theoretical modeling data. A plume ascends (melts out) from the coremantle boundary to critical depth xкр from which magma erupts on the Earth’s surface. The magmatic melt erupts from the plume conduit onto the surface through the eruption conduit. The latter forms under the effect of superlithostatic pressure on the plume roof. While the thickness of the block above the plume roof decreases to a critical value xкр, the shear stress on its cylindrical surface reaches a critical value (strength limit) τкр.Rock fails in the vicinity of the cylindrical block and, as a consequence, the eruption conduit is formed. We estimate the height of the eruption conduit and the time for the plume to ascent to the critical depth xкр. The volume of erupted melt is estimated for kinematic viscosity of melt =0.5–2 м2/с. The depth Δx from which the melt is transported to the surface is determined. Using the eruption volume, we obtain a relationship between the depth Δx and the plume conduit diameter for the above‐mentioned kinematic viscosities. In the case that the depth Δx is larger than 150 km, the melt from the plume conduit can transport diamonds to the Earth’s surface. Thus, the plumes with an intermediate thermal power are diamondiferous. The melt flow structure at the plume conduit/eruption conduit interface is determined on the basis of the laboratory modeling data. The photographs of the simulated flow were obtained. The flow line velocities were measured in the main cylindrical conduit (plume conduit) and at the main conduit/eruption conduit interface. A stagnant area is detected in the 'conduit wall/plume roof’ interface zone. The melt flow in the eruption conduit was analyzed as a turbulent flow in the straight cylindrical conduit with diameter dк. According to the experimental modeling and theoretical data, the superlithostatic pressure in the plume conduit is the sum of the frictional pressure drop and the increasing dynamic pressure in the eruption conduit. A relationship between the melt flow velocity in the eruption conduit and superlithostatic pressure has been derived.

265-288 905
Abstract

The rocks of the Sobsky complex, composing the bulk of the Sobsky batholith in the Polar Urals, contain mafic inclusions. The geological, petrographic and petro‐geochemical data show that the mafic inclusions of the Sobsky rocks belong to igneous formations, which are similar in their characteristics to autoliths. According to all the characteristics, these are the structures non‐contrasting to host rocks and having different structural‐textural features, a more basic composition of minerals and a more basic composition of rocks. The contact with the rocks of the complex is sharp and clear. The rocks of the complex in contact with autoliths are medium‐grained massive diorite rocks, quartz diorites, tonalites, mafic inclusions rocks – fine‐grained gabbros, gabbro‐diorites, and diorites. Isotopicgeochemical (U‐Pb, SIMS) data on zircons from the mafic inclusions suggest that their age is close, within the error limits, to the age of zircons from the enclosing Sobsky complex rocks.

289-308 953
Abstract

The article is focused on the morphology, trace element composition, U‐Pb and Lu‐Hf systems in zircon in high‐Mg diorite of the Chelyabinsk granitoid massif. Our analytical studies of the U‐Pb and Lu‐Hf isotope systems and the trace element composition were performed using mass spectrometry (MS) with inductively coupled plasma (ICP) and laser ablation (LA) of samples. It is established that the zircon formed at the last stages of crystallization of the basic melt under subsolidus conditions at low (600–700 °C) temperatures, which distinguishes it from the zircon of most other high‐Mg rocks of the intermediate composition. The internal structure of the zircon and the concentration of trace elements are locally altered under the influence of a fluid, which led to a partial disruption of the U‐Pb and Lu‐Hf isotopic systems. For the least altered areas in the zircon crystals, the age of crystallization of the parent high‐Mg melt is 362±2 Ma, which coincides with the age estimated from the geological data. Considering the isotope composition of Hf in the zircon and the trace element concentrations, there are grounds to relate the formation of high‐Mg diorite in the Chelyabinsk granitoid massif with a mixed mantle‐crustal source.

309-323 911
Abstract

The tectonomagmatic evolution of the Sangilen massif has been described in detail in numerous publications, but little attention was given to heat sources related to the HT/LP metamorphism. Modeling of the magma transport to the upper‐crust levels in West Sangilen shows that the NT/LP metamorphism is related to gabbromonodiorite intrusions. This article is focused on the thermo‐mechanical modeling of melting and lifting of melts in the crust, taking into account the density interfaces. The model of the Erzin granitoid massif shows that in case of fractional melting, the magma ascent mechanism is fundamentally different, as opposed to diapir upwelling – percolation take place along a magmatic channel or a system of channels. An estimated rate of diapiric rise in the crust amounts to 0.8 cm/yr, which is more than an order of magnitude lower than the rate of melt migration in case of fractional melting (25 cm/yr). In our models, a metamorphic thermal ‘anticline’ develops in stages that differ, probably, due to the modes of crust melting: batch melting occurs at the first stage, and fractional melting takes place at the second stage. It is probable that the change of melting modes from melting conditions in a ‘closed’ system to fractional melting conditions in ‘open’ systems is determined by tectonic factors. For the Sangilen massif, we have estimated the degrees of melting in the granulite, granite, and sedimentary‐metamorphic layers of the crust (6, 15, and 5 vol. %, respectively).

325-345 1046
Abstract

This article is focused on the intrusion and formation of combined dykes. Two main groups of conventionally magmatic mingling are distinguished: (1) plutonic bodies, and (2) combined dykes. The first group is represented by small basite inclusions that are uniformly scattered in granitoid bodies, and includes elongated swarms and tails of small bodies. The second group includes composite dykes with the indicators of mechanical mingling of basic and acid melts. Despite the similarities in the structural and textural features and the indicators of mechanical mingling of melts, these two groups are characterized by clearly different proportions of the volumes of contrasting melts and differ in the duration of formation, place of melt mingling, and tectonic setting. None of the available models was able to explain the occurrence of magmatic mingling structures in individual dykes. In our study, the mingling mechanisms of contrasting melts are discussed using the data on the geological objects located in West Sangilen, an area of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB). The general and specific parameters of combined dikes of the Saizyral and Tavyt‐ Dag sites are considered. The models of shear dilatation and dispersion are proposed for explaining the mechanisms of magmatic mingling in combined dykes.

347-373 1105
Abstract

Based on the reconstruction of the thermal evolution of granitoid batholith, represented by the Song‐Chai gneiss‐granite massif (Northern Vietnam), the long‐term existence of granitoid magma at deep levels of the Earth's crust (H≥25 km, Δt~20–50 Ma) is established. The geodynamic analysis of the granitoid batholith and mathematical modeling of its thermal history shows that the magmatic chamber should be considered as a thermal trap at the lower level of the crust, which preserved residual granite melts for a long time. Activation of the magmatic chamber occurs in post‐collisional strike‐slip fault zones and is accompanied by tectonic exhumation of large crustal segments. As a result, the batholith is transformed into a Cordilleran‐type metamorphic core complex, residual rare‐metal melts are emplaced, and, commercial deposits are thus formed.

375-404 1245
Abstract

The article presents an event correlation of the Permian‐Triassic granites of the Altai collision system, which are associated with industrial ore deposits and occurrences (Mo‐W, Sn‐W, Li‐Ta‐Be). The multi‐system and multi‐mineral isotope datings of igneous rocks and ore bodies (U/Pb, Re/Os, Rb/Sr, Ar/Ar‐methods) suggest the postcollisional (intraplate) formation of ore‐magmatic systems (OMS), the duration of which depended on the crustmantle interaction and the rates of tectonic exposure of geoblocks to the upper crustal levels.Two cases of the OMS thermal history are described: (1) Kalguty Mo‐W deposit associated with rare‐metal granite‐leucogranites and ongonite‐ elvan dykes, and (2) Novo‐Akhmirov Li‐Ta deposit represented by topaz‐zinnwaldite granites and the contemporary lamprophyre and ongonit‐elvan dykes. For these geological objects, numerical modeling was carried out. The proposed models show thermal cooling of the deep magmatic chambers of granite composition, resulting in the residual foci of rare‐metal‐granite melts, which are known as the petrological indicators of industrial ore deposits (Mo‐W, Sn‐W, Li‐Ta‐Be). According to the simulation results concerning the framework of a closed magmatic system with a complex multistage development history, the magmatic chamber has a lower underlying observable massif and a reservoir associated with it. A long‐term magmatic differentiation of the parental melt (a source of rare‐metal‐granite melts and ore hydrothermal fluids) takes place in this reservoir.

405-457 1762
Abstract
This paper is focused on the relationship between plate‐ and plume‐tectonic processes during the formation of Neoproterozoic and Vendian‐Paleozoic island‐arc systems and active continental margins in the interaction zone of the Siberian continent and Paleoasian Ocean (PAO). In this study, we use our own materials collected in the long‐term research of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) and the published models showing convection in the asthenosphere and mantle, subduction‐related and plume magmatism at the Cenozoic active margins of the Western Pacific and California types. It is clearly shown that subduction‐related magmatism of the Paleoasian Ocean active margins should not be considered separately from plume magmatism. These interrelated processes played a major role in the CAOB formation. Based on the reconstructed Neoproterozoic, Vendian – Early and Middle Paleozoic paleogeodynamic features, 25 island‐arc systems of PAO are characterized. These island arcs are related to the occurrence of more than 30 plume magmatism areas. At the active margin of the Siberian continent, there are numerous fields of intraplate magmatism in riftogeneous structures. Such fields of various scales not related to subduction zones, especially at the final Late Paleozoic stage. All the major stages of the CAOB development, including the Cambrian‐ Ordovician collision stage, are clearly correlated with plume magmatism. Considering a revealed combination of the island arcs and the plume magmatism areas, there are grounds to suggest that the development of the entire Neoproterozoic‐ Paleozoic region of Central Asia was related to the activity of mantle plumes. 

TECTONOPHYSICS

459-470 954
Abstract

The article discusses the geological structure, oil‐and‐gas‐bearing capacities and salt tectogenesis of the Anabar‐Khatanga saddle located on the Laptev Sea shore. In the study area, the platform sediments are represented by the 14‐45 km thick Neoproterozoic‐Mesozoic sedimentary complexes. The regional cross‐sections show the early and middle Devonian salt‐bearing strata and associated salt domes in the sedimentary cover, which may be indicative of potential hydrocarbon‐containing structures. Diapirs reaching the ground surface can be associated with structures capable of trapping hydrocarbons, and typical anticline structures can occur above the domes buried beneath the sediments. In our study, we used the algorithms and software packages developed by A.A. Trofimuk Institute of Petroleum Geology and Geophysics (IPGG SB RAS). Taking into account the structural geological features of the study area, we conducted numerical simulation of the formation of salt dome structures. According to the numerical models, contrasting domes that reached the ground surface began to form in the early Permian and developed most intensely in the Mesozoic, and the buried diapirs developed mainly in the late Cretaceous and Cenozoic.

471-481 777
Abstract

The article presents accurate solutions for the problem for two elastic half‐spaces with an arbitrary curvilinear interface. Our study shows that dilatation solutions (Poisson integrals) are dependent on neither an overall compression modulus nor the Poisson ratio, and depend only on the velocity of longitudinal waves. These specific solutions can be supplemented by general solutions for an incompressible elastic medium, and the boundary conditions of the rigid contact for the sum of the solutions can thus be satisfied. Relatively simple calculations make it possible to determine the divergence of the displacement field and reduce the entire problem solving process to a study of Poisson equations with a known divergence. Furthermore, predictions of volumetric compression or extension are important for geological investigations, since the zones characterized by reduced pressure rates may act as fluid attractors.

483-506 1436
Abstract

Clastic dikes are often the only evidence of past disasters in poorly exposed areas and therefore their findings are extremely important for earthquake study. However, the variety of their origins greatly complicates the use of clastic dikes to assess the seismic hazards within the manifold environments. This paper systematizes main triggers, formation mechanisms and some matching indicative features of tabular and cylindrical bodies with an emphasis on the importance of revealing the injection dikes formed by fluidized injection of clastic material into the host sedimentary layers (from the bottom upwards) and associated with overpressure buildup and hydraulic fracturing. Based on the revision of known seismic liquefaction features and specific descriptions of the injection dikes, this overview defines 12 general and 12 individual geological and structural criteria (for study in sectional view), which make it possible to establish confidently the earthquake origin of the dikes caused by fluidization from seismic liquefaction. In addition, ground penetrating radar data correlating with trenching suggest indicative searching criteria of the injection dikes on radargrams, namely: a pipe‐shaped anomaly or a composite anomaly combining a tubular form in the lower part with an isometric – in the upper [i]; relatively high values of unipolar positive echoes on the trace of GPR signal [ii]; an occurrence of the same anomaly on adjacent parallel profiles located the first tens of meters apart [iii]; and stratigraphic disruptions of the radar events on the background of their continuous horizontal position [iv]. Finally, the paper illustrates that the clastic dikes can be successfully applied to determine the age and the recurrence interval, the epicenter location and a lower‐bound magnitude/intensity of paleoearthquakes, thus providing geological data for seismic hazard assessments in the regions, in which unconsolidated deposits capable to liquefaction are common.

RECENT GEODYNAMICS

507-539 1173
Abstract

The modern theory of the evolving Earth is based on integrated isotopic data obtained for the accessible part of the planet and cosmic bodies, in which the U–Pb isotope system plays a key role. The theory is tested by the isotope systematics of oceanic basalt sources. The origin of continental volcanic rocks is often interpreted in terms of the isotopic systematics of oceanic basalts. However, such interpretations, as a rule, reveal contradictions arising from differences in the history and current mantle dynamics of oceans and continents. Under the oceans, a mantle material has long lost connection with the accessible Earth tectonic units; under the continents such a connection is often established. The nature of the evolution of deep‐seated processes under the continents remains uncertain and, by analogy with the oceans, requires deciphering in terms of the components of the mantle sources for volcanic rocks. In modern lithospheric plates of the Earth, there are regions ranging in width from hundreds to thousands of kilometers, which are characterized by high strain rates and, consequently, at least one to two orders of magnitude lower viscosity relative to that of the internal stable parts of the plates. This gives them a special structural status of “dispersed plate boundaries”. The isotope‐geochemical studies of volcanic rocks from regions of the unstable Asia revealed the different nature of components in sources, for which particular interpretations have been proposed. In this paper, a general systematics of sources is defined for volcanic rocks of the latest geodynamic stage in Asia through estimating the incubation time on the 207Pb/204Pb versus 206Pb/204Pb diagram. Two domains are designated: (1) low 238U/204Pb (LOMU) derived from the viscous protomantle (VIPMA), and (2) elevated 238U/204Pb (ELMU). The mantle domains evolved from the Earth's primary material between 4.51 and 4.36 Gyr ago, 4.0 and 3.7 Gyr ago, 2.9 and 2.6 Gyr ago, 2.0 and 1.8 Gyr ago, about 0.66 Gyr ago and <0.09 Gyr ago. Melting anomalies of ELMU sources characterize the unstable mantle of Southern Asia, and those of LOMU sources belong to the Japan‐Baikal geodynamic corridor of the transitional region between the unstable mantle of Asia and its stable core. The Late Cenozoic evolution of the Japan‐Baikal geodynamic corridor resulted in cutting the LOMU domain by the Jeju‐Vitim ELMU source line.

541-559 1096
Abstract

We performed a comprehensive analysis of the characteristics of self‐similarity of seismicity and the fault network within the Sikhote Alin orogenic belt and the adjacent areas. It has been established that the main features of seismicity are controlled by the crustal earthquakes. Differentiation of the study area according to the density of earthquake epicenters and the fractal dimension of the epicentral field of earthquakes (De) shows that the most active crustal areas are linked to the Kharpi‐Kur‐Priamurye zone, the northern Bureya massif and the Mongol‐Okhotsk folded system. The analysis of the earthquake recurrence plot slope values reveals that the highest b‐values correlate with the areas of the highest seismic activity of the northern part of the Bureya massif and, to a less extent, of the Mongol‐Okhotsk folded system. The increased fractal dimension values for the fault network (Df) correlate with the folded systems (Sikhote Alin and Mongol‐Okhotsk), while the decreased values conform to the depressions and troughs (Middle Amur, Uda and Torom). A comparison of the fractal analysis results for the fault network with the recent stress‐strain data gives evidence of their general confineness to the contemporary areas of intense compression. The correspondence between the field of the parameter b‐value for the upper crustal earthquakes and the fractal dimension value for the fault network (Df) suggests a general consistency between the self‐similar earthquake magnitude (energy) distribution and the fractal distribution of the fault sizes. The analysis results demonstrate that the selfsimilarity parameters provide an important quantitative characteristic in seismotectonics and can be used for the neotectonic and geodynamic analyses.

561-567 896
Abstract

In the northern Sakhalin Island, the tectonic activity of the fault zones is a potential threat to the industrial infrastructure of the petroleum fields. Recently, the background seismicity has increased at the Hokkaido‐Sakhalin fault that consists of several segments, including the Garomai active fault. In the studies of the regional deformation processes, it is important not only to analyze the seismic activity, but also to quantitatively assess the dynamics of deformation accumulation in the fault zones. In order to study the contemporary geodynamics of the Garomai fault, a local GPS/GLONASS network has been established in the area wherein trunk oil and gas pipelines are installed across the fault zone. Based on the annual periodic measurements taken in 2006–2016, we study the features of surface deformation and calculate the rates of displacements caused by the tectonic activity in the fault zone. During the survey period, no significant displacement of the fault wings was revealed. In the immediate vicinity of the fault zone, multidirectional horizontal displacements occur at a rate up to 1.6 mm/yr, and uplifting of the ground surface takes place at a rate of 3.4 mm/yr. This pattern of displacements is a reflection of local deformation processes in the fault zone. At the western wing of the fault, a maximum deformation rate amounts to 1110–6 per year. The fault is a boundary mark of a transition from lower deformation rates at the eastern wing to higher ones at the west wing. In contrast to the general regional compression setting that is typical of the northern Sakhalin Island, extension is currently dominant in the Garomai fault zone. The estimated rates of relative deformation in the vicinity of the Garomai fault give grounds to classify it as ‘hazardous’.



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ISSN 2078-502X (Online)