Various petrographic features and geochemical characteristics indicative of disequilibrium are preserved in plagioclase phenocrysts from basaltic to andesitic lavas in East Junggar, northwest China. These characterist...Various petrographic features and geochemical characteristics indicative of disequilibrium are preserved in plagioclase phenocrysts from basaltic to andesitic lavas in East Junggar, northwest China. These characteristics indicate that they crystallized in a magma chamber, which was replenished by less differentiated and high-temperature magmas. The petrographic and geochemical features of the plagioclase phenocrysts are interpreted to record responses to changes in temperature, composition and mechanical effect during magma replenishment. Distinct rare earth element(REE) patterns between cores and rims of the same plagioclase crystal suggest derivation from two end-member magmas. From core to rim, plagioclase phenocrysts commonly display sharp fluctuations of anorthite(An) content up to 20, which either correspond to reverse zoning associated with ovoidal cores and resorption surface(PI), or normal zoning with euhedral form and no resorption surface(P2). Plagioclase crystals with diverse textures and remarkably different An content coexist on the scale of a thin-section. Cores of these plagioclases in each sample display a bimodal distribution of An content. From core to rim in PI, concentrations o f FeOT and Sr increase remarkably as An content increases. During magma replenishment, pre-existing plagioclase phenocrysts in the andesitic magma, which were immersed into hotter and less differentiated magmas, were heated and resorbed to form ovoidal cores, and then were overgrown by a thin rim with much higher contents of An, FeO^T and Sr. However, pre-existing plagioclase phenocrysts in the basaltic magma were injected into cooler and more evolved magmas, and were remained as euhedral cores, which were later enclosed by oscillatory zoned rims with much lower contents of An, Sr and Ba.展开更多
U-Pb ages of detrital zircons were newly dated for 4 Archean sandstones from the Pilbara craton in Australia, Wyoming craton in North America, and Kaapvaal craton in Africa. By using the present results with previousl...U-Pb ages of detrital zircons were newly dated for 4 Archean sandstones from the Pilbara craton in Australia, Wyoming craton in North America, and Kaapvaal craton in Africa. By using the present results with previously published data, we compiled the age spectra of detrital zircons for 2.9, 2.6, 2.3,1.0, and0.6 Ga sandstones and modern river sands in order to document the secular change in age structure of continental crusts through time. The results demonstrated the following episodes in the history of continental crust：（1） low growth rate of the continents due to the short cycle in production/destruction of granitic crust during the Neoarchean to Paleoproterozoic（2.9-23 Ga）,（2） net increase in volume of the continents during Paleo-to Mesoproterozoic（2.3-1.0 Ga）, and（3） net decrease in volume of the continents during the Neoproterozoic and Phanerozoic（after 1.0 Ga）. In the Archean and Paleoproterozoic, the embryonic continents were smaller than the modern continents, probably owing to the relatively rapid production and destruction of continental crust. This is indeed reflected in the heterogeneous crustal age structure of modern continents that usually have relatively small amount of Archean crusts with respect to the post-Archean ones. During the Mesoproterozoic, plural continents amalgamated into larger ones comparable to modern continental blocks in size. Relatively older crusts were preserved in continental interiors, whereas younger crusts were accreted along continental peripheries.In addition to continental arc magmatism, the direct accretion of intra-oceanic island arc around continental peripheries also became important for net continental growth. Since 1.0 Ga, total volume of continents has decreased, and this appears consistent with on-going phenomena along modern active arc-trench system with dominant tectonic erosion and/or arc subduction. Subduction of a huge amount of granitic crusts into the mantle through time is suggested, and this requires re-consideration of the mantle composition and heterogeneity.展开更多
Despite the recent development in radiometric dating of numerous zircons by LA-ICPMS, mineral separation still remains a major obstacle, particularly in the search for the oldest material on Earth. To improve the effi...Despite the recent development in radiometric dating of numerous zircons by LA-ICPMS, mineral separation still remains a major obstacle, particularly in the search for the oldest material on Earth. To improve the efficiency in zircon separation by an order of magnitude, we have designed/developed a new machine-an automatic zircon separator（AZS）. This is designed particularly for automatic pick-up of100 μm-sized zircon grains out of a heavy mineral fraction after conventional separation procedures. The AZS operates in three modes：（1） image processing to choose targeted individual zircon grains out of all heavy minerals spread on a tray,（2） automatic capturing of the individual zircon grains with microtweezers, and（3） placing them one-by-one in a coordinated alignment on a receiving tray. The automatic capturing was designed/created for continuous mineral selecting without human presence for many hours. This software also enables the registration of each separated zircon grain for dating, by recording digital photo-image, optical（color） indices, and coordinates on a receiving tray. We developed two new approaches for the dating; i.e.（1） direct dating of zircons selected by LA-ICPMS without conventional resin-mounting/polishing,（2） high speed U-Pb dating, combined with conventional sample preparation procedures using the new equipment with multiple-ion counting detectors（LA-MIC-ICPMS）.With the first approach, Pb-Pb ages obtained from the surface of a mineral were crosschecked with the interior of the same grain after resin-mounting/polishing. With the second approach, the amount of time required for dating one zircon grain is ca. 20 s, and a sample throughput of 〉150 grains per hour can be achieved with sufficient precision（ca. 0.5%）.We tested the practical efficiency of the AZS, by analyzing an Archean Jack Hills conglomerate in Western Australia with the known oldest（〉4.3 Ga） zircon on Earth. Preliminary results are positive; we were able to obtain more than 194 zircons that are over 4.0 Ga out of ca. 3800 checked grains, and 9 grains were over 4300 Ma with the oldest at 4371 ± 7 Ma. This separation system by AZS, combined with the new approaches, guarantees much higher yield in the hunt for old zircons.展开更多
The Paleoproterozoic Francevillian Group in the eastern Gabonese Republic has been recently attracting increasing attention because it includes distinctive macroscopic structures interpreted as eukaryotic fossils.Ther...The Paleoproterozoic Francevillian Group in the eastern Gabonese Republic has been recently attracting increasing attention because it includes distinctive macroscopic structures interpreted as eukaryotic fossils.Therefore,its depositional setting and associated redox conditions need to be clearly understood.To clarify these,petrological studies and rare earth element(REE)abundances of carbonate rocks of the Francevillian Group in the Lastoursville basin were determined with ICP-MS coupled with a laser ablation sampling technique.Detailed microscopic observations indicate that dolostones in this basin underwent the complicated diagenetic history,including sparitization,decomposition of organic matter,reduction of ferromanganese oxides,silicification,and later calcification.The dolostones of lower Francevillian B(FB)Formation show heterogeneous textures formed by alterations during diagenesis.By the alterations,changes of REE abundances and degrees of positive Y anomalies appear to have occurred.This indicates that REE signatures in carbonate rocks can vary during diagenesis.Characteristically high Mn contents in the dolostones of upper FB Formation were derived from the reduction of ferromanganese oxides in sediments.The signatures of REE abundance in dolostones can be explained by the mixing of seawater and ferromanganese oxide components.In that sense,the dolostones inherited the trace element characteristics of precursor ferromanganese oxides even after the diagenesis.Y/Ho values of the most primary parts of each sample exceed 33,the newly determined threshold value for marine carbonate rocks based on our compilation.The magnitude of the La anomaly values also falls within the range of that of Holocene reefal microbialites.These indicate that a precursor of the dolostone of the Francevillian Group was deposited in a marine environment.In addition,presence of Ce anomalies in the upper FB Formation suggests that the Paleoproterozoic ocean was oxidized to such an extent as for Ce to be preferentially absorbed by ferromanganese oxides。展开更多
基金financial support by the Natural Science Foundation of China (41573030, 41503024)the Geological Survey Program from China Geological Survey (No. DD20190518)
文摘Various petrographic features and geochemical characteristics indicative of disequilibrium are preserved in plagioclase phenocrysts from basaltic to andesitic lavas in East Junggar, northwest China. These characteristics indicate that they crystallized in a magma chamber, which was replenished by less differentiated and high-temperature magmas. The petrographic and geochemical features of the plagioclase phenocrysts are interpreted to record responses to changes in temperature, composition and mechanical effect during magma replenishment. Distinct rare earth element(REE) patterns between cores and rims of the same plagioclase crystal suggest derivation from two end-member magmas. From core to rim, plagioclase phenocrysts commonly display sharp fluctuations of anorthite(An) content up to 20, which either correspond to reverse zoning associated with ovoidal cores and resorption surface(PI), or normal zoning with euhedral form and no resorption surface(P2). Plagioclase crystals with diverse textures and remarkably different An content coexist on the scale of a thin-section. Cores of these plagioclases in each sample display a bimodal distribution of An content. From core to rim in PI, concentrations o f FeOT and Sr increase remarkably as An content increases. During magma replenishment, pre-existing plagioclase phenocrysts in the andesitic magma, which were immersed into hotter and less differentiated magmas, were heated and resorbed to form ovoidal cores, and then were overgrown by a thin rim with much higher contents of An, FeO^T and Sr. However, pre-existing plagioclase phenocrysts in the basaltic magma were injected into cooler and more evolved magmas, and were remained as euhedral cores, which were later enclosed by oscillatory zoned rims with much lower contents of An, Sr and Ba.
基金supported by Japan Society of Promotion of Science (JSPS KAKENHI Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research Grant Nos. 23224012, 26106002, and 26106005) from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Science, Sports, Technology, and Culture
文摘U-Pb ages of detrital zircons were newly dated for 4 Archean sandstones from the Pilbara craton in Australia, Wyoming craton in North America, and Kaapvaal craton in Africa. By using the present results with previously published data, we compiled the age spectra of detrital zircons for 2.9, 2.6, 2.3,1.0, and0.6 Ga sandstones and modern river sands in order to document the secular change in age structure of continental crusts through time. The results demonstrated the following episodes in the history of continental crust：（1） low growth rate of the continents due to the short cycle in production/destruction of granitic crust during the Neoarchean to Paleoproterozoic（2.9-23 Ga）,（2） net increase in volume of the continents during Paleo-to Mesoproterozoic（2.3-1.0 Ga）, and（3） net decrease in volume of the continents during the Neoproterozoic and Phanerozoic（after 1.0 Ga）. In the Archean and Paleoproterozoic, the embryonic continents were smaller than the modern continents, probably owing to the relatively rapid production and destruction of continental crust. This is indeed reflected in the heterogeneous crustal age structure of modern continents that usually have relatively small amount of Archean crusts with respect to the post-Archean ones. During the Mesoproterozoic, plural continents amalgamated into larger ones comparable to modern continental blocks in size. Relatively older crusts were preserved in continental interiors, whereas younger crusts were accreted along continental peripheries.In addition to continental arc magmatism, the direct accretion of intra-oceanic island arc around continental peripheries also became important for net continental growth. Since 1.0 Ga, total volume of continents has decreased, and this appears consistent with on-going phenomena along modern active arc-trench system with dominant tectonic erosion and/or arc subduction. Subduction of a huge amount of granitic crusts into the mantle through time is suggested, and this requires re-consideration of the mantle composition and heterogeneity.
基金supported by the Grant-in-Aid from Japan Society of the Promotion for Science (JSPS KAKAENHI New Academic Research No. 26106005)
文摘Despite the recent development in radiometric dating of numerous zircons by LA-ICPMS, mineral separation still remains a major obstacle, particularly in the search for the oldest material on Earth. To improve the efficiency in zircon separation by an order of magnitude, we have designed/developed a new machine-an automatic zircon separator（AZS）. This is designed particularly for automatic pick-up of100 μm-sized zircon grains out of a heavy mineral fraction after conventional separation procedures. The AZS operates in three modes：（1） image processing to choose targeted individual zircon grains out of all heavy minerals spread on a tray,（2） automatic capturing of the individual zircon grains with microtweezers, and（3） placing them one-by-one in a coordinated alignment on a receiving tray. The automatic capturing was designed/created for continuous mineral selecting without human presence for many hours. This software also enables the registration of each separated zircon grain for dating, by recording digital photo-image, optical（color） indices, and coordinates on a receiving tray. We developed two new approaches for the dating; i.e.（1） direct dating of zircons selected by LA-ICPMS without conventional resin-mounting/polishing,（2） high speed U-Pb dating, combined with conventional sample preparation procedures using the new equipment with multiple-ion counting detectors（LA-MIC-ICPMS）.With the first approach, Pb-Pb ages obtained from the surface of a mineral were crosschecked with the interior of the same grain after resin-mounting/polishing. With the second approach, the amount of time required for dating one zircon grain is ca. 20 s, and a sample throughput of 〉150 grains per hour can be achieved with sufficient precision（ca. 0.5%）.We tested the practical efficiency of the AZS, by analyzing an Archean Jack Hills conglomerate in Western Australia with the known oldest（〉4.3 Ga） zircon on Earth. Preliminary results are positive; we were able to obtain more than 194 zircons that are over 4.0 Ga out of ca. 3800 checked grains, and 9 grains were over 4300 Ma with the oldest at 4371 ± 7 Ma. This separation system by AZS, combined with the new approaches, guarantees much higher yield in the hunt for old zircons.
基金Shoko Science Co.Ltd.This work was partly supported by a grant from the Ministry of Education,Culture,Sports,Science and Technology,Japan(No.17H04858,19H01081,19K14828,20H01991,23K13205)the Fukada Grant-in-Aid(2021)of Fukada Geological Institute(No.135).
文摘The Paleoproterozoic Francevillian Group in the eastern Gabonese Republic has been recently attracting increasing attention because it includes distinctive macroscopic structures interpreted as eukaryotic fossils.Therefore,its depositional setting and associated redox conditions need to be clearly understood.To clarify these,petrological studies and rare earth element(REE)abundances of carbonate rocks of the Francevillian Group in the Lastoursville basin were determined with ICP-MS coupled with a laser ablation sampling technique.Detailed microscopic observations indicate that dolostones in this basin underwent the complicated diagenetic history,including sparitization,decomposition of organic matter,reduction of ferromanganese oxides,silicification,and later calcification.The dolostones of lower Francevillian B(FB)Formation show heterogeneous textures formed by alterations during diagenesis.By the alterations,changes of REE abundances and degrees of positive Y anomalies appear to have occurred.This indicates that REE signatures in carbonate rocks can vary during diagenesis.Characteristically high Mn contents in the dolostones of upper FB Formation were derived from the reduction of ferromanganese oxides in sediments.The signatures of REE abundance in dolostones can be explained by the mixing of seawater and ferromanganese oxide components.In that sense,the dolostones inherited the trace element characteristics of precursor ferromanganese oxides even after the diagenesis.Y/Ho values of the most primary parts of each sample exceed 33,the newly determined threshold value for marine carbonate rocks based on our compilation.The magnitude of the La anomaly values also falls within the range of that of Holocene reefal microbialites.These indicate that a precursor of the dolostone of the Francevillian Group was deposited in a marine environment.In addition,presence of Ce anomalies in the upper FB Formation suggests that the Paleoproterozoic ocean was oxidized to such an extent as for Ce to be preferentially absorbed by ferromanganese oxides。
