Over the last decades, numerous studies have emphasized the role of serpentinites in the subduction zone geodynamics. Their presence and role in subduction environments are recognized through ...geophysical, geochemical and field observations of modern and ancient subduction zones and large amounts of geochemical database of serpentinites have been created. Here, we present a review of the geochemistry of serpentinites, based on the compilation of ~900 geochemical data of abyssal, mantle wedge and exhumed serpentinites after subduction. The aim was to better understand the geochemical evolution of these rocks during their subduction as well as their impact in the global geochemical cycle.
When studying serpentinites, it is essential to determine their protoliths and their geological history before serpentinization. The geochemical data of serpentinites shows little mobility of compatible and rare earth elements (REE) at the scale of hand-specimen during their serpentinization. Thus, REE abundance can be used to identify the protolith for serpentinites, as well as magmatic processes such as melt/rock interactions before serpentinization. In the case of subducted serpentinites, the interpretation of trace element data is difficult due to the enrichments of light REE, independent of the nature of the protolith. We propose that enrichments are probably not related to serpentinization itself, but mostly due to (sedimentary-derived) fluid/rock interactions within the subduction channel after the serpentinization. It is also possible that the enrichment reflects the geochemical signature of the mantle protolith itself which could derive from the less refractory continental lithosphere exhumed at the ocean–continent transition.
Additionally, during the last ten years, numerous analyses have been carried out, notably using in situ approaches, to better constrain the behavior of fluid-mobile elements (FME; e.g. B, Li, Cl, As, Sb, U, Th, Sr) incorporated in serpentine phases. The abundance of these elements provides information related to the fluid/rock interactions during serpentinization and the behavior of FME, from their incorporation to their gradual release during subduction. Serpentinites are considered as a reservoir of the FME in subduction zones and their role, notably on arc magma composition, is underestimated presently in the global geochemical cycle.
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•Review of >900 geochemical analyses of serpentinites worldwide•Identification of geochemical criteria to distinguish serpentinite protoliths•Discussion of the possible origins of subducted serpentinites•Serpentinites are one of the major components of the Earth's budget for fluid-mobile elements.
Olivine-rich troctolites (>70% olivine) reveal that extensive melt impregnation of pre-existing olivine-rich lithologies participate to the building of slow spread oceanic crust. To constrain their ...origin and their impact on the structure and geochemistry of oceanic crust, we realized a multi-scale petro-structural, geochemical, and numerical modeling study of olivine-rich troctolites drilled at IODP Hole U1309D (Atlantis Massif, Mid-Atlantic Ridge 30°N). Discrete intervals of olivine-rich troctolites display sharp to diffuse contacts with neighboring troctolites or gabbros. Their texture is characterized by plastically deformed (high temperature imprint), corroded coarse-grained to undeformed fine-grained olivine embayed in poikilitic clinopyroxene and plagioclase. Olivine crystallographic preferred orientations show weak 001 clusters. Olivine has variable major and minor element compositions, but similar fractionated REE (DyN/YbN = 0.04–0.11). We distinguished three types of olivine-rich troctolites based on microstructure, texture and mineral composition. Olivine-rich troctolites 1 and 2 display sharp contacts with adjacent lithologies. Type 1 has modal olivine <75%, occurring mainly as single rounded grains with primitive compositions (Mg# = 85–86), and associated with high Mg# clinopyroxene. Type 2 has higher olivine modes (>75%), dominantly forming aggregates, showing more evolved compositions (Mg# = 83–84) and associated with slightly lower Mg# clinopyroxene. These variations of olivine modes and compositions are in contrast to common trends of magmatic crystallization that predicts decreasing modal olivine with melt differentiation towards evolved compositions. Type 3 has diffuse contacts with gabbroic veins and modal olivine overlapping those of types 1 and 2. Chemical traverses along principal crystallographic axes of olivine are flat, suggesting local equilibrium between olivine and neighboring phases. Mineral modes and compositions, together with textures and microstructures, suggest that olivine-rich troctolites formed after melt-rock interactions in a reactive porous flow process. Their compositions are best modeled by percolation of primitive MORBs into Hole U1309D impregnated and compositionally heterogeneous harzburgites, triggering orthopyroxene dissolution, followed by olivine assimilation and concomitant crystallization of clinopyroxene and plagioclase. Modeling shows that Ni variations in olivine at constant Mg# are mantle inherited. Compositions of olivine-rich troctolite 1 are fitted assuming higher olivine assimilation (Ma = 0.06–0.13) in contrast to olivine-rich troctolites 2 and 3 (Ma = 0.01–0.02). Olivine-rich troctolite 3 was ‘buffered’ by crystallizing reacted melts, progressively more evolved as temperature decreased during a late stage process. We interpret olivine-rich troctolites from the Atlantis Massif as marking local assimilation of harzburgitic mantle into the gabbroic sequence during a period of enhanced magmatism at depth. Our study shows that the distribution and variable compositions of olivine-rich troctolites result from the incipient stages of this process when local spatial variations in mantle rock permeability, probably related to pyroxene distribution, controlled in turn melt transport and mantle-melt interactions.
•Multi-scale, petro-structural and geochemical study, and numerical modeling of olivine-rich troctolites from Atlantis Massif.•Clinopyroxene-olivine geochemical profiles suggest local melt-rock interactions and re-equilibration processes.•Modeling shows that olivine in reactive olivine-rich troctolites is mantle inherited.•Formation of reactive olivine-rich troctolites is controlled by mantle permeability.•This study provide the principle microstructural and petro-geochemical characteristics of reactive olivine-rich troctolites.
The structure of the lithosphere and the associated magmatic systems found in different locations along slow‐spreading ridges can vary dramatically, from melt‐starved to magmatically robust segments. ...A growing number of studies suggest that the evolution of the magmatic crust being governed solely by fractional crystallization is too simplistic. Reactions between migrating melts and their surroundings play a key role during accretion, yet the full extent of their impact is still to be resolved. We present here the results of a petrological, microstructural, and in situ geochemical study of two drilled sequences from the Kane Megamullion and Atlantis Massif oceanic core complexes. We show that melt‐mush reactions generate locally strong textural and/or geochemical heterogeneity at the cm‐scale, but their impact can also be identified at the 100 m‐scale. We found evidence for assimilation at various degrees of primitive lithologies of potential mantle origin within the gabbroic sequence at both locations, in addition to typical melt‐mush reactions previously described in other slow‐spread magmatic systems. Observations and numerical modeling confirm the similarity of the reactions impacting both sequences. However, the regime of the reactions (ranges of assimilation to crystallization ratios) seems to vary between Kane Megamullion and Atlantis Massif, variations which likely result from differences in melt fractions present during melt‐mush reactions. We infer relying on our observations and previous studies that the regime of the reactions is most likely controlled by the melt flux during the formation of the two sections.
Key Points
Kane Megamullion and Atlantis Massif oceanic core complexes record widespread melt‐mush reactions at different scales
In addition to typical melt‐mush reactions, assimilation of primitive (mantle?) lithologies is observed within gabbro sequences
Discrepancies in the melt‐mush reaction signatures of the two sequences reveal variable melt dynamics during accretion
At Cima di Gagnone, garnet peridotite and chlorite harzburgite lenses within pelitic schists and gneisses correspond to eclogite-facies breakdown products of hydrated peridotites and are suitable for ...studying dehydration of serpentinized mantle. Thermobarometry and pseudosection modelling yield peak temperatures of 750-850°C and pressures <3 GPa. The minimum temperature recorded by the garnet peridotite corresponds to the maximum conditions experienced by the chlorite harzburgite, suggesting that these rocks recrystallized cofacially at ∼800°C. Alternatively, they might have decoupled during subduction, as achieved in tectonically active plate interface boundaries. The major and rare earth element (REE) variability of the peridotites was mostly acquired during pre-subduction mantle evolution as a result of partial melting and reactive melt flow. The ultramafic suite is also characterized by fluid-mobile element enrichments (B, Pb, As, Sb, Cs, Li, U, Be), which confirm derivation from variably serpentinized protoliths. Similarity in the U, Pb, B, Li and Sr contents of the Gagnone peridotites to present-day oceanic serpentinites suggests that these elements were partly taken up during initial serpentinization by seawater-derived fluids. Positive Be, As and Sb anomalies suggest involvement of fluids equilibrated with crustal (metasedimentary) reservoirs during subsequent subduction metamorphism and peridotite entrainment in (meta)sediments. Fluid-mobile element enrichment characterizes all peak eclogitic minerals, implying that multiple hydration events and element influx pre-dated the eclogite-facies dehydration. Peak anhydrous minerals retain B, Li, As and Sb concentrations exceeding primitive mantle values and may introduce geochemical anomalies into the Earth's mantle. The relatively low contents of large ion lithophile elements and light REE in the Gagnone peridotites with respect to much higher enrichments shown by metasomatized garnet peridotite pods hosted in migmatites (Ulten Zone, Eastern Alps) suggest that the crustal rocks at Gagnone did not experience partial melting. The Gagnone garnet peridotite, despite showing evidence for chlorite dehydration, retains significant amounts of fluid-mobile elements documenting that no partial melting occurred upon chlorite breakdown. We propose that the Gagnone ultramafic rocks represent a prime example of multi-stage peridotite hydration and subsequent dehydration in a plate interface setting.
Ultraslow spreading at mid-ocean ridges limits melting due to on-axis conductive cooling, leading to the prediction that peridotites from these ridges are relatively fertile. To test this, we ...examined abyssal peridotites from the Gakkel Ridge, the slowest spreading ridge in the global ocean ridge system. Major and trace element concentrations in pyroxene and olivine minerals are reported for 14 dredged abyssal peridotite samples from the Sparsely Magmatic (SMZ) and Eastern Volcanic (EVZ) Zones. We observe large compositional variations among peridotites from the same dredge and among dredges in close proximity to each other. Modeling of lherzolite trace element compositions indicates varying degrees of non-modal fractional mantle melting, whereas most harzburgite samples require open-system melting involving interaction with a percolating melt. All peridotite chemistry suggests significant melting that would generate a thick crust, which is inconsistent with geophysical observations at Gakkel Ridge. The refractory harzburgites and thin overlying oceanic crust are best explained by low present-day melting of a previously melted heterogeneous mantle. Observed peridotite compositional variations and evidence for melt infiltration demonstrates that fertile mantle components are present and co-existing with infertile mantle components. Melt generated in the Gakkel mantle becomes trapped on short length-scales, which produces selective enrichments in very incompatible rare earth elements. Melt migration and extraction may be significantly controlled by the thick lithosphere induced by cooling at such slow spreading rates. We propose the heterogeneous mantle that exists beneath Gakkel Ridge is the consequence of ancient melting, combined with subsequent melt percolation and entrapment.
We characterized the texture, composition, and seismic properties of the lithospheric mantle atop the Hawaiian plume by petrostructural analysis of 48 spinel peridotite xenoliths from four localities ...in three Hawaiian islands. Coarse‐porphyroclastic peridotites with variable degrees of recrystallization, recorded by growth of strain‐free neoblasts onto the deformed microstructure, predominate. Full evolution of this process produced equigranular microstructures. Some peridotites have coarse‐granular microstructures. Coarse‐granular and coarse‐porphyroclastic peridotites have strong orthorhombic or axial‐100 olivine crystal‐preferred orientations (CPOs). Recrystallization produced some dispersion and, locally, changed the olivine CPO towards axial‐010. Enrichment in pyroxenes relative to model melting trends and pyroxenes with interstitial shapes and CPO uncorrelated with the olivine CPO imply refertilization by reactive melt percolation. The unusual spatial distribution of the recrystallized fraction, Ti enrichment, and Rare Earth Element fractionation in recrystallized, equigranular, and coarse‐granular peridotites support that these microstructures are produced by static recrystallization triggered by melt percolation. However, there is no simple relation between microstructure and chemical or modal composition. This, together with marked variations in mineral chemistry among samples, implies multiple spatially heterogeneous melt‐rock reaction events. We interpret the coarse‐porphyroclastic microstructures and CPO as representative of the original oceanic lithosphere fabric. Annealing changed the microstructure to coarse‐granular, but did not modify significantly the olivine CPO. Recrystallization produced moderate dispersion of the CPO. “Normal” oceanic lithosphere seismic anisotropy patterns are therefore preserved. Yet Fe enrichment, refertilization, and limited heating of the base of the lithosphere may reduce seismic velocities by up to 2%, partially explaining negative velocity anomalies imaged at lithospheric depths beneath Hawaii.
Key Points
Reactive melt percolation produced spatially heterogeneous changes in the composition and texture of the mantle lithosphere atop the plume
Refertilization, iron enrichment, and moderate heating of the base of the lithosphere may have locally lowered seismic velocities
Strong axial‐100 to orthorhombic olivine CPO and “normal” oceanic lithosphere seismic anisotropy are preserved
Recent studies investigate the replacive formation of hybrid troctolites from mantle peridotites after multiple stages of melt-rock reaction. However, these studies are not conducted in a ...field-controlled geological setting displaying the clear evolution from the protolith to the end-product of the reactions. The Mt. Maggiore peridotitic body exposes a clear evolution from spinel lherzolite to plagioclase-bearing lithotypes (plagioclase peridotites, olivine-rich troctolites and troctolites) during two continuous episodes of melt-rock interaction. In the spinel facies, the reactive percolation of a LREE-depleted melt leads to the dissolution of mantle pyroxenes and the growth of olivine crystals, forming replacive spinel dunites. The progressive evolution from spinel lherzolite to harzburgite to replacive dunite is accompanied by a change of olivine Crystallographic Preferred Orientation (CPO), from axial-100 in the lherzolite to axial-010 olivine CPO in the dunites, indicative of deformation in presence of melt. The initial percolating melt composition is consistent with single melt increments after 6% partial melting of a depleted mantle source. Reactive melt percolation leads to a progressive enrichment in the melt M-HREE absolute concentrations, while preserving its LREE depletion, consistent with the enriched analyzed HREE composition of olivine in the spinel dunite.
In the shallower plagioclase facies, the melts modified by reactive melt percolation impregnate the spinel-facies lithotypes, leading to the dissolution of olivine and crystallization of plagioclase and orthopyroxene in the peridotites. This impregnation stage is also observed in the spinel dunites, forming hybrid olivine-rich troctolites and troctolites. The dissolution-precipitation reactions forming hybrid troctolites cause a progressive textural evolution of the olivine matrix, with the disruption of deformed coarse grains into undeformed small rounded grains. This textural evolution is not accompanied by clear changes in the olivine CPO, indicating low instantaneous melt/rock ratios during the impregnation process. Olivine, plagioclase and clinopyroxene REE compositions analyzed in troctolite fit a process of impregnation with a progressive closure of the porosity (at decreasing melt mass), leading to the crystallization of trapped melt and REE enrichments during the last crystallization increments.
•Hybrid troctolites form during multi-stage melt-rock interaction history.•Structural/chemical features can be inherited from the mantle or dunitic protolith.•Inheritance depends on the melt/rock ratio involved in each melt-rock interaction.•The structure and composition of the olivine matrix represent the whole evolution during melt-rock interaction history.•Olivine trace elements are a powerful tool to investigate melt-rock interactions.
Abstract
Many recent studies have investigated the replacive formation of troctolites from mantle protoliths and the compositional evolution of the percolating melt during melt–rock interaction ...processes. However, strong structural and geochemical constraints for a replacive origin have not yet been established. The Erro–Tobbio impregnated mantle peridotites are primarily associated with a hectometre-size troctolitic body and crosscutting gabbroic dykes, providing a good field control on melt–rock interaction processes and subsequent magmatic intrusions. The troctolitic body exhibits high inner complexity, with a host troctolite (Troctolite A) crosscut by a second generation of troctolitic metre-size pseudo-tabular bodies (Troctolite B). The host Troctolite A is characterized by two different textural types of olivine, corroded deformed millimetre- to centimetre-size olivine and fine-grained rounded undeformed olivine, both embedded in interstitial to poikilitic plagioclase and clinopyroxene. Troctolite A shows melt–rock reaction microstructures indicative of replacive formation after percolation and impregnation of mantle dunites by a reactive melt. The evolution of the texture and crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) of olivine are correlated and depend on the melt/rock ratio involved in the impregnation process. A low melt/rock ratio allows the preservation of the protolith structure, whereas a high melt/rock ratio leads to the disaggregation of the pre-existing matrix. The mineral compositions in Troctolite A define reactive trends, indicative of the buffering of the melt composition by assimilation of olivine during impregnation. The magmatic Troctolite B bodies are intruded within the pre-existing Troctolite A and are characterized by extreme textural variations of olivine, from decimetre-size dendritic to fine-grained euhedral crystals embedded in poikilitic plagioclase. This textural variability is the result of olivine assimilation during melt–rock reaction and the correlated increase in the degree of undercooling of the percolating melt. In the late gabbroic intrusions, mineral compositions are consistent with the fractional crystallization of melts modified after the reactive crystallization of Troctolites A and B. The Erro–Tobbio troctolitic body has a multi-stage origin, marked by the transition from reactive to fractional crystallization and diffuse to focused melt percolation and intrusion, related to progressive exhumation. During the formation of the troctolitic body, the melt composition was modified and controlled by assimilation and concomitant crystallization reactions occurring at low melt supply. Similar processes have been described in ultraslow-spreading oceanic settings characterized by scarce magmatic activity.
A reactive percolation experiment was conducted by injecting seawater into a permeable olivine aggregate at 190°C and 19MPa to explore the relationships between hydration reactions and hydrodynamic ...properties during the onset of serpentinization in the ultramafic lithosphere exposed at mid-ocean ridges. The experiment was stopped after 23 days when the sample became impermeable. The initial flow rate was 0.2mL/h and then was decreased down to 0.06mL/h after 8 days. Permeability decreased continuously throughout the experiment. The analyses of fluid chemistry time series and of the mineralogy and structure of the reacted sample showed olivine dissolution and precipitation of proto-serpentine, brucite and Fe-oxides. These reactions are controlled by coupled hydrodynamic and chemical processes interacting at different time and spatial scales. Their first characteristic is the production of silica rich outlet fluids in disequilibrium with the observed reacted mineral assemblages. These compositions are interpreted as resulting from a suite of coupled dissolution–precipitation reactions, controlled at the pore scale by surface kinetic processes, that rapidly reaches steady-state (constant fluid composition independent of fluid flux). Hence, the effective rate of serpentinization was controlled, to the first order, by the transport of reactants during the experiment. Mass balance calculations show that the rate of olivine conversion was fast (0.2–0.5wt%/day), yet only ∼8wt% of the olivine sample reacted, because the permeability drop limited fluid circulation. Porosity varied little during the experiment compared to permeability changes: the decrease of permeability was explained by the structure of the newly formed serpentine favouring the clogging of fluid paths. The rate at which permeability decreased was the fastest at low flux conditions. This suggests that permeability changes were not controlled simply by the kinetics of the serpentinization reactions, but mainly reflected the development of low Peclet pore scale zones forming micro-environments that control the serpentinization reaction-paths. These results outline the need to take into account the coupling of hydrodynamic and chemical processes when modelling the effects of reactive transport within the hydrating oceanic lithosphere.
•Open-system olivine hydration by seawater produces fluids markedly enriched in silica.•Effective rate of serpentinization in percolated media is controlled by fluid renewal.•Incipient serpentinization induces permeability variations at constant porosity.•Permeability variations are related to changes in local Peclet (pore scale).
•Unique ophiolitic samples give insight into the earliest stages of serpentinization.•Multi-scales microstructures indicate seismic faulting predates serpentinization.•Faults are major pathways for ...fluids and transport of elements.•As the reaction progresses, less favorable fluid pathways are abandoned.
Serpentinization of mantle peridotites has first order effects on the rheology and tectonic behavior of the oceanic lithosphere, on the global water cycle, and on the biosphere at mid-oceanic ridges. Investigating serpentinization of abyssal peridotites is limited by the scarce occurrences of peridotites at or close to the ocean floor at slow and ultra-slow ridge environments where peridotite is exposed by long-lived detachments. The processes controlling hydration of the upper mantle below a thick magmatic crust at fast spreading ridges are poorly constrained. Here we present results based on samples from cores drilled in peridotites from the Samail ophiolite obtained during the Oman Drilling Project. We describe an early generation of highly localized brittle faults ubiquitous through all the peridotite cores and investigate their relation to the main serpentinization event represented by mesh-textured serpentinites. We combine microstructural observations with mineral and bulk chemical analyses as well as oxygen isotope microanalyses obtained by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). Asymmetric wall rock damage, weakening of crystal preferred orientation (CPO) in small fault clasts, and intense fragmentation within the fault zones even in association with very small displacements suggest that the early stage faults represent seismic events and predate mesh formation. Hydration and mesh texture formation follows in the wake of this faulting. Serpentinization is associated with moderate enrichment of fluid mobile elements including B, Li, Rb and U, indicative of fluid rock interaction characterized by relatively low fluid/rock ratios. This is consistent with a scenario where serpentinization took place below a thick magmatic crust following an earthquake-induced permeability increase. The oxygen isotope compositions of mesh serpentine are consistent with off-axis serpentinization at temperatures in the range 200-250°C
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