SEMINÁRIOS GERAIS II

Accessory minerals importance in granite

petrology: a review and case studies.

Astrid Siachoque Velandia

Phd. Student Research

Docente Responsável: Silvio RF Vlach

NOVEMBRO, 2016
 INTRODUCTION

Petrogenetic studies of igneous rocks involve determining:

 The history of the sources of melts,

 The conditions of melting,
 The mineralogical and chemical composition of the source during melting,
 The extent of the melting processes involved, and
 How the melt is modified by assimilation, metasomatism, differentiation, and fluids
(Hanson, 1980).

In order to evaluate the importance of each, a detailed knowledge of the

geochemistry of systems involving fluids, minerals, and melts would be required.
Trace elements studies have become a vital part of modern petrology and are more
capable of discriminating between petrological processes than are the major
elements.
TRACE ELEMENTS Goldschmidt´s Classification

What is a Trace Element?

By definition, a trace element

constitute only a small fraction of
a system of interest, they provide
geochemical and geological
information out of proportion to
their abundance.

Groupings

1. Atmophile
2. Lithophile
3. Siderophile
4. Chalcophile
 Behavior of the trace elements

1) Compatible: Elements are concentrated in the solid

2) Incompatible: Elements are concentrated in the melt

High field strength (HFS) Large ion lithophile (LILE)

Ionic potential > 2.0 Ionic potential < 2.0
Trace Elements Distribution
Exchange equilibrium of a component a between
Raoult´s Law
two phases (solid and liquid)
ai = Xi

Henry´s Law
𝑗 𝑗 𝑗
𝑎𝑖 = 𝑘𝑖 𝑋𝑖

a = activity of the trace element

X = host mineral
k = Henry´s law constant for trace element i in mineral j

Trace element concentrations are in the Henry’s Law region of concentration, so their activity
varies in direct relation to their concentration in the system.
Partition coefficients
Includes the Henry’s Law constants for trace element i in the mineral and
in the melt and is a function of temperature, pressure and composition of
Nernst distribution coefficient the melt, but is controlled neither by the concentration of the trace element
of interest nor by the concentration of other trace elements

𝐶 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑙
𝑖
𝐾𝑑 =
𝐶𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑡
Physical controls on the value of partition
coefficients in mineral/melt system

 Composition
Kd » 1 (compatible elements)  Temperature
 Pressure
Kd « 1 (incompatible elements)  Oxigen activity
 Crystal chemistry
Geological controls on the distribution of trace elements
1) Partial Melting
a) Batch melting b) Fractional melting

Implies complete Only a small amount of liquid

equilibration between is produced and instantly
solid and melt. isolated from the source.

𝐶𝑙 1
𝐶𝑙 = 1 − (1 − 𝐹)1/𝐷𝑜
= 1 𝐷0 + 𝐹 1 − 𝐷0 𝐶0 𝐹
𝐶0

CL = concentration of the trace element in the melt F = weight fraction of melt produced
C0 = concentration of the trace element in the solid D0 = bulk distribution coefficient of the original solid
Geological controls on the distribution of trace elements
2) Crystal Fractionation

a) Equilibirum Crystallization b) Fractional crystallization

Describes complete Describes the extreme
equilibrium between all case where crystals are
solid phases and the melt effectively removed from
during crystallization. the melt the instant they
have formed.

𝐶𝑙 𝐶𝑙 𝐷−1
= 1 𝐷𝑥 + 1 − 𝑋 = 1−𝑋
𝐶0 𝐶0

CL = concentration of the trace element in the melt X = fraction of material crystallized

C0 = concentration of the trace element in the solid Dx = bulk distribution coefficient during crystallization
 Rare Earth Elements (REE)
Are the most useful of all trace elements and REE studies have important applications in igneous petrology

Light rare earths (LREE) Heavy rare earths (HREE)

 Scandium (Sc)  Yttrium (Y)
 Lanthanum (La)  Terbium (Tb)
 Cerium (Ce)  Dysprosium (Dy)
 Praseodymium (Pr)  Holmium (Ho)
 Neodymium (Nd)  Erbium (Er)
 Samarium (Sm)  Thuluim (Tm)
 Europium (Eu)  Ytterbium (Yb)
 Gadolinum (Gd)  Lutetium (Lu)
Presenting REE data
a) Primitive mantle-normalized patterns b) Chondrite normalized REE patterns

Normalized trace element diagrams for A-types granites from Jabel Sayed complex, NE – Saudi Arabia (Moghazi et al. 2015).
Normalizing values from Sun and McDonough (1989).
 ACCESSORY PHASE BEHAVIOR

Accessory Mineral? Any mineral in an igneous rock not essential to the naming of the rock (<0.1%)

“Fundamental accessory-phase parameters”

(Harrison and Watson, 1983; Watson, 1980a, 1979a; Watson and Harrison, 1984)

 The solubility of the accessory mineral in crustal melts

 The equilibrium mineral/liquid partition coefficients for the trace element and
isotopes of interest

 The dillusivities that govern the rates at which equilibrium will be approached.
 APPLICATION OF ACCESSORY MINERALS TO THE GRANITE PETROLOGY

1) Zircon Saturation Thermometry

Watson and Harrison (1983)

ln 𝐷 𝑍𝑟,𝑧𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑜𝑛 𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑡
= −3.8 − 0.85 𝑀 − 1 + 12900 𝑇

Rearranging the equation to yield T yields a geothermometer

for melt

12900
𝑇𝑍𝑟 = 12
2.95 + 0.85𝑀 + 𝑙𝑛 496000 𝑍𝑟𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑡

𝐷 𝑍𝑟,𝑧𝑖𝑟𝑐𝑜𝑛/𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑡 = is the ratio of Zr concentration (ppm) in zircon (476,000 ppm) to that in the satured melt
M = concentration of the trace element in the solid
T, is in kelvins
 APPLICATION OF ACCESSORY MINERALS TO THE GRANITE PETROLOGY

𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑡 𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑡
2) Apatite Saturation 𝐼𝑛𝐷𝑃 = 8400 + 𝑆𝑖𝑂2 − 0,5 ∙ 2,64𝑥104 𝑇 − 3,1 + 12,4 ∙ 𝑆𝑖𝑂2 − 0,5

(Harrison and Watson, 1984)

𝐷 𝑎𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑒/𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑡 = is the ratio of P concentration (ppm)

in apatite in the satured melt

SiO2 = is the weight fraction of silicat in the melt

CASE STUDY
CASE STUDY: Allanite and Chevkinite in A-type granites of the Graciosa Province

BSE images showing the

textures and
compositional variations
in allanite (a to d) and
chevkinite (e and f)
crystals
CASE STUDY: Allanite and Chevkinite in A-type granites of the Graciosa Province

a) Allanite compositions plotted on the REE+Y+Sr+Th versus AlT diagram of Petrík et al. (1995).
b) Chevkinite compositions plotted on the FeOT versus CaO diagram.
Symbols: open circles, primary chevkinite; open diamonds, post-magmatic altered chevkinite.
CASE STUDY: Allanite and Chevkinite in A-type granites of the Graciosa Province
Chondrite-normalized REE patterns (Boynton, 1984)
Allanite

Chevkinite
CASE STUDY: Allanite and Chevkinite in A-type granites of the Graciosa Province

CONCLUSIONS
LaN/NdN vs CeN plot
Allanite compositions lead to determinated that these rocks are
related to extensional or anorogenic tectonic regimes elsewhere is
Allanite characteristically richer in the ferriallanite molecule, in REE, and in TiO2,
and poorer in Al2O3.
Chevkinite–(Ce) compositions observed in the Graciosa Province
are similar to, but on average richer in Ti than those seen in chevkinite–
(Ce) from evolved undersaturated and saturated rocks of alkaline
affinity worldwide.
All integrated data reveal that allanite and chevkinite are the main
Chevkinite LREE reservoirs in rocks of the aluminous and alkaline associations of
the Graciosa Province. In addition the composition of the magmas is an
important control on the stability fields of these minerals, a fact that is
supported by the presence of primary allanite in rocks formed by
processes of mixing and mingling of magmas.
 SUMMARY

Despite their low abundances in crustal rocks accessory minerals are of considerable
geochemical importance because they appear to be key tracers for many geological
processes.

For instance, numerous chemical elements of geological and geochronological

interest, such as the rare earth elements (REEs) U, Th, Pb, Ti, Nb, V, and Ta, are
contained in these minerals.

Trace element geochemistry has been of enormous use in understanding the

evolution of the Earth. A number of studies have shown that trace elements can be
used to great advantage for determining the origin of granitic rocks and are useful
petrogenetic indicators to unravel complex geologic histories preserved in igneous
rocks.
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