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Egu 027
Egu 027
1093/petrology/egu027
Grenada is the southernmost island in the Lesser Antilles arc, a chain respective assemblages and mineral chemistry demonstrating the
of subduction-related volcanoes distinguished by its diversity of effect of small-scale changes in melt composition and magma storage
magma composition and unusually abundant plutonic xenoliths, conditions between these two islands. We suggest that the unusual
many with cumulate textures. We have determined the mineral com- petrological and geochemical characteristics of Grenada magmas are
positions of a newly collected, extensive suite of plutonic xenoliths a result of proximity to the South American continent and associated
from Grenada and examined their relationship with the lavas in an localized thickening of the oceanic lithosphere. This increases the
attempt to explore the role of intra-crustal processes on magmatic evo- depth of magma generation and is reflected in the elevated LREE/
lution. The plutonic assemblages are dominated by mafic phases HREE of the Grenada lavas, indicating that last equilibration
with abundant hornblende and clinopyroxene, and include the only with a garnet lherzolite source occurred at a depth of 60 km.
known plagioclase-free examples in the Lesser Antilles. Bulk compos-
itions are unlike those of natural silicate melts and are consistent
with the majority of the xenoliths having a cumulate origin. KEY WORDS: Lesser Antilles; Grenada; plutonic; xenoliths; picrites
Experimental and thermobarometric evidence shows that the entire
cumulate suite can be generated in a narrow pressure range
(0·2^0·5 GPa) with different assemblages resulting from small
variations in melt chemistry and temperature.Temperature estimates I N T RO D U C T I O N
are consistent with the observed crystallization sequence of olivine The composition of primitive arc magmas is a result of the
! clinopyroxene ! hornblende ! plagioclase. A spinel phase is interplay between hydrous, slab-derived material and
present throughout ranging from Cr- to Fe3þ -rich. The crystalliza- mantle wedge peridotite; however, most arc magmas
tion sequence requires elevated magmatic H2O contents (7 wt % erupted at the surface are differentiated, and are compos-
H2O) sufficient both to suppress plagioclase crystallization and to itionally far removed from their primitive, mantle-derived
render this phase extremely rich in anorthite upon appearance; this parental melts. The modification of the primitive magmas
is a characteristic of many island arc settings. Studied lavas from occurs during differentiation within the crust and upper-
the M- and C-series span picrites and ankaramites to hornblende- most mantle, with experimental phase relations highlight-
and orthopyroxene-bearing andesites. MELTS modelling confirms ing the influence of intensive parameters such as pressure
experimental hypotheses that the two lava series can be derived from (P), temperature (T) and oxygen fugacity (fO2) on mag-
a common picritic magma, with M-series differentiation occurring matic evolutionary pathways. The island of Grenada
in the uppermost mantle (1·4^1·8 GPa) and C-series in the shal- (Fig. 1) is unusual in having erupted some of the most
low crust (0·2 GPa). Plutonic xenoliths from Grenada are notably primitive picrites known from arcs globally, and thus may
different from those of the neighbouring island of St Vincent, the provide insights into the ways arc magmas evolve,
St Lucia 14˚
South East
Mountain St Vincent
Barbados
Mt Maitland
Grenadines
Southern C Grenada
ari bbean fau
lt 12˚
Trinidad
and Tobago 50km
5km Venezuela
10˚
Fig. 1. (a) Map of Grenada showing volcanic peaks (triangles) and the distribution of major volcanic deposits (shaded areas) (after Arculus,
1976; Bouvier et al., 2010a). Green stars denote the sampling locations for this study. (b) Position of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles arc. Dashed
line depicts the approximate position of the subduction zone (after Wadge & Shepherd, 1984) where the American Plate is being subducted west-
wards beneath the Caribbean Plate.
particularly during transit from their mantle wedge cumulates must have bulk compositions unlike those of
sources and during residence in the crust. natural silicate melts (Arculus & Wills, 1980) because they
The most common, and hence most studied, products of are subtractive assemblages fractionated from a residual
arc magmatism are extrusive. This type of material repre- liquid. This is in contrast to rocks that represent a silicate
sents the end-product of magmatic processes and so is melt that has ‘frozen’ and solidified without movement of
dominated by the hallmarks of immediately pre- and syn- crystalline phases with respect to interstitial melt (and
eruptive processes. Moreover, the majority of lavas have eventual matrix) beyond the sampling or analytical range
undergone varying degrees of differentiation since the gen- employed. Such rocks have a bulk chemical composition
eration of their parental magmas in equilibrium with consistent with once having been a magma. This dichot-
mantle wedge peridotite; this means we are restricted in omy is considerably easier to distinguish for plutonic rock
the resolution and extent of information available from suites dominated by mafic assemblages, as is the case at
lavas alone. In contrast, high-pressure phase assemblages Grenada, where the bulk composition of the first crystalliz-
within cumulate-textured plutonic blocks have an intrin- ing phases is unlike that of any plausible cotectic liquids.
sically greater preservation potential than phenocrysts in This is not true of more evolved systems, such as those of
lavas and are hence more likely to yield clues to the true the northerly islands in the Lesser Antilles, where plutonic
fractionation history of the magmas (Arculus & Wills, rocks contain quartz and abundant feldspar (Arculus &
1980; Macdonald et al., 2000). Wills, 1980). In these cases, unequivocal identification of
The origin, description and nomenclature of plutonic cumulates may only be possible using trace element data.
blocks is not straightforward. Irvine (1982) argued that The formation of cumulates is also contentious. Wager
the original cumulate classification of Wager (1960) is ap- (1960) concluded that such rocks are the products of dens-
propriate for cumulate-textured rocks, irrespective of ity-controlled crystal settling. This was challenged in sev-
their genesis, stating simply that cumulates are rocks eral studies (e.g. McBirney & Noyes, 1979) in which a
formed from minerals ‘concentrated through fractional hypothesis involving in situ crystallization at intrusion mar-
crystallisation’. The natural corollary of this is that gins was invoked. One of the main arguments against
1354
STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
simple crystal settling is the low density of plagioclase rela- distribution is controlled by a NE^SW-trending transform
tive to plausible parental liquids (Bottinga & Weill, 1970; fault (Arculus, 1976), with the last recorded activity con-
Murase & McBirney, 1973); gabbroic assemblages are fined to the emergence of a scoria cone near Radix village
common in both arc and continental margin settlings, dating from around 1000 years ago (Devine, 1995).
and show no evidence for crystal flotation or monominera- Andesitic and dacitic eruptions have been less prolific on
lic ‘rafts’. It is also clear that cumulate processes continue Grenada in comparison with other Lesser Antilles islands
long after the initial crystal growth, with a number of (Arculus, 1976); basalts and basaltic andesites are the dom-
workers highlighting the importance of compaction, and inant eruptive products, including high-Mg basalts with
intercumulus melt convection and replenishment (Tait 17 wt % MgO (Van Soest, 2000). Several workers have
et al., 1984; Sparks et al., 1985; Holness et al., 2005). proposed that the aforementioned transform fault has
From this point we refer to all coarse-grained intrusive allowed rapid ascent of primitive M-series magmas origi-
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
The mineralogy of the plutonic xenoliths is dominated subtractive assemblage. The principal textural varieties
by mafic phases. Hornblende and clinopyroxene are abun- are described below and shown in Fig. 3. It should be
dant and commonly occur with olivine and anorthitic noted that hornblende-dominated cumulates can be split
plagioclase. More primitive assemblages lack plagioclase, into three groups: hornblendite verges on being monomi-
and orthopyroxene is notably absent. Layering and tex- neralic; clinopyroxene hornblendite has general textural
tural variation can be seen on a hand-specimen scale, al- resemblance to poikilitic hornblende gabbro, but lacks
though most of the cumulates appear isotropic and plagioclase; plagioclase hornblendite comprises equigranu-
homogeneous. As noted by Arculus & Wills (1980), the ma- lar plagioclase and hornblende. Hornblende-bearing gab-
jority of the Grenada plutonic xenoliths display adcumu- bros are subdivided into two varieties depending on the
late textures, with only a minority of orthocumulates. texture of their hornblendes: hornblende gabbros and poi-
Crystal sizes range up to 4 mm, but about 5% of the kilitic hornblende gabbros. Mineral abbreviations follow
Peridotite
harzburgite x – – – x x – – Interlocking fresh ol and altered opx with spl inclusions
Cumulate
wehrlite x x – – – x – – Large unzoned cpx and altered olivine
clinopyroxenite x x x – – x – Cpx phenocrysts with interstitial ol, cpx, hbl
hornblendite x x – – x – Sub-euhedral hbl with 1208 grain boundaries, rare cpx and ol
cpx hornblendite x x – – x – Poikilitic hbl with inclusions of cpx and spl
plag hornblendite – x x – x – 1208 grain boundaries between euhedral
inclusion-free hbl and plag
hbl gabbro x x x – x – 1208 grain boundaries between euhedral inclusion-free cpx, hbl and plag
poikilitic hbl gabbro x x x – x – Poikilitic hbl with inclusions of cpx, plag and spl, interstitial plag
Gabbro
hbl gabbro – x x x – x x x Interlocking plag, cpx and sub-euhedral hbl with heavy black rims
and inclusions of ap, spl and slf
gabbro – x – x – x – x Equigranular inclusion-free cpx, plag and spl with minor ap
x, mineral phase present; —, mineral phase absent; , minor mineral phase; ap, apatite; cpx, clinopyroxene; hbl, horn-
blende; ol, olivine; opx, orthopyroxene; plag, plagioclase; slf, sulphide; spl, spinel.
1356
STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
Wehrlite (GR36)
Poik hbl gabbro (GR21)
Poik hbl gabbro (GR59)
Poik hbl gabbro (GR4)
Clinopyroxenite (GRN17)
Clinopyroxenite (GRN24)
Ankaramite (GR45)
Lavas
Hbl andesite (GRN9)
0 20 40 60 80 100
Hornblendite (hbl þ cpx ol þ spl slf) gabbro (below) but lacks plagioclase. Clinopyroxene
The vast majority of grains (95%) are sub-euhedral ranges from large ( 4 mm) equant (and rarely zoned)
adcumulate hornblende exhibiting 1208 grain boundaries, grains with olivine and spinel inclusions to small
with inclusions limited to spinel and rare olivine (Fig. 3b). ( 0·5 mm) anhedral blebs with indistinct grain
The grain size varies from 0·5 to 4 mm although is gener- boundaries, and is a common included phase in horn-
ally homogeneous on a thin-section scale. Clinopyroxene blende. Olivine is rounded ( 2 mm) and extensively
is an interstitial phase; olivine, where present, is heavily iddingsitized.
iddingsitized.
Plagioclase hornblendite
Clinopyroxene hornblendite (hbl þ plag þ spl slf)
(hbl þ cpx ol þ spl slf) Plagioclase hornblendite has an equigranular, adcumulate
Modally dominated (65%) by interlocking poikilitic texture, comprising roughly equal proportions of large
green^brown hornblende, the clinopyroxene hornblen- ( ¼1^5 mm) interlocking hornblende and plagioclase
dite is texturally very similar to poikilitic hornblende with isolated spinel blebs of 0·5 mm (Fig. 3e). Inclusions
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
(a) (b)
hbl
cpx
(c) (d)
hbl
plag
cpx
1 mm 1 mm
(e) (f)
cpx + plag + ap + spl
1 mm 1 mm
Fig. 3. Photomicrographs (plane-polarized light) of plutonic xenolith textures. (a) Wehrlite. Large unzoned clinopyroxene; adcumulate texture.
(b) Hornblendite. Dominated by subhedral hornblende crystals. (c) Equant hornblende gabbro. Interlocking clinopyroxene, hornblende and
plagioclase with 1208 grain boundaries. (d) Poikilitic hornblende gabbro. Hornblende oikocrysts containing inclusions of clinopyroxene, spinel
and iddingsitized olivine, with interstitial plagioclase. (e) Plagioclase hornblendite. Euhedral interlocking hornblende and plagioclase. (f)
Gabbro. Upper microcumulate layer comprising clinopyroxene, sodic plagioclase, apatite and spinel. Lower layer exhibits the same mineralogy
but is coarser grained.
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
grains show alteration to hornblende along fractures. Spinel Hornblende gabbro (hbl þ cpx þ plag þ spl þ ap þ slf)
comprises large anhedral blebs ( 0·5 mm), both interstitial One sample contains dark brown equant hornblende
to andas inclusions in silicate phases. ( 1mm) crystals with ubiquitous black alteration rims.
The hornblende is commonly embayed, contains inclusions
Poikilitic hornblende gabbro of plagioclase, clinopyroxene and apatite, and has an inter-
(hbl þ plag þ cpx ol þ spl slf) locking texture with plagioclase. Zoned clinopyroxene
The majority of Grenada gabbros are distinctive in thin sec- crystals ( 0·75 mm) are rounded and contain large
tion in containing poikilitic hornblende (Fig. 3d). ( 0·1mm) inclusions of anhedral spinel. Plagioclase
Plagioclase, clinopyroxene or hornblende may each be mo- laths of 1·5 mm are riddled with devitrified melt inclu-
dally dominant, whereas olivine is a minor phase and some- sions and show strong oscillatory zoning, similar to pheno-
times absent. Hornblende commonly forms large crysts seen in the lavas.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
Type: pdt cum cum cum cum lava (M) lava (M) lava (M) lava (M) lava (C)
Assemblage: harz wehrlite cpxite hblite PHG picrite picrite ol basalt andesite ank
Sample: GR45 GR36 GRN24 GR15 GR2 376 476 GR18 GR24 262
SiO2 40·76 39·83 39·30 38·76 38·03 41·18 41·07 38·64 39·23 40·39
TiO2 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·01 0·02
Al2O3 b.d.l. 0·02 0·02 b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·03 b.d.l. 0·02 b.d.l. 0·02
FeO 10·51 15·57 17·83 20·59 24·62 8·43 9·55 14·75 15·68 11·57
pdt, peridotite; cum, cumulate; lava (C), C-series lava; lava (M), M-series lava; ank, ankaramite; cpxite, clinopyroxenite;
harz, harzburgite; hblite,
P hornblendite; PHG, poikilitic hornblende gabbro; —, not analysed; b.d.l., below detection limit,
Fo ¼ 100 Mg/(Mg þ Fe).
Type: cum cum cum cum cum gab lava (M) lava (M) lava (M) lava (C)
Assemblage: wehrlite cpxite hblite PHG hbl gabbro gabbro gabbro picrite basalt ank
Sample: GR36 GR29 GR15 GR4 GRN6 GRN9 61 GR18 GR19 GR45
SiO2 48·63 48·71 50·68 48·83 48·99 51·03 49·54 49·72 48·63 49·01
TiO2 0·90 0·70 0·69 0·90 0·61 0·55 0·55 0·61 0·87 0·77
Al2O3 6·38 5·91 3·79 5·48 4·74 2·48 4·70 4·45 4·23 5·63
FeO 5·90 6·15 6·58 7·78 7·80 8·41 4·92 7·91 10·32 4·86
MnO 0·11 0·15 0·15 0·22 0·26 0·40 0·10 0·28 0·39 0·09
MgO 14·09 13·93 15·08 13·67 13·88 13·31 14·61 14·15 13·93 14·65
CaO 23·92 23·56 22·42 21·16 22·65 22·78 22·90 21·39 19·69 23·67
Na2O 0·27 0·33 0·31 0·53 0·25 0·43 0·62 0·40 0·29 0·23
K2O b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l.
P2O5 – – 0·02 0·03 0·01 b.d.l. b.d.l. – – –
Cr2O3 0·33 0·65 0·03 0·43 0·15 0·03 0·85 0·01 b.d.l. 0·89
NiO 0·02 0·03 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·03 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·02
Total 100·58 100·11 99·75 99·06 99·34 99·46 98·80 98·93 98·36 99·83
AlIV 0·20 0·19 0·12 0·16 0·16 0·08 0·15 0·13 0·14 0·18
P
Fe3þ/ Fe 0·46 0·43 0·26 0·24 0·33 0·18 0·48 0·23 0·21 0·44
Mg# 88·8 87·7 84·7 80·5 82·6 77·5 91·1 8·50 75·2 90·5
cum, cumulate; gab, gabbro; lava (C), C-series lava; lava (M), M-series lava; ank., ankaramite; cpxite, clinopyroxenite;
hblite, hornblendite; PHG, poikilitic hornblende gabbro; —, not analysed; b.d.l., below detection limit; Mg# ¼ 100 Mg/
(Mg þ Fe2þ) with Fe3þ/Fe2þ estimated using Lindsley (1983).
1360
STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
Type: cum cum cum cum cum gab lava (M) lava (M) lava (M) lava (M)
Assemblage: cpxite hblite PHG hbl gabbro plag hblite hbl gabbro b.andesite andesite andesite andesite
Sample: GR5-1 GR25 GR21 GRN5 GR11 GR42 GR40 GRN21 212 GR19
SiO2 41·09 40·43 41·94 40·01 39·57 42·25 40·04 40·98 40·79 43·50
TiO2 2·06 1·73 1·77 1·85 1·72 2·11 1·82 1·69 1·94 1·70
Al2O3 14·53 14·65 15·36 12·83 14·73 11·79 13·91 14·08 13·89 10·87
FeO 9·06 10·29 9·38 11·41 11·33 12·99 10·98 9·39 13·53 15·11
cum, cumulate; gab, gabbro; lava (C), C-series lava; lava (M), M-series lava; b.andesite, basaltic andesite; cpxite,
clinopyroxenite; hblite, hornblendite; PHG, poikilitic hornblende gabbro; plag hblite, plagioclase hornblendite; —, not
analysed; b.d.l., below detection limit; Mg# ¼ 100 Mg/(Mg þ Fe2þ) with Fe3þ/Fe2þ estimated using Holland & Blundy
(1994).
Type: cum cum cum gab gab lava (M) lava (M) lava (M) lava (M) lava (C)
Assemblage: hbl gabbro PHG plag hblite hbl gabbro gabbro picrite picrite basalt andesite ank
Sample: GRN6 GR40 GR52 GR42 GRN9 286 61 GR18 GR31 262
SiO2 43·92 43·89 44·43 49·67 54·23 45·63 49·37 44·32 56·08 45·15
TiO2 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·03 0·03 0·02 0·02 b.d.l.
Al2O3 34·74 34·73 34·60 31·49 28·25 33·65 31·44 34·47 26·76 33·89
FeO 0·53 0·61 0·58 0·49 0·52 0·82 1·05 0·55 0·53 0·64
MnO b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l.
MgO 0·06 0·04 0·04 0·02 0·03 0·08 0·06 b.d.l. 0·06 b.d.l.
CaO 19·06 18·52 18·26 14·71 11·19 18·05 15·07 18·10 9·18 18·35
Na2O 0·66 0·82 1·08 3·08 5·29 1·33 2·64 1·15 6·18 1·24
K2O b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·06 0·13 0·03 0·35 0·03 0·25 0·03
P2O5 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·03 0·02 b.d.l. 0·03 – 0·02 b.d.l.
Cr2O3 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l.
NiO b.d.l. 0·01 0·01 b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·01 0·02 b.d.l.
Total 98·99 98·64 99·04 99·54 99·68 99·63 100·04 98·67 99·12 99·33
An 94·0 92·6 90·3 72·3 53·5 88·1 74·4 89·5 44·4 88·9
Ab 5·9 7·4 9·6 27·4 45·8 11·8 23·5 10·3 54·1 10·9
Or 0·1 0·0 0·0 0·4 0·8 0·2 2·1 0·2 1·4 0·2
cum, cumulate; gab, gabbro; lava (C), C-series lava; lava (M), M-series lava; ank, ankaramite; plag hblite, plagioclase
hornblendite; PHG, poikilitic hornblende gabbro; —, not analysed; b.d.l., below detection limit; An ¼ 100Ca/
(Ca þ Na þ K); Ab ¼ 100Na/(Na þ Ca þ K); Or ¼ 100K/(K þ Na þ Ca).
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
pdt, peridotite; lava (M), M-series lava; harz, harzburgite; *FeO and Fe2O3 recalculated by stoichiometry.
—, not analysed; P b.d.l., below detection limit; —, not analysed; b.d.l., below detection limit;
Mg# ¼ 100 Mg/(Mg þ Fe). Cr# ¼ 100Cr/(Cr þ Al); Mg# ¼ 100 Mg/
(Mg þ Fe2þ) with Fe3þ/Fe2þ estimated using
Droop (1987). 1, Chromite inclusion in olivine
22 wt % by mode. In stark contrast to pristine olivine in from cumulate wehrlite; 2, pleonaste inclusion
plutonic xenoliths from St Vincent (Tollan et al., 2012) and in hornblende from cpx hornblendite; 3, titan-
iferous magnetite in plagioclase hornblendite.
in Grenada lavas, it is ubiquitously partially to completely
altered to red^brown iddingsite. The alteration always
occurs at grain edges and along cracks, and may extend where clinopyroxene is present as inclusions in poikilitic
hornblende, it may show normal zoning in Mg# (8%)
throughout the whole mineral, although fresh cores do
but without any concomitant variation in Al or Ti content.
commonly remain. There is no evidence for post-alteration
Gabbroic clinopyroxene is of similar composition but has
overgrowth and the degree of alteration bears no correl-
a restricted Mg# range of 82·7^77·4.
ation to mineral assemblage; the surrounding minerals
are alteration-free. Olivine primarily occurs as inclusions Hornblende
in poikilitic clinopyroxene or hornblende, and contains in-
Hornblende is modally dominant, being present in all but
clusions of Cr-rich spinel. Grains are compositionally
two plutonic blocks. In the hornblendites it totals 95 wt
homogeneous and zoning is restricted to 3 mol % Fo.
% of the rock, but more commonly comprises 35^60 wt
CaO varies between 0·10 and 0·18 wt % and Ni shows a
%. Regardless of texture or proportion, compositions are
range from 0·03 to 0·21wt %. In contrast, olivine in the
calcic pargasite (based on Leake et al., 2003; Fig. 5) with
peridotite xenoliths (Fo89·288·2) is fresh and unaltered, al-
Mg# ¼ 87·6^76·2 and show normal zoning of 5 %
though some grains show extensive fracture networks.
Mg#. Hornblende has two distinct forms, predominantly
Inclusions of Cr-rich spinel are common; CaO is charac-
occurring as poikilitic crystals with varying proportions
teristically 0·08 wt % and Ni contents vary between
of olivine, clinopyroxene, spinel and plagioclase as inclu-
0·34 and 0·41wt %.
sions, but may also be euhedral and equant, and contain
small inclusions of spinel. Gabbroic hornblende has opacite
Clinopyroxene rims and inclusions of spinel, apatite and sulphides.
Clinopyroxene (Mg# ¼ 90·6^78·9) is present in all sam-
ples identified as cumulates with the exception of the Plagioclase
plagioclase hornblendite; its modal proportion varies from Plagioclase in the Grenada cumulates is predominantly
4 to 83 wt %. Compositions are Al- and Ca-rich diopside anorthitic, in the range An94·685·0 (Fig. 6), with a low Or
(Fig. 4a), and are also high in Fe3þ/Fe (0·2^0·5). The ma- component. Compositional variation in single samples is
jority of grains are homogeneous and unzoned, although generally 10 mol % An; however, rare distinct grains of
1362
STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
50 Wo
(a)
45
Diopside 50
50
Hedenbergite Cumulates
45 45
Gabbros
Peridotite
Augite M-series lavas
C-series lavas
Pigeonite
5 5
Clinoenstatite Clinoferrosilite
En Fs
Wo
Enstatite (b)
5 5
Ferrosilite
En Fs
Fig. 4. (a) Clinopyroxene and (b) orthopyroxene compositions in plutonic xenoliths, peridotite xenoliths and lavas plotted on an En^Fs^Wo
diagram (Morimoto, 1988).
CaB ≥ 1.50; (Na + K)A ≥ 0.50; Ti < 0.50; AlIV ≥ Fe3+ Fig. 4b), the Mg# being comparable with that of coexist-
100 ing olivine in the same samples, and also orthopyroxene
80
in the study of Parkinson et al. (2003) (En91·686·7). CaO is
Mg# (Mg/Mg+Fe2+)
MAGNESIO-
EDENITE SADANAGAITE restricted to 0·6 wt % and Al2O3 is 2·2 wt %. Grains
60 contain inclusions of Cr-rich spinel.
PARGASITE
40 Spinel
FERRO-EDENITE FERROPARGASITE SADANAGAITE
20 Spinel has an extensive compositional range, exhibiting a
complete continuum from chromite to titaniferous magnet-
0 ite. Despite its ubiquity within the sample set of rocks,
7.5 7.0 6.5 6.0 5.5 5.0 4.5
spinel rarely exceeds 5 wt % by mode. The most Cr-rich
Si (apfu) spinels are present within olivine and orthopyroxene in
Cumulates Gabbros M-series lavas mantle-derived harzburgite (Cr# 64). In the cumulates,
Fig. 5. Hornblende composition in plutonic xenoliths and lavas (after chromite occurs as inclusions in olivine (Cr# 61) and
Leake et al., 2003). interstitial to silicates in the wehrlitic assemblage
(Cr# ¼ 55). The presence of pleonaste spinel of intermedi-
An7550 are present within some cumulates. Modally ate composition (Cr# 540 and Mg# ¼ 40^20) is charac-
variant from 10 to 65 wt %, plagioclase grains are unzoned teristic of Grenada within the Lesser Antilles arc (Arculus
and are commonly interstitial (anhedral or interlocking & Wills, 1980). The distinguishing feature of this type of
laths), but also occur as inclusions in clinopyroxene or spinel is high Al2O3 (12^20 wt %) and it occurs as inclu-
hornblende. In contrast to iddingsitized olivine, coexisting sions in silicate phases and along grain boundaries in clin-
plagioclase is fresh and unaltered. Plagioclase in gabbroic opyroxenites. Ti-rich magnetite (5·8 wt % TiO2, Mg#
samples is ubiquitously more sodic (An72·351·4). 20) is present primarily in plagioclase-bearing cumulates
and gabbros, although rare examples are found in some
Orthopyroxene clinopyroxenites and hornblendites. It is typically anhe-
Orthopyroxene occurs only in the mantle-derived harz- dral, forming interstitial blebs of 0·5 mm or inclusions of
burgite xenoliths. It is highly magnesian (En88·6, 0·1mm in hornblende.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
60
Cumulates (n = 123) Table 8: Representative analyses of melt inclusions hosted in
50 plutonic rocks (normalized totals)
% of analyses
40
Type: cum cum cum cum gab
30
Assemblage: cpxite PHG PHG PHG gabbro
20
there is no systematic change in Fe/Mg ratio with host com-
10 position and no attempt has been made to account for
(c) post-entrapment crystallization (PEC). Electron micro-
0
probe totals are 83·2 wt %; subsequent references to MI
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
1364
STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
75
Cumulates − no plag M−series lavas
70 Cumulates − with plag 28 C−series lavas
Gabbros Primitive MIs (B ’10)
65 Cumulate MIs 24
Al2O3 (wt %)
SiO2 (wt %)
60 20
16
55
12
50
8
45
20 8
10 4
5 2
(c) (d)
0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 0 5 10 15 20 25 30
MgO (wt%) MgO (wt%)
Fig. 7. Bulk-rock major element variations in Grenada lavas (whole-rock analyses from the Georoc database) and plutonic rocks (estimated
from mineral modes and EPMA data), melt inclusions hosted in olivine from the scoria (B ’10; Bouvier et al., 2010a), and melt inclusions
hosted in cumulate phases.
M-series
picrite o, x x – – x – – x – Dominated by normally zoned Mg-rich ol phenocrysts
ol basalt o, x o, x – – o, x – – x – Normally zoned ol, cpx and plag phenocrysts
ol hbl basaltic andesite o, x o, x – o o, x – – x – Large oscillatory zoned plag phenocrysts with varying
proportions of cpx, hbl and altered ol
hbl andesite o o, x o o, x o, x x x x x Plag and hbl phenocrysts. Silica-rich samples contain opx
or groundmass ap þ qz; others contain trace ol
C-series
ankaramite o, x o, x – – x – – x – Large normally zoned cpx and ol phenocrysts in a
plag and spl groundmass
o, phenocryst phase; x, groundmass mineral; cpx, clinopyroxene; hbl, hornblende; ol, olivine; plag, plagioclase; slf,
sulphide; spl, spinel.
picrites contain olivine phenocrysts, which are joined by Quartz and apatite are rare groundmass phases in the
clinopyroxene and plagioclase in the basalts. More evolved most silica-rich andesites. Phenocrysts in all lava types are
lavas have abundant plagioclase phenocrysts with horn- normally zoned and the groundmass is commonly
blende, clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene phenocrysts. microphyric.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
16
M−series lavas
14 Phonolite C−series lavas
Melt inclusions (B’10)
Unclassified
12 Trachyte
Tephri-
2 Basaltic Andesite
Picro- Andesite
basalt Basalt
0
35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80
SiO2 (wt % )
Fig. 8. Total alkalis vs silica for the Grenada lavas (Le Bas et al., 1986) from the Georoc database and Arculus (1973). Where a lava is not classi-
fied as belonging to either M- or C- series, it is marked by a cross. Also shown are olivine-hosted melt inclusions from picritic scoria (B ’10;
Bouvier et al., 2010a). The majority of samples are basalts and basaltic andesites, with the most primitive M-series lavas and the majority of C-
series showing a degree of silica-undersaturation.
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
(a) (b)
(c) (d)
1 mm 1 mm
Fig. 9. Photomicrographs (plane-polarized light) of textural features in lavas. (a) Picrite. Olivine phenocrysts in a clinopyroxene and plagio-
clase groundmass. (b) Hornblende basaltic andesite. Hornblende, plagioclase and clinopyroxene phenocrysts in a plagioclase and spinel ground-
mass. (c) Andesite. Hornblende, plagioclase and orthopyroxene phenocrysts with large inclusions of spinel. Groundmass comprises plagioclase
and clinopyroxene. (d) Ankaramite. Zoned clinopyroxene and olivine phenocrysts in a plagioclase and spinel groundmass.
M-series picrites (Fo91·479·1) and C-series ankaramites clinopyroxene composition is seen in andesites, where
(Fo89·983·2). Phenocrysts in olivine basalts are less forsteri- the phenocrysts are high-Al augite (Mg# ¼ 89·9^74·1)
tic (Fo84·475·5). In all phenocrysts, rim compositions are and less calcic (20 wt % CaO). C-series clinopyroxene
never lower than Fo75. The majority of phenocrysts have is indistinguishable from its M-series equivalent: it is
CaO 0·1wt %. Cr-rich spinel and rare glassy pockets similarly Al-rich (8·2 wt % Al2O3), diopsidic
are found as inclusions. In the more evolved lavas, and (Mg# ¼ 87·2^74·6) and has a high Fe3þ/Fe content
similar to the crustal cumulates, olivine is completely (0·40). It also displays ubiquitous normal zoning in
altered to iddingsite. Mg# of 5.
Clinopyroxene
Zoned clinopyroxene is characteristic of Grenada lavas Hornblende
and phenocrysts show compositional variation of 10 % Hornblende in M-series lavas is calcic pargasite (after
Mg#. As noted by Arculus (1978), they also display rim Leake et al., 2003; Fig. 5) and occurs in two distinct forms.
enrichment in Al2O3 and TiO2 (5·0 wt % and 1·3 wt It is predominantly present as poikilitic crystals of
% respectively). M-series picrites, basalts and basaltic 2·0 mm with inclusions of iddingsitized olivine, clinopyr-
andesites contain diopsidic clinopyroxene with 23 wt oxene, spinel and plagioclase. Less commonly, it is found
% CaO, Mg# ¼ 95·2^80·6 and Fe3þ/Fe ¼ 0·40^0·20 as euhedral equant crystals ( 1·0 mm) displaying break-
(Fig. 4a). In picrites and basaltic andesites, normal down rims of Fe^Ti oxides, with small inclusions of spinel
zoning is common with rims of Mg# 80, whereas in and sulphides. Both forms can be found in the same
the olivine basalts phenocrysts exhibit both normal and sample and there is no preference for a particular lava
reverse zoning (rims of Mg# 5 different from core type. Regardless of texture, the crystals are unzoned and
composition). The only significant compositional shift in have a consistent Mg# between 82·3 and 77·0.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
Table 10: Normalized (to 100%) plutonic and peridotite bulk-rock compositions (wt % oxides) estimated from mineral
modes and electron microprobe compositions of minerals
Sample SiO2 TiO2 Al2O3 FeO MnO MgO CaO Na2O K2O P2O5 Cr2O3 NiO
harzburgite (GR45) 39·85 0·03 1·31 11·23 0·21 44·12 0·11 0·01 b.d.l. 0·06 2·74 0·32
wehrlite (GR36) 47·34 0·49 3·66 8·03 0·15 21·11 18·67 0·19 b.d.l. b.d.l. 0·31 0·04
poik. hbl gabbro (GR21) 41·69 1·38 18·66 10·66 0·13 10·51 14·59 1·98 0·30 b.d.l. 0·08 0·02
poik. hbl gabbro (GR59) 43·07 1·00 15·40 9·26 0·15 12·72 16·45 1·53 0·25 b.d.l. 0·14 0·03
poik. hbl gabbro (GR4) 43·45 1·05 18·61 8·88 0·13 10·68 15·49 1·43 0·17 0·02 0·08 0·02
0.8 0.5
(a) (b) Cumulates
Lavas (M)
0.7
Lavas (C)
0.4 (possible
0.6 xenocrysts)
Peridotite
0.5
0.3
CaO (wt %)
NiO (wt %)
0.4
0.2
0.3
0.2
0.1
0.1
0.0 0.0
70 75 80 85 90 95 70 75 80 85 90 95
Fo (olivine) Fo (olivine)
Fig. 10. Composition of Grenada olivines. Peridotitic olivine includes ‘primary’ grains from Parkinson et al. (2003). (a) Forsterite content de-
creases steadily with NiO. The highest NiO contents are recorded in peridotitic grains (0·7 wt %). Olivine in plutonic rocks is less primitive
than picritic or peridotitic olivine, and overlaps with lava phenocrysts of the same Fo content. (b) Peridotitic and primitive magmatic olivine
(Fo 88, Ni 0·4 wt %) can be discriminated by virtue of its CaO content: olivine in harzburgite xenoliths contains CaO 0·08 wt % whereas
lava phenocrysts have CaO 0·10 wt % (dashed line). A small proportion of olivine in picritic lavas has a low CaO content, suggesting that
there could be a minor xenocryst population in these samples.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
0.4 2.3
Cumulates (without plag)
Cumulates (with plag)
Gabbros
2.2
Lavas (M) - cores
Lavas (M) - rims 2.1
0.3 Lavas (C) - cores
2.0
1.9
AlIV hbl
AlIV cpx
0.2 1.8
1.7
Lavas (cores)
Lavas (rims)
0.14
0.0
70 75 80 85 90 95 100
0.12
Mg# cpx
0.10
K (apfu) hbl
Fig. 11. Variation in tetrahedrally co-ordinated Al in clinopyroxene
in both M- and C-series lavas. M-series lavas and plagioclase-bearing
cumulates display a decrease in AlIV with Mg#. Lava phenocryst 0.08
cores overlap with cumulate compositions but show varying degrees
of normal zoning in Mg# with associated rim enrichment in Al 0.06
(and Ti). Gabbroic clinopyroxene has a restricted composition with
low AlIV and Mg#. 0.04
0.02
CaO is at the lower end of the range spanned by magmatic
olivine. In contrast to the weak correlation observed in 0.00
70 75 80 85 90 95
the lava phenocrysts, there is no relationship between
CaO and Fo in plutonic olivine. Mg# hbl
Fig. 12. Variation in hornblende composition. Plagioclase-bearing cu-
Clinopyroxene mulates and lavas both show a decrease in AlIV with decreasing
Clinopyroxene in both lavas and cumulates is high-Al di- Mg#. There is no compositional distinction between cumulate
grains and the majority of lava phenocrysts, with the exception of an
opside; gabbroic clinopyroxene is augitic. Lavas and outlier sample that has significantly lower K than any other
plagioclase-bearing cumulates show a correlation between Grenada hornblende.
Al2O3 content and Mg#, and gabbros have a restricted
range of AlIV (Fig. 11). Zoned clinopyroxene is characteris-
tic of Grenada lavas (Arculus, 1978) and the phenocrysts one key exception; hornblende in andesite with coexisting
are normally zoned by 10 % Mg#. In contrast, the ma- orthopyroxene has a much lower K content (0·02
jority of cumulate and gabbroic clinopyroxene is homoge- a.p.f.u.).
neous and unzoned. Where clinopyroxene is present as
inclusions in poikilitic hornblende it may show normal Plagioclase
zoning in Mg# (8 % Mg#) but without any marked Both lavas and cumulates contain highly calcic plagioclase
difference in Al or Ti content. of An90, but lava phenocryst compositions also extend to
An43·1 (Fig. 6). Lava phenocrysts are highly zoned and con-
Hornblende tain numerous devitrified melt inclusions whereas cumu-
Cumulate and phenocryst hornblende show few compos- late plagioclase grains are homogeneous and inclusion-
itional differences, with all hornblende analyses classifying free. Gabbroic plagioclase has a more restricted and
as calcic pargasite (after Leake et al., 2003) regardless of evolved composition (An72·338·8).
habit or rock type (Fig. 5). Similar to clinopyroxene, cumu-
lates without plagioclase contain the highest Mg# horn- Orthopyroxene
blende, with plagioclase-bearing rocks showing a decrease Orthopyroxene is completely absent from the cumulate as-
in AlIV with decreasing Mg# (Fig. 12). Cumulates, plu- semblages, being present only in mantle-derived harzburg-
tonic rocks and lavas have K (a.p.f.u.) ¼ 0·06^0·14, with ite and M-series andesitic lavas. Its composition is
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
reflective of the two modes of genesis: harzburgite contains The plutonic xenoliths in this study are almost exclu-
Mg-rich enstatite (Mg# ¼ 89·0^88·3, CaO 0·6 wt %); sively sampled from secondary deposits, and so are lacking
magmatic enstatite has Mg# 73·8 and CaO 1·6 wt %. in original geological context; however, eight cumulate
Al2O3 is within the range 0·7^2·3 wt % for both rock and three peridotite xenoliths have an attached rind
types. of the host lava present in the thin section. The nature of
the boundary between rock types is variable. Some con-
Spinel tacts are gradational and melt is seen to penetrate between
An extensive compositional range of spinels is found in the grain boundaries of the xenolith with clear evidence
both Grenada lavas and cumulates (Fig. 13) showing a for millimetre- to centimetre-scale entrainment of cumu-
complete continuum from chromites to titaniferous mag- late material into the host lava. In contrast, other bound-
netite. It is possible to observe this variation within a aries are sharp with a distinct contrast between xenolith
0.4
60 60
+
Fe3 / ΣR3
Ti (apfu)
Cr#
0.3
+
40 40
0.2
20 20
0.1
0 0 0.0
0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100 0 20 40 60 80 100
Mg# Mg# Mg#
Fig. 13. Spinel compositions from Grenada showing an extensive compositional range from chromite to titaniferous magnetite. In contrast to St
Vincent, both M-series lavas and cumulates contain Al-rich spinel of intermediate Cr#, Mg# and Fe3þ/Fe (pleonaste). The observed vari-
ation commonly occurs within one thin section. Gabbroic spinel is exclusively magnetite.
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
(a) 6
4
fO2 (ΔFMQ)
Parkinson et al.
( 20 0 3 )
1
0
(b) 1400
1300
GRN15 (4kbar) H2O-sat
1200 STV301 (4kbar) 7 wt % H2O
1000
900
800
700
GR17 Cpx hornblendite
Hornblendite
Hornblendite
Cpxite
Wehrlite
Harzburgite
Plag hblite
Plag hblite
Hbl gabbro
Hbl gabbro
Hbl gabbro
Hbl gabbro
GR59 Poik. hbl gabbro
GR21 Poik. hbl gabbro
Gabbro
Clinopyroxenite
Clinopyroxenite
GR4 Poik. hbl gabbro
Clinopyroxenite
GR45
GR36
GR29
GRN17
GR5-1
GR15
GR25
GR11
GRN6
GR52
GRN21
GRN24
GRN5
GR42
GRN9
Ol - spl (O’Neill & Wall, 1987) Cpx - melt (Putirka, 2008) Hornblende (Ridolfi &Renzulli, 2012)
Ol - spl (Ballhaus et al., 1991) Hbl - plag (Holland & Blundy, 1994)
Fig. 14. Geothermobarometric estimates of (a) oxygen fugacity and (b) temperature for peridotite and plutonic xenolith samples. Cumulates
listed in order of decreasing Fo (olivine), followed by An# (plagioclase). The shaded area in (a) shows the range of fO2 estimates for the sub-
arc mantle beneath Grenada (Parkinson et al., 2003). Dashed lines in (b) denote experimentally determined liquidi of a Grenadan picrite
(GRN15, Stamper et al., 2014), a high-Mg basalt from St Vincent (Pichavant et al., 2002b, STV301) and a basaltic andesite from St Vincent
(Pichavant & MacDonald, 2007, STV315). Upper estimates from the olivine^spinel geothermometers of O’Neill & Wall (1987) and Ballhaus
et al. (1991) are faded out owing to both formulations tending to overestimate temperatures (see Supplementary Data).
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
cumulate assemblages. On the basis of poor performance can be used in the formulation is An90; six of the cumulates
in the experimental evaluation, we have not used any of contain more calcic plagioclase and so their temperatures
the tested formulations to derive pressure [cpx: Nimis will be underestimates.
(1999); cpx^melt: Putirka (2008); hbl: Ridolfi & Renzulli Temperature estimates for olivine^spinel, clinopyroxene,
(2012)] and H2O estimates [hbl: Ridolfi & Renzulli (2012); hornblende and coexisting plagioclase are remarkably
Al2O3 in melt: Pichavant & MacDonald (2007)]. similar. This indicates that the melts parental to the cumu-
Figure 14 and Table 11 show the full range of tempera- lates were multiply saturated with up to five phases be-
tures and fO2 estimates for the cumulates and plutonic tween temperatures of 900^10008C, with temperatures
rocks in this study. All five thermometers are insensitive to comparable with experimentally determined liquidi of
pressure and we assume a value of 0·5 GPa for cumulates H2O-rich low-Mg basalts and basaltic andesites.
and plutonic rocks and 1·0 GPa for the mantle xenolith, The consensus from oxybarometry is that all rock types
Table 11: Estimates of oxygen fugacity and temperature for the plutonic xenoliths
Peridotite
GR45 harzburgite 960–965 1217 – – – 1·2 0·0–0·2 –
Cumulates
GR36 wehrlite 956–1124 1189–1438 877 – – 1·5–2·9 0·5–1·7 –
GR59 poik. hbl gabbro 786–1043 993–1243 – 905–931 913–960y 3·0–4·0 1·9–2·3 4·0–4·3
GR21 poik. hbl gabbro 975–1291 1181–1424 930 907–922 823–989 2·6–4·0 1·4–2·6 3·1–4·0
GR29 cpxite 1014–1090 1201–1333 1030–1044 931–958 – 1·8–3·2 0·7–1·8 4·7–5·1
GRN17 cpxite 936–1110 1141–1332 – 932–1045 – 2·4–3·9 1·2–2·3 2·9–5·9
GR4 poik. hbl gabbro 986–1112 1212–1289 – 909–941 957y–1013y 3·7–4·3 2·0–2·4 2·6–3·8
GR17 cpx hornblendite 1015–1072 1212–1289 962–1041 915–952 – 2·8–3·38 1·5–1·9 3·8–4·5
GR5-1 cpxite 1043–1093 1218–1271 977–1220 914–947 – 3·0–3·7 1·6–2·1 3·1–4·1
GR40 poik. hbl gabbro – – 951–1054 931–956 971–1032y – – 2·8–4·1
GR15 hblite 900–1060 1104–1259 – 901–993 – 3·3–4·0 1·3–1·5 2·3–4·8
GR2 poik. hbl gabbro – – – 897–978 941–1070y – – 1·3–4·4
GR11 plag hblite – – – 882–964 897y–1067y – – 3·4–4·2
GRN6 hbl gabbro – – – 878–894 929y–948y – – 3·3–3·7
GR52 plag hblite – – – 885–930 946y–1005y – – 3·3–3·6
GRN21 hbl gabbro – – – 899–972 949y–1030y – – 2·9–3·6
GR33 poik. hbl gabbro – – 942–1044 885–952 867–984 – – 2·7–3·8
GRN24 cpxite – – – 944–971 893–972 – – 1·8–3·7
GRN5 hbl gabbro – – – 883–930 933–993 – – 3·3–3·7
Gabbros
GR42 hbl gabbro – – – 822–921 832–957 – – 2·1–3·3
GR9 gabbro – – 937–1057 – – –
1374
STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
75 32
(a) (c)
70
28
65
Al2O3 (wt %)
SiO2 (wt %)
24
60
55 20
50 16
45
12
FMQ þ1·2 for harzburgite. Plutonic xenoliths range from picritic to andesitic compositions, and cover the range of
FMQ þ 0·5 to þ 4·3 (Fig. 14a). Similar to temperature, the lavas erupted on Grenada. Having screened the experi-
estimates involving olivine^spinel pairs have a consistent mental starting materials in this way it is then possible to
offset, with Ballhaus et al. (1991) yielding values that are explore the conditions that yield a good match to the
1^2 log units higher than those of O’Neill & Wall (1987; observed phase assemblages and mineral compositions in
updated, personal communication). Despite the wide the xenoliths.
range in fO2 estimates, within the crustal cumulates there Some initial inferences as to the melt composition and
is no correlation with measures of magmatic differentiation conditions required to generate the plutonic xenolith as-
or mineral assemblage. semblages can be made from examining the phase rela-
tions and crystallization sequence, without any reference
to mineral chemistry (Table 12). To place further con-
A combined approach to estimating straints on the magma storage conditions that produced
magma storage conditions based on particular assemblages, it is important to match the com-
geothermometry and experimental studies position of the experimental phases with the ranges seen
In combination with geothermobarometry, experimental in the natural silicates. Only a limited number of experi-
studies can be used to place constraints on the magma stor- mental run products from Cawthorn et al. (1973) and
age conditions during the formation of the plutonic xeno- Graham (1980) were analysed in the original studies and
liths. For experiments to be applicable to Grenada, the so compositional data are unavailable for some runs.
major element composition of the starting mix must lie on
the liquid line of descent (Fig. 15), in effect representing a Wehrlite (ol ! cpx)
residual liquid from the fractionating assemblage. Starting Wehrlite is the most primitive cumulate assemblage found
mixes from the selected experimental studies cover a at Grenada. It has high variance demonstrated by the fact
range of 45^62 wt % SiO2 and 15^2 wt % MgO, spanning it can be generated experimentally over a wide range of
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
Table 12: Experimental conditions required to generate natural crustal cumulate assemblages in the same crystallization se-
quence as found on Grenada
GRN15
P (GPa) 0·7–1·7 – – –
T (8C) 1150–1325 – – – Stamper et al. (2014)
Starting compositions listed in order of decreasing MgO content (Fig. 16). sat, H2O-saturated experiment.
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
pressures (0·2^1·7 GPa) and H2O contents (0·9 wt % to 8·7^9·7 wt % MgO at H2O-saturated conditions [9·7 wt
H2O-saturated) from compositions with 8 wt % MgO % H2O as estimated by Papale et al. (2006)] at 0·5 GPa
(Table 12); in all of these cases olivine is a liquidus phase, (Table 12). Very few of these run products have electron
followed by clinopyroxene, and the temperature range of microprobe analyses, but an experiment at 10318C provides
these experiments is the highest of all assemblages (1050^ the best match for the natural compositions (Fig. 17). This
13258C). In less magnesian basalts either hornblende or temperature is consistent with the majority of values from
plagioclase crystallizes in the place of clinopyroxene, and clinopyroxene-hosted melt inclusions, and the lower range
in andesites plagioclase becomes the liquidus phase. of olivine^spinel pairs (950^10508C). The same assem-
Olivine in Grenadan wehrlite is restricted to Fo84 and blage is generated by the higher pressure experiments of
this allows us to place good constraints on its conditions of Melekhova et al. (in preparation); however, both olivine
formation. High-pressure (P 0·7 GPa) experiments exclu- (Fo8794) and hornblende (Mg# ¼ 92^95) are too magnes-
Wehrlite
0.30
High pressure experiments (0.7 - 1.7 GPa)
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
Fo (olivine) Summary
The entire suite of cumulate assemblages seen at Grenada
High pressure experiments (0.7 - 1.7 GPa) can be generated experimentally in a narrow pressure
(0·2^0·5 GPa) and temperature range (965^10508C) at
Melekhova et al. (in prep) - RSV49
high melt H2O contents (5·8 wt %). Production of a dif-
ferent mineralogy results from simple variations in melt
Low pressure experiments (0.2 - 0.5 GPa)
chemistry, with more primitive melts crystallizing corres-
Cawthorn et al. (1973) - 286 pondingly more mafic cumulates (Table 13). High H2O
IV
Fig. 17. Al of (a) clinopyroxene and (b) hornblende vs forsterite
contents are required to suppress plagioclase crystalliza-
content of olivine (Fo) in experimental clinopyroxenite and hornblen- tion and stabilize hornblende. The result is an offset be-
dite. Coloured symbols show composition of phases in experimental tween olivine and plagioclase composition (Fig. 20), a
runs compared with ranges in natural xenoliths (shaded areas). The characteristic feature of cumulates from various arc set-
best experimental match with the natural mineral chemistry of all
three phases is produced in an experiment on an H2O-saturated tings around the world. Experiments confirm that early
high-Mg basalt at 0·5 GPa and 10318C (Cawthorn et al., 1973). High- fractionation of mafic phases (olivine, clinopyroxene and
pressure experiments yield olivine with Fo that is too high to be repre- hornblende) depletes the melt in MgO before conditions
sentative of the natural assemblages (Melekhova et al., in become conducive to plagioclase crystallization. Gabbros
preparation).
containing sodic plagioclase crystallize from evolved melts
with lower H2O.
assemblages, span a pressure range of 0·2^1·0 GPa and con- Origin of textural features
tain 7 wt % H2O (Table 12). The production of horn- Poikilitic hornblende is a distinguishing textural feature of
blende gabbro is promoted by a low silica content relative many Grenada cumulates (Arculus & Wills, 1980), and we
to the degree of fractionation; experiments with higher divide assemblages containing the same coexisting phases
degree of silica-saturation produce orthopyroxene at the into different families by virtue of its presence (Table 1).
expense of olivine (e.g. Pichavant et al., 2002b; Pichavant The assemblage hbl þ cpx þ ol is common to both clino-
& MacDonald, 2007, Melekhova et al., in preparation). pyroxene hornblendite and hornblendite, with hornblende
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
Hornblende gabbro
0.3
(a) (b)
0.2 GPa
965ºC
H2O-sat
0.2
AlIV cpx
0.1
2.2
AlIV hbl
1.8
1.4
60 70 80 90 80 90 100
Fo (olivine) An (plag)
in the former family having a poikilitic appearance and This hypothesis is supported by the zoning of clinopyr-
that in the latter exhibiting an interlocking equilibrium oxene chadacrysts contained in hornblende oikocrysts.
texture; hbl þ cpx þ plag þ ol is split into poikilitic and Unlike clinopyroxene phenocrysts in lavas, zoning is re-
equigranular varieties of hornblende gabbro. Here we stricted to Mg# and there is no associated increase of Al
speculate on the cause of the two different textures. or Ti content. Fe^Mg diffusion occurs on a shorter time-
Experiments have shown that is it possible to produce scale than Al or Ti diffusion in both ortho- and clinopyrox-
coexisting hbl þ cpx þ ol and hbl þ cpx þ plag þ ol ene (Sautter et al., 1988; Saunders et al., 2012), and this
through simple co-crystallization in narrow P^T^H2O indicates that the perturbation causing the zoning
windows, thus generating equigranular varieties of these occurred shortly before the cumulate phases were
assemblages. In contrast, we believe poikilitic hornblende quenched below the closure temperature; this feature is
may result from injection of hydrous melt into a cumulate consistent with a sudden injection of more evolved hydrous
pile containing olivine and clinopyroxene (wehrlite). This melt. Clinopyroxene is observed reacting to hornblende
produces late crystallizing hornblende, and in the case of along cracks in these assemblages. Furthermore, olivine
poikilitic hornblende gabbro, interstitial plagioclase. chadacrysts in hornblende are commonly completely
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
altered to iddingsite. Such alteration in cumulate rocks is Generation of M- and C-series lavas
rare and is usually confined to hypabyssal or volcanic Experimental data indicate that the cumulates were pro-
rocks where hydration is associated with late-stage cooling duced from a range of basaltic magma compositions
of an igneous body (Gay & LeMaitre, 1961); however, id- (12·1^4·4 wt % MgO) at 0·5 GPa, corresponding to
dingsite formation at magmatic temperatures has been re- intra-crustal depths of less than about 15 km; however, it is
corded (Goff, 1996; Clement et al., 2007) and is ascribed to highly probable that the vertical extent of the sub-volcanic
the injection of water-rich fluids whilst in situ at depth. system beneath Grenada is much greater and its character-
The estimates of high H2O content in the Grenadan ization holds the key to resolving the origin and nature of
magmas are consistent with such an interpretation and the parental liquids.
may explain why olivine in otherwise pristine, unaltered The petrologically and geochemically distinct M- and
rocks is so ubiquitously iddingsitized. C-series lavas at Grenada have markedly different liquid
Table 13: Magma storage conditions required to generate natural cumulate assemblages as inferred from experiments
wehrlite 0·4 1050 6·3 47·8 12·1 4-4 (Pichavant & MacDonald, 2007)
cpxite/hblite 0·5 1031 9·7* 47·5 9·7 286 (Cawthorn et al., 1973)
hornblende gabbro 0·2 965 5·8* 49·7 8·7 82-66 # 7 (Sisson & Grove, 1993)
plagioclase hornblendite 0·4 945–949 8·2 51·3 4·4 HAB1 & 11 (Pichavant et al., 2002a)
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
70
enriching the residual melt in CaO and depleting it in MgO.
plag[x] In the vast majority of cases this is followed by clinopyroxene,
75 which acts to reduce both the MgO and CaO content. The
point of clinopyroxene saturation is thus reflected in a‘down-
turn’on the CaO vs MgO plot, and defines the difference be-
80 tween the two lava series. Experimental phase relations of a
Grenadanpicritehighlight pressure as having the greatest in-
Mol % Fo
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
18
M−series lavas 0.2 GPa
C−series lavas 0.6 GPa
16 Primitive MIs 1.0 GPa
1.4 GPa
CaO (wt %)
14 1.8 GPa
12
10
14
12
FeO (wt %)
10
6
(c) (d)
4
10 15 20 25 15 20 25 30
Al2O3 (wt %) Al2O3 (wt %)
Fig. 21. Evolution of two Grenadan picrites [AMG6103: Graham (1980); GDA011: Devine (1995)] at FMQ þ 2 and 3 wt % H2O modelled iso-
barically using MELTS compared with whole-rock analyses of M- and C-series lavas and olivine-hosted melt inclusions (Bouvier et al., 2010a).
Isobaric differentiation is able to describe both M- and C-series lavas, particularly for high-CaO picrite AMG6103. At high pressures (1·4^
1·8 GPa), olivine and clinopyroxene co-saturate close to the liquidus and reproduce the observed M-series trend. Lower pressures act to delay
the onset of clinopyroxene saturation, and the C-series is best simulated by crystallization at 0·2 GPa. fO2 influences spinel composition, and
hence melt FeO; initial H2O controls the temperature of plagioclase saturation and is manifest in the Al2O3 content of the melt.
melts that have experienced 510% fractionation from pri- Fig. 22), testifying to melt generation at a shallower depth
mary mantle melts (Devine, 1995). Therefore, these lavas in the spinel stability field. Furthermore, Woodland et al.
should offer insights into the mantle source beneath (2002) noted that Re depletion in the Grenada samples
Grenada, and how it compares with other islands in the was most easily explained by the presence of garnet in the
southernmost Lesser Antilles. mantle wedge.
Various lines of geochemical evidence suggest that the Evidence for a difference in the depth of melt gener-
magma source in the mantle wedge is located at a greater ation is also provided by experiments on primitive bas-
depth than beneath the neighbouring island of St Vincent. alts from the two islands. A St Vincent HMB achieves
Grenada and the Grenadines are the only islands in the multiple saturation (coexisting ol þ cpx þ opx) between
Lesser Antilles that show significant LREE/HREE enrich- 1·2 and 1·6 GPa (Pichavant et al., 2002b; Melekhova
ment in both whole-rocks ([Ce/Yb]N ¼ 2^13) and melt in- et al., in preparation) at H2O contents of 1·5^4·5 wt
clusions (Bouvier et al., 2010b), consistent with a mantle %; however, the same is not true for Grenada, where
source containing residual garnet (Shimizu & Arculus, experiments on an M-series picrite in the same pressure
1975; Minster & Alle'gre, 1978; Macdonald et al., 2000). In range and a wide range of H2O contents generate only
contrast, primitive ‘high-magnesia basalts’ (HMB) from liquidus olivine (Stamper et al., 2014). In a separate
St Vincent display flat REE profiles (Heath et al., 1998; study, peridotite melting experiments at 2·0^3·0 GPa
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
produced liquids very similar in composition to the M- that has been attributed to depth of melting (Devine,
series, indicating that the last M-series equilibration 1995).
with the mantle occurred at a depth of 60 km On this basis, we believe that the mantle source beneath
(Hirose & Kushiro, 1993; Devine, 1995). M-series lavas Grenada is mostly likely to be a garnet-bearing peridotite.
are also noted for their silica-undersaturation, a feature The experimental anhydrous phase relations of a
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
Grenadan basanitoid demonstrate that olivine, clinopyrox- respective petrology and geochemistry of the erupted ma-
ene and garnet are stable liquidus phases under reducing terial from the two islands. Plutonic blocks from St
conditions at 2·5 GPa (Arculus, 1975); however, as noted Vincent are modally dominated by plagioclase and include
by Pichavant et al. (2002b), the absence of orthopyroxene troctolites containing calcic plagioclase coexisting with
on the anhydrous liquidus of an Mg-rich basalt does not fresh olivine (Tollan et al., 2012), whereas Grenada cumulates
necessarily preclude an origin by melting of a lherzolitic are modally poor in plagioclase and olivine is partially
source under hydrous conditions. We rule out an exclu- iddingsitized. The prevalence of plagioclase at St Vincent
sively pyroxenite source on the basis of the presence of also results in a compositional hiatus in spinel composition
orthopyroxene-bearing mantle-derived xenoliths from be- (Fig. 13).
neath Grenada (Parkinson et al., 2003). We suggest that the increasing depth of melt generation
is related to the position of Grenada at the southern end
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STAMPER et al. PLUTONIC XENOLITHS AND LAVAS, GRENADA
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JOURNAL OF PETROLOGY VOLUME 55 NUMBER 7 JULY 2014
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