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Crustal xenoliths from Tertiary volcanics of the Northern Hessian Depression

Petrological and chemical evolution

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Abstract

A suite of crustal xenoliths from Tertiary basaltic tuffs of the Northern Hessian Depression (NHD) volcanic field comprises abundant meta-igneous pyroxene granulites of mafic, noritic to anorthositic, IAT and tonalitic composition. Less abundant are granitic, tonalitic and leucogranitic gneisses and metasedimentary xenoliths. A total of 49 samples were analyzed for modal compositions, for major and trace elements (including Li, Rb, Sr, Ba, Cs, V, Sc, Cr, Co, Ni, Y, Zr, Nb, Ta, Hf, Th and REE) and oxygen isotopes. Two-pyroxene thermometry yields temperatures between 700 and 900° C for mafic and noritic granulites. Feldspar thermometry indicates temperatures of 660°–710° C for tonalitic granulites and 470°–520° C for granitic and tonalitic gneisses. One highly depleted sillimanite-rich metasediment contains cordierite and garnet which have equilibrated at temperatures of 780° C. The general lack of garnet in the mafic and noritic granulites and the presence of sillimanite in felsic xenoliths indicates that metamorphic pressures have not exceeded 10 kb. Major and trace element data and oxygen isotope compositions of the mafic granulites are compatible with an origin from spilitized enriched-type MORB rocks (enrichment in δ18O to 11‰ and in Li to 34 ppm at average SiO2 contents of 44.1 wt%). These low-T spilites were transformed into amphibolites and then pyroxene granulites during subsequent high temperature metamorphic events. Low Si, Al, K, and Rb concentrations along with An contents in plagioclase ranging from near 50 to 98 mole percent suggest that amphibolite facies protoliths have generated tonalitic melts during partial melting at temperatures above 700° C. The mafic granulite xenoliths are interpreted as restites whereas the tonalitic samples probably represent the extracted partial melts derived by 20 to 30 percent degree of melting. Metasedimentary xenoliths strongly depleted in granitic component could represent restites from which granitic S-type partial melts have been extracted. Tonalitic and leucogranitic gneisses including one trondhjemite xenolith have many chemical characteristics (e.g. REE distribution) in common with tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite suites of the North Atlantic region but cannot be accounted for a more specific origin. Estimated elastic properties of the main types of NHD xenoliths yield P-wave velocities of 6.0–6.4 km-1 for granitic, tonalitic and trondhjemite gneisses including tonalitic granulites and 6.5–7.0 for the more mafic xenoliths. When compared with two seismic depths-Vp profiles these data are in accordance with a model where the mafic, andesitic, noritic and tonalitic granulites comprise abundant rock types at depths between 29 km (Moho) and 20 km which mainly consists of old oceanic crust including subduction related volcanic products. The more felsic xenoliths probably represent material from depths between 12 and 20 km.

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  1. Geochemisches Institut, Universität Göttingen, Goldschmidtstrasse 1, D-3400, Göttingen, Federal Republic of Germany

    K. Mengel

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Mengel, K. Crustal xenoliths from Tertiary volcanics of the Northern Hessian Depression. Contr. Mineral. and Petrol. 104, 8–26 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00310642

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