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Trace element composition of igneous zircon: a thermal and compositional record of the accumulation and evolution of a large silicic batholith, Spirit Mountain, Nevada

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Abstract

Hafnium, U, Th, and REE content of zircons from the Spirit Mountain batholith in southern Nevada correlate with calculated temperatures from the Ti-in-zircon thermometer to support field and petrologic evidence of rejuvenation of crystal mush and melt extraction events during the 2-million year accumulation of the granitoid batholith. Marked variation in zircon composition from sample to sample, from grain to grain within individual samples, and from zone to zone within individual grains documents in detail a history of fluctuating conditions with repeated episodes of replenishment, reheating, crystal mush rejuvenation, fractional crystallization, and melt segregation. The zircons exhibit compositional and thermal variability indicative of variations in host melt composition due to (1) melt rejuvenation, mixing, and fractionation (2) coeval growth of other REE-rich accessory minerals, and possibly (3) fluctuation in fO2.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by National Science Foundation Grants EAR-0409876 and EAR-0107094. Frank K. Mazdab was instrumental in developing methods for analysis of trace elements in zircon using the SHRIMP-RG that we used in this study. We would like to thank BJ Walker for spending time in the field and in discussion working with us on puzzling out the history of the Spirit Mountain batholith. Discussions with Jonathan Miller regarding behavior of zircon in magmatic systems contributed to this work. Discussions with Ashley Bromley, Guil Gualda, Mark Ghiorso and Bruce Watson contributed to our understanding of \( a_{{{\text{TiO}}_{ 2} }} \) and its influence on the Ti-in-zircon thermometer. Thanks to David Hawkins and an anonymous reviewer for suggestions that improved this manuscript.

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  1. Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA

    Lily L. Claiborne & Calvin F. Miller

  2. Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    Joseph L. Wooden

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  1. Lily L. Claiborne
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  2. Calvin F. Miller
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Correspondence to Lily L. Claiborne.

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Communicated by T. L. Grove.

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Claiborne, L.L., Miller, C.F. & Wooden, J.L. Trace element composition of igneous zircon: a thermal and compositional record of the accumulation and evolution of a large silicic batholith, Spirit Mountain, Nevada. Contrib Mineral Petrol 160, 511–531 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-010-0491-5

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