Domainal petrofabric analysis of micaceous quartzite using EBSD data: Role of muscovite in LPO evolution of quartz

Abstract

Lattice Preferred Orientation (LPO) of quartz and muscovite are measured in a micaceous quartzite using SEM based Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) analysis. The measurements were done in a thin section prepared parallel to the K₁K₃ plane of the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) ellipsoid, which is equivalent to the XZ plane of the strain ellipsoid. Bulk data from the sample reveal that quartz c-axis develop an oblique single girdle LPO pattern indicating a dextral sense of shear. A similar pattern is produced by poles to the basal planes (001) of muscovite, which implies that muscovite controls the LPO of quartz in the rock. Petrofabric analysis of quartz is performed in domains viz. (I) not containing muscovite, (II) between two muscovite grains, and (III) rim of quartz grains around a muscovite grain. Quartz LPO pattern in Domain-III is noted to be similar to the bulk LPO recorded from the whole sample, thus confirming that muscovite was critical in textural evolution of the rock. The study thus establishes that a minor mineral phase in a rock can control the LPO of the major mineral phase, thus playing a significant role in development of bulk texture of the rock. The advantages of domainal petrofabric analysis in evaluation of slip systems in minerals in different parts of a rock, and vorticity quantification are discussed.