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Major and trace element composition of surface sediments from the Southwest Indian Ridge: evidence for the incorporation of a hydrothermal component

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Abstract

Hydrothermal materials in deep-sea sediments provide a robust tracer to the localized hydrothermal activity at mid-ocean ridges. Major, trace and rare earth element (REE) data for surface sediments collected from the ultraslow spreading Southwest Indian Ridge are presented to examine the existence of hydrothermal component. Biogenic carbonate oozes dominate all the sediment samples, with CaO content varying from 85.5% to 89.9% on a volatile-free basis. The leaching residue of bulk sediments by ~5% HCl is compositionally comparable to the Upper Continental Crust (UCC) in SiO2, Al2O3, CaO, MgO, alkali elements (Rb, Cs) and high field strength elements (Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf, Ti). These detritus-hosted elements are inferred to be prominently derived from the Australian continent by means of eolian dust, while the contribution of local volcaniclastics is insignificant. In addition, the residual fraction shows a clear enrichment in Fe, Mn, and Ba compared with the UCC. Combining the positive Eu anomaly of residual fraction which is opposed to the UCC but the characteristic of hydrothermal fluids and associated precipitates occurred at mid-ocean ridges, the incorporation of localized hydrothermal component can be constrained. REE mixing calculations indicate that more than half REE within the residual fraction (~55%–60%) are derived from a hydrothermal component, which is inferred to be resulted from a diffuse fluid mineralization. The low-temperature diffuse flow may be widely distributed along the slow-ultraslow spreading ridges where crustal faults and fissures abound, and probably have a great mineralization potential.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Submarine Geoscience, Second Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration (SOA), Hangzhou, 310012, China

    Zhenggang Li, Fengyou Chu, Lu Jin, Xiaohu Li, Yanhui Dong, Ling Chen & Jihao Zhu

  2. Department of Earth Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China

    Zhenggang Li, Fengyou Chu, Lu Jin & Ling Chen

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  1. Zhenggang Li
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  2. Fengyou Chu
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  3. Lu Jin
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  4. Xiaohu Li
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  5. Yanhui Dong
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  7. Jihao Zhu
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Correspondence to Fengyou Chu.

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Foundation item: The National Key Basic Research Program of China under contract Nos 2013CB429705 and 2013CB429701; the National Natural Science Foundation of China under contract Nos 41176045 and 41376067; the Scientific Research Fund of the Second Institute of Oceanography, the SOA of China under contract Nos JG1403 and JT1304.

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Li, Z., Chu, F., Jin, L. et al. Major and trace element composition of surface sediments from the Southwest Indian Ridge: evidence for the incorporation of a hydrothermal component. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 35, 101–108 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-015-0678-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-015-0678-8

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