| Paper No. 176-0 | ||
| PROVENANCE OF SUBDUCTED OCEANIC SEDIMENTS IN THE UHP TERRAINS OF THE WESTERN ALPS | ||
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MAHLEN, Nancy J., Department of Geology and Geophysics, Univ of Wisconsin, Weeks Hall, 1215 W. Dayton Street, Madison, WI 53706-1692, mahlen@geology.wisc.edu and JOHNSON, Clark M., Department of Geology and Geophysics, Univ of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706 Rare Earth Element (REE) concentrations and Nd-isotope compositions are used to constrain pre-collision Tethys paleogeography in the Alpine orogen. The metasedimentary protoliths are manganese-rich, pelagic deep-sea sediments that were deposited during Jurassic/Early Tertiary divergence of the neoTethys ocean and subsequently underwent ultra-high-pressure metamorphism during Eocene subduction. The relative immobility of REEs and resistance of Sm-Nd fractionation during erosion, re-deposition, or metamorphism make the Nd-isotope system well-suited for provenance determination in high-grade metasedimentary rocks. Isotopic and REE data can be broken into three provenance groups: 1) An old upper continental crust source is suggested for the first set (Group 1) based on overall REE patterns, including flat but depleted HREE trends, Eu/Eu*=0.65, and (Sm/Nd)N=0.57. Group 1 samples yield TCHUR of 1.16 to 1.38 Ga and present-day epsilon Nd of -12.5 to -14.8. 2) Mixed provenance of old upper continental crust including recycled crust and juvenile mafic material is indicated for a second suite (Group 2). These samples have lower concentrations of LREE and HREE than Group 1, Eu/Eu* from 0.57 to 0.73, and (Sm/Nd)N varying from 0.61 to 0.66. Group 2 samples have TCHUR of 0.82 to 1.01 Ga and present-day epsilon Nd varying from -7.8 to -8.8. 3) An oceanic crustal source is suggested for the third set (Group 3), based on REE patterns that are similar to MORB, including depleted LREE and enriched HREE relative to LREE, Eu/Eu*=0.95, and (Sm/Nd)N=0.9988. Nd isotope data provide no TCHUR age solutions due to the high present-day epsilon Nd of +8.1. Source terrains during neoTethys divergence included European crust and African/Adriatic crust. These crustal sources are represented as various nappes in the Western Alps and are currently being studied as controls for provenance determination. | ||
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GSA Annual Meeting, November 5-8, 2001
General Information for this Meeting | ||
| Session No. 176 Metamorphic Petrology III Hynes Convention Center: 206 1:30 PM-5:30 PM, Thursday, November 8, 2001 | ||
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