Peter C. Lightfoot

Geochemistry of the Siberian Trap of the Noril'sk area, USSR, with implications for the relative contributions of crust and mantle to flood basalt magmatism

The sequence investigated of the Siberian Trap at Norilsk, USSR, consists of at least 45 flows that have been divided into six lava suites. The lower three suites consist of alkalic to subalkalic basalts (the Ivakinsky suite), overlain by nonporphyritic basalts (the Syverminsky suite), and porphyritic and picritic basalts (the Gudchikhinsky suite). The upper three suites are tholeiitic. The uppermost 750 m of dominantly non-porphyritic basalt belong to the Mokulaevsky suite and are characterized by a nearly constant Mg number (0.54–0.56), SiO2 (48.2–49.1 wt%), Ce (12–18 ppm), and Ce/Yb (5–8). The underlying 1100 m of dominantly porphyritic basalt belong to the Morongovsky and Nadezhdinsky suites. There is a continuous increase in SiO2 (48.1–55.2 wt%), Ce (12–41 ppm), and Ce/Yb (5–18) from the top of the Mokulaevsky to the base of the Nadezhdinsky with little change in the Mg number (0.53–0.59). Mokulaevsky magmas have trace element signatures similar to slightly contaminated transitional type mid-ocean ridge basalts. The change in major and trace element geochemistry in the upper three suites is consistent with a decline in the degree of anatexis and assimilation of tonalitic upper crust by Mokulaevsky magma. The Nadezhdinsky and underlaying lavas thicken within and thus appear to be related to an elongate basin centred on the Norilsk-Talnakh mining camp. The Mokulaevsky and Morongovsky lavas thicken to the east and appear to be related to a basin centred more than 100 km to the east of the Norilsk region; these magmas may have risen up out of a different conduit system.

Petrogenesis of the flood-basalt sequence at Noril'sk, North Central Siberia

The 3500-m-thick sequence of volcanic rocks at Norilsk, formed during a brief interval (∼1 m.y.) at the Permian/Triassic time boundary (∼251 Ma), represents the earliest part of the ∼6500-m-thick sequence presently ascribed to the Siberian flood-basalt province. It is composed of picritic and basaltic lavas of both low-Ti and high-Ti parentage. Extensive geological, geochemical, and isotopic study of the lava sequence and related intrusions allows detailed reconstruction of its petrogenesis. Various crustal-related processes-fractionation, crustal contamination, sulfide separation, and magma mixing-participated in the formation of the lavas. The geochemical and isotopic characteristics indicative of these processes, as well as mantle-related signatures of lava compositions, are discussed. Based on these characteristics, detailed interpretations of lava genesis and evolution throughout the Norilsk sequence are presented. Eight varieties of lavas are recognized to be primitive, similar in composition to p...

Crustal Contamination Identified in Keweenawan Osler Group Tholeiites, Ontario: A Trace Element Perspective

In the Lake Superior area, voluminous Middle Proterozoic tholeiitic basalt with minor rhyolite and interflow sediments occupy the Midcontinent Rift and overlie Archean and older Proterozoic basement. The 3000 m-thick section of gently dipping (~10°SSE) basalts on the Black Bay Peninsula is divided into three suites based on the relationship between stratigraphy, petrography, and geochemical variations (e.g., Mg-number,

Flood Basalts and Magmatic Ni, Cu, and PGE Sulphide Mineralization: Comparative Geochemistry of the Noril'sk (Siberian Traps) and West Greenland Sequences

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Geochemistry of Tertiary tholeiites and picrites from Qeqertarssuaq (Disko Island) and Nuussuaq, West Greenland with implications for the mineral potential of comagmatic intrusions

, La/Sm, and Gd/Yb). The Lower suite consists of augite-olivine porphyritic lavas with high Mg-number,

Chemical variation in the Insizwa Complex, Transkei, and the nature of the parent magma

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