EGU21-12019, updated on 04 Mar 2021
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-12019
EGU General Assembly 2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Boron isotope systematics of Higashi-akaishi mantle wedge peridotites (Sanbagawa belt, Japan): implications for fluid recycling in subduction zones

Cees-Jan De Hoog1, Keiko Hattori2, and Eleri Clarke1
Cees-Jan De Hoog et al.
  • 1School of GeoSciences, The University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom (ceesjan.dehoog@ed.ac.uk)
  • 2Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Boron provides an efficient tracer of fluids in subduction zones, due to its high concentration in surface reservoirs, low concentration in the mantle, and large isotope fractionation. The Higashi-akaishi peridotite body in Sanbagawa UHP belt, Japan, is composed of partially serpentinised dunites and harzburgites, which are interpreted to be exhumed mantle wedge peridotites. Compositions of olivine (Fo90-94, NiO 0.28-0.48 wt%, MnO 0.10-0.16 wt%) and chromite (Cr# >0.7, TiO2 <0.4 wt%) confirm its origin as highly refractory fore-arc mantle. Several generations of olivine and serpentine can be recognised in the samples, and were analysed in-situ for their B content and B isotopic composition by SIMS. Coarse-grained primary mantle olivine has low [B] (1-3 µg/g), but is still significantly B-enriched compared to typical mantle olivine, and has δ11B of -10 to -3 ‰. Lower B contents in olivine cores compared to rims suggests diffusive incorporation of B from slab-derived fluids at high temperature.  Later fine-grained olivine neoblasts, products of dynamic recrystallization, have higher [B] (3-11 µg/g) and higher δ11B (-7 to +2‰). Platy antigorite associated with the olivine neoblasts have similar [B] (4-12 µg/g) but higher δ11B (-4 to +6‰). Late-stage greenschist-facies overprint resulted in lizardite veining with high [B] (18-52 µg/g) and a narrow range of δ11B (-2 to -1‰).

We envisage the following scenario. Coarse-grained mantle olivine acquired B from slab-derived fluids when the peridotites were dragged down by mantle corner flow and positioned near the slab-mantle interface. The values of δ11B (-10 to -3‰) are consistent with fluids from dehydrating slab at ca. 110-150 km depth, but are potentially affected by diffusion-controlled kinetic isotope fractionation. High temperatures (> 650-700°C) prevented the peridotites from serpentinisation. Subsequently the rocks were down-dragged in a subduction channel where olivine neoblasts formed first and platy antigorite crystallized later when temperature dropped below 650°C. Both phases show heavier δ11B than coarse-grained olivine; the values are consistent with fluids from dehydrating slab at ca. 70-100 km depth. Finally, the peridotites were exposed to crust-derived B-rich fluids with low δ11B during exhumation and amalgamation with crustal units, forming lizardite veining during greenschist-facies overprint.

This study shows that mantle olivine may scavenge significant amounts of B from percolating fluids by diffusive re-equilibration or dynamic recrystallisation, lowering the B content of such fluids and potentially modifying their B isotopic composition.

How to cite: De Hoog, C.-J., Hattori, K., and Clarke, E.: Boron isotope systematics of Higashi-akaishi mantle wedge peridotites (Sanbagawa belt, Japan): implications for fluid recycling in subduction zones, EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-12019, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-12019, 2021.

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