Reconstruction of the composition of the kimberlite melt of the Bultfontein pipe, Kaapvaal craton
- 1Sobolev Institute of Geology and Mineralogy, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russian Federation (tarasov.alexey@igm.nsc.ru)
- 2Novosibirsk State University, Novosibirsk, Russian Federation
- 3Institute of the Earth’s Crust, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Information about the compositions of primitive kimberlite melts is important for understanding the petrogenesis of kimberlites. Reconstruction of the composition of these melts is very difficult because the melts greatly changed their compositions via assimilation of mantle and crust xenogenic materials and degassing during ascent.
To reconstruct the composition of the kimberlite melt of the Bultfontein pipe (Kaapvaal craton, South Africa), the mineral assemblage of secondary melt inclusions in olivines of mantle peridotite xenoliths from the pipe has been studied. The depths of equilibrium of the studied peridotites range from 120 to 150 km.
The inclusions occur along the healed cracks in the olivine grains. Twenty-five daughter minerals were found in the inclusions by Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Liquids and gases were not detected. The inclusions are mainly made up of carbonates (calcite CaCO3, magnesite MgCO3, dolomite CaMg(CO3)2, eitelite Na2Mg(CO3)2, nyerereite Na2Ca(CO3)2, gregoryite (Na,K,Ca)2CO3, K-Na-Ca-carbonate (K,Na)2Ca(CO3)2, shortite Na2Ca2(CO3)3) or carbonates with additional anions (nahcolite NaHCO3, bradleyite Na3Mg(PO4)(CO3), northupite Na3Mg(CO3)2Cl, burkeite Na6CO3(SO4)2, tychite Na6Mg2(CO3)4(SO4)). Halides (halite NaCl, sylvite KCl), sulfates (glauberite Na2Ca(SO4)2, thenardite Na2SO4, aphthitalite K3Na(SO4)2), phosphate (apatite Ca5(PO4)3(F,Cl,OH)), oxides (rutile TiO2, magnetite FeFe2O4), sulfide (heazlewoodite Ni3S2) and silicates (phlogopite KMg3AlSi3O10(F,Cl,OH), tetraferriphlogopite KMg3FeSi3O10(F,Cl,OH), richterite Na2Ca(Mg,Fe,Mn,Al)5[Si4O11](OH,F)2) are also present in the inclusions.
These inclusions are considered to be relics of a near‐primary or primitive kimberlitic melt that later formed the Bultfontein pipe. The observed mineral assemblage indicates that the captured melt had an alkali-carbonatitic composition and was rich in Cl and S.
This work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grant No. 20-35-70058).
How to cite: Tarasov, A., Golovin, A., and Sharygin, I.: Reconstruction of the composition of the kimberlite melt of the Bultfontein pipe, Kaapvaal craton, EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022, EGU22-6844, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-6844, 2022.
