Geology, petrography and emplacement conditions of the Esenköy Pluton (NW Anatolia)

One of the least studied plutons in NW Anatolia, the Esenköy pluton intruded into the Palaeozoic Armutlu metamorphics. Along its southwestern boundary with the Esenköy pluton, basement rocks are found as "roof pendants". Both the Esenköy pluton and the Armutlu metamorphics are cut by aplite and diorite porphyry dykes. The pluton is mainly granodioritic in composition and is made up of 45-50% plagioclase, 25-30% quartz, 12-15% alkali feldspar, 6-9% hornblende, and 3-5% biotite. It exhibits predominantly holocrystalline porphyritic texture, and graphic-granophyric textures are also widespread throughout the main plutonic body. Diorite porphyry dykes display micro-granular porphyritic texture, while aplite dykes commonly show micro-granular texture.

Chemical analyses of plagioclase and amphibole minerals in granodiorite samples reveal that plagioclases are predominantly andesine (An_35-50) in composition. Zoned plagioclases generally show normal zoning with a decrease in calcium ratios from the core to the rims of the crystals. Amphiboles are all calcic in composition and are represented by magnesio-hornblende. Geothermobarometric calculations, using the chemistry of amphiboles and plagioclases from the same samples, yield pressure values ranging from 1.12 to 1.41 kbar and temperature values ranging from 741 to 787 °C. These temperature and pressure conditions suggest that the Esenköy pluton is emplaced at depths of 3.37-4.23 km within the crust. Contact relationships, textural properties and geothermobarometric calculations collectively indicate that the Esenköy pluton is an epizonal pluton that was emplaced into shallow levels of NW Anatolian crust.