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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Earth Sci.

Sec. Petrology

Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/feart.2025.1588092

Petrogenesis of Dark Enclaves and Magmatic Processes in the Early Paleozoic Fushui Mafic Complex from the Qinling Orogenic Belt, Central China

Provisionally accepted
Bokang Zhu Bokang Zhu 1,2*Xiaoying Liao Xiaoying Liao 1,2*Yongsheng Gai Yongsheng Gai 1,2Liang Liu Liang Liu 1,2Ge Wang Ge Wang 1,2Sang Wan Pak Sang Wan Pak 1,2Wenqiang Yang Wenqiang Yang 1,2
  • 1 Northwest University, Xi'an, China
  • 2 State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Northwest University, Xi'an, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The enclaves in igneous rocks provide valuable insights into the petrogenetic processes, and the origin and evolution of magmas. The Fushui Complex in the Qinling Orogenic Belt contains many dark enclaves, including hornblendite and dark gabbro. In this study, we investigates these enclaves and the host rocks, aiming to explore their petrogenesis and relationship. On this basis, we further restored the magmatic evolution of the complex. Zircon U-Pb dating show the host rocks are crystallized at 484-492 Ma, and the hornblendite enclaves share relatively consistent crystallized ages around 500 Ma. However, some of the zircons in the hornblendite enclaves record a younger crystallized age of 475 Ma, suggesting a continuous magmatic process. The host rocks and dark gabbro enclaves exhibit arc-like trace-element signatures. In contrast, the hornblendite enclaves exhibit more variable, likely reflecting different degrees of magma mixing. Some hornblendite enclaves share similar geochemical characteristics with the host rocks, while most are enriched in Th and U, depleted in HFSE and Sr, and show slightly enriched in LREE or flat REE distribution patterns. Compared to the host rocks, the hornblendites exhibit more depleted Sr-Nd isotope compositions. Trace element modeling indicates that the Fushui Complex was originated from a metasomatized mantle, influenced by subducted oceanic and continental crust. The hornblendite enclaves, characterized by orthocumulate texture, the earlier crystallization age, are interpreted as the early cumulates formed in a deep magma chamber, and the maximum crystallization temperature and pressure were 871 °C and 13.7 kbar. The dark gabbro enclaves are characterized by fine-grained textures, field occurrence indicative of late-stage crystallization, and geochemical similarities with the host rock. These features suggest that they are the product of the rapid crystallization of the host magma at the edge of the magma chamber. Their crystallization temperature and pressure are 852 °C and 11.9 kbar. Integrating geochronological, geochemical, mineralogical data with previous studies, we identify three magmatic intrusion events and a greenschist-to amphibolite-facies metamorphic overprint event within the Fushui Complex. This study represents the first detailed investigation of dark enclaves in the Fushui Complex and provide new insight into their petrogenesis and the magmatic evolution.

    Keywords: Dark enclaves, Fushui Mafic Complex, Hornblende composition, Hornblenderich cumulates, Multi-stage magmatic intrusion

    Received: 05 Mar 2025; Accepted: 27 Mar 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Zhu, Liao, Gai, Liu, Wang, Pak and Yang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Bokang Zhu, Northwest University, Xi'an, China
    Xiaoying Liao, State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Northwest University, Xi'an, 710069, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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