Diamonds and other unusual minerals from peridotites of the Myitkyina ophiolite, Myanmar

作者:Chen, Yanhong; Yang, Jingsui*; Xu, Zhiqin; Tian, Yazhou; Lai, Shengmin
来源:Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 2018, 164: 179-193.
DOI:10.1016/j.jseaes.2018.06.018

摘要

Peridotites from the Myitkyina ophiolite are mainly composed of lherzolite and harzburgite. The lherzolites have relatively fertile compositions, with 39.40-43.40 wt% MgO, 1.90-3.17 wt% Al2O3 and 1.75-2.84 wt% CaO. They contain spinel and olivine with lower Cr# (12.6-18.2) and Fo values (88.7-91.6) than those of the harzburgites (24.5-59.7 and 89.6-91.6 respectively). The harzburgites have more refractory compositions, containing 42.40-46.23 wt% MgO, 0.50-1.64 wt% Al2O3 and 0.40-1.92 wt% CaO. PGE contents of the peridotites show an affinity to the residual mantle. Evaluation of petrological and geochemical characteristics of these peridotites suggests that the lherzolites and harzburgites represent residual mantle after low to moderate degrees of partial melting, respectively, in the spinel stability field. The U-shaped, primitive mantle-normalized REE patterns and strong positive Ta and Pb anomalies of the harzburgites suggest melt/fluid refertilization in either a MOR or SSZ setting after their formation at a MOR. Mineral separation of the peridotites has yield a range of exotic minerals, including diamond, moissanite, native Si, rutile and zircon, a collection similar to that reported for ophiolites of Tibet and the Polar Urals. The discovery of these exotic minerals in the Myitkyina ophiolite supports the view that they occur widely in the upper oceanic mantle.