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Petrogenesis of a tholeiite-boninite sequence from Ayios Mamas, Troodos ophiolite: evidence for splitting of a volcanic arc?

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Abstract

Lavas and intrusives from Ayios Mamas, at the western end of the Limassol Forest Complex, south of the Arakapas Fault Belt, Troodos, comprise three groups: (A) a basal sequence of pillow lavas (intruded by dikes and sills) with the phenocryst assemblage PLAG+CPX+MT±OL; (B) a middle sequence of pillows and massive flows [CPX+PLAG±OL]; and (C) an upper sequence mostly of pillows and breccia [OL+OPX+CPX+SP]. The lower group is tholeiitic, and the upper two groups boninitic. Group C whole-rock and glass Mg-numbers exceed 72 and range up to 78, with corresponding olivine compositions of Fo92. They are strongly depleted in high-field strength elements, and on the basis of Cr-Y variation and major element mass balances, are interpreted to reflect partial melting of a basalt-depleted (CPX-) harzburgite source. Group A tholeiites, in contrast, are interpreted to derive from a more fertile lherzolite source. Magmaphile and compatible trace element variation is best modelled after an open magma system, involving periodic replenishment, tapping, and fractionation, although neither tholeiites nor boninites represent “steady-state” compositions. The boninites belong to a CaO-rich, SiO2-poor variant, resembling those from Guam, but contrasting with those from Bonin and Cape Vogel. MORB-normalized enrichment of low-field strength elements K, Sr, Ba, and Rb in all groups indicates subduction-derived source contamination. It is proposed that the Ayios Mamas section reflects splitting of a volcanic arc, prior to back-arc spreading in an environment analogous to that of the present-day Andaman Sea.

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  1. Department of Geological Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, PO Box 4348, 60680, Chicago, IL, USA

    Martin F. J. Flower & Herbert M. Levine

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Flower, M.F.J., Levine, H.M. Petrogenesis of a tholeiite-boninite sequence from Ayios Mamas, Troodos ophiolite: evidence for splitting of a volcanic arc?. Contr. Mineral. and Petrol. 97, 509–524 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00375328

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