Geology 330A Lab Tutorial - Identification of Tectonic Environment from Rock Chemistry

    Analyzing the data in MOROCCAN.WK1 using NEWPET

    You have been provided with 61 analyses of samples collected from the Late Precambrian volcanic complex of Bou Azzer in the Anti-Atlas Mountains of southern Morocco, and two standard oceanic basalts. The Moroccan data is taken from papers by Bodinier et al. 1984, and Naidoo et al 1991, and is contained in the Lotus 1-2-3 file 'MOROCCAN.WK1' created by importing the ascii file ANAL.DAT into EXCEL. MOROCCAN.WK1 was then converted to the NEWPET .ROC file format using the Newpet conversion program.

    The data has been selected on the basis of location, and has been symbol and colour coded as follows. (The locations and sample numbers are also shown on the accompanying sheet andmap (created from FIELDLOG)):

    Symbol#  colour#    symbol            colour    Area       Samples:

    1                1         circle                black   Atlantic     3-18 (oceanic basalt)

    2                2         half filled circle  green   Atlantic     210 (oceanic basalt)

    3                3         filled circle         lt blue  Menissi     8-1, 2, 13, 19 (basalt, andesite)

    4               4         open square       red      Diorites     1273; 1172; 285; 701 (diorites)

    5               5          half filled square pink    Oumarou  1200 (M-G); 1199 (diab); A8 (diab);

                                                                                     1K13D1C etc. (diab); 1-8, 9, 11 (diab)

                                                                                     1179 (pillow lava); 575 (M-G); 569 (M-G);

                                                                                     1403 (diab)

    6              6           filled square        orange Bleida      9-2, 11; 10-1, 5, 7; 14-8, 10 (basalt)

    7              7           open triangle       white   Ousdrat   1167 (basalt/spilite); 2-6 (and),11 (rhy);

                                                                                      4-11, 13 (basalt); 6-5 (rhy), 9 (basalt);

                                                                                      11-5a, 11, 13, 14, 24 (andesite); 12-4 (and),

                                                                                       9 (dacite),14 (dacite),17 (and)

    8             8             filled triangle      grey      Skouraz   734, 1184, 736 (spilite); 7-4,12,15 (basalt)

    9             9             triangle              blue      Dwaissat   3-7; 13-2, 3, 14 (basaltic);743 (diab);

    10          10            triangle              green    Bou Azzer 311 (cpxite)

    The data points in all plots made in NewPet will therefore be recognisable in terms of symbol and colour.

    The exercise involves establishing, where possible, the tectonic affiliation or environment of formation of individual or sets of related samples, as the case may be, through an analysis of the plots of the data made by NewPet. Bear in mind that that at any given location there may be several tectonic environments represented e.g. oceanic and island arc rocks.

    PROCEDURE

    The NewPet program and the data files are located in the folder ‘Mapped drive\Public\Es300b\Newpet on Earthnt’. Make a note of the drive letter attributed to the mapped drive. Click the ‘My Computer’ icon (or NT Explorer) and select Public\Es300b on Earthnt, and then the subdirectory (folder) ‘NewPet’. To implement ‘NewPet’ double click the ‘NewPet.exe’ file. The NewPet DOS window will appear. Press any key to continue.

    Cursor to the plot option ‘3 NewDisc discrimination X-Y, Ternary plots’ and press ENTER. A 'Discrimination Plots' menu will appear. Cursor down to the 'Get a data file' line and press the ENTER key. If the mapped drive letter does not correspond to the default data directory indicated on the screen, enter the mapped drive letter for 'Earthnet\Public', and then add the path 'Es300\newpet', e.g. G:\Es300\newpet. In the NewPet folder select ‘moroccan.roc’ and press the ENTER key.

    To change the plot symbols select 'Change Plot Symbols' and then 'Individual Samples'. A table of sample names and their symbol and colour attributes will appear on the screen. Cursor down to sample 701 and press Enter. A symbol box will appear. Cursor down to number 4 (Box-open) and press ENTER. Cursor down to 4 (red) in the colour box that now appears. Press ENTER. Carry out the same procedure to change sample 1179 to symbol and colour value 11, and sample 743 to value 9. Upon completion, press ESC to return to the Discrimination Plots menu.

    Select Majors Discrimination Plots and then SiO2 - Na2O + K2O to see alkali - silica rock classification. Note that most samples range from basalt to rhyolite, but that some samples are enriched in alkalies and fall in the trachyandesite field, others are almost devoid of alkalies, and that one of the Dwaissat samples is particularly enriched in Na+K. These variations may indicate that alkalies have been mobile during the low-grade metamorphism of the rocks, and that the use of alkali plots is suspect. Systematically examine the information provided for each region (choose data by symbol) using the various plots listed in the 'Major Discrimination Plot' menu and the 'Traces Discrimination Plots' menu. In particular examine the FeO/MgO v TiO2 plot and the Ti/100-Zr-3*Y diagrams, and write down your observations concerning the spacial distribution of the colour coded samples. Identify the various tectonic environments (WP, MORB, LKT, CA) represented by the samples, on the map provided. Look at some of the samples as SPIDERGRAMS.

SAMPLES

                                                      COORDS
SAMPLE  NAME,                        X,     Y     SYMBOL     COLOUR     ROCK TYPE

3-18 (9),                                                                   1,           1,               depleted MORB

2-10 (2),                                                                   2,           2,               enriched MORB

8-1 MENISSI N,                         3960, 3775,         3,              3,           ANDESITE

8-13 MENISSI N,                       3960, 3775,         3,             3,             BASALT

8-19 MENISSI N,                       3960, 3775,         3,             3,             BASALT

8-2 MENISSI N,                         3960, 3775,         3,             3,             BASALT

1273 OUS DIOR B,                   3870, 3890,          4,               4,             DIORITE

701 GRAARA OPH B,             3900, 3840,          4,               4,             DIORITE

1172 OUM OPH DIOR B,         3350, 3865,         4,             4,               DIORITE

285 OUM OPH DIOR B,           3485, 3950,         4,             4,              DIORITE

1200 OUM OPH MGB B,          3867, 3858,         5,             5,             MASS_GABBRO

1199 OUM OPH SD B,              3867,  3858,         5,             5,             DIABASE

A8 OUM OPH SD B,                3867, 3858,         5,              5,             DIABASE

IK13D1C OUM DINSERP N,   3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

IK20DY1B OUM DINSERP N, 3850, 3867,         5,             5,             ANDESITE

IK23F4C OUM DINSERP N,    3850, 3867,        5,              5,             BASALTIC

IK38DB2 OUM DINSERP N,   3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

IK40FSC OUM DINSERP N,   3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

IK52F3C OUM DINSERP N,   3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

IK8D1C OUM DINSERP N,    3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

1-11 OUM DINSERP N,           3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

IK1CF3BC OUM SD N,           3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALTIC

IK37CF2C OUM SD N,            3850, 3867,         5,             5,             ANDESITE

IK4CF1DC OUM SD N,           3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

1-8 OUM SD N,                         3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

1-9 OUM SD N,                         3850, 3867,         5,             5,             BASALT

1179 GRAA C OPH P B,             3932, 3815,         5,          5,             PILLOW_LAVA

575 GRAA C OPH D B,             3850, 3870,         5,            5,             DIABASE

569 GRAA C OPH G B,             3860, 3860,         5,             5,             MASS_GABBRO

1403 GRAA C OPH D B,         3830, 3880,           5,             5,             DIABASE

9-11 BLEIDA N,                       4020, 3728,         6,             6,             BASALT

9-2 BLEIDA N,                         4020, 3728,         6,             6,             BAS-ANDESITE

10-5 BLEIDA N,                     4000, 3725,         6,             6,               BASALT

10-7 BLEIDA N,                     4000, 3725,         6,             6,               BASALT

10-1 BLEIDA N,                     4000, 3725,         6,             6,             BASALT

14-10 BLEIDA N,                   4025, 3715,         6,             6,             BASALT

14-8 BLEIDA N,                     4025, 3715,         6,             6,             BASALTIC

1167 OUS B,                             3890, 3876,       7,             7,             SPILITE

2-11 OUS N,                             3900, 3875,         7,           7,             RHYOLITE

2-6 OUS N,                             3900, 3876,         7,             7,            ANDESITE

4-11 OUS N,                             3950, 3837,         7,             7,             BASALT

4-13 OUS N,                             3935, 3845,         7,             7,             BASALT

6-5 OUS N,                             4055, 3765,         7,             7,             RHYOLITE

6-9 OUS N,                             4055, 3765,         7,             7,             BASALT

11-5A OUS N,                         3940, 3840,         7,             7,             RHYOLITE

11-11 OUS N,                             3940, 3840,      7,             7,             BAS-ANDESITE

11-13 OUS N,                             3940, 3840,     7,             7,             ANDESITE

11-14 OUS N,                             3940, 3840,     7,             7,             ANDESITE

11-24 OUS N,                             3940, 3840,     7,             7,             ANDESITE

12-4 OUS N,                             3875, 3872,       7,             7,             ANDESITE

12-9 OUS N,                             3875, 3872,       7,             7,             DACITE

12-14 OUS N,                         3875, 3872,         7,             7,             DACITE

12-17 OUS N,                         3875, 3872,         7,             7,             ANDESITE

734 SKOURAZ B,                 3900, 3810,         8,             8,             SPILITE

1184 SKOURAZ B,               3900, 3810,         8,             8,             SPILITE

736 SKOURAZ B,                3900, 3810,          8,             8,             SPILITE

7-12 SKOURAZ N,             3930, 3790,           8,             8,             BASALT

7-15 SKOURAZ N,             3930, 3790,          8,             8,             ANDESITE

7-4 SKOURAZ N,                3930, 3790,         8,             8,             BASALT

3-7 DWAISSAT N,             3932, 3815,         9,             9,             BASALT

13-2 DWAISSAT N,           3943, 3812,         9,             9,             BAS-ANDESITE

13-3 DWAISSAT N,           3943, 3812,         9,             9,             BASALT

13-14 DWAISSAT N,         3943, 3812,         9,             9,             BASALT

743 W GRAA C B,              3945, 3810,         9,             9,             DIABASE

311 BOU B,                          3500, 3950,         10,          10,            CPYROXENITE

B = Boudier et al.; N = Naidoo et al; oph = ophiolite; SD - sheeted diabase;

DINSERP = diabase intruding serpentine; DIOR = diorite