Metapelite from the high- to ultrahigh-pressure terrane of the Eastern Alps (Pohorje Mountains, Slovenia)—New pressure, temperature and time constraints on a polymetamorphic rock

Author(s)
Botao Li, Hans Joachim Massonne, Friedrich Koller, Junfeng Zhang
Abstract

The Austroalpine nappe stack of the Pohorje Mountains (Mts.) in northeastern Slovenia comprises a suite of eclogite facies metamorphic rocks that were partially assigned to Eo-Alpine ultrahigh-pressure metamorphism (UHPM). We selected a micaschist, which was previously related to this metamorphism, for a detailed study including the chemical zonation of garnet and potassic white mica, the identification of mineral inclusion assemblages, pseudosection modelling with PERPLE_X, and monazite in-situ dating with the electron microprobe. Polymetamorphism was revealed by (at least) two generations of garnet and phengite and four populations of monazite yielding ages of 283.6 ± 6.1 (2σ), 94.1 ± 3.7, 47.9 ± 10.8 and 26.2 ± 2.8 Ma. The Permian monazite population is characterized by relatively high Y contents (~1.15 wt% Y) and low La/Gd mass ratios (8.7) indicating its formation before the growth of porphyroblastic garnet. The Eo-Alpine population, however, grew synchronously with garnet based on low Y contents (~0.05 wt%) and high La/Gd ratios (21.4). The older Tertiary population (48 Ma) shows also high Y contents (1.1 wt%) and low La/Gd ratios (10.6) whereas the younger Tertiary population is characterized by low Y contents. The Permian P–T conditions of 7.5–10 kbar at 600–650°C were obtained using the inclusion assemblage of staurolite+rutile+biotite in porphyroblastic garnet. High pressure (HP) but no UHPM was reconstructed for both Eo-Alpine coarse phengite (Si = 3.22 per formula unit = pfu) and small Tertiary garnet+fine-grained phengite (Si = 3.27 pfu) at peak pressures ~16 kbar and 18.5–23 kbar respectively. Maximum temperatures close to 650°C were likely reached during the Eo-Alpine HP event, whereas those of the Tertiary HP event were probably ~580°C. These HP metamorphic events suggest that the Pohorje Mts. experienced both an Eo-Alpine and a Tertiary subduction–exhumation history, the latter of which was mainly reported for underlying Penninic nappes so far.

Organisation(s)
Department of Lithospheric Research
External organisation(s)
China University of Geosciences, Universität Stuttgart
Journal
Journal of Metamorphic Geology
Volume
39
Pages
695-726
No. of pages
32
ISSN
0263-4929
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/jmg.12581
Publication date
08-2021
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
105120 Petrology
Keywords
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Geology, Geochemistry and Petrology
Portal url
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/24b2f12e-37f6-434a-bf5b-a41da54a6aed