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1.
We present Os and Sr isotopes and Mg, Os, and Sr concentrations for ridge-crest high-temperature and diffuse hydrothermal fluids, plume fluids and ridge-flank warm spring fluids from the Juan de Fuca Ridge. The data are used to evaluate the extent to which (1) the high- and low-temperature hydrothermal alteration of mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORBs) provides Os to the deep oceans, and (2) hydrothermal contributions of non-radiogenic Os and Sr to the oceans are coupled. The Os and Sr isotopic ratios of the high-temperature fluids (265-353 °C) are dominated by basalts (187Os/188Os = 0.2; 87Sr/86Sr = 0.704) but the concentrations of these elements are buffered approximately at their seawater values. The 187Os/188Os of the hydrothermal plume fluids collected ∼1 m above the orifice of Hulk vent is close to the seawater value (=1.05). The low-temperature diffuse fluids (10-40 °C) associated with ridge-crest high-temperature hydrothermal systems on average have [Os] = 31 fmol kg−1, 187Os/188Os = 0.9 and [Sr] = 86 μmol kg−1, 87Sr/86Sr = 0.709. They appear to result from mixing of a high-temperature fluid and a seawater component. The ridge-flank warm spring fluids (10-62 °C) on average yield [Os] = 22 fmol kg−1, 187Os/188Os = 0.8 and [Sr] = 115 μmol kg−1, 87Sr/86Sr = 0.708. The data are consistent with isotopic exchange of Os and Sr between basalt and circulating seawater during low-temperature hydrothermal alteration. The average Sr concentration in these fluids appears to be similar to seawater and consistent with previous studies. In comparison, the average Os concentration is less than seawater by more than a factor of two. If these data are representative they indicate that low-temperature alteration of MORB does not provide adequate non-radiogenic Os and that another source of mantle Os to the oceans must be investigated. At present, the magnitude of non-radiogenic Sr contribution via low-temperature seawater alteration is not well constrained. If non-radiogenic Sr to the oceans is predominantly from the alteration of MORB, our data suggest that there must be a different source of non-radiogenic Os and that the Os and Sr isotope systems in the oceans are decoupled.  相似文献   

2.
Low-temperature (<13°C) diffuse hydrothermal fluids were sampled directly at the seafloor with a specially designed Hydro Bottom Station in the North Fiji Basin and analyzed for gases, major and minor elements, and a large number of trace metals. The fluids were significantly enriched in CO2, Si, Li, Rb, Cs, Ba, Mn, and several trace metals compared to ambient seawater, had high CH4 and H2S concentrations, and had a slightly decreased salinity. Calculated end-member concentrations of the low-temperature fluids show a strong similarity to the neighboring hot vents, implying that the diffuse fluids are hot vent waters diluted by seawater. According to the chemical composition, the sampled fluids derive from vapor-phase fluids produced by subseafloor boiling and phase separation. Compared to hot vents from other regions, Mn, Fe, and other trace metal concentrations are low. Subsurface metal sulfide precipitation during cooling and dilution with seawater has further decreased the dissolved metal contents of the diffuse fluids, thus creating a very favorable environment for the hydrothermal fauna, as indicated by a very low Fe/H2S ratio. Therefore, the fluids support high bioproductivity but no hydrothermal mineral precipitation. The emanation of the condensed vapor phase appears to have been stable during the past 10 years; however, the occurrence of metal sulfide particles in some fluid and sediment samples and small areas of dead fauna indicate that the hydrothermal system may be evolving toward the emanation of the stored brine phase.  相似文献   

3.
Although commonly utilized in continental geothermal work, the water-hydrogen and methane-hydrogen isotope geothermometers have been neglected in hydrothermal studies. Here we report δD-CH4 and δD-H2 values from high-temperature, black smoker-type hydrothermal vents and low-temperature carbonate-hosted samples from the recently discovered Lost City Hydrothermal Field. Methane deuterium content is uniform across the dataset at − 120 ± 12‰. Hydrogen δD values vary from − 420‰ to − 330‰ at high-temperature vents to − 700‰ to − 600‰ at Lost City. The application of several geothermometer equations to a suite of hydrothermal vent volatile samples reveals that predicted temperatures are similar to measured vent temperatures at high-temperature vents, and 20-60 °C higher than those measured at the Lost City vents. We conclude that the overestimation of temperature at Lost City reflects 1) that methane and hydrogen are produced by serpentinization at > 110 °C, and 2) that isotopic equilibrium at temperatures < 70 °C is mediated by microbial sulfate reduction. The successful application of hydrogen isotope geothermometers to low-temperature Lost City hydrothermal samples encourages its employment with low-temperature diffuse hydrothermal fluids.  相似文献   

4.
A unique dataset from paired low- and high-temperature vents at 9°50′N East Pacific Rise provides insight into the microbiological activity in low-temperature diffuse fluids. The stable carbon isotopic composition of CH4 and CO2 in 9°50′N hydrothermal fluids indicates microbial methane production, perhaps coupled with microbial methane consumption. Diffuse fluids are depleted in 13C by ∼10‰ in values of δ13C of CH4, and by ∼0.55‰ in values of δ13C of CO2, relative to the values of the high-temperature source fluid (δ13C of CH4 =−20.1 ± 1.2‰, δ13C of CO2 =−4.08 ± 0.15‰). Mixing of seawater or thermogenic sources cannot account for the depletions in 13C of both CH4 and CO2 at diffuse vents relative to adjacent high-temperature vents. The substrate utilization and 13C fractionation associated with the microbiological processes of methanogenesis and methane oxidation can explain observed steady-state CH4 and CO2 concentrations and carbon isotopic compositions. A mass-isotope numerical box model of these paired vent systems is consistent with the hypothesis that microbial methane cycling is active at diffuse vents at 9°50′N. The detectable 13C modification of fluid geochemistry by microbial metabolisms may provide a useful tool for detecting active methanogenesis.  相似文献   

5.
The Loihi hydrothermal plume provides an opportunity to investigate iron (Fe) oxidation and microbial processes in a system that is truly Fe dominated and distinct from mid-ocean ridge spreading centers. The lack of hydrogen sulfide within the Loihi hydrothermal fluids and the presence of an oxygen minimum zone at this submarine volcano’s summit, results in a prolonged presence of reduced Fe within the dispersing non-buoyant plume. In this study, we have investigated the potential for microbial carbon fixation within the Loihi plume. We sampled for both particulate and dissolved organic carbon in hydrothermal fluids, microbial mats growing around vents, and the dispersing plume, and carried out stable carbon isotope analysis on the particulate fraction. The δ13C values of the microbial mats ranged from −23‰ to −28‰, and are distinct from those of deep-ocean particulate organic carbon (POC). The mats and hydrothermal fluids were also elevated in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) compared to background seawater. Within the hydrothermal plume, DOC and POC concentrations were elevated and the isotopic composition of POC within the plume suggests mixing between background seawater POC and a 13C-depleted hydrothermal component. The combination of both DOC and POC increasing in the dispersing plume that cannot solely be the result of entrainment and DOC adsorption, provides strong evidence for in-situ microbial productivity by chemolithoautotrophs, including a likelihood for iron-oxidizing microorganisms.  相似文献   

6.
We present first data on the geochemistry, mineralogy and morphology of near-vent sediments (35 and 200 m from active vent) and ridge flank sediments (approximately 3 km from the vent field) as well as oxyhydroxide deposits from the Endeavour segment, Juan de Fuca Ridge. The purpose of the study was to understand better the origin and characteristic features of metalliferous sediments associated with base and precious metal massive sulfides in volcanic terrains. Hydrothermal components in sediments are Fe-Si ± S-rich and Mn-Fe-Si-rich phases, sulfides and barite, which were exclusively derived from plume fallout. Sulfides are only a minor constituent of near-vent sediments (2-4 wt%) and were not detected in ridge flank sediments. The study suggests that the distribution of hydrothermal phases and associated elements in near-vent and ridge flank sediments is affected mainly by processes of agglomeration, dissolution, absorption and settling that take place within a plume and to a lesser extent post-depositional processes. Rapid deposition of sulfides in the vicinity of the vents is reflected in a sharp drop of the Cu concentrations in sediments with increasing distance from the vents. Besides sulfides, important carriers of Pb, Cu, Zn and Co in near-vent sediments are Fe-Mn oxyhydroxides that occur together with silica as aggregates of gel-like material and flaky particles and as coatings on filaments. Away from the vents, trace metals are mostly in Fe-Mn oxyhydroxides and authigenic Fe-rich montmorillonite. Oxyhydroxides at the Main Endeavour field are interpreted to have originated from oxidation of mound sulfides accompanied by precipitation of primary Fe-oxyhydroxide + silica from low-temperature fluids. At the Mothra field, seafloor deposits and chimney crusts composed of Fe-oxyhydroxide ± Mn + silica are considered to be direct precipitates from hydrothermal fluids that have been less diluted with seawater. Oxyhydroxide deposits exhibit unique microtextures that resemble mineralized microorganisms and may indicate existence of diverse microbial communities.  相似文献   

7.
Carbon and hydrogen concentrations and isotopic compositions were measured in 19 samples from altered oceanic crust cored in ODP/IODP Hole 1256D through lavas, dikes down to the gabbroic rocks. Bulk water content varies from 0.32 to 2.14 wt% with δD values from −64‰ to −25‰. All samples are enriched in water relative to fresh basalts. The δD values are interpreted in terms of mixing between magmatic water and another source that can be either secondary hydrous minerals and/or H contained in organic compounds such as hydrocarbons. Total CO2, extracted by step-heating technique, ranges between 564 and 2823 ppm with δ13C values from −14.9‰ to −26.6‰. As for water, these altered samples are enriched in carbon relative to fresh basalts. The carbon isotope compositions are interpreted in terms of a mixing between two components: (1) a carbonate with δ13C = −4.5‰ and (2) an organic compound with δ13C = −26.6‰. A mixing model calculation indicates that, for most samples (17 of 19), more than 75% of the total C occurs as organic compounds while carbonates represent less than 25%. This result is also supported by independent estimates of carbonate content from CO2 yield after H3PO4 attack. A comparison between the carbon concentration in our samples, seawater DIC (Dissolved Inorganic Carbon) and DOC (Dissolved Organic Carbon), and hydrothermal fluids suggests that CO2 degassed from magmatic reservoirs is the main source of organic C addition to the crust during the alteration process. A reduction step of dissolved CO2 is thus required, and can be either biologically mediated or not. Abiotic processes are necessary for the deeper part of the crust (>1000 mbsf) because alteration temperatures are greater than any hyperthermophilic living organism (i.e. T > 110 °C). Even if not required, we cannot rule out the contribution of microbial activity in the low-temperature alteration zones. We propose a two-step model for carbon cycling during crustal alteration: (1) when “fresh” oceanic crust forms at or close to ridge axis, alteration starts with hot hydrothermal fluids enriched in magmatic CO2, leading to the formation of organic compounds during Fischer-Tropsch-type reactions; (2) when the crust moves away from the ridge axis, these interactions with hot hydrothermal fluids decrease and are replaced by seawater interactions with carbonate precipitation in fractures. Taking into account this organic carbon, we estimate C isotope composition of mean altered oceanic crust at ∼ −4.7‰, similar to the δ13C of the C degassed from the mantle at ridge axis, and discuss the global carbon budget. The total flux of C stored in the altered oceanic crust, as carbonate and organic compound, is 2.9 ± 0.4 × 1012 molC/yr.  相似文献   

8.
The ability to continuously monitor chemical properties of hydrothermal vent effluents for extended periods of time is essential to understanding dynamic processes responsible for the temporally variable nature of mid-ocean ridge hydrothermal systems. Although instruments do exist for some parameters, there has been no sensor capable of measuring the chloride concentration, an indicator of possible phase separation, on a real-time and long-term basis. In this article, we discuss the construction of a novel instrument which measures solution resistance as a proxy for chloride concentration. The sensor consists of four gold electrodes embedded in a cylindrical ZrO2 ceramic housing. It has been successfully deployed in several high temperature vents at the Main Endeavour Field (MEF) on the Juan de Fuca ridge in the NE Pacific, and calibrated under simulated hydrothermal conditions ranging up to 380 °C and 300 bar. The in situ data clearly demonstrate a tidal influence on the effluent from some high temperature vents possibly relating to a subsurface mixing process involving non-seawater end-members. Non-tidal changes are used to constrain the sequence and type of controls operating on fluids circulating within the subsurface.  相似文献   

9.
现代海底热水活动的系统性研究及其科学意义   总被引:3,自引:1,他引:2  
现代海底热水活动是当前地球系统科学研究的一个重要组成部分,它是研究海底地质作用体系中的一个关键环节。海底的构造作用、岩浆活动等因素制约了热水循环的发育和活动规律,而热水活动又直接或间接地产生了一些地质效应,如海底的热水喷流成岩成矿效应,此外它还与海底的热能输导与转化、海洋化学组分特征、海洋生命和生命起源等现象有着密切的成因联系。开展现代海底热水活动的系统性研究,应注重将热水循环的内部动力学机制和热水活动所引发的外部环境效应相结合,为此我们把它初步展开为:热水循环的空间组构研究、热量输导作用研究、热水流体的化学成分研究、热水活动与极端生命的关系研究以及热水活动的生命周期研究等5个方面,分别解析其内部特征以及引发的环境效应。最后初步探讨了开展海底热水活动的系统性研究的科学意义。  相似文献   

10.
The Lost City hydrothermal system at the southern Atlantis Massif (Mid-Atlantic Ridge, 30°N) provides a natural laboratory for studying serpentinization processes, the temporal evolution of ultramafic-hosted hydrothermal systems, and alteration conditions during formation and emplacement of an oceanic core complex. Here we present B, O, and Sr isotope data to investigate fluid/rock interaction and mass transfer during detachment faulting and exhumation of lithospheric sequences within the Atlantis Massif. Our data indicate that extensive serpentinization was a seawater-dominated process that occurred predominately at temperatures of 150-250 °C and at high integrated W/R ratios that led to a marked boron enrichment (34-91 ppm). Boron removal from seawater during serpentinization is positively correlated with changes in δ11B (11-16‰) but shows no correlation with O-isotope composition. Modeling indicates that B concentrations and isotope values of the serpentinites are controlled by transient temperature-pH conditions. In contrast to prior studies, we conclude that low-temperature marine weathering processes are insignificant for boron geochemistry of the Atlantis Massif serpentinites. Talc- and amphibole-rich fault rocks formed within a zone of detachment faulting at temperatures of approximately 270-350 °C and at low W/R ratios. Talc formation in ultramafic domains in the massif was subsequent to an early stage of serpentinization and was controlled by the access of Si-rich fluids derived through seawater-gabbro interactions. Replacement of serpentine by talc resulted in boron loss and significant lowering of δ11B values (9-10‰), which we model as the product of progressive extraction of boron. Our study provides new constraints on the boron geochemical cycle at oceanic spreading ridges and suggests that serpentinization associated with ultramafic-hosted hydrothermal systems may have important implications for the behavior of boron in subduction zone settings.  相似文献   

11.
Subterranean estuary occupies the transition zone between hypoxic fresh groundwater and oxic seawater, and between terrestrial and marine sediment deposits. Consequently, we hypothesize, in a subterranean estuary, biogeochemical reactions of Fe respond to submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) and sea level rise. Porewater and sediment samples were collected across a 30-m wide freshwater discharge zone of the Indian River Lagoon (Florida, USA) subterranean estuary, and at a site 250 m offshore. Porewater Fe concentrations range from 0.5 μM at the shoreline and 250 m offshore to about 286 μM at the freshwater-saltwater boundary. Sediment sulfur and porewater sulfide maxima occur in near-surface OC-rich black sediments of marine origin, and dissolved Fe maxima occur in underlying OC-poor orange sediments of terrestrial origin. Freshwater SGD flow rates decrease offshore from around 1 to 0.1 cm/day, while bioirrigation exchange deepens with distance from about 10 cm at the shoreline to about 40 cm at the freshwater-saltwater boundary. DOC concentrations increase from around 75 μM at the shoreline to as much as 700 μM at the freshwater-saltwater boundary as a result of labile marine carbon inputs from marine SGD. This labile DOC reduces Fe-oxides, which in conjunction with slow discharge of SGD at the boundary, allows dissolved Fe to accumulate. Upward advection of fresh SGD carries dissolved Fe from the Fe-oxide reduction zone to the sulfate reduction zone, where dissolved Fe precipitates as Fe-sulfides. Saturation models of Fe-sulfides indicate some fractions of these Fe-sulfides get dissolved near the sediment-water interface, where bioirrigation exchanges oxic surface water. The estimated dissolved Fe flux is approximately 0.84 μM Fe/day per meter of shoreline to lagoon surface waters. Accelerated sea level rise predictions are thus likely to increase the Fe flux to surface waters and local primary productivity, particularly along coastlines where groundwater discharges through sediments.  相似文献   

12.
Field and experimental investigations demonstrate the chemistry of mid-ocean ridge hydrothermal vent fluids reflects fluid-mineral reaction at higher temperatures than those typically measured at the seafloor. To account for this and, in turn, be able to better constrain sub-seafloor hydrothermal processes, we have developed an empirical geothermometer based on the dissolved Fe/Mn ratio in high-temperature fluids. Using data from basalt alteration experiments, the relationship; T (°C) = 331.24 + 112.41*log[Fe/Mn] has been calibrated between 350 and 450 °C. The apparent Fe-Mn equilibrium demonstrated by the experimental data is in good agreement with natural vent fluids, suggesting broad applicability. When used in conjunction with constraints imposed by quartz solubility, associated sub-seafloor pressures can be estimated for basalt-hosted systems. As an example, this methodology is used to interpret new data from 13°N on the East Pacific Rise, where high-temperature fluids both enriched and depleted in chloride (339-646 mmol/kg), relative to seawater, are actively venting within a close proximity. Accounting for these variable salinities, active phase separation is clearly taking place at 13°N, yet the fluid Fe/Mn ratios and the silica concentrations suggest equilibration at temperatures less than those coinciding with the two-phase region. These data show the chloride-enriched fluid reflects the highest temperature and pressure (∼432 °C, 400 bars) of equilibration, consistent with circulation near the top of the inferred magma chamber. This is in agreement with the elevated CO2 concentration relative to the chloride-depleted fluids. The noted temperature derived from the Fe/Mn geothermometer is higher than the critical temperature for a fluid of equivalent salinity. This carries the important implication that, despite being chloride-enriched relative to seawater, these fluids evolved as the vapor component of even higher salinity brine.  相似文献   

13.
现代海底热水活动是当前地球系统科学研究的一个重要组成部分,它是研究海底地质作用体系中的一个关键环节。海底的构造作用、岩浆活动等因素制约了热水循环的发育和活动规律,而热水活动又直接或间接地产生了一些地质效应,如海底的热水喷流成岩成矿效应,此外它还与海底的热能输导与转化、海洋化学组分特征、海洋生命和生命起源等现象有着密切的成因联系。开展现代海底热水活动的系统性研究,应注重将热水循环的内部动力学机制和热水活动所引发的外部环境效应相结合,为此我们把它初步展开为:热水循环的空间组构研究、热量输导作用研究、热水流体的化学成分研究、热水活动与极端生命的关系研究以及热水活动的生命周期研究等 5个方面,分别解析其内部特征以及引发的环境效应。最后初步探讨了开展海底热水活动的系统性研究的科学意义。  相似文献   

14.
The Lost City Hydrothermal Field (LCHF) is a serpentinite-hosted vent field located 15 km west of the spreading axis of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. In this study, uranium-thorium (U-Th) geochronological techniques have been used to examine the U-Th systematics of hydrothermal fluids and the 230Th ages of hydrothermally-precipitated carbonate chimneys at the LCHF. Fluid sample analyses indicate that endmember fluids likely contain only 0.0073 ng/g U or less compared to 3.28 ± 0.03 ng/g of U in ambient seawater. For fluid samples containing only 2-21% ambient seawater (1.1-11 mmol/kg Mg), Th concentration is 0.11-0.13 pg/g and surrounding seawater concentrations average 0.133 ± 0.016 pg/g. The 230Th/232Th atomic ratios of the vent fluids range from 1 (±10) × 10−6 to 11 (±5) × 10−6, are less than those of seawater, and indicate that the vent fluids may contribute a minor amount of non-radiogenic 230Th to the LCHF carbonate chimney deposits. Chimney 238U concentrations range from 1 to 10 μg/g and the average chimney corrected initial δ234U is 147.2 ± 0.8, which is not significantly different from the ambient seawater value of 146.5 ± 0.6. Carbonate 232Th concentrations range broadly from 0.0038 ± 0.0003 to 125 ± 16 ng/g and 230Th/232Th atomic ratios vary from near seawater values of 43 (±8) × 10−6 up to 530 (±25) × 10−3. Chimney ages, corrected for initial 230Th, range from 17 ± 6 yrs to 120 ± 13 kyrs. The youngest chimneys are at the intersection of two active, steeply-dipping normal faults that cut the Atlantis Massif; the oldest chimneys are located in the southwest portion of the field. Vent deposits on a steep, fault-bounded wall on the east side of the field are all <4 kyrs old, indicating that mass wasting in this region is relatively recent. Comparison of results to prior age-dating investigations of submarine hydrothermal systems shows that the LCHF is the most long-lived hydrothermal system known to date. It is likely that seismic activity and active faulting within the Atlantis Massif and the Atlantis Fracture Zone, coupled with volumetric expansion of the underlying serpentinized host rocks play major roles in sustaining hydrothermal activity at this site. The longevity of venting at the LCHF may have implications for ecological succession of microorganisms within serpentinite-hosted vent environments.  相似文献   

15.
Processes controlling the composition of seafloor hydrothermal fluids in silicic back-arc or near-arc crustal settings remain poorly constrained despite growing evidence for extensive magmatic-hydrothermal activity in such environments. We conducted a survey of vent fluid compositions from two contrasting sites in the Manus back-arc basin, Papua New Guinea, to examine the influence of variations in host rock composition and magmatic inputs (both a function of arc proximity) on hydrothermal fluid chemistry. Fluid samples were collected from felsic-hosted hydrothermal vent fields located on Pual Ridge (PACMANUS and Northeast (NE) Pual) near the active New Britain Arc and a basalt-hosted vent field (Vienna Woods) located farther from the arc on the Manus Spreading Center. Vienna Woods fluids were characterized by relatively uniform endmember temperatures (273-285 °C) and major element compositions, low dissolved CO2 concentrations (4.4 mmol/kg) and high measured pH (4.2-4.9 at 25 °C). Temperatures and compositions were highly variable at PACMANUS/NE Pual and a large, newly discovered vent area (Fenway) was observed to be vigorously venting boiling (358 °C) fluid. All PACMANUS fluids are characterized by negative δDH2O values, in contrast to positive values at Vienna Woods, suggesting substantial magmatic water input to circulating fluids at Pual Ridge. Low measured pH (25 °C) values (∼2.6-2.7), high endmember CO2 (up to 274 mmol/kg) and negative δ34SH2S values (down to −2.7‰) in some vent fluids are also consistent with degassing of acid-volatile species from evolved magma. Dissolved CO2 at PACMANUS is more enriched in 13C (−4.1‰ to −2.3‰) than Vienna Woods (−5.2‰ to −5.7‰), suggesting a contribution of slab-derived carbon. The mobile elements (e.g. Li, K, Rb, Cs and B) are also greatly enriched in PACMANUS fluids reflecting increased abundances in the crust there relative to the Manus Spreading Center. Variations in alkali and dissolved gas abundances with Cl at PACMANUS and NE Pual suggest that phase separation has affected fluid chemistry despite the low temperatures of many vents. In further contrast to Vienna Woods, substantial modification of PACMANUS/NE Pual fluids has taken place as a result of seawater ingress into the upflow zone. Consistently high measured Mg concentrations as well as trends of increasingly non-conservative SO4 behavior, decreasing endmember Ca/Cl and Sr/Cl ratios with increased Mg indicate extensive subsurface anhydrite deposition is occurring as a result of subsurface seawater entrainment. Decreased pH and endmember Fe/Mn ratios in higher Mg fluids indicate that the associated mixing/cooling gives rise to sulfide deposition and secondary acidity production. Several low temperature (?80 °C) fluids at PACMANUS/NE Pual also show evidence for anhydrite dissolution and water-rock interaction (fixation of B) subsequent to seawater entrainment. Hence, the evolution of fluid compositions at Pual Ridge reflects the cumulative effects of water/rock interaction, admixing and reaction of fluids exsolved from silicic magma, phase separation/segregation and seawater ingress into upflow zones.  相似文献   

16.
The carbon geochemistry of serpentinized peridotites and gabbroic rocks recovered at the Lost City Hydrothermal Field (LCHF) and drilled at IODP Hole 1309D at the central dome of the Atlantis Massif (Mid-Atlantic Ridge, 30°N) was examined to characterize carbon sources and speciation in oceanic basement rocks affected by long-lived hydrothermal alteration. Our study presents new data on the geochemistry of organic carbon in the oceanic lithosphere and provides constraints on the fate of dissolved organic carbon in seawater during serpentinization. The basement rocks of the Atlantis Massif are characterized by total carbon (TC) contents of 59 ppm to 1.6 wt% and δ13CTC values ranging from −28.7‰ to +2.3‰. In contrast, total organic carbon (TOC) concentrations and isotopic compositions are relatively constant (δ13CTOC: −28.9‰ to −21.5‰) and variations in δ13CTC reflect mixing of organic carbon with carbonates of marine origin. Saturated hydrocarbons extracted from serpentinites beneath the LCHF consist of n-alkanes ranging from C15 to C30. Longer-chain hydrocarbons (up to C40) are observed in olivine-rich samples from the central dome (IODP Hole 1309D). Occurrences of isoprenoids (pristane, phytane and squalane), polycyclic compounds (hopanes and steranes) and higher relative abundances of n-C16 to n-C20 alkanes in the serpentinites of the southern wall suggest a marine organic input. The vent fluids are characterized by high concentrations of methane and hydrogen, with a putative abiotic origin of hydrocarbons; however, evidence for an inorganic source of n-alkanes in the basement rocks remains equivocal. We propose that high seawater fluxes in the southern part of the Atlantis Massif likely favor the transport and incorporation of marine dissolved organic carbon and overprints possible abiotic geochemical signatures. The presence of pristane, phytane and squalane biomarkers in olivine-rich samples associated with local faults at the central dome implies fracture-controlled seawater circulation deep into the gabbroic core of the massif. Thus, our study indicates that hydrocarbons account for an important proportion of the total carbon stored in the Atlantis Massif basement and suggests that serpentinites may represent an important—as yet unidentified—reservoir for dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from seawater.  相似文献   

17.
In-situ uplifted portions of oceanic crust at the central dome of the Atlantis Massif (Mid-Atlantic Ridge, 30°N) were drilled during Expeditions 304 and 305 of the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) and a 1.4 km section of predominantly gabbroic rocks with minor intercalated ultramafic rocks were recovered. Here we characterize variations in sulfur mineralogy and geochemistry of selected samples of serpentinized peridotites, olivine-rich troctolites and diverse gabbroic rocks recovered from Hole 1309D. These data are used to constrain alteration processes and redox conditions and are compared with the basement rocks of the southern wall of the Atlantis Massif, which hosts the Lost City Hydrothermal Field, 5 km to the south. The oceanic crust at the central dome is characterized by Ni-rich sulfides reflecting reducing conditions and limited seawater circulation. During uplift and exhumation, seawater interaction in gabbroic-dominated domains was limited, as indicated by homogeneous mantle-like sulfur contents and isotope compositions of gabbroic rocks and olivine-rich troctolites. Local variations from mantle compositions are related to magmatic variability or to interaction with seawater-derived fluids channeled along fault zones. The concomitant occurrence of mackinawite in olivine-rich troctolites and an anhydrite vein in a gabbro provide temperature constraints of 150-200 °C for late circulating fluids along local brittle faults below 700 m depth. In contrast, the ultramafic lithologies at the central dome represent domains with higher seawater fluxes and higher degrees of alteration and show distinct changes in sulfur geochemistry. The serpentinites in the upper part of the hole are characterized by high total sulfide contents, high δ34Ssulfide values and low δ34Ssulfate values, which reflect a multistage history primarily controlled by seawater-gabbro interaction and subsequent serpentinization. The basement rocks at the central dome record lower oxygen fugacities and more limited fluid fluxes compared with the serpentinites and gabbros of the Lost City hydrothermal system. Our studies are consistent with previous results and indicate that sulfur speciation and sulfur isotope compositions of altered oceanic mantle sequences commonly evolve over time. Heterogeneities in sulfur geochemistry reflect the fact that serpentinites are highly sensitive to local variations in fluid fluxes, temperature, oxygen and sulfur fugacities, and microbial activity.  相似文献   

18.
The Totalp-Platta-Malenco ophiolites in the Eastern Central Alps offer a unique opportunity to study the behaviour of Li, Be and B in ultramafic rocks in response to serpentinization and to progressive Alpine metamorphism. These units represent the remnants of a former ocean-continent transition that was intensely serpentinized during exposure on the Jurassic seafloor of the Ligurian Tethys. From north to the south, three isograd reactions (lizardite⇒antigorite+brucite;lizardite+talc⇒antigorite;lizardite+tremolite⇒antigorite+diopside) have been used to quantify the evolution of the light element content of metamorphic minerals. We determined the Li, Be and B concentrations in major silicate minerals from the ultramafic bodies of Totalp, Platta and Malenco by secondary ion mass spectrometry. Mantle minerals have Be concentrations (e.g. <0.001-0.009 μg/g in olivine) similar to the metamorphic minerals that replace them (e.g. <0.001-0.016 μg/g in serpentine). The mantle signature of Be is thus neither erased during seafloor alteration nor by progressive metamorphism from prehnite-pumpellyite to epidote-amphibolite facies. In contrast, the Li and B inventories of metamorphic minerals are related to the lizardite-to-antigorite transition. Both elements display higher concentrations in the low-temperature serpentine polymorph lizardite (max. 156 μg/g Li, max. 318 μg/g B) than in antigorite (max. 0.11 μg/g Li, max. 12 μg/g B). Calculated average B/Li ratios for lizardite (∼1395) and antigorite (∼115) indicate that Li fractionates from B during the lizardite-to-antigorite transition during prograde metamorphism in ultramafic rocks. In subduction zones, this signature is likely to be recorded in the B-rich nature of forearc fluids.Relative to oceanic mantle the Be content of mantle clinopyroxene is much higher, but similar to Be values from mantle xenoliths and subduction-related peridotite massifs. These data support previous hypothesis that the mantle rocks from the Eastern Central Alps have a subcontinental origin. We conclude that Be behaves conservatively during subduction metamorphism of ultramafic rocks, at least at low-temperature, and thus retains the fingerprint of ancient subduction-related igneous events in mantle peridotites.  相似文献   

19.
Rare earth element (REE) concentrations are reported for a large suite of seafloor vent fluids from four hydrothermal systems in the Manus back-arc basin (Vienna Woods, PACMANUS, DESMOS and SuSu Knolls vent areas). Sampled vent fluids show a wide range of absolute REE concentrations and chondrite-normalized (REEN) distribution patterns (LaN/SmN ∼ 0.6-11; LaN/YbN ∼ 0.6 - 71; ). REEN distribution patterns in different vent fluids range from light-REE enriched, to mid- and heavy-REE enriched, to flat, and have a range of positive Eu-anomalies. This heterogeneity contrasts markedly with relatively uniform REEN distribution patterns of mid-ocean ridge hydrothermal fluids. In Manus Basin fluids, aqueous REE compositions do not inherit directly or show a clear relationship with the REE compositions of primary crustal rocks with which hydrothermal fluids interact. These results suggest that the REEs are less sensitive indicators of primary crustal rock composition despite crustal rocks being the dominant source of REEs in submarine hydrothermal fluids. In contrast, differences in aqueous REE compositions are consistently correlated with differences in fluid pH and ligand (chloride, fluoride and sulfate) concentrations. Our results suggest that the REEs can be used as an indicator of the type of magmatic acid volatile (i.e., presence of HF, SO2) degassing in submarine hydrothermal systems. Additional fluid data suggest that near-seafloor mixing between high-temperature hydrothermal fluid and locally entrained seawater at many vent areas in the Manus Basin causes anhydrite precipitation. Anhydrite effectively incorporates REE and likely affects measured fluid REE concentrations, but does not affect their relative distributions.  相似文献   

20.
Silicon (Si) isotope variability in Precambrian chert deposits is significant, but proposed explanations for the observed heterogeneity are incomplete in terms of silica provenance and fractionation mechanisms involved. To address these issues we investigated Si isotope systematics, in conjunction with geochemical and mineralogical data, in three well-characterised and approximately contemporaneous, ∼3.5 Ga chert units from the Pilbara greenstone terrane (Western Australia).We show that Si isotope variation in these cherts is large (−2.4‰ to +1.3‰) and was induced by near-surface processes that were controlled by ambient conditions. Cherts that formed by chemical precipitation of silica show the largest spread in δ30Si (−2.4‰ to +0.6‰) and are characterised by positive Eu, La and Y anomalies and overall depletions in lithophile trace elements. Silicon isotope systematics in these orthochemical deposits are explained by (1) mixing between hydrothermal fluids and seawater, and/or (2) fractionation of hydrothermal fluids by subsurface losses of silica due to conductive cooling. Rayleigh-type fractionation of hydrothermal fluids was largely controlled by temperature differences between these fluids and seawater. Lamina-scale Si isotope heterogeneity within individual chemical chert samples up to 2.2‰ is considered to reflect the dynamic nature of hydrothermal activity. Silicified volcanogenic sediments lack diagnostic REE+Y anomalies, are enriched in lithophile elements, and exhibit a much more restricted range of positive δ30Si (+0.1‰ to +1.1‰), which points to seawater as the dominant source of silica.The proposed model for Si isotope variability in the Early Archaean implies that chemical cherts with the most negative δ30Si formed from pristine hydrothermal fluids, whereas silicified or chemical sediments with positive δ30Si are closest to pure seawater deposits. Taking the most positive value found in this study (+1.3‰), and assuming that the Si isotope composition of seawater is governed by input of fractionated hydrothermal fluids, we infer that the temperature of ∼3.5 Ga seawater was below ∼55 °C.  相似文献   

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