Premium
Fluid inclusion microthermometry for P–T constraints on normal displacement along the Median Tectonic Line in Northern Besshi area, Southwest Japan
Author(s) -
FUKUNARI TETSUZO,
WALLIS SIMON R.,
TSUNOGAE TOSHIAKI
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
island arc
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.554
H-Index - 58
eISSN - 1440-1738
pISSN - 1038-4871
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1738.2011.00778.x
Subject(s) - geology , metamorphic rock , metamorphism , fluid inclusions , tectonics , quartz , geochemistry , inclusion (mineral) , hydrothermal circulation , vein , deformation (meteorology) , fault (geology) , mineralogy , petrology , seismology , paleontology , medicine , oceanography , psychiatry
The Median Tectonic Line (MTL) is a first‐order tectonic boundary that separates the Sanbagawa and Ryoke metamorphic belts. Documented large‐scale top‐to‐the‐north normal displacements along this fault zone have the potential to contribute to the exhumation of the Sanbagawa high‐pressure metamorphic belt. Fluid inclusion analyses of vein material formed associated with secondary faults within the Sanbagawa belt affected by movement on the MTL show normal movement was initially induced under temperatures greater than around 250°C. Microstructures of quartz and K‐feldspar comprising the vein material suggest a deformation temperature of around 300°C, supporting the results of fluid inclusion analyses and suggesting deformation at depths of around 10 km. The retrograde P–T path of the Sanbagawa metamorphic rocks and the estimated isochore of the fluid inclusions do not intersect. The semi‐ductile structures of surrounding rocks and lack of evidence for hydrothermal metamorphism around the veins imply the temperature of the rocks was similar to that of the fluid. These observations suggest fluid pressure of the veins was lower than lithostatic pressure close to the MTL.