Tectonites of the Yenisei Shear Zone (Yenisei Ridge): Evidence and Thermomechanical Numerical Model of Generation of Tectonic Overpressure

Abstract

Based on the proposed numerical model of the stress-strain state of polymineral rocks, which describes the formation of blastomylonites in the Yenisei Regional Shear Zone (YRSZ) in the Yenisei Ridge, the possibility of local tectonic overpressure exceeding the lithostatic pressure in rocks subjected to shear deformations is shown. For tectonites of the southern (Angara–Kan block) and northern (Isakovka terrane and Garevka complex) segments of the YRSZ, estimates of the maximum overpressure were obtained from 2–3 to 4–5 kbar, which range from 25 to 50% of the lithostatic pressure. It is shown that the excess pressures can be preserved in a local volume on a geological time scale sufficient for their fixation in metamorphic minerals. Model values of overlithostatic pressure in the garnet–amphibole tectonites and geobarometric estimates of peak values during stress metamorphism allow us to offer new evidence for pressure inhomogeneity in natural mineral associations. Using the results of numerical modeling for the evolution of metabasite blastomylonites, it was established that the overpressure at the stage of syn-deformation metamorphism in the shear zone is possible at temperatures up to 600–650°C and not reaching 800°C; the presence of fluid or partial melt prevents the occurrence of overpressure. Magnitudes of excess pressure caused by shear stresses depend on the mineral composition and structure of the rock.