The presences of water in the generation of calc-alkaline I-type granitic magmas at continental arc: Insight from Neoproterozoic Ailaoshan magmatism at the southwestern margin of the Yangtze Block, South China

Abstract

Water is crucial in generating granitic systems; however, its role (i.e., dehydration, low to high water-fluxed melting) in granitic magmatism in continental arcs remains unsettled and poorly understood. Neoproterozoic arc-related igneous rocks are uncovered along the western margin of the Yangtze Block, presenting a complex compositional array ideal for deciphering the influence of water content within the continental arc and its geodynamic significance. The Jinping granites, in the Ailaoshan zone, are emplaced at 750 ± 4 Ma, as determined by zircon U-Pb dating. These medium to coarse-grained granites consist predominantly of plagioclase, quartz, K-feldspar, muscovite, and biotite. Characterized by high SiO₂ (71.2–73.5 wt%), alkalis (K₂O+Na₂O=7.54–9.56 wt%) and low Fe₂O₃^T (1.01–1.66 wt%), MgO (0.53–0.85 wt%), and CaO (0.15–0.93 wt%) concentrations, they exhibit high-K calc-alkaline signatures. The negative correlation between P₂O₅ and SiO₂, alongside the positive correlation between Rb and Y, typifies the Jinping granites as I-type granites. Low La/Nb (1.96–3.43) and Nb/Ta (8.57–11.3) ratios, but high Th/La (0.28–0.46) and Zr/Sm (30.5–47.7) ratios, as well as whole rock ε_Nd(t) (−0.4 to +1.3) and zircon ε_Hf(t) values (+5.25 to +8.53) of the studied granites are similar to synchronous mafic rocks at the western margin of the Yangtze Block. These features suggest partial melting origin from the mafic lower crust. Thermodynamic modeling posits that the Neoproterozoic Ailaoshan I-type granitic rocks may have formed through water-fluxed melting (2.0–3.5 wt% H₂O) under medium pressure conditions (9 kbar). It is postulated that slab rollback could have prompted water (as hydrous melt or fluids) release from hydrous minerals in the underlying cumulate mafic rocks, subsequently triggering water-fluxed melting in the lower crust. In contrast, high water-fluxed melting-generated adakitic granites with low K₂O/Na₂O ratios (<0.8) in the region, spatially and temporally associated with the Jinping granites, reflect higher water content in the deeper crust. This supports the notion that water was conveyed from depths to surface, facilitating the conversion of adakitic rocks into I-type granites as water content diminished. Thus, water content within the lower crust plays a pivotal role in the genesis of granitic rocks with varied compositions in a continental arc setting.