Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 325 (2016) 45–60 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jvolgeores Invited Review Article Interpreting chemical compositions of small scale basaltic systems: Areview Lucy E. McGee a, Ian E.M. Smith b,⁎ a Centro de Excelencia en Geotermia de los Andes (CEGA) and Department of Geology, Universidad de Chile, Plaza Ercilla 803, Santiago, Chile b School of Environment, The University of Auckland, Private Bag, 92019, Auckland, New Zealand article info abstract Article history: Small scale basaltic magmatic systems occur in all of the major tectonic environments of planet Earth and are Received 3 March 2016 characteristically expressed at the Earth's surface as fields of small monogenetic cones. The chemical composi- Received in revised form 6 June 2016 tions of the materials that make up these cones reflect processes of magma generation and differentiation that Accepted 13 June 2016 occur in their plumbing system. The volumes of magmas involved are very small and significantly their compo- Available online 16 June 2016 sitional ranges reveal remarkably complex processes which are overwhelmed or homogenized in larger scale sys- Keywords: tems. Commonly, compositions are basaltic, alkalic and enriched in light rare earth elements and large ion Small-scale volcanism lithophile elements, although the spectrum extends from highly enriched nephelinites to subalkalic and tholeiitic Basalt geochemistry basalts. Isotopic analyses of rocks from volcanic fields almost always display compositions which can only be ex- Mantle melting plained by the interaction of two or more mantle sources. Ultimately their basaltic magmas originate by small scale melting of mantle sources. Compositional variety is testament to melting processes at different depths, a range of melting proportions, a heterogeneous source and fractionation, magma mixing and assimilation within the plumbing system that brings magmas to the surface. The fact that such a variety of compositions is preserved in a single field shows that isolation of individual melting events and their ascent is an important and possibly defining feature of monogenetic volcanism, as well as the window their chemical behavior provides into the com- plex process of melt generation and extraction in the Earth's upper mantle. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Contents 1. Introduction............................................................... 46 1.1. Themonogeneticconcept,andthescopeofthisreview........................................ 46 2. Thechemicalcharacteristicsofsmallscalebasalticmagmaticsystems..................................... 47 2.1. Thecompositionalspectrum.................................................... 47 2.2. Compositionalvariationwithinamagmabatch........................................... 50 2.3. Thecompositionaleffectoffractionationandassimilation....................................... 51 3. Thesourceofmagma.......................................................... 52 3.1. Homogeneousandheterogeneoussources.............................................. 52 3.2. Asthenosphere-lithosphereinteraction............................................... 52 3.3. Enrichedcomponents....................................................... 53 3.4. Thespatialscaleofheterogeneityinmagmasources......................................... 54 4. Themantlesource............................................................ 54 4.1. Depthandextentofmelting.................................................... 54 4.2. Correlationsbetweenmeltingdynamicsandchemicalcomposition.................................. 55 4.3. Whyandhowaresmall-volumemeltingeventsgenerated?...................................... 56 5. Timescaleinformationfromgeochemicaldata............................................... 56 5.1. Timescalesinthesource...................................................... 56 5.2. Timescalesofmelting....................................................... 57 ⁎ Corresponding author at: School of Environment, The University of Auckland, PB92019, Auckland Mail Center 1142, Auckland, New Zealand. E-mail address: [email protected] (I.E.M. Smith). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2016.06.007 0377-0273/© 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 46 L.E. McGee, I.E.M. Smith / Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 325 (2016) 45–60 5.3. The geochemical longevity of ‘monogenetic’ events..........................................57 6. Futureresearchdirections.........................................................57 7. Summaryandconclusions.........................................................58 Acknowledgments...............................................................58 References..................................................................58 1. Introduction volcanics, USA (Condit et al., 1989), and the volcanological and petro- graphic study of the Laacher See tephra by Woerner and Schmincke At a fundamental level volcanoes are the expression of magmatic (1984)) to studies involving techniques such as the measurement of systems that are a process whereby the internal energy of planet Earth uranium series (U-series) isotopes (e.g. U-Th-Ra isotopic analyses in is transferred to the surface. The paradigm of plate tectonics recognizes the Newer Volcanic Province, Australia (Demidjuk et al., 2007)) and this link between internal processes and their role in the evolution of the Auckland Volcanic Field (McGee et al., 2011, 2013)andin-situtech- the planet's surficial architecture. Plate tectonic theory has also driven niques such as the measurement of melt inclusions (e.g. the Chaîne des an understanding of magmatic systems as identifiably different entities Puys volcanic field, France (Jannot et al., 2005) and the Higashi-Izu vol- linked to distinct events in the evolutionary history of the Earth. This has canic Field, Japan (Nichols et al., 2012). These have revealed complexi- led to a compartmentalization of the way magmatic systems are under- ties in magmatic systems which help constrain the parameters and stood that is rooted in concepts of their relationship to plate boundaries, melting processes relating to the source region beneath volcanic fields. hence the ideas of divergent plate, convergent plate and intraplate igne- ous associations. 1.1. The monogenetic concept, and the scope of this review The chemical composition of volcanic rocks has become a primary tool in the study of the origin and evolution of magmatic systems. In volcanological terms the idea of monogenetic behaviour is one of Distinctive geochemical signatures are linked to particular tectonic set- a temporally limited cone building eruption sequence (e.g. Németh and tings, and variations within suites of spatially and temporally linked Kereszturi, 2015); many small scale volcano fields are made up of indi- rocks provide the basis for their interpretation in terms of petrogenetic vidual cones that fit this description. Geochemically, the term monoge- processes. Increasingly, stratigraphically constrained sampling of volca- netic is most useful to refer to a batch of magma which is generated by a nic deposit sequences has provided the clue to unravelling the fine single continuous process. However, the increasing numbers of detailed details of their petrogenetic evolution; recent developments have studies of such systems in recent years has shown that melting process- been in the recognition of systematic chemical differences within volca- es can range from simple melting of a homogeneous source to more nic sequences and their interpretation in terms of the processes that complicated melting of a multi-component source (c.f. McGee et al., create and modify magmas in their passage from source to surface 2012). Specifically, volcanoes that are the product of distinct magma (e.g. Brenna et al., 2010; McGee et al., 2012; Price et al., 2012; Reiners, batches are not geochemically monogenetic although they may be 2002; Smith et al., 2008). While this is of undoubted academic interest described as monogenetic from a volcanological perspective (e.g Udo it also carries the practical corollary that knowledge of the way magmas Volcano, Brenna et al., 2010). Although we agree that the term monoge- are produced and particularly the rate with which they rise to the netic can be applied to small scale basaltic systems, recognising that for Earth's surface is a vital input to volcanic risk scenarios. both volcanological and geochemical applications there is a poorly de- Small-scale basaltic volcanic systems are the most widespread form fined transition to polygenetic medium and large scale magmatic sys- of magmatic system on Earth (Cañón-Tapia and Walker, 2004)although tems, in this review we prefer the term ‘small-scale basaltic system’. they are also the smallest in terms of magma volume. They characteris- Small-scale basaltic systems are characteristically expressed at the tically occur as fields of small volcanoes found in a variety of different Earth's surface as volcano fields consisting of clusters of scattered and tectonic settings including intraplate, extensional and subduction- mostly small (b2km2 magma volume) volcanoes that are fundamental- related environments (Cañón-Tapia, 2016). Individual volcanoes in ly basaltic. Individual volcanoes in volcano fields show characteristic these fields typically form during a time-constrained series of eruptions compositional ranges which equate to batches of