Jurassic to Early Cretaceous subduction-related magmatism in the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile (18 degrees 30 '-24 degrees S): geochemistry and petrogenesis

Abstract

Jurassic to Early Cretaceous magmatism in the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile is represented by thick sequences of mostly basaltic- and esitic to andesitic lava flows and minor sedimentary rocks. The volcanic sucession was intruded by large plutonic bodies and smaller stocks and dikes. New geochemical data, including major and trace elements for a suite of Middle to Upper Jurassic volcanic and plutonic rocks from six localities in the Coastal Cordillera (18 degrees 30'-24 degrees S), are presented here. The volcanic rocks are characterized by their petrological and chemical homogeneity; they are highly porphyritic basaltic-andesites and andesites with calc-alkaline to high-K calc-alkaline affinities, higher LILE than HFSE abundances, negative Nb and Ti anomalies, and LREE/HREE fractionation, which are the typical compositional features of subduction-related igneous rocks. No significant differences are observed in rocks from different areas or ages, but the plutonic rocks show subparallel, less and more enriched patterns respectively compared to volcanic rocks. The evolution and differentiation of the parental magmas is mainly due to fractional crystallization dominated by plagioclase, olivine and clinopyroxene. Assimilation of the continental crust was not important, although Th and La contents would indicate increasing sediment contribution or crustal contamination of the magmas with time. The magma source is likely to be a depleted mantle metasomatized by fluids, which originated from dehydration of the subducted oceanic crust. No evidence of slab melting was found in the studied rocks. The extensional tectonic setting that dominated the evolution of the Jurassic-Early Cretaceous arc in northern Chile would have favoured the extrusion of huge amounts of volcanic rocks during a relatively short period of time, avoiding thus a mayor interaction with the continental crust.