Igneous

Petrology
Jean-Franois
Moyen

Practical informations

Venues, dates, times

Contact
Textbooks
Outline

Outline
1. Classification of igneous rocks
2. Analytical techniques; major and trace
elements
3. Isotopes
4. Magma genesis: melting processes
5. Magma evolution: cristallization, mixing, etc.
6. Geochemical signature of mgmatic processes
7. Magma transport and emplacement
8. Volcanic processes

Outline
April break: 2 days field trip
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.

Basalts
Andesites
Granites
Alkaline complexes
Igneous rocks in a plate tectonic context
Revisions etc.

Introduction to
igneous petrology

Stromboli (Italy)

Etna (Italy)

Piton de la Fournaise (Runion, Indian Ocean)

Ploumanach, France

Torres del Paine, S. Chile

Cantal extinct volcano, France

 Ignimbrites , Turkey

Bournac volcanic pipe, France

Montserrat, Lesser antilles (1997)

The upper part of the solid Earth

Crust
Oceanic
Continental

Mantle
Lithosphere
Astenosphere

The Pressure
Gradient
P increases = gh
Nearly linear through
mantle
~ 30 MPa/km
1 GPa at base of ave crust

Core: incr. more rapidly

since alloy more dense
Figure 1-8. Winter, From Dziewonski and Anderson (1981).
Phys. Earth Planet. Int., 25, 297-356. Elsevier Science.

Heat Sources in the Earth

1. Heat from the early accretion and
differentiation of the Earth

still slowly reaching surface

2. Heat released by the radioactive

breakdown of unstable nuclides

The Geothermal Gradient

Figure 1-11. Winter, from Green and Falloon

((1998), Green & Ringwood (1963), Jaupart
and Mareschal (1999), McKenzie et al. (2005
and personal communication), Ringwood
(1966), Rudnick and Nyblade (1999), Turcotte
and Schubert (2002).

Active volcanoes

The
Geothermal
Gradient

Pattern of global heat flux variations compiled from

observations at over 20,000 sites and modeled on a
spherical harmonic expansion to degree 12. From Pollack,
Hurter and Johnson. (1993) Rev. Geophys. 31, 267-280.

Cross-section of the mantle based on a seismic tomography model. Arrows

represent plate motions and large-scale mantle flow and subduction zones
represented by dipping line segments. EPR =- East pacific Rise, MAR = MidAtlantic Ridge, CBR = Carlsberg Ridge. Plates: EA = Eurasian, IN = Indian, PA =
Pacific, NA = North American, SA = South American, AF = African, CO = Cocos.
From Li and Romanowicz (1996). J. Geophys. Research, 101, 22,245-72.

Figure 1-9. Estimated ranges of

oceanic and continental steadystate geotherms to a depth of
100 km using upper and lower
limits based on heat flows
measured near the surface.
After Sclater et al. (1980),
Earth. Rev. Geophys. Space
Sci., 18, 269-311.

Plate Tectonic - Igneous

Genesis
1. Mid-ocean Ridges
2. Intracontinental
Rifts
3. Island Arcs
4. Active Continental
Margins

5. Back-arc Basins
6. Ocean Island Basalts
7. Miscellaneous IntraContinental Activity

kimberlites, carbonatites,
anorthosites...

Plates and plate boundaries

Geological activity is concentrated on plate boundaries