diffusion kinetics of fe2 and mg in aluminous spinel experimental determination and applications the diffusion coefficients of fe2 and mg in aluminous spinel at 20 kb 950 to 1325 c and at 30 kb 1125 c have been determined via diffusion couple experiments and numerical modeling of the induced diffusion profiles the oxygen fugacity fo2 was constrained by graphite encapsulating materials the retrieved self diffusion coefficients of fe2 and mg at 20 kb 950 to 1325 c fit well the arrhenian relation d d0exp q rt where q is the activation energy with d0 fe 1 8 2 8 10 5 d0 mg 1 9 1 4 10 5 cm2 s q fe 198 19 and q mg 202 8 kj mol comparison with the data at 30 kb suggests an activation volume of 5 cm3 mol from analysis of compositional zoning in natural olivine spinel assemblages in ultramafic rocks previous reports concluded that d fe mg in spinel with cr cr al 0 5 is 10 times that in olivine the diffusion data in spinel and olivine have been applied to the problems of preservation of mg isotopic inhomogeneity in spinel within the plagioclase olivine inclusions in allende meteorite and cooling rates of terrestrial ultramafic rocks

the fluid dynamics of a basaltic magma chamber replenished by influx of hot dense ultrabasic magma this paper describes a fluid dynamical investigation of the influx of hot dense ultrabasic magma into a reservoir containing lighter fractionated basaltic magma this situation is compared with that which develops when hot salty water is introduced under cold fresh water theoretical and empirical models for salt water systems are adapted to develop a model for magmatic systems a feature of the model is that the ultrabasic melt does not immediately mix with the basalt but spreads out over the floor of the chamber forming an independent layer a non turbulent interface forms between this layer and the overlying magma layer across which heat and mass are transferred by the process of molecular diffusion both layers convect vigorously as heat is transferred to the upper layer at a rate which greatly exceeds the heat lost to the surrounding country rock the convection continues until the two layers have almost the same temperature the compositions of the layers remain distinct due to the low diffusivity of mass compared to heat the temperatures of the layers as functions of time and their cooling rate depend on their viscosities their thermal properties the density difference between the layers and their thicknesses for a layer of ultrabasic melt 18 mgo a few tens of metres thick at the base of a basaltic 10 mgo magma chamber a few kilometres thick the temperature of the layers will become nearly identical over a period of between a few months and a few years during this time the turbulent convective velocities in the ultrabasic layer are far larger than the settling velocity of olivines which crystallise within the layer during cooling olivines only settle after the two layers have nearly reached thermal equilibrium at this stage residual basaltic melt segregates as the olivines sediment in the lower layer depending on its density the released basalt can either mix convectively with the overlying basalt layer or can continue as a separate layer the model provides an explanation for large scale cyclic layering in basic and ultrabasic intrusions the model also suggests reasons for the restriction of erupted basaltic liquids to compositions with mgo 10 and the formation of some quench textures in layered igneous rocks

holocene palaeoclimate and sea level fluctuation recorded from the coastal barker swamp rottnest island south western western australia abstract the holocene palaeoclimatic history of south western western australia swwa has received little attention compared to south eastern australia and this has resulted in conflicting views over the impact of climate variability in the region we present here a well dated high resolution record from two overlapping sediment cores obtained from the centre of barker swamp rottnest island offshore perth the records span the last 8 7 ka with the main lacustrine phase occurring after 7 4 ka this site preserves both pollen and several ostracod taxa the pollen record suggests a long term shift from the early mid holocene to the late holocene to drier conditions with less shrubland and more low ground cover and less fire activity a salinity transfer function was developed from ostracod faunal assemblage data and trace metal ratios mg ca sr ca and na ca and stable isotopes 18 o and 13 c analysed on selected ostracod valves these provide a detailed history of evaporation precipitation e p differences that clearly shows that the swwa region was subjected to significant climatic shifts over the last 7 4 ka with a broad shift towards increased aridity after 5 ka the swamp ranged from fresh to saline as recorded in the ostracod valve chemistry and the independently derived salinity transfer function the ostracod record also indicates that a sea level highstand occurred between ca 4 5 and 4 3 ka with probable step wise increases at 6 75 6 2 and 5 6 ka with the last vestiges of salt water intrusion at ca 1 ka after about 2 3 ka the fresh groundwater lens that underlies the western portion of the island intersected the swamp depression influencing the hydrology of the swamp the broad climatic changes recorded in barker swamp are also compared with data from southern south africa and it is suggested that the southern annular mode appears to have been the dominant driver in the climate of these regions and that the indian ocean dipole is of little importance in the southern regions of the south western cape of africa and south western western australia

filling the bushveld complex magma chamber lateral expansion roof and floor interaction magmatic unconformities and the formation of giant chromitite pge and ti v magnetitite deposits his mind was like a soup dish wide and shallow irving stone on william jennings bryan a compilation of the sr isotopic stratigraphy of the bushveld complex shows that the evolution of the magma chamber occurred in two major stages during the lower open system integration stage lower critical and lower main zone there were numerous influxes of magma of contrasting isotopic composition with concomitant mixing crystallisation and deposition of cumulates larger influxes correspond to the boundaries of the zones and sub zones and are marked by sustained isotopic shifts major changes in mineral assemblages and development of unconformities during the upper closed system differentiation stage upper main zone and upper zone there were no major magma additions other than that which initiated the upper zone and the thick magma layers evolved by fractional crystallisation the lower and lower critical zones are restricted to a belt that runs from steelpoort and burgersfort in the northeast to rustenburg and northam in the west and an outlier of the lower and lower critical zone up to the lg4 chromitite layer in the far western extension north of zeerust it is only in these areas that thick harzburgite and pyroxenite layers are developed and where chromitites of the lower critical zone occur these chromitites include the economically important c 1 m thick lg6 and mg1 layers exposed around both the eastern and western lobes of the bushveld complex the upper critical zone has a greater lateral extent than the lower critical zone and overlies but also onlaps the floor rocks to the south of the steelpoort area the source of the magmas also appears to have been towards the south as the mg chromitite layers degrade and thin northward whereas the lg layers are very well represented in the north and degrade southward sr and os isotope data indicate that the major chromitite layers including the lg6 mg1 and ug2 originated in a similar way extremely abrupt and stratigraphically restricted increases in the sr isotope ratio imply that there was massive contamination of intruding melt which hit the roof of the chamber and incorporated floating granophyric liquid which forced the precipitation of chromite kruger 1999 kinnaird et al 2002 therefore each chromitite layer represents the point at which the magma chamber expanded and eroded and deformed its floor nevertheless this was achieved by in situ contamination by roof rock melt of the intruding critical zone liquids that had an orthopyroxenitic to noritic lineage the main zone is present in the eastern and western lobes of the bushveld complex where it overlies the critical zone and onlaps the floor rocks to the south and the north where it is also the basal zone in the northern lobe the new magma first intruded the northern lobe north of the thabazimbi murchison lineament interacted with the floor rocks incorporated sulphur and precipitated the platreef along the floor rock contact before flowing south into the main chamber this exceptionally large influx of new magma then eroded an unconformity on the critical zone cumulate pile and initiated the main zone in the main chamber by precipitating the merensky reef on the unconformity the upper zone magma flowed into the chamber from the southern bethal lobe as well as the tml this gigantic influx eroded the main zone rocks and caused very large scale unconformable relationships clearly evident as the gap areas in the western bushveld complex the base of this influx which is also coincident with the pyroxenite marker and a troctolitic layer in the northern lobe is the petrological and stratigraphic base of the upper zone sr isotope data show that all the pge rich ores including chromitites are related to influxes of magma and are thus related to the expansion and filling of the magma chamber dominantly by lateral expansion with associated transgressive disconformities onto the floor rocks coincident with major zone changes these positions in the stratigraphy are marked by abrupt changes in lithology and erosional features over which succeeding lithologies are draped the outcrop patterns and the concordance of geochemical isotopic and mineralogical stratigraphy indicate that during crystallisation the bushveld complex was a wide and shallow lobate sill like sheet and the rock strata and mineral deposits are quasi continuous over the whole intrusion

the upper critical zone of the eastern bushveld complex precursor of the merensky reef the upper critical zone in the central sector of the eastern bushveld complex consists predominantly of norites although bronzitites anorthosites chromitites and other chromitic rocks appear at intervals in the sequence gabbronorites appear near the middle of the zone the rock sequence is divided into 14 principal units plus the series from the base of the merensky reef to the top of the bastard reef mineralogical compositions of successive units have been determined from modal analyses and compositions of bronzite and plagioclase in the various rock units have been determined by microprobe analysis the results indicate that although parts of the zone show normal fractionation the zone as a whole is not the product of progressive fractionation of a magma crystal settling appears to have played a relatively minor role in evolution of the zone successive pulses of parent magma into the chamber may account for some of the mineralogical and chemical variations but features of certain thick norite units suggest stratification of the magma in the chamber the study suggests that the merensky reef registers a sudden event in the bushveld magma chamber an event that altered the chemistry of the system and triggered precipitation of sulfides and platinoid minerals the alternative hypothesis that the reef is the culmination of a long period of magma fractionation is not supported by the evidence presented chromite occurs in a variety of associations with plagioclase and bronzite the associations are consistent with phase relations in the system mg 2 sio 4 iron oxide caal 2 si 2 o 8 sio 2 at elevated pressure

discordant iron rich ultramafic pegmatites in the bushveld complex and their relationship to iron rich intercumulus and residual liquids the iron rich ultramafic pegmatites comprise a suite of coarse grained rocks that form discordant bodies within the layered sequence of the bushveld complex these pegmatites which are considerably more abundant than is generally realized provide evidence for the differentiation of iron rich residual melts the pegmatites are composed largely of iron rich olivine and clinopyroxene together with ti magnetite and ilmenite feldspar is characteristically absent but paradoxically the pegmatites preferentially replace anorthositic cumulates two subgroups are recognized olivine clinopyroxene pegmatite and fe ti oxide pegmatite with increased stratigraphic height the pegmatites become richer in fe ti oxides thus olivine clinopyroxene pegmatite is prevalent in the upper critical and lower main zones whereas fe ti oxide pegmatite is restricted to the upper main and upper zones zoned pegmatite with a core of fe ti oxide pegmatite is transitional between the two subgroups new whole rock and electron microprobe analyses of olivine clinopyroxene pegmatite from the upper critical and lower main zones provide convincing evidence that their composition is directly related to height cryptic compositional variations are analogous to those displayed by the layered cumulates but for a given height the pegmatites are always more evolved compositions of clinopyroxene in the pegmatites reflect a near linear relationship with height whereas cumulus pyroxenes display upward iron enrichment trends complicated by replenishment and reaction with trapped intercumulus liquid the olivine clinopyroxene pegmatite formed by magmatic replacement of earlier formed cumulates in response to infiltration of iron rich melts suitably differentiated melts comprised intercumulus and residual liquids derived from thick anorthosite layers the absence of feldspar although not fully understood is attributed to an immiscible relationship between dense iron rich melts and light silica alkali rich liquids the latter infiltrated upward to be reincorporated into the resident magma the iron rich melts however drained down into the crystallizing cumulate pile channelling along early formed fractures and joints was significant locally resulting in huge pipe like bodies of pegmatite the iron rich melts became increasingly differentiated with height partly in response to the fractional crystallization of more evolved cumulates the olivine clinopyroxene pegmatites are related to infiltration of fe ti oxide rich silicate melt whereas fe ti oxide pegmatite is ascribed to fe ti oxide liquid as originally argued by bateman 1951 the bushveld complex followed the fenner trend of almost uninterrupted iron enrichment evidence of pronounced iron enrichment is however manifested in the discordant iron rich ultramafic pegmatites several thousands of metres below the height at which iron rich cumulates are observed

platinum group elements in the boulder bed western bushveld complex south africa concentrations of platinum group elements in samples from the boulder bed at five localities in the western bushveld complex range between 50 ppb and 70 ppm boulders thus have much more variable and sometimes highly enriched pge contents relative to the other lithologies in the immediate foot wall sequence of the merensky reef the pge enrichment can largely be modelled as a result of primary magmatic processes including collection of pge by segregating sulphide melt and fractionation of mss other features of the boulder bed such as the selvages of pure anorthosite and the chromitite stringers surrounding some of the boulders bear evidence of recrystallisation a model is proposed by which the boulder bed formed as a result of a combination of early and late magmatic processes the pges were collected by magmatic sulphide melt which accumulated in a pyroxenite layer the host rock to the pyroxenite was a thick package of norites which recrystallised in response to upward migrating magmatic fluids the fluids caused partial hydration melting of the norites adjacent to the pyroxenite producing anorthosite the boulders represent the broken up remnants of the pyroxenite layer the selvages of chromite and pure anorthosite around some of the boulders remain poorly understood but may represent the latest recrystallisation event in response to localised late magmatic fluid overpressure upon cooling

modeling the merensky reef bushveld complex republic of south africa the merensky pegmatoid normal reef in the western bushveld complex is commonly characterized as a pyroxene rich pegmatoidal unit with a base that is enriched in chromite and platinum group element bearing sulfides overlying a leuconorite footwall models for its formation have ranged from those that view it as entirely a magmatic cumulate succession to those that have suggested that it is a zone of volatile induced remelting the consequences of the latter interpretation are investigated using the numerical modeling program iridium which links diffusive and advective mass and heat transport with a phase equilibration routine based on the melts program the initial system consists of a simple stratigraphic succession of a partially molten leuconorite overlain by a partially molten pyroxenite both initially at 1 190 c and 2 kbar 2 wt of a volatile fluid composed of 75 mol h2o 20 mol co2 and 5 mol h2s is then added to the lower 20 cm of the pyroxenite the system is then allowed to evolve under conditions of chemical diffusion in the liquid the addition of the volatile components results in a modest increase in the amount of melt in the pyroxenite however chemical diffusion across the leuconorite pyroxenite boundary leads to more extensive melting at and below the boundary with preferential loss of opx from the underlying leuconorite preferential re precipitation of sulfide and chromite and concentration of the pge at this boundary these results mimic actual mineral and compositional profiles across the merensky pegmatoid and illustrate that long term diffusion process can effectively produce mineralogical and compositional layering not present in the original assemblage

significance of 87 sr 86 sr ratios in the merensky cyclic unit of the bushveld complex in a number of mafic layered intrusions layers with platinum group element pge mineralization coincide with breaks in cumulus mineral composition and isotopic variation trends through the layered sequence1 2 for example in the bushveld complex in south africa abrupt increases in initial 87sr 86sr ratios occur at the ug 2 and merensky pegmatoid or reef horizons both of which are exploited for pges we report here the results of a detailed sr isotope study across the merensky unit and its immediate foot and hangingwall rocks which when considered together with new ideas on processes operating in magma chambers3 5 suggest that magma mixing and post cumulus infiltration of liquids displaced from below were important during crystallization of the merensky pegmatoid

the merensky reef at winnaarshoek eastern bushveld complex a primary magmatic hypothesis based on a wide reef facies the merensky reef on the winnaarshoek property in the central sector of the eastern limb of the bushveld complex belongs to what may be described as a wide reef facies in which platinum group element pge mineralization is largely contained within a relatively thick succession of medium grained nonpegmatoidal feldspathic orthopyroxenite bounded top and bottom by thin chromite stringers the wide reef merensky reef facies at winnaarshoek presents the opportunity to study subtle processes which could potentially be obscured or obliterated in the thinner reef facies found in many areas of the western limb especially in places where the reef zone contains a component of pegmatoidal orthopyroxenite at winnaarshoek a pegmatoidal feldspathic orthopyroxenite is developed below the lower chromite stringer and a second pegmatoidal orthopyroxenite is intermittently developed several centimeters above the upper chromite stringer in contrast to most occurrences in the western limb however both these pegmatoidal orthopyroxenites are only sporadically mineralized if at all in addition rather than being at the base of a feldspathic orthopyroxenite unit as is the case throughout most of the western limb the merensky reef at winnaarshoek occurs toward the top of a sequence of feldspathic orthopyroxenite despite the gross relative uniformity of the merensky reef on a property wide scale at winnaarshoek we demonstrate using underground channel samples that individual intersections spaced a matter of meters apart commonly display remarkable variations in grade distribution our study is based primarily on whole rock and mineral chemical profiles from drill cores through three separate and distinctive subfacies of essentially normal i e nonpothole reef one of the drill core intersections represents typical reef in which pge mineralization forms an upper reef extending from the upper chromitite stringer approximately 1 m into the underlying feldspathic pyroxenite and a much thinner lower reef centered on the lower chromitite stringer the other two drill core intersections represent extremes in terms of the vertical distribution of the pge one having mineralization confined to the immediate vicinity of the two chromitite stringers while the other is richly mineralized throughout the reef zone peaks in pge concentrations in all three intersections are coincident with the most primitive compositions of orthopyroxene plagioclase and chromite the dominant rock forming minerals whereas the cumulate layers below major pge peaks are the most evolved as indicated by mineral compositions and elevated whole rock incompatible element concentrations furthermore the lowest grade merensky reef intersection has the most chemically evolved footwall whereas the richest intersection has a relatively primitive footwall we consider the origin of the merensky reef in the context of its position as the culmination of a sequence of several pge mineralized chromite bearing layers in the upper critical zone and suggest that the regular upward variations in the chemistry of the chromitite from one layer to the next and the overall cyclicity are indicative of complex magma replenishment and mixing processes in the chamber we apply a model of lateral streaming of magma with chromite crystallization and consequent sulfide and platinum group mineral pgm precipitation resulting from magma mixing specifically the merensky reef cannot be properly interpreted outside the context of the sequence of successive events that evolved throughout the development of the upper critical zone genetic models also need to account for lateral facies variations in the reef

platinum group element mineralization in the critical zone of the western bushveld complex i sulfide poor chromitites below the ug 2 primary stratiform platinum group element pge mineralizations associated with chromitites in the critical zone of the bushveld complex south africa are confined to cumulate layers that are regionally persistent over tens of kilometers four categories ofchromitite are recognized layers at the bases of cycles in the lower critical zone type i layers at the bases of cycles in the upper critical zone type ii thin layers in the intermediate parts of cycles type iii and stringers associated with orthopyroxene pegmatoids type iv these latter may not be of primary magmatic origin nevertheless probably each type of chromitite contains anomalous concentrations of pge chromitites at the bases of cycles comprising the lower group lg middle group mg and upper group ug are further categorized into types ia lg 1 lg 4 ib lg 5 mg 1 iia mg 2 ug 1 and iib ug 2 and above on the basis of lithostratigraphy chromite and pge chemistry and sulfide content type iib chromitites contain significant quantities of sulfides and are not investigated here new whole rock and electron microprobe chemical analyses of the sulfide poor type ia ib and iia chromitites cu contents 1 8 low pge contents 2 type ib chromitites occur in pyroxenite cycles and form an intermediate group these regular variations with increased height are interpreted as a differentiation trend pge are concentrated in sulfide poor chromitites as a result of chromitite control a process not fully understood but thought to involve a combination of direct nucleation of platinum group minerals and localized s saturation it is the crystallization of copious quantities of chromite from hybridized melts close to the crystal liquid interface that triggers this process but magma mixing essential to drive the melt into the chromite field is the overall cause replenishment of the magma chamber was from a single magma batch because the chromitites below the ug 2 are not associated with major isotopic inflections huge volumes of dense hot magma were fed as basal flows along the crystal liquid interface the magma chamber was compartmentalized at an early stage possibly in response to basement tectonics and lateral mixing over distances of 150 km is an alternative mechanism for achieving sufficiently high r values repeated replenishment of the magma chamber resulted in mixing with resident liquid that became increasingly differentiated with height type ia chromitites are ascribed to replenishment and mixing with the relatively primitive lower zone residue type ib crystallized as a result of mixing with lower critical zone resident liquid and type iia due to mixing with more evolved upper critical zone resident liquid differentiation of pge with height is a critical part of the process which culminates in the occurrence of higher grade pge mineralization in sulfide bearing chromitites ug 2 merensky reef in the uppermost part of the upper critical zone

strontium isotope evidence for preserved density stratification in the main zone of the bushveld complex south africa the bushveld complex formed from two isotopically distinct magmas magma addition and mixing can be tracked by measuring initial strontium isotope ratios of cumulates rocks with ratios of 0 7065 lie below the lower 2 2 km of the main zone ratio 0 7085 whereas those with ratios of 0 7073 lie above it this unit represents a liquid layer intruded into the density stratified magma pile near the base of the chamber the merensky reef was produced by mixing of the pile with underlying trapped liquid enriched in precious metals

morphology and microstructure of chromite crystals in chromitites from the merensky reef bushveld complex south africa the merensky reef of the bushveld complex consists of two chromitite layers separated by coarse grained melanorite microstructural analysis of the chromitite layers using electron backscatter diffraction analysis ebsd high resolution x ray microtomography and crystal size distribution analyses distinguished two populations of chromite crystals fine grained idiomorphic and large silicate inclusion bearing crystals the lower chromitite layer contains both populations whereas the upper contains only fine idiomorphic grains most of the inclusion bearing chromites have characteristic amoeboidal shapes that have been previously explained as products of sintering of pre existing smaller idiomorphic crystals two possible mechanisms have been proposed for sintering of chromite crystals 1 amalgamation of a cluster of grains with the same original crystallographic orientation and 2 sintering of randomly orientated crystals followed by annealing into a single grain the ebsd data show no evidence for clusters of similarly oriented grains among the idiomorphic population nor for earlier presence of idiomorphic subgrains spatially related to inclusions and therefore are evidence against both of the proposed sintering mechanisms electron backscatter diffraction analysis maps show deformation related misorientations and curved subgrain boundaries within the large amoeboidal crystals and absence of such features in the fine grained population microstructures observed in the lower chromitite layer are interpreted as the result of deformation during compaction of the orthocumulate layers and constitute evidence for the formation of the amoeboid morphologies at an early stage of consolidation an alternative model is proposed whereby silicate inclusions are incorporated during maturation and recrystallisation of initially dendritic chromite crystals formed as a result of supercooling during emplacement of the lower chromite layer against cooler anorthosite during the magma influx that formed the merensky reef the upper chromite layer formed from a subsequent magma influx and hence lacked a mechanism to form dendritic chromite this accounts for the difference between the two layers

chemistry morphology and origin of magmatic reaction chromite stringers associated with anorthosite in the upper critical zone at winnaarshoek eastern limb of the bushveld complex

cryptic variations within chromitites of the upper critical zone northwestern bushveld complex the close association of platinum group elements with chromite in the upper critical zone calls for the appraisal of structures textures and composition of chromitites in the development of genetic models cryptic variations in successive chromitite layers of the ug 1 unit are consistent with fractionation of limited melt volumes individual chromitite bands within the composite ug 2 chromitite layer exhibit distinctive compositions but all display long range compositional trends with height superimposed on short range homogeneity accessory chromites are substantially different from massive chromitites in composition reaction with residual liquids and subsolidus reactions were significant recrystallization of chromitites was ubiquitous but the importance of in situ growth is shown by relict textures long range settling adcumulus growth or deposition from density currents are processes that find little support in the data presented

terrigenous sedimentation processes along the continental margin off nw africa implications from grain size analysis of seabed sediments the terrigenous fraction of seabed sediments recovered along the north west african continental margin illustrates spatial variability in grain size attributed to different transport mechanisms three subpopulations are determined from the grain size analyses n 78 of the carbonate free silt fraction applying an end member modelling algorithm g j weltje 1997 the two coarsest endmembers are interpreted as representing aeolian dust and the fine grained end member is related to fluvial supply the end member model thus allows aeolian fallout to be distinguished from fluvial sourced mud in this area the relative contributions of the end members show distinct regional variations that can be related to different transport processes and pathways understanding present day sediment dispersal and mixing is important for a better understanding of older sedimentary records and palaeoclimate reconstructions in the region

implication of vertical and lateral compositional variations across the pyroxene marker and its associated rocks in the upper part of the main zone in the eastern bushveld complex on the basis of a detailed mapping program in the area between laersdrif and roossenekal in the eastern compartment of the bushveld complex three composite profiles nearly perpendicular to the stratigraphic sequence from the upper parts of the subzone b of the main zone up to the main magnetite layer were constructed samples taken along these profiles were investigated by means of geochemical petrographical and mineralogical methods these profiles together with the data of the comparable profiles from von gruenewaldt 1973a and b and molyneux 1974 allowed construction of a north south trending cross section through this part of the layered sequence showing the vertical and lateral compositional variations the anorthite an and ferrosilite fs distribution along each profile within this cross section displays a reversal of the normal differentiation trend which commences a significant distance below the stratigraphic position of the pyroxenite marker this zone of reversed differentiation has its maximum thickness near roossenekal and wedges out toward the south the isopleths of both the anorthite and ferrosilite values within the cross section wedge out in a similar fashion comparable isopleth patterns are displayed by the distribution of the modified differentiation index this pattern is interpreted as reflecting lateral changes in the chemical composition of an evolved residual magma modified by the influx of a new magma some time prior to the formation of the pyroxenite marker the decrease in thickness of this abnormal zone toward the south parallels the degree of influence caused by this influx the formation of the reversed zone is discussed in terms of recent experimental models of magma mixing within a density stratified crystallizing magma chamber the abnormal layer of magnetite gabbro and the directly overlying pyroxenite marker are regarded as products of an increase in the oxygen fugacity at the liquid solid boundary of the magma chamber possibly caused by a short lived increase in pressure thereby resulting in monocrystallization of pyroxene

a chronostratigraphic framework for the north central kaapvaal craton the bushveld complex and the vredefort structure abstract sufficient geochronological data are available pertaining to the north central part of the kaapvaal craton to construct a chronostratigraphic framework for the rock units involved in the vredefort event from the basement rocks at 3170 ma to the waterberg soutpansberg groups deposited between 2025 and 1425 ma the resulting framework forms a convenient chronological guide to the geological evolution of this area and the timing of events such as that at vredefort the basement on which the supracrustal rocks were deposited stabilised from 3170 to 3060 ma but metamorphism and metasomatism of these rocks occurred up to 2800 m y ago in different parts of the craton the first unit of the wits triad the volcaniclastic dominion group was deposited at 3060 ma on the stabilising basement this was followed by the dominantly clastic witwatersrand supergroup and the overlying ventersdorp supergroup the dominantly volcanic ventersdorp rocks are 2700 m y old and form the last unit of the wits triad a considerable time gap of 200 300 ma separates the triad from the lowermost units of the overlying transvaal sequence the age of these volcanic and clastic protobasinal rocks is poorly constrained between 2500 and 2300 ma they may in fact represent eroded remnants of a more extensive depositional cycle the mainly clastic sedimentary part of the transvaal sequence pretoria group has been dated at 2224 ma the upper part of the transvaal sequence rooiberg group is only constrained by the age of the intrusive bushveld complex the bushveld basic layered rocks are well dated at 2060 ma as are the subsequent granites at 2050 ma the vredefort event which post dates the bushveld complex is reasonably well constrained by the age of the bronzite granophyre at 2000 ma deposition of the waterberg and soutpansberg groups which post date the bushveld complex is poorly constrained between the age of the bushveld granites and younger alkaline intrusives at 1425 ma but these sediments and volcanics were probably formed between 2025 and 1752 ma the waterberg group may therefore contain debris from the vredefort structure

petrogenesis of the merensky reef in the rustenburg section of the bushveld complex a petrogenetic model for the merensky reef in the rustenburg section of the bushveld complex has been developed based on detailed field and petrographic observations and electron microprobe data the model maintains that the reef formed by reaction of hydrous melt and a partially molten cumulate assemblage the model is devised to account for several key observations 1 although the dominant rock type in the rusterburg sections is pegmatoidal feldspathic pyroxenite there is a continous range of reef lithology from pyroxenite to pegmatoidal harzburgite and dunite and small amounts of olivine are present in nearly all pegmatoids 2 the pegmatoid is usually bounded above and below by chromitite seams and the basal chromitite separated from underlying norite by a centimeter thick layer of anorthosite the thicknesses of the two layers exhibit a well defined positive correlation 3 inclusion of pyroxenite identical to the hanging wall and of leuconorite identical to the footwall are present in the pegmatoid the leuconorite inclusions are surrounded by thin anorthosite and chromitite layers in the same sequence as that at the base of the reef 4 chromite in seams adjacent to plagioclase rich rocks is characterized by higher mg mg fe and al r3 and lower cr r3 than that in seams adjacent to pyroxene rich rocks similar variations in mineral compositions are observed across individual chromitite seams where the underlying and overlying rock types differ the chromite compositional variations cannot be rationalized in terms of either fractional crystallization or reequilibration with surrounding silicates it is proposed that the present reef was originally a melt rich horizon in norite immediately overlain by relatively crystallized pyroxenite magmatic vapor generated by crystallization of intercumulus melt migrated upward through fractures in the cumulate pile below the protoreef the melt rich protoreef became hydrated because fractures were unable to propagate through it and because the melt itself was water undersaturated hydration of the intercumulus melt was accompanied by melting and the hydration melting front migrated downward into the footwall and upward into the hanging wall in the footwall melting resulted first in the dissolution of orthopyroxene and then of plagioclase with continued hydration chromite was stabilized as melt alumina content increased the regular variations in chromite compositions reflect the original gradients in melt composition at the hydration front the stratigraphic sequence downward through the base of the reef or pegmatoid melt chromitite anorthosite norite represents the sequence of stable mineral assemblages across the hydration melting front the sequence is shown to be consistent with knowledge gained from experiments on melting of hydrous mafic systems at crustal pressures with cooling the hydrated mixture from partial melting of norite footwall and more mafic hanging wall crystallized in the sequence chromite olivine pyroxene plagioclase with peritectic loss of some olivine calculations of mass balance indicate that a significant proportion of the melt was lost from the melt rich horizon variations in the development of the pegmatoid and associated lithologies and amount of modal olivine in the pegmatoids along the strike of the merensky reef resulted because the processes of hydration melting and melt loss operated to varying extents