The Sassandra-Cavally (SASCA) domain (SW Côte d’Ivoire) marks the transition between Archaean Kenema-Man craton and Palaeoproterozoic (Rhyacian) Baoule-Mossi terranes. It is characterized by tectonic juxtaposition of granulite-facies amphibolite-facies rocks. Migmatitic grey gneisses, garnet-cordierite-sillimanite migmatitic paragneisses garnet-staurolite-bearing micaschists reached peak pressu...

The processes leading to the assembly of Rodinia supercontinent through Grenvillian collisional orogeny are relatively well known. In contrast, accretionary orogenic occurring at periphery following poorly understood. To fill this gap, we have identified metamorphic rocks in Mongolia collage Central Asian Orogenic Belt, where numerous data testify for Meso- Neoproterozoic magmatic reworking. te...

Temperature estimates obtained with various biotite-garnet thermometers are inconsistent in granulite facies rocks. Although the inconsistency lies partly in the lack of definition of equilibrium criteria, it still remains after rigorous selection of analyzed mineral pairs (isolated biotite and garnet cores for peak equilibrium conditions) and originate from minor element effects in garnet and ...

In previous papers in this series, a model that uses available elastic, structural, and spectroscopic data on minerals has been used to predict the thermodynamic functions Cv (heat capacity), S (entropy), E (internal energy), and F (Helmholtz free energy). In this paper, four applications to problems of current geochemical and geophysical interest are presented: (1) interpretation of complex tr...

The exposed residual crust in the Eastern Ghats Province records ultrahigh temperature (UHT) metamorphic conditions involving extensive crustal anatexis and melt loss. However, there is disagreement about the tectonic evolution of this late Mesoproterozoic–early Neoproterozoic orogen due to conflicting petrological, structural and geochronological interpretations. One of the petrological disput...

The Peninsular Ranges batholith of southern California and Baja California, México, is well recognized as a prime example of an I-type Cretaceous batholith. Often overlooked, however, is a volumetrically signiÞ cant amount of pre-Cretaceous gneissic granite in the axial zone of the batholith. New U-Pb zircon age data conÞ rm that the metaluminous and peraluminous plutonic bodies were emplaced d...

Bastnaesite, a rare-earth fluocarbonate, was found in the Mountain Pass district in April 1949. Subsequent geologic mapping has shown that rare-earth mineral deposits occur in a belt about 6 miles long and iy2 miles wide. One of the deposits, the Sulphide Queen carbonate body, is the greatest concentration of rare-earth minerals now known in the world. The Mountain Pass district is in a block o...

The movement of a low-viscosity crustal layer in response to topographic loading provides a potential mechanism for (1) eastward flow of the Asian lower crust causing the peripheral growth of the Tibetan Plateau and (2) southward flow of the Indian middle crust to be extruded along the Himalayan topographic front. Thermomechanical models for channel flow link such extrusion to focused orographi...