Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

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Gondwana Research

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GR Focus Review

Basalt geochemistry as a diagnostic indicator of tectonic setting

Linqi Xia ⁎, Xiangmin Li
Xi'an Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, China Geological Survey, Xi'an 710054, China

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Basalt geochemistry can be used as a diagnostic indicator for determining the tectonic setting of origin, because
Received 10 April 2018 specific plate tectonic settings often impart distinctive geochemical characteristics. For example: (1) mid-ocean
Received in revised form 10 August 2018 ridge basalts (MORB) and oceanic island basalts (OIB) have clearly distinguishable trace element and Sr-Nd iso-
Accepted 10 August 2018
tope geochemical characteristics; (2) arc related basalts, including IOAB (intra-oceanic arc basalts), IAB (island
Available online 9 October 2018
arc basalts) and CAB (continental arc basalts), exhibit following distinguishing features: all are characterized
Handling Editor: I. Safonova by low Nb/La ratios (b0.85) and negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies; most exhibit low Nb concentrations
(b8 ppm), high positive ɛNd values and low enrichment of incompatible elements except the continental arc
Keywords: shoshonitic basalts that possess high concentrations of incompatible trace elements and lower to negative ɛNd
Basalt geochemistry values; (3) although contamination by continental crust or lithosphere can impart subduction-like signature
Plate tectonic setting (e.g., low Nb, low Ta and low Ti) and lead to misidentification of contaminated continental intraplate basalts as
Mid-oceanic ridge basalts arc related, there are still some essential differences between continental intraplate basalts and arc related
Oceanic island basalts ones; such as: uncontaminated continental intraplate basalts have high Nb concentrations, Nb/La N 1, “hump-
Arc related basalts
shaped” OIB-like trace element patterns and moderate positive ɛNd values that distinguish them from the arc re-
Back arc basin basalts
lated ones; whereas, the contaminated continental intraplate basalts are characterized by pronounced negative
Continental intra plate basalts
Oceanic plateau basalts Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies, but their concentrations of incompatible trace elements are conspicuously higher
than those of subduction-zone basalts that also distinguishes them from the arc related ones; (4) an important
difference between back-arc basin basalts (BABB) and the MORB is that the former exhibit both MORB-like
and arc-like geochemical characteristics; (5) most oceanic plateau basalts (OPB) show diagnostic geochemical
characteristics of enriched MORB (E-MORB) to transitional MORB (T-MORB); only the Kerguelen Plateau is an ex-
ception; the early (pre 90 Ma) volcanism of the Kerguelen Plateau is associated with the Early Cretaceous break-
up of Gondwana and displays features of continental flood basaltic volcanism; with time, the tectonic setting of
the Kerguelen plume-derived volcanism changed from a rifted continental margin setting (133–118 Ma) through
a young, widening ocean (118–40 Ma), finally to an oceanic intraplate setting (~40 Ma to the present).
Tectonic discrimination diagrams should not be used in isolation, but can still be useful as part of holistic geo-
chemical characterization. For example: (1) MORB and OIB are distinguishable from each other in the 3Tb-Th-
2Ta diagram; (2) the arc related basalts, including IOAB, IAB and CAB, constantly plot in the arc-related basalts
fields in the Th/Yb-Ta/Yb diagram; (3) the 3Tb-Th-2Ta diagram can be utilized to fully illustrate both MORB-
like and arc-like characteristics of BABB; (4) some discriminant diagrams (such as Zr/Y-Zr, Th/Yb-Ta/Yb, 3Tb-
Th-2Ta and Hf/3-Th-Nb/16 diagrams) can be used to distinguish continental intra plate basalts from arc related
ones; (5) although there are not any discrimination diagrams published that delineate an OPB field, some trace
element diagrams can still reveal diagnostic characteristics of the OPB.
© 2018 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of International Association for Gondwana Research.

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
2. Data selection and sample classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
3. Mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
4. Oceanic island basalts (OIB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
5. Arc-related basalts (AB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

⁎ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: xlinqi@cgs.cn (L. Xia).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gr.2018.08.006
1342-937X/© 2018 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of International Association for Gondwana Research.
44 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

5.1. Intra-oceanic arc basalts (IOAB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

5.2. Island arc basalts (IAB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
5.3. Continental arc basalts (CAB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
5.3.1. Cascade CAB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
5.3.2. Andean CAB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
6. Back arc basin basalts (BABB). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
7. Continental intraplate basalts (CIPB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
7.1. Continental flood basalts (CFB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
7.2. Continental rift basalts (CRB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
7.2.1. Rio Grande CRB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
7.2.2. Ethiopian CRB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
8. Oceanic plateau basalts (OPB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
8.1. Ontong Java basalts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
8.2. Kerguelen basalts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
9. Summary and conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

1. Introduction
Basaltic magmas may be considered relatively reliable for
constraining their tectonic settings. This is because that basaltic magmas
with distinctive geochemical characteristics are associated with specific
tectonic settings. Perhaps basalts are more likely to have a geochemistry
indicative of their setting because basalt genesis is simpler than that of
e.g. granites and andesites. Perhaps it is important that basalts are de-
rived from the mantle, which is less heterogeneous in major and trace
element composition than the crust, so basalt geochemistry is more sen-
sitive to the addition of other geochemical components (e.g., slab fluids)
that may be diagnostic of tectonic setting. However, in general, the
major element characteristics of basaltic magmas are not particularly
sensitive indicators of tectonic setting. Fortunately, it is now well
established that distinctive trace element and Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic signa-
tures are associated with magma generation environments, although
their petrogenetic interpretation in some instances remains ambiguous
(Wilson, 1989).
During the past 44 years, a number of papers have appeared in which
the major, minor and trace element compositions of young basaltic rocks
have been related to the tectonic environment in which the basalts were
generated. These have led to the development of “tectonic setting dis-
crimination diagrams” for basalts (e.g., Pearce and Cann, 1973; Pearce
et al., 1975, 1977; Pearce and Norry, 1979; Wood, 1980; Pearce, 1982;
Shervais, 1982; Mullen, 1983; Meschede, 1986; Cabanis and
Thiéblemont, 1988; Vermeesch, 2006; Pearce, 2008; Ross and Bedard,
2009; Ishizuka et al., 2014; Pearce, 2014; Saccani, 2015) and hence to
identify tectonic palaeoenvironments through the geological record.
Using various discriminant diagrams it is found that, in general, the
correct identification of tectonic setting is highest for basalts not
erupted in within-continental-plate environments (Wilson, 1989;
Wang and Glover, 1992). Some authors (e.g., Wilson, 1989; Wang and
Glover, 1992) have noted that many continental basalts have mixed
geochemical characteristics; for example, features of both intraplate
and subduction-related tectonic settings. This is because “contamina-
tion by continental crust or lithosphere can impart subduction-like sig-
natures (e.g., low Nb, low Ta and low Ti) and lead to the
misidentification of contaminated intraplate basalts as arc related”
(Ernst et al., 2005; Jourdan et al., 2007; Xia et al., 2007, 2008;
Neumann et al., 2011; Xia, 2014). Our studies (e.g., Xia et al., 2004,
2007, 2008, 2011, 2012a, 2012b, 2013; Xia, 2014; Xia et al., 2016) re-
vealed that some geochemical characteristics (e.g., Nb/La ratios;
mantle-normalized trace element patterns; concentrations of incom-
patible trace elements; Sr-Nd isotopic signatures) can be used as the
criteria to distinguish continental basalts from arc related ones. Besides,
Snow (2006) showed that a statistical treatment employing all available
geochemical data of oceanic basalts can obtain promising results.
Li et al. (2015) have recently pointed out that all the trace element
diagrams they have tested fail to discriminate between back-arc basin
basalt and mid-ocean ridge basalt, between continental flood basalt
and oceanic plateau basalt, and between different types of arc basalt
(intra-oceanic, island and continental arcs), and only ocean island basalt
and some mid-ocean ridge basalt are generally distinguishable in the
diagrams.
Due to various factors (e.g., ① crustal or lithospheric contamination;
② some significant basalt types like those of back-arc basins and conti-
nental and oceanic plateaus are missing in the published discrimination
diagrams; ③ some significant diagnostic features for basalts (e.g., La/Sm
or La/Yb; Nb/La or Nb/Th; Zr/Nb ratios; mantle-normalized incompati-
ble trace element concentrations and patterns; Sr-Nd isotopic signa-
tures) were not utilized in the published discrimination diagrams), we
can not only rely discrimination diagrams to determine the tectonic en-
vironment in which the basalts were generated.
The aim of this paper is to employ a large range of trace elements and
Sr-Nd isotopes that are currently utilized to correlate particular geo-
chemical characteristics of Permian to Cenozoic basalts with specific
tectonic settings. If we can do this, we can use these to identify the tec-
tonic setting of ancient volcanic sequences.
2. Data selection and sample classification
All of basaltic volcanic samples have been obtained from two most
comprehensive global petrological databases (PetDB (http://www.
earthchem.org/petdb) and GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.
de/georoc/)) in our studies. We use only the fresh samples that contain
N5 wt% MgO (normalized to 100% on a volatile-free basis). Data pub-
lished before 1990 were excluded from our selection. The tectonic set-
tings of basalts used in this paper are: mid-ocean ridge basalts
(MORB), oceanic island basalts (OIB), continental arc basalts (CAB), is-
land arc basalts (IAB), intra-oceanic arc basalts (IOAB), back arc basin
basalts (BABB), continental flood basalts (CFB), continental rift basalts
(CRB) and oceanic plateau basalts (OPB) (Table 1). The samples of dif-
ferent types of basalt, except continental flood basalts and oceanic pla-
teau basalts, all erupted in the Cenozoic. The ages of samples of
continental flood basalts and oceanic plateau basalts vary from Permian
to Cretaceous (Table 1).
It must be pointed that the elements such as Na, K, Ca, Ba, Rb, Cs and
Sr are known to be mobile during surface weathering and alteration
processes, that may have changed the concentration of the mobile ele-
ments, and therefore are not useful for tectonomagmatic discrimination
purposes. Thus K, Rb, Cs, Ba, Sr etc. are not used on the multielement
plots in the following discussion. For the same reason, we do not utilize
the alkali-silica (TAS) classification diagram in identifying the volcanic
rock types. Instead, here we use the SiO2 vs. Nb/Y diagram
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67 45

Table 1 With the exception of the East Pacific Rise, such ridges occur in the
Selected datasets for different types of basalt (MgO N 5 wt% and published after 1990). middle part of the oceans and essentially form a submarine moun-
Tectonic setting Location Age Database tain range. According to plate-tectonic theory, a mid-ocean ridge
Mid-ocean Ridge Basalts Mid-Atlantic Ridge Cenozoic PetDB
(or constructive plate margin) is a boundary between plates at
(MORB) East Pacific Rise Cenozoic PetDB which new oceanic lithosphere (crust + mantle) is generated, in re-
Southwest Indian Cenozoic PetDB sponse to partial melting of mantle lherzolite undergoing adiabatic
Ridge decompression in a narrow zone of upwelling. Partial melting results
Southeast Indian Cenozoic PetDB
in the formation of basaltic magma, which is injected through ten-
Ridge
Oceanic Island Basalts (OIB) Hawaii Cenozoic GEOROC sional fissures into a narrow zone only a few kilometers wide at the
Continental Arc Basalts Cascade arc Cenozoic GEOROC ridge axis. Surface volcanism, sometimes in the form of pillow lava,
(CAB) Andean arc Cenozoic GEOROC does occur but most of the magma solidifies within dykes and lay-
Island Arc Basalts (IAB) Lesser Antilles arc Cenozoic GEOROC ered intrusives at greater depths. The new rocks thus generated are
Intra-oceanic Arc Basalts Izu arc Cenozoic GEOROC
(IOAB) Tonga arc Cenozoic GEOROC
then transported away from the ridge axis by the continuous process
Back Arc Basin Basalts LAU basin Cenozoic PetDB of seafloor spreading (Wilson, 1989).
(BABB) The modern mid-ocean ridge basalts from the East Pacific Ridge, the
Continental Flood Basalts Emeishan Permian GEOROC Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the Indian Ocean Ridge, including Southwest
(CFB)
Indian Ridge and Southeast Indian Ridge, are selected as a comparison
Continental Rift Basalts Rio Grand Rift Cenozoic GEOROC
(CRB) Main Ethiopian Rift Cenozoic GEOROC (Fig. 1). Our synthesis reveals that the mid-ocean ridge basalts have
Oceanic Plateau Basalts Ontong Java Cretaceous GEOROC the following important characteristics:
(OPB) Kerguelen Cretaceous to GEOROC
present (1) The majority of mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) are tholeiitic ex-
cept small amounts of them that belong to the alkaline series
(Fig. 2a and b).
(Winchester and Floyd, 1977) and the FeOT/MgO vs. SiO2 diagram (2) Fig. 2c, d and e compare incompatible element abundances, nor-
(Miyashiro, 1975). On the other hand, age correction of measured malized to primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989),
87
Sr/86Sr ratios involves Rb concentrations. For reasons given above, for Cenozoic mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) from the Atlantic,
emphasis is placed on immobile elements such as REEs, HFSEs (high Pacific and Indian oceans, and oceanic island basalts (OIB)
field strength elements: Zr, Hf, Nb, Ta, P), Th, Y, Ti, Fe, and Mg, and ɛNd (after Sun and McDonough, 1989). The very obvious depletions
(or ɛNd(t)) in this paper. in the most incompatible elements in N-type MORB must reflect
similar depletions in their source mantle. In contrast, E-type (or
3. Mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) P-type) MORB have distinctive patterns enriched in the most in-
compatible elements, similar to OIB. This would seem to suggest
The system of mid-oceanic ridges extends through all the major that the sources of E-type (or P-type) MORB and OIB have similar
ocean basins, with a total length in excess of 60,000 km (Fig. 1). geochemical characteristics.

Fig. 1. Global distribution of 0–350 Ma Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) and some Oceanic Island Basalts (OIB), Mid-Ocean Ridge Basalts (MORB), Continental rift-related volcanic rocks and
arc-related volcanic rocks (after NGS., 1999; Courtillot et al., 1999; Wignall, 2001; Bryan and Ernst, 2008; Xia, 2014).
46 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 2. (a) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977), (b) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (c, d, e) Primitive mantle (after Sun and
McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams, (f) (La/Sm)N (normalized to primitive mantle: Sun and McDonough, 1989) versus Zr/Nb plot (modified after
Wilson, 1989), (g) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989) and (h) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) for Cenozoic Mid-ocean ridge
basalts (MORB) from the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. b is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in a. In Fig. 2(c, d, e), patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and
McDonough (1989). N-type MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-type MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-type MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts.
UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. Data sources: PetDB (http://www.
earthchem.org/petdb).

(3) Fig. 2f shows that there is a good correlation between (La/Sm)N
and the Zr/Nb ratios for Atlantic, Pacific and Indian ocean
MORB, suggesting that binary mixing of end-member source
components may be significant in determining their geochemical
characteristics. Fig. 2g shows that the variation of Y/Nb versus Zr/
Nb for MORB suites from the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans,
and the data arrays appear to be rather simply explained in
terms of two-component mixing, between a slightly heteroge-
neous depleted asthenosphere (N-MORB source component)
and a low Zr/Nb plume or hotspot component (E-MORB and
OIB source component).
(4) The Nd-Sr diagram (Fig. 2h) clearly shows the restricted range in
isotopic composition of MORB when compared to the entire oce-
anic basalt data array. In general, N-type MORB has lower
87
Sr/86Sr (=0.7024–0.7032) and higher ɛNd ratios (=8–13),
whereas E-type MORB are characterized by higher 87Sr/86Sr (=
0.7030–0.7043) and lower ɛNd ratios (=5–3) (Fig. 2h). It can be
seen also from Fig. 2h that Pacific MORB appear to show a
much narrower range in Sr and Nd isotopic compositions than
Atlantic MORB and Indian MORB. This might be attributable to
a greater isotopic heterogeneity in the sources of Atlantic MORB
and Indian MORB compared to the Pacific. However, Wilson
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
(1989) postulated that all MORB source regions have similar de-
grees of isotopic heterogeneity and that the greater degrees of
melt production associated the fast-spreading East Pacific Rise
may effectively homogenize the isotopic compositions.
(5) In 3Tb–Th–2Ta diagram (Fig. 3), all the MORB consistently plot in
the MORB, including N-MORB and E-MORB, field.
As a whole, the mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) have distinctive
trace element and Sr–Nd isotopic signatures and they are distinguish-
able in some geochemical diagrams such as 3Tb–Th–2Ta diagram
(Cabanis and Thiéblemont, 1988).
4. Oceanic island basalts (OIB)
Within the ocean basins numbers of seamounts and volcanic islands
occur at locations far from adjacent plate boundaries, and these are ex-
amples of intra (within)–oceanic plate volcanism. In slow-spreading
ocean basins such as the Atlantic, volcanic islands tend to occur singly
or in small groups, whereas in fast spreading ocean such as the Pacific
they commonly occur in linear chains. In 1963, J. T. Wilson proposed a
model for the origin of such linear volcanic features, which is still in cur-
rent use as a general explanation for the occurrence of intra-oceanic
plate volcanism. The model involves a fixed magma source in the man-
tle, a hot spot or mantle plume, over which the oceanic plate moves.
During its travel from ridge to trench, if the oceanic plate passes over
a rising hot spot or mantle plume, a seamount or volcanic island is cre-
ated that is characterized by ocean island basalts overlain by reef lime-
stones, given the appropriate latitude and carbonate compensation
depth (e.g., Takayangi et al., 1993; Yamada et al., 2007; Safonova et al.,
2009). As the volcano is carried progressively away from the centre of
the hot spot or mantle plume, by the motion of the oceanic plate, the
Fig. 3. 3Tb (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus 2Ta (ppm) diagram (after Cabanis and Thiéblemont, 1988) for Cenozoic Mid-ocean ridge basalts (MORB) from the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian
oceans. Data sources are as in Fig. 2.
47
magma supply is cut off and volcanism ceases. Ultimately, this creates
a chain of extinct volcanoes moving away from the hot spot or mantle
plume in the direction of seafloor spreading.
The Hawaiian island–Emperor Seamount Chain is perhaps the best
studied example of a truly intra-oceanic plate hot spot or mantle
plume located well away from the constructive plate boundary (East Pa-
cific Rise). The Hawaiian archipelago represents the subaerially exposed
portion of a dominantly submarine mountain range, over 2000 km in
length, elongated WNW–ESE approximately parallel to the present
spreading direction of the Pacific Plate (Fig. 1). The individual shield vol-
canoes rise from a submarine pedestal of volcanic rocks 5 km thick lying
on downwarped older oceanic crust. We consider the geochemical fea-
tures of Hawaiian basalts as a type example of intraplate ocean island
basalt (OIB).
In general almost all oceanic island basalts (OIB) are character-
ized by an evolutionary sequence from an early less alkalic volumi-
nous shield-building stage to later more alkalic phases, which
often postdate a prolonged period of dormancy. The Hawaii oceanic
island basalts (OIB) are dominantly tholeiitic, becoming transitional
to alkalic with time, followed by late-stage post-erosional eruptions
eruptions of highly alkalic lavas such as basanites, nephelinites and
melilitites (Fig. 4a and b; Claque, 1987). The Hawaii oceanic island
basalts (OIB) show strong enrichment of large high-valency cations
(Th, Ta, Nb, La, Ce, Sm, Eu and Ti) (Fig. 4c) relative to MORB
(Fig. 2c, d and e). Apart from these anomalies, mantle-normalized
trace element concentrations show typical “hump-shaped”
(i.e., absence of negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies) intraplate pat-
terns (Fig. 4c). Moreover, Zr/Nb (b20) and Y/Nb (b5) ratios are char-
acteristically low in OIB compared to MORB (Fig. 4d and e). Fig. 4f
shows that the Hawaii OIB is characterized by more radiogenic Sr
and less radiogenic Nd when compared to MORB. In the 3Tb–Th–
2Ta diagram (Fig. 5), all of the Hawaii OIB consistently plot in the
OIB field.
48 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 4. (a) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977), (b) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (c) Primitive mantle (after Sun and
McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagram, (d) (La/Sm)N (normalized to primitive mantle: Sun and McDonough, 1989) versus Zr/Nb plot (modified after
Wilson, 1989), (e) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989) and (f) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) for Cenozoic Oceanic Island basalts
(OIB) from Hawaii. b is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in a. In panel (c), pattern for oceanic island basalts (OIB) is from Sun and McDonough (1989). N-type MORB: normal
(depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-type MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-type MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM
II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

Fig. 5. 3Tb (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus 2Ta (ppm) diagram (after Cabanis and Thiéblemont, 1988) for Cenozoic Oceanic Island basalts (OIB) from Hawaii. Data sources are as in Fig. 4.
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67 49

Fig. 6. (a, c, e, g) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagrams (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977), (b, d, f, h) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagrams (after Miyashiro, 1975) for Cenozoic intra-oceanic
arc, island-arc and continental arc basalts of the Tonga Arc, the Izu Arc, the Lesser Antilles Arc and the Cascade Arc. b, d, f and h are for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in a, c, e and g. Data
sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

In summary, although there is some overlap in all the diagrams, the
oceanic island basalts (OIB) have major element, trace element and iso-
tope geochemical characteristics which clearly distinguish them from
MORB.
5. Arc-related basalts (AB)
Destructive plate margins mark the sites of subduction of oceanic
lithosphere into the Earth's mantle. All of the world's arc-related
volcanoes, including intra-oceanic arc, island arc and continental arc
volcanoes, are associated with such descending oceanic lithospheric
plates. The overriding plate can be either of oceanic or continental lith-
osphere, resulting in different geometrical forms for the surface
volcanism–oceanic island arcs, including intra-oceanic arcs and island
arcs, and continental arcs (i.e., active continental margins) respectively.
Intra-oceanic arcs are built on normal oceanic crust. Island arcs are built
on thickened oceanic crust (e.g., the Lesser Antilles are on the edge of
the Caribbean plateau).
50 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

The Cenozoic intra-oceanic arc basaltic rocks from the Tonga and the
Izu intra-oceanic arcs (Fig. 1), the Cenozoic island arc basaltic rocks from
the Lesser Antilles island arc (Fig. 1) and the Cenozoic continental arc
basaltic rocks from the Cascade and the Andean continental arcs
(Fig. 1) are selected as exemplars.
5.1. Intra-oceanic arc basalts (IOAB)
The Tonga and the Izu arcs are two typical intra-oceanic arc sys-
tems (Turner et al., 1997; Wendt et al., 1997; Tian et al., 2008;
Tollstrup et al., 2010; Ishizuka et al., 2015), and their geochemistry

Fig. 7. (a, b) Nb/La versus Nb (ppm) diagrams, (c, d) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagrams (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) and (e, f, g, h) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989)
normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams for Cenozoic intra-oceanic arc, island-arc and continental arc basalts of the Tonga Arc, the Izu Arc, the Lesser Antilles Arc and the
Cascade Arc. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. UC – upper crust; LC – lower
crust; EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. Patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough
(1989). The shaded area shows the range for arc sub-alkaline basalts, with the lower and upper limits being defined by “average” low-K and high-K basalts, respectively (Tatsumi and
Eggins, 1995). Data sources are as in Fig. 6.
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 8. Th/Yb versus Ta/Yb diagram (after Pearce, 1982) for Cenozoic intra-oceanic arc,
island-arc and continental arc basalts of the Tonga Arc, the Izu Arc, the Lesser Antilles
Arc and the Cascade Arc. Data sources are as in Fig. 6.
is typical for intra-oceanic arc basaltic lavas. The Tonga and the Izu
intra-oceanic arc basaltic lavas consist of basalt and minor basaltic
andesite; all of them display high FeOT/MgO for a given SiO 2
(Fig. 6a, b, c and d). They have low Nb contents (b2.6 ppm) and Nb/
La ratios (b0.7) (Fig. 7a). They show low enrichment of incompatible
trace elements and possess marked negative Nb and Ta anomalies,
and their concentrations of incompatible trace elements are broad
similar to those of arc sub-alkaline basalts (Tatsumi and Eggins,
1995) (Fig. 7e and f). There is a relatively limited variation in Sr
and Nd isotopic compositions among the Tonga and Izu Arc samples
(Fig. 7c). Values of ɛNd range from 8 to 9 for the Izu arc basaltic lavas
and overlap with the Tonga arc basaltic lavas (ɛNd = 4.5 to 8.9). The
Izu arc basaltic lavas have the similar 87 Sr/86Sr ratios
(0.7033–0.7037) with the Tonga arc basaltic lavas ( 87 Sr/86Sr =
0.7029–0.7039). As a whole, the intra-oceanic arc basaltic lavas
have low 87Sr/86Sr ratios and high ɛNd values (Fig. 7c). In Th/Yb–Ta/
Yb diagram (Pearce, 1982), all of the Tonga and Izu intra-oceanic
arc basaltic lavas consistently plot in the oceanic island arc basalt
field (Fig. 8).
5.2. Island arc basalts (IAB)
The Lesser Antilles system is a typical island arc system
(Hawkesworth and Powell, 1980; Turner et al., 1996; Dufrane et al.,
2009; Neill et al., 2013), and its geochemistry is typical for island arc ba-
saltic lavas. The Lesser Antilles island arc basaltic lavas, consisting of ba-
salt and minor basaltic andesite, display high FeOT/MgO for a given SiO2
except two samples that display low FeOT/MgO for a given SiO2 (Fig. 6e
and f). They have low Nb contents (≤7 ppm), slightly higher than those
of the intra-oceanic basalts, and Nb/La ratios (b0.85) (Fig. 7a). They
show low enrichment of incompatible trace elements and possess pro-
nounced negative Nb, Ta, Zr, Hf and Ti anomalies, and their concentra-
tions of incompatible trace elements are similar to those of arc sub-
alkaline basalts (Tatsumi and Eggins, 1995) (Fig. 7g). There is a rela-
tively wide variation in Sr and Nd isotopic compositions among the
Lesser Antilles Arc samples (Fig. 7c). Values of ɛNd and 87Sr/86Sr ratios
range from 2.7 to 9.5 and 0.7032 to 0.7054 respectively (Fig. 7c). Overall,
the island arc basalts have higher 87Sr/86Sr ratios and lower ɛNd values
relative to the intra-oceanic arc basalts (Fig. 7c). In Th/Yb–Ta/Yb dia-
gram, most of the Lesser Antilles island arc basaltic lavas plot in the oce-
anic island arc basalts field although several samples plot in the
continental arc basalts field (Fig. 8).
51
5.3. Continental arc basalts (CAB)
5.3.1. Cascade CAB
The Cascade volcanic arc is a typical continental margin volcanic arc.
This volcanic arc was originally created by subduction of the now
vanished Farallon Plate at the Cascadia subduction zone. After
28 million years ago, the Farallon Plate segmented to form the Juan de
Fuca Plate, which continues to subduct under the Pacific Northwest of
North America (Madson et al., 2006). The Cascadia subduction zone ex-
tends over 1000 km, running 80 km off the coast of the Pacific North-
west from northern California through Washington and Oregon to
Vancouver Island and southwestern British Columbia (Fig. 1). Over the
last 37 million years, the Cascade Arc has been erupting a chain of volca-
noes along the Pacific Northwest. The eruption styles within this volca-
nic arc range from effusive to explosive, with composition from basalt to
rhyolite (Wood and Kienle, 1990).
The Cascade continental arc basaltic lavas comprise basalt and basal-
tic andesite, that display high FeOT/MgO for a given SiO2, but also alkali
basalt and basaltic trachyandesite that belong to the alkaline series
(shoshonitic series) (Fig. 6g and h). They have low Nb/La ratios (b0.8)
and higher Nb contents (2–36 ppm) relative to the intra-oceanic arc ba-
salts and the island arc basalts (Fig. 7a and b). Similar to the island arc
basalts, the Cascade thoeiitic lavas are characterized by low enrichment
of incompatible trace elements and obvious negative Nb, Ta and Ti
anomalies, and their concentrations of incompatible trace elements
are overlapping those of arc sub-alkaline basalts (Fig. 7h). In contrast,
the Cascade shoshonitic lavas show high incompatible trace element
concentrations but still have apparent negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies
(Fig. 7h). It can be seen from Fig. 7c and d that the Cascade continental
arc basalts are characterized by more radiogenic Sr (87Sr/86Sr = 0.7048
to 0.7062) and less radiogenic Nd (ɛNd = −3 to +1) when compared to
IOAB and IAB. The lower to negative ɛNd values of CAB might be related
to contamination by old continental crust or lithosphere through which
the continental arc basaltic rocks have erupted. In Th/Yb–Ta/Yb dia-
gram, most of the Cascade arc basaltic lavas plot in the continental arc
basalts field, but some samples (the shoshonites) plot in the oceanic is-
land arc basalts field (Fig. 8).
5.3.2. Andean CAB
The Andean volcanic arc is another typical continental margin volca-
nic arc. It formed as a result of subduction of the Nazca Plate and Antarc-
tic Plate underneath the South American Plate. The Andean continental
volcanic arc of South America extends for 10,000 km along the western
margin of the continent, from the Caribbean Sea to the Scotia Sea
(Fig. 1), making it the longest sub-aerial mountain chain on Earth
(Wilson, 1989).
The Andean continental arc basaltic lavas comprise basalt and basal-
tic andesite, that display high FeOT/MgO for a given SiO2 (three samples
display low FeOT/MgO for a given SiO2), but also alkaline basalt and ba-
saltic trachyandesite that belong to the alkaline series (shoshonitic se-
ries) (Fig. 9a and b). They have low Nb/La ratios (b0.9), and higher Nb
contents (1–34 ppm) relative to the intra-oceanic arc basalts and the is-
land arc basalts (Fig. 9c). Similar to the Cascade arc basalts, the Andean
sub-alkaline lavas are characterized by lower enrichment of incompati-
ble trace elements and marked negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies, and
their concentrations of incompatible trace elements are similar to
those of arc sub-alkaline basalts (Fig. 9e). In contrast, the Andean
shoshonitic lavas show high incompatible trace element concentrations
but still have apparent negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies (Fig. 9f). Fig. 9d
shows that the Andean continental arc basalts are characterized by
more radiogenic Sr (87Sr/86Sr = 0.7038 to 0.708) and less radiogenic
Nd (ɛNd = −8 to +7) when compared to IOAB and IAB. In Th/Yb–Ta/
Yb diagram, most of the Andean arc basaltic lavas plot in the continental
arc basalt field, but some samples (the shoshonites) plot in the oceanic
island arc basalt field (Fig. 9g).
52 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 9. (a) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977), (b) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (c) Nb/La versus Nb (ppm) diagram,
(d) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986), (e, f) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider
diagrams and (g) Th/Yb versus Ta/Yb diagram (after Pearce, 1982) for Cenozoic continental arc basalts of the Andean Arc. b is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in a. N-MORB:
normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM
II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. Patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough (1989). The
shaded area shows the range for arc sub-alkaline basalts, with the lower and upper limits being defined by “average” low-K and high-K basalts, respectively (Tatsumi and Eggins,
1995). Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

In summary, the above comparison of typical IOAB, IAB and CAB pro-
vides several useful insights: (1) IOAB, IAB and continental arc tholeiitic
basalts have obviously lower Nb concentrations (b8 ppm) relative to con-
tinental arc shoshonitic basalts (Nb = 13–36 ppm); (2) all of arc-related
basaltic lavas exhibit low Nb/La ratios (b0.9); (3) all of arc-related basaltic
lavas have negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies; (4) IOAB, IAB and continen-
tal arc tholeiitic basalts show low enrichment of incompatible trace
elements, except for the continental arc shoshonites; (5) IOAB and IAB
have high positive ɛNd values (+2.7 to +9.5); (6) the lower to negative
ɛNd values (−8 to +7) of CAB might be related to contamination by old
continental crust or lithosphere through which the continental arc basal-
tic magmas have erupted; (7) in Th/Yb–Ta/Yb diagram, the IOAB, IAB and
CAB consistently plot in the arc related basalts (including oceanic island
arc basalts and continental arc basalts) fields.
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 10. Cenozoic Tonga–Kermadec Arc and Lau Basin–Havre Trough, showing location and major tectonic features (after Ewart et al., 1998). Bathymetry contours in metres.
6. Back arc basin basalts (BABB)
Back-arc or marginal basins are semi-isolated basins or series of ba-
sins lying behind the active volcanic front of island-arc systems (Karig,
1971). It is generally accepted that these are extensional features pro-
duced by seafloor spreading type processes broadly similar to those oc-
curring at mid-oceanic ridges (Wilson, 1989). Back-arc basins are
essentially an oceanic phenomenon, although extensional tectonic re-
gimes to the landward side of the volcanic front in active continental
margins may be considered analogous. However, in such cases no new
oceanic crust is generated. For example, subduction system in the west-
ern Pacific are characterized by steep-angled subduction of old dense
lithosphere and back-arc extension, whereas those in the eastern Pacific
are characterized by the subduction of young buoyant lithosphere at
relatively shallow angles (~30°) and back-arc compressional tectonics
(Molnar and Atwater, 1978).
Seafloor spreading in back-arc basins clearly differs from that at nor-
mal mid-oceanic ridges in that back-arc basin spreading is always
53
closely associated with subduction. The geochemistry of back-arc ba-
salts consequently shows both MORB-like and arc-like characteristics
(Wilson, 1989; Fretzdorff et al., 2002; Xia et al., 2003, 2016). This is be-
cause subduction-modified mantle components in the back-arc basin
environment may become involved in the magma generation process,
producing spreading centre basalts with geochemical characteristics
transitional between those of MORB and arc basalts.
The active Tonga-Kermadec intra-oceanic arc system extends for
~3000 km NNE from New Zealand, forming a modern convergent
margin created by the westward subduction of the Pacific Plate be-
neath the Australasian Plate (Fig. 1). This arc system is divided into
northern (Tonga) and southern (Kermadec) segments by the inter-
section of the Louisville Ridge Seamount Chain with the Kermadec
Trench (Fig. 10). West of the Tonga-Kermadec arc lie the Lau Basin
and the Havre Trough, both active back-arc basin systems (Fig. 10).
The Lau Basin has been the focus of intensive studies (e.g., Ewart
et al., 1998), and the basaltic lavas from this modern back-arc basin
are selected as analysis object.
54 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 11. (a) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977), (b) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (c) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagram
(modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) and (d, e, f) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams for Cenozoic Back-arc
basin basalts of the Lau Basin. b is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in a. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-
MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle
source. In Fig. 11(d, e, f), patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough (1989), and patterns for N-MORB and E-MORB are from Fig. 2(c, d). The shaded area
shows the range for arc sub-alkaline basalts, with the lower and upper limits being defined by “average” low-K and high-K basalts, respectively (Tatsumi and Eggins, 1995). Data
sources: PetDB (http://www.earthchem.org/petdb).

Our synthesis reveals that the Lau back-arc basin basaltic lavas show
the following characteristics:
(1) The Lau back-arc basin basaltic lavas, comprise basalt and minor
basaltic andesite and belong to the tholeiitic series (Fig. 11a and
b).
(2) The Lau back-arc basin basalts are characterized by high ɛNd
(7–10) and low 87Sr/86Sr (0.7025–0.7035) that are similar to
those of MORB (Fig. 11c).
(3) The back-arc basin basalts from the eastern Lau Basin are charac-
terized by a strong arc signature (Figs. 11f and 12) and they show
arc-like characteristics (Figs. 11f and 12). This might be antici-
pated, as the back-arc environment is clearly one in which
subduction-modified mantle components may become involved
in the magma generation process, producing back-arc basin ba-
salts with geochemical characteristics transitional to arc basalts.
The tectonic evolution of the eastern Lau basin must be ascribed
the island-arc rifting process. Its origin has been related to the
earliest opening of a back-arc basin formed by island-arc rifting
(Wilson, 1989; Xia et al., 2003, 2016).
(4) Figs. 11d, e and 12 show that the basalts from the central Lau
Basin to the western Lau Basin differ in having stronger MORB-
type affinities. Evidently, the most youthful products of island-
arc rifting occur in the east (i.e., the eastern Lau Basin basalts
with strong subduction signatures) whereas the relatively ma-
ture products of back-arc spreading are found in the west
(i.e., the western Lau basin basalts with stronger MORB
affinities).
To sum up, the most essential difference between BABB and MORB is
that the former exhibit geochemical characteristics transitional be-
tween MORB and Arc basalts. It must be pointed out that not all trace el-
ement diagrams fail to discriminate between BABB and MORB. For
instance, in Fig. 3, all MORB samples consistently plot in the MORB
field. Meanwhile, basalts from the eastern Lau basin consistently plot
in the IAT field of Fig. 12, while basalts from the eastern Lau Basin plot
in the IAT field, the basalts from the central Lau Basin plot in the BA
field and the basalts from the western Lau Basin plot in the MORB field.
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 12. 3Tb (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus 2Ta (ppm) diagram (after Cabanis and Thiéblemont, 1988) for Cenozoic Back-arc basin basalts of the Lau Basin. Data sources are as in Fig. 11.
7. Continental intraplate basalts (CIPB)
Continental intraplate volcanic rocks are generated in extensional
tectonic environments within continental plates. They can be divided
into continental flood basalts (CFB) and continental rift volcanics
(CRV). The CFB and CRV are generally associated with Large Igneous
Provinces (LIP) (Coffin and Eldholm, 1994; Ernst et al., 2005; Bryan
and Ernst, 2008). Unlike CFB provinces consisting of vast thicknesses
of laterally extensive basaltic lava flows, continental rift volcanism is
not predominantly basaltic but also involves large volumes of felsic
eruptives (e.g., trachytes, phonolites and rhyolites). Besides, continental
rift volcanism may be highly explosive and pyroclastic rocks may locally
dominate the volcanic sequence.
Although basaltic magmas are often believed to retain reliable geo-
chemical traces of their tectonic setting of origin, we must caution
against using geochemical signatures alone to discriminate between
continental intraplate basalts, including continental flood basalts
(CFB) and continental rift basalts (CRB), and arc basalts (Xia, 2014).
This is because that “contamination by continental crust or lithosphere
can impart subduction-like signatures (e.g., low Nb, low Ta and low
Ti) and lead to the misidentification of contaminated continental intra-
plate basalts as arc related” (Ernst et al., 2005; Jourdan et al., 2007; Xia
et al., 2007, 2008; Neumann et al., 2011; Xia, 2014).
To illustrate why subduction-like features in continental intraplate
basalts need not reflect a real arc setting, we consider now the Emeishan
CFB, the Rio Grand CRB and the Ethiopian CRB.
7.1. Continental flood basalts (CFB)
The Emeishan large igneous province (LIP) covers an area of N5
× 105 km2 with flood basalts, along with many associated mafic-
ultramafic layered intrusions in the western part of the Yangtze Craton
in southwestern China (Fig. 1). The thickness of the entire volcanic
55
sequence varies from over 5000 m in the west to a few hundred meters
in the east. It consists mainly of basaltic lavas with subordinate amounts
of picrites and pyroclastic rocks. In the west, thick flows and tuffs of tra-
chytic and rhyolitic composition form an important member in the up-
permost volcanic sequence (Chung and Jahn, 1995; Xu et al., 2001).
Such compositional bimodality is also revealed by the associated intru-
sives that comprise syenites and layered gabbros. Available isotopic
dates reveal that Emeishan volcanism started ~260 Ma ago, and ended
as late as ~251 Ma ago, therefore lasting up to 10 Ma (Bryan and
Ernst, 2008). A more recent paper by Shellnut and Jahn (2011) that pre-
sents evidence for a single Emeishan pulse at ~260 Ma. Emeishan LIP
magmatism is clearly correlated in space and time to a combination of
mantle plume upwelling and continental rifting (Chung and Jahn,
1995; Xu et al., 2001; Saunders et al., 2007). Even though these basalts
have erupted in a continental intraplate environment, a significant pro-
portion, due to contamination by lithosphere (especially by crustal), are
also very similar to arc related basalts in some geochemical
characteristics.
According to Nb/La ratios, the Emeishan basaltic lavas can be divided
into uncontaminated (Nb/La N 1.0) and contaminated (Nb/La b 1.0)
samples (Fig. 13a). Fig. 13a also shows that the uncontaminated basaltic
lavas have higher Nb concentrations (8–49 ppm) and the contaminated
ones exhibit slightly lower Nb concentrations (7–42 ppm). The
Emeishan basaltic lavas consist of tholeiitic basalt, alkali basalt and
minor tholeiitic basaltic andesite (Fig. 13c and d).
The uncontaminated basaltic lavas show moderate to strong enrich-
ment of incompatible trace elements and possess positive Nb, Ta and Ti
anomalies, and P is strongly depleted compared with elements of simi-
lar compatibility (Fig. 13e). Apart from these anomalies, mantle-
normalized trace element concentrations increase regularly with in-
creasing incompatibility and show typical “hump-shaped” OIB-like in-
traplate patterns (i.e., absence of negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies)
(Fig. 13e). Meanwhile, the contaminated basaltic lavas are characterized
56 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 13. (a) Nb/La versus Nb (ppm) diagram, (b) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989), (c) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977),
(d) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (e, f) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams,
(g) 87Sr/86Sr(t) versus ɛNd(t) diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) and (h) Nb/La versus ɛNd(t) diagram for Late Permian (260–251 Ma) continental flood basalts of the
Emeishan large igneous province (LIP) (China). d is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in c. Patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough (1989). The shaded
area shows the range for arc sub-alkaline basalts, with the lower and upper limits being defined by “average” low-K and high-K basalts, respectively (Tatsumi and Eggins, 1995). UC – upper
crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge ba-
salts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

by marked negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies (Fig. 13f), but their concen-
trations of incompatible trace elements are conspicuously higher than
those of arc sub-alkaline basalts (Fig. 13f) that distinguish them from
the arc related ones. In addition, it can be seen from Fig. 13b that the un-
contaminated basaltic lavas plot in the mantle plume field, in contrast,
the contaminated ones have higher Y/Nb and Zr/Nb ratios. Therefore,
the uncontaminated lavas are indeed from a plume origin and contam-
inated lavas are the lithospherically contaminated lavas rather than the
arc related ones.
There is considerable variation in Sr and Nd isotopic compositions
among the continental basaltic lavas of the Emeishan LIP (Fig. 13g).
The uncontaminated basaltic lavas are characterized by lower-
moderate 87Sr/86Sr(t) (0.7034–0.7064) and moderate ɛNd(t) (0.2–5.3),
whereas the contaminated ones have higher 87Sr/86Sr(t)
(0.7043–0.7137) and lower to negative ɛNd(t) (−10.2 to +3.9)
(Fig. 13g). It can be seen from Fig. 13h that ɛNd(t) values positively cor-
relate with Nb/La ratios for the Emeishan basaltic lavas. This implies that
the variations of ɛNd(t) values of the Emeishan basaltic lavas are caused
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67 57

Fig. 14. Tectonic setting of Late Permian (260–251 Ma) continental flood basalts from the Emeishan large igneous province (LIP) (China). (a) Zr/Y versus Zr (ppm) diagram, suitable for
non-cumulate basalts (after Pearce and Norry, 1979); (b) Th/Yb versus Ta/Yb diagram (after Pearce, 1982); (c) 3Tb (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus 2Ta (ppm) diagram (after Cabanis and
Thiéblemont, 1988); (d) Hf/3 (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus Nb/16 (ppm) diagram (after Wood, 1980). Data sources are as in Fig. 13.

by variations in the degree of contamination by continental crust or lith-
osphere (Fig. 13h).
When we use Zr/Y–Zr diagram which does not use Nb, Ta or Ti as dis-
criminating factors, it can be seen that all of the Emeishan basaltic lavas
plot in the within-plate basalts (WPB) field (Fig. 14a). In contrast, when
several geochemical diagrams (Fig. 14b–d) using Nb, Ta or Ti as discrim-
inating factors are utilized, it can be observed that uncontaminated
samples are plotted still in the WPB field, but other lithospherically con-
taminated samples displace toward lower Nb, Ta or Ti and into the arc-
related fields.
7.2. Continental rift basalts (CRB)
7.2.1. Rio Grande CRB
The Rio Grande Rift is a north-trending continental rift zone that
separates the Colorado Plateau in the west from the interior of the
North American Craton on the east (Wood and Kienle, 1990). This rift
zone begins in central Colorado and runs southward to end in the
state of Chihuahua, Mexico (Fig. 1; Mack and Giles, 2004). The Rio
Grande Rift is a tectonically active structure that has evolved during
two stages: (1) the first phase was from the late Oligocene to early Mio-
cene during which thirty to 50% of the Rio Grande rift was made; volca-
nism at that time included basaltic andesites, andesites, and silicic ash
flow tuffs; (2) the second stage began around the mid-Miocene to Qua-
ternary and continues to the present; it is responsible for about 10% of
the Rio Grande extension; there is some evidence of the continuous
rifting including young fault scarps, seismicity, high heat flow, and on-
going uplift as established by geodetic measurements; mafic volcanism
is related to this stage (Leat et al., 1989, 1990; Gibson et al., 1992;
McMillan et al., 2000; Wolff et al., 2005).
Similar to Emeishan LIP, Magmatism of Rio Grande Rift was also
thought to be from a mantle plume origin (e.g., Leat et al., 1991). Even
so, the lithospherically contaminated basalts from the Rio Grande Rift
are also very similar to arc related basalts in some geochemical
characteristics.
In terms of Nb/La ratios, the Rio Grand Rift basaltic lavas can be also
divided into uncontaminated (Nb/La N 1.0) and contaminated (Nb/La
b 1.0) ones (Fig. 15a). It can be seen from Fig. 15a that the uncontami-
nated basaltic lavas have higher Nb concentrations (51–78 ppm) and
the contaminated ones exhibit generally lower Nb concentrations
(1.5–70 ppm). The Rio Grande Rift basaltic lavas comprise alkali basalt
and minor basalt, basanite, nephelinite; most of them belong to the alka-
line series and some of them belong to tholeiitic series (Fig. 15c and d).
The uncontaminated basaltic lavas show strong enrichment of in-
compatible trace elements and typical “hump-shaped” OIB-like intra
plate trace element patterns (i.e., absence of negative Nb, Ta and Ti
anomalies) (Fig. 15e). Although the contaminated basaltic lavas are
characterized by negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies (Fig. 15f), their con-
centrations of incompatible trace elements are evidently higher than
those of arc sub-alkaline basalts (Fig. 15f), distinguishing them from
the arc related basalts.
In addition, the variations of ɛNd values and 87Sr/8686 ratios of the Rio
Grande Rift basaltic lavas are closely related to the degrees of contami-
nation by continental crust or lithosphere. It can be seen from Fig. 15g
and h that: (1) uncontaminated samples constantly exhibit moderate
positive ɛNd values (+4.6 to +6.5) and lower 87Sr/8686 ratios (0.7031
to 0.7040); (2) contaminated samples are characterized by lower to
negative ɛNd (−7.7 to +0.5) and higher 87Sr/8686 (0.7031 to 0.7063);
(3) ɛNd values decrease with decreasing Nb/La ratios.
Fig. 15b shows that the uncontaminated basaltic lavas plot in the
mantle plume field, whereas the contaminated samples have higher
58 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 15. (a) Nb/La versus Nb (ppm) diagram, (b) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989), (c) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977),
(d) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (e, f) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams,
(g) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) and (h) Nb/La versus ɛNd diagram for Cenozoic basalts of the Rio Grande continental rift. d is for the sub-
alkaline basalts as plotted in c. Patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough (1989). The shaded area shows the range for arc sub-alkaline basalts, with the
lower and upper limits being defined by “average” low-K and high-K basalts, respectively (Tatsumi and Eggins, 1995). UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM II – enriched
mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge
basalts. E-MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

Y/Nb and Zr/Nb ratios. Therefore, the uncontaminated lavas are indeed
from a plume origin and the contaminated lavas are the lithospherically
contaminated continental intra plate lavas rather than the arc related
ones.
The Zr/Y–Zr diagram (Fig. 16a) displays that all the Rio Grande Rift
basaltic lavas plot in the within-plate basalts (WPB) field. By compari-
son, when several geochemical diagrams (Fig. 16b, c, d) using Nb, Ta
or Ti as discriminating factors are utilized, it can be discovered that un-
contaminated samples are plotted still in the WPB field, but the plots of
all other lithopherically contaminated samples are displaced toward
lower Nb, Ta or Ti and into the arc related field. In such a situation, the
lithospherically contaminated basaltic lavas cannot be regarded as vol-
canic arc basalts.
7.2.2. Ethiopian CRB
Traditionally, there has been a tendency to think of intracontinental
plate volcanism in terms of models of incipient continental fragmenta-
tion, as exemplified by the East African Rift system (Wilson, 1989).
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 16. Tectonic setting of Cenozoic basalts of the Rio Grande continental rift. (a) Zr/Y versus Zr (ppm) diagram, suitable for non-cumulate basalts (after Pearce and Norry, 1979); (b) Th/Yb
versus Ta/Yb diagram (after Pearce, 1982); (c) 3Tb (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus 2Ta (ppm) diagram (after Cabanis and Thiéblemont, 1988); (d) Hf/3 (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus Nb/
16 (ppm) diagram (after Wood, 1980). Data sources are as in Fig. 15.
This forms part of the much larger Afro-Arabian rift system (i.e., Afro-
Arabian Large Igneous Province. Fig. 1), extending some 6500 km from
Turkey to Mozambique, including the Dead Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden
and East African Rift System (EARS). The EARS consists of two main
branches: the Eastern Rift Valley and the Western Rift Valley. The East-
ern Rift Valley includes the Main Ethiopian Rift, running eastward from
the Afar Triple Junction, which continues south as the Kenyana Rift Val-
ley. The Western Rift Valley includes the Alertine Rift, and farther south,
the Valley of Lake Malawi. To the north of the Afar Triple Junction, the
rift follows one of two paths: west to Red Sea Rift or east to the Aden
Ridge in the Gulf of Aden (Chorowicz, 2005; Ebinger, 2005). The Main
Ethiopian Rift (MER) is a key sector of the EARS. Volumetrically-small
basaltic activity began at ~45 Ma in southernmost Ethiopia but the
peak of volcanic activity occurred at around 30–31 Ma and has contin-
ued episodically until Recent (Kieffer et al., 2004; Wolfenden et al.,
2005; Ayalew and Gibson, 2009; Corti, 2009). The distribution of the
Afro-Arabian LIP (Fig. 1) on the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden is highly asym-
metrical, with N90% of the Province preserved in Ethiopia (Corti, 2009).
Similar to Emeishan LIP and Rio Grand Rift, Magmatism of Main
Ethiopian Rift was also thought to be of plume origin (e.g., Ayalew and
Gibson, 2009).
In terms of Nb/La ratios, the basaltic lavas of the Main Ethiopian Rift
can be also divided into uncontaminated (Nb/La N 1.0) and slightly con-
taminated (0.8 b Nb/La b 1.0) (Fig. 17a). Fig. 17a shows that the uncon-
taminated basaltic lavas have higher Nb concentrations (20–90 ppm)
and the slightly contaminated ones exhibit generally lower concentra-
tions (27–38 ppm). The Main Ethiopian Rift basaltic lavas consist of al-
kali basalt and minor basalt, basanite, nephelinite; most of them
belong to the alkaline series and some of them display high FeOT/MgO
for a given SiO2 (Fig. 17c and d).
The uncontaminated basaltic lavas show strong enrichment of in-
compatible trace elements and typical “hump-shaped” OIB-like intra
59
plate trace element patterns (i.e., absence of negative Nb, Ta and Ti
anomalies) (Fig. 17e).
The slightly contaminated basaltic lavas are characterized by incon-
spicuous negative Nb anomalies (Fig. 17f) and their concentrations of
incompatible trace elements are apparently higher than those of arc
sub-alkaline basalts (Fig. 17f), distinguishing them from the arc related
ones.
In addition, the variations of ɛNd values and 87Sr/86Sr ratios of the
Main Ethiopian Rift basaltic lavas are closely related to the extents of
contamination by continental crust or lithosphere. It can be seen from
Fig. 17g and h that: (1) uncontaminated samples consistently exhibit
moderate positive ɛNd values (+1 to +7.1) and lower 87Sr/86Sr ratios
(0.7031 to 0.7044); (2) slightly contaminated samples are characterized
by lower to negative ɛNd (−0.2 to +0.8) and hihger 87Sr/86Sr (0.7039 to
0.7048); (3) ɛNd values decrease with decreasing Nb/La ratios.
Fig. 17b shows that the uncontaminated basaltic lavas plot in the
mantle plume field, whereas the slightly contaminated samples have
higher Y/Nb and Zr/Nb ratios. Therefore, the uncontaminated lavas are
indeed from a plume origin and the slightly contaminated lavas are
the lithospherically contaminated continental intra platelavas rather
than the arc related ones.
The Zr/Y-Zr diagram (Fig. 18a) displays that all the Main Ethiopian
Rift basaltic lavas plot in the within-plate basalts (WPB) field on
Fig. 18a. By comparison, when several geochemical diagrams (Fig. 18b,
c, d) using Nb, Ta as discriminating factors are utilized, it can be discov-
ered that all the Main Ethiopian Rift basaltic lavas, including uncontam-
inated and slightly contaminated samples, are plotted still in the WPB
(including WPT, WPA, and WPB) field. This may be related to the fact
that the Main Ethiopian Rift basaltic lavas only suffered a low degree
contamination by continental crust or lithosphere.
In conclusion, comparison of typical arc-related basaltic lavas
(Section 5) and typical continental intraplate basalts (Section 7) has
60 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 17. (a) Nb/La versus Nb (ppm) diagram, (b) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989), (c) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977),
(d) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (e, f) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams,
(g) 87Sr/86Sr versus ɛNd diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) and (h) Nb/La versus ɛNd diagram for Cenozoic basalts of the Ethiopian continental rift. d is for the sub-alkaline
basalts as plotted in c. Patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough (1989). The shaded area shows the range for arc sub-alkaline basalts, with the lower and
upper limits being defined by “average” low-K and high-K basalts, respectively (Tatsumi and Eggins, 1995). UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and
II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-MORB:
enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

given some clues: (1) continental basaltic lavas have generally higher
Nb concentrations relative to arc-related basalts; (2) uncontaminated
continental basaltic lavas show “hump-shaped” OIB-like trace element
patterns (i.e., absence of negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies); (3) conti-
nental crustal or lithospheric contamination of a plume-derived
magma could lead to marked Nb, Ta and Ti depletions; (4) although
the lithospherically contaminated continental basaltic lavas and the
arc related ones all have negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies, the concen-
trations of incompatible trace elements of the former are generally
higher than those of subduction-zone basalts; (5) uncontaminated con-
tinental basaltic lavas have moderate positive ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values,
whereas IOAB and IAB exhibit high positive ɛNd values;
(6) lithospherically contaminated continental basaltic lavas and CAB
all have lower to negative ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values, which may be related
to the contamination of an older continental lithosphere through
which the volcanic magmas have erupted; (7) although both continen-
tal lithospheric contamination and subducted slab-derived fluid and/or
melts could lead to low Nb/La ratios, only the former could yield
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 18. Tectonic setting of Cenozoic basalts of the Ethiopian continental rift. (a) Zr/Y versus Zr (ppm) diagram, suitable for non-cumulate basalts (after Pearce and Norry, 1979); (b) Th/Yb
versus Ta/Yb diagram (after Pearce, 1982); (c) Hf/3 (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus Ta (ppm) diagram (after Wood, 1980); (d) Hf/3 (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus Nb/16 (ppm) diagram
(after Wood, 1980). Data sources are as in Fig. 17.
significantly negative ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values; (8) in various geochemical
discriminant diagrams (e.g. Figs. 14, 16, 18), only the uncontaminated
continental basaltic lavas consistently plot in the within-plate basalts
(WPB) field; and (9) when the geochemical diagrams using Nb, Ta or
Ti as discriminating factors are utilized, the lithospherically contami-
nated continental basaltic lavas displace toward lower Nb, Ta or Ti and
into the arc related basalts field.
8. Oceanic plateau basalts (OPB)
Oceanic plateaus are large, relatively flat submarine regions that rise
well above the level of the ambient seabed. Some are clearly foundered
continental fragments (i.e., continental oceanic plateaus), but the ma-
jority have an intra plate volcanic origin (i.e., igneous oceanic plateaus
or oceanic plateau basalts) and they are characterized by vast areas
(N0.1 × 106 km2) of over-thickened oceanic crust (up to, and sometimes
N30 km) (Wilson, 1989; Kerr, 2003, 2014). Oceanic plateau lavas are
predominantly basaltic in composition, that are widely interpreted to
have formed by decompression melting of hot mantle plumes
(e.g., Floyd, 1989; Richards et al., 1989; Larson, 1991; Mahoney and
Spencer, 1991; Ito and Clift, 1998; Tejada et al., 2002), whereas, some
authors proposed that OPB are from a non-plume origin, including:
(1) plate separation above extensive, near-solidus, but non-plume re-
gions of shallow asthenosphere (e.g., Anderson et al., 1992; Smith and
Lewis, 1999; Hamilton, 2003), and (2) asteroid or comet impact
(Rogers, 1982). Since 1992, Oceanic plateau basalts (OPB) have been in-
corporated into the domain of “Large Igneous Provinces” (LIP) (Coffin
and Eldholm, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2005; Ernst et al., 2005; Sheth, 2007;
Bryan and Ernst, 2008).
61
The most recent major phase of oceanic plateau formation was in the
Cretaceous, during which time three main episodes of oceanic plateau
formation have been identified, mostly in the Pacific and Indian Oceans
(Kerr, 2003, 2014). The main plateaux that formed during the Creta-
ceous were the Ontong Java (~122 Ma), Caribbean–Colombian–Gorgona
(~90 Ma) and Kerguelen (~120 Ma to present) (Fig. 1).
The Cretaceous Ontong Java Plateau is characterized by very homoge-
neous basaltic rocks that may reflect either a homogeneous mantle source
region or perhaps, more likely, homogenization of heterogeneous melts
during extensive (up to 30%) melting. By contrast, the Cretaceous
Caribbean–Colombian–Gorgona Plateau was derived from a markedly
heterogeneous mantle source region and high MgO lavas are relatively
common. The early magmatism of the Kerguelen Plateau is associated
with the Early Cretaceous break-up of Gondwana and displays evidence
of contamination with continental lithosphere (Kerr, 2003, 2014).
The Cretaceous basaltic rocks from the Ontong Java and the Kergue-
len Plateaus are selected for comparison.
8.1. Ontong Java basalts
The Ontong Java Plateau (OJP), with an area of 2 × 106 km2 and a
maximum crustal thickness of N30 km, is the largest of several massive
oceanic plateaux that appeared at equatorial–to–mid–southern lati-
tudes in the Pacific Basin (Fig. 1; e.g., Kerr, 2003, 2014; Tejada and
Mahoney, 2007). All the Ontong Java Plateau lavas analyzed thus far
are basaltic in composition (Kerr, 2014). Constraints from 40Ar–39Ar
geochronology suggest most of the Ontong Java Plateau basalts was
emplaced in a short period around 122 Ma (Mahoney et al., 1993;
Tejada et al., 1996, 2002, 2004; Parkinson et al., 2001; Chambers et al.,
2004; Tejada and Mahoney, 2007).
62 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 19. (a) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977), (b) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (c) Primitive mantle (after Sun and
McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagram, (d) (La/Sm)N (normalized to primitive mantle: Sun and McDonough, 1989) versus Zr/Nb plot (modified
after Wilson, 1989), (e) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989) and (f) 87Sr/86Sr(t) versus ɛNd(t) diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) for Early
Cretaceous (~122 Ma) basalts of the Ontong Java oceanic plateau. b is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in a. In panel (c), pattern for oceanic island basalts (OIB) is from Sun and
McDonough (1989), and patterns for N-type MORB and E-type MORB are from Fig. 2(c, d). N-type MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-type MORB: transitional mid-
ocean ridge basalts. E-type MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust; EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle
source; DM – depleted mantle source. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB: transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts.
Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

The Ontong Java basaltic lavas comprise basalt and minor basaltic
andesite; all of them belong to the tholeiitic series (Fig. 19a, b). All of
the Ontong Java basalts are distinct from both OIB (ocean island basalt)
and N-MORB (normal mid-ocean-ridge basalt). They have both E-
MORB-like and T-MORB-like concentrations and patterns of incompati-
ble trace elements (normalized to primitive mantle (after Sun and
McDonough, 1989)) (Fig. 19c). Moreover, Fig. 19d and e also shows
that the Ontong Java basalts exhibit both E-MORB-like and T-MORB-
like Zr/Nb, Y/Nb and (La/Sm)N (normalized to primitive mantle: Sun
and McDonough, 1989) ratios. They are characterized by moderate
(87Sr/86Sr)(t) (=0.7025–0.7039) and moderate ɛNd(t) (4.5–6.5)
(Fig. 19f) that are similar to those of E-MORB to T-MORB. In addition,
in some discrimination diagrams, such as Th/Yb–Ta/Yb diagram, 3Tb–
Th–2Ta diagram and Hf/3–Th–Nb/16 diagram (Fig. 20), all of the Ontong
Java basalts plot in the MORB field.
As a whole, Ontong Java basalts have diagnostic geochemical charac-
teristics of E-MORB to T-MORB.
8.2. Kerguelen basalts
The Kerguelen Plateau covers an area of ~2.3 × 106 km2 (Coffin et al.,
2002) with basalts and a small, but significant volume proportion of
felsic volcanic rocks (dacites and rhyolites) in southern Indian Ocean
(Fig. 1). Felsic lavas are absent from the Ontong Java and Caribbean-
Colombian-Gorgonal Plateaux. Previous studies (Morgan, 1981; Royer
and Coffin, 1992; Frey et al., 2000) have proposed that the volcanism
of the Kerguelen Plateau is related in space and time to a combination
of the Kerguelen plume upwelling and continental rifting, and that the
initiation of the Kerguelen plume is associated with the break-up of
Gondwana in the early-mid Cretaceous, i.e., the separation of India,
Australia and Antarctica. The first massive pulse of Kerguelen plume
magmatism, perhaps associated with a plume head, created the south-
ern Kerguelen Plateau (118–110 Ma). Later melting of the plume tail
was responsible for the formation of the Elan Bank (108–107 Ma), the
Central Kerguelen Plateau (101–100 Ma); Broken Ridge (95–94 Ma),
the Ninetyeast Ridge (82–37 Ma) and the Northern Kerguelen Plateau
(69–34 Ma). Volcanism continues to the present-day and has produced
the Kerguelen Archipelago and McDonald Islands (e.g., Barling et al.,
1994; Nicolaysen et al., 2000; Doucet et al., 2002; Weis et al., 2002;
Doucet et al., 2005).
With time, the tectonic setting of the plume-derived magmatism
changed from a rifted continental margin setting (133–118 Ma), to
being located within a young, widening ocean (118–40 Ma), to forma-
tion at the southeast Indian Ridge (40–30 Ma) and, finally, an oceanic
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 20. Tectonic setting of Early Cretaceous (~122 Ma) basalts of the Ontong Java oceanic plateau. (a) Th/Yb versus Ta/Yb diagram (after Pearce, 1982); (b) 3Tb (ppm) versus Th (ppm)
versus 2Ta (ppm) diagram (after Cabanis and Thiéblemont, 1988); (c) Hf/3 (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus Nb/16 (ppm) diagram (after Wood, 1980). Data sources are as in Fig. 19.
intraplate setting (~30 Ma to the present), as the southeast Indian Ridge
gradually migrated away from the Kerguelen hotspot (Gautier et al.,
1990; Mattielli et al., 2002).
The pre-90 Ma (~120–90 Ma) basaltic lavas of the Kerguelen Plateau
have Nb/La ratios, (87Sr/86Sr)(t) ratios and ɛNd(t) values that range from
1.20 to 0.55, 0.7036 to 0.7072 and +5.5 to −5.1, respectively (Fig. 21a,
g). Low Nb/La ratios and the extreme Sr–Nd isotopic compositions of
~120–90 Ma Kerguelen basalts cannot be explained by mixing between
southeast Indian Ridge MORB and Kerguelen plume (cf. Weis and Frey,
1996) and it has been proposed that these signatures are due to con-
tamination by continental lithosphere (Storey et al., 1989; Alibert,
1991; Mahoney et al., 1995; Hassler and Shimizu, 1998; Frey et al.,
2002). During drilling at Site 1137 on the Elan Bank, clasts of garnet-
biotite gneiss were discovered in a fluvial conglomerate intercalated
with basalt flows (Frey et al., 2000), thus confirming the presence of
Precambrian crust rocks within the Kerguelen Plateau (Nicolaysen
et al., 2001; Weis et al., 2001; Ingle et al., 2002, 2003). These crustal frag-
ments had evidently become incorporated into the Indian Ocean basin
during continental break-up (Kerr, 2014). This finding lends consider-
able support to the lithospheric contamination model for the low Nb/
La, low ɛNd(t) basalts of the Kerguelen Plateau (Ingle et al., 2002; Kerr,
2014).The signature of lithospheric contamination is strongest in the
earliest parts of the Kerguelen Plateau (pre-90 Ma) and progressively
diminishes, with no lithospheric contamination being evident in the ba-
salts of the Kerguelen archipelago (b30 Ma) (Weis et al., 2002; Ingle
et al., 2003; Doucet et al., 2005).
The focus of this section is the geochemical characteristics of the
pre–90 Ma (~120–90 Ma) basaltic lavas from the Kerguelen Plateau.
It can be seen from Fig. 21a that the uncontaminated to slightly con-
taminated basaltic lavas from the Kerguelen Plateau have high-Nb con-
centrations (2–52 ppm) and Nb/La ratios (N0.8) and the strongly
contaminated ones exhibit low Nb/La ratios (b0.8) that distinguish
them from the uncontaminated to slightly contaminated basaltic
lavas, but their Nb concentrations (7–54 ppm) are similar. They consist
63
of basalt, alkali basalt and minor basaltic andesite, basaltic
trachyandesite. Most of the pre-90 Ma Kerguelen basaltic lavas belong
to the tholeiitic series, a part of which consists of the alkaline rocks
(Fig. 21c, d).
The uncontaminated to slightly contaminated basalts show moderate
to strong enrichment of incompatible trace elements and typical “hump-
shaped” OIB-like, E-MORB-like intraplate and flat T-MORB-like trace ele-
ment patterns (i.e., absence of negative Nb and Ta anomalies) (Fig. 21e).
Although the strongly contaminated rocks are characterized by distinct
negative Nb and Ta anomalies, their concentrations of incompatible
trace elements are similar to those of OIB and E-MORB (Fig. 21f).
The variations of ɛNd(t) values and (87Sr/86Sr)(t) ratios of the Ker-
guelen basaltic lavas are closely related to the extent of contamination
by continental crust or lithosphere. It can be seen from Fig. 21g, h
that: (1) uncontaminated and slightly contaminated samples consis-
tently exhibit higher ɛNd(t) values (−2.2 to +5.5) and lower
(87Sr/86Sr)(t) ratios (0.7036 to 0.7056); (2) strongly contaminated sam-
ples have lower ɛNd(t) values (−5 to 0.05) and higher (87Sr/86Sr)(t) ra-
tios (0.7048 to 0.7072); (3) ɛNd(t) values positively correlate with Nb/La
ratios. These may be related to contamination by an older continental
lithosphere. It must be pointed out that although both of lithospheric
contamination and slab-derived fluid and/or melts could lead to low
Nb/La ratios, only the former could yield significantly negative ɛNd(t)
values (Xia et al., 2013, 2016; Xia, 2014).
Although there are not any discrimination diagrams published that
contain OPB field, some trace element diagrams can still highlight the
diagnostic geochemical characteristics of the Kerguelen basalts. For ex-
ample, on a Hf/3–Th–Nb/16 diagram (Fig. 22b), it can be seen that
nearly all of uncontaminated and slightly contaminated samples
(i.e., rocks with Nb/La N 0.80) plot in the WPT and/or E-MORB field,
but the plots of all other strongly contaminated samples (i.e., rocks
with Nb/La b 0.80) displace toward lower Nb and into the arc-related
field. In this case, we cannot regard the lithospherically contaminated
basaltic rocks as arc related.
64 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67

Fig. 21. (a) Nb/La versus Nb (ppm) diagram, (b) Y/Nb versus Zr/Nb diagram (modified after Wilson, 1989), (c) SiO2 (wt%) versus Nb/Y diagram (after Winchester and Floyd, 1977),
(d) FeOT/MgO versus SiO2 (wt%) diagram (after Miyashiro, 1975), (e, f) Primitive mantle (after Sun and McDonough, 1989) normalized incompatible trace element spider diagrams,
(g) 87Sr/86Sr(t) versus ɛNd(t) diagram (modified after Zindler and Hart, 1986) and (h) Nb/La versus ɛNd(t) diagram for Cretaceous (~120–90 Ma) basalts of the Kerguelen oceanic
plateau. d is for the sub-alkaline basalts as plotted in c. In Fig. 18(e, f), patterns for oceanic island basalts (OIB) are from Sun and McDonough (1989), and patterns for N-type MORB
and E-type MORB are from Fig. 2(c, d). N-type MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-type MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. UC – upper crust; LC – lower crust;
EM I and EM II – enriched mantle I and II sources; HIMU – high-μ mantle source; DM – depleted mantle source. N-MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-MORB:
transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. Data sources: GEOROC (http://georoc.mpch-mainz.gwdg.de/georoc/).

The above-mentioned geochemical characteristics of the Kerguelen
basaltic lavas are consistent with the standard model that the early vol-
canic magmas of the Kerguelen Plateau were derived from a deep-
seated mantle plume, which was associated with the Early Cretaceous
rifting and break-up of Gondwana. The available elemental and Sr–Nd
isotope data suggest that geochemical variation of the contaminated
lavas can be explained by lithospheric contamination of plume-
derived magmas. Continental lithospheric contamination declines
with time as the Kerguelen plateau basalts become more oceanic in
character, with later magmas displaying compositions similar to those
of E-MORB to T-MORB and other OPB (e.g., Ontong Java basalts).
9. Summary and conclusions
(1) MORB and OIB have obviously different trace element and Sr-Nd
isotope geochemical characteristics, and they are distinguishable
in some tectonic setting discrimination diagrams (e.g., 3Tb–Th–
2Ta diagram).
 L. Xia, X. Li / Gondwana Research 65 (2019) 43–67
Fig. 22. (a) (La/Sm)N (normalized to primitive mantle: Sun and McDonough, 1989) versus Zr/Nb plot (modified after Wilson, 1989) and (b) Hf/3 (ppm) versus Th (ppm) versus Nb/16
(ppm) diagram (after Wood, 1980) for Cretaceous (~120–90 Ma) basalts of the Kerguelen oceanic plateau. N-type MORB: normal (depleted) mid-ocean ridge basalts. T-type MORB:
transitional mid-ocean ridge basalts. E-type MORB: enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts. Data sources are as in Fig. 21.
(2) Arc related basalts, including IOAB, IAB and CAB, exhibit follow-
ing distinguishing features: (a) they are characterized by low
Nb/La ratios (b0.85) and negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies;
(b) they consistently plot in the arc related basalts fields in
some diagrams (e.g., Th/Yb-Ta/Yb diagram); (c) IOAB, IAB and
continental arc tholeiitic basalts have obviously lower Nb con-
centrations (b8 ppm) and low enrichment of incompatible ele-
ments, and only continental arc shoshonitic basalts possess
higher Nb concentrations (13–16 ppm) and high concentrations
of incompatible trace elements; (d) IOAB and IAB are provided
with high positive ɛNd values (+2.7 to +9.5), and only CAB are
characterized by lower to negative ɛNd values (−3 to 1) that
might be related to contamination of an old continental crust or
lithosphere through which the continental arc basaltic magmas
have erupted.
(3) Contamination by continental crust or lithosphere can impart
subduction-like signature (e.g., low Nb, low Ta and low Ti) and
lead to the misidentification of contaminated continental intra
plate basalts (including continental flood basalts and continental
rift basalts) as arc related. In order to avoid making such mis-
takes, we must understand the essential differences between
continental intra plate basalts and arc related ones:
(a) uncontaminated continental intra plate basalts are character-
ized by having obviously higher Nb concentrations, Nb/La N 1
and moderate positive ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values, and showing
“hump-shaped” OIB-like trace element patterns; (b) the contam-
inated continental intra plate basalts have higher 87Sr/86Sr (or
87
Sr/86Sr(t)) ratios and lower to negative ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values,
whereas the arc relative ones exhibit low 87Sr/86Sr (or 87Sr/86Sr
(t)) ratios and high positive ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values except CAB
that have lower to negative ɛNd (or ɛNd(t)) values; besides, al-
though the contaminated continental intra plate basalts are char-
acterized by pronounced negative Nb, Ta and Ti anomalies, their
concentrations of incompatible trace elements are markedly
higher than those of arc related ones; (c) in various discrimina-
tion diagrams, only the uncontaminated continental intra plate
basalts immutably plot in the WPB field; (d) when the diagrams
using Nb, Ta or Ti as discriminating factors are utilized, the con-
taminated continental intra plate basalts displace toward lower
Nb, Ta or Ti and into the arc related basalts field, and they are
plotted merely in the WPB field of some diagrams which do not
use Nb, Ta or Ti as discriminating factors.
(4) The most essential difference between the BABB and the MORB is
that the former exhibit both MORB-like and arc-like geochemical
characteristics; 3Tb-Th-2Ta diagram can be utilized to fully illus-
trate both MORB-like and arc-like geochemical properties of the
BABB.
(5) Most of the OPB show diagnostic geochemical characteristics of
E-MORB to T-MORB. The Kerguelen Plateau is a special case of
65
the oceanic plateaus. The early (pre 90 Ma) volcanism of the Ker-
guelen Plateau is associated with the Early Cretaceous break-up
of Gondwana and displays feature of continental flood basaltic
volcanism. With time, the tectonic setting of the Kerguelen
plume-derived volcanism changed from a rifted continental mar-
gin setting (133–118 Ma), to being located within a young, wid-
ening ocean (118–40 Ma), to formation at the southeast Indian
Ridge (40–30 Ma) and, finally, an oceanic intra plate setting
(~30 Ma to the present), as the southeast Indian Ridge gradually
migrated away from the Kerguelen plume.
Acknowledgements
This study was financially supported by the Land and Resources Sur-
vey Project of China (Grant no. 1212010611804, 121201120133,
12120115070601, 12120101100015004) and the National Natural Sci-
ence Foundation of China (Grant no. 40472044). The constructive re-
views of M. Santosh, I. Savonova, an anonymous reviewer and H.
Furnes greatly improved the early version of this paper.
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Linqi Xia is a Professor of Geological Sciences at Xi'an Re-
search Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, China
Geological Survey (CGS), where he has been since 1962. Af-
ter a first degree at Nanjing University in 1962, Linqi Xia
stayed at Paris XI University to complete a Ph.D. on Petrology
and Volcanology from 1982 to 1984. He has worked on re-
gional volcanic petrology and regional metallogenic progno-
sis of orogenic belts. Recently his research interests have
been mainly in regional volcanism and Large Igneous Prov-
ince. He has published a number of papers in international
journals.
Xiangmin Li is a Professor of Geological Sciences at Xi'an Re-
search Institute of Geology and Mineral Resources, China
Geological Survey (CGS), where he has been since 1986. He
obtained his B.Sc. degree from the College of Changchun Ge-
ology in 1986, and his Ph.D. from Northwestern University in
2006. His research interests include petrology, geology of ore
deposits and geological evolution of orogenic belts.