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U-Th-Pb Systematics
During partial melting and fractional crystallisation of magma, U and Th are concentrated in the liquid phase and become incorporated into the more silica-rich products. Therefore igneous rocks of granitic composition are more enriched in U and Th than basaltic or ultramafic rocks Consequently, the continental crust has more U and Th than the upper mantle.
Decay of U to Pb
Uranium has three naturally occuring isotopes all of which are radioactive
238U, 235U
and
234U
Thorium exists primarily as one radioactive isotope 232Th However, there are five short lived intermediate daughters of 238U, 235U and 232Th
238U, 235U
and 232Th are each the parent of a chain of radioactive daughters ending with stable isotopes of Pb.
Decay of U to Pb
The three principal decay schemes are:
92U
-> 82Pb206 + 82He4 + 6b- + Q 235 -> 207 + 7 He4 + 4b- + Q 92U 82Pb 2 232 -> 208 + 6 He4 + 4b- + Q 90Th 82Pb 2
238
Although 43 isotopes of 12 elements are formed as intermediate daughters in these decay systems, none is a member of more than one series
The decay of
238U
to
206Pb
Accepted Values
The decay constants of the naturally occurring long-lived isotopes of U and Th and the atomic 238U/235U ratio were fixed by the IUGS Subcommission on Geochronology during 1977 (Steiger and Jger, 1977) as follows
The isotopic composition of U is normal and has not been modified by isotope fractionation or by the occurrence of a natural chain reaction based on fission of 235U. All analytical results are accurate and free of systematic errors.
Discordant Ages
In many instances dates calculated for minerals containing U and Th are not concordant (different ages depending on the decay scheme used). Pb, U or Th loss Intermediate daughter product loss The effect of Pb loss on U-Pb dates can be minimised by calculating a date based on the 207Pb/206Pb ratio. This ratio is insensitive to recent lead loss, ie when the Pb that was lost had the same isotope composition as the Pb that remained in the mineral being analysed. The relationship between the 207Pb/206Pb ratio and time results from the differences in the half lives of their respective parents.
206/207Pb
Ages
The relationship expressing the relationship between 206Pb and 207Pb ages can be found by combining the decay equations for 238U/206Pb and 235U/207Pb
206/207Pb
Ages
The above relationship contains the ratio 235U/238U whose value is a constant = 1/137.88. Also the relationship (207Pb/206Pb)* is the ratio of radiogenic 207Pb* to radiogenic 206Pb* where the * indicates that it is radiogenic. The radiogenic (207Pb/206Pb)* ratio is calculated by subtracting the assumed initial 207Pb/204Pb and initial 206Pb/204Pb values from the measured values of these ratios. What this means is that the calculation of 207-206 dates does not require the concentration of Pb or U to be known, just the isotope ratios of Pb
206/207Pb
Ages
Using the previous information, 207-206 dates can be calculated from the following equation
But now we have a problem because the above equation cant be solved algebraically To remedy this, tables of values for (207/206Pb)* for different values of t can be compiled and an interpolation made
206/207Pb
Ages
Concordia Diagrams
Data from the previous table can also be used to plot a concordia diagram. Concordia diagrams are the most commonly used diagram for plotting radiogenic U-Pb data This is because isochron diagrams utilising only one decay scheme cannot indicate if the ages are concordant with respect to one of the other two decay schemes Concordia diagrams plot 206Pb*/238U ratios versus 207Pb*/235U ratios which are equal to the el1t-1 and el2t-1 values in the previous table
Discordia
Data plotted on a Concordia Diagram will invariably plot either on the concordia or below the concordia A straight line fitted through the discordant zircons back to the concordia curve gives the age of formation of the zircon The lower intercept is more ambiguous. It can indicate the time of Pb-loss if Pb loss is episodic, ie occurs as a single event If however Pb-loss occurs via continuous diffusion then the lower intercept has less meaning Monazite sometimes displays U-loss which causes it to plot above the concordia curve on an extrapolation of the discordia line
A Real Example
0.24
data-point error ellipses are 2 s
00 13
2
0.20
00 11
0 90
206Pb/238U
0.16
0.12
0 70
0 50
0.08
30 0
0.04
10 0
0.00 0.0 0.4 0.8 1.2 1.6 2.0 2.4 2.8
207
Pb/
235
Terra-Wasserburg Diagrams
The Terra-Wasserburg diagram uses 238U/206Pb* vs (207Pb/206Pb)* and has a different curvature to the traditional concordia
Terra-Wasserburg Diagrams
Real Data