Compositional and dynamic controls on mafic-silicic magma interactions at continental arc volcanoes: Evidence from Cordón El Guadal, Tatara-San Pedro Complex, Chile

Abstract

Heterogeneous andesitic and dacitic lavas on Cordón El Guadal bear on the general problem of how magmas of differing compositions and physical properties interact in shallow reservoirs beneath continental arc volcanoes. Some of the lavas contain an exceptionally large proportion (<40%) of undercooled basaltic andesitic magma in various states of disaggregation. Undercooled mafic magma occurs in the silicic lavas as large (<40 cm) basaltic andesitic magmatic inclusions, as millimeter-sized crystal-clots of Mg-rich olivine phenocrysts plus adhering Ca-rich plagioclase microphenocrysts (An50-70), and as uniformly distributed, isolated phenocrysts and microphenocrysts. Compositions and textures of plagioclase phenocrysts indicate that inclusion-forming magmas are hybrids formed by mixing basaltic and dacitic melts, whereas textural features and compositions of groundmass phases indicate that the andesitic and dacitic lavas are largely mechanical mixtures of dacitic magma and crystallized basaltic andesitic magma. This latter observation is significant because it indicates that mechanical blending of undercooled mafic magma and partially crystallized silicic magma is a possible mechanism for producing the common porphyritic texture of many calc-alkaline volcanic rocks. The style of mafic-silicic magma interaction at Cordón El Guadal was strongly dependent upon the relative proportions of the endmembers. Equally important in the Guadal system, however, was the manner in which the contrasting magmas were juxtaposed. Textural evidence preserved in the plagioclase phenocrysts indicates that the transition from liquid-liquid to solid-liquid mixing was not continuous, but was partitioned into periods of magma chamber recharge and eruption, respectively. Evidently, during periods of recharge, basaltic magmas rapidly entrained small amounts of dacitic magma along the margins of a turbulent injection fountain. Conversely, during periods of eruption, dacitic magma gradually incorporated small parcels of basaltic andesitic magma. Thus, the coupled physical-chemical transition from mixed inclusions to commingled lavas is presumably not coincidental. More likely, it probably provides a partial record of the dynamic processes occurring in shallow magma chambers beneath continental arc volcanoes.