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Fluid inclusion evidence for subsurface phase separation and variable fluid mixing regimes beneath the deep-sea PACMANUS hydrothermal filed, Manus Basin back arc rift, Papua New Guinea

Fluid inclusion evidence for subsurface phase separation and variable fluid mixing regimes beneath the deep-sea PACMANUS hydrothermal filed, Manus Basin back arc rift, Papua New Guinea
Fluid inclusion evidence for subsurface phase separation and variable fluid mixing regimes beneath the deep-sea PACMANUS hydrothermal filed, Manus Basin back arc rift, Papua New Guinea
Altered volcanic rocks were cored from over 350 m below the seafloor at the Papua New Guinea-Australia-Canada Manus Basin Hydrothermal Field (PACMANUS) deep-sea hydrothermal field, in the eastern Manus back arc basin. Fluid inclusions in anhydrite veins reveal phase separation and fluid mixing beneath the seafloor. The anhydrite precipitated from high-temperature fluids (150–385°C). At Roman Ruins, a site of active high-temperature venting (220–276°C, measured by submersible), the fluid inclusion thermal depth profile is uniform and high temperature (242–368°C). At Snowcap, a site of warm water effusion (6–65°C), the fluid inclusions indicate high temperatures at depth (270–385°C) but both low and high temperatures in the shallower section. This indicates a flow regime dominated by vertical advection and shallow entrainment and mixing with cool seawater. Inclusions at Snowcap exhibit extreme salinity variations due to phase separation at temperatures above 350°C. Fluids contain Na, Cl, Fe, Zn, Mg, and Ba and a minor gas component such as CO2 or CH4. Most inclusions at Roman Ruins exhibit salinities that fall within the range of those observed at modern active vent sites along the mid-ocean ridge system. Fluid inclusion temperatures support a hypothesis, developed previously from Sr-isotopic analysis, that the subseafloor at Snowcap is characterized by mixing between deep-sourced hot hydrothermal fluids and cold seawater-like fluid. Both heating of seawater and cooling of upwelling hydrothermal fluids can be recognized by combining isotopic and fluid inclusion data. In contrast to Snowcap, the regime at Roman Ruins is less varied, with uniformly high-temperature upwelling fluids that have hydrothermally dominated Sr-isotopic ratios.
0148-0227
B03201-[14pp]
Vanko, David A.
0d39c966-524d-4c15-8ee3-15ad2d516f4e
Bach, Wolfgang
aca0e0cb-1830-43bc-8410-e50a1e392b8a
Roberts, Stephen
f095c7ab-a37b-4064-8a41-ae4820832856
Yeats, Christopher J.
240b7231-5a00-46e6-80bb-1e4ebe1d9eb2
Scott, Steven D.
cf753c7c-a93a-4a69-9469-4b6bc31fc629
Vanko, David A.
0d39c966-524d-4c15-8ee3-15ad2d516f4e
Bach, Wolfgang
aca0e0cb-1830-43bc-8410-e50a1e392b8a
Roberts, Stephen
f095c7ab-a37b-4064-8a41-ae4820832856
Yeats, Christopher J.
240b7231-5a00-46e6-80bb-1e4ebe1d9eb2
Scott, Steven D.
cf753c7c-a93a-4a69-9469-4b6bc31fc629

Vanko, David A., Bach, Wolfgang, Roberts, Stephen, Yeats, Christopher J. and Scott, Steven D. (2004) Fluid inclusion evidence for subsurface phase separation and variable fluid mixing regimes beneath the deep-sea PACMANUS hydrothermal filed, Manus Basin back arc rift, Papua New Guinea. Journal of Geophysical Research, 109 (B3), B03201-[14pp]. (doi:10.1029/2003JB002579).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Altered volcanic rocks were cored from over 350 m below the seafloor at the Papua New Guinea-Australia-Canada Manus Basin Hydrothermal Field (PACMANUS) deep-sea hydrothermal field, in the eastern Manus back arc basin. Fluid inclusions in anhydrite veins reveal phase separation and fluid mixing beneath the seafloor. The anhydrite precipitated from high-temperature fluids (150–385°C). At Roman Ruins, a site of active high-temperature venting (220–276°C, measured by submersible), the fluid inclusion thermal depth profile is uniform and high temperature (242–368°C). At Snowcap, a site of warm water effusion (6–65°C), the fluid inclusions indicate high temperatures at depth (270–385°C) but both low and high temperatures in the shallower section. This indicates a flow regime dominated by vertical advection and shallow entrainment and mixing with cool seawater. Inclusions at Snowcap exhibit extreme salinity variations due to phase separation at temperatures above 350°C. Fluids contain Na, Cl, Fe, Zn, Mg, and Ba and a minor gas component such as CO2 or CH4. Most inclusions at Roman Ruins exhibit salinities that fall within the range of those observed at modern active vent sites along the mid-ocean ridge system. Fluid inclusion temperatures support a hypothesis, developed previously from Sr-isotopic analysis, that the subseafloor at Snowcap is characterized by mixing between deep-sourced hot hydrothermal fluids and cold seawater-like fluid. Both heating of seawater and cooling of upwelling hydrothermal fluids can be recognized by combining isotopic and fluid inclusion data. In contrast to Snowcap, the regime at Roman Ruins is less varied, with uniformly high-temperature upwelling fluids that have hydrothermally dominated Sr-isotopic ratios.

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Published date: March 2004

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 13532
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/13532
ISSN: 0148-0227
PURE UUID: e8fe6b01-7f26-4540-8caa-2fe3bb14ecdd
ORCID for Stephen Roberts: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-4755-6703

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Date deposited: 08 Dec 2004
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 02:37

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Contributors

Author: David A. Vanko
Author: Wolfgang Bach
Author: Stephen Roberts ORCID iD
Author: Christopher J. Yeats
Author: Steven D. Scott

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