Early differentiation of silicate soil recorded in Archean rocks of Isua (Greenland) : implications on mantle dynamics over time

• Main Author: Rizo Garza, Hanika
• Other Authors: Laboratoire Magmas et Volcans (LMV), Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Jean Monnet Saint-Étienne (UJM)-Université Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand 2 (UBP)-Observatoire de Physique du Globe de Clermont-Ferrand (OPGC), Université Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand 2 (UBP)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Blaise Pascal - Clermont-Ferrand II, Maud Boyet, Hervé Martin
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: French
• Published: HAL CCSD 2012
• Subjects: Early differentiation; 142Nd; Hadean; Archean; Isua; Silicate Earth; Hadéen; Archeen; Terre silicatée; Différenciation précoce; [SDU.STU]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Earth Sciences; Greenland; Groenland
• Online Access: https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00861891; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00861891/document; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00861891/file/Rizo-2012CLF22270.pdf

The composition and the evolution of the silicate Earth during the Hadean-Eoarchean is widely debated and largely unknown due to the limited geological record. The first undisputable evidence for a very early differentiation of the mantle came from the extinct 146Sm-142Nd chronometer. The 142Nd excesses measured in 3.7 billion year (Ga) old rocks from Isua (Southwest Greenland) relative to modern terrestrial samples imply their derivation from a depleted mantle formed in the Hadean. We have studied 146,147Sm–142,143Nd and 176Lu–176Hf isotope systematics in 3.8 Ga, 3.7 Ga, 3.4 Ga and 3.3 Ga mantle-derived samples from different tectonic domains of the Isua region. This dataset covers ~ 500 million years of the early history of the Earth and revealed precious information about the compositional evolution and dynamics of the early Earth mantle. Combined Lu-Hf and Sm-Nd of the 3.7 Ga Isua samples revealed that these isotopic systematics were decoupled, suggesting a deep-seated source for the Isua lavas. We have further expanded the dataset and confirmed the 142Nd excesses in these rocks, implying that their source was depleted and differentiated during the first 100 Ma of Earth’s history. The differentiation event that created this early-depleted reservoir had to also form a complementary enriched component. We have found the first evidence for this reservoir recorded in the 3.4 Ga samples that yielded negative 142Nd anomalies. However, the 3.3 Ga analyzed samples showed no resolvable 142Nd anomalies compared to terrestrial Nd standards. This suggests that the Hadean heterogeneities were likely isolated for more than 1 Ga before being completely rehomogeneized by 3.3 Ga. The remixing by 3.3 Ga could have been achieved by subduction processes due to the onset of modern plate tectonics at ~3.2 Ga, as proposed by other recent studies. L’enregistrement géologique de l’Hadéen et de l’Eoarcheén étant limité, la composition et l’évolution de la Terre silicatée au cours de ces périodes reste très débattue et peu connue. ...